What Happened in The Dalles

[Mailliw73 he/him]

The blonde responded as she kicked a panda into a brick wall. "No I'm not, those Slontzes threatened to kill me far too many times for my liking so if you're with them you can just go back and tell whatever Slontze you work for that Impact is not working for them and if one more guard threatens me in any way then I'll start throwing buildings at them." Frequency liked her courage. Rash, but brave. Something he wished he didn't have to pretend he was.

"Capiche?" The blonde asked, looking at Frequency, daring him to defy her.

"Lucky for you, we aren't with the city either. We've come to remove the prideful humans from their place in "ruling" this city. A pretty girl like you shouldn't take on the whole town by herself. Won't you join us?" Frequency asked, smiling his kindest smile. He leaned on his cane as Canis twitched with impatience. He wanted the girl for himself. Attractive as she was, Frequency would never allow a pig like Canis to touch her. Especially if she joined them. Without a basis of trust, the group would disband at the slightest provocation. But, Frequency admitted to himself, he'd like to see Canis even try to get close to her. If he judged her right, she'd slam Canis into the nearest wall and then demolish his body till it turned to dust.

Edgerunner quietly watched the three other girls negotiate. Lucy was suspicious of the two newcomers, but both seemed anxious to help fight. The necklaces of ink applied themselves to the skin of both girls, threatening both with imminent death. Lucy was going a bit overboard with security precautions. She probably listened to Arsenal's boring lectures.

The other two seemed to accept the necklaces though, so that went better than she'd expected. Edgerunner watched as the three others began destroying animals. Her powers weren't long range ones, but they were effective. She wasn't going to look stupid in front of Elsa and MV. Edgerunner began divebombing the pandas, blades swishing violently in the air. One moment in her hand, the next, buried in a panda's skull. She flew and slid around with great precision, stopping the pandas' weapons in their tracks. After the area had been cleared, she flew back up to the three other girls.

"How about we go make fun of Reader Rabbit and show him he needs to be protected by a bunch of girls? I bet he'd loooove that," Edgerunner said, emphasizing the word love.

[mail-mi he/him]

 

The trip back had been relatively uneventful. Humans-turned-pandas had been killed, identities had been checked at the border, and my sparking nose hurts like Calamity's cupcakes. 

 

Reader led Ozy and Frosty the Snowman--if he's going to give me a nickname like Goldilocks he better well be prepared to have one himself--through the Dalles to Doctor Game's clinic. Unfortunately, since Koshei, the Dalles hadn't had a real healer, so they had to make due with a vanilla doctor. 

 

Which meant it was going to take sparking forever to get Reader's nose fixed. 

 

He didn't speak on the way there, for fear of being hit or choked again. His neck was still sore from Frosty's cold grip. Insults ran through his head like mice towards cheese, and it took all his willpower not to spit them in Frosty's face. 

 

They reached Game's clinic quickly. "We're sthopping here first, because sthomeone decided it would be besth to break my face." He glared at Frosty, but was met only with a smirk. Biting his tongue, Reader pushed open the doors. 

 

And saw one person he had not expected to see. 

 

She hadn't seen him yet, but she definitely was seeing someone. The glittery Epic Shiny Sparkle next to her was busy rubbing her cheek against hers, and Reader could feel the affection radiating out of her. 

 

He smiled big, even though it hurt his nose. This is just too good. 

 

He walked up behind her. "Hey Autumn," he said deviously. "Introduthe me to your new fling." 

Edited March 18, 2015 by mail-mi

[Comatose he/him]

 

"Welcome to New York!  I've been waiting for you!  Welcome to New York, Welcome to New York!"  Taylor danced down the broken highway with her signature awkwardness.  New York might be gone, along with her darling cats Meredith and Olivia Benson, but that didn't mean she couldn't rock out to one of her own sick beats.  She hadn't trademarked the term, "This sick beat," for nothing, after all.  It also didn't matter that trade marks also didn't really apply any more.  She was still Taylor Swift.  She made her own rules. 

 

"And you can want, who you want.  Boys n'..."  The music cut out suddenly.  Taylor scowled, letting her righteous fury mar her perfect features.  She was running out of charged iPods, which meant she would need to find some electricity soon.  Still scowling, she reached into her bag, she placed the dead iPod into a Ziploc bag marked "Haters," and took a fresh one out of the bag marked "Starbucks Lovers."  It was not until a new song began that she allowed her expression to settle into a look of contentment. 

 

"I don't know about you; I'm feeling 22!"  Taylor supposed that one benefit of her shape-shifting powers was that she could be 22 forever.  Without noticing, Taylor subtly shifted her appearance, making herself appear a few years younger.  How old had she been when Calamity arrived?  It was too bad all her super model and musician friends hadn't become epics as well.  Her company was a gift, after all, and it seemed a shame that she had no one to share it with. 

 

If only Olivia Benson and Meridith could be here!  A while back, Taylor had found a weaker shape-shifter who could only turn into different kinds of cats.  For a while, she had forced the shape shifter to follow her around, alternating between the forms of Olivia Benson and Meridith, but the little epic completely failed to mimic Olivia Benson's snarky attitude or Meridith's perfect pout.  She had been left with no choice but to kill the little epic, lest he ruin Olivia Benson and Meridith's memory.  

 

Taylor was shocked from her song-induced revery when a drifter lept out from behind a nearby bush and menaced her with a knife. 

 

"Hand over the bag, lady, and make it quick if you don't want any trouble."  Taylor could feel the vagabond's eyes running up and down her super-model's physique.  She waited for the pang of recognition when he would realize just who he was trying to rob. 

 

"The bag, lady.  I don't want to hurt you, but these are desperate times, what with everything that's going on in the Dalles..."  Taylor rolled her eyes, and proceeded to tune out the rest of the man's ramblings.  How dare he not realize who she was.  When 1989 came out, Taylor had been the biggest thing to happen since Frozen! 

 

When the man took a step closer with the knife, Taylor lost her patience entirely.  In her stylish 2 inch heels, she was normally a perfect 6" tall, but as her anger grew, so did she, until she towered a full foot over the man.  Her slim but toned arms swelled as she put on muscle.  Her signature outfit that bared her midriff but not her belly button expanded with the rest of her.  The man turned to run, but Taylor moved quickly, catching him by the neck in her enhanced grip. 

 

"Look at you," she sneered, not bothering to make her face look cute.  "You're nothing but a no good hater!  You know what I do to haters?  I don't let them bother me.  I just shake them off, like they are nothing.  You hear that?  You are nothing, just a worthless nobody.  And I, am Taylor Swift!  The man's face was beginning to turn blue from lack of air.  Sighing,Taylor shrugged and then turned, flipping the man over her head and smashing him head first into the crumbling pavement.  Then, she took a few deep breaths to clam herself, and shrunk bag to her regular size.  The man had mentioned the Dalles, that meant Taylor was getting close.  She had heard rumours that a group of normal humans had formed a community there, supposedly free from epic control.  If that was true, there was a chance that her target would be hiding there, or that someone there could at least give her some sort of lead. 

 

As she continued to walk down the highway, Taylor put her ear-buds back in and started singing to herself.

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles she/her]

 

The recording chip had run its course. 

 

Autumn had successfully kept it between her fingers for the trip to Game's office, for the greeting, and—most importantly—for the flirting. Now its time had been exhausted, and not a single word had been sent to Arsenal. She released it and withdrew her hand from her pocket. When all this was over, she could smash it and throw out the pieces with the rest of the trash. Arsenal would never hear a word of it. Shiny Sparkle threw her arms around her shoulders, and Autumn smiled. She could make the introductions on her own terms, in her own time, when Arsenal was in a better mood. Or what passed for a better mood with him. 

 

The door opened and closed, but Autumn paid little attention. She let Shiny Sparkle rub her cheek against hers again. This wasn't so bad, actually. Maybe Arsenal wouldn't….well, he seldom approved of anything, but maybe he wouldn't disapprove. Or at the very least, not make a stink about it. Accept her rationale and dismiss it as a quirk of fate that might work out well for the City Guard after all. 

 

"Hey Autumn."

 

Autumn's heart dropped. She knew that voice. It was more nasally than usual, but she knew it. Oh, how she knew it. 

 

Reader.

 

She caught him out the corner of her eye, his nose bloodied and crooked and a wicked grin stretched across his face. "Introduthe me to your new fling." 

 

It was too much. Reader would tell everyone, no matter what she said. Everything would be distorted and stretched until the truth was irrelevant. She wanted to grab him by the collar and throw him out onto the sidewalk. But he was an Epic, and there were two more Epics with him. Two more Epics whose names she didn't know. 

 

Two more Epics she hadn't vetted. 

 

It wasn't much. Reader hadn't interviewed Shiny Sparkle, after all, but everyone knew she had final say when it came to new Epics. Perhaps that reminder would get him to shut up for a moment. And if they were only there because the smirking one had broken his nose—as she suspected—then that was a breach of conduct, at the very least. Threats were not a viable reason for taking on a new Epic. 

 

Autumn smiled, pulling away from Shiny Sparkle but allowing her hand to slip into hers. "Reader, this is Shiny Sparkle. She's here to help with the pandas, and she's definitely proven herself trustworthy." She nodded to the two strangers, one of whom wore a smirk. "Who are these two? And what happened to your nose?" 

Edited March 17, 2015 by TwiLyghtSansSparkles

[Aonar he/him]

 
The walk in to the Dalles was fortunately uneventful. Goldilocks was blessedly quiet, aside from the odd grumbled complaint about his nose, and they met less than a half dozen pandas on the way; easily taken care of, although for some peculiar reason Ozymandias insisted upon disintegrating their fur, first.
 
A few soldiers were stationed in an outpost, but they waved them through without question, more concerned with the invading animals. They stopped not far inside the city limits, in front of a low building that might have been a clinic.
 
"We're sthopping here first, because sthomeone decided it would be besth to break my face." Frostfire smirked. Hearing Goldilocks speak with a lisp was immensely satisfying. The slontze deserved to be taken down a few pegs. The Epic glared at him, clearly biting back an insult. 
 
Entering the clinic behind the telepath, Frostfire quickly scanned the interior. Several vanillas, a single small animal, and two Epics, scattered throughout a few small rooms. Nothing terribly dangerous.
 
Goldilocks started towards a couple, one very sparkly Epic and a vanilla, and spoke, a leering grin on his face. "Hey Autumn. Introduthe me to your new fling."
 
The vanilla turned, surprise turning to displeasure. She doesn't look too happy to see him. Interesting. I'd imagine Goldilocks isn't too well liked by anyone, but an immediate reaction like that? Obviously some sort of history there. 
 
"Reader, this is Shiny Sparkle. She's here to help with the pandas, and she's definitely proven herself trustworthy." Reader. Okay, that makes sense. But Shiny Sparkle? Who in their right mind chooses that as a name? No one, that's who. She might be someone to be careful around. Autumn continued, gesturing towards Ethan and Ozy. "Who are these two? And what happened to your nose?"
 
This seemed as good a place as any to step in. Autumn's Epic date appeared a little annoyed at the interruption, and Goldilocks didn't seem the sort who could be trusted to give an unbiased -or even honest- account. Ethan gave a little wave from behind Reader, to draw their attention. "Ah... That would be my fault, I believe. Don't let Goldilocks- or Reader, rather, tell you he didn't deserve it, though." He smiled a little more honestly, now.
 
"My name is Ethan, or Frostfire, if you prefer, and 'Flip-flops' over there calls himself Ozymandias. It's a pleasure to meet you, Autumn, and you too, Shiny Sparkle." He stepped forwards, offering his hand to shake.

Edited March 17, 2015 by Aonar Faileas

[Voidus]

Impact considered the offer carefully, MV was the rash one who always jumped into things. Impact had always preferred being cautious in her approach. But the energy she felt at using her abilities so liberally on the army that had caused her inconvenience compelled her to act, not to think. She found herself rushing to a decision far faster than was usual.

"Sure, I'll join up with you guys for now." She said, watching the disturbing eyes of the group of men.

Well she was used to it by now, they weren't as bad as that Nighthound guy anyway. And as powerful as she felt that moment she nearly considered travelling back to Portland just to hit that guy for being such a creep.

Stay focused, they're just guys, ignore it and soon you won't have to worry about gross guys hitting on you all the time. Megan was the one who enjoyed the attention anyways you can finally live your own life, have a city of your own.

"Word of warning though, first guy to get handsy loses the hand." She said sternly, heading away from the panda corpses towards the group of Epics.

"I'm Impact. As you may have noticed I like breaking things, hurting people who annoy me and flying. I don't like fuzzy animals, flirty guys or Slontzes who threaten me when they're just stupid telepaths with no actual powers. So you have a plan?"

She stopped several feet away from the lead Epic and his cane, posing with hand on hip as she looked sternly at the Epics. If they turned out to be strong then she'd best at least be somewhat polite, if they weren't, well she could always use more things to throw at those dumb animals.
 

[Kobold King he/him]

 

 

 

A woman screamed.

 

A couple of shots were fired, but they were paltry next to the dozen crossbow bolts that launched through the street. A guardsmen was shot through the chest, falling to the ground with blood in his mouth. The other ducked behind the building with a curse, forced to fall back.

 

The pandas advanced, their shapes quickly filling the narrow street. They pushed their dead against the building walls, clearing their way to the toppled car that the panicked young woman was hiding behind. A pair of pandas approached from either flank, swords and crossbows in hand. The sun set behind them, illuminating their horrid yet inexplicably endearing forms in the shade of blood. The woman closed her eyes tightly against this last sight of her life.

 

A crossbow bolt let fly, whizzing through the air at the human heart--but the cry of pain that it drew forth was not human.

 

Standing solidly between the pandas and the woman was a tall man, standing in a black leather jacket only slightly marred by the crossbow bolt jutting from his chest. His face was sharp, with a large nose, wide eyes, and a smirk that was entirely the opposite of what you'd expect from a man who'd just been fatally impaled. With a casual motion he yanked the bolt from his chest cavity and tossed it to the ground.

 

The panda that had fired the would-have-been killing shot let out a scream of pain and shock, its already-huge eyes bulging from its face as a wound tore itself into its torso. It fell to the ground with a clatter of wood on asphalt, a gaping hole in its chest and blood gurgling out from its snout.

 

Still grinning at the action, the man in the leather jacket pulled two pistols from his side, blasting rounds into the startled pandas. Hairy heads exploded to the sounds of gunshots, and more pandas fell with wounds in their chests from the bolts that they fired.

 

Deathwish stepped over the bodies of each one, finally looming over a trembling panda with a sword clutched in its paws. Still smiling, he seized the shaking humanoid's arms and guided its blade to his own heart. The panda squealed in protest as it was forced to stab the Epic. It groaned as its own heart was rent by the sword that was piercing Deathwish's chest. It slid to the hard stone of the street, blood bubbling from its lips.

 

Standing triumphantly over the pile of panda corpses, the Epic pulled a radio from his belt. "This is Deathwish to Arsenal," he said through it, "I cleaned up the mess by the river. The ones that haven't withdrawn already are dead."

 

"Good work," the voice rasped over the line. "Stand by for further orders."

 

Deathwish nodded curtly, attaching the radio back to his belt. He smiled upon seeing the woman climbing out form behind the toppled car.

 

"You OK, babe?" he asked, slicking his hair back and stepping towards her.

 

"Y-yeah," the woman stammered. She was shaking worse than the last bear had been, eyes glued to the piles of carnage around her. "They were... they were everywhere..."

 

Deathwish shushed her with a finger on her lips. "It's over now, miss. They're gone."

 

The woman--or girl, she couldn't be more than nineteen--nodded, still obviously in shock. Deathwish grinned, snaking his hand downwards to give her hip a tight squeeze. 

 

"I'm a busy man, babe," he whispered in her ear. "But if you wanted to repay me, well, you can show up at my quarters later tonight. I'm sure we could work something out..."

 

Slap.

 

The shock on the girl's face quickly gave way to anger and a fair bit of disgust. She slapped him hard in the face and shoved away from him, hurriedly stalking away down the street.

 

"Fine, be that way!" Deathwish shouted after her. "You ungrateful wh--"

 

"Arsenal to Deathwish," the raspy voice interrupted over the radio. His voice was barely able to modulate over steady static. "I'm getting reports of unknown Epics across the city. We need to regroup our assets; head to the city limits and relocate the Florist to the command center." 

 

"The Florist?" Deathwish snapped incredulously, still rubbing his cheek from his slap. "That creep? What's he gonna do, pollinate them to death?"

 

"You've received your orders. Go!"

 

Grumbling under his breath about Dewhickey and the towns where no girl would dare say no to him, Deathwish took off again and headed for the city limits.

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

“Work, huh? Sounds important, do you get around a lot? Oh, and could you make your shoulder free?”

 

Backtrack did what the doctor said while pondering a response. 

 

"Uh..." he said finally. "I guess you could say that. I moved out of San Fran after what happened in San Diego, and I've kind of been travelling around California since then. And here, recently, after an... Epic took over, I had to move up here. North California Epics are the worst."

 

He paused for a moment, staring out the window at the setting sun. "After that I started working in Portland. And speaking of that, I'll probably have to get back there tonight. I'm working for an Epic there, and he... well, he made it clear that I'm on a curfew as long as I'm working for him. He's expecting me back soon."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deathwish flew over the line of fused-together trees, alighting on a patch of flowers in the serene, peaceful garden. No sooner than he landed, the Florist turned to face him, with that quizzical look of his. Storming life-sense of his. What a creep.

 

Deathwish looked him in the eye sternly. "You're just gonna sit here watering your petunias while the rest of us are fighting for our lives out there? What kind of Epic are you?"

 

He idly picked a rose from the garden and began peeling the petals off in his hands. "I'm here to take you to the command center. We need all the Epics we can get to fight off the attack, and I guess that includes creepy hippies like you."

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[Comatose he/him]

Brandon Hennessy

Brandon pressed his foot down on the gas, accelerating as he sped down the broken highway. The jeep he was driving seemed to be holding up okay, but if he continued at this speed, it was only a matter of time before some stray hunk of rock sent him flying off the road. At the moment, however, that did not seem to matter. After all, what was a car accident compared to being attacked by whichever epic happened upon him next? Brandon couldn't afford to drive carefully at the moment. What he needed to do was find his protection again. Once he found her, he'd hopefully be safe from whatever epics happened upon him.

Brandon wasn't an epic, and he didn't have any of the special skills that allowed different rebel groups to resist epic rule. He was an all right athlete and of decent intelligence. He had a decent grasp of how to use technology, and he was getting to be all right at driving off road. On the other hand, he had never had a real job, had never gone to a real college, and had absolutely zero combat skills. In short, he was pretty sparking normal, and being sparking normal had become a death sentence since Calamity arrived.

And yet, by some twist of fate, Brandon had survived. Of course, he knew why he had survived. He was gorgeous. The fates had chosen to bless some with brains or talent, others with superpowers, and Brandon with a handsome jawline, killer bone structure, great hair, and a super-model physique. He had been seventeen when Calamity came, just entering his first year of drama school in Vancouver. His parents had always told him that his dream of becoming a movie star would never work out. They probably wouldn't have guessed that the reason why his career was doomed was because people would start gaining super powers and turn crazy.

The first epic to claim Vancouver called herself Radiance, and had the power to create intelligent illusions capable of fooling every human sense at an incredible range. For years, Radiance's illusory soldiers had policed the city, keeping it under her tight control. Anyone who resisted would be brought to Radiance, who would proceed to torture them with illusions of pain until they fell back into line. Thinking of herself as some sort of goddess, Radiance had assembled a court of the most beautiful people her illusions could track down, to wait on her hand and foot. Brandon had been lucky enough to become one of her chosen few, and had entered her protection.

Of course, there was a reason Brandon was now speeding down a broken highway towards the Dalles instead of waiting on a madwoman hand and foot while wearing a speedo. Radiance's powers had been all too effective against mere mortals, and even against minor epics, but it hadn't taken long for other, more powerful epics, to realize that her legions of soldiers and fantastical creatures weren't real. All it had taken was a few Epics with strong physical powers, and one epic with the ability to see through illusions to guide them to bring Radiance down. Brandon had escaped in the chaos. He likely would have died in it, and would have, had the epic he was now tracking down not decided she might kind of sort of like him.

A signal appeared on his GPS system. She's using one of the iPods, good! Judging by location of the signal, she was heading towards the Dalles, just like they had planned. Brandon let himself sigh with relief. If she had chosen to head if a different direction... he would have been dead, plain and simple, left to the mercies of whichever epic happened to come across him next.

His life was in Taylor Swift's hands now. Only she could save him.

 

Taylor pulled her ear buds out of her ears and turned at the sound of a car horn. More low-lives who don't know who I am likely. Taylor tucked her iPod and earbuds away and crossed her arms in front of her chest, waiting for an excuse to murder the fortunate soul who was about to enter her radiant presence.

"Oh," she said, when she saw who was driving. "It's you." Taylor huffed angrily to herself and turned to continue on her path, pointedly ignoring stupid Brandon and his stupid jeep.

"Taylor!" Brandon drove the jeep up next to Taylor, and slowed the vehicle to a crawl, keeping pace with her. "Taylor, darling, wait, please? What was that all about? You scared me half to death running off like that."
Part of Taylor thrilled at the sound of Brandon calling her darling. She used a cool and dismissive glance over her shoulder as an excuse to check him out. Sparks, he was handsome! Taylor frowned and angrily turned forward and continued walking. She couldn't afford to waste any more time with Brandon. After dating a string of the most powerful epics in the country, continuing the trend she had started with celebrities in her old life, Taylor had thought that dating a nice, normal guy would solve her problems. Other epics just didn't know how to respect her properly. They all treated her as one of their equals, only valuing her powers, and not acknowledging that she had been a bigger deal than the lot of them put together before she had received her powers.

At first, Brandon had been a dream come true. He was handsome, considerate, attentive. He had even known many of her songs by heart! Things had been working out swimmingly until... Taylor's eyes briefly teared up before she shifted to remove her tear ducts. She couldn't let Brandon see her cry, after all.

"Taylor, can't we just talk about this?"

Of course he wants to talk. Ruefully, Taylor wished her transformation into an epic had not stolen her song writing ability. Her recent string of exes could have filled an album or two. Brandon himself probably had a song or two to contribute. She could have called one, "Normal Hearts," or something like that.

"Taylor!"

"No Brandon!" she said, spinning. "Don't you 'Taylor' me! How do you think it feels to find out our entire relationship was a lie, hmm? You're lucky I don't kill you here and now." Taylor could feel herself starting to grow in size, and she didn't stop herself.

"Come on Taylor, we can work things out. Get in the car. We can pump some of your tracks while we charge your iPods. You should get off your feet. Just get in the care and we can be in the Dalles in no time! Just talk to me and..."

"And what, Brandon?" Taylor reformed her tear ducts and started to cry perfect crystalline tears for effect. One of the benefits of her powers was that she could have full lashes without risking her mascara running when she cried. "You're GAY!"

Brandon winced. "Taylor, I don't know.."

"Don't bother denying it, Brandon. I checked your phone. I thought it was funny, you carrying it around when there's no service. I didn't know it was to help you remember your little boyfriend." Taylor rolled her eyes. "I don't know why I waste my time with you. Even killing you would be a waste of my valuable time and attention. Get lost!"

"You know how affectionate I am Taylor. He was just a friend."

"Oh really? Did you tell all your friends that you couldn't wait to kiss them again? That you were terrified to meet their parents? You're unbelievable!" In her rage, Taylor, now nearing nine feet in height, began to divide her arms into tentacles with jagged barbs on the end of each one.

"Taylor..." Brandon sat back in the car and sighed. "Look, fine. Okay, you caught me. I dated a guy before Calamity. What Lewis and I had was special. When he died... it was really hard for me, okay?" Brandon turned off the car and got out. It was obvious he was uncomfortable with her changed appearance, but he didn't let his fear stop him. "Look, you know that's all in the past now, right? There's a reason I don't cry myself to sleep anymore, and that reason is you! You saved me Taylor, you complete me. You're my everything. I want you, for worse or for better." Slowly Taylor began to shrink and shift back to normal as she responded to his words. "I would wait forever and ever."

He was reciting "How to Get the Girl." One of her favourites. "And if you break my heart?" she said, "Would you put it back together."

Brandon looked deep into her eyes. "I told you. I would wait forever and ever. I love you, Taylor Swift." He leaned in to kiss her in the confident way only really attractive people who aren't used to being rejected could manage, and Taylor found herself meeting him in the middle, kissing him back. Subconciously, she made herself smaller so she fit better into his arms. When she was with Brandon, she liked feeling small.

"Fine," she said, when the kiss was finally done. "I guess writing a hit break-up song about you would be a little premature. I'll forgive you for lying like a stupid scum-bag. Let's go to the Dalles."

As they began driving away, Brandon glanced over with an unreadable expression on his face. "Would you really write a song about me?"

Taylor shrugged. "Maybe, if I felt like it. Would you mind?"

Brandon smiled, "Of course not. After all, we only have good things for you to sing about, right?" He reached out the hand that wasn't on the wheel and held it out for Taylor to hold.

 

Brandon Hennessy

Brandon did his best not to shiver as Taylor took his hand. Don't think about it he told himself, referring both to Lewis, and to the monster Taylor had been preparing to transform into only moments before. You're her white knight from those love songs. You're nuts about her! Despite the fact that he was currently holding hands with an invincible killing machine, Brandon couldn't help but smile to himself. If his parents had known how many times those acting classes would have saved his life, maybe he wouldn't have had to sneak out of the house to take them.

His moment of enjoyment vanished as the Dalles came into view. Gunshots echoed through the air, and it looked like the city was being attacked by an army of... pandas? Brandon shivered. So much for safety.


OOC: So, I was three quarters of the way through this post when I realized that every single person on this site knows of another person named Brandon . It goes without saying that Brandon H is purely a work of fiction, and any remote similarities he bears to anyone in real life (like oh, say, a famous award winning author) is purely coincidental .

[Kobold King he/him]

 

 

Cornelius Octavian Bamblefooze, the infamous Hairbinger of Annihilation, clenched in paws in fear and fury as he watched his master plummet from the sky. The human helicopter had unleashed lead and fire upon his glorious master--lead and fire that he'd been certain his indomitable commander would be able to deflect. He'd expected--eagerly awaited, even--for the Great Lord of the Pandas to strike the vain primates down from the sky for their transgression.

 

Yet now the helicopter flew away victorious, turning its fire upon the swarms of flying swine, unpunished for its heinous sin. The Panda himself was nowhere to be seen, leaving Cornelius to seethe with the rage that could only be summoned by a panda whose faith had been shaken.

 

A lesser panda approached Cornelius from out of his command tent, bowing low and speaking hesitantly. "Sir," it began in a low, guttural voice. "What are our orders?"

 

Cornelius hesitated a moment. Could this be a test? Perhaps his magnificent prophet was merely testing their faith, feigning having suffered a fatal wound to gauge their reactions. If that was the case, then he should certainly press forward in the assault on The Dalles, wresting control from the imbecilic corporals and lieutenants that plagued the army and leading the Panda Revolution like he knew only he and his master could truly be capable of.

 

...But what if it wasn't a test? What if his master genuinely lay broken in a field, severely wounded and in need of aide? What would become of the Revolution without its leader?

 

He stood frozen on the field, shaking with indecision. His fine-tuned ears picked up the far-off sounds of automatic gunfire and the dying screams of a hundred pandas and flying pigs. Was this how the Glorious Panda Revolution would end? Its leader brought down by pathetic human guns, its forces decimated by the pitiful human Epics? Surely that could not be possible...

 

"Are you going to answer your subordinate, Cornelius?"

 

At the sound of the voice, Cornelius almost let out a squeal of delight. He fell to his knees in an instant, prostrating himself before his master.

 

"Forgive me, O Prophet," he pleaded, his eyes tightly closed and his body shaking. "I doubted your return. I... I doubted the Glorious Panda Revolution itself. I have failed your test."

 

"Open your eyes, Cornelius," the Panda bade softly to him. Cornelius did what he was told, and stared with his jaw hanging open.

 

The Panda was whole--mostly. He was barely a fraction of the size he had been before flying into battle, though his voice was the same as ever. He still had wings, but they were spread over his body holding wounds closed as they steadily healed. One of his eyes was white and blind, clearing slowly as the Panda blinked. His beautiful black and white fur was splattered with blood and fragments of bone and muscle. It was clear that the Panda was wounded, taking every ounce of his concentration to keep his body from disintegrating into a mass of burnt giblets.

 

"But..." Cornelius stuttered. "How... how could the humans do this to you?" He was in shock, disbelieving what he saw with his own eyes.

 

"Search your memories," the Panda coughed quietly. "You were once human as they were. You know what trapped and limited minds they have, and you know the stings that their weapons can bring. They fight even those who offer them a reprieve from their wretched, verminous existence."

 

The Panda limped to Cornelius' side, staring out towards the city of The Dalles. "How goes the assault?" he asked in a whisper.

 

Cornelius hesitated. "Poorly," he admitted silently, turning his head in shame. "Our warriors, skilled and well-crafted though they are, are being slaughtered by the dozen by the humans' Epics. They are being shot, crushed, smashed, frozen, blinded with burning lights, and murdered with their own weapons' wounds. The Reader has been taken back, robbing us of the one source of information that might tell us how to fight back. My lord... we are losing."

 

The Panda was silent, which only increased Cornelius' shame. If not for the fact that his kind and merciful master would certainly stop him, he would have pulled his blade from his sheath and plunged it straight into his own chest to purge himself of the dishonor.

 

"How many more warriors do we have remaining, Cornelius?" the Panda asked finally. Some of the blood was beginning to seep back into his body, doubtlessly being reformed within his skeleton and vital systems.

 

"Of that, I am not sure," Cornelius replied. "But I assure you, we have enough brave pandas to fighting well into tomorrow afternoon, even with this rate of slaughter."

 

"There will be no more panda blood senselessly spilled over this city," the Panda said firmly. "A drop of panda blood is more precious than gold and more beautiful than a thousand acres' worth of forest. We will withdraw."

 

"W-withdraw?" Cornelius asked in shock. "But... the Revolution..."

 

"Will continue," the Panda said firmly. "You did not fail me, Cornelius, but I assure you that we are all of us being tested. The Radiant Panda is testing our minds, bodies, and souls with this war. We have proven our spirits hardy and our bodies solid in the battle thus far. But now we must pass the test of the mind through sound tactics. Is that not what I created you for, Cornelius? Did I not design you to be an engine of strategy?"

 

"You did," Cornelius affirmed slowly. He thought for a moment, his ears flopping up and down as he considered their options. "We aren't leaving the city, are we? We're merely regrouping--preparing for a coordinated assault under the cover of darkness, perhaps?"

 

"That is well-thought," the Panda praised solemnly. He reached a paw out, gingerly scratching his tactician behind the ears. Cornelius growled in comfort at the gesture.

 

"I must recuperate from the sting of the humans," the Panda continued. "Our warriors must regroup, lest their blood be spilled senselessly in the streets any longer. We must have time to ascend our captives to the higher existence of pandaness. We will grant the humans only an hour's reprieve before we strike them with all the force we can muster, directing our might at the choicest targets in their city. When we return, we will not plunder indiscriminately through their streets--rather, we will target their Epics. Their Epics cannot stand against the united armies of the pandas targeted against them at once. I will personally bring them to their knees, and give them the choice between pandaness and death."

 

Cornelius felt hope flutter within his breast once more. "You are wise, prophet."

 

"Indeed," agreed the Panda, his voice growing stronger. "As are you. We are pandas--we cannot be any other way."

 

Cornelius stood up straight, drawing his sword in salute. "I will order a retreat, master," he proclaimed. "And I will fight by your side when we flood the city once more!"

 

"There will be a glorious reckoning," the Panda rumbled. "Soon the Golden Age of Pandas will be upon us. Soon paradise will rise from the ashes of Oregon. Soon our foes will learn to embrace the sanctity of the panda form."

 

"Soon..."

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[Aonar he/him]

 
“Yup. Weirdest thing I’ve ever seen.” Kayla Arden said, mirroring Frostfire’s confusion.
 
Ethan took off running towards the panda encampment without a look back. She grinned slightly at the Epic’s curiosity and excitement. It was, quite literally, infectious.
 
She still wasn’t quite certain what to make of him. He'd chanced upon their convoy a few days ago, and hung around, offering "protection." 
 
No one had known what to do. An Epic, offering help? There was no way his motives were altruistic. To deny him however was even more dangerous than letting him stick around.
 
There seemed more to it than that, though. Every powerful Epic she’d met had practically radiated a peculiar blend of fear, arrogant indifference, and thin-veiled malice. None were quite the same, but it was always there. It made her sick, if she spent too long around them.
 
Frostfire was an enigma. Arrogant; sure, fearful; definitely, and more than a little angry, but lacking that certain cruelty, that seeming urge to destroy and defile the things beneath them.
 
It gave her a bit of hope. She’d thought for the longest time that Epics were irredeemable; that she was different merely by virtue of some quirk of her power. If there were others…
 
Kayla absently played with the Faithful pendant around her neck. It had been her mother’s before. She found it ironic, sometimes; that she, Kayla Arden, Mirrorveil, might well be one of the ones they waited for, when her power was useless enough she might as well be a vanilla.
 
Shouldering her rifle, she turned back towards the bulk of the convoy. She grimaced at the weight of the weapon against her back. It had been over a year since she’d last had to use it, but it brought back painful memories nonetheless.
 
It was time to report to the rest of the group. After that, all that was left to do was wait.
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Night was falling, and still, Ethan was nowhere to be found. It was worrying, but what could they do? With the Dalles under siege, they were stuck, until something changed.
 
Kayla attempted to sleep, unsuccessfully. They were incredibly close, to shelter, to safety, to a potential haven; and they were caught waiting on the doorstep, with a literal army in the way. And now, their best protection was missing in action.
 
A harsh crack rang out, and outside the tent, all hell broke loose.
 
Sparks. Bolting up, she struggled with the zipper for a moment before bursting out of the tent. Scooping up her rifle, she promptly dropped it again, feeling like she’d been punched in the gut.
 
Across the road, a massive black and white bear was disembowelling one of the sentries with brutal efficiency. Kayla crumpled, resisting the urge to vomit as her insides felt like they were tearing themselves apart.
 
She struggled to stand, picking up the gun again. The panda walked closer, spattered blood belaying its otherwise cuddly appearance. Kayla met its eyes and shuddered. Rage and terror and confusion and pain… So much pain… Calamity. This thing was human, once.
 
Knees weak, she steeled her resolve, raising the rifle and shooting the beast in the head, putting it out of its misery. Agony seared through Kayla’s skull, as if she’d been shot herself.
 
Shouts and screams sounded as the others awoke to the ursine invasion.
 
Kayla was overwhelmed, blankly staring at the chaos. Anguish. Fear. Bewilderment. Each a different face, another person, dying, being or dragged off to who knows where. Cruel, cold intelligence. A new panda walked calmly into the battle, upright and aware on a level the others were not. Absence; nothingness. Corpses littered the ground, humans and once-humans alike, staring lifelessly into the sky. She registered all these things, sights and emotions, superficially. Too much…
 
Fire flared up somewhere. She could see it's light flickering, hear it crackle. The new panda seemed to zero in on her, curious. It stalked forwards confidently, reaching out as if to pick her up.
 
New fear came. Not from a member of the convoy, or even one of the pandas. Her own fear, sharp and cold, and just enough to get her moving. She turned and ran, rifle falling from her hands in her haste.
 
Branches and underbrush tore at her clothing, tears of shame and fear gathering in Kayla’s eyes as she fled blindly into the night.

Edited March 20, 2015 by Aonar Faileas

[Edgedancer he/him]

Shiny Sparkle watched the doctor talk Backtrack into following him; he actually seemed like a good man, not judgmental of their love, had a good sense in pets and most importantly with taking Backtrack away gave them a chance for some privacy. She was not about to let that chance slip by.

 

She jumped Autumn the first chance she got and pulled her in another hug. Cheek on cheek Shiny Sparkle could tell that the mood was good. Autumn seemed a lot more relaxed now, enjoying the soft touch herself. Now, all they needed was to teleport away and with some luck they could expand on their soft heaven after dealing with some pandas.

 

Then someone disturbed their peace. No not only disturbed it but by Autumn’s reaction to that nasal voice it was only going to get worse. Maybe she should simply drop him from high enough to spare Autumn the worry. Before Shiny Sparkle came to a conclusion, Autumn confronted the Epic-Reader-herself. That she slipped out of their hug wasn’t a plus for the situation but she did grab her hand openly and acknowledged her, it was pretty hard for Shiny Sparkle to stay in control after that.

 

One of the Epics that arrived with Reader took the chance to introduce himself as Frostfire or more importantly the Epic that broke the nose of the guy Autumn didn’t like. That did make for a good first impression. Returning his smile she grabbed his outstretched hand and gave it a quick shake, which was a bit awkward, given that she refused to let go of Autumn’s, “Hello Frostfire, good work,” she gestured at Reader with her chin, well his broken nose but it was hard to make the distinction with only her chin.

Then she let go of his hand and with a flourish moved herself behind Autumn, where she gently rested her hands around those lovely hips.

“As already said, I’m Shiny Sparkle and I’m not here for a fling but to conquer this beautiful woman’s heart. So I’m going to slaughter some pandas… or just about anything she points me at. Let’s hope you all place nice with her, right?” She ended with a playful tone but her gaze lingered a bit on Reader.

                                                                                         

 

Baxter took a look at the gunshot wound, luckily it seemed that the bullet didn’t hit anything important, apart from the shoulder itself that is. It was most certainly not thanks to Reader’s aim.

 

“Truth be told, I was up in California once. The place crawled with silverfish; I can see why you wouldn’t want to stay there. As for your job, the panda invasion seems to hit you just as bad as it does us… did you try asking Shiny Sparkle, if she could drop you off there? A teleporter could probably cover the distance faster. On another note, if you don’t mind me asking, on what kind of job did that Epic send you that he expected you to get it done and return in a day?”

[Mailliw73 he/him]

The blonde took a moment before answering. "Sure, I'll join up with you guys for now," she said. She stared back fiercely at the group, particularly Canis. He had a stupid grin on his face, enthralled with this strong woman.

"Word of warning though, first guy to get handsy loses the hand." Frequency chuckles slightly at that while she came toward them.

"I'm Impact. As you may have noticed I like breaking things, hurting people who annoy me and flying. I don't like fuzzy animals, flirty guys or Slontzes who threaten me when they're just stupid telepaths with no actual powers. So you have a plan?" Some of her dislikes seemed particularly specific. Telepathic slontzes? Sounds like Reader is the same idiot he always was.

"I apologize that you had to meet Reader. I've had my own unfortunate encounters with him," Frequency said. "Don't worry, none of us will touch you. Right, Canis?"

"Uh huh. No touching without permission. I get it," Canis said, grin still on his face.

Frequency shook his head. "First things first, we need to take out the strategically vital places. I've been out of the city for a while. Do you know where any important centers for this new government are, Impact?" She had met Reader, so she'd probably know where at least his office was. Blitz could destroy that building while they found Vondra and his headquarters.

Just then, pandas began charging towards the group. Frequency and the others began their attacks. The pandas didn't stop and fight. They kept running past, out to the city borders. "Looks like a retreat. That'll make it harder to blend it, but it'll get rid of a threat," frequency said.

[Queen Elsa Steelheart she/her]

                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

Elsa continued to shoot her ice blasts below. She smiled as the ice blasts combined with the other epics powers. Elsa felt useful and needed, unlike in the past. Like the cold didn't bother her, now the necklace embedded into her neck didn't either.

 

Yes, it did make her feel a little strange, but at least she had made new friends. She wondered what they were doing next, or were going to go on the ground to do a full-blown battle with the army.

Edited March 21, 2015 by Queen Elsa Steelheart

[Voidus]

A smile escaped Lucy's grim facade and crept onto her face at Emma's suggestion, Reader was universally despised by almost the entirety of the Dalles, kept around only because of how useful his abilities were in determining how dangerous new Epics were likely to be. But due to the potential danger he posed if he was captured he was also placed in lockdown if the Dalles was threatened, guarding him during this period was said to be both the best and worst duty in the Dalles, in exchange for knowing with near certainty that he would reveal every embarassing secret you'd ever had at the nearest opportunity you got the chance to boss Reader around.

"Well..." Lucy mused, pretending to be thinking over the offer while really just searching for an excuse. "I suppose we do need to verify MVs story and get Elsa cleared by Autumn right? So I suppose a trip to Reader makes sense. Besides their army seems to be retreating for now anyway"

She watched the animal army making a steady retreat under the onslaught of the various guardsman and Epics of the Dalles.

"Blondey, you got any idea where Autumn and Reader are?" Lucy asked.

The blonde momentum Epic glared at her for a moment, hand rising subtly to her neck before she calmed herself.

Well looks like that idea might be worth investigating. Still I did go a bit overboard, she did say she'd been cleared by Autumn.

"I don't know about the Slontze but Autumn glass got abducted by some shiny teleporter and they were going to head to the clinic I think?" MV replied, scowl still present but held in check for now.

"Well shall we check in with her first Emma?" Lucy asked with a smile as she directed her griffin towards Game's clinic "I'd hate to deprive Autumn the opportunity of a visit to Reader while he's under lockdown."
 

Edited March 22, 2015 by Voidus

[Queen Elsa Steelheart she/her]

Elsa looked at Lucy confused as she said 'blondey' Was she really talking to a Queen like that?

Elsa looked back at MV and breathed a sigh of relief that the animal army seemed to be retreating. Elsa smiled, her arms were getting tired after shooting all that ice.

Elsa held her hands together. She was in a deep thought. Who was Autumn and Reader? Were they other epics?

[Comatose he/him]

 

Luckily enough, it would seem that their arrival in The Dalles coincided with the departure of the Panda Army (if that's what they really were). 

 

"It's too bad," Taylor said to Brandon as several panda stragglers lumbered past, "Those Pandas would have made great extras for a music video."  She wondered idly if whatever epic who was controlling or creating them could make them dance. 

 

As the jeep sped across the last few miles towards The Dalles, Taylor lay back in her seat and put her feet up on the dash board.  One benefit of being mostly invincible was that seat-belts and car safety weren't really necessary.  Her music continued to blare over the car's sound system.  "'Cause there we are again on that little town street. You almost ran the red 'cause you were looking over at me.  Wind in my hair, I was there, I remember it all too well.".  "All Too Well" had always been one of her favourites.  Brandon, right on cue as always, stopped humming under his breath and looked over at her with a smile at just the right moment.  He certainly seems perfect.  Maybe he really is the guy for me.  Who cares if he dated a guy or whatever.  He's with me now, and he makes me happy.  As she resolved the last remnants of her inner conflict, Taylor returned Brandon's smile, and leaned back to close her eyes.  All that mattered now was that she was happy.  If things changed, she could always kill him and then write a song about it. 

 

Taylor was woken from a pleasant day dream by a rough gravelly voice being projected through a loud speaker.  "By the authority of The Dalles City Guard, pull over and step out of the vehicle with your hands up.  If you attempt to use your Epic powers, you will be terminated immediately." 

 

Taylor looked up to see an armoured van pulled sideways across the road, blocking their path to The Dalles.  Men and women in standard military costumes holding guns peaked our from either side.  A few quick modifications to her eyes and ears allowed Taylor to pick out even the most minute details.  Judging by the rustling of cloth, the shadows, and the feet she could just barely see on the other side of the van, there were at least eight soldiers, including the ones standing in plain view.  One of those was in the cab of the van, one hand holding a hand gun, the other holding the mic from the loud speaker. 

 

Brandon pulled the jeep to a halt.  "What do we do?"  The frightened look on his face reminded Taylor of Olivia Benson.  Brandon was always cutest when he was terrified. 

 

"Don't worry babe.  Just crouch down in the car.  I'll handle this." 

 

"I repeat, step out of the vehicle with your hands up.  Failure to comply, or use of any Epic powers will result in termination. 

 

"No problem officer," Taylor said with a radiant smile.  She stepped out of the car and put her hands above her head as instructed, waiting for any flicker of recognition from the guards, noting every movement with her enhanced vision and hearing .  "My boyfriend is just grabbing our identification documents." 

 

Instead of responding to her, the officer turned his attention to Brandon.  "Step out of the car, sir.  Again, failure to comply will result in termination."  Taylor kept her face bright and cheerful.  Years of maintaining her show face when tired and depressed over her latest break-up kept any hint of her inner disdain or fury from showing.  How dare they ignore her.   How dare they threaten Brandon.  Did they not hear her say that he was her boyfriend?  Could they not see that they were standing in the presence of a radiant goddess?  And, most importantly, could none of those eight simpletons recognize a pop icon and country legend when they saw one? 

 

"She looks familiar."  Taylor's ears perked up at the sound of a whispered voice.  "Isn't that..." 

 

Taking the whispering guard-person's recognition as her cue, Taylor burst into action before the others decided to start shooting Brandon and the jeep full of bullets.  Her raised arms suddenly surged forward, growing in size and length as they split into ten tentacles, each ending in a vicious looking barb.  She caught two of the closest guards in the throat before they could get any shots off.  Another tentacle pounded against the pullet proof glass of the van, the barb at the end of the tentacle turning into sharpened diamond.  Taylor ignored the shots that were fired, trusting her transformative abilities to keep her safe.  Several bullets passed right through her as her body shifted around them, while others were reflected as bits and pieces of her body changed into metal, rock, or diamond.  

 

She broke the necks of two more soldiers as the third strike against the van window finally broke through.  "Send back-up!  I repeat, send back-up!  Looks like a class A shape..." his words cut out as Taylor's tentacle stabbed into his neck. 

 

The few remaining soldiers hiding behind the van turned to flee.  Using her tentacles, Taylor clambered over the van and chased after them, running on four of her tentacles while she used the others to finish of her foes.  Once they were all dead, Taylor shifted back into her own form, and walked back over to where Brandon was cowering in the jeep. 

 

"Looks like we have a slight change in plans.  Get in the van and start driving."  As she hopped into the passenger seat, Taylor pushed the dead soldier out of the driver's side door.    "Captain?  Captain do you read me?  Back-up is on its way, I repeat, back up is on it's way." 

 

Taylor picked up the radio.  When she spoke, her voice was a perfect imitation of the Captain's.  "Cancel back-up.  We have the situation under control.  We were attacked by one of the stragglers from the Panda attack.  It was two of them, in a jeep of all things.  They managed to take out the rest of the team, but I manged to finish them off from inside the van.  They had a civilian with them, some sort of hostage.  At present he does not seem to have any powers, and has agreed to come quietly.   We are on our way back into town.  I'll send word once I get more information out of the hostage, and make sure its safe to send a retrieval team for the bodies."
 

[Tulir he/him]

He looked up as he felt a presence approaching from above.  So not the Leader, and one he hadn't seen before.

 

A tall man floated down into his garden.  The man landed on one of his flower beds.

 

"It's okay flowers," he said as he gave them more energy to make up for what was lost.  He stopped before they grew enough to start wrapping around the man's feet.

 

The man looked at him, then started talking.  He listened, but started trembling when the man picked a rose and started peeling it apart.

 

The flower was destroyed at the same time the man finished talking.  It took all his effort not to break the man for his careless destruction, as that would turn the Leader and the others against him. 

 

"I am willing to follow," he said, waiting for the other man to respond.  He extended his senses into his garden, and started strengthening all of them, and growing them into more walls then they were.  Leaving his garden pained him, but he would make sure it couldn't be hurt in the meantime.  

[Kobold King he/him]

  

 

 

The Doctor knew about the silverfish.

 

THE DOCTOR KNEW ABOUT THE SILVERFISH.

 

Backtrack stared at him in horror for a moment, his sense of ease dying like it had been suddenly stabbed and swarmed with a mob of tiny shiny insects. How could he know to mention silverfish at the exact moment he was thinking about them? What if he was a secret agent of the Lord of the Silverfish, sent here to scout out Oregon for conquest? What if he wasn't actually a person at all, and was actually thousands of tiny silverfish living in a person skin-suit? What if he was just looking at the wound so he could suck out all his bodily fluids and use them to grease their rattling, clanking chitins?

 

...

 

Or, the voice of reason said quietly from deep inside him. Maybe he just went to California and saw a lot of silverfish. There were a lot down there.

 

Recovering from his initial scare, Backtrack realized the doctor was staring at him with a bemused expression.

 

"Uh, work," Backtrack replied awkwardly. "What kind of work? Mainly just checking up on a few of his friends, mostly. Just... making sure they're all safe and comfy here in town. I'm a, past-event-see-er. A rettroclog."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"I am willing to follow," the slontze said flatly. Deathwish nodded.

 

"Of course you are," he grinned, swatting a bee as it flew past him. "I mean, it's not like you can say no, right?"

 

He took a few steps forward, gripping the Florist tightly with one arm and pressing him close against his chest. "Buck up, buttercup. We're going for a ride."

 

Pity all the hot Epic chicks in town could get around quickly on their own. It got boring having to transport ugly dudes like Florist all the time. Still though, the sooner he got this done, the sooner he could get back to massacring pandas or groping serving girls at the Springfield.

 

With those thoughts in mind, Deathwish and the Florist took off into the sky, leaving the peaceful little garden far behind them.

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

"Sir, I simply cannot recommend your landing at this time."

 

Arsenal glared into nothingness as he talked into the radio, worrying a few officers who stood around him inside the command center. He paid them no mind.

 

"My understanding is that the invaders are pulling out of the city," Stephen Vondra said over the crackling radio. "I intend to be in town to organize the reconstruction efforts."

 

"As I said," Arsenal repeated, his nostrils flaring. "I can't recommend that. We have reports of unidentified Epics all over town. We need to assess the situation before we bring our mayor into harm's way."

 

"Or maybe you just want your mayor out of your hair while you stamp all over our citizen's rights," Vondra replied promptly.

 

"Storm it, Vondra!" Arsenal snapped. "For the love of God, just stay in the air for a few more hours. You won't use the safe room we built for you--"

 

"'Cuz you built it just out of radio range," Vondra pointed out dryly.

 

"I only built it so far so you'd be safe!" Arsenal stressed. "Set aside your paranoia long enough to listen to reason. Do you have any idea what it'd do to town morale if you got yourself killed by an Epic? The town's organization is delicate enough as it is."

 

"I've got no intention of getting myself killed," the mayor declared firmly. "But I'm coming in whether you think it's recommendable or not."

 

"Sir--" Arsenal began again--

 

"Oh, and Dewhickey," Vondra added, "If you've passed any more ordinances while I was out of base, I'm gonna show up with a pumpkin donut in hand."

 

And with that, the mayor of The Dalles ended his transmission. Arsenal's eye twitched in frustration before he turned to glare at the surrounding officers.

 

"Well, any other news?" he snapped.

 

"Not much," an officer reported. "We received a request for back-up from the town fringes, but Captain Arnolds cancelled it. They're bringing a hostage into town."

 

"Captain Arnolds is a skittish man with no sense of scale," Arsenal said skeptically. "I'm surprised he'd call off back-up after requesting it."

 

"Maybe the lectures you kept giving him finally got through," the officer responded with an expressionless face.

 

Arsenal nodded. "That must be it. Send him to talk to me when he gets here." He was silent for a moment, eyes scanning the map of The Dalles spread out over the table. "Have we heard from Reader?"

 

"No, sir," the guard replied hesitantly. "We think he lost his radio."

 

"Sparks," Arsenal growled quietly. "He knows far too much to be in enemy hands. We can just hope his guards managed to take care of him before the pandas got to him." He shook his head, again checking the most turbulent places on the map.

 

"Any news on these Epics that keep attacking our checkpoints?"

 

The officer scratched his scalp, clearly concerned. "We... don't have much intell, sir. We know the gate points have been hit, and we know there's been casualties. We're still in the dark about most of the attackers."

 

"That needs to change," Arsenal said harshly. "I want combat teams deployed wherever there's been an attack. Give them orders to take prisoners if possible, but to use lethal force at the first sign of resistance."

 

"Yes, sir," the officer saluted, heading for the door. He hesitated before opening it, turning to Arsenal with another concerned look. "Sir, we did receive a description of one Epic. With his appearance and powers... we've tentatively linked him to Frequency."

 

Frequency.

 

Arsenal stared at the man for a minute, his mind centered on the Epic with that name.

 

"Understood," he said solemnly. "This situation may be worse than we thought, God help us. Do we know where he is now?"

 

"South of here, downtown," the man replied. "That's what we suspect, at least. We also have reason to suspect he brought other Epics with him. It's possible all the new arrivals are working with him. Should I send any teams down there?"

 

"Scouts," Arsenal ordered. "Send them in with instructions not to be seen. We need more info on the situation."

 

The officer gave another "Yes, sir" before heading out of the command center. Arsenal gave another look at the map, trying to make sense of all the places marked with known attackers and fatalities. The Dalles was probably in the bleakest position it'd been in since Koschei the Deathless came into town. Epics everywhere. Crazed flesh manipulators sending armies into the streets. Why the Calamity would Vondra want to come back down now?

 

He turned his head to the door upon hearing a loud thump from outside. The voices of city guardsmen could be heard identifying the new arrival, and the door to the command center swung open to admit a pair of Epics.

 

"Fetched the hippie you wanted," Deathwish declared, roughly shoving the Florist ahead of him. "The slontze was watering his daffodils this whole time. You should give him one of your civic duty lectures."

 

"I don't take orders from you," Arsenal replied in his gravelly voice. He directed a glare at the Florist nonetheless, for a number of reasons. As usual the man was perfectly calm and still, though obviously less comfortable than he was in his garden. He was a very different man from the average Epic, and Arsenal didn't like that one bit.

 

"There are Epics arriving all over town," Arsenal stated, trying to ignore the Florist's passive rebellion against conformity. "Most of them are hostile. You, Hawk, are to report downtown south of here. Look for signs of shattered vehicles or weapons, or any damage that could have been caused by Epics. If you spot new Epics and they don't comply with our rules, you are to kill them at once. Do you understand?"

 

"Heard you loud and clear," Deathwish said with a yawn. South, downtown, look for broken things, kill slontzes. Seems easy to remember."

 

"Take Florist with you," Arsenal instructed. "If I remember right, Frequency can't affect organic matter. His plants might give you an edge."

 

"Take the hippie," Deathwish repeated, rolling his eyes. "Got it." He seized Florist by the arm and began dragging him back outside roughly. "Come along flower child. It's time to get your hands dirty for a change."

 

The two Epics disappeared promptly from view as they went outside, and Arsenal heard the characteristic whoosh of Deathwish taking off. Arsenal sighed in exhaustion, finally picking up the radio to clarify the situation of one of the city's key areas.

 

"This is Arsenal to Glass," he transmitted. "What is the situation at Game's clinic?"

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles she/her]

 

"This is Arsenal to Glass. What is the situation at Game's clinic?" 

 

Well, Autumn didn't say, There are five Epics here. Backtrack is probably sobbing in the office. The sparkly one has her hands on my hips, and the other three look very amused about the whole thing. Reader especially. May I punch him? 

 

Before Reader could get his paws on her radio, Autumn lifted it. "Backtrack is having that wound treated, sir. Reader just arrived with a broken nose and two unfamiliar Epics. Not sure if they've been Read or not, but I only just met them. And there's one more…." 

 

Shiny Sparkle rested her chin on Autumn's shoulder, drawing a raised eyebrow—and a smirk—from Reader. 

 

"Shiny Sparkle, from Dallesport. Teleporter, with short-range detonation capabilities. Able to transport a limited number of people and objects. She's offered her assistance with the invasion, and has proven herself not only trustworthy, but capable of holding her own against the intruders." 

 

Thank God Reader didn't have his radio. Autumn could hear, all too clearly, the laughter and childish remarks he'd send over the air. 

 

"Where do you want us, sir? I'm, er, staying with Shiny Sparkle, per invasion regulations regarding Epic allies not employed by the City Guard." 

 

And per the fact she hasn't let go of me for a second since we met. 

Edited March 24, 2015 by TwiLyghtSansSparkles

[Comatose he/him]

Taylor switched seats with Brandon as they came into the sightline of The Dalles. When they greeted their welcoming party, Taylor did her best to keep her anger under control, reminding herself that the only reason the guards were failing to react to her stunning appearance was because at present she appeared to be a slob-ish middle-aged man. After being used to looking perfect for every paparazzi photo, even when leaving the gym, it gauled her to allow even her false appearance to be so slovenly, but if she was going to fool anyone she had no choice. She faked her way through her description of the attack, saying that she'd rather save most of the details for command.

On the whole, things were going mostly according to plan, until they tried to take Brandon away from her.

"There's no time for you to deal with him," the officer was saying, "Arsenal wants your report immediately. We'll take him to Reader to get him checked out, and make sure he isn't hiding any powers."

Taylor gritted her teeth, but held her tongue. It was all right. She could deal with this. She didn't know who this Reader person was, but she assumed he was an Epic with some sort of ability to detect danger. If he had any sort of telepathic powers, she would have to be careful around him, but even with a potential telepath in the mix, she was confident she could keep Brandon from danger. "Very well then, I'll be off. Where is Aresneal currently located?" As two other guards hauled Brandon off, she did her best to meet his eyes briefly. Don't worry Baby. I'll come and save you.

The other guard was already answering her question. "I'll be taking you to him. Follow me." Inwardly, Taylor groaned. It would be inconvenient for her to ditch the stiff, especially if she wanted to back track in time to track Brandon down. On the bright side, she didn't have to risk blowing her cover by not knowing exactly where whoever this Arsenal person (likely another Epic) was located.

"Can we take a quick detour?" She asked once they were out of sight and earshot of the other guard. "I totally have to use the mensroom. I guess I forgot in all the excitement, you know? I'd hate to report to... Arsenal with a full bladder."

Taylors companion looked at her for a moment. Likely something she had said seemed off. Perhaps the guard she was impersonating wasn't the 'totally' type, or maybe he was known for swearing. She hadn't gotten much time to study his speech patterns before she killed him.

After what seemed like an eternity, the guard nodded his agreement. "There's a washroom at that diner up ahead, right?" Taylor nodded her agreement and proceeded forward, taking not of the twists and turns of the streets.

"So," she said as they entered the diner in question, "When this is all over I'd like to question the kid myself. Where do you think they'll take him once he's done with Reader?"

The guard shrugged. "You know the drill. It all depends what Mr. High-and-Mighty Reader decides. If he's not an epic and isn't part of some plot to destroy the city, who knows where they'll put him. The city's been getting full with refugees lately, but as grisly as it sounds, perhaps this attack will have opened up some spaces. You know how it is. If there's anything suspicious I'm sure you'll be notified." The guard followed Taylor into the men's room, likely intending to relieve himself as well. Thankfully. Taylor approached a urinal, and did her best to ignore the smell of urine until the only other patron exited the room. Honestly, did men not know how to aim? Why did every men's bathroom have to smell like urine?

As soon as they were alone, Taylor shifted into action. Her arm stretched out, backhanding the unsuspecting guard across the face and knocking him to the floor. Before he could respond, her hands grew claws that sunk into his throat. Then, it shifted back into what would be her signature tentacles, if red lip stick, dark eyeliner, and her mysterious belly button were not already her signature look. She gripped the man, how was quickly bleeding to death, by the throat, and lifted him gently by the throat and placed him in a stall. Taylor was not certain how long she had before the man was discovered, so she hurried out of the rest room, appearing once again as a regular human captain of the city guard, and not an Epic who could grow tentacles at a moment's notice.

As soon as she was on a side street and out of sight of the diner, Taylor switched faces and body types. She continued to switch forms every time no one was around to see her, growing less interesting with each consecutive shift. Thankfully, likely due to the recent Panda attack, the streets were empty, and by the time Taylor took her ninth turn since leaving the diner, she was reasonably certain she was suitably anonymous. The next time she was in the clear, she made subtle modifications to her already obscenely large (by her standards) nose, to improve her sense of smell in the unlikely chance of of catching Brandon's familiar scent. She made similar modifications to her ears. Taking care to keep her step suitably hurried but not frantic, she began to make her way back to where she had last seen Brandon, hoping she was not too late to track him down. They've got the cages, they've got the boxes. They are the hunters, we are the foxes.
 

Brandon Hennessy

Brandon's captors refused to answer any of his questions, pausing only in their quest to take him to 'Reader,' whoever that was, to threaten him with termination if he did not behave. Doing his best not to panic, Brandon tried to reassure himself that Taylor would come for him. She had gotten over the whole issue of him having a relationship with a man, hadn't she? On the drive in it had certainly seemed like she had forgiven him. But what if she hadn't? What if she was abandoning him to whatever terrifying epics the citizens of The Dalles were somehow using to keep their enemies at bay? What if she was punishing him? He'd like to think that if Taylor were breaking things off with him that she'd be hurt enough to personally end his life, but perhaps she felt he was not worth her attention, and that abandoning him again was a more cruel fate.

The guards led him through a door to what looked like a medical clinic, sat him down in a corner, and went over to a red-headed woman who was speaking into a radio. The red-head was being cuddled by another woman so sparkly she could only be an epic.

It would appear his fate was in the hands of a pair of lesbians, one of whom was definitely an epic. Brandon found himself wishing once again that Taylor would hurry up and come to his rescue.

[OOC DISCLAIMER: Brandon's views on lesbians, and his interpretation of Autumn and Shiny Sparkle's relationship in no way reflects the truth or the views of the author accurately.]

[Mailliw73 he/him]

Edgerunner grinned as Scribbler agreed to her plan to humiliate Reader. MV seemed to like the idea too.

"To the clinic then. Autumn deserves this too," Edgerunner said. She began hurtling towards Game's clinic and the others followed on the griffin and ice cloud. Edgerunner laughed as she rushed through the air. While scary, there wasn't quite any feeling like flying.

Upon reaching the clinic, Emma landed on the porch, restoring her normal gravity. She opened the door just ahead of the three other girls and walked in. She called for Autumn as she entered, "Autumn! Do you wan-" Emma turner the corner and saw a large gathering of people. Autumn was there, but so was Reader, with a bleeding nose. "Well, this was easy," she said.

"Who are you guys?" Emma asked the unfamiliar faces. "Reader Rabbit, did you hit yourself with your wine glass again? I told you to aim for your mouth, not your nose."

[Voidus]

"First things first, we need to take out the strategically vital places." The leader of the Epics said "I've been out of the city for a while. Do you know where any important centers for this new government are, Impact?" 

"Well I know where Reader's office is, I assume there are others there to keep him in line. Autumn Glass was heading to a clinic of some kind last I saw to see 'the Healer' as she described them. And I know where one of the defense outposts is, they were taking me there when the Panda things came in force."

Impact closed her eyes briefly, going over her flight mentally so she could figure out where she was in relation to where she'd started.

"Over that ways a bit to get to Readers office in the church" She said, gesturing, then shifted her finger to the right somewhat "And over there is the clinic I think, I didn't go myself but that's the right direction anyway. The outpost is back at the town border that way." She finished with another gesture.

 

Hit the centers of power, good strategy. Now think Impact, did you hear anything else that might be useful? Something to get back at these Slontzes?

"Oh, there's this guy called Arsenal that seems to be in charge of things generally, not sure where he's holed up but I think it would do a fair bit of damage if he was taken out."

She bent down to pick up a handful of rubble to take with her, never knew when she might need some quick ammunition. She gave one small rock a flick, transferring as much momentum as she could into it and watched it speed into a nearby building, penetrating into the wall and sending out a spiderweb of cracks through the solid bricks. Impact smiled, she couldn't wait til she saw Reader again without his guards to protect him.

[mail-mi he/him]

"Where do you want us, sir? I'm, er, staying with Shiny Sparkle, per invasion regulations regarding Epic allies not employed by the City Guard."

“Autumn!” Reader shouted before Autumn clicked off the radio. “Don’t forget to tell him about your feelingth for her!”

Autumn let go of the talk button, glaring at Reader. He just smirked. Before she could say anything to him, however, a city guardsman appeared by her side. “Autumn, Captain Arnolds brought in a vanilla to be Read. We need you to go retrieve Reader from his office in the post--”

Reader interrupted him, angry at him for not recognizing him. “Hello Robert. How are you? How are the kidth? How’th your--oh wait, I forgot. She’s dead.”

Robert froze and turned to Reader. “Oh. You’re already out.” Wisely, he didn’t comment on Reader’s nose.

“Yeth I am.” Reader looked over his shoulder, beginning to Read the vanilla. Just then, the doors burst open, and Edgerunner broke in, announcing to Autumn: “Autumn, do you wan--.” She looked at Reader, and grinned. “Well, that was easy. Reader Rabbit, did you hit yourself with your wine glass again? I told you to aim for your mouth, not your nose.”

Reader Rabbit?!

Reader snapped.

“Ah, Edgerunner, back at the clinic I see. Did your meanie boyfriend hurt your face again? Oh wait, that'th right. You killed him.” Not allowing Edgerunner to respond, Reader continued. “Now, if you’d please step out of the way, I have a job to do.”

He took a step toward the vanilla seated across the clinic. “Hello Brandon! Come on over here--don’t worry, the mean, angry lesbianth won’t hurt you. How’th your boyfriend Lewis? Does Taylor know how much you still mith him?”

Edited March 26, 2015 by mail-mi

[Mailliw73 he/him]

Emma's smile faded instantly as Reader spoke. "Ah, Edgerunner, back at the clinic I see. Did your meanie boyfriend hurt your face again? Oh wait, that'th right. You killed him.” Emma burned with rage. Meanie boyfriend? Ty had been an abusive, rotten jerk. Reader brushed past her and spoke to a man on the far side of the room. Blood pounded in her ears, drowning out all the other sounds. Emma glared at Reader, wishing she had laser vision. She avoided Autumn's gaze, knowing she wouldn't approve. Emma's palms clenched as she debated the punishment Vondra would have for her. Her fury rose, as she clenched her jaw, until she couldn't take it anymore.

Calamity, it was worth it. "Meanie? A meanie? He was a son of a slontze, you sparking idiot!" Emma yelled. Edgerunner stepped toward Reader, rose her hand, and flipped her gravity to the side just for an instant as she increased her friction. The enhanced slap resounded with a loud crack. She stared him down, daring him to try to hurt her. Her nostrils flared and she had another idea.

Edgerunner maintained eye contact with the slontze in front of her. She decreased the friction on his pants, a smirk creeping onto her face. High and mighty Reader Rabbit's pants dropped to the ground, leaving him in his underpants. Red flushed his cheeks. Emma whispered, "Never bring that up again." She turned and walked back to Lucy. She couldn't help but sneak a glance at Autumn, and to her delight, Autumn had a slight smile on her face as well.

Revenge was sweet.

[Comatose he/him]

Brandon Hennessy

 

“Hello Brandon! Come on over here--don’t worry, the mean, angry lesbianth won’t hurt you. How’th your boyfriend Lewis? Does Taylor know how much you still mith him?”

 

What?  How did that guy with the broken nose know about Lewis, or Taylor?  That's how they've lasted so long!  With some sort of telepath, the city knew who they could trust and who they couldn't.  That made it easy to find epics they could control to defend themselves from epics that they could not.  Who knew, maybe this epic could even discern other epic's weaknesses!  I'm going to have to be careful around this guy!  More importantly, Taylor would have to be careful.  Brandon didn't know her weakness, but if word of it got out, he would lose his protection...

 

Now the question was how much did this Reader guy know.  Had he seen something in Brandon's past that would seem threatening?   Brandon wracked his brain, trying to figure out how his experiences and thoughts might look to a careful observer.  As he did, the guard's repeated threats of termination began to run through his mind.  While Brandon himself wasn't a threat, he had witnessed Taylor murder a number of the city guards, and was keeping the fact that she was loose in the city, likely killing others to himself.  Reader hadn't brought that up yet, so maybe he didn't know?  Or was he saving more sensitive information to discuss with his superior's privately?  If Brandon revealed Taylor, it might win him points in the city.  Perhaps he could find a place here, and the guards and 'tame' epics would keep him safe.  On the other hand if he betrayed Taylor...

 

Brandon decided it was better to keep quiet.  After all, it was only a matter of time before Taylor found him and rescued him.  Besides, if the damage he had seen on his way in was any indication, The Dalles wasn't nearly as safe as it was supposed to be. 

 

Apparently while he had been busy thinking through his options, Reader had been given something more to worry about then digging into Brandon's secrets.  Apparently his comments to one of the new comers (had he called her Ledge Jumper?) had not gone over well, and said epic somehow caused Reader's pants to drop to the ground. 

 

Definitely NOT a safe place.  Not safe at all.  Hoping to remain unnoticed in all the commotion, Brandon sunk back into his seat and tried not to attract attention.