Girard turned his head up from the stage realizing he was in quite the pickle, not for him personally but for the poor stage he was probably going to break worse if he moved. Oh he could already tell he was going to get serious shit for this and supposed it served him right for letting his concern get to him.

"You."

She invited Sparky? And he accepted? He thought knowing the voice directed at him and surprised to hear it.

"Do you intend to kill everyone here? Did you not see the state of this building before you entered?"

"I'll admit to going a bit overboard, even I thought this was a trap. The wall wasn't loadbearing so the building should be fine." The big man said dismissing the accusation and doing his best to disarm some nerves.

Of course Ditch the host had something to say but it was far less aggressive and he just sort of bowed his head slightly feeling more embarrassed by the second. He heard one of the other female vigilantes say something before a big damn bird appeared and grabbed him by the shoulders before starting to lift him out. He was genuinely surprised how strong the thing was managing to get him clear of the whole and to the edge of the stage where he gave a passing "thanks" before gingerly made his way down to more solid ground. He got a better look around the inside of the theater which made him realize more of the concern the others had for the stability, he would be much more careful now feeling less than safe in the building himself. If it collapsed it certainly wouldn't be good for anyone and he really didn't want to be stuck under a couple tons of rubble again. Unconsciously he brushed off some of the dust he got on him and started thinking of way to fix the wall, stage, and whatever else he may have nailed on the way in which felt kind like a shelf but he'd look later.

"Think I'll save the excessive force for the actual bad guys next time." Girard said managing a chuckle at the remark from Ditch fully willing to take his licks now rather than later.

Turn Back

Turn Back nodded at the answer to his question, more than satisfied with this turn of events. Turns out Ditch was a very attractive girl. If they were going to be teaming up with this group for awhile, that would certainly be a nice thing to have. The group seemed fairly split down gender lines, which would be interesting to say the least. He began to study some of the familiar faces in the room, looking at supers he recognized and turning his attention to those he didn't, when--



A wall by the side of the stage exploded, sending debris flying everywhere! Turn Back had just enough time to see a chuck of brick heading for his face, his power instinctively activating. The flying brick hit his face and with a flash of purple energy, fell to the ground with a low thud, doing no damage. Dropping to a crouch, Turn Back stared at the stage, only to see Tank, another vigilante, stuck in the stage... He sighed and stood back up, starting to tune out the rest of the conversation as he dug into his pocket for one of the metal nuts he carried. He knew better than to use his body to store that energy, or even use it directly. His power wasn't super toughness, if he punched somebody with the force of a truck he'd end up shattering his own arm too. So he used tools. The staff for close range, nuts for mid range, though he hadn't found anything suitable for long range yet.

With another purple flash, the stored energy transferred to the nut, which began to pulse the same color slowly. Turn Back held out his arm to the side and dropped the nut, watching as it connected with the floor with a lout CRACK. He picked the tool back up, noting with a hidden smile the small crater it'd left in the floor as he put the piece of metal back in his pocket.

"Wait a minute." TB said, a few words from the conversation having made their wait into his head. "Minifridge? Gathering supers? Are... Are you putting together a team? A base of operations? A headquarters?"

Melrose spun slowly in her chair, looking at the text message, smiling to herself - Ditch had contacted her. Not only that, they had saw it fit to splurge all the info on her, from her family history, her father's crimes, to her own night time activities. Honestly, she didn't feel threatened or upset by it because to someone of Ditch's skills, this was child's play. Of course they would know all this about her when almost everything was stored electronically anymore. The only red flag that popped into her mind was the possibility that this was some sort of trap or that some kid was playing hero. She pondered upon that for a few moments and spun her chair to face her computer, laying the phone down and drawing up her custom made computer programs. In the last year, she had learned and understood so much - much more than she had ever imagined she would. In that time, she had made her own hacking programs and viruses though she left most of the cybercrime to Ditch and instead used it to intercept things that needed to be dealt with physically.

Spinning through the net, she went about back tracing the infamous hero until finally she found something. She blinked to herself before slowly pushing away from the computer and giving herself a small smile. "Well, that's interesting... it's definitely them though." Thoughtfully going over what she had found, she stood up and looked over her small warehouse of a base. "Well, time to suit up... let's see how far the rabbit hole goes." In truth, she was excited, with her heart pumping in her chest.

Later...

Beyond the talking and the commotion inside, there was a faint sound of a engine outside. Pulling up, Rose parked her cycle on the side of the street closest to the warehouse. She glanced around, noting that apparently she was the only one with a vehicle. 'Perhaps the others can get around easier... or don't have the money.' She did admit having billions to your name made it extremely easy to buy 'toys.' She wasn't the type to brag or flaunt though and just turned off the engine before pressing her finger against a hand-scanner button. The tires of the black sleek motorcycle almost instantly deflated as a small metal pillar ejected itself from the bottom of her ride. There was a low hum before the entire thing seemed to anchor to the street - an invention called the 'earth magnet.' It kept it from being stolen, short of cutting out the entire piece of street.

She causally got off the bike and stowed the keys away into a pouch before pushing the door open. Rose seemed completely confident that it wasn't an ambush though she also didn't opt for any sort of fancy entrance - walking in the door was good enough. "Wait a minute." TB said, a few words from the conversation having made their wait into his head. "Minifridge? Gathering supers? Are... Are you putting together a team? A base of operations? A headquarters?"

Catching the last bit, she looked over the rather large group gathered and smirked. "I'd imagine you'd need money for that and a..." She paused, seeing the large hole in the wall and the half-destroyed stage. "... well, you'd need to fix that. Though I imagine the infamous hacker can get as much money as they want." She causally wandered along the wall, looking at all the men and women gathered. There were a lot of big names here; Omega, Tank, Ditch... and probably more myth-like supers, but never the less, they all seemed to have obvious powers. You had gravity manipulation, a woman with shadow powers, and a summoned creature? She studied the bird for a few moments and instantly found Aurora. With her own powers, it was easy to make the connection between the summon, summoner, and catalyst in the form of a book. She'd need to see more to gain more insight though - still though, the most dominant thought Rose had was this: no one - not even Ditch - understood she had powers of insight... with all these big names and powers, she was sure they would all be thinking, 'why the hell is she here for?' The idea made her smile.

Wait, Ditch is a girl...? Nice. - Ecto murmured to himself - I mean, not that there's anything wrong with it... Just didn't imagine the infamous skeletal hacker with the coarse voice to be so... pleasant.

He only realized who the guy with the slick black hair was when he flashed something with purple energy and dropped it, hitting the floor like a car. That must be Turn Back. He knew because he remembered thinking that was the coolest nickname he ever heard. Ecto also liked what he said. If this indeed was what Turn Back suspected, that would be exciting. He always thought about teaming up with other vigilanes, but never knew how to make connections. They were, most of the time, elusive people, after all. He did see some of them in action, but by the time he would have gotten there, they were long gone. And it's not like they have their contact information in the phone book or anything. Or a fan page where they could be reached. That's actually not a bad idea...

Though it COULD be difficult to form a team of lone wolves. The guy in the gas mask seemed a bit emotionally unstable, too, he needs to relax. And Ecto DEFINITELY did not want to get on the bad side of Graffiti. Her air pressure powers could mess up his specral form big time. He also wondered if Omega's gravity manipulation would affect Ecto' ability to fly. Better not try it out.

He turned to the girl with the raven mask and whispered: "This is so cool..."

Hearing the male next to her Aurora turned her head, her eyes seeing nothing. Yet to the others, a faint glow was seen in the eyes of her mask as though fogged over. "And a game" in truth it was. It was not something to be taken lightly. Yet she could not help but feel the same thought pattern one would have in a game of chess.
It was a game, a dangerous one that could get her killed. But a game non the less. Her cane in hand she held the ebony against her palm, tapping it once more to get a feel for where everything was.

A female's voice behind her she kept her ears keen. Same age, a bike? Some kind of engine was out there. Carefully she turned her head, hearing the words of one of the last new vigilantes, they would need money for a team? You needed money for anything but for a. "A team? Will this be like the others? Glorified police work on am iron chain?" She couldn't help but ask. Shes seen hero's become toys, measly puppets that could not take a single breath unless their commanding officer said they could.
And that was just not her, she would never bow her head in submission.

Irritation bubbled up in Reaper’s chest like molten lava, her jaw clenching unnoticed beneath the black mask as Ditch acknowledged the cowled vigilante. It wasn’t the fact that she brushed off Reaper’s appearance with no more than a warning to the instability of their platform, nor even the fact that Ditch somehow knew they were out there the entire time she was waiting! No, as Ditch climbed up onto the railing, rocking the platform, Reaper glared at the other vigilante’s back for one sole reason.

It was cold outside.

The redhead’s hands were already clenching onto the railing when her platform partner jumped off, Reaper having the presence of mind to brace herself so as to not lose her balance or pitch forward with the harsh creaking and wide swings. She deigned to abandon her post – it really was quite a strategic view – to instead lean over the railing to watch Ditch, the angle not offering the perfect view for the big reveal but enough that Reaper’s irritation was momentarily forgotten in favor of a raised eyebrow and curiosity that settled in the pit of her stomach. A sign of peace, and another female who favored a death themed vigilante costume. She definitely didn’t look the part of a greasy basement dwelling hacker, at least. Good for her.

Reaper shifted position to cross her arms on the railing’s platform as she watched the other interacting below, her blackened eyes roaming across the new person who arrived. Turn Back, if she recalled correctly. Confident at least, and-

And then Reaper’s balance was completely thrown off as she was once more almost pitched forward and off the platform, from the wall a claw bursting forth behind her back to grab onto the platform to steady it as a human wrecking ball took out a nice section of wall and part of the stage. The vigilante’s heart hammered with more than just adrenaline from the sudden rocking motion as her gaze quickly sought of the source of destruction, bristling and fingers raising. The claw at her back let go of the platform to curl into wicked points at each ‘fingertip’, ready to strike as Reaper watched the intruder, looked at the damage they had caused – even a feral looking cat darted out from underneath the stage to bolt. To be honest the only reason she didn’t strike out immediately was that the infamous Tank was very recognizable and known as a vigilante as well – and, well, she thought it was a trap at first too. Reaper just… didn’t go through a wall to find out. Honestly.

Lightning bug was the first to start interrogating Tank, Ditch chiming in shortly after. It seemed he really did just fry his brain on how to use a door or maybe not go hurdling into a trap, so Reaper dragged her attention away to look back to the door as she rubbed the bridge of her nose. Their group was swelling in numbers as the minutes passed, some she didn’t recognize – a girl in a silver mask? A guy in a hoodie who looked like he just wandered in off the streets? At least someone made a bit of an impression, though surely not as much as the big guy who hates stages, as Graffiti dropped like a dead weight from the ceiling. No broken bones, luckily. Reaper didn’t think her little first aid kit could handle it.

But oh look, more destruction in the form of a pink tag against the wall. No one was going to know they were here. Nope. No sir. Definitely no clues for that.

Reaper let out a long suffering sigh and leaned against her arms, body tense as though in preparation of another round of rocking; the claw that was once ready sinking back into the shadow cast upon the wall. If someone else decided doors were for suckers the platform might very well give way. Seeing Raven’s Tale’s powers in action did perk Zoey up a bit beneath her mask, watching with interest as the phoenix helped Tank dislodge himself. Those poor cats would never get their home back. It seemed that there was no need to hide their presence at least, if Ditch’s words were to be believed. A base of operations? … And this is the best they could come up with? Sure it’s secluded and not many people come around, but that’s for a very good reason. This place is disgusting, and falling apart at the seams more than her favorite pair of PJs.

Surely there couldn’t be much more than this. Reaper roved her eyes along those who had arrived, all gathered around. Quite the group at least. The tall woman stood, cautious with her movements as the platform let out another forboding creak. She stepped back far enough that her feet hit shadow instead of steel as a small, solidified platform came from the wall as a small stepping stone for her to sink back into her element. Seconds after her fingers emerged from the ground at the front of the stage, using her well trained muscles to pull herself up from the shadow and to her feet in order to be a better part of the … festivities. Far be it from her to give up a tactical advantage, but the gaping hole in the wall and through a back room kind of gave that away if this group was on the up and up.

One last arrival, if the purr of a motor could be trusted. Hopefully no one called the police after hearing the sounds of a building’s partial destruction – though anyone in this area calling the police was almost laughable. Ah, there we go. Reaper tilted her head slowly as she followed the movements of the leather clad woman who entered. Confident, with only the slightest pause at Tank’s little incident. It wasn’t hard to recognize The Black Rose, being a fairly well known vigilante – though Reaper would never admit she hasn’t gotten wind of what her power was yet. Fashionably late and with comments about their little...headquarters idea. Though if Ditch really was going where Mister Turn Back thought she was then it was far more than just an idea. Reaper didn’t like the way The Black Rose almost strolled by the wall, watching them – though admittedly most of them were gauging each other. Reaper certainly was.

At Reaper’s feet her shadow began to react once more to their master’s building irritation, transparent tendrils lazily drifting up to curl about her legs before fading like smoke in the wind. Around her some of the shadows reacted similarly, those with owners close to Reaper doing the same smoky motion. She’d be much happier once this was done and over – maybe if Umbra was a nice dog and died quickly Reaper wouldn’t look like an ass for not wanting to remove her mask. Not that it much mattered if Ditch decided to spill their secrets in order to get that ‘awkward’ little part out of the way. Just the thought sent a shudder down her spine, though outside her thoughts Reaper remained a stoic and silent sentinel. It was her trademark, after all.

"Think I'll save the excessive force for the actual bad guys next time." Ditch offered Tank a small lop-sided grin, nodding her thanks. "Yes, that'd be appreciated." She whistled, turning her attention to Turn Back as a brick flew towards his face. She raised her eyebrows, but made no move towards him. Of course, she knew of his power, and she smiled in satisfaction as the nut exploded with a loud crack.

"Wait a minute." "Waiting," Ditch replied brightly. "Minifridge? Gathering supers? Are... Are you putting together a team? A base of operations? A headquarters?" Ditch only smiled sweetly at Turn Back and turned towards the entrance as Black Rose entered. "I'm not short on funds, that's for sure." Ditch said with a smirk. "Also, welcome, Rosey. You're quite a bit late." Ditch scolded.

"A team? Will this be like the others? Glorified police work on an iron chain?" Ditch looked at Raven Tale with a horrified expression, no matter if she could see it or not. (Which she couldn't, of course.) "Lord, no!" She exclaimed with disgust. "I'm trying to build a team, not.. blech. Whatever corruption the police is now." Ditch scanned the room, pointing at everyone and counting under their breath. "Nine, ten, eleven.. yep. We're all here. Alright!" She exclaimed. "I'm about to say important shit and I won't say it again, so listen up!"

"I'm aware you're all used to working alone, and I'm here to tell you, that you should probably stop doing that." She moved closer into the room, farther from the stage. "Umbra is on the rise. In the short time he's revealed himself to the public, he's taken one of the most powerful vigilantes hostage, as well as turned many others to his side. How? I'm not sure. He wasn't this powerful when I last saw him. All I know is that if we keep on sticking to the petty thieves and gangs rather then bring our attention to the big bad evil, we're all going to be fucked." Ditch sighed.

"He's building an army. Those that don't come willingly, he takes. Supers for the last few decades have worked alone, and it's kept it balanced. But together, in a combined force.. they're dangerous. Umbra himself is incredibly powerful, and with others by his side, there could be no stopping him." She gestured around the room. "That's where you come in. No, I'm not asking you to give up your lives and the way of working you've become used too. But I hope to be able to call on you for when the time is right."

She jumped back up on the now ravaged stage, so everyone could see her. "I want this to be your headquarters. For your personal vigilante work as well as our team operations. We'll make it home. And Tank is buying us a mini fridge." She glared at the large super, though almost playfully.

"If you're not interested, leave. You now have just as much dirt on me as I do you, so if you stay quiet, I will too." Ditch sat down on the edge of the stage like she had before. "But now, more then ever, is the best time to make an alliance against Umbra. Because before you know it, you'll be faced with the choice to either come willingly, or be dragged along. And I won't help you then." Despite how light her expression was, her tone was dark. Ditch knew the severity of what she was speaking of, and while she seemed ever so playful, the subject hit home.

Listening quietly the Raven raised her head, the sound of feet on the stage creaking under her as it groaned in protest. Umbra, capturing other vigilantes, that she heard of through the broadcast. Was it truly that bad? That she needed to team up with others in order to simply survive?
Running her fingers over a passage for comfort, Raven found herself taking in a deep breath. A soothing motion meant for herself as the air itself parted ways. "I offer support" her words falling from her lips, she felt as though she were being pushed into the open. Working...with others?
Only one creature even knew she had powers. And he was back at the stable, most likely wrapped in his blanket in a heap of shavings, within the heated stall. He could never betray her word..but other vigilantes? They could, and her entire career would come falling apart like brittle shards of glass, slipping through her fingers like sand.
Yet she still offered her support. It was the lesser of two sides. Yes, if a vigilant leaked out her information, she would loose her career. Her way of life and could be locked away by her own family. But if Umber found her, she might not have a family to be locked away by.

"But, this is temporary, I'm not vary fond of the idea that someone knows who I am. I'm sure you know why Ditch." Tapping her cane on the ground she sighed, the feathers around her mask tickling her features. "But I'd rather not be found by Umbra. Seems like he or she would prove a problem for everyone here."
It was an arena and she was in the sand. So long as she counted her strides right, she would be able to come out of this. She wasn't stupid, she couldn't deal with this alone. "Mini fridge?" The question out of her mouth she shook her head, guess Ditch was one that enjoyed humour.

Interacting with: Anyone within the warehouse at the moment.

---

---

"Avoid it next time." Levi warned the giant, he was slightly surprised at everyone's general disposition with Tank destroying part of the building. Levi would have persued the matter more if there weren't any greater things to tend to; like Umbra's uprising. He walked up next to a wall, and leaned back letting his weight go up against the wall, the cascading crackles of light slowly fading.

Ditch continued her speech;
"I'm aware you're all used to working alone, and I'm here to tell you, that you should probably stop doing that."
"Umbra is on the rise. In the short time he's revealed himself to the public, he's taken one of the most powerful vigilantes hostage, as well as turned many others to his side. How? I'm not sure. He wasn't this powerful when I last saw him. All I know is that if we keep on sticking to the petty thieves and gangs rather then bring our attention to the big bad evil, we're all going to be fucked."

Levi's head perked up slightly, he knew that the Umbra problem should be dealt with sooner or later, but he didn't know that the situation was this dire. Even the supposed most powerful powered individual was caught by him, Suiren. Levi knew about this persons heroics, and perked an eyebrow when word got around that she somehow got caught by Umbra and is being held hostage.

"He's building an army. Those that don't come willingly, he takes. Supers for the last few decades have worked alone, and it's kept it balanced. But together, in a combined force.. they're dangerous. Umbra himself is incredibly powerful, and with others by his side, there could be no stopping him."
"That's where you come in. No, I'm not asking you to give up your lives and the way of working you've become used too. But I hope to be able to call on you for when the time is right."

Levi thought about it, Ditch was rounding up of the most individualistic vigilantes and making some ragtag team. It was ridiculous, but given how pressed Ditch is, it's a desperate effort to stop Umbra, and probably the best one. There haven't really been any 'alliances' or 'teamups' with most of the vigilantes acting by themselves, there was no 'unified force' only most individuals acting for their own personal interest. This was the best solution to the worse scenario, and while Levi disliked it, he will have to join.

"If you're not interested, leave. You now have just as much dirt on me as I do you, so if you stay quiet, I will too."
"But now, more then ever, is the best time to make an alliance against Umbra. Because before you know it, you'll be faced with the choice to either come willingly, or be dragged along. And I won't help you then."

Levi looked up once again, his face perpetually scowling. He weighed the choices in his mind for a little while, "Fine." Levi said, basically moving his sights to and fro the vigilantes scattered around the room, "I'll play your little game of Heroes and provide my assistance." Levi stopped leaning against the wall, "Just know I wont go with every beckon and call."

His footsteps resounding through the building as he made his way to the entrance, "If that's all, I'll take my leave." midway through his gait, he loudly said, "And if you even care, ask Ditch about my identity, or don't, I don't really care."

Manny listened intently as Ditch made her speech. It seems the situation had become too much for her to take, and she was going to do whatever it took to take down Umbra. He respected her determination, which almost seemed to clash with how girly and rather silly she was. Not a bad combination, really. At any rate, he was willing to help out. Umbra had to be stopped. He took a quick look around the room and spoke up.

“I'm down for cooperating and all, but do you really think this bunch could work as a team? Just look at ‘Elekid’ over there...he's just been yelling the whole time.” Manny pointed a thumb back at lil' Glowy Eyes as he headed for the door, just knowing that it would irritate him. “Don't get me wrong, I respect everyone here. I mean we got some pretty heavy hitters, but, you know...why specifically us? And why this dump? I don't think a mini fridge will exactly ‘spruce this place up.'”

Turn Back

Turn Back stood silent for a moment, taking in the new information. He knew about Suiren of course, but othera? Umbra gathering an army? This was serious. He regocnized some of these faces, but could he trust them? What would happen if he trusted them, and they betrayed him?

What could happen if he didn't help?

Steeling his nerves, Turn Back stepped forward, raising his voice. He heard words of support from Raven Tale, but dissemt from others, and that was enough for him. "I don't think it comes down to what we want. This world, and humanity is for everyone, to defend, according to their ability. And us? Well, we have more ability, and more responsibility. We are not normal, folks! We can do more, be more, and why not? This is my city. If this is what it takes to protect it, why wouldn't I help?"

Turn Back looked at the gathered group and reached up to his face, grasping the bandanna covering his features and ripping it off. He tossed the offending cloth to the floor and stared at the gathered heroes. "Damn thing was getting hot anyway."

Kara Banks / Wraith

Well, at least it wasn't a trap. Honestly, she might have been happier if it was. At least with a trap it would probably be some normal human with a thick skull and a bucket of bullets. This seemed like a much more likely way for her to die. Trapped in a room with a bunch of crazy people. Great. Wonderful. Fantastic.

Kara was pretty sure that these people were completely insane. Sure, she had a few screws of her own loose, but this was pushing it at least a little. She would have tried to help the stage guy - anything to get things a bit saner - but she didn't think her powers would do much. Judging by the size of that bird, she wouldn't be needed anyway. The big guy couldn't be too heavy for that monstrosity. So far, she'd been here for five minutes and there was already a broken stage, vandalised wall and a crater in the floor. She wasn't thrilled, but kept her anger on the inside.

That's it. You're on my list, all of you. I don't even have a list yet, but when I do I swear... She started to imagine some rather 'colourful' punishments in her head, all with a slightly cheerful smile on her face, like this was a lovely get-together and she just couldn't wait for something else to blow up.

With all the chaos, she found it difficult to pay attention to everyone that came in, or everything being said. She just stood there feeling kind of awkward resisting the temptation to use her powers and just sink into the floor away from this madness. You know, classes weren't so bad. Nothing got destroyed there. Okay, well not by accident, which Kara felt was an important point. Besides, sometimes things had to be taken apart for the greater good. Or for her Chemistry grades.

So, who'll be next to enter the madhouse? she wondered, keeping one eye on the door. Can't be many more now. Of course, she'd only thought to watch the door. Not stare at the shadows for creepy magically appearing shadow people. Really, she should've thought ahead. Always expect shadow people. She might have expected it if she'd done some research, but she'd been caught up in her own pursuit of justice, and who could blame her for that?

The next one actually did come through the door, which was a relief. By now Kara wouldn't have been surprised if they'd come in through the roof riding a missile. She didn't have high hopes at this point, so no reason to even expect sanity at this point. They were all quite mad. Unlike Kara. She was completely reasonable, you know. Never lost her cool unless it was fair - If you think about it, that car thief didn't really need all of his organs - that was just greedy.

Anyway, new person. She managed to start paying attention again, remembering to put the friendly smile back on her face. Hopefully no-one noticed her zoning out. She could probably pass it off as nerves anyway. Where was she? Oh, yeah. Justice, vigilantes, Ditch, who was starting to talk and she should probably listen to. Something important apparently. Hooray.

Stop working alone, huh? And this is our headquarters? Kinda neat, but this just made her more annoyed about all of the destruction. And while Ditch sounded friendly, this really didn't seem like they had too much of a choice. Maybe they did, it's just that both of the choices seemed like they'd end up fighting anyway. If I have to choose a side, I'm choosing the ones in the right. Well, more right. We're still vigilantes after all. Hopefully these guys weren't as difficult to work with as it seemed they might.

She sighed. On the one hand, keeping a secret identity was hard enough. On the other, Umbra did need to be stopped. As much as she thought the people here were lunatics, they were better than that power-hungry maniac. Probably thought he was above justice - she'd show him soon enough. Besides, Ditch did just say they'd be able to keep going with personal activity, and she could just make up a lie for the guys at school - a trip to some other country, maybe. Australia sounded good. Kara had made up her mind, and spoke up confidently.

"Well, when you put it like that, I guess I'm in. Can't have that Umbra lunatic escaping justice forever, right?" she looked up and gave a cheerful grin. Looked like that was it. She'd committed. "It had better be a damn good fridge, though."

Graffiti finished her tag on the wall and turned around to hear Ditch speak to all 11 of the Super Powered Individuals in the room. Calling them to unite against Umbra for the greater good etc. It was wasted words for Graffiti, she already had made up her mind to take on Umbra and any criminal element that threatened the city, she wouldn't have answered the text otherwise. Looking around the warehouse which would now be their 'headquarters' she wasn't terribly impressed, it was a poorly lit creaky old structure which could be easily infiltrated despire Ditch's mention of 'surveillance'. The only real security in this building was the tough-as-hell vigilantes who currently occupied it.

Graffiti had been around supers before, and always felt somewhat uneasy. Today was no exception. She was extremely aware that while she was a formidable opponent for anyone, she couldn't confidently take down every single person here if she had to. A few in particular would give her trouble in a fair fight. Graffiti's insecurity about her fairly weak super power was at its most obvious when around truly powerful individuals, but she refused to show any weakness, she was a vigilante and notorious for a good reason.

She turned to the sparkling electricity manipulator. He was talking about his identity and who to ask for it.

I think we are all more concerned about your ability to keep yourself and that voltage of yours in check. Ive read all about the blackouts you've been causing on my patrol block. I care more about having to fight drug dealers in the dark than about your middle name.

Graffiti snarled with distrust as she spoke. His power put her on edge, the static in the air around him was making her paranoid, she tried to get her mind back on task. She looked at Ditch now with a serious look in her eye.

So we are going to team up against umbra, good plan so far, but how do we go about that? Do you have any tech? any locations? Any leads to follow? I have no issue with pooling our abilities together for a common cause but I need to know exactly what I'm doing, and how. I dont really want to be stuck chasing ghosts all week.

Graffiti, turned back towards Ecto slowly.

Ummm....No offense.

Girard took a look around at the others and heard a thud which found his eyes leveled at Turn Back who had just made a crater in the floor. If there was one thing that could be said about the guy was he had some enthusiasm, maybe a bit too much at times, and his thought about this old place being a headquarters for the group gave him a short pause for thought. It wasn't that he couldn't imagine a combined effort between them, at least from his experience with a couple impromptu team ups like that one time he ended up hitting the same gang as Omega who had the unexpected pleasure of Tank's company, but there were a few elements among them that might have a little trouble with the communication part. Even he would admit though something was definitely going down for all of them to get called here and it had to be serious. After all there were some big wigs among vigilantes here like Black Rose who had just arrived by bike if he was correct and was surprisingly unimpressed by the mess he had made. It nearly made him chuckle at the ridiculousness which cheered him up in a hurry not one to stay upset for long but listening up when Ditch spoke and took in the message of your either with or possibly against them in a bad situation.

Well ain't that a bit dour. Makes a good point though that one way or the other something has to be done. Girard thought frowning at the thought under his helmet.

The big man listened to the others who had they're own stance on it, a couple concerns being prompted mainly by Graffiti who seemed to have changed little since the one other time they worked together though it ended up mostly in her following up behind him helping ruin the day of some very unfortunate criminals. He would admit to not being so worried on details as some of the others but he understood not everyone could handle doing it like him being able to rush into stupid and dangerous situations by damn near everyone's standard and come out the other side maybe a little worse for wear but successful. Not like that was his only resort but the more criminals and otherwise who thought he was just a big, thoughtless bruiser made his job all that easier and could even keep the rest of the crime fighters surprised when he did have a good plan. Always amused him at the look on they're faces when the big man pulled a fast one on them. Then again he wasn't here for reminiscing and there really was only one option for him in this situation. Though he could help but laugh a bit at the mini fridge remark and decided he had nothing to lose by showing his face like the couple others who had prompting him to reach up undo a couple straps and remove his helmet holding the thing by his side.

"You got my backing, always good to have some company when the ass kicking starts." Girard said flashing a big smile as he locked in his position on the whole group debacle.

'Rosey?' she thought to herself, her eyes widening just a tad as she felt a blush threatening to cross across her cheeks. She wasn't sure why THAT had set her off, but she quickly waved it off, instead concentrating on the impressive rant that Ditch gave them - by this point, the woman didn't have to introduce herself, it was obvious. It was pretty simple to understand though: Umbra was an asshole who was threatening and bullying other supers into his service and if you didn't thank him for the offer, he'd cut you. She could see how trying to make a grab for those that hadn't been made the offer was a smart idea, though it became painfully and quickly clear that not everyone felt the same way. A couple did, but the general feeling was hesitation and mistrust. Perhaps that's exactly why they hadn't been bullied just yet, that everyone was just a tad harder to find and encounter than the 'daylight heroes.'

After all was said and done, she shrugged herself off a bit and began walking towards the stage. "First... I wasn't THAT late... I don't think," she teased the hacker for a moment. She pulled back her cowl without any major reveal or hesitation, though she was sure what the reaction might be - almost every single rich person was a pop icon on some level or another and she was no exception - everyone knew Melrose, the daughter of the billionaire crime lord (now passed). Even then, she seemed unphased by the idea and smirked at Turn Back, "second, stop being so dramatic." Again, the comment was given in jest before she made it to the stage, hopping onto it and swinging her legs for a moment or two.

"But seriously... how do we want to do this?" She looked at Ditch mostly, but still scanned over the others curiously. "I mean, obviously the wall needs to be fixed, but do we really need the stage? Tim wouldn't mind removing it - could reinforce the walls with steel, once the building was restored to code, then I could call his cousin to install the security system I have at my place. I also have some connections to setup a self-sustaining generator, so we don't need to worry about drawing attention with the electricity company or having a gas truck come by." She paused, looking at all of them for a few moments and blinking. "What? ... I have a lot of connections." Rose let it sink in for another moment before smiling playfully and adding, "and I can get us a large fridge. Like one of those ones with double-doors, ice dispenser, touch-pad interface? I mean, really.. whatever you guys want." Well, it was quite obvious by now what Melrose's answer was: a resounding yes.

Ecto chuckled at Graffiti's remark. a green-bluish smoke rose from his mouth.

"None taken." - he said with a smile. He turned to Ditch.

"And she's right, you know. This is all well and good, but I for one - and I don't want to sound stupid - have no idea what we are up against. What does this guy do? What powers does he have?" He thought for a minute, glancing at the considerable number of ladies in the room. "Or she, right. Sorry."

The funny part about Turn Back taking off his bandana is that Eric still had no idea who he was supposed to be in the mundane world. No one cares who you are most of the time, so the big reveal has no effect. This is why Eric didn't bother with a costume. That, and the fact that clothes slipped off him once he shifted to spectral form. Yeah, maybe the second reason is the stronger one. Still, no one remembers an ordinary face with an ordinary life.

That was not the case with the girl who Ditch called "Rosie". It was Melrose Faye, daughter of the goddamn Godfather herself! That was a suprise. That would have resulted an awkward family talk, if Richard Faye wasn't gunned down by the police in a fight. It was all over the news. "Millenium City Kingpin pinned down" he remembered reading the headlines. A serious amount wealth came through those doors, and Eric couldn't even afford the dry cleaners. She was talking about renovating this dump, and someone called Tim. I wonder who that is. Her boyfriend?
All this talk of fridges made him hungry.

Interacting with: Particularly, Graffiti @Dynamo Frokane and everyone within earshot.

---

---

As soon as the words of the Vigilante landed in his ears, he remembered a memory. A memory of him standing above a dead villain, who was once a superpowered dictator, terrorizing the lives of the people in the village. Numerous whispers amongst the general populace went around, "He needs to control his power.", "This freak will just kill us all as well.", "Get him out of here before he does anything else.", "Don't look at him in the eyes!" Even though Levi had just essentially saved their lives by ending the villains life, he was shunned and told to leave as soon as the next few hours. Did Levi really want to risk his life for these ungrateful people, but fortunately another memory of his sister played in his mind,

Levi clutched his hand, he had just been bullied by a few kids for having a noticeable different accent than he does, his sister came to his aid, and soothed him, with tears in his eyes he listened,
"Levi... Don't forget we're all human, some more evil than others, but essentially we are all imperfect, little by little we are confronted with situations that gives us clues that we all aren't perfect. You either accept this and move on, or dwell, and never grow."

This memory while pleasant and warming to him, was overruled by the images of his sister being tortured and murdered right infront of him, Levi stopped dead in his tracks, the not so fond memory playing in his head, a memory of pain and torture. Numerous insults of "Failed experiment." and "Dispose of this dead girl." If only he could have controlled his power then and there, maybe his sister might still be alive. He'd regretted that for years upon years. Yes, the one statement from Graffiti triggered memories upon memories which lead to his sister's death.

He turned around slightly, scowling at Graffiti with his right eye, lightning began to shape around his body, a bolt of dull, yellow lightning formed soon after, a single bolt with three pointed arcs tore through the empty air, hurling across at frighteningly fast speeds between him and the female vigilante. It stopped a few inches from her face and the sides of it, lightning furiously crackling the still air. "Do you think I've lived with this curse without intrinsically learning of it inside and out." he growled, his voice having a deeper connotation of rage than normal. "I don't need to be TOLD how to use my abilities." he growled, intensely glaring halfway with his dark-amber yellow eyes, now glowing a frightening hue of yellow. Levi absolutely despised being told what to do, as half his life was spent in that facility being told what to do, and he had no choice but to follow. "Don't use me as your pathetic outlet for failing to apprehend your criminals."

Levi dissipated the lightning crackling around Graffiti's face, and turned around again, continuing his stride, but now with an even deeper scowl at the situation that happened. "Ditch." he called out, his lightning now encircling and crackling moreso than before around him, "You already know my address, decide amongst yourselves if you really want me on this 'team' of yours."

"We are so freaking dead" thought Isabel "Like, really really dead. Beyond dead. Dodo-tier dead"

All she could think right now was on how such a clumsy nerd like Ditch had ever found out about her, she was expecting a mastermind, a person who would be fit to control the Illuminati or something, yet she found just a girl who was extremely good at I Spy and nothing more.

She couldn't believe in the team she had formed, it was so bad that her ancestral mammal instincts of going underground and waiting until the meteor is gone was triggering. The stage had been destroyed by a miley cyrus wannabe, Graffiti apparently thought that discretion is about writing down their plan in neon pink on a wall, and Mr. Electro Edge was already saying he was too cool for this gathering.

Her true desire was to punch everyone in that room until their soul had the texture of a potato salad.

But for now she sighed and let her transformation disengage, the claw returning to her normal hands and her face losing the sharp teeth and bright yellow eyes.

"Casper is right, you did a good job making us fear Umbra but please tell us its method or something because right now the villainy scale is going from Elmer Fudd to Lovecraftian Horror"

Ah, the folly of the vigilante, so focused on justice that the subtleties slipped over their head. Maybe it was just no one was as concerned about it as Reaper, the darkness elemental trying to bite her tongue as she slid back to sit on the stage, crossing her legs elegantly and sitting up a bit straighter. The need to hunch over and hide her gender behind a silent mask appeared a moot point. She had waited patiently, but others had either jumped right into joining or appeared to be engaging in a super powered cock waving contest that was quickly escalating. Honestly. She had hoped to keep her secrecy.

The others had said their pieces. Lightning bug lost his temper. And Reaper? Reaper raised her hand casually in front of her to snap her fingers, and in response her shadow that spilled over the edge of the stage she sat upon began to grow out across the floor. Each time the darkened pool touched another’s shadow it began to wisp in response, until finally it touched the walls and began to climb up the ceilings as well.

Were the theatrics necessary? Probably not completely. It was certainly an attention getter though, and as Zoey was always told – Image is Everything.

“I think,” Reaper finally began, her feminine voice quiet yet firm, “That you’re all missing something here.” The elemental lifted her hooded gaze, face covered except her blackened eyes which scanned across the others before settling on the infamous Ditch.

“You know so much, little Ditch. An army, when he’s only taken Suiran and killed others? Turning others to his side? How powerful he is? Tell me, our little hacker, how much of this was wrung from the depths of your technological genius, and how much from your personal connection to Umbra?”

Reaper lifted her hand, twirling a finger. The shadows that were crawling along the walls began to seemingly melt back onto the floor like molten tar, quickly finding the nearest shadows to escape to. Her own shadow continued to wisp and bubble, retreating back into itself to return the room to normal.

“You do have a connection to him in some fashion, don’t you? That’s what you said – he wasn’t this powerful when you last saw him. Perhaps it’s not as serious as I make it out to be… but you knew of him before now, and yet he’s managed to come this far.” Reaper lowered her hand once more to the stage, leaning back against her palms as she studied Ditch.

“Oh, but don’t let me put you on the spot. Mere curiosity, our fearless ringleader.”

"But, this is temporary, I'm not very fond of the idea that someone knows who I am. I'm sure you know why Ditch." "Sure do." "But I'd rather not be found by Umbra. Seems like he or she would prove a problem for everyone here." Ditch got back to twirling a lock of her long, blonde hair. "If you're careful, your identity will be kept a secret, not to worry." Ditch whistled.

Turning towards Levi, she gave a frown. "I don't imagine you'd come at every beck and call, but I hope you'd be smart enough to come when you're needed." Ditch said. "If that's all, I'll take my leave." "No, that is not all. Wait a few minutes longer, won't cha?" Ditch rolled her eyes. "And it isn't my job to tell them who you are, now is it?"

"Lord, you've only been here five minutes and you're making enemies already, aren't you Omega?" Ditch stood and walked over to him, tutting and shaking her head. "Obviously, if I didn't believe you could all work together, you wouldn't be here. And why specifically you? Oh, a number of reasons. The lot of you do seem to do the best you can for this city.. you're not the most well known of the supers, which means you won't be high on Umbra's list, which means he won't be expecting you in the slightest. He'll underestimate us. And that will give us an advantage."

"And, this isn't a dump. At least, it won't be for long. This is the optimal spot for a secret headquarters. Abandoned, spacious.. and a minifridge is the best way to start, of course."

Ditch grinned at Turn Back as he spoke of how he was going to help, giving a nod in agreement. "Nice of you to show your face, TB!" She exclaimed. "Oh, I'll upgrade our fridge myself. Promise." Ditch said towards Wraith, though her expression turned sour as Graffiti began to speak. Ditch bit her lip, frowning at the ground.

"Levi," She said slowly in an attempt to calm him before the storm arrived, but too late. "Do you think I've lived with this curse without intrinsically learning of it inside and out." Ditch sighed, gaze lowered. No part of her seemed alarmed by Levi's attacks, but when he uttered her name, she looked up. "I expect we'll be in touch." Was all she said, letting him go.

Ditch looked back at Graffiti bitterly. "I can assure you, I have what we need to destroy Umbra." She muttered. "I have the tech, the funds, and leads. This space is yours to play with, do with it what you will." That bit was directed at Rose.

A small, almost sad smile, rose on Ditch's face as she turned to Reaper, arms crossed. "Some fashion," She echoed, giving a laugh. "Oh, yes. Some fashion indeed. Did you know, Reaper? That he's a darkness elemental, just like you. Only he can do so much more with his ability.. He uses his darkness so devour people's life force, slowly, painfully. He can take your powers away. Just like that, the very thing you've built your life upon.. gone."

"He killed my father." Ditch said, staring at Reaper. She wouldn't look away. She wasn't afraid. "Years ago.. left his body in a ditch for me to find. Mhmn. That's where the name came from. Not such a fabulous backstory, huh?" She didn't look very saddened at all. "I was nothing then, neither was he. I don't know how he got so powerful.. but something is wrong. It's not just me who's family he's destroyed, it's countless other's he's hurting, and going to hurt. He needs to be stopped. And I will do it, one way or another."

"Would you care to hear my plan, or would you like to interrogate me any more?" She asked.