[hr][i][h1][color=red]Meifeng Zhao[/color], [color=Springgreen]Cindy Keagan[/color]. [color=dc143c]Maxine Diaz[/color], [color=fff200]Alice Barrett[/color], [color=cornflowerblue]Shizuka Takashiro[/color], & [color=firebrick] Doctor Victor Calahan [/color].[/h1][/i][hr] The very [i]second[/i] the shitstorm at the mall started, the RAVENS who were investigating the cannibalism went straight to Courtbridge in their vehicle. They were going to leave this one to another group. Driving there fast as possible, but they knew they wouldn't be the first people there. The vehicle came to a stop right in front of the building. There were [i]many[/i] RAVEN and DOVE vehicles already on scene. Along with a lot of ambulences, and DOVE vehicles carting out injured metahumans. Meifeng was the first to hop out of the vehicle, and she quickly scanned the area, before she pressed her earpiece. "Agent Meifeng Zhao, on scene with Agent Diaz, Agent Barrett, and Agent Takashiro," she announced on the comms as she quickly jogged onto the scene. She had to be prepared for anything, but... Jesus. This was a complete disaster. What... who the hell caused all of this? Arriving next to the RAVEN truck was a black sedan with the DOVE insignia on the hood of the car. Hopping out of the vehicle was Agent Cindy Gabrielle Keagan with a clipboard in hand, and the first thing she did was pressed her earpiece, and started chattering incessantly into the comms. "Yo, Cindy!" Meifeng shouted as she walked over to her friend in DOVE. "Do you have an idea of what the [i]fuck[/i] happened here?!" Meifeng's voice was raised in irritation. "I don't know myself," Cindy answered as she took her finger off the earpiece. "All I know was that every Metahuman in the mall went out of control." "...That doesn't happen without a fucking reason." Meifeng crossed her arms. A sharp exhale left Cindy's lips as she shrugged in resignation. "Look... I ain't got no idea what brand of loony shit happened here myself," she started off. "What we gotta do is pick up the pieces, put 'em back together, and then figure out what happened ourselves." Cindy sighed. Facing Meifeng, she narrowed her eyes. "What you [i]can[/i] do is search for the injured, dead, alive, whoever, and find some clues, anything." "On it, Cap'n." Meifeng saluted Cindy as she moved on. [hr] A wooden hand burst out from under a jewelry case that had fallen into the Gamestop. Victor pulled himself out from under the case and crawled his way out of the store on his elbows. The lower half of his body was missing. His shirt hung about him in rags, with large black burn holes growing as he moved. As he crawled, splinters of wood and pages of magazines drew themselves to him. They began to reform his lower half, slowly but surely. It would still take some time for him to regenerate from damage like that. The Gamestop itself was completely obliterated. The temperature inside had risen to ridiculous levels, and smoke made the air nearly opaque. The cashier behind the counter was motionless. A small hand towel covered their mouth and nose. Once he reached the outside of the store, Victor saw that the phone kiosk had stopped gyrating. The energy burst was over. Sarah was unconscious in the middle of the floor, her jacket ruined by the flames. She would probably need a visit to the ER to heal the burns. Victor could hear the droning cacaphony of sirens off in the distance. Help wasn't far away. Exhausted, he rolled onto his back and stared up at the flames. "Son of a bitch." The entire strip was ablaze. The fire had consumed several stores in a row on both levels. The fire chewed through dry wall like it was chewing gum. The haberdashery next door to the Gamestop went up near-instantly. Its polyester and cotton clothing caught flame with ease. The jewelry store above the Gamestop had burned and the fire was beginning to spread to a bookstore next to it. Mall employees fought back the flames with fire extinguishers to keep the bookstore from igniting. They knew that once it went up, there'd be no stopping the fire. A man with a fire extinguisher ran over to him. When he realized that the man crawling from the blaze didn't look human, his jaw dropped. "You sunnovabitch!" the man shouted. "You did this!" He pointed the hose of the fire extinguisher at Victor. "I didn't do it...intentionally," Victor was finding it hard to speak. His vocal cords had probably been crushed. "I don't know what-" The man shot him with the fire extinguisher. Victor screamed. The man shot him again. "You bastard! I knew we shoulda killed off your kind long ago!" The man sprayed Victor as he spoke. Sodium bicarbonate. Toxic stuff to a man made of fire. Victor felt his right arm go numb. He felt as if his skin was being torn off. ...That sensation came to an end the moment something literally jumped in between the angered man, and Victor. Unfettered by the extinguisher. A curved wall of ice (like a circle) had appeared in between the man, and Victor. Which blocked the fire extinguisher effectively. The man had already stopped, but by the time the cloud of the chemicals faded, it had revealed that Meifeng had leaped to Victor's rescue. "Dude!" Meifeng shouted from behind the shield, trying to plead with him. "You're killing him! What happened here wasn't his fault! You need to calm down!" The man shook his head and ran back to the Gamestop. He began to spray the flames. "Metahuman freaks," he shouted. "The Grand Imperial Reign was right! You all deserve to suffer for harassing people like us!" Something in the back of the store exploded. Violet sparks shot through the air. One hit the man's shirt. He shouted, cursed, and threw his fire extinguisher onto the ground. Meifeng sighed as she put her hands out, and turned the ice into water, and then funneled the water into her pocket dimension. She'd need it. Meifeng then turned around and faced Victor. She couldn't help people's perception of Metahumans. What she [i]could[/i] help was this poor bastard. She pressed her earpiece, and stated, "Hey, Greenbird, I found the Metahuman who was lighting up the west end of the mall. He appears to be a Mimicry-type Metahuman that's made of wood, shoots fire apparently. He's badly injured, send some meds over to the gamestore A-S-A-P." "Yeah, I'm on my way," Cindy stated. There was a hesitation to approach Victor in this state. He could blow at any minute... but that man was lighting him up with that extinguisher. Meifeng used the element of water, and that was the direct counter to fire. "Hey, hey, buddy," Meifeng called out to him. "Are you okay? Help's on the way, hold on." Victor looked up at her. He couldn't move much. The fire extinguisher had struck his right leg stump. The left continued to regenerate, pulling shards of debris from the fires to repair itself. It had regenerated about halfway down his thigh. He noticed the RAVEN badge on her chest. "I-I swear it wasn't me," Victor said. "I just started...erupting. Please, stop the fire. I don't want anyone else to get hurt." "Hey, hey, it's okay, it's okay..." Meifeng trailed off. "Don't worry about it, I'm going to handle it when my friend gets here." Victor pointed over to where Sarah laid on the ground. "That's my assistant," he said. "Sarah. She got burned in the blast. Can you get her medical attention? I'll be fine. I'm regenerative... in nature." At least, he was when not covered in fire-retardant foam. A mass of footsteps approaching signalled Cindy's arrival with a team of DOVE medics right behind him. Cindy arrived with a mask over her face (just in case of smoke, or a lethal gas being excreted throgh the air). She stood overtop of Victor. "Shit, good thing we brought the heavy duty stretcher," Cindy mused out loud as she faced the medics behind her. Fortunately, one of them was Scarlet Obott, who had super-strength, and was fully capable of lifting Victor onto the mechanical stretcher that had been enhanced to the point of being able to withstand most weights. However, he was much lighter than they anticipated. They put him onto the stretcher, and hauled him away. "His friend there also needs a hand," Meifeng noted as she pointed at Sarah. "Sarah... yeah, that's what he told me." Cindy nodded her head as she pressed her earpiece and called for another team of medics that quickly tended to Sarah, and hauled her off. Victor stared over at his assistant on the other stretcher. He shut his eyes and cursed silently. Something high above exploded. A crashing sound followed a second or two later, then a scream. All of it was Victor's fault. "God dammit," he seethed. If he weren't made of fire, one could almost say he was crying. "Good," Meifeng said as she watched them go. "Now, if you excuse me..." She said as she put on a gas mask that would handle the smoke for her. "...There's a fire I have to fight." She said with a cheeky grin, electing an eyeroll from Cindy right before Meifeng ran off. [hr] Meanwhile, Shizuka broke off from the team and chose to wander around the the debris-filled mall - alone. Well, he was [i]through[/i] following Meifeng around and entertaining her stupidity. Besides, everyone had already run off to somewhere, probably acting on their own as much as he was. Strolling through whatever was left of the mall, his eyes scanned the wreckage around him; it reminded him of the market incident a couple of days ago, but this time the scale seemed to be bigger, and much worse. Not just one Metahuman, but multiple went berserk - according to the brief report he had gotten from a passing DOVE agent. First, a Metahuman-eating freak was on the loose, and now this. Two major events happening in just one night. He rubbed the back of his neck and let out a tired sigh as he began to climb up a halted escalator. ... ... He reached the topmost floor without so much of a pant. Seemed like all the agents were too busy dealing with the lower levels to actually come all the way up here. As he swept his penlight around the dark, his eyebrows shot up with amusement at something that [i]glittered[/i] before him. Among some upturned tables and chairs not too far away from where he was, there stood a very familiar sight - an ice sculpture. As he walked over and moved closer to the ice, he realized that there were two people encased inside the frozen block. [i]Didn't the same thing happen before?[/i] He recognized their faces: one was a fellow agent who were with them during the riot incident, Anna; the other was the boy that went berserk at the market, by the name of Kei. Kei's fingers were still wrapped around Anna's neck, which made Shizuka wonder what the hell had happened with these two. He could worry about the details later; first, he would have to thaw them out. Holding the penlight in between his teeth, he phased his hands into the ice, pulling the two victims out of the ice cage by their shoulders. A quick check of their weak - but still beating - pulses told him that they were still alive, though Anna's was dangerously slow, and there was something [i]foreign[/i] stuck inside her, roughly around the neck area. He then lay them down on the ground as gently as he could, shining the penlight over them, turning their heads sideways slowly so that he could study them more carefully. Kei wasn't in a good state. While the effects of the ice that had coated him were less than they would be for most people, due to a natural resistance to ice also enhanced when his power grew, his power straining against the restrictions places on it had taken a toll on his body. There seemed to be burn marks around his neck, spreading up and down from where the collar sat. However, even though he was mostly resistant to the cold there were purple-red like cold burns along his hands and arms were the ice had been at its worse. Along with this he seemed to almost worsen slightly as he was taken out of the ice, face flushed slightly due to the temperature increase. He was barely breathing, but he was alive. A solid layer of rime had encased much of Anna's neck and shoulders, while veins of ice had wrapped around much of her chest, arms and face. A dusting of pale frost coated everything else. Annd had long since passed out, and her breathing had become dangerously slow and shallow because of the penetrating cold. Even after being extricated from the ice, it almost seemed she wasn't breathing at all. Her body shuddered pathetically, desperately trying to maintain a moment of warmth. The ravages of crippling frostbite marred much of her skin: a layer of sickening purple buried just below a swollen yellow pallor. Noticing that Anna was shivering, Shizuka removed his hoodie jacket and put it on top of her trembling frame. "Guys..." he began as he breathed into the comm. "I've found two freezing victims outside a bar on the topmost floor: one is the ice manipulator who went berserk at the market previously, and the other is Agent Aikau." Then in a harder tone, "Both require immediate medical attention - especially Aikau, who has a severe case of hypothermia." He placed a hand on Anna's forehead; there was something else he wanted to reconfirm. He channeled his power into Anna, connecting his senses with hers as he felt around her internal makeup. He concentrated on the head to shoulders area, where he had felt the foreign object stuck inside of her. His eyes widened when he finally figured out what that thing was. [i]...A needle?[/i] He didn't have the necessary tools with him to store this piece of [i]important[/i] evidence right now, but that didn't stop his thinking mind as he started to see the link between the information he had gathered so far: multiple Metahumans all went berserk just within this one mall about the same time, the needle, Agent Aikau's ability (according to what he had read about her in the database prior to the riot incident)... and then the similarity with the market case. Putting them all together, he could begin to see the bigger picture. A grim one. Someone out there seemed to be making Metahumans to go out of control by injecting - or even shooting - something into them. Both instances did cause lots of damage and chaos, which further increased the people's hatred towards the Metahumans... but were those all that the attackers wanted to achieve? Or maybe something else much worse? [hr] Max had missed having to deal with the first shitstorm of someone losing control - but she could only assume that this was worse. Still there wasn't any time to get too stuck on what had happened. She went right to work navigating the mall in a search for any people missed by the other groups, splitting of from those she'd been investigating with. The mall was large and it made sense to work alone (at least to her). She'd call for stretchers if she found any, hopefully alive, people. She almost missed two girls, seemingingly unconscious on the floor, holding hands. One seemed to be a bestial type who had fainted pretty much face down - her back was a bloody mess of what might be wings. Max couldn't tell what exactly had happened to the second, but she was sure it must have been bad. From a distance both seemed somewhat familiar to Max, like she had seen them before. "This is Mimic - I've got two metahumans," at least she assumed that second one was, "unconscious at the east end of the mall. They seem to be stable, but medical attention should be sent over when possible." Max frowned as she approached the two. She saw Wendy's face first. Ah, so she did know at least this one... It was the replicator who she had talked to earlier. "I've found one of the children you oversee, Greenbird," she spoke into the comms, keeping her tone even. It was probably the best to inform Cindy even if she would rather avoid her. "Seems she was caught up in this." So if the first was from the Academy, was the second... "Shit, give me her location, and I'll be right here." Cindy spoke into the comms. [i]Shit[/i]. Because of the mass of growing feathers that covered their lower face, Max hadn't recognised Rori at first. Why the hell was her cousin here? Forcing herself to take a deep breath, she had to stay professional, Max moved over to crouch in front of both of them. She didn't want to try to move either before medical assistance arrived, just in case. She doubted either would wake soon. She'd wait until others arrived, however. Just in case. Shaking her head, she realised she hadn't responded to Cindy. She quickly so, giving the location with an added apology. [hr] Not too far away from Max and the two unconscious teen girls, Haruka was still in the dark bookstore. He had pushed himself off the ground and got up on his feet unsteadily. He felt drained from trying to hold down the berserk tornado, and the cut off was as sudden as it had started, dropping the books and debris onto the ground with a deafening crash around him. He was vaguely aware of the noises outside the demolished shop - radios, sirens, and shouting people - as he began to wobble out of the store. He was tired, but he still had some strength left to blast the obstacles out of his way, finally stepping out of the shop. The state of the whole mall was as bad as the bookstore - and many times worse than the market incident. However, that wasn't the main point; he spotted a silhouette towards his right, and he jogged towards the petite figure. "Uh, hey!" he called out. "Do you know what---" Once he reached the person, his raised his eyebrows at the lady clad in some sort of armor that took him a full second to recognize that she was probably a RAVEN agent. Then his eyes widened further at the sight of the two bodies lying near the agent. Two girls that he had just met quite recently: the multi-elemental manipulator Wendy and the human-bird Rori. [hr] Bodies. Bodies all around him, unconscious or dead - he wasn't sure. Quentin stirred as others made their way into the building, grunting with discomfort as he pushed himself to his feet when another voice caught his attention. "Get off me, you f-" "You fuckin' did this to us, god-damned bigots..." Not far from where he'd slumped, another metahuman - one with a crystalline appearance - had a Silver Hills boarding school student pinned against the wall by their collar. "What, no, I-" "Don't fucking [i]lie[/i] to me, you little shit! Look at my wife. [I]Look at her[/i]!" A couple of metres away was a woman hunched low, coated in blood with a crude tourniquet around her legs. She was alive, but in a bad way - not helped by her husband. "[I]You[/i] made me hurt her, you tricked me... now I'm gonna even-" "Back away from the kid!" Quentin had found his feet, then his weapon - and had it levelled on the metahuman's crystalline features, for what good it may have done. "What, another bigot? Haven't you types already done enough, huh?!" "Look, you're scared for your wife, but this kid isn't responsible. Let him go, calm down - we'll get her medical attention." Quentin kept the weapon levelled, but temporarily softened his demeanour. He wished Reed was here, at least he'd have handled it better. "Bullshit, it's a trick, I know-" Before they could continue, Quentin withdrew his RAVEN badge and flashed it at the both of them, taking on a far more stern tone. "You know what this badge means? Back down, or I'll put you down." After a brief standard, the man relented and set the kid down. "I'm.. alright, I don't want anymore trouble. I'm sorry. I just.. " "Just shut up, and help me." Quentin set the weapon back in his holster and shrugged off the apology, heading on over to check on the unconscious woman. [hr] After the situation with Victor had been handled, it was up to Meifeng to fix the little fire problem they were having. She did promise him she would, after all. There were already firefighters on scene, but they could use a little hand from a RAVEN. The fire was raging, and Meifeng strapped on a gas mask so the fumes wouldn't bother her even in the slightest. The raging fire in front of her would be intimidating for any average person, but a RAVEN couldn't be afraid of a little flame? A few stores were on fire, and it was fortunate that Meifeng had the ability to counter them like it was nothing. She rubbed her hands together as a devilish grin had formed on her face. Jets of water came out of the palms of her hand like it was nothing, and surrounded her hands in domes of aqua. She then shot her hands forward, before shooting a thick jet of high pressurized water at the burning businesses. The water was cold as the artic, so it did wonders for cooling off the hot area. All that could be heard as Meifeng expulsed her water supply was the sizzling sound of the fire going out, and it wasn't long before the orange lights of the flame went off as well. Observing her handy work, Meifeng bit her hands on her hips... before realizing there was a lot more fire to take care of. And she was out of water. And dyhydrated a bit. [i]God damn it.[/i] [hr] Alice had gone into the mall before the truck had rolled to a stop and opened it's doors, taking advantage of her ability to cross great distances with a simple step to enter in seconds. She had pulled a half dozen people from collapsed stores, kiosks and architecture. She'd jumped them out of the mall to the area where paramedics were setting up, each one draining a little more from her. It was harder to teleport passengers, it was extra mass. Although she could jump a dozen times in a minute by herself taking double, or even triple the mass slowed her down, and left her exhausted. She was sweating, heavily, as she returned to the mall, her body armour uncomfortable and her shirt sticking to her back and flat chest. She could hear crying, a frail, thin sound breaking through the suddenly thick air. It was a child, wailing, tiny, ensconced between a young man and woman. They were maybe twenty-five. They were also dead. What looked like thousands of needle sharp blades had pierced their skin, and blood was already congealing in a pool around them. She carefully lifted the child from their still cooling fingers. She was still crying, and she tried her best to calm it, rocking it gently, making shushing noises, but she was out of her element. "It's ok... It's ok..." Even though she knew that for this child it would never be ok again. Would she grow up hating the metahumans that had ended up killing her parents? She did her best to soothe the squalling child. From a crime scene to a disaster. This job just kept getting better and better. [hr] "Shit, shit, shit..." Cindy muttered out of irritation. It was some time after they managed to get everyone out of the mall... that was alive, that is. Metahumans, and "baseline" humans were being carted out of the mall by the boatload. This was [i]not[/i] good, this was easily one of the worst disasters to ever hit Baybridge. It'll be absolutely awful to deal with as a DOVE. She pressed her earpiece, "Okay, is everyone loaded?" "Yes, ma'am!" The familiar voice of Jade West spoke. "I'll be doing my best to heal those in critical condition." "Good, good... I'll hold the fort her-" Right before she could finish, she saw an object - a bottle of beer - fly right by her face super fast. She took a step back as she looked towards the source. The crowd that was being held back by the police was getting angry. "Metahuman freak!" One shouted as he grabbed a rock, and prepared to throw it. Apparently everyone else was following his example, and was beginning to grab everything they could, and start chucking it. Along with throwing a variety of insults at them. It wasn't long before the crowd went rabid and began pelting RAVEN, DOVE, and the injured Metahumans with whatever they had. Cindy had to cover her face with her clipboard. "Shit, think fast!" Cindy thought out loud as she looked to the glass entrance to the mall - completely shattered. Using her ability, Cindy telekinetically lifted up the various glass shards, and quickly put them between herself, and the crowd as she formed one solid glass pane. This pane acted as a shield that absorbed the thrown projectiles. This gave Cindy enough room to think as she looked around and gathered more broken glass from the windows to form a greater shield. A shield that acted as a guard for the injured, and the Agents. "They're out of control!" Cindy shouted. "I got this," Drake said as he reached for the tear gas grenade at his waist, and chucked it overhead and it landed in the group. Creating a cloud of painful chemicals that made the angry crowd scatter, but it wasn't enough. Other RAVENS began chucking tear gas that made the angry group disperse, but left the truly determined there to stay. "Leave this to the regular police, just get everyone outta here!" Cindy ordered, and the ambulences quickly pulled out. She used her will to to keep the glass pane floating up into the air as it absorbed what was left of the damage. The BPD were quick to move in, and detain the determined fools. Yet, Cindy couldn't help but sigh as she watched the police cart them off. ...Because this was just the [i]start[/i] of a [i]loooooong[/i] shitstorm. [hr][h1][i]The Mannequin, Bison, Eliza, Toro de Oro, and....[/i][/h1][hr] [u][i]Havenfield Market, Roseview.[/i][/u] Just as Bison stated, the van arrived in Roseview in front of a warehouse that was some distance away from Havenfield. Where no one would be going. The vehicle was shut off, then the back doors opened, and everyone else stepped out the vehicle. The Mannequin in particular grabbed onto the sides of the van, and hopped out the vehicle out into the treeline. Landing on a branch like it was nothing. He didn't say a word as he attempted to make his grand get away. "Hey!" Bison called out, hands over his mouth. "Where you goin' Robotman? Don't we got a job to do?!" The Mannequin didn't even move. He merely stood still. "... It's best if I'm not seen." The Mannequin's robotic monotone relayed his voice and intentions well. "I [i]must[/i] remain hidden for long as possible if our plan will be successful," The machine started off, awkwardly winding his head up backwards. "Besides... [i]Jiang[/i] can carry the plan without me." All eyes fell on the Mannequin's quiet assistant. A Chinese man of average height, and sporting body concealing clothing - a trench coat and a wide-grimmed hat - that concealed the features of an older looking man with angular facial features, and a faint beard. He was behind a pair of small, round, glasses, that gave him an air of... sadism, a hidden threat. "Oh, I'll handle the job well, Mannequin." Jiang said with confidence in his voice as his lips curved upwards. "Good," The Mannequin nodded his head. "I have business to tend to..." He turned his body around to face forward. "... I'll contact you when I'm ready." Before he hopped into the trees, and disappeared. Once again, Jiang was taking center scene. He merely calmly shrugged as he stepped forward, followed by Bison and Eliza. "Now, does everyone remember the cover story?" Jiang asked. "Yeah, yeah... you're a former Hand Scientist." Bison huffed, finger quoted. "And... we're going to-." "Yes." Eliza said. "Come now, we don't have to repeat it, do we?" Jiang stated as he made it to the entrance of the warehouse. Which was a heavy door. Bison walked up to it, and pounded on it a few times, and someone walked up to it, and a little hatch opened up revealing some eyes. "Password." The man sternly said. "Maaaaan, you know exactly who it is," Bison said, cracking his knuckles in sheer annoyance. "So why we goin' over this rhetorical "mysterious organization" bullshit? Just let us the fuck in already." "Oh it's Bison." The door guard said, rolling his eyes, before mouthing the words "Dick." He was about to close the hatch, before he took a look at Jiang and narrowed his eyes. "Hey, hey, hey, Bison, who's this?! You know Winter said not to allow any strangers among us." "Oh yeah, like could [i]ever[/i] I forget what bullshit that dumbass spouts?" Bison rolled his eyes up into his head as he put his hands on his sides. "In case you're too stupid to piece this together... this is someone I've recruited to the cause." "Can we-" "Yeah, yeah, he's loyal to our cause- Like, seriously? Where the hell does Winter find you dumb assess when you can't do your jobs worth shit?" Bison mouthed, balling his fists and finally getting angry. "Know what? Open the door, or I break it down and beat the stupid outta ya'." "... Dick." The doorman said as he finally opened the door for the group. "Thank you!" Bison sarcastically said as he strut on by with Jiang, and Eliza behind him. They weren't entering any other warehouse. As they stepped inside, the warehouse was busy with activity from a variety of people - baseline human, and Metahuman alike. However, there were massive crates... each with the insignia of a tree on them. The whole warehouse was plastered with this insignia. The symbol of Eco-Natura. Each person in this building was a member of this organization, and as the trio walked through the building, they came across a lab. It wasn't long until the two lead Jiang into a dark room on the other side of the warehouse. There wasn't anything in the room, other than a chair that was facing the window. Inconspiciously enough, there was a man sitting in the chair. It was hard not to notice him, because there was a massive stream of ice that went from his body, all the way to the floor, in which in pooled. On the back of the chair were several sparrows made out of ice, and they were all facing Bison and his group as they walked in. "Hello, Bison." The man in the chair said. "What do I owe the occasion?" "Hehe, yeah, Winter," Bison said as he scratched his head. "I got us a new recruit!" Bison valiantly said as he bumped Jiang on the shoulder. "He one of them Hands guys that you like so much." He flashed the man in the chair a grin. All the ice around the chair disappeared into thin air. The man got up, and turned around, facing Bison's group. He was a thirty-something year old man with neat, slicked back dark-brown hair that was more befitting of someone in the 1950's. He was wearing no shirt, which showed off his thin, scrawny body, only a pair of jeans and boots. He was Caucasian, and his facial features that are a mixture of [i]many[/i] different European countries that it was impossible to tell which ones. His face was the face of a tired man, that has seen far too much. He was Old Man Winter, leader of Eco-Natura. "... Bison, this is quite rare." Winter stroked his chin a bit. "You never bring in recruits." "Well, this one's different! He worked with the Hands, I worked under him, too!" Bison fipped with a cocky grin on his face. "Well, what's your name?" Old Man Winter asked. "Song Jiang," Jiang answered, forgetting that Americans put their surname last. "Uh, it's Jiang." Bison quickly corrected him. "Any way, he's full of those breakthroughs that'll help us big time! Especially with your big judgement day plan - or whatever you're callin' it!" "Oh really?" Old Man Winter asked skeptitcally. "If you wish to join the science division.... then you have to prove yourself that you are willing to dedicate yourself to the cause of restoring nature to where it once was." "Oh, my, my," Jiang said with a grin. "I am all about that goal... the world is much more beautiful without all these buildings in the way." He stated. "I'll do anything for the greater cause... even lick your boots." "That's what I want to hear...." Old Man Winter said. "I won't divulge too many details just yet... However, you best get over to the science wing and get to work with the others. Bison, Eliza, escort him." "I wanted to examine your... nature bombs, yes." Jiang stated. "I know how to work the Metahuman energy, perhaps I can... improve it?" He asked. "Perhaps... but I only want the trusted scientists touching the nature bombs." Old Man Winter stated as he sat back down in his chair, facing the outdoors. "Now, I have much comteplating to do, can you get to work together?" Old Man Winter asked. "Yes." Jiang answered. "Show me your workspace, and I'll produce results." "Now, let's get a move on." Bison said as he carted Jiang out the room. Once the doors closed, Bison grinned. "What a dumbass. He just let you join without even askin' for any proof!" "Heh... that was dumb, but it works in our favor." Eliza said as she walked alongside him. "Now... if the Mannequin's is successful, I need to get into that lab." Jiang said. "... From there, I'll ensure all goes as planned." [hr][i][h1][color=92278f]Ellen Nile[/color], and...[/h1][sub]Written in collaboration with[b] [@Nosuchthing][/b].[/sub][/i][hr] Tired of the indoors, and realising that her current form seemed to have an affinity for the trees she had headed out to enjoy them. She wasn't someone who was particularly interested in going for walks in nature, but what she was doing now wasn't walking. The trees were close in this part of the forest, blocking out what little light remained in the early evening. Not that it seemed to matter, her eyes attracted a lot of attention that she wished they didn't, but they were far more effective at collecting light than normal human eyes. The forest, which otherwise would have been enar pitch black to a human, was instead merely dim to her. She leapt from the branch she was perched on, enjoying the sensation of the wind flowing through her extended fingers and blowing out her hair behind her. Her fingers curled around the branch she ahd been aiming for, and she brought her legs in sharply, bringing her to a dead halt and clambering up to crouch on the branch. ...The very moment she hopped up on the branch, the trees around her rustled like something hopped from one to another. Before she had much of a chance to react, her treebranch suddenly snapped under it's own weight, and Ellen was sent sprawling to the ground. She landed hard, and would have cried out if it weren't for the breath being driven forcefully from her lungs. She lay flat on her back for a half second before survival instincts kicked in and she realised that something else had snapped the branhc beneath her. She scrambled to her feet, her head swivelling as she searched for whatever it was that had dislodged her. Her mouth dried up in terror as she spotted it. "... My apologies." A... machine-like voice stated as it slowly approached Ellen from the treeline. Descending was a white, inhuman, frame made out of ceramic. It landed flat on the ground, before it rose up into the air. It was the Mannequin. Hunched over, and his body twitching. "I... accidentally knocked you down while attempting to get your attention." He stated. The thing was massive, maybe ten feet tall, it's physique entirely composed of some strange machinery. His voice did not sound dissimilar to a text to speech program, though with a strange sense of intelligence behind it. The thing did not appear to have any eyes. How could it see her? How could it talk? She wanted to run, to leap away into the trees, but her body seemed unwilling to obey those simple commands, and some deeper instinct told her that perhaps running would be even worse for her health. Her voice quavered as she spoke. "You could have just said hi." "Do not be frightened by my form...." The Mannequin took a few steps forward, before coming to a stop several meters away from Ellen. He put his hand on his "chest" as false body language. "I, too, am a Metahuman that has been... cursed by their ability. Forced to abandon my body in favor of a... [i]machine.[/i]" He whispered in his monotone voice. "However, I have heard of your plight, nonetheless... and wish to assist you...." The creature's olive branch hardly eradicated Ellen's fears, but it did not seem to be making any immediate moves to rip her limb from limb, and then it continued to speak. "You're a..." She trailed away, the creature wasn't an it, it was a he, or a she perhaps. "... Scientist." The Mannequin answered. He had no need for pronouns anymore.,. he is a machine, after all. "As a being of science... I dedicate myself to exploring the meaning of the world, and hoping my knowledge to improve it." He started off, facing Ellen. "Like I said, I've heard of your plight. How no one wishes to help you, nor even attempt to understand you... Merely push you into the background. That's how people are. When they can't truly help you, they merely pass it off as patronizing [i]sympathy[/i]...." He trailed off. "I..." Ellen fell silent, processing what he had just said. She no longer had quite the same desire to run screaming, or indeed the limb gripping terror that had kept her still. Even so, the creature unnerved her, there was something about it's blank, featureless face, about the way it seemed to look straight at her while having nothing with which to observe her. The complete opposite of her grapefruit sized eyes. "I don't want any sympathy... I just don't want... this..." Her gesture encompassed her whole body. "Of course you don't," The Mannequin sensed that she was easing up around him - letting her guard down - so he slowly approached her. Walking on all fours to brace himself. "... You want a [i]solution[/i]." He said. Her face, such as could be seen beneath the enormous orbs, steeled, a look of anger flashed across the surface of her eyes. her voice was stony, annoyed, at herself, at the world, only partly at this newcomer. "There is no solution. I can't use suppression... it'd kill me. I'm stuck with it. Like you are." "... That is because you haven't tried the [i]correct[/i] solution." The Mannequin stated, as he leaned in closer to Ellen. He reached down towards his lower-torso and a compartment opened inside of it. Out of it, he pulled a vial that was pull of a glowing purple liquid. "This... this is a serum I have created just for you. It will... bring your changes under control." He stated. The vial was mesemerising, despite her misigivings, and her scepticism, Ellen had not given up on the hope that she would find some kind of cure for her 'condition'. It took her significant effort to tear her eyes away, not least because the vial was less horrifying than the blank clinical faceplate of the robot. Nonetheless, she managed it, cocking her head back towards him. "Bullshit!" Despite her curse, her eyes were still drawn hungrily back to the glowing glass vial, as though it did indeed hold all the answers. "This is... no lie." The Mannequin stated. "It is my personal mission to assist those with powers that are... unfavorable. Because my power made me lose my body... I can't bear to see a young child with potential losing herself to her power...." He trailed off. "I just want to help you... no one else will. DOVE? They can't help you, nor is it in their interests to. The ISD...? They're full of fanatics only interested in stroking their own ego, and getting profits...." He trailed off. "... But, me? I am after the betterment of mankind... one person at a time...." Ellen stared at her feet, ashamed that she had been afraid of this being. She hated when her powers ended up changing her physically, hated seeing something else in the mirror, and hated even more how people looked at her. And that was only one week out of three, usually. He was stuck like this for ever. "But... but why me?" "Your case is... unfortunate enough to warrant immediate assistance." The Mannequin stated. She bit her lip, uncertain, but tottering now on the edge of indecision, a gentle nudge away from saying yes, from snatching the vial. It was hope. It was how she had seen the suppression collar as well. She hadn't wanted to listen, just to click it on and forget about the ability she had suddenly developed. This wasn't DOVE though, it wasn't an organisation that had completely failed to help her. This was someone who understood. "I don't know..." "If you are unsure..." The Mannequin started off. "Take your time to consider it." He reached over and held the vial out for her. "Consider it well, and contact me when you make your final decision." He took a few steps away from her, that blank glare staring her down. "But be aware... it is no final solution. It's merely a temporary serum that'll bring your power under control until I can... study it." He explainedi. She took the proffered vial numbly and stared at it for a moment. So it wasn't a true answer. It wasn't a cure, just a stopgap, a temporary measure. And yet it was still more than anything else that had ever been offered. "Wait!" She looked from the vial to her mysterious benefactor. "How... how do I contact you?" Another hatch on the Mannequin's body opened up, and he reached inside and pulled out a crumbled up slip of paper. He used his extraordinarily long limbs to hand it over to her. On the slip, a phone number was displayed (It was actually means to directly contact his built-in communication systems). The Mannequin stated, "My... number." He said. She folded the paper carefully and pushed it into a pocket. "Good..." The Mannequin stated as he continued walking away - before suddenly stopping and his head making a full rotation towards Ellen. "... One more thing... This encounter never happened..." He stated as he hopped up into the trees, and disappeared. She stared at the spot where the machine had been standing. She almost could have fooled herself into thinking nothing had happened here, were it not for the paper in her pocket and the glowing, strangely warm vial resting in her fingers. Was this the answer?Or was it yet another useless hope. She buried it carefully in her bag, and then turned and headed back towards the Academy. She didn't know if she could trust him, or the vial that nestled in the bottom of her bag, but she felt indefinably lighter. She didn't know why, she hadn't felt like this in years, that maybe there was something that could be done, even if she didn't trust the strange ceramic creature or the even stranger chemical he had given her. As the Mannequin swung from tree to tree, he thought to himself. [i]...You aren't the only one who longs for normality, Ellen.[/i] [hr][h1][i]...[/i][/h1][hr] [i][u]Hailey Boulevard, Silver Hills.[/u][/i] Papers were neatly placed into a filing cabinet as a middle-aged woman closed up shop for tonight. She put her hand on her head, and gently shook it from left to right as she examined the lab equipment in front of her. She let out a sigh as she finally typed out a few things on the computer, before pressing the shut down button, and getting up. She grabbed a jacket that she had over her chair as she started moving over towards the door, and flipped the lights off. The woman shook her head as she moved over to the hallway, and started putting her jacket back on. The woman made it to the lobby, and then she looked around at the large room, with many, many windows. There wasn't a soul in here - everyone else left looooong before she closed up - which meant no one would even notice that she was gone. ... Nor would they notice the guest. A large shadow was cast in a window above her. The moonlight illuminated this figure enough for the woman to notice, and look up. "... [i]Dr. Cross.[/i]" The man stated, cockily. "Don't call me that; it's [i]Emily[/i]." Dr. Cross snarled, annoyed that her name was being spoken in public like this. Dr.Cross stared at her nails for a moment. The woman was average heighted, and had a head of grey hair, and most prominently, a black eye patch. She had that stern expression she held seven years ago... When she was the former head of the South-West branch of the Hands of Science she was [i]something[/i]. Now... she's a lackey in someone else' plan didn't like this job, at all - but, it was what she had. "I thought you were long-gone, [i]Ignatius.[/i]" "Gone?" Ignatius said as he hopped down, and landed in front of Dr. Cross. He pulled off his cap, and ran his hand through his hair and grinned. "I never left... I just went on vacation to see a little bit of the world." He started laughing as he continued, "It's so fun to see how the world changed." "Now, you've come back?" Dr. Cross asked, crossing her arms. "I thought you were done being a "lackey" of our new employer." She growled. "Oh, I am," Ignatius replied. "But, I'll eternally be by your side. Regardless of what stupid decisions you make." He said with a grin. Dr. Cross put her hands behind her back. "... And it [i]was[/i] a stupid decision," She regretfully said. "We should have gone with Suan-Ni while we had the chance...." She groaned. "Hey, hey..." Ignatius stated. "You know, during my travels... I've learned, many, many, things. Learned different perspectives on this little green earth of ours...." He trailed off as he began walking a circle around Dr. Cross, he stopped and raised a finger up into the air. "One [i]universal[/i] I've learned is that the world has [i]forgotten[/i] the Hands." Ignatius said. Dr. Cross crossed her arms, and stared Ignatius down. "If we were to... betray our masters, and then forge something new; [i]now[/i] would be the time." Ignatius said with a grin on his face. He looked at Dr. Cross over his shoulder. "Wouldn't it be preferable to being a worker bee for the [i]Foundation Woman[/i]?" Dr. Cross stood there as if she thought about it for a moment. "... But, the Hands was an organization decades old," Dr. Cross started off. "It would take [i]ages[/i]-" Ignatius put a finger to her lips, loudly saying "Shhhhhhhhh...." The woman complied. "[i]I know.[/i]" Ignatius answered. "I was there." Dr. Cross was reminded of Ignatius' true ability. "I walked this earth as thousands of different men and woman... I know a thing or two about how it works. Trust me." Ignatius tried to assure her. "The Hands just got... arrogant. Pride comes before the fall, [i]after all.[/i]" He started laughing. Another shadow appeared at the same window Ignatius was previous at. The two looked up, and noticed the Mannequin... a face they never thought they would see again in their lives. "... Both of you will be very interested in an offer of mine." The Mannequin said. [hr] "Oh how exciting!" Megan said like a gleeful child, clenching her hands together, and hopping up and down. "Cross [i]and[/i] Ignatius in one place? Must be our lucky day, yeah!" "Shut up Megan, I can't hear them." Ray said as he leaned forward. The group was gathered inside their vehicle, and Rush had inconspicuously snuck bugs into the building via Megan disguised as an employee (After they beat him up, of course). They were listening in on the conversation, which was streamed through a device that was resting on the dashboard. As they went on, and on, Megan came to a group decision, "Okay, boys and gals; we found Cross. Let's keep tailing her until we can dig up dirt on the others." "Right," Ray said as he spread his legs. "Long as we found two ringleaders, we might as well gather as much evidence as we can." "Cross' car. Has been tagged. Will be locating place of residence soon." Rush said as he hammered away at a computer, and was largely ignoring everyone else as he worked on his projects. Missy, who was mostly silent as she had little to do with this, was merely sitting in one seat of the vehicle with nothing to do but listen like the others. "Why the hell is she just walking around like it's nothing? Aren't the feds after her after everything she did?" Missy asked, her voice was hoarse. "It's like she said, darling," Megan said, looking back at Rush. "The world forgot about the Hands. It's all about the new big thing! [i]The Allegiance! The Pure! The Order![/i]" She over dramatically said. "Dr. Cross would begin to ease out as RAVEN literally just gave up on finding her." "Which is why we're here?" Ray said, with his arms crossed. "... Well, look who it is," Ignatius' voice spoke through the device. "It's our good old friend, the [i]Mannequin[/i]. How have you been doing since that cockroach Luis has been crushed?" "Wait," Megan lost her composure for a few moments. "The [i]Mannequin?![/i]" All livable reports state that the Mannequin was taken out with the rest of the Changeling Unit. That, or he went underground. He's back now. "The hell is the Mannequin?" Ray asked. However, hearing that name made something inside of Missy awaken. "What do we owe the occasion to?" Dr. Cross skeptically said. "I require your assistance," The Mannequin spoke in his monotone voice. "I'm gathering people for a [i]new[/i] organization." "If it's another Changeling Unit; [i]forget it.[/i]" Ignatius was quick to hiss. "The world doesn't need another Changeling Unit." The Mannequin was silent for a moment. "I'm not interested in another Changeling Unit." The Mannequin coldly said. "What I'm [i]truly[/i] interested in is another Hands of Science... and the demise of the DOVE, RAVEN, organizations." "Hmph... As much as my gut says, don't, I think I'll bite." Ignatius said. "So speak up machine man...." "Okay. This is a... what's the word for it, loves?" Megan asked. "Curve ball. Oh, yes, a curve ball." "And when you get thrown a curve ball, it's time to sit it out." Ray botched that metaphor, but the point was the same. They shouldn't get rash, especially when they're only trying to gather some information. "Of course... let's just listen and hope that the Mannequin is feeling chatty today." Megan trailed off, attempting to compound her point that they should just sit back, and chill. "But, it's not like he can feel anything. Being a robot, after all. Haha-" The whole conversation was halted when Missy loudly screeched, and shot out a bone blade out of the palm of her hand. Everyone looked at Missy as she opened the door, and hopped out the car after kicking the door open. "Wait, what are you-" Ray said. Hearing the Mannequin's voice... his voice... all but confirmed Missy's suspicions. Something inside of her awakened - a hatred like no other. She couldn't control herself. She [i]had[/i] to kill the Mannequin, here and now. Which is why she found herself pacing towards the building, shooting a painful blade of bone out of her other hand. She marched through the parking lot towards the door. "What the hell is she doing?!" Ray loudly shouted, ready to lose his shit since Missy was ruining what they were doing. "Go out there and stop her." Megan said, her eyes wide open. "She'll get butchered by Ignatius!" "Disabling cameras. Alarms. Just in case." Rush quickly said as he switched off the systems in question. "Yeah, yeah, I'll do it." Ray quickly opened the door and hopped out the vehicle. He was immediately wrapped in a dark-blue aura, he quickly took to the air and started cutting through the air, leaving behind a blue aura in his wake. His target was Missy Baroness, and he was homing in on her just as she was walking in through the window.... [hr][hider=Silversun Pickups - Panic Switch][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdjzU0c9YGg[/youtube][/hider][hr] ... And the worst case scenario happened when Missy's arm inflated with muscles, before punching through the glass window like it was nothing. Everyone faced Missy as she made her dramatic entrance. The glass that impacted her did nothing but superficial scratches that were immediately regenerated with her god-like factor. She stood before them, and then loudly groaned. "Mannequin..." Missy groaned as she faced the machine. "You know how [i]much[/i] I've been hoping one of you fuckers survived, so I can take a piece out of you myself." Her voice got deeper, almost demonic. She pointed her blade at Dr. Cross and Ignatius. "... And you two better stay out of it, or you'll be [i]next[/i]." "Actually..." Ignatius said with a devilish grin on his face. He created a massive blade out of a dark-red energy that almost appeared to be like hard-light. It had a white aura around it that almost looked like chains. He pointed it at Missy, and grinned, "... You won't be laying a finger on my brand new associate here. This is your first, and last warning... you are trespassing, after all." "To hell with you!" Missy loudly shouted as she hopped up into the air towards the Mannequin, with both of her blades raised up into the air. "Oh well." Ignatius dashed forward, and swung the blade at Missy - but the telekinetic weapon was parried by a transparent giant blue hand that bumped the blades off course, and right into the ground. "Oh no, you don't." Ray said, catching Ignatius' attention. This was the [i]worst[/i] case scenario, and he was going to lay into Missy after this. He charged Ignatius with his fist cocked back, and when he threw it, another giant blue hand appeared and went crashing towards Ignatius. The REAPER put both hands up, and created a bubble shield that cracked and shattered on contact with his fist. Ignatius grit his teeth, he looked over his shoulder, and noticed that Dr. Cross had left. Ray quickly followed it up with another brutal blue fist to the shield that finally broke it, and sent Ignatius flying backwards. With that bastard out the way, he can worry about Missy. The Mannequin was prepared for Missy's assault, and when she came flying down, he rolled over to the side. Missy's blades cut the ground, but that wasn't enough to stop her. She shot her head over to the side, and tried to continue, but she got the receiving end of the Mannequin's foot hitting her square in the stomach. The blow was so powerful that it sent her sprawling backwards a bit, holding her gut. The Mannequin quickly capitalized on the opportunity and rushed Missy with his blades, and stabbed her square in the gut with one of his hidden blades. He came "face" to face with Missy, and leaned in closely to her. "I don't know who you are..." His voice was a monotone whisper. "... but, you must be one of the people who have been wronged by the Changeling Unit in the past... a ghost of the past." He brought the blade upwards, cutting through Missy's flesh, and she let out a hoarse screech. "... You should have died there." Right before the Mannequin could disembowel Missy, a blue fist cut through the air and punched the Mannequin in the head that sent him flying backwards off of her. While Missy was panting, letting her regenerative factor repair her, Ray flew over to Missy and grabbed her. Wrapping both arms around her midsection, and flying right out the way they came. "Put me down! Don't let that [i]bastard[/i] get away!" Missy hissed. "Shut up, we gotta go!" Ray replied as they went flying through the air. When he looked down, he saw Megan nod, hop back into the vehicle, before driving off. [hr] Ray brought Missy down inside a park some distance away from that whole shitstorm. Immediately, Missy pushes herself away from Ray, and snarled at him, "Why did you get involved!?" "Oh, gee," Ray scratched the side of his head like an idiot. "It [i]couldn't[/i] have been because you were almost butchered after running headfirst into a fight with three of our enemies." Ray crossed his arms and starred her down. "Missy, [i]what[/i] were you thinking?" Missy starred at Ray from the side. "... It's none of your business." "It is my business, because you ruined [i]everything![/i]" Ray hissed as he got up into Missy's face. "Do you understand what you just done? Now that they know about us, it's going to be impossible to actually find them!" He pushed her by the chest. "Seriously, I don't know where the hell Megan finds people like you." Missy extended the blades out of her hands, and stared Ray right in the face. "I... you don't understand what I went through, Drager." She got even closer to Ray's face. "... Understand?" She asked. At this point, Megan, and the rest of the group walked up to the two. "Hey, hey, hey..." Megan said with both of her hands up into the air. "I know things are tense, but that's no reason to tear each others heads off, now is it?" Megan asked. "Let's just talk this all out - like friends!" As a display of her freakish power, Megan's arms turned into a grey, metal-like, liquid as they quickly formed tentacles that wrapped around Megan and Ray. Bringing them in [i]close[/i]. "We're all friends, friends love each other!" Megan loudly said. "Okay, Megan, I get it," Ray said as he tried to get himself free. When Megan released them, he found himself much less, angered. "But, now we have a problem." "Yes, I know, I know..." Megan mused, literally shrugging it off. "We can worry about [i]that[/i] later!" Megan faced Missy, with a toothy grin on her face. "It seems you have history with the Mannequin... unfortunate, because I can travel the lands and find [i]countless[/i] people who have been wronged by the Changeling Unit." That caught Missy's attention. "... That isn't the half of it." Missy answered, sarcastically. "But, understand, we'll kill the Mannequin soon enough! I promise." Megan said. "So, how about we all go take a break for awhile?" Megan was trying not to agitate Missy further in this situation by mentioning how much she screwed up. She did innately agree with Ray, but she would rather not set Missy off further. They'll discuss things once she cools it. Ray groaned. "... Sure. Whatever." Ray shrugged, "Let's grab something from Starrybanks." "... Actually," Missy started off as she began walking off. "I think I'm going to take some time to myself, as well." Before anyone could object, Missy hopped off into the treeline, and kept running until she was long gone. "Missy, wait!" Megan said. "Damn it! We can't have have her...." "... Ruining everything?" Ray said. "I can chase after her." "At this point... there is none." Megan answered, shaking her head. "Might as well just wait for Missy to clear her mind." Ray crossed his arms. "... Or get killed." [hr][h1][i]One week later... Wednesday, 2:18 PM.[/i][/h1][hr] The very next week, the aftermath of both the disaster at the Mall, and at Havenfield took it's toll on Baybridge's populace. In addition to [i]many[/i] people being dead, and many more were injured, many of the baseline civilians were transformed into Metahumans. They may not have manisfested immediately, but they turned into Metahumans down the line. Which lead to a [i]massive[/i] workload to the DOVES of Baybridge as they tried to sort out the disaster. In addition, the tension between Metahumans, and Anti-Metahuman Supporters have reached an all time high as violence erupted between the two groups.Metahumans showing up brutally murdered did not help matters. A cloud of fear was over the city as no one knew what would happen next. [hr][i][h1][color=red]Meifeng Zhao[/color].[/h1][/i][hr][hider=Mortal Kombat: Armageddon OST - Subway][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_1uqPXjBV4[/youtube][/hider][hr] [U][I]Stonecliff, Silver Hills.[/I][/u] A group of people ran by in an alleyway, followed by one sole person. Each step they took, they disrupted the puddles on the ground. That determined person foolish enough to take on a group alone? That was Meifeng Zhao. Chasing after some Allegiance members in her RAVEN uniform. She turned a corner, but had to dive out the way as a orb of energy taking the shape of a wheel came flying towards her. The wheel hit the wall behind her, and kept going until it lost momentum on the [i]third[/i] wall. She hit the ground, and quickly looked behind her. She'll have to make sure to avoid that. The fucker responsible started laughing like he's the Joker. Which pissed Meifeng off as she summoned her water, and shot herself right back up to her feet using her element. Meifeng dropped into a stance as she stared her opponent down. A tall man, shirtless, and muscular (Not that muscular... but enough to make him a threat in a physical fight). He had the Allegiance symbol tattooed on the right side of his chest, which was reason enough for Meifeng to arrest him. The rest of his Allegiance buds were making a break for it... and he's just slowing her down. "You RAVENS...." The man said with a grin. "... Always think you're above it all, but you're all- [b][i]SELLOUTS![/i][/b]" The man's voice suddenly took a more demonic tone as he began a transformation on the last word. He started getting much taller, and bulkier, as spikes and other bone-like constructs began to grow on his body. The Allegiance member began cackling- Only to come to a sudden stop when Meifeng's boot was slammed into his face, and he was promptly sent flying backwards when she channeled a water blast into it. "Yeah, yeah... [i]I'm[/i] the sellout because I want to stop people like you." Meifeng groaned as she came to the ground, rolling her eyes. She was didn't waste any time in grabbing her containment foam sprayer- However, she was utterly blindsided by the Allegiance sneak attack. A fist from an elastic Metahuman came flying through the air and hit her square in the face. She didn't have time to even brace herself as she went falling off to the side. She hit the ground, but quickly rolled over. Everything was [i]ringing[/i], and her vision was blurry. She was in the perfect position to be beaten sense. And she knew that. Which is why she thought fast, and then stuck her hand out, and summoned her water. She rolled onto her back, and the water followed, and then immediately froze. It was the sloppiest wall of ice that she has ever created, but it would have to be enough until she catches her bearings. The brutish member of the Allegiance got up, and scratched his head. "Damn it!" He loudly hissed. "I'm gonna... gonna...." He groaned. "Forget about it." The elastic girl said, running up to the brute. "We gotta go!" The two quickly escaped into a man hole, and disappeared. After Meifeng collected herself, she rubbed her head. She heard them run off, and she removed the water shield. She quickly ran off after them, and saw that the man hole cover was open... They're long gone now. Meifeng slammed her foot on the ground. This is the eighth time this happened. "This is Agent Rogue Wave... I have lost track of the suspects." Meifeng said, swallowing her pride. "Understood, we'll bag them later," Mission control said. "Get back to Headquarters." "Understood, I'll be heading back now."