---

Creep wandered into the alley, avoiding the Rockers that guarded it. She wouldn't have been surprised if one of these meeting really was the reason the Community knew the Rockers had a Stranger, but that was beside the point. Now, she had a much more pressing thing to do. And a subject she wanted to breach to this man, Shatterpoint...

He was a teenager, just like herself, wasn't he? Was he going to school or anything like that? Was this villain-thing his life...? Things like that wandered her mind for a brief moment. Since yesterday, he felt a lot more like he was on her side, compared to what else threatened out there. She was sure he wasn't a good person, but... she had started to wonder why.

She wondered how to ask what she wanted to ask. It felt a bit awkward. Yet, she wanted to do it. How to start... well, at the very least, she could make him aware she was there.



She displayed the words, written by dim light some distance from his eyes straight in front of him, ensuring that the light wasn't so bright as to be annoying. She had learned more about that in the time talking to him. For now, she simply waited to be addressed.

Shatterpoint inclined his head slightly, "Good that you made it back. How'd things go?" Although he knew she was there now he didn't change his posture and remained leaning slightly against the wall behind him, speaking just softly enough to be heard by Creep.

Creep stood silent, watching him. After she made the message vanish, she made him wait. Partly because she wasn't sure how she wanted to go about this. ... Oh, guess it was just to get going.



She paused there to let him digest that, and potentially respond.

Shatterpoint made a small gesture with his hand to indicate that she should continue.

Okay. Now for what she planned in her mind. She wanted this to feel... a bit more serious. She just had to gather her courage for it.

To Shatterpoint, an area in front of him started becoming darker and darker. Finally it became a humanoid shape. Then, the darkness slipped off her to become her shadow, and she revealed her figure. It was... kind of embarrassing to do, but she wanted to, he knew she was Wisp, anyway. She was only directing the light of her to his eyes, she was still invisible in all other directions. So, what he saw was her, draped in relatively tight black clothes from head to toe except for parts of her face, a belt with all her weapons around her waist, hood covering her hair, blindfold covering her eyes and similar cloth covering her mouth as a mask. But, she let him see her frown, and pulled a little on the cloth covering her mouth, because she didn't want to use the voice changer right now. She wanted a serious conversation, cape to cape.

only you can see me right now - Was written in white text above her right shoulder. Still... she folded her arms after having pulled away the cloth in front of her mouth, and looked towards him, frowning with intention.

‘Why are you a villain? What's it worth to you?’ She asked silently, mirroring how he'd spoken softly, looking at him through the blindfold. She hoped showing herself like this and asking with her own voice revealed how serious she was with this question.

Shatterpoint's eyes fluttered beneath the goggles of his face mask in a very noticeable way. It was clear that he hadn't expected this sort of question and he definitely wasn't comfortable with it. Despite his obvious qualms with the question, he didn't protest. "Uh, well..." Even though he had been taken aback, the young man still barely spoke loud enough so that only Wisp could hear. "Friendship."

Creep was a little surprised by his reaction. She had almost certainly expected him to harshly state that it was none of her business rather than become uncomfortable and then give a hesitant answer. But the answer he gave...

‘Friendship?’ She repeated, her tone one of not entirely believing her ears. ‘You embarked on a life of plaguing the lives of others for the benefit of your own... for friendship?’ She continued, staring at him with arms still folded, hoping to hear him elaborate.

He shook his head, clearly disapproving of what she said. Or maybe it was how she said it? "Not plaguing others. Helping us. Misfits. Rejected. Needing acceptance." He looked away from her semi-invisible form. this was... A raw, tender nerve for him.

Creep stood silent for a bit, watching him become uncomfortable. ‘So that's how it is. A group bound together by a common desire for camaraderie and belonging somewhere, committing crimes to keep yourselves relevant and fed. Is that it?’ She asked, continuing to look after where he turned his head.

Wisp couldn't tell much from the direction the Rocker's second in command was looking. He appeared to simply be staring at a couple of the grunts who were lazing about. "No!" he responded quite harshly, keeping his tone down albeit with some difficulty. "Not a group. Just... Just us." Shatterpoint's usually calm and stoic demeanor had given way to something else entirely. His voice sounded almost childish, like this were a tantrum.

"We're done about me. Report?"

She flinched a little at his rebuttal, becoming afraid that she had pushed him too far and he was now going to advance on her for it. But... no, that wasn't the case. Fortunately, she still wore the blindfold, and any potential fear wouldn't have been visible. But... alright. She sighed, audibly enough that he could hear it. She had hoped to get some insight into who he was as a person, and she had, sure, but not as deep as she had hoped. He hadn't explained it to her, just a few words which would have to serve as guidelines. ... Okay, then.

‘Fine. I’ll tell you what I learned that was new to me. And I’ll tell you why I asked.’ She adjusted her steps to stand before him confidently as she continued, her tone serious.

‘The leader of the Community, Patriarch, is a high-ranking Master-Striker that touches someone and then makes them his minion. He doesn’t actively control them, but he rewrites their will, their hopes and dreams, so that they become his loyal servant that'd do anything he asks of them. He puts a single hand on you, and you'd happily become his agent who’d willingly sell out all those you hold dear. And the worst part? You don't have any idea who he might have touched. They're probably among your ranks already, people he has touched but haven't revealed yet. Unwilling spies working for him as if willingly. Honestly, I'm a danger, as I was just at his rally. What if I was captured and I'm actually just pretending to have got away safely? ... I know I'm not, but if I was captured and touched by Patriarch I'd be saying the very same thing.’ She looked at him long and hard as she continued.

‘He had police officers guarding the rally, who without a doubt he had touched previously. He showed off his new addition to the family, Sonika, I'm sure you know of her. He told of his intentions to make everyone in the entire city join his family, implying he has no max number of servants and that it doesn't wane with time. And at the end, he warned that the Rockers had obtained a Stranger. I don't know how he found out, probably from one of his unknown agents, but he'll be ready for me in the future. What I feel this means? That he dares to announce this so publicly, about his powers and naming the Rockers? He's coming for you soon, and I don't think you can win. So, unless becoming part of his "family" together appeals to your idea of friendship, I’m going to suggest you flee this city.’ She said, eyes frowning.

‘I asked about your reasons for being a villain because I was wondering what might be a reason to put yourself in danger against foes like that. I find your excuse insufficient, so I’m going to recommend you warn others and hightail. I'm going to tell the local Protectorate about this, hope that they call in the big guns on the Community before it’s too late. But, in case they've already been made part of his family, I want you to ensure the Protectorate somewhere else is informed as well. They need to bring him down before he has claimed enough people that we’ll be powerless to stop him. ... That's all.’ She finished, sighing out as she had finally said all she wanted to.

Shatterpoint remained stoic as each knew piece of information was introduced and Creep gave her advice. He shook his head. "Thank you for the information, it's helpful. And while I apprecaite your concern, I can't take your advice. We can win. We have to. I'll tell Ceramix this news and I'll see how to proceed. If he deems it neccasary he'll inform the Protectorate as well. If that is all, then we'll meet at Lincoln Park in three days." His tone of voice suggested that the conversation was over and he began walking away, doubtless to get into contact with Ceramix.

She squeezed her fists a little at the statement that he can win, frowning a bit. You and what army, she couldn't help but think. They had Xolotl, Sonika, numerous other capes, whoever Patriarch might be keeping secret, while Shatterpoint had... ... ...

‘Okay, then.’ Was all she said, before she wiffed her image away in a shroud of smoke should Shatterpoint still have her slightly in his field of vision. Now, she could just have instantly vanished, but she did want to give the impression of being a slight bit more theatrical. But, suppose that was it, then. Creep turned and left, feeling a bit annoyed at Shatterpoint insisting he could win when she couldn't see how. But... very well, then.

Next stop, Protectorate HQ. She hadn't want to go before talking to Shatterpoint because... well, if it turned out they were all already on Patriarch's side, at least Shatterpoint had now walked away safely to inform others. Hopefully.

Actually, before that... Creep decided she had another thing she could do.

Mantis holstered his firearm as the woman spoke, much more relaxed this time. Farce explained their position better and Mantis nodded. As for coffee? Who really knew? He hoped he didn't encounter any trouble.

For whatever reason, Mantis trusted this woman. Not with his bank account info, but with his name at least. What could the harm be in opening up a little bit? Lord knew he had a hard enough time doing that normally. Mantis pulled down his balaclava, revealing his face to her. He replied slightly cautiously, "The name's Judah... And yours?"

Immediately afterward he thought to himself, "What was I thinking, revealing my identity to a complete stranger?" He rubbed his temple slightly annoyed at himself. Hopefully she didn't have a photographic memory.

"Judah, eh?" Genevieve smiled, noticing the look of what appeared to be regret on the man's face. "I'm Genevieve, pleasure meeting you," she continued, sticking out her hand to shake his. She couldn't lie to herself, Judah was more attractive than she'd originally imagined.

Genevieve then starting pacing back and forth, her hands behind her back accompanied by a pensive expression on her face. "Tell me then, if I were to join your little group here, would you help me with some...personal matters?" Genevieve turned towards the woman; she was more the type for words than Judah. "It's true that business and pleasure don't mix, but you won't have to worry about that with me. It is my business to take out some—if not all—members of a criminal gang responsible for murdering my parents, and given that this is my main priority right now, I don't see why we all can't fight crime in one form or another as a team...am I right?"

Farce lowered her mask down a bit to reveal the celtic cross tattoo over her eye, as well as her whole face. "I'm Gaia, and you've yet to meet my brother Dunn. He's pretty cool when he's not cockblocking me." "I just don't want to swap and find a dick in me."

In regards to what Genevieve asked about joining the team, Gaia happily responded to the woman for Judah, since Judah wasn't really the most charismatic on his own... without his powers being used. "Trust me, I feel ya. I'm still trying to avenge the death of my brother by assaulting human trafficking at the core. Oh, and pleasure and business may not mix a lot of the time, but with us, it's a hell of a ride!" Gaia took a bit of a pause before continuing, seemingly thinking of what to say. "But, I'm not the one you should be asking about joining the team. You should be asking Romeo over here," Gaia commented, pointing towards Judah with a snarky grin.

---

Taking into mind the resources at their disposal and the information they had, Evelyn listened to the second briefing—though she remembered the first time they'd been explained the layout from earlier in the drive. Of course, this time she was only half paying attention, the rest of her awareness on her shadow which she had darting around to touch various materials on their way to the warehouse.

Once they got there she'd have any number of various materials for her projection to use when she decided to manifest it. Since she didn't have much to add, she merely met the lieutenant's eyes and nodded, before looking over her team with a slight smile, though her mask hid it.

This is going to go smoothly, she told herself hopefully. Still, a part of her hoped that for some reason they'd find a bit more resistance than expected. She'd been itching to put down some crime for awhile and she didn't like not getting to use her power properly—now that she'd done so before.

She almost winced at the thought of that first mission with Sona—her heart fluttered and she had to catch her breath. Quickly she dismissed the thoughts and went back to 'scanning' various materials on their way there. She wanted to be ready.

---

---

Pleased with G4M3R's choice, Jake nodded his head and glanced at the others. "I'll wait outside,” he said then smiled, looking to their leader. “Take care of yourself.” He then walked towards Gabriel, giving him a wave, before passing him by and exiting the building. He gave it a wide berth and then transformed, feeling the odd sensation of being nowhere for half a second, being disembodied, before he felt the sensation of his existence expand. Serpentine and many limbed he pushed himself from the ground and flew upwards somewhat, avoiding power lines and billboards as he moved himself to the roof and then partially hung off of it to watch the entrance while he awaited the others.

If this Gabriel was someone not to be trusted, he'd like to give the man a taste of the shit he'd be in if he decided to mess with them somehow. Plus, he much preferred this form, if only because of how alive he felt while he was in it.

Alessa nodded to Lieutenant Reynolds as he concluded his speech, calm as she’d ever be, her eyes already lit up to make her face nigh-invisible. Yes, this was what she was here to do: fight those who would hurt others, arrest some complicit people, and end whatever crime was being wrought in the warehouse just up ahead. They didn’t even have to seize the crates themselves, merely deal with the forces manifested there and call in CSI to handle it. Which, in hindsight, was exactly right, since the Wards weren’t exactly specialists in the matter.

From the sound of things, everyone remembered what they needed to do at the moment. Lillian had asked about ways to get up to the roof, or into some air vents or anything, which… well, Alessa couldn’t ask anyone to perfectly remember every facet of a complicated blueprint, but even so, this was something quite important. She didn’t want this to go like their last mission, after all… poor Collin.

‘Alright, Lily, I’ll show you,’ she murmured helpfully, bringing up her version of the holographic schematics and pointing as she spoke, keeping her tone level and informative. ‘There’s ladders up to the roof on each side of the building, near the front on our left from the direction we approach would be the closest; and I believe the ventilation system is accessible from the outside… from the roof, there, but also from here, on the right hand side of the building. It’s a slightly longer walk, if that matters, but as long as you don’t bash against the sides and alert anyone inside, you should be able to get to pretty much any location fairly easily.’

Once her directions were clear, she leant back in her seat and thought for a moment. She’d asked the other Wards if they remembered their part of the plan many times over, just to be sure rather than to instill doubt. She was sure they did remember, because they weren’t incompetent by any means. Nonetheless, they weren’t precisely soldiers either… nor, naturally, was she, but that was to some extent precluded by her potentially ultra-deadly energy redirection, with the next most dangerous Ward in terms of raw power being Tulpa, especially after Epsilon’s upgrade.

‘I think for now, I will also assign a soldier each to some of the Wards here,’ she eventually decided with a nod to herself. ‘If you think it’s tactically sound, of course, Lieutenant, since you are after all more experienced than I am. Otherwise, I’d like to pair you with Epsilon; Corporal Johnson, Margrave, you two can stick together; and Private Skeetz, you stay with Tulpa for now, but if Lily finds herself in a fight for whatever reason, I’d like you to go to her if or when it’s plausible to do so without too much risk.’

---

'Nothing to add,' Headhunter uttered quite simply. 'Heartless, if you wouldn't mind informing Chatterbox and I when there are no guards looking in the direction of the back entrance, that’d be grand.' He installed himself just behind the corner of the doorway, crouching to slide his fingers underneath the door on his side in preparation to throw it upward, move in and, if necessary, take out the guards up top, not to mention any others in the vicinity who heard the noise. Frankly, it'd be best if they could just grab a crate and get out, but for obvious reasons, taking out the guards first would make that process far easier; he'd already fallen into a state of emotionally-dead calm, the sort that one acquired as a soldier, but only truly refined when destroying targets in cold blood from hundreds of meters away, where all you felt when taking the shot was the recoil. Technically not a boon in a close-quarters situation, but for Raymond, that wasn't an issue in and of itself.

Judah listened to the woman intently. She helped relieve any regrets he had at revealing his identity so soon. He shook her hand firmly. At the mention of "personal matters" Judah replied, "It depends what they are," he said matter of fact, "If its' within reason we will help you."

Farce made some more remarks that Judah mostly tried to ignore, particularly her Romeo comment. When it came to joining up Judah spoke out, "Having someone with your abilities on our side would be a real asset. Once we have a background check, resume, drug test, and three solid references we can begin the process." He paused for effect and continued with a grin, "Just kidding, welcome to the team!"

"Well, that was easy. Glad to be here!" Genevieve smiled, hoping that her decision to join Judah's team wouldn't be something she'd regret in the future. Goodness knows she's made enough mistakes in the past.

"I think this still works just fine," she continued, turning around and walking over to her bike. "I, uh...I'm not sure where you guys are going but I was on my way home. I mean, where do we take it from here?"

Genevieve reached for her helmet and waited to get a response.

Gabriel nodded to the apparent leader of the group and made way to take his leave remarking, "Thank you very much for looking into this for me. I'm sure we will be in touch." He took out a business card with his number and name on it Gabriel Hammond.

He stepped out side the door and out towards the car. He had an apparent grin on his face. Everything seemed to be going exactly as planned. "The Rockers will soon be taken out..then we will have our chance." He thought to his partners.

---

Finally, they were outside.
Finally, they had a mission.
Finally Rend could do something besides sit in his ass and poke fun at Kyoshi.

He waited for Gabriel to leave, watching him with little interest. Once he had left fully, they had set out.

It was a bit of a walk, across town really, but Rend didn't consider it all that far. The target destination was on a street full of old shops, mostly boarded up and rundown, clean but a bit out of the times. The antique shop they were meant to help was across the street from their current location, on the corner of an intersection.

It was very obviously a mom and pop store. Probably been around for generations, handed down and kept running.

Honestly, Rend couldn't imagine how it was still running in this day and age. Let alone in a neighborhood like this. Busted roads, run down buildings. And while the store looked clean, it definitely needed some work done.

Looking down the street he noticed what appeared to be hookers smoking, and he narrowed his eyes.

"Yeah...I can see why they're having problems," he muttered as he crossed the street, taking the lead. He stopped at the door, looking back at his teammates.

"Do we enter or...?"

"... aaaaannnddd... got it!" Ruben chimed as he finished setting up his cords for his computer in his room, clearing off the large desk to the side for it. He had managed to push the bed against the desk as well, allowing for him to have a closed-off space to do his work and research in. As Ruben plugged in the final cord of the computer, he was relieved to hear the familiar tune that he had set his OS to echo when he logged in.

That was more like it.

Clancy, waking up from his mini nap, sat on Ruben's pillow and looked at his owner with a silly grin. "Hey guy. We're back in business," Ruben said as he checked all of his files. Everything was good to go, except for a few things. That's what Ruben would be attending to for the time being.

---

"Well, we were heading towards a mission I received from an anonymous source who I may-or-may-not have knocked out once before." Gaia said as she put her mask back on and fixed her vigilante outfit. Can't go fightin' crime and giving yourself away now, can you? Of course you can't. "We could use some help, if you wouldn't mind."

Farce walked over to a nearby dumpster in the alley beside the trio as she felt under it. Avoiding the tons of rat feces, she pulled out a manila envelope from underneath it and opened it up, revealing a grid-paper floor plan detailing the place the crew was heading. It was a start, that's for sure.

---

"No," Kyoshi blatantly said as she looked around the place, being careful to not draw attention to the group of stupidly dressed people. "We need to be discreet for the time being. Best course would be a vantage point, no?" Kyoshi said as she put her hand on the ground, feeling around for any sort of special material in the ground. Nope, just cement and concrete. Although, considering the area of town this was in, it wouldn't be incredibly terrible for her to cause a small bit of property damage. A few lost chunks of rock in the ground was the least of this town's worries, after all.

"Well, I'm coming along then. I mean, how can I turn down such an inviting request?"

Genevieve quickly messed with the tousled hair from her wig until it was a bit more tidy. With her black helmet in hand, she followed Gaia into the dark alley. Aside from the regular city noises off in the far background, it was a relatively quiet evening. Much more quiet than what she was used to, but that was probably a good thing anyway.

Noticing that Gaia had fetched a manila envelope, Genevieve waited until she had the chance to look over the contents that were inside before speaking.

"I'll follow you guys, but is there anything specific you need me to do or do I just wing it and help out as needed?" Genevieve asked as both walked back towards the others. "I'm used to working solo so that's why I'm asking."

With no further questions or comments, a silence fell upon the tactical military vehicle escorting the Wards and the three PRT soldiers to their final destination. The drive wasn't more than another two minutes before they had pulled up into the train yard, only to discover that they were not the only ones present. Thankfully the vehicle had a silent engine and a heads up display to see the outside world without compromising its approach (thank you tinker design!) so the Wards' presence hadn't yet been felt by others. What they could make out was strange. A burly man clearly dressed in some manner of costume stood at the front doors to the station, carrying a young girl upon his shoulders. From their vantage point all they could see was the man and girl's backs, but that wasn't the most peculiar thing. After a few seconds the man ran right into the doors, and passed right through them! About a second later gunshots echoed out through the air from the far side of the station, but nothing followed up those gunshots. All was quiet once again.

---

---

The plan was clear. Heartless was to drop down from above to take out the dumbass guard barely doing his job, allowing Thunderbolt and Sofia free entry. At the same time he would let Headhunter and Chatterbox know when the two patrolling guards up on the storage house rafters were looking away so they could infiltrate from the back. One step, two step, three step, turn. Four step, five step, six step, turn. There it was. Heartless gave the signal, then dropped down in shadow form. Headphone dude never knew what was coming. He flicked away a booger plucked from the right nostril just as the taser made contact with his body, shocking him into unconsciousness. With the all clear given, Thunderbolt charged through the front doors. Sofia's eyes closed, she allowed the two of them to "ignore" the doors, passing right through like they were air. The sight that greeted them, or rather Thunderbolt as the young girl still held her eyes shut, was Heartless standing over the body of a Community goon, taser in hand. The roll-up door he had been guarding remained untouched. The three remained blissfully unaware as to what was going on on the far side of the train station, thanks to the suppressor installed on Headhunter's new morph gun, until another firearm went off without any silencer.

Soon as Heartless gave the signal, Headhunter was able to lift up the large roll-up garage-like door, and even toss it to some degree as it was unexpectedly light. Just as he was told, there were two guards up in the rafters patrolling, and both just happened to have their backs to him at that moment. Unfortunately his shadowy comrade's scouting skills were not infallible, and the skylights left many blindspots. On either side of the door that the mercenary had just lifted up was another guard, each one carrying a shotgun. It was clear that the two were completely thrown off by the sudden and brazen intrusion, and thus were slow to react. The immediate threat was clearly the guards in short range with shotguns, so they were targeted first. The guards up above were alerted as the door went up and turned back round to see their companions dropping to the ground.

"Hands up! You're trespassing on Community turf!" one called out, holding his assault rifle at the ready. He still hadn't fully registered that they were actively under attack. His compatriot was more quick witted and with faster reflexes. She let off a volley of three shots from her assault rifle, barely missing Headhunter before being taken out herself. With those four guards neutralized, the Jacks had the run of the storage house to look for the specific crate they had been tasked with finding.

---

---

A few moments after Kyoshi had checked the ground, the door to the shop opened up and an elderly man wearing an apron appeared from within. He was maybe five foot five inches, gray hair but balding, and wearing glasses thick enough to be wine bottles. His skin was olive in tone.

The man approached, eagerly yet cautiously. "Hello young ones! Capes out on patrol, I see?" Strange that it sounded as though he were asking a question. "I can't keep up with all you new young celebrities and all, but if you've got a moment, I could make it worth your whiles, yes?"

---

Jason chuckled lightly to himself as Sofia and himself entered the building as a man fell. Quickly the others handled the rest, and he set himself to moving to the main storage area. He tapped Sofia's arm lightly with a quiet, "Great job. You can open your eyes when I tap. Could use another set of eyes to find this thing."

Looking around, Jason frowned. There were plenty of crates, boxes, and shipping containers in large stacks in neat rows, but nothing out of the ordinary at first glance. "Hey, Heartless, feel like checking that office room for our box?" he called over a few minutes later. "Anyone got eyes on this thing?"

---

---

Lillian shook her head at the vision of the man and girl just walking through the doors. "That was super weird." she noted quietly. "So, at least one potentially hostile Parahuman present. Guns fired... I'mma go take a look!" she finished cheerfully, exiting the vehicle before anyone could grab her or protest. As she made her way quickly and quietly towards the rooftop access ladder, she noted the vast amount of overlapping scents in the front of the building.

Grabbing a ladder and pulling herself up, Lillian tapped get comms. "Smelled lots of activity outside recently. Maybe 7 scents? I couldn't really tell. Three did go towards that shipping container on your 11 o'clock. It's real muddied in my nose," she said quietly.

Reaching the roof, she slinked along, keeping out of the light and away from the skylights until she could find the best angle to avoid being seen.

"... Eyes on this thing?" she heard as she drew near the glass. Looking in carefully, she saw the guy with the girl on his back, and an edgelord wearing a motorcycle helmet, she thought.

"Eyes on the two from the door, plus...a motorcycle guy?" she murmured, confusion echoing in her voice. "They're looking for something. But I don't remember the Community having a Stranger..."

Lillian backed up slowly from the glass, standing up when she was sure no shadow would fall on the skylight. "What do we do?" she asked with a slight hint of concern in her voice.

> ESTABLISHING CONNECTION 100%

> BOOTING UP EYE 100%

> PREPARING LAUNCHER 100%

> LOWERING WINDOW 100%

> LAUNCH INITIATED IN PROGRESS

The window outside of Ruben's room opened up as a small cannon fired the Eye out of it, shooting it towards the Wards' general location at an alarming rate. Ruben didn't make it, but man was he glad he had it. Someone else gave it to him, possibly after modifying a T-Shirt cannon, and they launched it. Nice payment for a side job (that the PRT approved of, mind.)

A familiar tune sounded as a logo appeared on Ruben's monitor.

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"Hell yes."

The Eye's propeller spun into action as it took a free-flight mode, beginning it's descent and overview of the area the Wards were infiltrating. Ruben dropped his helmet onto his head as he spoke into his mic, tapping into the Wards comms as he did so.

"Overlook here. I'll be watching your backs in case of trouble."

---

"H-Hello sir!" Kyoshi spoke first out of the group, being a de-facto leader of the team for the moment being. She was the veteran member on the team right now, so this was something she had to do... or at least she should do. "I'm Kyoshi, and these are Outsider and Rend," the girl pointed to both members respectively as she continued. "We were contacted by Miss Sheila Jones to come here because of potential problems with the Community. I apologize for anything that might happen to your shop in the next few minutes if anything does happen to it."

---

Rend looked at the elderly man, glancing at Kyoshi momentarily at her warning. "Collateral is not what we're after. Any information you could provide would be helpful at this stage," he said quietly.

Looking around, Rend felt unease in his chest that he couldn't place. He pushed it aside, because paranoia wouldn't serve anyone here today.

"Ms. Jones indicated that this shop needed assistance, and the MinuteMen are here to assist," he finished with obvious annoyance at the phrasing he'd been coached on by their leader.

Judah pulled his balaklava back up, following Farce to the dumpster. Then he looked over her shoulder as she spread out the floor plan. He moved in closer for a better look, noting the location of various doors, windows and fire alarms. Being a SWAT team member trained him to find the best entry and exit points in buildings. The twins did exceptionally well to have gotten a legitimate floor plan. Mantis couldn't help but smile saying, "I've got to give it to you guys on this one. These floor plans are first class intel."

He slapped the twin on the back fondly and turned to their new companion saying, "You have healing abilities, correct? You would be a perfect medic for our group. After you absorb any injuries you could transfer them onto the thugs. As a medic, you want to support us as we go in. Usually, Zach will take point coming through the front. While all their attention is fixed, I gather information and locations of enemies taking out the biggest threats. Farce plays it stealthy. She sneaks in another entrance and beats down their backup. We have other strategies, but this one works well for us so far. Having a healer on board will make a world of difference."

Afterward, Mantis turned back to the floor plan and began devising their strategy of going in. He asked Farce, "Call Zach, he's late..also..what are we doing with that woman over there?" He said as he turned his head toward the woman on the ground.

"I thought you knew that we knew what we were doing?" Farce jokes as she pulls out her phone, sending a quick text to Zach saying "Dumpster outside. Meet us there?" They were outside of the coffee shop, it shouldn't take Zach more than a minute or two at most for him to get out of there.

Farce's attention was diverted to the girl that was knocked out and on the ground when she was brought up, and naturally, Dunn started to think about what they could do as Farce relayed his thoughts into actions. "My best guess? Hide the body and make the scene look like she got into an accident. Best way to get the heat off of Genevieve with the time we have." Farce quickly dragged the body to the dumpster as she scraped around for anything to make the scene look accidental. The group wasn't on the BEST side of Denver, but it definitely wasn't the worst either. There mainly were just a handful of bars around... that could work.

Farce pulled a glass bottle out of the dumpster, shivering at the griminess of it, before running it (and all of her hand) under a leaky water faucet in the same alley. The girl put some of the water in the faucet into the bottle as she planted it in the victim's hand. That'll do... something to fix the issue at hand.

"... we probably need to move away from here. Someone grab the map. Mantis, go get our boy, he's in the coffee shop."

"That should be good for now..." Genevieve said, walking past Gaia. In all honesty, she wasn't too concerned with the unconscious body. She wasn't the instigator and she was just defending herself, and beyond that, it might as well be a matter of "he said, she said."

For a split second, the thought of waking up her attacker to confront her crossed Genevieve's mind. Suck up enough damage to get a conscious response, but not too much as to weaken herself, and then question her. But even though the curiosity was eating at her, Genevieve knew without a doubt that such move was a stupid one.

"On it!"

She grabbed the map, slipped it in one of the inside pockets of her jacket, and then briskly made her way to her bike. After putting on her helmet, Genevieve started up her bike and waited for Judah.

Sofia nodded and opened her eyes, the bright blue orbs peering about the warehouse inquisitively, barely noticing the guards they'd fallen in order to gain free access to it. "Wow there's a lot of boxes here." Sofia said thoughtfully as she looked at all of them. What box had Broker wanted them to find again? Had he said? Well must have said, it would be silly to send them to a boxhouse full of boxes without knowing what box to look for. Sofia tugged lightly on Thunderbird's shirt, "Um, what kinda box are we looking for again? Oh and if its buried in one of these piles we can just run through it and look for that way if you want!"