[center][h1][color=#357302][b]Chatterbox[/b][/color][/h1][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDztts8B0ac]Theme[/url][/center][hr]His eyebrows rose fractionally, then fell as he steeled himself. Vanishing and reappearing damage while people continued to panic and react...or otherwise remain unaffected. The phenomena coupled with the words of a thinker on scene made for a worrisome implication.

[color=#357302][b]"Move the brainiac around, see if we can get anything else"[/b][/color] he whispered. He got a number of responses from his thralls, mostly them complying. A more involved dialogue began between the thinker and the other thralls. He turned his attention elsewhere.

The reports kept coming in, but they weren't helpful...not immediately, that was until he had a thrall or two start receiving them and organizing them into a map of sort. It told him that the effect was particularly consistent anywhere. It was flickering, just like it had—and still occasionally was—for him. An unstable power? Something hard to nail down. Tinkertech?

By all reports it wasn't stronger in any particular area, there was no way to correlate it to any particular flight's arrival, and it didn't even matter if it was through a device.

[color=#357302][b]"Update. Effect is widespread and wholly inconsistent everywhere. Recording is the same as direct visual contact I'm sending the empowered out to try and regulate panic."[/b][/color]

As he spoke he rapidly used his tapcode to notify thralls of their directives. Some he sent outwards from the airport, making them check to see if there was a clear place that the effect stopped and if it was consistent. Others he directed to investigate areas that had apparently been damaged and to do it thoroughly with all five senses and to report regularly and in detail—preferrably through text message. He wanted to see if any of the damage was truly real and being obscured, or the effect was truly just in their heads.

[color=#357302][b]"This feels like a diversion or a way to hide actual damage that is done. Perhaps to obscure the intentions of whoever is doing this. Make sure not to take on your guise yet, we don't want this event to be pinned on us."[/b][/color]

Even as he spoke he got more reports and status updates, telling him that individuals had arrived in prime zones where people were freaking out—consistently or otherwise. The empowered—and some normal thralls—began the process of trying to get people evacuated, with many of them being with security, while many more of the empowered remained in the throng, assisting security and improving morale as best as possible. He made sure someone called 911 as well, after all, the instance of panic and suddenly manifesting damage was just a recipe for any number of accidents. They'd need the assistance.

Then he got some useful information, something usable.

[color=#357302][b]"The effect has a fairly consistent radius. Reports on Blucifer have stopped, no damage on that front. The rest of the damage also appears to be totally illusory...except for the tram. Someone wanted to shutdown transportation between the areas of the airport. Not optimal. The radius of the effect appears to end around the parking lot, so it's moving east."[/b][/color]

These bits of knowledge gained, Chatterbox sent the thralls at the edges [i]inwards[/i] in straight lines, going from the estimated middle of the effect and following a straight path as best as possible. They would hopefully run into the source.

[color=#357302][b]"Going to attempt to close in on the source. I think it's a parahuman, rather than tinkertech. Furthermore, I'll clear the way for you Hunter, but I need you to get a vantage point to see if we can get a better idea of the situation."[/b][/color][hr][center][h1][color=#3068FF][b]Evelyn Chambers – [i]Tulpa[/i][/b][/color][/h1][/center][hr]At Margrave's words she tried to catch his eyes, to no avail. Tiger Lily's response softened her heart a little, but then the gates were kicked open as pure vitriol poured from her other teammate's mouth. Her jaw muscles clenched, her eyes shot to him and briefly went from cold detachement, to abject anger, before cooling into hard unforgiving iron. It was that coldness he'd see when he looked to her. She might have given him a chance before, but now? After taking out his frustration on their youngest most vulnerable member? The one who had arguable gotten the worst of the situations the'd been through.

Afterwards, when he had left, there was mostly silence, before Kend—[i]Mastar's[/i], words broke the fragile glass of quiet. She saw that Tiger Lily certainly wasn't okay and that apparently [i]Messiah[/i] wasn't either. Still their team leader pulled it together and managed to address the group.

Evelyn nodded in response to Messiah's gesture. [color=#3068FF][b]"Certainly, but please excuse me a moment,"[/b][/color] she stood up, not seeing any real problem with their eminent leader's plan, [color=#3068FF][b]"...make sure that you only contact the Director through text. Otherwise Collin will hear it. I'll be right back, I'm going to talk to Mar—Elliot."[/b][/color]

She then turned and left the warm comfort of the shop.  As the cold hit her, she briefly embraced it, letting its chill bring her thoughts and emotions into order. She had to do what was right, even if it meant she had to compromise what she wanted...at least this time.

Moving so Elliot could see her, she didn't turn his way, feeling it would be too personal after so long of not being even remotely close. [color=#3068FF][b]"That was poorly handled, but I'm...not going to judge you for it."[/b][/color] She was silent for a time before she managed to work the [i]disgusting[/i] words out of her throat. It took her two tries to say it. [color=#3068FF][b]"You're right. I discounted you before I ever tried getting to know you. I won't defend it other than to say...you seem to put a barrier between yourself and others. Still, it's my own fault for not even [i]trying[/i] to get past that wall you put up. I appreciate how dedicated you are to the idea of the team, despite, well...the team. Myself included."[/b][/color]

She then fell silent, even though inside she felt herself seething. He felt justified to attack a vulnerable [i]child[/i], a girl who was meek enough already. Yet she had to stand outside in the cold, telling him he was right. It wasn't right, but his words had been. They represented his side of the story and they were also representative to the reality of how he'd been treated...at least since she'd joined the Wards. [color=#3068FF][b]"I'll try to be more mindful in the future, not sure how else to bridge the gap."[/b][/color] She took that empathy and used it to choke down the anger and guilt.

This was necessary and it was good. She'd been the least affected of the others, she felt, so it was her job—[i]even though she wasn't the team leader[/i]—to try and make ammends as best she could.[hr][center][h1][color=#B8EEFF][b]Outsider[/b][/color][/h1][/center][hr]
Had it not been so serious, Outsider would have sighed as the pilot reacted badly to his appearance. Swiftly he shifted into motion, swimming through the air with frightening speed and startling grace. A tendril shot out, wrapped around the tail of the helicopter, followed by one on each side of the main body, and one entwined with the landing gear. With his strength holding it and his flight, he guided the helicopter into a stable flight. Keeping his tendrils in place he moved to a side door and debated opening it.

He decided against it and instead used his strength and flight to guide the helicopter further upwards and clear of buildings. Unfortunately, without proper eyes, he couldn't locate a proper helipad for it to land.

He'd just have to make due with a stable, flat, open space on a high rooftop. This in mind he paid close attention to his senses, locating just that and also measuring the size of the helicopter itself. All this in mind, he slowly guided the heli to the chosen roof and then started descending. Hopefully the pilot got the hint and started turning off the engine.