"Well... that sucked." The Hound said flatly, exhaustion evident even through the mechanical growl of his voice modulator as he unceremoniously dropped the large, rune-inscribed and just slightly gooey magitech apparatus in his hand to the ground with a loud 'clunk!' and flopped down on his ass, resting his back against the shipping container with a long groan. "We've really gotta stop meeting like this, Detective."

Jericho, for her part, just offered her local costumed weirdo something between a chuckle and a sigh as he sat down next to her, pulling a pack of smokes out of her breast pocket.

"Right? Between the magic cannibal, half the police force trying to murder us and now that—" She agreed, pointing toward the colossal frame of the blue oni before them, slumped on the ground in a pile, out cold and oblivious to the world, even as the holes in her skull began mending themselves shut with a rhythmic crunching sound. "Reeeeally starting to think I should'a taken the month off."

A bit of weary laughter escaped the two of them as Sasha lit up her cancer stick. Very nearly dying horribly a couple dozen times in the past week having clearly brought the two past the point of trepidation and straight into a feeling of 'Well, I guess we're doing this now.'.

Constantly dodging death had a funny way of bringing people together, after all.

"So what's with that ugly looking doodad, anyhow?" The cop asked, thumbing toward the contraption her masked compatriot had so tersely plunked on the ground as she took a drag.

"Some kinda scartech; Far as I can tell it bores little holes into it's host's skull and pumps processed red dust directly into their brain. Saw the same thing on the big red fucker from last week..." The hero explained, with a tired wave of his hand. "...Aaaand, apparently if ya rip it out, it puts the big angry oni it's attached too on the ground. Would've liked to have known that last time."

"Yeah, been meaning to ask about that; how did you manage to make that big damned block of modern art that's been thawing out in my station's jail the past week?"

"Magic murder bird."

"What?"

"Nevermind that." The Hound cut her off with a little wave before she could dig too deeply at that particular landmine. "The hell were you doing out here anyway?"

Fixing the shorter figure a suspicious glare that wasn't at all hindered by the fact that she only actually had the one eye to do so with, Sasha nonetheless let the smoke out her lungs and explained.

"Welp, remember what Muller said about The Sardinian showing up in a big damned container ship? I finally had a night where you weren't around and the whole damned universe wasn't trying to fucking kill me, so I thought I'd come down and take a look. See if he left anything behind I could get a lead out of." Said the near-amazon, before pulling the cigarette out of her mouth and waving it in the direction of the massive, blue-skinned woman that had been up until recently trying to murder them. "Instead I found that in a container bound for New Orleans— Because fuck my life— and, well..."

She then motioned to the scene around them, with shipping containers and machinery thrown about the place like children's toys, some of them smashed or in pieces due to the oni's fists. Many of them cut cleanly into halves and thirds due to the pair of massive, magical machetes she'd been swinging around like a fucking lunatic. And a whole lot of them covered in a layer of ice and/or paradoxically also on fire due to... well, a whole bunch of other things that had made their night very exciting.

"...I think ya know the rest."

To that, the Hound could only respond with a quiet nod and leaned his head back against the container behind them; it'd been one hell of a night. But not so much that it'd keep him quiet.

"Speakin' of 'leads', now that we've got a minute alone where we're not about to die, you finally wanna tell me what the Aquila wanted with ya?"

Detective Jericho frowned a little at that, she had promised to fill the little weirdo in a mask in about all that, but she really would've preferred not to, as some part of her took the whole scenario just a little personally. Even after he'd spent the past week on a seemingly endless cycle of saving her ass.

She sighed.

No getting out of it now.

"There's... a P.I. down in the Melville district, a guy named Maxime de Caen. We served together in the marines." She started, just a little hesitantly. "Vanguard hired him to poke around the Aquila's shit. And I guess he must have found something, because not long after that, the Sardinian's goonsquad started trying to get me to put him down. Guess they figured our... history... would make it easy."

"You were close?"

Sasha shot the so-called hero a little glare.

"We were married."

She gave a satisfied little grunt when that shut him up. Or at least stopped him from prying any further into her personal life.

He wasn't the only one allowed to hold secrets after all.

"So... where's this guy now?"

”Well, after you went ahead and saved me and my… our son, I swept by Max’s agency and took him into protective custody— Probably going on remand for that, kicking down my ex’s door and hauling him into the back of my car after the mob tried to get me to kill him and all.” She continued, looking just a tad displeased by the memory of it all. ”...That lasted a good three days before one of Muller’s boys tried to strangle him to death in his cell and wound up on the ground gargling around the remains of his jaw instead. So my bosses—through gritted teeth, mind you— handed him off to the GCPD for better protective custody.”

Tiredly, she rubbed the bridge of her nose. Trying to ignore how the figure seated beside her seemed to stiffen at her words as she carried on.

”And that lasted until this morning, when one of their own dirty cops had the dumb idea to put a knife in his belly instead of his throat. That guy was lucky a less dick-headed cop heard him screaming from the hallway and managed to pull Max off of him.” She continued, having the decency to look away from the hero who had gone dead silent by now. All but glaring a hole through her skull with those glowing eyes of his.

On some level, she did feel a little guilty about waiting until now to tell him all this, and could understand just why he'd be a bit pissed off about the whole deal, but, well... there wasn't any changing it now. So she bit her lip and kept going.

"After that, Commissioner Jasper had him moved to an off-the-books safehouse and around the same time, Vanguard looked in on this immense tapestry of failure that is both our Departments and started petitioning to bring de Caen into their own care." She finished, casting an uncharacteristically timid glance back the vigilante's way. "...Rumour-mill has it that he's to be moved to their HQ within a week, once the paperwork clears."

For his part, said vigilante wasn't screaming or cursing the woman out... just glaring at her in silence.

Though a sudden, sharp inhale from the smaller figure let her know that that was about to change really goddamn fast.

"Itai..."

Ah, but just her luck, there was a big blue oni waking up with a bunch of holes still in her skull to distract the hero from giving the chewing out she was both too tired for and just might have deserved.

...Wait, hold on.

Suddenly realizing what was wrong with that statement, the woman's head snapped right back to her front to lock in on the sight of the not-so-unconscious-anymore killing machine on the ground before them... which suddenly looked a whole lot less like the brutal engine of death and destruction she had seen not too long ago and more like... a kid who just woke up on the cold ground with a bunch of holes in her head as she whimpered, curled up into a ball and began to cry.

"Itai... Itai... Itai..."

Oh, shit. That was a kid, wasn't it?

She felt her face drop to her palm as that one hit her.

"...Christ."

A moment of... almost silence passed between the two erstwhile heroes as the big blue girl just sobbed there on the pavement, until the Hound's shoulders visibly relaxed and he finally spoke.

"Don't suppose you know any Japanese, do ya?"

"I, uhh... a little from my time in Oki, why?"

"Good." The flak-clad hero very nearly growled out as he got to his feet and carefully made his way over to the very scared, and still very large and freakishly strong teenager before him. "Mind saying something to calm down the big blue non-human that could still turn us into hamburger meat by accident?"

"Wait, yer not mad?"

"Fucking livid, actually, but we kinda got other things to deal with right now."

---

Gotham was... different, Malcolm had to admit. And he wasn't entirely sure he liked it. Then again, this was the first time he'd ever actually ever set foot outside of his particular 'hub of urban decay', as a certain magic murder bird he knew often called it, so he guessed a bit of culture-shock was inevitable.

It was the little things that got to him the most; Gotham was... a whole lot less grimy than his home on the other side of the Avalon— Not to say it was particularly clean, mind you, but it did remind the boy just how much the roads of his town could use a bit of paving and the buildings some serious rehab.

And on those buildings, the sort of Neo-Gothic style that dominated the local skyline was a far cry from the glowing holosigns and improvised, disorderly urban sprawl he knew and loved, where magitech had been so widely and somewhat forcefully adopted out of necessity that it turned the whole place into something that'd make a cyberpunk enthusiast wet in the pants and a city-planner's eyes bleed just served to further reinforce the notion that this simply was not home.

But that wasn't the weirdest thing.

No, that honour went to the fact that, while you couldn't take a piss on a Bludhaven street without hitting at least three different species and a gaggle of mages, Gotham was... somewhat barren in this regard. Very literally, for the former, simply having less in the way of demons and non-humans as far as he could tell, with those that actually were in town either hiding away in backalleys or dressing themselves to hide their otherworldly features as they ducked their heads and tried to keep a low profile. The latter? Well, he'd been here two days now and hadn't seen a single mage openly walking around in their traditional attire— Though honestly, it was a little harder to tell if that was just a fashion thing or them trying to keep mum about their true nature. Either way, he figured just walking up and asking would be a bad idea.

And only partially because he could be thrown into the back of a squad-car under suspicion of being up to something if the wrong person caught his accent.

The boy sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose a little through his mask, quietly freezing his ass off on a rooftop by his lonesome, as he had done the past two nights, across the plaza from Vanguard Headquarters waiting for... something to happen, before quietly pulling his face-cover up a bit and finally opening the box of pizza sitting beside him that'd been doing nothing but getting as cold as he was the past fifteen minutes to grab a slice.

He got about a bite and three chews in before he had to stop and just stare at the bloody thing between shivering and mentally dunking on this whole city.

"Wait, sherioushly?" The Hound managed, almost sounding pleasantly surprised around a mouthful of Gotham pizza.

He didn't have much time to think on that though, as he caught sight a column a GCPD cruisers pulling into the Vanguard parking lot, evidently unmolested by whatever designs the Aquila might have had for it.

Honestly, it was the only good thing Mal had seen in two days... discounting the slice of pie in his hand that is.

But then the power abruptly went out. For the whole city block. And the back up generators he damn well knew Vanguard had, simply didn't cut in.

And then the ground began to shake.

And there, sitting way up on his rooftop perch, Mal heard something that made him freeze even more than he already was.

"CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA..."

"Awww, hell..."

---

Isaac McKinley was... not having a fun time.

Which in itself, was kinda odd. Usually a night out in the marauder with the boys and his boss, Styx, the legendary Arcane Cowboy was a simple little adventure. They did their job, got their take, got their pay from the Don, then maybe had a few beers and went the fuck home. Sometimes with a few laughs along the way, sometimes without, but it was always an easy, efficient operation.

No it was the... extra baggage this time around that was causing him such concern. Well, him and everyone else in that damned armoured truck, if how his boss's hand had been on his revolver as he kept his eye on the extra body in there with them the whole time through the rearview was any indication.

Though between the quadruply-possessed girl in the back who kept rapidly alternating between snickering, muttering curses, crying and just generally foaming at the mouth as the four demons in her head went at eachother like ravenous dogs, and the out-and-out power-armoured monument to derangement that was the big red guy running in front of their vehicle, tearing up the street beneath his heels and screaming train sounds at the top his lungs as her charged toward their destination... he felt just a bit justified in that.

And was really starting to understand why the so-called Fearsome Five always seemed to do their level best to stay as far away from eachother as humanly possible.

Still, unlike the rest of his crew that opted to suffer all this in silence, he, to his own horror felt his mouth beginning to move.

"What the fu-"

And nigh instantly, he felt a hand clap down on his shoulder from the passenger seat.

"Son..." Came the familiar Texan drawl of his boss. "I strongly recommend you do not finish that sentence."

It didn't take Isaac very long to figure out why, as every fibre in his being screamed in protest as the deranged-looking blonde that had been strapped in at the far back of the vehicle was suddenly leaning over his shoulder and breathing into his ear through four mouths that, though they occupied the same place, were not at all synchronized.

"Lllaaaaanguage, Miiister McKiiinleeey...."

And that was about was about when four separate prehensile tongues a varying thickness and texture began snaking their way along his neck.

"Eyes on the road, Son. Eyes on the road."

---

"CHOO-CHOOOOOO!"

And not a second after those words echoed through the Gotham air, did the titanic frame of Bludhaven's Red Terror come slamming through the solid concrete walls of the Vanguard building and into the main lobby, arms behind his head in a classic 'Mr. Universe' pose as he skidded to a stop before all the armed Gotham cops and Vanguard security that'd been hiding in cover, guns drawn when they saw and heard him coming from half a damned mile away.

"DADDY'S HOME, KIDS!" The armoured maniac cried out to absolutely anyone who would listen in a sing-song voice. Either not knowing or just not caring about how much firepower was pointing at him at that moment as he began thrusting his hips in the general direction of everyone involved. "NOW WHO'S READY FOR SOME LOOOOOOVE~?"

In response, he only got three words out of whoever was in charge there.

"Fuck him up."

And enough firepower to damn near evaporate everything around him, though it all merely bounced off his magitech hull as he stood there polishing his armoured fingertips with a silken rag. Clearly not giving a damn about, or even feeling any of it as it failed to even scratch his race-car red shell.

In fact, as the gunfire slowly came to a stop, he opted to laugh instead and wave his now very shiny digit at them chidingly.

"NOW, NOW, NOW, KIDS... IF YOU START ACTING LIKE THAT..." He giggled out, slowly closing his mechanical which began to come apart and change shape. "DADDY'LL HAVE TO SPANK!"

And just as his fist seemingly reached it's final shape, a Vanguard scientist hiding behind one of the lobby's many columns poked his head out and quickly came to a bonechilling conclusion.

"That's a wave-motion gun... that's a fucking wave-motion gun! Everybody! RUN!"

"YEET!"

And that's about all the warning they got before the world became both very bright, and very loud.

---

Styx and his boy's entrance to what was left of the main lobby of Vanguard HQ was a lot less... thematic than the Red Terror's- The whole place now laying abandoned as whatever resistance there was had either been vaporized by the armoured psychopath or had retreated further inside with him hot on their heels, if the distant, but unmistakably familiar maniacal laughter and occasional tremor that rocked the whole place was any indication.

"Well then, can't say this is unexpected." The Arcane Cowboy observed with a low whistle as he adjusted his hat. "Not exactly what we're actually here for, though, ainnit?"

"LaaaaFayette drifts cloooser to perfection by the daaaay..." Came the... also not at all unexpected response from his erstwhile teammate...s "Iiiit is a beautiful thiiiiing..."

Styx just clicked his tongue at this and unholstered his weapon.

"Well, be that as it may, Quartet, Some of us actually have to work for our money." He said, just a bit of an edge working it's way into his voice. "So I don't suppose y'all'd mind fanning out and havin' an eye for anybody not invited to our little party? I'd rather not have to deal with anyone wearing a leather jacket or dog-shaped armour right now."

True to fashion, Quartet was on him in an instant, hovering before him to be just above eye-level and close enough to be nearly nose-to-nose and to push up the brim of his hat slightly. Apparently angry enough that all four instances of her mouth were finally moving in sync... though the four distinct voices that made up her warbling tone remained.

And three more rows of eyes suddenly opened up on her face.

"And just when did we start taking orders from you, mortal?"

"Why, when Firefly said ya did, ladies." Styx responded, not missing a beat. "Now git."

That seemed to do the trick, as the amalgam being known as Quartet snarled and complied; dividing and firing off her essence to the three other cardinal directions of the building in a flash of light.

...And also leaving one remaining blue-skinned demon in that spot their amalgam had been before, floating awkwardly in place while pushing the man's hat up with her now undisguised demonic forehead.

"I, uh... like your hat, Mr. Styx."

"Why thank ya, Darlin'." The masked man chuckled as he took a step back and turned to leave, motioning for Isaac and the rest of his boys to follow behind him. "Don't let yer sisters hear that though, it'd make 'em right angry, right quick."

"I'm really sor-"

"That neither!"

---

The Hound could only grimace as his night went from bad, to worse, to holy fucking wow in absolutely record time. Though he was, in some reptilian part of his brain, just a little astounded by what he was looking at; The Fearsome Five, as individuals, rarely did anything out in the open anymore. And the last any of them actually got together to do something like this, they were conquering Bludhaven.

Yet now, here three of five were, absolutely wrecking Vanguard's shit.

'Just what the hell does de Caen have on these people?'

That thought aside, a long exhale escaped the boy as he shook his head, stood up, pulled down his mask, and at least attempted to psyche himself up for the pure balls-out insanity of what he was about to attempt—

"Fucking hell..." He growled, raising his arm and firing off his grapple line toward the Vanguard complex. "I guess we're doing this now."

Taking on the Fearsome Five. With not much more than a grapple, a few knives and a handgun.

It didn't need to be said that this was probably not going to end well. Hell, he was very likely going to fucking die here. But even in the midst of all that, there was one other prevailing thought in the back of his head that now screamed like a klaxon and just wouldn't shut the hell up until it aggressively forced it's way out of it's mouth the moment where his feet left the rooftop he'd been camping out on.

"...Goddamn, I miss my magic murder bird."

And with those final words, Malcolm Talhaiarn plunged directly into what was most assuredly going to be the toughest fight of his life.

January 18th, 11:30 pm
Gotham City, rooftops

The past eleven days had ranged from boring as hell to...slightly interesting. Serene's trip through the eastern US had been well, a trip. Stopping now and again to check out a town, a city, various places. It took her about five days after New York to finish her trip down, and had ended up turning around at the top of Florida. Too close to tropical storms for her taste. Maybe she'd come back another time and set up a base. So back around she'd gone, traveling back, this time a bit faster, but weathering at cities she'd selected as possible big bases when she felt the need arise. In the end, she wound up, back in Gotham, three to four days after leaving Florida. All in all, really uneventful. Literally aside from having to maybe avoid a roving biker gang, and well, bad weather, it had been literally just "survive, find shelter, find food if needed, keep going." And now, now she was in the city of Gotham.

She'd passed it by before, mostly because she'd known for a fact that finding a good base of operations would take time. That and a quick internet search at the library in New York had shown that one part of it should be avoided unless she had a lot of time and firepower. She had the time, but firepower, namely information, was something else she lacked. Unlike New York, where she had seemingly gotten lucky with not running into any trouble, she had no idea if the same could happen in that part of the area. But now?

Now was different. Well, then, given she'd arrived the 16th, but one digresses. A bit of time exploring the city, doing some stuff, and well, just being a tourist. She'd gone from one part to another, mapping it out, dodging any possible troubles. Minus one case of calling in a tip on a home break in progress, then left before the cops showed up. She did not want to explain to them why she had no US issued ID, or a passport from any Terran government. If they even bothered to show up. But eventually, all explorations end the way they should. With a late night dinner, atop a city rooftop. She liked the neo-gothic, reminded her of home a tad...but her dad would have been commenting non-stop on when each damn building in the city was likely built, as to why it was probably built as it was, maybe even guessing how long it took to build. Having the dragonic fusion of Sherlock Holmes and Indiana Jones for a dad was...annoying sometimes. But in that moment, it gave her home sickness. Centuries she hadn't seen home, maybe even longer. There were a lot of people she had come to miss over the time she'd spent, traveling from universe to universe.

Funny how munching on a magic infused MRE could make one think of home. Then again, being reminded of her original life as a super soldier wasn't a fond memory. But at the end of the day...food's food when you're a cashless dragon who has no idea if the locals accept actual gold bars or coins as currency. And MREs, while not the most tasteful(even by her world's standards of making anything short of an actual freak disaster in the kitchen actually edible and tasty), were at least easy to store and carry, compared to other Rune foods. Even if Rune icecream couldn't melt, it just felt weird to pull one out of her pocket. So this was better. In short, this entire paragraph is filler.

But, sometimes, even...

Anything further was stopped by the power across the city near her going out. She paused, food midway to her mouth, a soft groan, crossed with a dragonic growl, coming from her. Great, this brought back memories. None of them good. When the power goes out, and there's no storms overhead, earthquakes beneath, or a tsunami striking, that means one of two things. One, someone broke something at a power plant, or someone cut the power on purpose...and then, a sound all but confirmed it. And a sensation. Technology on the wind, wafting up to her. Serene's head, beneath her hood, which she'd changed into to really avoid drawing suspicion hopefully with her hat and other outfit, turned towards a distant figure, which angle wise she could just see...charging towards something. The wind didn't lie, that looked like someone in armor. Tech based. Something in her body growled, the thought of consuming such tech, acquiring it, made her hunger. Only for the sound of the gradually growing louder, through doppler effect, sound of a train imitation to knock her back into reality.

"...This is so dumb. Only an idiot, or someone freakishly strong charges some place while sounding like that. Or is part train."

Watching what soon unfolded left her under the impression it may have been a bit of all three. So one big guy, maybe a giant, decked out in power armor that could...okay what the hell, arm cannons are her thing. Definitely eating his arm later. Maybe his helmet too, see if it came with any new data she could use. The morphing deal was cool. Back on track...so power armored guy attacking a police place, and with pals. While she wasn't close enough to get a good line on the pals and what they might do, she did see well...a flash of light after the red guy vanished into the building. So probably one of his allies had magic, or maybe could send out illusionary copies, who knew. On the one hand, this wasn't her problem. This was the local's issue.

But on the other hand...

"...Yeah, only fair to help, and right." She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she didn't do something. Too many innocents on her mind from a long time ago. Pulling herself upright, she moved quickly, even as she pulled out a device, and sent a simple text. Far away in Maine, eventually the text went through, and her ship powered up, rising up slowly into the heavens. It had its job, and hopefully no hillbillies got spooked by the UFO.

From one rooftop to another, she almost kept going, looking for a way to the roof of the compound, only to stop. Her gaze dropped, spotting the whole grapple hooking guy as he landed on the ground below. Judging by the fact he was late to the apparent party...probably a good person. Who could use some help. Considering he wasn't flying, or using high tech anything. Probably just your average, run of the mill viligante, who did what they could for the sake of...Yeah, best to get on with it. A few moments passed, as she backed up, then ran forward, taking a running leap off of the building. Not the most fancy way to get there, but it got her to a spot just outside the destroyed front entrance, the ground cratering as she landed, not with the fist hitting the ground, just her landing with a hand to steady. And followed in after the guy.

Let's see...biosuit and power armor of her own, shotgun, and maybe some other tools. And her secret weapon. Last one she wasn't going to use unless she had no choice. Because that would probably get her arrested, even if she helped save the day. Who knows, maybe the guy inside would have some idea who the bad guys were. And hopefully, she wouldn't run into those bad guys right away.

With those thoughts, Serene ran headfirst into the chaos, shotgun materializing in one hand, her hoodie hiding her features, her jeans hiding...something else. This wasn't going to be as bad as the time she stormed a doomsday station basically alone with a macguffin capable of altering reality at its core, nor the other time she stormed a doomsday station. But this...probably was up there near sneaking into an unknown force's camp back in the day, all to unknowingly start a rivalry with a crazed space monkey.

...Rock on?

The world really had changed a lot in the past decade, the Scar seemed to have its filthy talons sunk into just about every part of society these days. Nano could see it everywhere she looked, how people always seemed to be on edge. How the times that she was near the borders with the Scar, all people talked about was the Scar. Their voices hushed low as if the place itself might hear and come after them. Then of course, there was the way the media and people out here practically sensationalized what she had done. Surviving in that place for ten years, bringing a group of survivors out of that place. Even more so? That she and the survivors came from a place that everybody had previously thought to be dead within. As if she were some sort of miracle worker and not just a girl with some nanobot enhancements. Especially given the hero worship and how they labeled what she had done 'The Miracle from Central City', she was starting to become a bit more self-conscious. Between the interviews on news stations and Late Night Talk Shows, Alex was starting to wonder just how different the world had really become. She was starting to feel a bit like a girl out of her own time. One place that did grab her interest, however, was Bludhaven. Most seemed to regard it with some sort of disdain given the effects of the scar were clear as day there, but it was this very fact that grabbed her attention so much. She wasn't used to the normal world anymore, how peaceful it all was or how people got along. She wasn't used to seeing just normal humans living their everyday lives here. Instead, she was used to a much more hostile reality and used to seeing creatures straight out of a fantasy novel walking alongside her. Which, for those living in Bludhaven, was very much their everyday reality. Although even Alex had to admit that the whole place seemed a bit like a shitshow at times. Certainly didn't look like the government really paid it any sort of mind, just trying to willfully ignore its very existence.

Due to her interest in the place, she often kept a watch for information about the place as an idle curiosity in between spending time and training with her sister. This was made a tad bit easier for the girl when she had a literal computer that made up half of her brain and could directly connect to the internet. Typically it was nothing special on the net, just more headlines about various small crimes and some vigilante calling himself The Hound. Occasionally you could find the odd protest to destroy the non-humans living within Bludhaven, but that was quickly shut down. Usually, by police or the actual creatures, they were protesting against. Her personal favorite was one of those super-religious and also super bigoted (An odd state, in and of itself. Supposedly loving everybody then actually just hating everybody), came into Bludhaven for a protest. Against what? Why the non-humans being allowed to live in the city. This protest, however, was quickly broken up when a Minotaur charged through the crowd while wearing a barista's uniform for Starbucks. Evidently he had been late. That was just one of the examples for the strange happenings within Bludhaven that likened it to some of what she had lived through in the Scar. Although it was alot less comedic there, she still found a bit peace knowing that there was someplace that was similar to what she knew. That she didn't have to try to adapt to and feel like a horrible outsider among the very people she had been trying to reach for so long. The one late night as Alex was doing what most teenagers do late at night, laying on the couch and watching some stupid movie, her typically set up alerts for news relating to Bludhaven came up. Only this time, it seemed to be from Gotham. The headline being a video of some big red armored dude, shouting train noises slamming into a building in Gotham. Though the poster seemed to believe him to be from Bludhaven, hence the ping she got. Shortly after, more chaos seemed to ensue as Alex's eye shot wide and she pieced together that what was happening was very not good.

Not even ten minutes later, after getting Verra's permission to go to the city, Alex was out the door and tearing full speed along the roads towards Gotham. She was thankful for the computer in her head, as she had been able to plot a route on google maps to the city before leaving. Not that she bothered to use the navigation, as it would surely not be able to keep up with her, but instead the map served to guide her. Having such a good memory from the computer and speed force inside her body really came in handy at times for the young hero. As she dashed along the highway, Alex allowed herself a slight giggle as she imagined the strange looks she was causing from the cars she shot past. She knew the blur from her mad dash was surely not the color as Verra's, and figured that some of the more nerdy passengers in a car must be flipping out right about now. The emergence of another speedster and all that jazz. However, playtime was soon to be over as Gotham rapidly grew closer and closer. In a mere blink of an eye, she shot across a bridge into the city itself, then was weaving through the streets much faster than the speed limit for certain. She shot past police cars tearing towards the scene of the crimes, through the crowd that gathered outside the police barriers. The hero ziplining in, and the strange woman with alot of guns would be treated to the sight of a black and red blur blasting past them into the building itself. Alex was aiming for the big red idiot she had seen in the video, as he didn't exactly strike her as the fastest or most intelligent of the villains raiding this place. Yet he proved he could do plenty of damage, which made him a big enough threat that she felt it right to focus on that asshole.

Not even a half-second after she blasted past the two others outside, she was closing in on the large red moron. He had made his way deeper into the building, and if the bloodied mess of a hall was any sign... through a swarm of poor bastards. When she found him, he had a crew of officers cornered. Laughing like an idiot, he seemed to be winding up to end those officers in much the same way their friends had already gone. The poor bastards were cowering behind a fallen pillar while fires raged all around them, truly stuck and certainly thinking their lives were over at this point. Then suddenly, they would find themselves outside and on the other side of the police barrier, with only a black and red blur being a sign of what had just occurred. Then she was suddenly back inside, channeling her nanobots into her legs to provide the force needed for her next maneuver. As she ran up behind the hulking dumbass, still halfway through his punch and starting to realize his victims weren't there... the girl jumped with all the force she could muster. Doing an elegant flip in the air, her tail shot out to grab the top of his armor and yank it down with her. The momentum being enough to bring the behemoth of dipshittery crashing to the ground. The girl continued her momentum forward, eventually coming to a stop just above head level for the man in armor. The girl's metal hands and feet having grown something similar to metallic talons gripping into the wall she was on. Her tail stood ready, aimed over her shoulder as flames licked at the opening between the three-pronged teeth. Her eye focused solely on the opponent before her as something similar to armor seemed to flow out and form over her skin. The result being that the girl's skin was no longer visible as if she were wearing some sort of armor herself. Even her head became enclosed by the silver armor, with hints of red lighting running along the seams, and a single eye glowing red on the front.

Glaring at her opponent, the girl was satisfied that the nanobots had finished diverting to create the armor around her body. Whether her skin was tough or not, she figured this guy could hit hard, and she needed the extra protection. Her opponent at that moment started getting up, and chose that moment to speak to her. "NA-HA-HA-HOOOW, JUST WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, STEPPIN' UP TO LIKES O' ME? DO YOU NOT KNOW WHO I AM? YOU MUST NOT KNOW WHO I AM." He shouted out, doing an odd little jig as he watched the smaller form, tensed up and prepared for an attack from her opponent at any moment.

"Some juiced up dumbass is my guess." Came a feminine, yet firm, voice from behind the helmet. The form remaining tense and just waiting for the enemy to make some sort of move towards her.

Another day, another dollar. Undercutting all the other electrical contractors in this district of the city had helped him get the job as Vanguard's go-to emergency electrician, but it didn't put much towards paying the bills. Oh well, Jason Graves thought as he dug through his toolbox for an insulated screwdriver, Vanguard did good work for people like him. The "M's", he called them privately. Mages, Monsters, and Metahumans. Maybe not the most polite term, especially for the Monsters, but it was just a quick shorthand for himself. Plus, Vanguard helped connect him to other projects in the area, giving him some more work during his daylight life. Normally by this time, Jason would have been roaming the street, looking for criminals to decriminalize, dressed in a leather jacket and an eye-catching red mask. However, a panicked all from the head custodian of the Vanguard building and an explanation that someone had sabotaged the emergency generators led Jason here tonight, working his usual emergency rate, which would go a long way towards paying the rent this month.

"Hey man, how much longer here?" The Vanguard security officer asked, looking up from his phone. "We've got kind of a thing tonight, and we need these gennies up."

"Wish I could tell you man." Jason said, removing the final mounting screw and pulling out a bundle of destroyed wires. "Whoever did this knew where to hit it. If it had just been a cut supply line, I could have mocked up a temp line in about an hour. This guy got into the guts of the machine though, and cut a bunch of internal feeds. I've even caught a few instances where they rewired things backwards, which would have blown this guy up spectacularly. I can probably be done with this one here in about twenty minutes, but then..." Jason motioned down the long electrical room towards the line of four other emergency generators. "Now that I know what I'm looking for, it'll probably go faster. With four left though--"

"I get it, I get it." The security guard muttered, going back to his phone. "No skin off my back. I get paid either way, and the cameras don't catch me on my phone here."

"I hear you buddy. I'll at least try to get you home at a decent hour." Jason said, chuckling to himself. He barely finished the thought however, before the lights above went out. Thankfully, Jason's own battery-operated lights still illuminated the room, but a chill went through him as he and the guard made eye contact with each other. "That, uh... Have anything to do with your 'Thing' tonight?"

Before the guard could respond, the entire building shook. Dust fell around the pair as the distinct sound of gunfire sounded from above. The guard snapped to attention, drawing a pistol and glancing at Jason, obvious fear in his eyes.

Right. Time to really go to work.

Jason Graves reached into his toolbox and dug around, pointing to the guard with his free hand. "Hear that yelling? That's Big Red. You need to get people out. Dude can't be stopped, not by you. Find people pinned down, try to get them out. Don't get yourself killed in the process." With a snap, Jason pulled out a small red facemask, fitting it over his eyes. The reactive nanite armor (Thank you, Grim.) began to unfold, covering his head with the bright red mask and fitting his HUD and earpiece in place. Slipping on his brown leather jacket, the simple costume was complete, and Overclock stood, turning to the guard. "Also, don't tell anyone about the vigilante thing."



A few moments later, Overclock was skulking through the ruined lobby of Vanguard HQ. Red had left an obvious trail of destruction, but there were signs of others here as well. They'd gone a different direction, and... Well, Overclock could still hear Red, and it sounded like someone else had gotten to him first. Better right now to go after the mysterious second group.

Though it wasn't a mystery for long. Entering a nearby stairwell, Jason could see a few floors up the distinct view of the Arcane Cowboy and his gang. Two of the Five. This must be big. Overclock pulled out a heavy-duty rubber band from his pocket and pulled it between his fingers. He's discharged all of his batteries into himself before coming upstairs, so he had excess energy. Charging the band with a nice wallop of lightning, Overclock took aim, nailing one of the mercs with enough force to knock him over the railing and down two floors. Taking advantage of the confusion, he took out two more goons the same way.

"Hey cowpokes, looks like you're in a whole mess of trouble!" He called up, pulling out his staff and beginning to ascend slowly. Guns didn't phase him in the slightest, but... Everyone knew that Cowboy carried magitech, and that magic was a bit unpredictable to Overclock. He'd have to be careful.

Well, you could always count on social media to bring attention to local events. Gotham City was a hard kind of place to get eventful news when monsters and demons and aliens invaded the earth every other weekend, but when the problem started to require the help of multiple heroes, that's when things started to get interesting.

It had been a late night for Harley, going over some new dossiers on villains popping out of the woodwork, as well as a handful of new heroes that were starting to make the rounds. There was only so much she could catalog from facebook and twitter about the new masked men and women taking up the streets. She'd have to actually get on the street and meet them, but that would bring up a few risks she wasn't quite sure if she wanted to deal with at the moment.

Her eyes trailed from the phone in her hands to her old baseball bat that leaned against the door frame to her office. Oh, those were the days. The heroes out there had the monster situation handled, they didn't need an oldie like her mucking up the fuck. But then again, these new kids didn't know how fights used to go down back in the day. They might need a lesson from an old vet on how to properly take care of a monster.

A smile brought itself to her lips. She knew she was smiling. She knew she probably shouldn't be, but she was. Before she knew it, her clothes were thrown to the wind, and her armor was slipped into without a second thought. just moments later, her twin pistols were locked, loaded, and her mallet was strapped to her back, ready to go.

Whenever she debated on doing something back in her early years, there was always a simple answer to that ever present "Why?"

Why the fuck not?

---

"Yes. I've made it to earth, I'm staying at the Justice League satallite for the time being. They've been gracious hosts, and I've done whatever I can to help them along." The voice of Preston rang through the halls of the Watchtower. Quantum entanglement communications were always helpful when speaking across galaxies, and though the Guardians of Oa would never admit it, it was just as functional as communication through GL rings. "I've... taken to staying in Dad's room. Being the one who wears his ring, it seems only fitting that during my stay here, I fill in for him while assisting the earth."

"Do tell the League I send my regards. It's been far too long since I've seen any of them." Came the voice of Catalea, The Spear. As calm and reserved as ever, with just a touch of the metallic tang that came through with Vespasian Ascension. "Please visit when you have the opportunity, vayek. There's still the matter of go-"

"I'm investigating Dad's death." He said rather abruptly, cutting off his mother with a fire in his voice that quickly died off. She didn't respond right away, and he could only imagine what his mother's face looked like at that moment. "I'm sorry. I just don't to talk about the Rites right now. If the Guardians are going to condemn me to this world until they believe I'm fit to watch over my sector, then I'm going to use that time to find out what they aren't telling us about Dad."

She waited a complete minute to respond, and spoke back to him on the second. "Preston, vayek, my son. I don't know what answers you'll find on earth. You know that your father left long ago because he had a responsibility to the rest of this sector, to his family. I'm not surprised the League kept his room intact, they were always the sentiment types. But don't stray from the path, Preston. Please." Her voice was strained. Even the hero of Vespasi, the woman who ended the planetary civil war, could be vulnerable around those closest to her. Preston had only seen his mother cry once, but he was sure that it would not be the last time.

"I will remain strong. But there has to be something, anything that could point me in the right direction. Or at the very least give me a clue on where to start. Goodbye, mom. I'll talk to you soon."

"Goodbye."

With the call ended, Preston let out a long sigh. His body slumped over the dimply lit desk that was in what was once Morgan Westfield's room. "Lantern" was printed on the door in a stylized font to let everyone know who slept there. After a long minute of contemplation and a groan of annoyance, he picked himself back up and thumbed through the journal that Morgan had left behind.

"Come on, dad. There has to be..."

Something.

Preston's eyes darted around. Even more than two weeks into his stay at the Watchtower, he didn't quite trust his alledged Partner Saraka. A Blue Lantern which the Guardians still refused to talk about. Not even Killowog and Tomar-Re knew about them. But, it looked like he was getting that clue that he had been praying for. His eyes scanned over the journal, desperately looking for more, but this would suffice for now.

two insignias. The first was the only he recognized. It was the brand of his Uncle Sinestro, a dubious man who trusted the Guardians as far as he could throw them. Though he shared fond memories with Sinestro and was told stories about how he was the mentor to Morgan, he knew that Sinestro was not a man to be trifled with.

The other was one he didn't recognize at all. It was like the Green Lantern Corps logo but turned on its side, the two parallel lines sprouted outwards like horns. Under the Logo was a single letter, drawn into the paper so hard it almost tore through into the next page.

B

Emma Graves stepped out of her top-floor office, catching the eye of her personal assistant, Ace Hyh. The tall, somewhat nerdy man made eye contact with her before glancing towards the waiting are outside her office and mouthing 'reporter'. Emma sighed, pausing before she turned the corner and making sure her suit jacket was straight. After a moment, she pasted on a bright smile and turned the corner, extending her hand to the waiting brunette woman fiddling with her audio recorder.

"Emma Graves, Haven founder. It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms...?"

Reacting with a start, the woman stood up and fumbled with her recorder, turning it on before extending her other hand to accept the shake. "Oh! Laney Losset, Gotham Daily. We're a new startup blog for the greater Gotham area, and I was hoping to get a brief interview with you?"

"Of course, we can walk and talk. Give me just one moment." Emma said with a polite smile before turning to Ace. "I'll take the stairs down to the parking garage in order to have time to answer Ms. Losset's questions. Please get my car ready and unlock the doors. I'll be there soon." Trusting her assistant pick up on the message she was sending, Emma turned back to the reporter, noting with amusement that she appeared to be thrown off by the though of taking the stairs all the way down from the top floor.

The interview went mostly well in Emma's opinion. The questions were mostly softballs, obviously a probing interview from an amateur reporter. The only potential problem had come as Emma described the psychiatric services Haven offered, mentioning that Doctor Quinzel often provided her services. That had led to a discussion about the ethics of contracting a former supervillain for the cultural center, but Emma had defused the situation by pointing out that Haven was a place for marginalized minorities, and that there were few more marginalized that a reformed leader of the Joker gang. All too soon, the reporter had grown tired of the rehearsed answers and the long climb down the stairwell, and she left Emma alone to find an elevator, cutting the interview short.

Climbing down a few more floors, Emma Graves exited the stairwell, looking around the floor she found herself on. The art workshop, still bustling with activity from some of Haven's more artistically talented patrons. Spending a few minutes examining a particularly impressive sculpture being worked on by an elderly harpy, Emma excused herself and stepped into the waiting elevator. Tapping a secret code into the button pad, she smiled as the machine lurched, being drawn into a secret elevator shaft and descending into the depth of her building. Knocking twice on a section of the elevator wall, the embedded magical rune revealed itself, deactivating the magic which disguised Emma Graves form. The illusion of the sharply dressed business woman fell away, replaced by a more colorful woman. The dark purple suit was cut in the same style as her disguise, but laid much more casual on her frame. her metallic, gauntlet-like gloves clicked together as she tugged at her cuffs. What little skin could be seen turned pure, pale, porcelain white as her hair shifted into a wild mess of colors. Anarkee stretched and clapped her hands together once as she descended,looking forward to the night ahead of her.

Scant moments later, the elevator dinged and Anarkee stepped out into a dimly lit, silk-curtained reception room. a man sat behind a desk here, his purple robe marking him as one of her mages. "Ah, Ms. Anarkee, you've arrived. The party is in full swing, as Ace instructed. Turnout is high tonight, I believe we picked up a larger attendance from the New Years crowd, which should bring some life into the club. There have been no incidents thus far, and your normal place is waiting for you.

"Lovely. Thanks Jeeves," Anarkee responded with a wild grin before parting the curtains in front of her and stepping out into the thumbing base of the club music. Her senses were immediately assaulted by a bevy of stimuli. The contrast of the darkness of the previous room and the now flashing lights and strobing pulses through the smoke interior set her to pause, blinking as her eyes adjusted. The smokey mixture of nicotine, marijuana, incense, sickly-sweet vaping oils, and other unidentified smells would have knocked a lesser human on her ass. Anarkee however, was no lesser human. She took a deep breath as her eyes adjusted, smelling and tasting the conflicting sensations in the air as the thumping beats of the club shook her eardrums and body. The mass of bodies in front of her brought a smile to her face, some dancing wildly to the music of the DJ, some drinking at the bar, some lounging at the edges of the room partaking in illicit substances. There were people sneaking into side rooms for dalliances with their partners, high-stakes gambling taking place on the balcony above, dealings in arms and armor and other illegal dealings happening all around her, with the house taking a cut od every single transaction.

Weaving her way through the crowd, Anarkee was used to the way they parted for her. She had learned long ago that to earn respect you had to own it, and her confident strides and piercing eyes were enough to clear a part for her to the far end of the room, where Ace sat in an ornate chair at the head of the Angel's Table. The other chairs were filled with purple-clad creatures of all types; her lieutenants. The gang was thriving these days, they had scooped up much of the Joker territory after the fall of his gang, and were now engaged in uneasy dealings with Aquila to keep their territory. Ace stood as she approached and moved to his own designated seat next to hers. "Just keeping it warm for you, boss."

"Thank you, darling." Anarkee said as she eased herself into the cushioned chair. She sighed and looked around the club, basking in the empire she had built. Taking a sip of her waiting drink, Anarkee finally settled in and looked to her people. "Right. Now then, down to business."

---

After so long, he was able to walk on solid American soil once more! Despite all that had happened, that much came as a joy to the former Civil War soldier as he had stepped off the plane...to the point he'd done a small jig right after leaving the airport. Mostly it had garnered him some strange stares, which he'd reckoned was a tad shameful, but for this occasion it was a thrilling experience to just be here again in a physical body. Those Japanese monster folks, Hiroshiki and Mune they seemed to be called, had been mighty kind to help him get back homeward, at least on a plane to get him back to the Eastern side of the continent that was still livable. Not that the west wasn't livable, but...well, blast it all he wished a lot of mess hadn't led to this Scar and all of that country splittin' nonsense all over again. Except this time the President had been kinda' insane and gone bout' trying to hurt decent people and innocent lives.

The former Confederate soldier sighed to himself as he began to wander off into the city and through the streets, trying to shake out the more depressing thoughts even his ma' wouldn't have approved of dwelling on. This place was called Gotham, that much he knew for a surety, and it wasn't like he hadn't been by her before...admittedly how many years ago that was escaped him. But it wasn't like he personally knew this city in and out regardless, aside from comments about crime rates or such he'd heard. Maybe that's why he'd gotten a cheaper ticket to get here? Regardless, before he got too off-track the Southern man lightly shook his head. If nothing else, perhaps he could get some directions for how to get South towards Atlanta or find some easy transportation! At least going back home to see all the changes, the people, the places...that would be a good thing to do after so many years.

Though the man's concentration would swiftly be broken as something broke through the air and reached his ears.

"CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA..."

Samuel stopped where he stood, somewhere along the streets after being trapped in his thoughts a while, as the voice of some man seemed to cry out into the night in some sort of strange train-like ritualistic chant before-

*CRASH* *CRASH* *CRASH* *CRASH* *CRASH*

...-than the loud crashing sounds began to reach his ears. The power went out not too far away as well, and the ground seemed to shake. The former soldier stood there, utterly baffled and somewhat floored at what was going on within earshot of him. He'd seen some crazy things as a spirit, he knew that much, but being physical again and being exposed to this now was nothing short of a fresh and strange experience all over again. Only when the sound seemed to finally continue off in another direction did the man finally "snap back out of it".

"What in tarnation' is goin' on here!"

Well, perhaps he had some idea of maybe "what in tarnation" was going on, but that hadn't made it any less surprising to run into it all this so soon after landing back in the states. Superheroes, supervillains, vigilantes, whatever people wanted to call them he knew what those people were like...the good, the bad, and the ugly just like any other folk. What had just come by sounded like the last thing to his ears, however, and his mind seemed to jump up at attention like it would when he'd gotten close to enemy troops way back in the day. Instincts kicked in, and the old soldier let out another long sigh. He couldn't just stand here or walk away to mind his business, could he? Nah, his pappy would have spanked him good if he stood by and let innocent people come to harm willingly.

"Dammit all...alright, time tah' test out this ere' new body and things ah' can do," Samuel whispered to himself, before darting into a nearby alley. Some people seemed to have vacated the area already, just from hearing the prior train-like noises and crashes, which at least left him some space and quiet and no one paying attention to the strange southern man sprinting into an alley.

Samuel focused his power on a particular bit he'd practiced back in Japan a bit. Seemed silly at the time, some mimicry of the people doing this stuff for good or bad, but frankly he felt it was better than nothing! A heroic costume with accompanying mask, fashioned from the dredges of an old Confederate Civil War uniform, materialized rapidly over his body instead of regular clothes as he pulled on the echoes etched into his very soul. The shape felt right, the fit of it was comfortable yet not loose or baggy, and overall the sensation of wearing this costume he'd fashioned sent a chill of excitement and nervousness down the man's spine. He didn't have to slow down running like a normal person, at least, which allowed him to run at top speed to follow the commotion he'd been hearing to its source. Quite a bit of streets and paths to follow, but at least the blathering fool who was making the commotion wasn't too hard to track as a result.

Eventually, however, Samuel found himself arriving at the source of it all and running into the fray....and on top of that almost regretting coming over if he were to be honest with himself. Officers all over, others in crazy armors and outfits. It was like a circus. The man felt himself falling into a set of practiced breaths he learned from a former comrade once long time ago, a thing to help him focus in battle mainly, as he began to focus on the echoes of his soul once more. By his power he felt the spiritual servitors of his former comrades forming up rapidly, though not yet corporeal or visible to others...at least not until he had a target in mind. Surprise with one's abilities and skills was a valuable advantage! Or so he had learned over quite a long while from other dead.

Maybe he'd be useful in this fight, maybe not. Either way he reckoned whoever shot at him was going to be either an enemy or a scared officer of some kind.

A lone figure trudged through snowy ground with a thick hide cloak hanging over them to keep the worst of the cold off during what had been a harder winter than usual in the Scar. It was probably the magic from further in meeting towards its edge making a more extreme climate than it would have ever been in the Midwest a decade ago. At least that's what people from the settlements had said last time he had even bother to ask about what the area used to be, it was nice to think about once in awhile to keep his thoughts warm at least. Soon his trek back to shelter would be over with just a couple more miles though knowing his luck some imps might've settled in near his fire and food. The thought made him push harder towards the building which he had made his most permanent home bringing down his maul occasionally to scatter the snowbank around making it just a little easier to maneuver.

Ogre had been fortunate to find this old house as big as it was he could walk around in it without having to crouch all the time when he grew just a bit too big. He could already hear the chattering from inside to which he issued a loud and annoyed grunt as he stomped forward making even more noise. After that he could see and hear various small demons scampering out of his house in the biggest hurry they had probably ever been in because they knew exactly what would happen otherwise. The huge man had to move around the side to where the only major hole was to step in from there since he was currently around 12ft tall so the door was completely out of the question but it stayed quite warm inside on the other end so it was kind of perfect once the unwanted visitors were run off. Next to one or two towns this was the closest place to rest properly near the outer edge of The Scar so it was no wonder like him the demons took interest in it and even the occasional humans looking to get out of whatever weather tried to kill them next.

The behemoth tossed a log of weird living wood onto the bonfire he made inside as he settled in, he didn't know why it bit or screamed at him but honestly it burned the best so while he had some of it the fire would stay going while he was gone for hours. He had a big leg of what might've been a boar at one point in time cooking moments later on a crude spit while he considered his options for keeping supply up until spring when more of the animals would come back out again. Late winter was always a lean time especially out here so maybe it was time to branch out away from The Scar as the more powerful demons seemed to be hunting out his usual areas probably trying to starve out what they couldn't kill. Ogre was extremely frustrated by this practice but they had the numbers to pull it off in a way he just couldn't counter so now would be the opportunity or excuse as it really was to get out of here if only for a little while. There might be good trade with the people beyond for his hides or tools especially with this cold.

It made far too much sense not to take such a god course, so after vigorously tearing into the Chaos tainted meat off the bone he threw the remains of the leg aside and began to pack his things. With his goods and supplies packed up, maul slung over one shoulder, he began to jog forgoing his previous attempts to conserve energy for the exciting prospect of surviving the winter in comfort with new friends possibly. The huge man wasn't a fool knowing full well they might turn him away like some of the loyalist settlements of The Scar but he had to try otherwise he was going to have to hunt down another Duke or whoever caused him his current troubles. Knowing the distance well enough it wouldn't take him overly long to reach the point where he usually halted in the past only observing from a distance but it was different now and he would not stop simply for his uncertainty that usually overtook his mind. Ogre was resolved this time his wanderlust would be satisfied and so would his belly which pushed him to run wanting to be there as soon as possible.

"Scouts say we've got incoming, sir," said Lieutenant Beckett, turning from her comm station to face Colonel Cooke, "and it looks like a big one."

Cooke nodded, leaning over the digital map of his section of the Scar's Edge. "Just as that cultist said - this must be their 'secret weapon'."

A week had passed since the latest Blackthorn raid had been successfully repelled by NADF forces and their metahuman allies. It had been a rather routine affair, the attack being neither larger nor smaller than a typical Coven raid. There was only one oddity that stood out from the norm - a prisoner. One who had willingly surrendered to their forces instead of withdrawing with the rest of the raiders. It was almost unprecedented, a cultist seeking asylum in exchange for information.

Information on an upcoming attack on the border.

According to their new prisoner, the Coven would soon be deploying one of their most terrifying living weapons against them; a corrupted Demi-Titan known only as "the Ogre". While he didn't know the exact date at which the attack would take place, he knew it would be sometime soon.

And so they had been readying their defenses for the past week. He hoped it would be enough...if not, then they would have no choice but to call in the Justice League.

"This is it. Once he's within four kilometers, we'll open up on him with everything we've got - from land and air," said Cooke, resting his hands on his hips.

Ogre started to notice a very big drop in the amount of demons in the area as he walked having slowed down to not make himself as much of a threat which only reinforced his belief that this was the right way to go. That meant there would be less fighting and more eating he hoped, maybe even some different food from this new settlement or maybe it was a large tribe, he wasn't sure from here but if the other humans came here for refuge there must be something good. After all many of the ones he helped had traded him much of their food if not all just to get to this point alone so that must mean they have plenty of supplies for those who got away from The Scar.

The behemoth wondered what strange new places he would get to walk since the Chaos magic must have made for interesting terrain this far out though he hoped less of the humans would be Blackthorn or just crazy from walking as he had. They couldn't handle the land like he could so he felt bad sometimes but it meant he had more food and shelter so it was also good in a way. These people must be much stronger this far out able to get what they need which was perfect for what Ogre needed because it would mean trade was easier without as much haggling or threatening like normal. This sprouted a big grin on his face as he got ever closer taking a moment to munch on some dried demon meat from his pack before he raised his maul in one hand kind of waving it lightly to announce his presence since it glowed hoping they would see him a bit before he accidentally surprised them, wouldn't have been the first time though he was usually smaller then.

The huge man was sure this would be great after all, they seemed to like people coming out of The Scar and he was people so he should fit right in.

"Target in sight!" said Lieutenant Beckett, listening closely to the comm chatter. "It appears to be preparing an offensive spell by thrashing it's maul at us!"

Colonel Cooke's eyes narrowed, his graveled voice barking, "Begin the attack!"

---

Scar's Edge

Although Ogre would be unable to perceive them as they flew several miles overhead, a squadron of B-2 "Spirit" bombers readied their deadly payload of GBU-28 "Bunker Busters" - laser guided bombs made for penetrating high density targets. While bombing runs deeper into the Scar were impossible due to a mixture of concentrated Chaos Magic in the atmosphere interfering with their guidance systems and high-altitude demonic attacks, here on the border things were very different.

There would be no sound as the bombs descended on Ogre, but the result would light up the night's sky with a massive plume of fire, and a thunderous crack that could be heard from miles away. One after another, the B-2s dropped their bombs, a dynamic prelude to the chorus of gun, tank, and artillery fire that slammed into him next, the borderline now flashing brightly, peeling back the night as the North American Defense Force unloaded everything they had against the coven's "Secret Weapon".

Ogre was pretty sure he got his message of arrival across though he wasn't sure anyone had noticed or seen him at first. It was like they were just staring at him in silence which he had to admit wasn't an uncommon reaction to him at first because he was very big and his maul was scary looking, at least he thought that was the reason anyway. What happened next would have never occurred to him as a possibility at all because birds even in The Scar didn't drop things unless they were just trying to get at food so the big metal bits screaming down from the heavens didn't register until it was far far too late. It was like the air around him was trying to crush, break and suffocate him all at once while the ground ripped up around/under him hitting him with many chunks of rock or earth from every direction. The light was painfully bright alongside all of it making his eyes watery and painful before he couldn't see anything but he felt another wave as more and more projectiles hit him or near him smashing him into the ground below further than the first then after a little while everything went still...quiet.

It took the behemoth a precious few minutes to process what had just happened to him because he had never felt a pain similar to this...but this caused a bubbling then boiling to run through his veins enveloping the mind with realization. They just tried to kill him badly like the Three Horned God did! Ogre felt every instinct in his body scream to get up, to hurt them back, he wanted to know why and he would kill those who dared to attack him just like the demons. In this haze it made him think they were just like the demons attacking without warning or a word just pain and so much anger. No...they must be more of the cultists just different both made him so damn angry there was only one way to settle this, one way that he had gotten all too good at. From the bottom of earthen crater where he laid a sudden rumbling began as he tore himself from the stone surrounding him grabbed onto the maul at his side and with a primeval roar charged up slope seeing red unwilling to back down from the human's challenge.

"Big damn mistake!!!" Ogre screamed at the very top of his lungs as his now 15ft form raced forward ripping up the ground with reckless abandon.

"He...he's still moving!" said Lieutenant Beckett, her voice trembling. "That's...we hit him with everything we had!"

Colonel Cooke balled his fists tightly as he watched the blip rapidly closing in on their front line. That was...unexpected. Yes, definitely unexpected - but not unprecedented. He had served in the NADF for the past ten years, and in the US Army for fifteen before that. He had fought terrorists, metahumans, demons, cultists, and everything in between during that time. In a sane world, something like this "Ogre" should not be able to exist.

But he had long since accepted that he was no longer living in a sane world. No, he lived in a world where abominations now roamed freely over the land where he was born and raised; creatures immune to all conventional weaponry. This Ogre...he wasn't the first of such creatures he had faced, and he wouldn't be the last.

In times like these, there was truly only one option.

"Keep firing!" he barked. "Target the terrain to delay him. Beckett - get me in contact with that fucking Station!"

---

Justice Station, Earth Orbit

If there was one thing in the world that Matthias truly hated about being a member of the Justice League, it was when it was his turn to keep watch. How very boring it was to sit alone by himself when he could be out bumping shoulders with his fellow socialites, or at least fighting against some unsavory villain in need of a good thrashing.

Oh well, at least he was able to indulge in as much of Alfred's splendid coffee as he desired.

Sipping from his cup, he leaned back in his seat at the main command console and idly flipped through the various news reports, ever in search of trouble. Nothing currently appeared to be worthy of the attention of a member of the League...although he was sorely attempted to respond to a few of them regardless, just to alleviate his crushing boredom.

But alas, he couldn't risk leaving the station over "trivial" matters that lesser heroes could easily manage. He was expected to be on standby in case there was a real emergency. If there wasn't anyone here at the station when one occurred, it would just send a general distress signal to all members of the League - and everybody hated when that happened.

Or at least he did - he was usually busy hobnobbing.

Satisfied that there was nothing worth his concern, he took a generous gulp of his coffee and smiled.

"Hmmm...Alfred, dear, would you be so kind as to play the latest episode of Savior of my Dreams for me?" asked Matthias with a subconscious flourish of his hand. "I hear Celene breaks up with Crawford! Oh, the tragedy! They were doing so well.."

"Sir, I am receiving a priority alert from the border NADF Commander Center at Hub City."

His brows raising, Matthias leaned forward in his chair, setting his coffee down on the nearby table. "Oh really, now? What might this be about?"

"It's from Colonel Robert Cooke, sir. He is reporting that they are currently engaged with a TL-8 hostile. All of their weaponry has proven ineffective against it - a serious breach in their defensive line appears to be inevitable," Alfred explained, the A.I. being omnipresent within the Justice Station.

Masquerade raised his head slightly, summoning his ebony dancing cane to his hand. "Threat Level Eight? On my. I dare say things will become quite perilous for them without my intervention. I will be departing, then, to deal with this - but just in case I require assistance, please contact Green Lantern for me. He needs more opportunities to prove himself useful."

"Of course, sir."

Standing, Matthias - otherwise known as the Magnificent Gentleman, Masquerade, pointed his cane at the naked air in front of him. Skillfully drawing upon the ley lines to begin weaving a set of runes into the perfect circle that would become his portal to the front line, he simultaneously summoned his top hat with his free hand and placed it upon his head.

When the runes were complete, the portal appeared in front of him and with a quick skip and a hop, Masquerade leaped through it. "Tally-ho!"

Ogre was fast but the things shooting at him were faster continuing to pelt and prod until the ground collapsed or sundered ahead of him. A straight charge was far more difficult, that they were delaying him from his combat they started in the first place which added frustration on top of seething rage. Now they were taunting him as far as he saw it holding off time for the coward leader or champion who refused to fight him yet, wanted to see him weakened or tired out before hand. The thought made his adrenaline pump harder because he would not be denied nor would he let them get an advantage so a new way to close the gap was necessary though he didn't know what or how.

This is like mountains, jump! I need to jump!

The huge man sounded out a more triumphant roar as he begun hopping and jumping off the sides of craters or off protruding rocks to gain height while avoiding the worst of the ground he would have been trying to traverse otherwise which meant he was pushing through just that much faster. In fact now he saw the wall in front of him quite clearly making him grin as he saw the squishy humans on top or around it trying with little effect to repel him. At worst he had expected to be turned away but now it was time to teach a lesson to all of them why you don't attack unprovoked. Ogre scooped up a boulder from the rubble in his other hand as he closed in twisting off of a jump to throw it at the upper half of the wall at his attackers with almost glee. He rarely threw rocks because most things were fast enough to run away but a wall? He could hit that and maybe some of the offending shooters on top making it just that much simple to bust a hole right through it, felt like the right thing to do anyway.

The behemoth jumped again but higher to follow up with a downward smash from the demonic maul pulsing in his grip.

In the calm of the surrounding landscape as the Atuum landed, a serene quiet, it almost seemed as though it were natural for the spaceship to be there, invisible though it was. The rustle of trees from the landing once more stilled, and in the late evening only a faint drone of the nearby city permeated the air.

Bang.

A series of crashes rang from the inside of the Atuum, muffled from the interior. At one point a particularly thunderous noise seemed to actually move the ship an inch or two, if the small grooves on the ground were any indication. Then the door let off a low hiss as it opened to the Earth's atmosphere, beginning to lower.

Immediately, a pair of dark blue claws stuck through the top.

A whining chittering sound came from the inside, and the door was forced down a few inches faster. Then there was a vivid, glowing yellow gem, and a blue carapace pushing to make it go faster - and before the door was even fully down Kailani was scrambling out, landing with a shaking thump.

"Where are the bipeds?!" The voice that came out of the creature would've been complete gibberish at best to over nintey-nine percent of Earth's 'humans', and a perceived threat at worse. The Devourer spoke in a series of chirps and chitters that echoed out of its broad chest, carrying easily in that once peaceful air. Speaking of, Kailani let in a deep breath through her mouth, and abruptly her stomach gurgled and a series of what seemed to be 'pops' vibrated through her body as it adjusted.

"Lots of monoxide - delicious, does something here eat it? - but there's lots of oxygen too! You're right Ky, these people are like yours! See, breathe!" Rather than let her companion take a breath of the air literally all around them, the large creature abruptly hopped around and came back to the ship, shoving her face directly into the Andorran's and exhaling on her. From the alien's face came a gust of warm, but completely purified oxygen. Of course, Kailani didn't even wait for a response before she was darting off again, hyperactive Devourer that she was.

Rather than easily climb over the metal gate blocking her way, with a crunch it was ripped up in the beast's maw. Throwing her head back, Kailani chomped down on it before venturing further into the strange place, once more back on path. Bipeds, that's what they were after! And according to her nose, and Kyrona's research, they were buried here.

What curious creatures humans were!

It took mere seconds for the large alien to use her equally large claws to dig into the ground, tearing through it easily. She also may have eaten a mouthful or two of the dirt - the decomposition made it spicy! Kailani was soon pulling out a casket with a single paw, curiously tilting it this way and that curiously. Then she just bit the whole top off.

"Their bodies are in little packages!" It took only a few seconds more for the casket and its entire contents to disappear into the gullet of the Devourer, ending with her licking her maw. "That one had a couple worms, too! But..." The chittering trailed off as Kailani concentrated, her bulk seeming to puff up for a moment.

"... Nope! Wasn't enough, I'm going to need a lot of morsels!"

It took frighteningly little time for almost half the cemetary's once well-maintained lawn to become a pock-marked ravaging of holes in the ground. Every couple of them the Devourer stopped again, the plates covering her body seeming to puff out before she moved on. Sometimes she rolled her shoulders during this, othertimes she shook herself out, and once or twice a low echoing growl echoed from the beast's maw, until finally something different happened.

This time the popping sounded out once more, the large body shifting. Abruptly letting out a shriek, Kailani curled in on herself as her body began to shift. The yellow gem on her forehead shone brightly, covering her body with the glow as it shrunk down, and after a minute began to fade.

"... Look how compact I am!" Indeed, in place of the very large, very voracious alien now stood a small human girl. The Devourer ended up with a tawny complexion and bronze eyes, over a foot shorter than her companion. She was slender, almost delicate looking, and-

"Ack, too much hair! Too much hair!" Kailani spit out some of the dark brown strands that had gotten in her mouth, her strange accent thick on her tongue. Already she was padding back to Kyrona on bare feet, flexing fingers and stretching strange limbs. How odd to only have two feet, and her teeth were so flat! She had these things in other forms, but not quite this combination. But it was the best combination, because humans looked like Andorrans, and now so did she!

"Look Ky! I'm your people now! ... I'm still hungry though."

Kyrona waited patiently while Kailani harvested the corpses from their earthen storage compartments. Watching her friend dig up the rectangular wooden crates - called "coffins" if she remembered correctly - and consume the bodies inside, she quietly thought back to her last visit, some thirty standard years prior.

She had learned much about this world in that time. While the dominant species greatly resembled her own, at least on the surface, she had quickly been made to understand that they were burdened by a tendency to overcomplicate and dramatize everyday occurrences, such as death. Though the details varied from Earth culture to Earth culture, here in the collection of tribal states known colloquially as "America", they would hold elaborate ceremonies upon the death of a relative or friend.

It was quite obscene, really - they would drain the blood completely from the corpse and fill it with a preservative fluid, and then coat the carcass in make up to make them appear as if they were still alive!

All of this, just to stand over it for a few hours, emptying all of their regrets and farewells to what was now a very slowly rotting corpse painted in enough makeup to make even the most garish of Sarkeesian prostitutes blush! And, most absurdly of all, after all the effort they've gone through to preserve this body, they stuff it into a box and bury it underground!

Yes, the Earth was a truly bizarre and irrational place - no wonder they were still in a state of tribalism.

"HEY!" the gruff voice of a wrinkled, old Earth man shouted, the screen door of his shack squealing loudly as it swung open. Dressed in gray work coveralls, his face was covered by a patchy white beard, his head very nearly bald except around the edges. "What in God's name is goin' on out here! Sounds like a fuckin'..."

The old man trailed off, struck silent by the sight of Kailani ripping up yet another coffin from the ground.

"Ah...AAHH-" the old man began to scream, only for a small crimson orb to strike him in the chest, launching him back into his home, where his limp body landed on an unfortunate coffee table that was unable to support his weight. Having never turned away from her corpse-munching friend, Kyrona holstered her pistol. Lucky for him that her last bounty had called for a live captured - she still had it set to stun.

The distinct and by now familiar sound of popping brought a smile to her face, as Kailani began to quickly shrink down. She had consumed more bodies than was normally required, but then...it was a pretty drastic transformation. Once the bright glow had subsided, Kyrona slowly stepped towards her, curiosity drawing her in.

Leaning over, Kyrona felt a deep warmth washing over her. "Kailani...you look adorable! Really adorable, in fact! I'm...I'm going to hug you!"

Scooping the now tiny Devourer up in her arms, she squeezed her and shook her from side to side. She had never imagined that Kailani could look this cute! It was like having a baby sister or something! "You really lucked out with this form! Imagine if you got one like that old bastard yelling at us?"

---

January 18th 8:10 PM
Scar's Edge, near Hub City

The reinforced barricades that stretched across the entirety of the border with the Shattered Scar cracked as the rock hit it, the humans taking cover behind it screaming in a panic as their cover began to crumble around them, threatening to instead become their tomb. As the fortifications collapsed around them, soldiers were pinned under the falling rubble, their comrades desperately trying to free them - only to often find themselves buried mere moments later.

As the Ogre brought his maul down upon the already battered fortification, it easily succumbed to the force of his demonically empowered maul, which smashed through it as if it were made of twigs. When it slammed into the ground below, a terrible earthquake stole the footing of every soldier and civilian for over a mile, sending dirt and debris rising into the air as the panicked NADF forces scattered, desperate to put any sort of distance between themselves and the monster attacking them.

The battlefield was in utter chaos at this point - they simply weren't equipped to deal with this level of demon on their own. No amount of preparation could ever change that.

But as the dust settled, a lone figure stepped forward, calmly approaching the Ogre without a hint of fear in his chipper gait. Having traded out the grey vest he often wore in his civilian guise, Masquerade was dressed to perfection in a black, bespoke magician's uniform, complete with a top hat and cane. His most distinctive feature, however, was the golden ball mask that covered his face, etched with arcane runes that glowed with an orchid light.

"Well, well, it seems like you've made quite a mess here, my epidermally exposed friend!" said Masquerade, chortling. Behind the mask, his sapphire eyes narrowed dangerously at the creature known as "Ogre". "That won't do at all."

Slamming his cane down upon the ground at Ogre's feet, the runes of his mask glowed more intensely than ever as he swiftly drew upon the ley lines. "htraE fo ralliP!"

Erupting from the ground at the Ogre's feet was an immense pillar of magically-reinforced Earth, which would slam into his stomach at a slanted angle, intended to launch him back over the wall and away from the soldiers, so that Masquerade could face him properly without concerning himself for their safety.

Ogre was smiling as the barricade shattered under his weapon's blow watching how quickly the rubble swallowed up the humans who weren't fast enough to escape, the ones who ran back in confused him but if any survived he would get to them later. If they hadn't feared him before they definitely did now after showing his earthshaking might which meant he could track down the leader and make an example of them since it looked like none of the other humans would provide any real resistance. A fact which was honestly...disappointing. There was very little challenge since the first attack on him besides making him take a minute or two longer to reach the wall which left him unsatisfied.

That was until a new and different human appeared from the dust in front of him very weirdly dressed, nice than the rest though. The behemoth remembered the leaders of the other towns looking different like this, though maybe not at fancy, even in the Scar so that could only mean one thing. He had forced the coward out of his hole otherwise the rest would likely find him unworthy and probably killed him for the insult, at least that made sense to him because leaders are protectors and you can't do that from the back. This was exciting even if he could barely understand a word out of the human's mouth but the tone made him quite eager to pummel the newcomer for disrespecting him.

Ogre was ready to swing before the earth erupted below him smashing into him like a wall pushing him back through the air very quickly. He tumbled backwards along the ground before clawing a free hand into the earth slowing himself down as he got back to his feet upset by the cheap shot but not all that surprised as demons held little respect either for such things. The huge man also smelled something different in the air as he was hit vaguely similar to the scent of the Scar but a bit more pleasant. It meant magic but he couldn't place the kind though no magic was good magic as far as he was concerned as he began to walk back maul in hand.

"Your challenge is accepted shaman! You will fall like the rest in the Scar!" The behemoth bellowed out picking up his pace into a charge before letting rip a wide swing using the length of his 10ft mace do its work for now before he decided how to approach this fight in earnest.

Theo took Starfire around the general grounds. It truly was a vast estate. They must've owned at least fifty acres of land. He showed her the greenhouse behind the Manor, and took her inside to give her a quick rundown of everything they grew. "So, what do you think?" He asked. He was calmed by the smell of the herbs, it was earthy and beautiful within the greenhouse. And devastatingly warm, but he had gotten used to that.

Starfire spun around, taking in the space around them, the smells and bright green colors. ”It is wonderful here, Theo.” This place had a lot of care put into it, this green house. It was a house full of green- the name was correct.

Her spinning came to a stop and she looked at Theo.”I am Starfire, by the way. It is good to meet you, Theo.” She said, getting herself properly introduced to Clio’s favorite cousin.

“A pleasure, Starfire.” Theo nodded, just as aristocratic as he had been trained to be. “There are many places on this estate, but this is more often than not my favorite.” Taking it in a final time, he sighed. “Now, why don’t we travel somewhere a bit more...invigorating? That, or I could show you where you’ll be staying during your time here.” However short that was.

Starfire smiled at Theo’s greeting. She could see why he was Clio’s favorite. He was collected and welcoming. ”Invigorating? What is invigorating?” She asked cheerily.

“Something that makes you feel strong, rejuvenated without resting. We have this special place, called the Breakdown...the family goes there for fun.” Theo was amused by her cheerful behavior, but said nothing of it. “We have been for many years now.”

Starfire nodded slowly. ”Clio mentioned it earlier. This does sound like fun. Is it far from here?” She asked another question, not wanting to leave Clio alone for a very long time.

“Not at all,” Taking some dirt from a pot, he sprinkled it on the floor. “In fact, if you follow this path, it’ll take you straight there. The third path of the main straight, to be precise.” He drew some lines in the soil with the tip of his shoe.

“Why don’t we race?” He asked, considering her. He wanted to know exactly why Clio had invited her into their home. The glowing eyes indicated metahuman or alien lineage. There had to be something special about her.

Starfire took in the information, staring down at the floor as Theo constructed his makeshift map. At the suggestion of a race, she raised her eyebrows. ”A race? Yes, I will race you. You do not want me to go easy on you, do you?” It was hard to tell if she was being genuine or pert. It had been a while since she had raced somebody in a friendly context.

Theo grinned. “Not at all. In fact, if you’re so confident, then perhaps I should have a head start?” He asked, and before she could respond he was rushing out the door of the greenhouse toward the third path.

Starfire gasped in mock offense as he took off running. Beginning to sprint out the door she followed him out. As the two ran, Starfire thought about Clio’s powers. Theo could probably do similar things, so Star had to act quickly. Looking down at her feet pounding the path she began focusing on her heels. There was a small pop, and Starfire’s step was a little larger. The next step, it popped again, a little louder. The next step, it turned Starfire’s run into a series of jumps. This process quickly had the alien taking large, bounding steps. On the 20th pop, she took off into the air, and the pops continued as she was a foot above the ground. At this point she was moving at around 25 miles per hour. Not looking back to see what kind of tricks Theo was doing, she concentrated on her own movement, sticking her tongue out the side of her mouth in concentration. Pop! Pop! Pop! The sounds grew louder as green discs formed beneath Star’s feet. It looked like she was jumping on invisible trampolines. Soon she was ten feet in the air and taking one legged leap after one legged leap. Following the path beneath her, it wasn’t long until she saw what she believed to be the Breakdown in the distance.

Hopefully she was winning! Clio’s family could do magical things. Perhaps they could turn into shadows and move silently amongst the darkness. Theo could already be there! She didn’t want to go too fast, or she could overshoot. Maintaining her speed for a brief moment, she gauged it in her head and did a front roll in the air after her final jump. Her body glowed green as she flipped down, back to Earth. At the last moment, she thought of the lawn. They would be upset at her if she burned their finely kept grass! She splayed herself out flat and energy emitted from her palms and soles, bouncing her and keeping her in the air. The energy around her dissipated as she purposefully ground her own momentum to a halt. Finally flameless, colliding with the ground with a grunt, she semi-gracefully tumbled to a stop at the outskirts of the Breakdown.. Slowly getting to her feet she wiped the plant matter off of her form and whirled around, looking for Theo.

Theo had been watching the woman as he ran leisurely behind her. After she had gotten out of eyesight, he had sped up exponentially. It was about four minutes after she had arrived that he found himself at the Breakdown. Panting, he wiped the sweat from his brow and walked over to Starfire. “Amazing.” He muttered, nearly reaching out to inspect her. He prevented himself from doing so, and cleared his throat instead.

“Good job.” He said at last, shrugging in defeat.

Starfire smiled giddily. ”Thank you. Did you go easy on me? Clio can create places to run out of thin air, somewhat like I can.” She asked genuinely. Perhaps he meant a regular foot race, and she cheated. He didn’t seem too upset, though.

“Not at all, just quite slow, it seems.” Theo said with a chuckle, before turning his attention to the Breakdown. It used to be a factory warehouse, but now it was just a building on the outskirts of their estate that they used for training. It stretched taller than the manor, and while it looked dilapidated, it was actually quite nice on the inside. They had spent many years patching it up and creating a perfect space for Delphine training. It was easy enough to access, even from the outside, as there was another gate to it just beyond. .

Stepping inside with Starfire, they were greeted by enthusiastic children and adults alike, all busy showing off their powers. Challenges were taken on the top floor, which was currently vacant as far as Theo knew. It looked like the average gym. With weights, benches for lifting and even some electrical cardio equipment. The second floor was what he wanted to show Starfire most. That was the magical skills training room.

“Family, this is Starfire. Starfire, these are the Delphine members who care enough about their abilities to train.” He laughed, as if this were a joke, not a jab.

Starfire thought the building looked more dilapidated than she expected, but once the sound of chatter, the clattering of metal equipment and the overall better state of the inside of the building came to her attention, the place felt very welcoming.

”Hello, Family. This is Theo.” She said, gesturing to the man beside her with a small, wry smile. Exercising was a very different activity where she came from, but the alien could see the resemblance.

Theo eyed her with a brow quirked. Had she just...introduced…him? He ignored that, taking her around to all the equipment. Once that was done, he took her to the next floor and grinned. There were at least twenty family members here training. They lifted weights not with their bodies, but with their shadows. Kids arm wrestled with tendrils of void. A few practiced giving slaves menial tasks. Some practiced throwing daggers and other weaponry. Others still were pouring over cauldrons, referencing spellbooks and checking herb labels. It was everything Delphine, all in one room.

“Any thoughts?” He asked, turning to look at her.

Starfire was enjoying the sights and sounds when she realized that some people were not here voluntarily. The zombies sent a chill down her spine as he thought of Shaun’s roommate Pete, naked in the shower, hungry for flesh. Perhaps it was best to keep these thoughts concealed for now, though Starfire wasn’t exactly the best at hiding her internal thoughts. She did a quick scan for Maeve, the woman Clio and Star had met outside the theater. Not finding her, she turned back to Theo. ”It is very busy in here. The shadow powers are amazing to behold, I have never seen anything like it.” She said genuinely, avoiding the topic of zombies.

Theo noticed her gaze lingering on the slaves, but said nothing. Instead, he took the compliment with grace. “Thank you, Starfire. Your abilities are just as impeccable.”

Starfire smiled. ”Thank you, Theo. I am not very good at controlling them, but maybe one day I will be.” She turned back to the room and looked over a nearby child working on improving himself. He reminded her of himself. It is amazing that he has come so far in such a short amount of time. Human lifespans are so much shorter than hers, and yet they have learned so much in such a brief amount of time.

”They are already so skilled in their abilities. You must be proud.” She said, not looking at Theo.

“I am, very much so. Seeing them bloom before me only strengthens my pride in them. It allows me to truthfully say that there is nothing I wouldn’t do for them.” He smiled, watching the same child Starfire was. “Fanmi se tout bagay.” He mumbled.

She glanced back at him briefly, as his words turned into another language. After a moment’s pause she spoke up. ”Do members of your family fight often? Clio mentioned challenges, but I did not think they would be so violent. The muscle power broke her arm.” She said, instinctively reaching for her own arm where Clio was injured.

Theo sighed. He personally wasn’t a fan of the challenges, though he had partaken in his fair share. “It’s the way of our family. No one can be equal. It keeps people in line.”

Starfire tilted her head to the side and pondered this. ”Yes, I suppose it would do that.” Perhaps if her family had something like this, things would not have gone so poorly. It was hard to know. Starfire stayed silent, watching a young woman attempt to out wrestle a tendril of pure shadow.

Theo had been expecting some form of resistance. He scratched his arm, sighing. “Well, why don’t we complete our tour? There’s so much to show you.”