[IC] Tales from the Spider-Verse: Spidroin [redux]

[BurningDaisies]

Resting against the courtyard wall was a simple wooden picture frame. A candle and a carnation sat to either side of it. She stared long at the picture, seeing not just the person in the portrait, but a vivid technicolor memory of who the person used to be. Nalini had no tears left. The pit in her stomach, which had weighed on her like an anchor, was gone. Now she just felt hollow. A weak smile tugged her lips.

A woman stepped beside her. "That's one of my favorite pictures of her. I remember we hung it in the hallway next to one of her parents."

It took a moment for Nalini to process those words. She turned, slowly, and came face-to-face with a fair-skinned woman with bright, brown eyes that gleamed in the light. The lines of her face betrayed her advanced age, weathered by the sun and a full life. Her eyes were painfully familiar.
Nalini studied her, lost in the moment. "She has your eyes..." She said absentmindedly.

The old woman grinned warmly as tears threatened to ruin her mascara. Her voice cracking. "I'm sorry. We're you one of Bobby's friends? I'm her grandmother, Elaine."

Realizing too late what she had said, Nalini opened her mouth to speak, to apologize, but the words caught in her throat. She averted her eyes, a bit embarassed. "No." She said quietly, and turned back to stare at the picture. Her mind wandered through the jumbled mess of feelings she had been struggling with for the past several days and found no good answer. "No, I don't know what we were... but I miss her all the same."

She eyed Nalini curiously, but didn't press for more details. Elaine knew the look all to well. "I miss her too. After her parents died in Palestine years ago, I was all she had. It's been hard for her growing up without them, so I'm glad she made friends with people who cared about her." She tightened her shawl to ward off the cool breeze. "Now, I just pray for the good Lord to finally take me home." A sigh escaped her, carrying a lifetime of regrets and such longing.

Hearing those words was a punch to the gut. Nalini shot her a look of disbelief, but Elaine payed her no mind. She was simply smiling at her granddaughter's portrait with a distant gaze. Her expression was gentle like she was lost in a nostalgic daydream, reliving a happy memory. Watching her, Nalini could feel her own cheeks warming with new tears. She took the old woman's gloved hand into her own, and squeezed it with gentle reassurance. "I'm sure you'll see them again."

The two of them stood there quietly, leaning upon another as they took a stroll down memory lane.

[BurningDaisies]

&

Written in collaboration with @EnterTheHero

Marcus sighed, rubbing his temples. His “hopes,” if he could call it that, of no one else being affected were probably dashed at this point, because he could feel it. A lot of it. It was faint, nowhere near the sense he’d gotten while he and Scott had been talking, but it was the same kind of buzzing in his brain. And it was getting stronger as he wandered through the crowd. He’d like to think it was just population density, but… somehow he knew better.

So much for being the only ones. At least none of them are making idiots of themselves. Yet. Now he just had to find them. And then… do what?

Marcus stopped suddenly, as the thought occurred to him. What exactly was he doing here, anyway? Sure, he could find more people like him and Scott, but what then? What was his recruitment pitch? He didn’t even know what to do with his own powers, was he gonna dictate that to someone else?

He sighed, frustrated with himself. He really should have talked more with Scott about this, rather than flying blind. He moved a bit, trying to avoid jostling any of the other patrons--

TWANG.

Marcus stumbled as the resonance in his head suddenly intensified- not a lot, but enough- as he tried to edge around a woman and her… grandmother? Who seemed to be mourning. His stumble cost him, as he accidentally bumped the woman before he regained his balance.

An uncomfortable throbbed pulsed through her head, bringing her wandering thoughts back to reality. Before she could fully regain her senses, someone bumped into her and were it not for her newfound dexterity, she would have fallen.

Her her snapped around and with it a furious glare. “Hey, watch-”

Her face was a mix of confusion and anger, as the throbbing in her head only got worse. A fine and narrow tension stretched between them like a taught string. Both strange and familiar, Nalini felt an echo of herself looking back at her

Marcus winced as well, the throb suddenly intensifying further as he locked eyes with the angry woman. An understanding seemed to form, same as when it happened with Scott, and the pain diminished. Just like last time, but more intrusive. He let out a shaky breath, wondering what the hell had just happened.

I hope this isn’t what happens every time. Especially where Scott’s concerned. He seems more sensitive than I am.

Realizing he still probably looked like an ass, he straightened up. ”Sorry, my bad. I didn’t mean to, just… something happened. Sorry.”

He probably should move away, but… he couldn’t. Something kept him rooted. He needed to know if what he felt meant what he thought it did.

Elaine eyed the stranger suspiciously at first, until she read Nalini’s expression. “Do you two… know each other by chance?”

Nalini’s own thoughts came to a screeching halt as she tried to grapple with this bizarre, new feeling. The ESU logo on his hoodie caught her attention, and for the briefest of moments, recognition flashed in her eyes. “Yes, he’s one of my classmates.” She said without hesitation. “And we…. need to talk.” She smiled apologetically towards the old woman. “It’s a great pleasure to meet you, Miss Elaine, but please excuse us.”

Nalini hooked her arm around Marcus’s before he could reply. “Let’s go.” She demanded politely.

Marcus was startled by the forcefulness of the woman, but simply nodded. ”O… okay. Sure. Lead the way.”

Nalini’s face betrayed no emotion as she wore solemn expression and spoke with quiet determination. “Who are you? What just happened. Start talking.”

Marcus was silent for only a moment, before he complied. ”...’Classmate,’ huh? Then you were at ESU that day, too, hm? Let me guess- you wished you were dead for a few days, then you started to get better. Like, really better. Maybe you were stronger. Or faster. Or more graceful. Maybe weird stuff started happening after that--?”

“I get cravings to drink battery acid now, if that’s what you mean.” She interrupted.

He nodded. ”Yeah. Stuff like that. Only… I don’t have those same cravings. Guess I was right- we don’t all have the same… gifts.”

Nalini wrinkled her nose derisively and laughed with disgust. “Gift? These gloves aren’t for show! You would be on the ground foaming at the mouth if I took them off. I don’t consider them a gift.”

”Maybe. Maybe not. Go easy on me, I couldn’t think of a better word for it. Powers? Mutations? Take your pick. They’re complicated and messy and one of them is that power chord that played in our heads. Like a warning siren if something bad is about to happen. Or if you meet someone who breathed in the same toxic mojo as you. And who got the same weirdness from it as you did.”

“So I get migraines now when someone else with weird powers shows up?” She let out a defeated sigh. “Great… How many others like us are there?”

He shrugged. ”No clue. That’s what I came here to find out. I know of only me, my friend Scott, who apparently had freaky stuff going on before the gas attack, and now you. But there are others here, I can tell. Maybe you can too. Like a note, resonating in your head. Just at the back. You can’t notice it unless you pay attention to it, but when you do… you get it?”

Nalini was quiet for a long moment, her expression was inscrutable as her thoughts raced. Should she trust him? All the things he said so far made sense in a weird way. Most of his explanations rang true with recent experiences.

“Alright, let’s say I believe you. Let’s say a bunch of people are now walking around New York with brand new powers. Fine, whatever. The only thing I want to know is how I can get rid of them, or turn them off. Something. Any leads on that?”

”No.” His response is blunt. Sad. Like he knows it’s not the answer she wants. Or maybe it’s not the answer she wants. ”I’m gonna level with you: I don’t really want these powers, either. They made some things convenient, sure. But with how high-strung everyone is right now? With someone willing and able to gas a fucking college and get away with it? The last thing I want right now is to be in the thick of all of this. And I only just found out about the powers thing two days ago when my best friend stuck himself to my ceiling."

“I’m just trying to find more of us because, well… I think we kinda need that right now. Someone to talk to, or vent. Because I’m going out of my mind, even with Scott in my life. I can’t imagine not having anyone to talk to about this bullshit.”

“I’ve been talking to my airheaded brother for that.” She blurted without realizing.

He nodded. ”Okay, good… that’s… good.” He sighed, scratching the back of his head. ”I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t know what made me think this was a good idea.”

Nalini studied him intently, watching him fidget. “You’re an airhead too, aren’t you?” She sighed, let go of his arm and drew in a long, breath of fresh air. “It’s not like anyone would know what to do in this situation, right? There’s no right or wrong answer. There’s just... here, now... So don’t blame yourself for trying.”

Marcus tapped a finger against his head as he mulled over Nalini’s words. ”I guess not.” He turned to glare at her, but in a… clearly joking sort of manner. ”...I resent being called an airhead, though.”

“What can I say? The truth hurts sometimes.” Nalini said with a devilish grin. “I’m Nalini by the way.”

”Nice to meet you, Nalini. I’m Marcus.” He contemplated holding a hand out for a handshake, but… given what she’d told him, that might be a tad insensitive.

[soren]

Morgan, Going crazy?

Morgan crawled back up the wall and over the edge. He looked as he caught his breath at where the girl had sat next to him and said she was sorry...was it his imagination. No it couldn't have been he had heard her play as day as a reaction to him almost falling before. What in the world was going on? He went for his phone and started to click Nalini's name without realizing it then stopped.

"I'm just over reacting...but she is the only one who is going through the same thing."

He thought a moment and came to the decision that for now he would just go down and pay his respect sand if he ran into Nalini there then he would tell her.

Jumping down between the buildings he shot webbing and lowered himself to the ground then walked to the memorial.

Merlyna, Could I be dead?

Could I be dead? Really? How am I supposed to move on if I dont know who I am. Were all the thoughts going through ghb her head. This place where all the people were gathered. They weren't celebrating they seemed sad. A memorial, her mind clicked the word and meaning into place.

"Well if this is a place to remember the dead then maybe my name will be announced or be on something. Maybe I'll remember who I am."

Watching the boy now as he jumped and went the same way she had thought about going perked her up. She would keep following him and maybe find some answers along the way.

[Zoey Boey]

Clara Cabello and Alejandra Jonas

September 9th

---

Clara squinted up at the sky from underneath her sunglass. The sky was too bright too look at normally, which is why it was good she had her sunglasses. AJ's eyes on the other hand, were two narrow lines of pure squintage, her eyebrows furrowed. AJ had given Clara her sunglasses back.

"You seriously don't have sunglasses?" Clara asked with a faux-accusatory tone. Her voice was a little too loud for the environment around her.

AJ squinted up at Clara. "No, I guess not." Clara rolled her eyes and snapped the orange tinted glasses off the bridge of her warm beige nose. Almost everything from her reddish hair, light brown skin, bright orange slightly cropped shirt right down to the deep brown of her eyeballs made Clara the epitome of warm color schemes. The only exception to this were her skinny jeans, which were blue, because she didn't where to get red jeans and her flattering color palette was probably unintentional. She just liked the color orange.

"Here."

"Oh no, I'm f-"

"Heeeeere." Clara said with a smirk, waggling the sunglasses between her fingers. AJ accepted them and put them on slowly. Where Clara was warm, AJ was cool, with her dark purple beanie and natural green coat that she had her hands perpetually stuffed into. The two were quite the complementary pair.

Now it was Clara's turn to squint and she did so. No amount of superpowers filted the light from sun any better. "Why do our eyes...like...why do I have to squint? Couldn't we evolve so where we don't have to squint?"

"Clara," AJ warned with a whisper. "No one else is talking this much. You're the one who said you were worried about standing out, right?"

"Tsh," Clara brushed a strand out of her eyes and lowered her voice. "I just didn't think this would take so long."

"We've been here for all of two minutes."

"Yeah, I know. I'm just antsy. Can't shake the feelin' I'm being watched."
"We've been over this, Clara."

"I got a gut feelin'. I don't get 'em often, AJ, but when I do, I tend to follow 'em." She said. Before AJ could speak, Clara interrupted her with an outstretched hand.

"Hey, sorry. I promised. I'm here for you." She reassured her sister.

AJ nodded, her eyes concealed by the reflection of Clara's face in the orange sunglasses. Clara rolled her neck from side to side and kicked at that same patch of grass growing inbetween the concrete. Suddenly, she tensed up, remembering something.

"You're an idiot: Do you even realize you could die? Just wait, the ambulance will be here any minute!"

Crack, splat, bang. Clara remembered pushing that kid jogger down the stairs. In the attack, with all the poison. It was an accident. Was she dead? She wasn't moving from what the thief remembered. Well, that's what she gets for sticking her nose in other people's business. She should of just taken her wallet back and ran. How many times did Clara say no cops? No ambulance? Too many times. It wasn't Clara's fault. Clara kicked at the grass again, a frown spreading on her face. Stupid kid. All Clara wanted was her wallet. But if the concussion didn't kill that jogger, than the poison gas would have.

She'd never killed anyone before.

The young thief flinched and turned rapidly away from AJ, almost spinning, as if someone had punched her in the nose and she was trying to play it cool like it didn't hurt.

"I'm fine. Shut up." She said.

"But I didn't-" AJ began, looking over concerned at her sister.

"I said shut up, AJ," Clara warned with a little smile at her own expense. "I'm just...I can't talk about it now. Not here, I-I'll explain later. " She'd fucked up people before. The most damage she'd ever done to someone was stab them with a pocket knife, but they would survive. Knives were scary and those guys had it coming. Plus, she only stabbed them a couple times to get them to run away. But this was different. That girl, stupid as she was, was only trying to help Clara and she died because of it.

"This whole event is a huge downer." Clara explained quietly.

AJ shrugged. "Pretty much. But that's the point. It's supposed to be cathartic."

"Right. Cathartic. Back in my day we just bottle up our emotions inside and never ever showed them to anyone." Clara complained ironically.

"You're only like, a year older than me." AJ retorted.

"Yeah, but I been on my own for way longer. You were...with your parents, or whatever." Her momentum hit a stop as she accidentally brought up AJ's dead parents. AJ grimaced a little, scratching at her purple beanie.

"No, yeah, I get it. Don't worry about it. It was funny." AJ was the one apologizing, strangely enough.

"So...is someone gonna talk? Osborn set this whole thing up, right?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure someone is going to talk. We're just waiting for everyone to show up."

"Okay. I'll wait, I guess."

AJ nodded, and smiled. She was happy that Clara was here. She could be a real asshole, but there was a reason they stuck together this long. AJ reached out and slowly held Clara's hand. The older sister blinked. AJ felt Clara squeeze her hand a little bit, and the unlikely pair stood in solidarity.

[EnterTheHero]

...stay cool.

stay cool

stay cool

keep it together

please

not now

keep it together keep it together keepittogetherkeepittogetherkeepittogetherkeepittogetherkeepittogetherkeepittogether

no no no no no no no NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NONONONONONONONONONOOOOOAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGH

---

September 9th, 20XX

Nee York City Hall

---

The soft, staccato sound of hardened italian leather on particle board heralded the movement of a man in a sharply cut three piece suit. His hair showed signs of being routinely and meticulously cut, but whatever serious edge it had once held was greatly diminished by a rapidly receding hairline. A clean shaven jaw nearly bumped the microphone, causing it to release a discordant cry into the speakers for a moment. With that sound, the crowd fell silent.

“Ladies and gentlemen, friends, citizens of New York,” Norman Osborn began, his voice lacking its usual gusto, “We… ”

His fist curled to his throat, holding there a moment as he steeled himself. Beneath the podium, Norman’s left hand clenched tightly.

“We have suffered a grave blow- a blow that… even I am unable to comprehend, here today. A tragic loss of so many of the people of our city. Some of our best and brightest, cut down by this heinous act.”

A short, sputtering cough forced its way past Mayor Osborn’s lips, who turned his head to avoid sending it into the microphone. As he attempted to regain his train of thought, those near the stage could see a glassy look come to his eye.

The clicking of heels echoed against the stage before a gentle hand placed itself on his shoulder, a woman’s voice whispering softly in his ear, “Sir, are you alright? Perhaps I should take over from here?”

Miss Lin Choi looked to her employer, concern etched lightly on her features as almond shaped chestnut eyes gazed into Osborn’s glassy ones from behind a pair of wire-rimmed glasses sitting at the bridge of her nose. She was trying her best to keep her composure, there was no need to cause a panic but the worry for her boss was winning out over her usual stoic expression. She had been worried of this exact situation happening which is why she had pleaded with him earlier to simply attended the event and that would be enough but he had insisted that a speech had to be made and he would be the one to do so, that it was his duty to the people.

“Yes, that would be prudent,” Norman replied quietly, away from the microphone, allowing himself to be helped off the stage.

Lin stepped up to the podium, adjusting her glasses into place and tucked a small strand of ebony hair behind her ear that had come loose from the neat bun on her head. She took a moment to straighten out the gray suit jacket she wore and brushed the matching pencil skirt before addressing the crowd.

“As Mr.Osborn has stated, a horrible travesty has befallen our great city and effected so many lives, from those that have been lost and to those that stand here with us today. We honor the memories of each individual that has passed and will make sure they are never forgotten by engraving each name into a monument that will be erected in due time. For now, the police force who are diligently working to find those responsible for this heinous crime wish to do more then leave you with the promise of justice. Each amazing officer has relinquished a portion of their pensions to fund a luncheon this afternoon for all individuals who have suffered and been affected by these recent events.

“Many of us may feel lost, wondering what we can do and if there is anyone that truly understands, but remember this....we stand together today, which shows we are not alone. We stand together today to prove that we will not be afraid. We stand together to show what we believe in. We stand together as one people and this city will continue to stand strong in the face of danger, no matter the cause.”

It was a good enough speech, for some. Wholly inadequate for others. While it was appreciated that something was being done to find out the cause of the attacks, many in the crowd were not pleased at the lack of progress. Marcus shuffles in the crowd, wondering if he could find a way to extricate himself from the event, when suddenly, a massive weight seemed to crash down on him. Something in his heart, his mind, a presence that couldn’t be ignored. Unbeknownst to him, others in the crowd would start feeling the same thing- an inexorable feeling of dread, a warning klaxon in their heads screaming

D A N G E R

Then… it started small. A rumble beneath the feet of the assembled crowd. Then another, larger than before. Then they started to hear it- a boom.
The screech of twisted metal. A roar of flame. An inhuman bellow of rage.

Coming from just out of sight.

An explosion of smoke and flame erupted, now close enough to see, and the damage was done- the crowd began to panic, dispersing frantically, trying to escape this new threat before something else started to hurt or kill them. All except for a few.

Thirteen, to be specific, who held their ground; not out of any particular duty, but out of the remnant of the feeling of dread that had floored them before. And should they look around, they’d see it. Feel it. A connection had been made, between strangers whose only previous commonality was survival. They knew something was starting, from this moment on. Something big.

What they did from there, though… that was up to them.

For Marcus, the choice was simpler than he’d expected. He didn’t know what, if anything, he’d be capable of against… whatever this was. But he did know he was sick of being just a bystander while his city seemed to burn down around him.

With surprisingly little hesitation, he charged toward the source of the explosions. He’d come up with something to do when he got there.

---

what will you do now?

what story will you tell?

[soren]

Merlyna:Explosive memory

Merlyna had followed the boy out into the crowd passing through various people to keep her sight on him. Seconds later she began to hear a speech from a man she almost recognized. She felt as she stopped dead in her tracks an unusual sense about him then shrugged it off as she caught sight of the boy again moving towards the front of the crowd. In catching up to him towards the center she saw the man again this time step away from the podium as a woman took it. She seemed to reiterate and then add as if finishing the speech for him. Then the force of some invisible weight and a screeching sound began almost as if a warning was going on. Various sizes of white and blue translucent spiders scattered around her all running from the podium....an explosion followed.

Merlyna held her head as the spiders screeched around her. With the force of the explosion and confusion she had lost the boy. Suddenly she felt the urge to run just as the spiders had...she couldn't do anything anyway...right? It didn't matter she had to try! Merlyna as fast as her legs could carry her ran towards the explosion and as she did memories began to flash in her mind. Her father on business trips and always working, mom and her escapades that she kept quiet until she finally left, father again but sad and distant throwing himself further into work. Merlyna remembered acting out as a child trying to get attention then into her teens. Between the drugs and all the other shit she had a done she was surprised she was alive. Then it hit her as she charged towards the explosion she as currently on life support. Hearing the machines and her father....weeping beside her. With that she looked over her shoulder flipped her wrist as the boy did and shot out a translucent bit of webbing that hit square on Morgan's head. "Hey electric boy come on!"

Morgan: Warnings and Decisions.

Morgan snarled at the speech as it was being given and moved towards the front. He shook his head as he stopped feeling his radius of low electrical energy fade. Feeling weak again he staggered a second then a weight hit him, a sense of danger and the urge to move. He didn't...and the explosion happened. People began to run and scream and as he looked around he saw others that didn't move. One of them was Nalini with another boy who also stood still then began to sprint towards the danger. Morgan's mouth dropped open then without a second thought he looked as someone who had been filming the dropped their camera. He ran over and shot some webbing out and absorbed what was left in the battery giving him a slight charge. As he looked up he gasped hard as he felt a cold sensation slap his forehead and like a brain freeze spread. "Hey electric boy, come on!!"

Morgan seeing who had yelled at him plain as day now was the girl. Morgan shook his head and he took off towards her and the danger. "I'll explain later for now just don't die and help me figure out what is going on!" The girl said to him with out her lips moving or even with out her being beside him. "Stop yelling at me or thinking so loud this is new to me to." Was the next thing she said as his mind raced and freaked out in a very loud way.

[Potemking]

September 9th | City Hall | NYC / NY | 20XX

The speech had been accepted in Lindy's eyes: As much as the many would probably wish the situation would blow over and be solved faster, it just wasn't possible. Considering what little she knew, or at least thought she knew, this attack wasn't simple whatsoever. Who knows if they'd ever find who did this? Her mom didn't exactly talk about it, so Lindy hadn't the slightest clue what the police had as leads. If they had any leads. It gave her a moment of conflict; Maybe these abilities she witnessed, with Alan and Xander, and herself... Maybe they needed to come to light to help the investigation.

That being said, she didn't exactly want to know what would happen to herself or them if she said something. At her side, one of her hands clenched into a fist of anger: Irritation rising up inside her at the feeling of uselessness she had at the moment. There wasn't anything she could do, really, but that didn't stop her from feeling like she could be helping somehow. Just a simple glance around the area, she could see so many impacted lives. Immense pain. So many lost, and for what? What the hell was the point of this having happened? Not everyone caught up in the attack was as lucky as her; Many were dead. Way too many. What made her so fortunate in all of this, anyways? Or maybe it was unfortunate, considering how things have been since she left the hospital? Maybe that wasn't fair to the guys, but she'd end up with white hairs before long if she kept getting stressed like this.

All this thinking was causing another headache. Which just made her more irritated, though maybe it'd at least help her not focus on the events around her as much for a moment. Maybe when she got home she'd just relax for the day; She had no real plans aside from this attendance, at least her recent life events helped make sure of that. Maybe she'd try to con Dad into pizza tonight? Recent hospital leave, she discovered, was a easy way onto her father's weaker half. She didn't take advantage of it often, but she felt a bit vulnerable today, and food was, admittedly, something that filled the void a bit.

Yeah, maybe it was about time to meet back up with her parents--

_!!!

_{"The hell...?"} Lindy muttered, feeling something etching in her mind.

_!!!

The ground was rumbling...?

!!!

Something hit her hard; Not physically, but something in her mind. It wasn't exactly fear, but it made her feel heavy: She froze as things broke out, her head turned to spot the cause of the horrific sounds echoing in her ears: She stared in a mixture of shock and disbelief as the crowd panicked, people doing all they could to escape. Some tried to push past her, only to essentially clip themselves on a brick wall forcing them to go around.

She paid them no mind; Her eyes were locked on the flames. Her stare so intent, the carnage reflected in her eyes: The memorial service was under attack? After all the suffering already, was this an extension of the attack? A second part of a plan? What kind of goddamn monster was doing this?!

Lindy, feeling overly emotional over this ordeal, didn't realize she took a step forward until she heard the crunch of the ground below her: She looked down, lifting her foot to see her footprint pressed into solid ground. She remained still, eyes slowly rising to look back up at the flames befroe her.

Both of her hands clenched into fists, and without hesitating for a moment longer, she started to run.

Towards the flame.

_{This was her decision.}

[tobiax]

Scott allowed himself to settle into the crowd as best as he could. Professor Connors had since taken his leave, and the young man let out a sharp breath. Closing his eyes, he tried to tune out the crowd, preparing to focus on the speech to come.
The mayor's voice was distant- and not just because Scott wasn't in the front. He seemed distracted, emotional. It was understandable. The only one more worried than Mayor Osborne, it seemed was Scott himself. While the gravity of the event was not lost on him, he was more occupied with what invariably had to have happened to said events to transpire. Did someone know who he was?
It was about then when Norman coughed, snapping Scott back into the moment. He could feel that Marcus was there, as he expected, and his head was abuzz with several other signals. Admittedly, though, Scott wasn't paying much attention to that. Instead, his attention was supremely divided. One of the twinges was close, but in a strange direction. It seemed to pull at him. Slowly, Scott turned his head. His gaze eventually drifted upwards, where his power was pulling him. Though he was unable to see anyone, all his senses were telling someone was there, floating in the air somehow. Maybe one of them had gained the power to shoot webs and become invisible? It wasn't impossible, with how different, and close, each different reading felt.

---

_{There was a void. Devoid of light, and sound, all that was there was warmth. A warmth that told the thought within the void that it was not yet time; life before life.}

---

Scott idly scratched his left shoulder as the speech was beginning to wind down. He found the offer for lunch quite generous, and considered how he could definitely go for some lunch. At that moment, however, time seemed to slow. The sense of immanent threat that made his stomach sink emanating from behind the stage.
Scott was already reacting, looking into the sky, before the smoke began to rise. As the shockwave reached them, he felt the ground rumble. Moreover, he felt as though his muscles were being pulled inward, overwhelmed by the sensation each of the other signals- the other people- were getting. One... no, two were already on the move- one was Marcus, he could tell. The other was shorter, and seemed to be a girl.
Getting an idea, Scott attempted to reach out with his power- to try to contact the fellow spiders, 'Don't panic. You're not alone.'
Strangely for Scott, time seemed to slow in that moment. No doubt, it was also doing so for those he had attempted to contact- the other with spider-powers.

---

As those in the crowd began to see the smoke, and invariably panic, some of the police officers began to wave batons in the air, directing them towards the tent where the lunch was being prepared.
"Everyone! This way! Please enter the shelter in a calm and orderly fashion."

[Zoey Boey]

Clara Cabello and Alejandra Jonas

September 9th

---

"Tch," The young woman dismissed Osborne's short, shitty speech with a derisive sneer. "He doesn't care about us." Clara leaned down to Alejandra and whispered to her, condenming the mayor. AJ opened her mouth to say something but her face fell as Osborne left the stage after a paltry, sickly speech.

"What happened?" AJ asked disappoited and confused, raising an eyebrow

"I'll tell ya what happened. He's probably been shootin' himself up with cocaine and enjoying the benefits of his illegal sex cabal. You know how rich people are, AJ." Clara said, unknowingly garnering some annoyed or disgusted looks from some of the people near her.

AJ didn't say anything and watched as the mayor left the stage. She stuffed her hands at the pocket and kicked in the dirt. As the speech went on, now being held by the assistant lady, AJ laughed mirthlessly. "Oh, wow. They got the cops to give up their pension as if Osborne couldn't fund the entire thing with his pocket change. That's fucking rich."

Clara smiled, finding it funny, but then realised that AJ didn't think it was very humorous at all. She was grumpy again. Alejandra had dragged her sister all the way out here and from AJ's point of view, it turned out her older sister was right. This whole thing was a waste of time. Normally Clara finds joy in being right, since her younger sister is usually the correct one, but this time it rang hollow. Maybe because AJ was actually trying to contribute to something selfless and altruistic for once and it disappointed her. But Clara wasn't sure what she was expecting...of course it would play out like this. "Hey, AJ..." Clara began, a tenderness creeping into her voice.

But then Clara blinked hard and glanced around. "We gotta go."

AJ nodded slowly. "Yeah, sure. Let's get out of here-"

"No, seriously, we have to go, now." There was a protective intensity in her voice. Clara grabbed Alejandra by the arm and lowered her head, beginning to force her way through the crowd. She earned a few stares but she muscled through them with a strength not usually possessed by a person her size. Clara was sweating, one eyebrow quirked, teeth grit.

AJ glanced around, being literally dragged by her sister, Clara posessing a supernatural strength. "Cl-Clara? What's going on?" Clara shook her head. "I don't know." The latina's heart was pounding in her chest. It was an impossible to describe feeling, but if Clara were to try she would describe it as such:..it was like muscle memory for things that hadn't happened yet.

Instinctual yet practiced, recognizable but wholly unfamiliar. All she knew for sure was this: something terrible was about to occur and she didn't want to be around to see it.

Too late. The ground began to rumble. Alejandra's eyes widened along with everyone around her. Clara was moving too fast, AJ didn't have the powers that she did. AJ tripped, and fell, and the world was on fire. "Clara!" AJ called out, frightened. People began to scream and scatted, loved ones carrying loved ones. Clara huddled over AJ and tried to pick her up. Damn it. She wasn't being careful enough. Someone stepped on her hand but Clara didn't even react.

Clara wanted to just lash out and start punching people, but that would only make things worse. There were cops nearby, and someone could fall on AJ. She began to pull AJ to her feet, the crowd parted around the fallen pair. For a moment, everything cleared. There was suddenly no one around except Clara and twelve other people. Eyes wide, the redhead glanced up and saw the others. Was someone speaking to her in her head? It was that one. Clara's head whipped toward Scott, her ponytail trailing behind.

"Don't panic. You're not alone."

"Fuck off," Clara said in her head and whispered under her breathe, not kwowing whether or not the pyschic guy could hear her. These people had powers like her. And for a brief moment Clara spotted the back of someone's head, someone that looked utterly familiar. That girl. That jogger that fell down the stairs. It was her. She had powers. She could break the ground with a single step.

"Come on." Clara said, picking AJ up, who had been looked up at her sister as she whipped her head to and fro like a deer caught in headlights. AJ began to run after Clara but briefly turned around, spotting some people that looked quite unusual. Either way, Clara was moving quite fast. The powered sister was under the impression she was moving at light jog, and her movements would correlate with that, but AJ's sneakers were pounding against the cement as she was running full sprint just to keep up. Clara planted her foot on the ground and AJ came skidding to a stop, almost falling over again, breathing heavily.

"Really gotta work on your cardio, AJ." Clara remarked.

"Fuck you!" AJ said, breathless, light-hearted, terrified of whatever was going on over there. The police were directing people somewhere but AJ knew that Clara wasn't going with them. Only this time, Clara had fucking superpowers. AJ's sunglasses were steaming up and falling off the bridge of her nose and she looked even more disheveled than usual.

"Okay, fuck it. We're getting out of here." Clara reached her hands around AJ's waist.

"Clara, wh- woah!" AJ exclaimed, expressing her surprise as she was hoisted over her older sister's shoulder, and AJ's face flushed red with embarassment, clutching her hands onto Clara's orange crop top. With that, she began to make her escape, and AJ watched in awe as the ground began to rush beneath Clara's feet faster than she had previously thought possible. Clara began to make her way to the back of the fleeing crowd, and her eyes scanned for a way around them...or over them.

[BurningDaisies]

| : [○] : |

Nalini felt it before she saw it, but she was too vexed by the sensation to react. Bright flames shot into the air and plumes of dark smoke mushroomed beneath it. A foul wind rushed past her. The acrid, bitter taste of gasoline fumes was sharp on her tongue. A knot of hunger lodged in her stomach. She balled her fist and gritted her teeth, choking down the strange new feelings and pushed forward.

Before she could regain her senses, she saw Marcus take off towards the explosion without a moment of hesitation. Nalini spared one last look at the crowd, seeing fear distill on the faces of those around her. Panic crept into her as well. She turned to see Marcus's back fading into the distance.

Time to decide...

Frustrated and desperate, she let out an inhuman growl. "You're going to get yourself killed you idiot!" She chased after him, pumping her legs as fast as she could with a mile-eating stride. She had no intention of being a hero, but she wasn't about to let the first and only person who understood what she was going through face the danger alone.

[Akayaofthemoon]

&

Memorial Service Day

---

^{September 9th, 20XX | Memorial Event | @AmpharosBoy @Akayaofthemoon}

She watched him, Mayor Norman Osborn, as he approached the podium and found herself thinking that he looked nothing like how he appeared on TV but maybe it was because she had never paid much attention before. He still was clean cut, shaven, and dressed to the nines but there was something about his eyes that just seemed tired or like something was off. It was like this was just one more stress or worry he had added onto his shoulders to weight him down which shouldn’t have been all that surprising given his position and the company he was a part of but somehow, it was still concerning to Reyna. The discordant cry from the microphone before he started his speech had the crowd hushing, hanging to hear his words about the situation but it seemed he was struggling the further along he went. She wondered if he was just too emotional about this topic but maybe he has lost someone as well or possibly it was more about his health than anything as he had stopped to cough more than once.

In any case, he took his leave from the stage as his assistant took over from there. It was a mixed feeling, listening to the speech that was held. It felt good to know that the people lost would be remembered, that it wouldn’t be swept under the rug and forgotten whether justice was found or not. Only time would tell if this promise came to fruition but at least it might give hope to the citizens and families. She hated cops, found them to be useless and two faced but even she had to admit, they had done good. Reyna didn’t know them, she could just pin it as a publicity stunt to make the department look good but it could also be what it appeared to be and that some people actually cared. It wasn’t hard to say that she didn’t trust it at all. She didn’t trust that they were really trying to help. She wasn’t sure she trusted that they were really trying to find the culprits and even if they were, what did they expect to find? Someone who creates and does what they did wouldn’t make themselves easy to find. It was laughable to think that they were even trying to give that empty promise.

No, it would take more than cops to handle the situation. Reyna didn’t exactly know the people that would be able to but it wasn’t the city cops. She has to give them props for trying to make things right though. She found herself turning her attention to the crowd while the speaker spoke of togetherness and understanding. It was a nice thought but at the same time it wasn’t completely comforting. Were they really strong? Were they really together? Would they stand together? She didn’t know. Suddenly, she felt like she had been sucker punched and was unable to breath, the world around her being tuned out as if she was floating underwater and feeling slow. She felt panicked, shaky, and a tingling sensation that was telling her to run. She needed to get out of here. No, her eyes setting to the tall auburn haired man next to her, they needed to get out of here. Normally she would ignore the feeling but this was far too strong to pass off. Stretching out her hand, she gently held his sleeve and opened her mouth to speak but stopped short at the light rumble under her feet. That feeling pressed harder, her head searing slightly in pain having a sudden migraine and her guts felt like it was filled with butterflies.

Another rumble, harder and larger than before shook below the crowd causing what had started as a gentle tug of Von’s sleeve to be more of a firm hold without her meaning to. The boom had her brown eyes locked to the distance even though the cause was just beyond where her sight reached. The screech of metal and something completely inhuman caused a chill to run up her spine and froze her to the spot even as people rushed past to try and get away from the situation. No one could blame them if this was the same attack as before but even if it wasn’t, it sounded none too pleasant. A curious part of her wanted to check it out, see what was happening and what she could do to help since she felt a tug of longing to go in that direction but at the same time, her being screamed to run and flee from the obvious danger. Besides, wasn’t it like a hero rule that you should keep your civilian identity hidden? Like, who wants their loved ones in danger or their normal lives turned upside down? But what if she could help stop this? Yeah, some weird stuff happened this morning but that didn’t mean she was fit for this situation, right? What should she do?! She noticed a few people rushing towards the danger instead of away and she bit her lip lightly while trying to make a decision before she looked up to her companion.

'Don't panic. You're not alone.'
Those words echoed through her mind and while she shrugged it off as her thoughts trying to calm her down and mixing with part of the speech she had just heard, it did help her feel a bit more relaxed and she focused on what she should do. What felt right? It didn’t matter that the voice was male and not one that she would ever think up. She couldn’t let herself be flustered by that now or worry if she might seriously be going crazy. She could go, try to see if that weird thing from this morning happened again and could be put to good use but that would leave Von alone and she would rather assist him or other people that needed help to get away then go hurling herself into danger when she could make a difference here. She would always choose to protect someone first so why stop now? ”Von, we should get out of here and get to safety.”

---

Adalbert held respect for Norman Osborn; He was a brilliant man, and successful to boot without having a similar worth to dirt like another man he could think of. Speaking of which... Was he watching right now? Von tilted his head to the left, then to the right, eying cameras filming the memorial service and assumedly broadcasting it live on television. The speech surely fell short for a decent amount of the crowd, but Von himself was fairly neutral in the situation. They seemed to be doing their best, but noone's best was exactly enough for a situation like this. All those casualties, and the culprit was probably long gone. Or closer than he'd consider to be comfortable...

Maybe it was a few too many movies, but for all he knew, the one responsible could be in this very crowd. Whoever it was and wherever they were, surely they had no intentions of getting caught easily. Though Von himself would love to see it done, he just wasn't seeing it happening. Despite usually hating being proven wrong, he wouldn't mind being wrong this one time. If he heard on the news that the culprit was brought into custody, he'd be relieved. Unfortunately a lot of people were going to be spending their days scared of what the hell could happen next: For however long until people began to put it behind them or it was wrapped up somewhat soundly.

He just had to be glad he was alive. For whatever reason he was lucky enough to actually survive, and with those... Bizarre after effects of the incident. He looked down at his hand, recalling the moment of his discovery. He still didn't understand it, but hell, he felt great: And it wasn't from his usual workout. Well, maybe partially? Wall-crawling wasn't a benefit of his weekly routine, though. At least it wasn't until now! Despite the general downer atmosphere, he managed a smug grin due to amusing himself.

!!!

That smugness quickly faded, however. He had no idea what caused him to suddenly feel so down, but something was filling him with what he could only identify as fear. He could feel himself turning pale, a cold sweat dripping down his brow as the ground began to rumble. He felt Reyna tug on his sleeve, but he only shot her a short momentary glance before focusing on the fact that something was here. Ungodly metallic noises, flames, more noise that somehow was worse than the metal and burning flames. This wasn't just some sort of bomb, it was like something... Alive was over there.

_"Christ..." Von spoke under his breath, thinking about what to do. He knew he was... More capable than the average man at this point, but he was feeling a bit naked without the gear he was working on. Plus... He had no idea what the situation actually was. Scouting it out might be ideal, though considering whatever was over there didn't seem intent on stopping anytime soon, perhaps waiting was the coward's thing to do.

'Don't panic. You're not alone.'

Von knew the handsome voice that was usually in his head, and whatever just came into his mind was most certainly not it. Whatever foreign voice was in his mind, he didn't take much from it until Reyna caught his attention: Whatever that voice was, it was correct: He wasn't alone. Reyna's insistence on getting to safety made it click in his mind that she wasn't safe here: He knew he had a few tricks up his sleeve, but she was definitely in danger here: He could scout out the situation while he got her out of harm's way. Seemed simple to him.

"Right, let's get _you--" He stopped and quickly began correcting himself: "Let's get out of here."

"You two!" A voice called out, catching Von's attention: A red-haired woman was looking their way, seeming to be aiding with the evacuation effort. "It's not safe out here! Get to the tent with everyone else!"

Von wasn't usually one to be bossed around by just anyone on the street, but the woman barked at him like a scolding mother and he needed to get Reyna out of the way of whatever was happening, so for the moment at least he figured the best thing to do was comply.

_{"It's probably the safest spot for the moment. Best to just go with it for now, right?"} He whispered to Reyna, a quick tilt of his head gesturing towards the tent as he tried to keep himself calm.

She gave a small nod and a weak smile, glad that Von had agreed with her. She had been afraid he might rush straight into the danger given he had chased down the photographer which could have been a horrible confrontation if one was not careful. People were capable of horrible things after all. The sudden call of a woman’s voice rang out, her attention drifted in their direction before doing a quick scan if ‘you two’ was seriously meant for her or not before a frown etched on her features. This is why she hated cops, always barking orders but not paying attention to the whole situation. Why had they been picked out? Cause they were closer or what? She also didn’t take kindly at being told what to do either. She wanted to sass back at the red head, tell her that she could do as she pleased but at the same time, the cop wasn’t wrong.

It was Von’s whisper that brought her out of her musings. The cop, while right in her statement might have been easy to ignore but having it confirmed by her companion and being rational that it might be the best spot for now, she found herself nodding. _{”Yeah, we should.”}. That being said, she finally let go of his sleeve and tried to ignore her embarrassment at her earlier reaction and started in the direction of the tent.

Von placed a hand on Reyna's back, as a light way of urging her along to get out of here. He couldn't help but turn his head and look back at the carnage behind him, biting his lower lip in frustration. Shit, it looked bad. And that feeling he had right as things began to happen? That sure as hell wasn't normal, at least for him. Whatever the hell was causing that carnage, it was out of the league of the cops. Which raised the question of why that woman wasn't following them to the tent, causing him to momentarily stop and turn to look at her, observing as she seemed to scan the area.

"Shouldn't you be coming?" He questioned, a hint of snark in his voice.

The woman turned, seeming ready to shout at him to keep going, but instead she stepped up to him with urgency. "Did you by chance see a girl? Around five feet, red hair, long-sleeve black shirt?" She questioned, eyes still darting around.

Von realized this was probably someone close to the woman, and couldn't hide the small frown forming on his face. This situation was stressful enough being here with people you only somewhat knew, this lady seemed eager to find whoever this girl was. Despite coming off as a bit pushy earlier, her intentions seemed good.

"I'm sure she's been evacuating with everyone else, ma'am. She probably just didn't stand out in the crowd rushing towards the tent. I'll help you look once we're there, alright?"

The woman looked over her shoulder, exhaling a long, stressed breath before looking back at Von. "Thank you."

"There's time for that later," Von replied, turning and picking up his pace somewhat. "What's her name?"

"Lindy," The woman replied. "She's my daughter."

Von nodded his head. Now he had another reason to get to that tent; A kid was missing. And that was an emergency in itself, as kids didn't need to get caught up in this shit. Now he had two objectives: Get Reyna safely in that tent, and find this girl. If it turned out she wasn't in there already, he... Wasn't quite sure what he'd do. He'd figure it out once he got to that point.

All he could do is keep moving.

She let herself be led forward, not really minding too much since it helped her not to look back at the mess behind her. If she thought too much on it then she might just do something stupid or foolish that she was not prepared to handle. The pause in steps beside her had Reyna doing the same, her attention turning to Von before he followed his gaze to the woman behind them. It almost looked like she was scanning, maybe she was taking the time to look for more people out in the open? It was still a bit curious. She couldn’t help but smirk a little at the slight snarky question that he shot at the officer but that snapped off her features fast.

The cop wasn’t looking for more people, she was looking for a person. A single person. That one made her chill, her blood like ice in her veins and her heart clench. Von was probably right. The girl was probably just lost in the crowded tent and was looking for her just as this woman was searching. She could imagine the person being lost and scare, desperately trying to make sure her mother was alright. Reyna made you her mind, determination in her eyes as she spoke up for the first time since the two started conversing. ”I will also help you find Lindy. Don’t worry, with three pairs of eyes, we will find her in no time.”, she stated seriously, leaving off the fact that if they didn’t find her inside then she would brave searching further than that.

She wasn’t about to let someone get hurt. Not this woman, not Von, and not Lindy. She would do what it took even if it cost her. ”Come on! There is no time to waste!”, grabbing both their hands and leading them to the tent. The sooner these two were away from danger and the sooner she found this woman’s daughter the better.

[tobiax]

Fwpsh!

A single line caught the light as it streaked from some unseen alleyway and across the street. Seamlessly, the line adhered itself to a building, as a notorious figure vaulted into the air. The black and white streaked costume of Strand passed over the crowd like a banner. Bending his legs and back in an acrobatic fashion, the somewhat notorious vigilante arced over the crowded street. Releasing the line from his hand, the young man soared through the air, eventually landing upon a crushed car.
An eerie bolt of sensation crawled down his spine. This wasn't the usual sense of danger- though there was plenty here. In fact, it was probably more than he had ever felt. No, something about one of the figures caught his attention. Though through the smoke it was hard to see, a large, imposing man-like figure stood, taller and broader than Strand was himself. But it was not his menace that caused this feeling, and as much as he would have wanted to, he didn't have time to analyze it now. Instead, his face was set with a bright, confident smile.
The other figure he saw, who was being rather loud, was actually quite frightening. Before him was a hunched, bestial mockery of a human form, coated in green skin that seemed almost to be scaly. With the distortion from the heat of the fading flames racing along the ground, it was hard to tell much else about the creature- like whether or not it was wearing clothes. Could it possibly be a machine? Some form of special effect used for criminal mischief?
Strand raised his left arm, bracing it with his right, as he aligned the strange device he wore with the violent creature, "Listen, I know it's not fair. But everyone has to deal with parking meters expiring. Even me," remarked the masked figure, pressing a button on the device, "Why don't you hang around-"
Fwpsh! From the narrow, spindly barrel of the device, a fibrous, net like substance fired out, aimed to ensnare the violent green perpetrator.
"- and cool off."

[soren]

Morgan: Into the fire.

Morgan as he was running heard another voice in his head. This time it was to not panic and that he wasnt alone. Crazy. That's the only explanation he could come up with besides others with powers which actually wasn't that far fetched. "Dont panic you say?" Then he saw over head as Strand zipped by over head.

THWIP!

Morgan shot into the air as his webbing went through his capacitor device and onto a building. With the thought of Strand has done this before Morgan lept onto the low building watching and listening for a second as he said his line. A quip? Interesting. Then suddenly Morgan had it. Pulling his hoodie down over most of his face he jumped down in front of the car that Strand was stood on. "Morning Strand! What a..." With a flourish but careful aim Morgan shot an electro web ad the man with the smile "...shock to see you here!"

Merlyna: A ghost with the not so most.

Merlyna saw Morgan shoot off and listened to what he had said and thought in his mind. Wow this guy might be crazy. She also caught faintly at the back of her mind a sense of someone trying to calm her and tell her she wasnt alone. She had no clue where it was coming from.

Once on top of the roof she watched unsure what to do as her thing she did was just purely off instincts. She also had the thought that what she did would only work with the boy till she figured out her power. Merlyna would just have to watch and listen to the scene before her.

[EnterTheHero]

---

September 9th 20XX

---

this is only the beginning

are you ready?

---

Marcus turned the corner to see Strand- Scott- engaging with... something. Huge, green, scaly skin, and glowing red eyes, seething with malice. Waves of heat rippled off of the thing's shoulders, and its claws glowed like coals. Another figure hunkered down in the smoke, too indistinct to see. Scott launched a net of webbing at the green one, but it was less than effective. With a cry of anger, the waves of heat thickened into flames, burning and melting the web away, ignoring the scalds and burns it acquired as the fibers melted into his skin. Nevertheless, it was free, and turned its attention to Scott.

A spike of worry- half Strand-sense, half friendly concern- shot through Marcus as the green one roared and charged like a rage-powered freight train.

Get out of there!

He needn't have worried- Scott's senses must have been sharper than Marcus' own, as he flipped off the car with almost contemptuous ease as the creature battered the car Scott had just perched on away, the wreck sailing through the air like a cheap model. Good news, Scott was out of harm's way for now. Bad news? Now a flaming pile of metal was screaming toward Marcus. Marcus dug his heels in, trying to change direction as his own Strand-sense shouted in his head. FUCK--

...And suddenly, the car passed him by on either side, suddenly split into two halves, leaving him completely unharmed. Marcus blinked in shock.

What the...?

Then he saw it. His shadow warped, stretched, lifted off of the ground, shaped into a razor-sharp blade. Which explained the bifurcated car. Marcus let out a shaky breath. ...I guess that's a new power of mine. Glad I figured that out now--

D A N G E R

M O V E

Without thinking, Marcus leapt backward with all his strength, just as the street where he'd just been standing seemed to explode. He landed with a lot more grace than he normally would have- though, "normal" was a relative term- and looked to see what had caused the explosion. It seemed that the other figure had tried to pounce on him, for some reason. He watched as the figure rose up...

His throat tightened with fear. This one was even worse than the green one.

For one, he was huge. Goliath huge. Andre-the-Giant huge. He'd dressed in baggy clothes (where did he find clothes that fit), slightly tattered from the fight that had just been going on, but even if they hadn't been, they would do nothing to conceal... it. Black, oily, tar-like skin. Wide-open, insectoid eyes. And the mouth. Bear traps were more inviting than that razor-sharp maw! And even worse... it seemed to be grinning. A mirthless smile, like a shark's. Hungry.

"Another freak..."

Was that its voice?? It sounded like two people snarling at once- a mix between a grizzly bear that had somehow learned to speak and Satan. The thing took a step toward Marcus, and he braced himself for a fight...

Another explosion roared up, and both of them turned to see the green one crush another car into burning, melted scrap, roaring its rage to Strand, to the horrified onlookers, to... everything. There was a pause. And the monster turned back toward Marcus.

"...Stay out of our way. Or don't. We don't care." And with a roar, it turned back toward the green monster, seemingly eager to get back into the fight. Marcus stood there, shocked, before another spike of Strand-sense shook him back into consciousness. There was still danger here. And as much as he'd like to cut and run, he couldn't just leave this to proceed unchecked. The light dimmed around him, as though responding to his resolve.

Into the fire...

...Just as soon as I figure out how to control this darkness thing.

Baby steps...

[Potemking]

September 9th | City Streets | NYC / NY | 20XX

Lindy hadn't at first realized this, but now upon observation it was pretty clear that for some reason, she wasn't the only one heading towards the danger. What was clear, however, was that she was apparently the slowest at doing it: As the young man and woman were running ahead by a fair margin. This caused Lindy to curse her short legs, though maybe instead she should blame them for growing taller than her. Was she really getting distracted by this right now? Realizing how petty it was, she tried to distance herself from the thoughts; Which wasn't as difficult as you'd think, as something spectacular was about to happen.

It actually caused her to stop and gawk; The sight of that suited figure in the air above. It didn't take long for her jaw to drop, mouth agape at the sight of the figure taking himself towards the carnage. That was that strange 'vigilante' type she heard about, wasn't it? Strand? She was so motivated to move before, but she suddenly found herself frozen and spectating the tightly-suited fighter go straight for whatever that green, ugly thing was. It looked like the big green abortion of Godzilla, and while it disgusted her, it was certainly an ideal villainous looking thing for a big, muscly heroic figure to combat.

Were her knees trying to give out? She felt a little weaker in her stance, but couldn't particularly explain it. Not that she cared; She was much too shocked and amazed by the sight in front of her to actually move: The guy was fighting that big ugly thing! Alone! Was he that confident? Or was he doing it because he thought he was the only one who could? Maybe she didn't have a suit, and hell, maybe this was stupid, but should anyone have to fight alone like that? Even if what she was seeing was perhaps a bit out of her league... She knew she could do more than most. But how much more?

Anyone who was used to fighting would tell you that spacing out was a rookie mistake. And it was a rookie mistake that Lindy was, in fact, making. Maybe she should have focused less on tight suits and muscles and more on the fact that cars were kinda flying through the air. That wasn't her problem; At least until the car was forced to miss it's mark by suffering a sudden 50% price and bulk reduction, leading to it not only trailing behind it's intended target but also towards a whole new, shorter and more innocent-looking one who was semi-oblivious until the sounds of metal suddenly started getting loud.

_!

Lindy snapped out of her trance long enough to turn her head, but it was already too close. All she managed was a panicked and haphazard "Oh shit!" before one of the halves of the car barreled into her; The short girl wasn't braced for it whatsoever, allowing it to drag her along it's path of carnage in the street a couple of extra feet before coming to a halt on the ground, with Lindy buried under it.

...

...

? ? ? ? ?

Lindy opened her eyes, having felt her life flash before her eyes. Everything was dark; She couldn't make out anything, and she had no idea what the hell was happening. It all went so fast; Did she just die?! Was that why it was so dark? She always thought there'd be a light to follow or something, but this was it? This was absolute bullshit--!

Reaching up, Lindy's hand met with the remains of the car. Instead of calming her down it was actually more of a freak out moment: She survived that? She was in a bit of pain, yeah, but like... There's no reason she should still be here with what just hit her. Was she not just strong? Was she... Durable, too? She thought back to the way that girl bounced off of her instead of budging her whatsoever; She was a lot steadier, but comparing that to a car wasn't reasonable. None of this was reasonable, though. It was unreal. But something about it made her smirk, if only for a moment. It was time to put this strength to a bit of a test.

She braced herself, but found that it was perhaps a little unnecessary: To her surprise, as she began to try to move her body, the car was not as much of a challenge as she expected. Before she knew it, she was pushing against it; It was more comparable to a mattress than a damn car, and without hesitation she used both her legs and arms to push the car off of her; The wrecked remains crashing down directly in front of where Lindy was currently laying.

Holy shit. She could pull herself to her feet. She felt the sweat building on her forehead and raised a hand to wipe it; Only to eye her hand afterward and see blood. Not much, but she seemed to be bleeding a bit. She felt fine, though. In fact, better than fine. She felt pumped and angry at whatever the fuck just clobbered her with a car. She scanned the scene in front of her, but decided to focus on the one threat that was certain: The monster attacking Strand.

If I could push that car off of me, then...

Lindy glared down at the remains of the car in front of her; Before reaching down towards it. She inhaled, hands digging in as she got a firm grip on vehicle, before beginning to lift it above her head. The glare went from the car, to that big green fucker. Hopefully she didn't embarrass herself and botch this up; There were multiple people here. And their lives were at stake.

_{"Here goes nothing!"}

No more distractions, no more hesitation. With all the force the girl could pull together, she threw the car at the huge scaly beast, exhaling as the vehicle left her grasp; The air shooting out of her nostrils as she watched the makeshift projectile fly.

[Akayaofthemoon]

&

Memorial Service Day

---

^{September 9th, 20XX | Tent & FIGHT| @AmpharosBoy @Akayaofthemoon}

The inside of the tent was absolutely chaotic. People were panicking, children were crying, it was generally just a huge mess. Von was standing tall and at alert as he scanned the area for a person matching the girl's description. Damn, he really hoped she made it in here. Every second she was stuck out there, she might be in danger. He bit the inside of his lip, deciding to hold back on the bleak thoughts. Surely she'd run in here, right? What child of a cop wasn't a goodie-two shoes that'd follow instructions?

"Linda!" A panicked voice rang out, catching Von's attention. Before he knew it, the woman of authority he was with ran up to an approaching man; The two lightly embracing but it didn't look good. Von could put what was about to happen together, and his eyes were already peering back towards the exit to the tent, but he remained still and quiet as he listened to the man speak.

"I've searched, and searched. She isn't here!" The man insisted, practically falling apart before everyone's eyes. He wasn't built for these types of situations; He was a pretty soft and simple man. It was enough his daughter got caught up in what had happened prior; But now in this situation she was missing? He was essentially frozen by an anxiety attack but still needed to ensure the safety of his daughter.

"David-- David! Honey, get ahold of yourself. We're going to find her." She assured, attempting to calm her husband, while scanning the tent with a distressed but hopeful expression. She hoped Lindy had just been missed; But she didn't see her, either. Damn it. Where would she go, at a time like this? Surely she was safe; Hiding somewhere. But not following everyone else... She'd have words for her daughter later; After she found her.

Von narrowed his eyes at the lack of progression made; Figuring he had heard enough to get the information he needed. The girl wasn't here, And despite the danger out there, he had ensured Reyna and this 'Linda' woman had gotten to safety. He wasn't exactly thrilled with going back out to see whatever the hell was causing that carnage, but if there was a little girl in danger? For better or worse he didn't have the heart to risk her life on someone not being there, so he fully turned and began to take his first steps towards leaving.

Reyna instantly regretted going anywhere near the tent upon entry. There was a crowd or more like a sea of panicked people, all huddled in one place with the crying and yelling to find other friends or family was overwhelming and a complete mess. It looked like a shoving match would break loose at any second and who knows what else could happen? How on earth did you even go about finding one girl in this chaos? And what if she was not even there? What then? She let go of her two companions, her eyes scanning what she could of the crowd. She wasn’t the tallest by far but she at least wasn’t particularly short either which made trying to spot someone a bit easier. It still made her feel a bit nervous, a nagging feeling telling her that the girl wasn’t there and that she shouldn’t have wasted her time.

A panicked voice rang out louder than the rest, the woman that Reyna had pulled in with them instantly going to the owner of the call. It made it clear now that this was indeed Linda and if anything from the previous conversation was to go by, this must be her husband or at least Lindy’s dad. The words exchanged between the two made her blood freeze and goosebumps appear along her skin as it felt like rocks were placed in her stomach. That could mean only one thing, the girl was still out there and even if she was hidden....it didn’t mean she was safe. Why on earth didn’t the girl follow the crowd? Was she already hurt? Couldn’t move? There were so many possibilities rushing through her mind.

Reyna turned her attention to Von, about to speak up about her worries when she noticed he was turned and moving forward as if he was about to leave. She flung her hand out, grasping his arm with a pointed look that bordered on a glare. _{”And where are you going? You didn’t think I was just gonna let you leave me behind, did you? I said I would help find Lindy and that is exactly what I plan to do. We stick together or neither of us goes, deal?”}, she whispered seriously, just loud for him to hear as she did not want to draw the cop’s attention too much. She wanted to find Lindy too but she also had to make sure that if things went south that maybe she could do something to get Von out of there. God knows that he seemed determined enough to go out there so it was unlikely she could stop him but if they stuck together then it was better than nothing.

Looking back at her with squinted eyes, Von wasn't entirely surprised by what he was hearing: But that didn't mean he liked it. Though her resolve was respectable, so it wasn't like he entirely disliked it. There was just literal monsters outside and he didn't want to see her caught up in anything. Between the grip she had on him and the look in her eyes however, it was clear that she was either going to come along, or make it hellish for him to get out of here. Shit. Do you really have to put on such a brave face right now? He thought to himself, eyes slowly opening to a more observant expression as he continued to stare at her.

_{"Alright, fine,"} He caved in to her, trying to keep things short. The less people noticed, the better. Using his free hand he grabbed her arm. The victorious smile that had been displayed on her lips at his acceptance instead of instigating a verbal joust quickly faded the moment his hand met her arm, Reyna’s eyebrow quirking up at him in question. _{"Just stay close, alright? I don't need two damsels in distress out there."} He let out a bit of snark, but perhaps it was just his way of weaseling out of saying "I'd rather you don't get hurt". She couldn’t help the eye roll at his comment and would have probably stated something just as sassy but then he tugged her forward; Quickly making an exit with her in tow.

Outside was still absolute bullshit'sville. Loud with carnage and smoke was filling the air a short ways' down the street. A quick view around the grounds where the speech took place yielded the sight of no bodies; She wasn't still there, petrified, or something. She couldn't have gone down the street, right? That wasn't smart at all. But that being said, it wasn't smart to be outside the damn tent, now was it? So maybe this kid was full of surprises.

She scanned the area that they had all been standing in not that long ago, a frown clear as day on her face at the fact that she didn’t see any girl that looked remotely like the cop and her husband. It was clear that she wasn’t here but the question was, why? Had she gone further down the street? Had she been confused by the direction in the chaos? Or had she thought that she saw her mom head that way and wanted to make sure that she was safe? It was confusing to say the least. Reyna has honestly hoped Lindy would would have been a goodie for shoes and follow the damn rules, now she was starting get suspicious on the other possibility....the most annoying thing about a cop, a sense of justice. It was that little need that made them where they were alway in some business that they didn’t belong in.

She sighed in frustration at that fact but that didn’t change that this Lindy girl could be in some serious trouble. They didn’t have time to wait around. She tugged on Von’s arm, gently pulling him forward while stating,”She isn’t here, we should keep moving. The closer to the fight, the more danger she could be in but if there is a chance we can get her out of there then I want to try.” Reyna didn’t want anyone hurt and she certainly didn’t want to be the one to say that something had happened to Linda’s daughter. Cop or not, no one deserved to have something like that happen to them. She hadn’t been able to help anyone the last time the world had turned crazy and this time she was gonna at least do one right thing.

Von nodded in response, somewhat nervous as they progressed further towards the ongoing carnage. Things unfortunately didn't only get louder, they were clearer: Just what the hell was that thing? It was green, and had fucking scales? Just the sight of it was enough to put fear into Von, but he wasn't going to stop now. He stepped ahead of Reyna out of natural instinct, leading and keeping them behind the ensuing chaos, though they were getting kind of close now. "Christ. What the hell is that thing?" He pondered aloud, eyes quickly scanning the area and its inhabitants: Black goo man. Green scale guy! A dude that looked like the spider-version of a gimp, some folks his age, and...

Right there, in the road. She was just standing there. She matched the description; Even looked like a kid to Von. What was that idiot doing?! Did she not comprehend that this situation was dangerous as hell? What kind of child ran into danger like that? Irritation aside, he quickly clicked his tongue to get Reyna's attention. "That can't seriously be her, can it? What the actual fuck is she doing there?!"

She went from leader to being lead which was not going to complain about. He was the tall ass...well, not so blonde anymore but the point was the same, he would spot something before she did most likely. Von was also doing a good job navigating them in the safer areas of whatever the hell was going on over here. She didn’t even have a chance to look around before the, "Christ. What the hell is that thing?", left the lips of her companion which had her curiously peeking out from behind him. It would be an understatement to say her eyes widened in complete shock and might have even rivaled dinner plates.

If one monstrous being wasn’t enough, they all had the pleasure of two of them. One an inky goo mass in the shape of a man, with a demonic smile that made a leeches mouth seem much more pleasant to deal with and the other some green scaled dragonoid form with the flare of pyrotechnics if that it was displaying. Where the hell had these things come from? She felt a shiver run up her spine, looking down slightly at her hands as she remembered this morning. Was....was this like what happened to her? But worse? Was that even possible? It would make sense since none of the crazy started until that day. It made her heart want to stop at what else could flood from the woodworks.

The clicking noise from Von drew her attention away from herself and her thoughts, putting her back into the situation happening around them. She followed his gaze and found herself frozen, her throat clogging in fear at how close the girl was to the danger and felt herself pushing his arm off her before she even registered doing it. Reyna fully intended to rush over and pick her up or do anything to get her out of that situation. What in the dear name of all that is good was this kid thinking!?! If her mother didn’t give her one hell of a lecture then Reyna sure as hell wanted to.

Von's eyes widened at the sight of Reyna rushing forward; He was all about saving the girl, but she was being reckless about it! He gave chase, figuring if she was going, he had to. They were in this together, right? As much as he would have liked it for her to stay in the tent instead of being here, running into what was potential death all things considered.

!!!!

Reyna was focused on the girl, but Von's mind screamed at him to pay attention: There was a car in the air. It was flying towards a guy, and in front of Von's own eyes, the guy's shadow jumped up and cut it in half. What the hell was that about?! Von couldn't even comprehend the logic of that, and he didn't have time to: Half of that car split off and came barreling towards him and Reyna. He pushed himself to move faster; To overtake Reyna just enough to snatch her up and pull her back, pressing her to his chest as he dove back towards the way they came as far as he could muster; Barely dodging the destroyed vehicle as he crashed his back onto the pavement, managing to keep his head from bouncing against the ground thankfully.

The only sight they got as a reward for dodging that car, however, was seeing that little girl get not only hit with the other half; But also several feet back with the car before crashing onto the ground, buried underneath. The young man couldn't bring himself to say anything; His eyes widen and his breathing heavy, horrified at what he had just witnessed. Finally, he managed to shout something: As his arms fell to his sides while he tried to mentally process how close they were to grabbing her, only to fail.

"God damn it!"

She couldn’t focus on anything other than the half car the was crushed into the street where the girl had just been standing. Her gaze just locked to that single spot, eyes wide like a deer in headlights and felt her body shake at the horrifying sight and the sickened feeling in her gut. She had been so close, she was right there and still hadn’t been able to a damn thing. Reyna wanted to scream, to cry, to do something but words wouldn’t form and just clogged up in her throat. As it was, she was using most of her energy just to try to breath which continued to come out in rasped pants as she had been pushing to run as fast as could could manage. Clearly, her best was not enough and Von had barely saved her from the same fate. It was went the protective arms that lightly held her disappeared that her attention drifted to the owner of the chest she happened to still be laying on.

He said exactly what she was thinking, that bubble of frustration and failure she felt that underlined the other emotions that swirled in her. Reyna shakily and carefully pushed herself up so she was not flush against him, trying to make sure not to hurt him further if anything was wrong. After all, he had taken the brunt of their fall into the asphalt and that left her with little to complain about but it still didn’t stop her from wincing a bit in pain._{”Are you hurt? Do you think you can stand?}, she asked softly. Nothing more could be done for Lindy, she hated that but she didn’t see any way the young girl could have survived and the best thing she could do was make sure that the person who had protected her was alright.

Question ringing in his ears, Von eyed her for a moment. To his surprise, that impact hadn't hurt as much as one would expect; There wasn't much aftermath pain for him to endure, or push through. "I'll be fine." He replied, somewhat blunt in his response, bitter towards the situation at hand. Realizing he shouldn't take things out on her, he prepared to voice an apology; But that was when he noticed it. It was a red stain on her left side; blood. It was trickling down, obviously bleeding at a rate that was alarming for Von; Who instantly jumped on the concern wagon considering he had just lost one life.

"Reyna--"

He tried to speak, but was distracted by a sign of movement. Not from her, not from the ongoing battle, but from that wrecked half of a car that crushed the little girl. There was a thud. Another thud. And as he looked on, he witnessed the car flip over from it's position, crashing back onto the street. His jaw dropped, the girl that had been hit... Stood back up. With nothing more than some tattered clothing and some bleeding from the forehead. Her expression chilled and confused him; She wasn't scared, she was... Angry looking, in a sense. Observant. Like she just got hit with a dodgeball or something, not half of a car.

And then she started to lift said half of a car... Above her head. With ease.

"What..."

And then she threw it. What the hell was that little girl? This was something unreal; She could not have just done that. Out of desperation, Von looked to Reyna, hoping to be looked at like he was hallucinating, or something. This wasn't real. It couldn't be.

She nodded in reply, not really blaming him for being a bit bristly. It wasn’t like she was in the best mood herself after what they had just witnessed and the dread of telling Lindy’s parents her fate was enough to make her want to be sick. Reyna moved further back, biting a wince that threatened to spill from her lips. Her side was killing her; she must have landed on it wrong but she could check on it later, there were more important things at hand. They didn’t want another person being hurt and the less people in this mess the better. The concerned sound of her name had her pausing, looking to Von with a tilt of her head as if to question why but noticed his eyes were focused elsewhere.

Reyna’s head snapped into the direction he was looking, her heart picking up speed and she shoved herself off the ground to stand. The car, had flipped from its current position to reveal a very alive and confused girl that looked a little tattered, a possible superficial wound near or on her forehead of the bleeding was any indication but still living. It was impossible but yet, she was seeing it with her own eyes. Her mouth dropped open and she wanted to go to her, see if she was real that she wasn’t hallucinating out of hope but didn’t dare move. Lindy’s face seemed to chill, the expression shifting to one of anger.

If you had told her that today she would see a small girl lift a car to chuck it at a monster, Reyna would have asked what you were smoking or needed some medication but here she was witnessing just that. It was impossible, unbelievable, and honestly, a bit terrifying. She dragged her gaze from the fighting to look to Von, seeing his face reflect her own disbelief. She wanted to tell him that she wasn’t seeing this, that the world hadn’t become as confusing and chaotic as it looked but that was just something she couldn’t do. She had no words and so she awkwardly stood feeling suddenly out of place.

Calming his nerves with some deep inhales and exhales, Von steeled himself as he managed to pull himself to his feet. Considering what he just witnessed, that little girl was something they and her mother could not understand. If getting hit like that barely made her bleed, then maybe this situation wasn't as bad as it looked. Relevant, Von observed Reyna's wound again; Noting she wasn't in any sort of condition to stay here.

"You're bleeding." He commented, judging his value in this situation. He certainly didn't have a goo-suit. Or a shadow that could slice cars. And he doubted he could throw a car. Yeah, maybe they had this big green thing under wraps. If they had these helpful abilities, then Von would do what he could for the moment: He'd get Reyna out of here, considering her injury. Which she would hopefully explain after she was safe.

"We need to get you out of here. Considering that tent was just for dining, I somehow doubt there's any medical supplies over there. And who knows if any responders are going to get close enough to get you aid? That girl is... Something more than us. I think she can handle herself."

_”Huh?”, she muttered in confusion before looking down at herself to check where the damage had occurred though didn’t take long to find. Her side which has been cut during the mugging incident had obviously decided to cause issues and bled through the small patch job from that morning. No wonder it was bothering her earlier and not what she had noticed it bleed, the fucker had decided to sting on top of being painful...lovely. ”And this was one of my favorite shirts. Blood is the worst to try and get out.”, trying to play it off a bit since the last thing she wanted was to make someone worried about her, especially after all that.

Reyna sighed, forcing a small smile on her face which was a bit easier since Von was showing such concern for her well being. ”Look, I agree we should get out of here and the others clearly have Thing 1 and Thing 2 handled but we really don’t need to get medical professionals involved. It’s just a scratch. Let’s go back to the tent and just wait it out.”, she said waving it off and trying to keep him calm. She had handled the problem before and she could again. The last thing she needed was to be dealing with more hospitals.

What a stubborn woman. If hospitals were out of the question, and she wanted to go back to the tent bleeding, then he'd have to find a third option. His brain worked fast, figuring he'd have to persuade her in some manner or she'd end up in worse condition within long. No matter what she insisted, that was more than enough blood to convince him she needed it patched backup, and fast. He'd been through enough to not want to take risks; She didn't exactly seem invincible like that little tank over there.

Where could he get medical supplies? Well, the obvious choice in his head was to head home. He knew he had a stocked first-aid kit, but that was a decent trek. She shouldn't be walking, though he figured there were ways around that. She was being careless with her own well-being, and given that Von knew that even he had a few tricks up his sleeve that might've not been as crazy as these folks in the street, he saw Reyna as a completely normal person: He didn't want her in this mess. And all things considered, maybe the others could actually handle it. With their crazy-ass abilities.

"Luckily for you then, I'm not a professional." He spoke, lacking hesitation as he scooped her off her feet and into his arms. Once again noting that she shouldn't probably walk the distance with that injury; Getting there faster was better. "It'll be a short hike, but we can make it to my place pretty quick. I'm fairly certain I have everything we need." The young man wasn't exactly waiting for consent; He was already on the move. Starting his travel by cutting through a nearby alleyway, Von quickly planned a course straight back home. There wasn't much else he could do, if she was going to act so troublesome. She could complain on the way, if she wished.

[Zoey Boey]

Clara Cabello and Alejandra Jonas

September 9th

---

"Cl-clara, Clara stop!" AJ shouted angrily, slamming her elbow into Clara's back. It hurt. So much for being invincible.

Clara yelped out and set AJ down crudely. "Ow! What was that for?" She asked. AJ was still cleary tense, her knees and elbows bent, form low. As opposed to Clara who was standing up straight with one hand impatiently on her hip, one foot tapping the ground.

"We- you- can't- you-...listen!" AJ shouted.

"I am listening! You're just not saying much."

"Let me talk!"

"Okay!"

Clara and AJ both looked over Clara's shoulder towards the mayhem unraveling only about 100 yards or less away. There were some horrific, monstrous noises. "You can't just show off your powers. You have to be careful!"

Clara waved her arms around at the madness. "Seriously!?"

"Yes, seriously! If someone sees you're one of the...powered people, they could find the real you easier. We need to get you in disguise first." AJ said, speaking quickly but intelligently. She had a good point. They could escape, but Clara would need to use her gifts more subtly. If people saw and recognized Clara Cabello doing impossible things, it would only make things worse. The pair were lucky they walked within abandoned parts of town that weren't busy with street traffic when Clara pulled that fifty foot jump. Here? There were eyes everywhere.

Clara rolled her eyes but then nodded quickly. "Fine. Vamos." She had a lot more to say, but things were very rapidly heating up and they had to get the hell outta dodge before the Godzilla battle happening over there swept over the other mooks in the crowd like a hurricane. Clara grabbed AJ's hand and began to run her toward the fleeing crowd. The one thing she absolutely was not going to do was follow these goons telling them to stay orderly and line up in a row so the literal monsters can eat everyone. The police have no idea what they're doing- not that they ever do- but in this case it's really specifically not good. So Clara would look out for her own.

A quick glance over her shoulder did indeed showcase that little jogger girl chucking a car at something Clara couldn't quite make out- but hey, whatever. She had powers. But if Clara steered clear, jogger shouldn't be able to get revenge. Just keep her distance from all this bullshit, that was Clara's plan for now. Especially keep AJ away from it. AJ was terrible under pressure- especially the pressure of heavy car metal crushing her guts out her mouth like squeezing the last bit of toothpaste from an old tube. Not gonna happen, not on her watch.

With AJ trailing behind, Clara took long, steady steps that made AJ had to jog to catch up even though it looked as if Clara was only speed walking. Circling around wide she began to put as many obstacles between her and the cops' line of sight as possible. When she needed to, she could force people out of the way, since she was way stronger than anyone else who was also fleeing. Strong enough to pick up a car? Probably not, but definitely strong enough to shove aside some distracted mother or some grandpa. Most were too panicked to protest and anyone who did couldn't catch her. AJ trailed behind, shocked into silence, numbly following her determined older sister who could now so callously and so powerfully drive her way toward her own goals. She thought about what would be happening right now if Clara hadn't gotten caught in that gas, or hadn't developed powers. Where would they be today? It came out of nowhere, but the ramifications of this moment would be felt throughout the rest of their lives.

Soon, they were through, and walking in the sidewalks of New York City. There was occasionally another person who slipped through the floodgates, there was simply too much bedlam for the police to reasonable constrict the flow of traffic. Especially for a person like Clara, who was deceptively fast.

"Shit's bad, AJ. Shit's bad. Freaks run the world now, and I ain't gonna get stepped on." Clara mumbled, to herself more than anyone.

[tobiax]

There was a mix of disappointment on Scott's face- though it was mostly hidden by his mask- as his attempt at webbing the violent green... humanoid... went literally up in literal flames. He shot a glance at the... fan? stranger? fellow super-powered-person? However, he reacted before he could speak. At this point, certain things had become automatic for him. It seemed dodging flames was one of them.
As Strand began to flip in the air, a surge of sensation overtook him. He saw a short girl with red hair throwing half a car back at the big green ghoulie. He saw people running away- two groups of two. They weren't as clear, but one of them was bleeding. As the moment returned to him, Strand glanced at his wrist mounted web-device. Things were a little too high stakes to risk too many canister changes.
The figure emerging from the smoke and speaking to Marcus made it feel like blades of burning ice were running up and down Scott's body. That guy was bad news. But why did he seem so familiar? That... wasn't important right now. He had a plan. Or at least he hoped he did.

There was a loud thud and a resounding Crunch! as the half-of-car landed on the green... whatever. In an instant, it was completely hidden by the wreckage of the car. Scott had the feeling it wouldn't last for long. And that was saying something.

Raising his right arm, Strand fired a web-line out to a high point- an ornamental flying buttress on one of the buildings, and began to swing in a wide circle. With quite a notable slap, he landed near a tall, skinny lad and a girl who looked like she needed a bit of medical attention. They were heading through an alley- bad move.
"Hey, going through an alley isn't that bright of an idea with-" his words were cut off by the slamming of metal on cement, as the flaming creature burst from hiding within the time it took him to cross half the street and reach their position, "-that going on. Things are about to get real busy, real quick. I'd hate to see you guys get mugged, or crushed by falling debris. Stick to open streets if you're going to run. Be quick if you're going to fight," despite the concern in his voice, there was a bright, comforting smile on his face.
And with that, Strand leaped off, still holding tight to his web line. He could tell they had powers too. He wasn't sure why, or what kind, but they felt similar to how Marcus's had- similar to his. Spinning out his line, he circled back and landed next to the shorter girl. She looked beaten up, but his vision had been right- she survived. That was good.
His landing was a bit too fast, but he didn't have much of a choice. The impact left stinging in his arms and knees as he rolled along the street, and into an upright position.
"You can throw cars, huh?" he began, nodding absently as he paused, before resigning himself to action, "Watch my back."
With that, he ran off. For a moment, he seemed to be charging directly into the melee, until he veered off, and began to scramble up a wall. Making his way to a fire escape, Scott fired his last web-line out over the street. Even as it flew, aimed at the pyromaniac's feet, he shimmied his arm to hook the feed over a street lamp. From this angle, all he'd have to do was fall, and it would rip the... whatever it was... right off its... his? feet. This was, however, pretty risky for Scott himself.
"Watch your neck!" he called out, particularly to Marcus, as he took a dive off the fire-escape, and began plummeting to the ground, gripping the web-line tight.