[IC] The Paradigm Stone

[Corporal Lance]

Thunder rumbled low over the harbor, flashes of lightning catching it in photographic glimpses and predicting the next dull roar. Condensation rolled from Wisp's goggles as she cast her eyes across the dock from on high, keeping her eyes peeled for any signs of movement from behind a chain link fence.

DANGER: ELECTRIFIED FENCE
NO TRESPASSING. TRESPASSERS WILL BE SHOT.

Wisp wasn't stupid enough to test the warning the rusty sign next to the gate called out. The electrified part, not the trespassing part. Trespassing was kind of her hobby.
"Not seein' anyone yet..." she mumbled to Seeder over her headset.
"It's probable that anyone guarding this place would be taking shelter from the rain outside. Do you see anything like a guard shack or entrance...?"
"What would I be looking for in a guard shack?" the intrepid Mistress of Gravity questioned back.
"Probably a larger building. Sometimes they have weapons clearing posts on the outside of them. Brightly colored weird sign post looking things or a barrel of some sort, they like to color them red to make them stand out."
"Okay, I see one of those next to a building out in the middle of the docks... and cameras."
"Keep in mind those probably aren't the only cameras you see. They usually face downward, so if you keep up high you should be fine."
"Works for me." Wisp took a couple steps backward, and made a running leap over the fence. She soared high, gripping a nearby light post and swinging around it like a gymnast before propelling herself to the top of the building she had seen, twisting and flipping in style. She landed with a splash, arms outstretched to her side.
"D'you see that, Seeds?" she beamed.
"Wisp... I'm on the phone with you..." he stated dryly.
"Pfft. Buzzkill," she retorted. She happened to think it was a grade A triple twist, much better than what those carnies at the ball were capable of. "Alright, let's do thi-"
"Wait!" the nerd cautioned over his end of the phone. Wisp halted in her tracks and crouched low. Maybe he hacked into a camera or something...?
"Just because you don't see anyone doesn't mean there isn't anyone. Did you take one last look?" Wisp scoffed.
"Yeah, Seeds. I'm good. It's a fucking ghost town out here, they all have to be inside."
"So far so good. Are there any windows?" Wisp clambered down like a spider upon the wall to bear witness to a single window facing toward the gate.
"Yyyyyep. Here, see for yourself." Wisp took her phone from within her satchel and played with the screen, bringing up the video settings. Turning on the camera, she held it in front of one of the top corners.
"What do you see...?" she whispered. It might've been raining cats and dogs, but it was better not to take the chance of anyone hearing her.
"About five of them, monitors over the whole yard, coffee and donuts. Nothing you wouldn't expect. Two of them are holding rifles and just kind of hanging around, but the other ones are sitting down. I don't know if they've only got pistols or the lazy fucks have'em lying against a wall or in a rack somewhere, but either way it's good news."
"Okay, time to make a delivery," Wisp hushed triumphantly.
"Eh, what?"

Skittering down the wall, Wisp nonchalantly walked up to the door. She lazily took her crowbar from the sling on her back and twirled it around in her fingers, getting used to the heft of it. Casually, she took a step forward and pounded loudly upon the metal hatch to the tune of 'Shave and a Haircut'.
"Little Ceaser's!" she called out to the goons within, a smirk curling upon her masked lips.

---

Inside the cramped quarters of the security booth, the small collection of guards diligently watched the three-dozen screens that lined the entire front counter. A small tablet was propped on its' kickstand, a hockey match blaring away as the men spoke with one another. Three of the men kept their eyes trained on the security monitors, looking through the guests and empty hallways in search of anything out of the ordinary. Louie, the smallest and youngest of the guards sat on the far end of the row of three, nervously peering across the electronics. He had sworn he saw something on Screen Seven, right past the back courtyard fence, but couldn't seem to see anything down the road or near the loading docks when he tried to follow the sudden movement.

"Did you see that?" He asked no one in particular, who were busy joking around.

Most of the other guards had been transferred from one of Carver Industries' various other labs, so they were at least acquaintances. This also led to a relatively relaxed feeling- they were simply moved from their regular station to watch a party between the poor and wealthy. The 'high security' labs didn't seem to be anything of particular importance during their shift earlier in the day. Vernon, one of the senior guards turned his head to Louie.

"Seen what?" He growled.

Instantly cut off, there was a loud rapping noise from the other side of the steel door. The shift change for walking around the compound wasn't supposed to take place for another ten minutes. Maybe one of the guards was sick of the rain?

"Little Ceaser's!" A voice called out from the other side.

Vernon snapped his finger and pointed to the door. With two rifles trained on the steel entrance, the other three guards began to back their chairs up from the monitor screens. Two of the guards at the monitors were equipped with pistols and night sticks, while Louie hadn't received his license yet- leaving him with nothing but a meager taser. With a silent count to three, the guard holding a pistol at the monitor nearest the door swung it open into the night air.

Before the trained men stood... nothing. Not a soul. Not even a trace of one. It was as if the ghost of a pizza delivery girl had visited their doorstep. A ghost... or a wisp. The wary mook slowly stepped out into the drizzle and blowing haze, searching for a sign that someone had been there. He cautiously panned his weapon from right to left. But he never looked up. A sleeved hand darted out from the top of the door frame, grasping him by the wrist, and he disappeared with a shrill cry. And then there was silence. More thunder rolled in the distance, and raindrops drummed upon the window.

"Fuck! Tanner!" The senior guard shouted, steadying his rifle on his shoulder.

Extending his arm forward, Vernon and one of the other guards from the monitor stepped out into the rain; they trained their weapons on the sky initially, before turning to cover the roof as well. Louie and the remaining rifleman stood inside the post, unsure of the fate of their teammates in the downpour. The rifleman elbowed Louie in the shoulder, silently urging him to contact the other guards. The timid, young employee jumped at the contact from his coworker and fumbled with his compact walkie-talkie, dropping it to the ground. Most of the other guards had microphones clipped to their ears- but again, Louie had been given to spares.

"Attention-" He said in a pathetic whisper, leaning halfway over when he reached for the radio. "Attention-"

Wisp ran her phone along the edge of the building, picking up on the splish and splash of the panicked guards' footsteps with her noise enhancing applet. She stalked like a tiger on the edge of the building, waiting for the right moment. And when they had moved to the opposite side...

CRRRRRRRSSHH!

The window exploded into shards as Wisp powered through feet first. Stupid mook was watching the door, of course, but happened to turn his head just in time to catch the edge of her crowbar across his face, going down like a sack of doorknobs. Using the momentum, Wisp planted her feet and bent over, scooping up the kid's head in her palm like a basketball. With the inertia helping her, she twirled once on her toes and forced the back of his head to give salutations to the brick wall behind him. As she flowed through the motions like a powerful stream, she kicked off from the wall to perch on the one next to the door, slamming it loudly and twisting the lock. The heroine cartwheeled to a position below the window and waited for the mice to take the cheese...

The security guards came running when they heard the glass break, just as Wisp had anticipated. Stacking up on the door, Vernon sent his foot into it. The deadbolt held for the first kick, giving Wisp enough time to slink out of the window when the second kick thrust it open. Both men stormed into the room to find both of their comrades beaten and broken on the floor.
"What the hell!? There's no o-"
The patsy with the rifle was cut off by the sharp clink of metal to the back of the skull, and Vernon turned in time to shield himself from an androgynous punk charging at him with a crowbar. He threw his pistol up toward her chest, causing her to strike upward with her weapon to knock it away before he could put a slug through her. His weapon discharged into the ceiling, but before the freak could recover he threw a mean left cross straight across her face. Wisp stumbled back from the blow in a daze, head pounding and lights dancing before her eyes. She glanced upward to see the glint of metal and reacted immediately by chucking her crowbar at the man. The old guard ducked out of the way, but was rewarded for his efforts by a rising knee to the face. Wisp gave a shrill war cry, grabbing him by his blouse and tossing him upward, making the ceiling his floor before performing a half backflip to follow him. She landed squarely on his ribs with bone-cracking force, knocking the wind from him and blurring his vision in intense pain. He fell from the ceiling as she did, smacking against the ground and taking a falling axe kick to the throat.

The heroine held her head with one hand, wandering dreamily over to one of the fallen chairs, turning it over and sitting back into it as her temples throbbed. Her brain felt like slurpee, and she could feel hot blood run from her nose, the metallic taste caressing her lips.
"Goddamnit..." she growled, untying the bandanna around her face.
"Wisp, what's wrong?" the geek over her headset asked anxiously.
"Mudderfucker nearly broke by fuckin' dose!" she mumbled, cupping her face. She slid her goggles up over her eyes and onto her forehead, stumbling into what appeared to be the bathroom in the guard shack.
"Damn, you gonna be alright?" Hope looked at her haggard face in the mirror through her tear-soaked eyes. Dripping wet, puffy eyed, with crimson running down her face. Reeeeaaal heroic.
"Dat fuckin' hurt!" she shouted at Seeds from the other end of their line.
"Don't be such a baby, you fight guys like this all the time. You're strong, you can take a punch."
"Dey usually don't punch be in da face! Ugh, I'm bleeding everywhere!" Hope grabbed several paper towels from the dispenser, wiping at her bloody nose. For good measure, she twisted a couple of them and shoved them up her nostrils to stop the flow.
"Be vewy vewy quiet. Hunting rabbits there, Wisp?" Seeder mocked, chuckling at her misfortune.
"Laugh it up, at hole. I bet if I slapped you you'd die," Hope seethed at him.
"Ooh, I'm shaking."
"Shut da fuck up and dell me how the fuck I gid in here, Freakazoid."
"Oh man... Alright, there should be a freight elevator somewhere in the guard shack. Pretty small building, should be obvious."
"I dink I passed it on my way do da batroom... Fuck, I need a breather." Hope threw open the door to the bathroom and into the main area once more, her sneakers squeaking on the tile as she moseyed over to the a tall white fridge. She rummaged through it, being lucky enough to find a stockpile of energy drinks for their long-expected night shift. Should be a hell of a lot longer now... A hiss escaped the can as Hope cracked open a can of Full Throttle and slammed it back. Her skull felt like someone was trying to give her an unwanted cranium piercing, and she sat on the table for a few minutes to rest. A couple different things drifted through her mind. How much this fuckin' sucked, how hard she was going to hit the next guy that so much as raised an eyebrow at her, why the hell it had to rain that night, but she got an idea as she gazed emptily at the freight elevator. She pulled her goggles down over her eyes and her bandanna up and over her tissue-stuffed nose before pulling her phone out and putting on some Limp Bizkit as she got to work.

Bodies, motionless, laying slumped in a pile of random assorted garbage. The table, all the chairs, the fridge. Everything she could find in that room had been piled into the center of the now very crowded elevator. She'd been busy all right. Like usual, she zip tied all the assholes' hands and feet together, bundled together their weapons and radios and other junk and threw them as hard as she could in a random direction, and put them somewhere they wouldn't be a problem. And the wouldn't be a problem right there in the elevator.
"Alright, let's do dis," she stated rather unenthusiastically, clambering over the trash and also the random objects she arranged in the freight elevator.
"You sound happy," the hacker snarked.
"Like a ball of fuckin' sunshine..." the heroine retorted. "What floor?"
"No idea.
"Awesome." Her words dripped with what could only be described as bottled, liquid rage.
"Got a hunch, though. The good stuff is usually on the bottom floor. And even if it's not, you can start from the bottom and work your way up."
"*Sigh*... Oookay."

[betelgeuse]

-Finn-
“Oh excuse me…I didn’t see you down there.”

"Listen, asshole-" Finn cut his own words short when the voice registered along with the bottom half of the man's face. It was hard to compare the scantily clad person in front of him with the assassin-by-hire he had met the previous night. Somewhere in the pit of his stomach, he felt like he could have made the wrong choice in an accomplice.

"Black Jack?" He asked, tipping his head to the side.

'Quite the outfit.' He wanted to point out, but chose otherwise. Assuming that Black Jack had a very different idea of being subtle in situations of espionage, the shorter of the two supers decided to power through his quickening doubts. They had no other leads other than what the Architect had sent him in cryptic messages.

"So I guess you got my message?" He made pointless conversation, scanning the crowd. "I've never seen The Architect, so it's not like I could pick him out of all these faces- even if they weren't wearing a bunch of fucking masks."

Almost as if fate had picked that exact moment, Finn saw the distinct ninja outfit that his brother had been particularly fond of amid the swarming bodies. Nodding his head forward for Black Jack to follow, Pulse quickly darted through the crowd in pursuit of his younger sibling. Keeping his eyes trained at all times and straining not to blink, he chased Michael up the wide staircase and onto the landing lined with elevator doors on either side. The ninja darted into an open elevator Finn approached as well, cut off by the sliding doors as they closed abruptly in his face.

"Mikey!" Finn hissed, holding his palm forcefully toward the mirrored elevator door.

Beneath the lively chatter and the resonating orchestra, the sound of grinding gears and straining framework echoed from the elevator shaft. It wasn't loud enough for anyone but Black Jack and Pulse to hear, but not if anyone happened to pass by. He sensed that the metal box was only fifteen feet away, Finn was able to pull it up by the steel cable he could feel on the other side. Too preoccupied to even think about exposing himself in the crowd, it only took a moment until the soft 'ding' of the elevator's arrival rang out, welcoming the two to enter.

Only the Level Two button was illuminated on the panel of over twenty floors, making the magnetic super's decision that much easier. He pressed it quickly, before Black Jack had anything to say and looked over his shoulder briefly after doing so. He suddenly realized that he had dragged the man across the room without a word to chase after someone that was indeed not the Architect, but his own brother.

"My -uh- partner went this way." Finn said, pushing the button again as the pair descended into the ground.

-Augustus Yelner-
Checking the screen, it was astounding to see such data that wasn't just notes on a chalkboard he had been imagining for years. The amazing levels of output by the stone felt like a dream- in a matter of two hours, they had produced enough energy to match a week worth of work at any average plant. Miss Carver had given him everything; funded his research in cosmic radiation years before the meteorite had even surfaced. In the past week, they had never gone further than trials and tests with various laboratory animals- the meteorite had never reacted to them as much as humans. The only thing to distract the brilliant scientist from his work was the deep, horrendous scream that rang out through laboratory.

"It- it is time for you to go to the observation deck." He said to the half dozen attendants that stood in varying amounts of haz-mat suits. "We must maintain the output cables to ensure the system does not overload. If the capacitors are reaching critical volume you must begin diluting into the city's network."

Another horrific scream from inside the glass testing chamber. Blood curdling and chilling, causing him to nearly drop the clipboard he had been writing on. Inches from the physicist's nose, he saw a security camera's footage of Wisp finish moving bodies onto the elevator. The scientist watched as the girl stepped past the pile of clutter, pulled out a small crow-bar and smashed the security camera's feed. Yelner casually leaned to the side and clicked a green button attached to a long, thin microphone.

"Jinx, you are needed at the Level One freight elevator." His accent thick, straining to remain steady.

On another screen, Yelner saw a motion sensor alert go off in the ventilation tunnels that stemmed into the city's sewer system. It was a hard section of tunnel find and something as small as a raccoon wouldn't have set the device off- meaning that there was someone skulking around in the dark alternate entrance to the complex. Looking at the trajectory of the tunnel's exit, it would lead the uninvited guest to Level Two. At the same time, an alert popped up on screen announcing that one of the employee elevators from the main hall had been pulled to ground floor without power being applied. As soon as two masked men came into view on the security camera, he typed several commands into the computer in order to send the young men toward the new intruder- hopefully killing two birds with one stone.

If anything, Jinx would clean them up.

-The Architect-
"Good luck, sweetie." Ruby rolled her tongue in a soft purr, the girl's lips nearly touching the fabric covering his ear; the last bit of an interaction before she spanked his rear end on the way into the shrouded VIP area.

Behind the veil of sheer white fabric beneath the silent art auction, small 'rooms' had been set up for particularly generous donors. There was a crescent moon white leather lounge chair with enough seating for four. A crystal chandelier hung temporarily from the catwalk above the small, circular glass table that sat in front of the couch. Two people stood in the VIP room; a young, female waitress and an old man seated on the far side of the couch.

The Architect was hardly an intimidating individual. A man at least seventy years old, his silver hair was trimmed as neatly as the rest of his appearance. He wore a tuxedo with matching black tie and was one of the only other individuals at the party who hadn't opted for any type of mask or costume. He held a black cane in his right hand, resting lazily against his knee, the silver handle glistening in the soft lighting. It was a simple handle, made of pure silver and designed to look like a level, ruler and parchment shaped like a small pyramid.

"Ah, Mister Regel, your drink of choice?" He asked warmly, gesturing a hand toward the waitress. "Everything is top of the line, I must assure you."

-Jinx-
Level One
Administrative Offices and Clerical Files

The freight elevator doors buzzed loudly and rolled open as soon as the descent ended, announcing the arrival as a safety signal in the normally busy loading area. Unfortunately, Wisp's elevator was only able to make it to the very first level beneath the ground floor. It was a long corridor, about fifteen feet tall and equally as wide with a diagonally closing automatic steel door at the other end. There were several doors on either side that led to individual offices that had wide windows facing the hallway. In the middle of the hallway, only a few feet from the freight elevator itself, stood a girl.

"Impressive tussle. Listen, you're trespassing, assaulting multiple men and destroyed quite a bit of private property." The raven haired girl said plainly, her arms crossed and unmoving. "But it's time to turn around and go home."

Jinx wasn't tall, broad or particularly stocky in any way- there wasn't a great deal of mass connected to her frame. Obviously physically fit, her uniform was a tight fitting black two piece cat-suit that was seamless against her figure. The top flared out at her wrists and at her collar, looking more like a business suit than an exercise uniform. She wore a pair of high heels that clicked loudly against the steel floor when she made three slow steps to one side of the corridor.

"If you make me, you'll be heading out in a body bag. Except we don't use those here." She said, cracking her knuckles. "So I guess it'll be the dumpster."

[Warm Regret]

Finn and Troy Joint Post

Stepping around the shorter man, he grinned inwardly after having successfully ruffled his feathers. Closing his eyes and striding forward, he ignored the man’s retort but paused when he called him by his code name, Blackjack. Turning to size up the shorter man, Troy began trying to place where he could have met this masked individual. The look of confusion on his face was partially hidden beneath his eye mask but when the other man asked if he got his message, Troy smiled. “Oh, Pulse…it’s you. I didn’t recognize you without your serial killer’s mask on.” He said with a smirk and letting his lids drop lazily. “I was wondering when I’d bump into you.” He said coolly, but it was a lie. He had actually forgotten all about meeting Pulse and the Architect, he was too busy enjoying himself at the party. It was one of those rare opportunities where he could forget who he was and be someone else for a while.

Troy listened as Finn reminded him that he didn’t know what the Architect looked like and the fact that everyone was wearing a mask, wasn’t help the situation. Before he could respond, the shorter of the two had started following someone and motioned for him to follow. “Hey! Wait up!” Troy called as he trailed behind Finn, his eyes darting around the area for possible trouble. “What’s the hurry…where are we going?” But his questions fell on deaf ears. Once they reached the elevator doors, Finn breathed the words ‘Mikey’ in a frustrated tone. Troy could only assume it was the name of the person who had entered the elevator moments before them.

“Looks like we missed….” But before he could finish his comment, he was inturrupted by Pulse pulling the elevator cabin back up the shaft by use of his magnetic powers. The strained sound of manipulated metal made it obvious what the other was doing and Troy looked around to make sure there was no one in the immediate area that could discern what was happening. Fortunately for them, any passerby’s were just out of earshot. As the bell rang and the doors opened, he huffed with a slight smirk. “Well that was a neat trick.” He remarked, sounding somewhat impressed. Once they were inside, he leaned back against the wall, folding his arms across his chest and his legs at the ankles. He saw that the number two was illuminated and mused. “…and down the rabbit hole we go…”

When Finn informed him that they were following his partner and not the Architect, Troy rolled his eyes. “Ugh…not that psycho who killed all those people at the bank. You know, you’ve really got to keep better company.” He taunted, while pressing a gloved finger to his chin and leaning his head to the side.

The shorter of the two furrowed his brow. Even though his brother technically did murder several of the thugs from the heist, he just couldn't allow anyone to call him a psycho. Michael had made his mistakes but it was all in the sake of self preservation. Behind the metallic painted mask, it was easy to hide his obvious reaction to Blackjack's remark.

"I don't think you're any better, so far I just know you're an assassin for hire." Pulse replied without turning his attention from the elevator doors.
Troy breathed a small laugh and absently tugged on one of the rabbit ears attached to the headband he was wearing. "Sounds like I hit a nerve. I wonder just what kind of 'partners' the two of you are...?'

There was a soft 'ding' and the familiar feeling of he elevator coming to an abrupt stop just before the reflective steel doors slid apart. Level Two was a zig-zag hallway made of frosted plastic with back lit lighting. There were several white doors with square port-holes and the layout was more reminiscent of a high-tech medical facility than a lab's basement. It was eerily quiet and obvious that the facility was closed for the weekend. The hallway was about ten feet wide and Finn took a semi-confident step forward.

The white rabbit stepped out of the elevator after Finn and didn't seem as cautious as the other super but once he took a good look around, his demeanor changed almost completely. The atmosphere reminded him of the SXM facility where he had been raised as a test subject for most of his life, so it was almost like stepping back in time. "So now what?" He asked while keeping his eyes and ears peeled.

"Well -- I didn't really think this far." He said, not wanting to call out 'Mikey!' in fear that it would alert whatever security was patrolling.

Troy didn't bother with a witty comeback this time, instead he stared blankly ahead, as if frozen in time but if Finn followed his gaze, he would see there was nothing there but empty space. Shaking his head, he looked at Finn breifly before walking towards the nearest door, unconcerned with whatever security might be set up. "I don't like this place...facilities like these usually have secrets someone wants to keep hidden." He said while absently peering into the nearest porthole to see if there was anything inside.

The room behind the porthole was surprisingly advanced, the door sliding from the floor up as soon as Troy stepped near enough. The room was average in size, about equal to a studio apartment and lined with scientific equipment that Finn couldn't begin to understand. Small robotic arms that moved within large glass containers to precisely turn over petri dishes at all hours of the night. There was a wide glass tube, brightly lit with artificial light, containing a tube of blue liquid that bubbled without stopping. On the opposite wall, see-through computers with touch screens sat in three varying sizes along the seamless white architecture. Two rolling chairs sat empty beneath research tables, with two examination chairs on the far side of the room. A pair of massive movable lights sat above each reclining chair that reminded Finn of a terrifying dentist.

When the door rose, granting them access to the room behind it, it startled Troy at first but then he simply walked inside. He took note of all the high tech robotics and what looked like chemical experiments around the room. It was so cold and sterile inside, it reminded him too much of his first home. His nerves told him that they should leave as soon as possible but the curious part of him wanted to know what the hell this place was and if it had anything to do with the SXM. Much like a 5 year old would behave, he wandered around the room to get a better look its the contents. Dropping to his haunches near the tube of bubbling blue liquid, he peered curiously at it, then tapped the tube gently with a gloved finger. He was going to ask Finn what they were looking at but it seemed like Finn read his mind.

"Level Two: Advanced Genetics Research and Experimentation Center." Finn read out loud off of a sign etched into one of the plexiglass wall panels. "Guess that explains what's on this floor."

"Yeah...but what exactly are they experimenting on...?" Troy asked as he moved further inward, not really expecting an answer. Glancing to the side, he saw the two reclining chairs that Finn identified with the dentist and he quickly answered his own question. "Humans apparently..." He said with disgust.

Taking a few steps behind Troy, the shorter super decided to try and not make as many mistakes this time. Using his powers to pop open a metal container on the research table, Finn reached inside and took out a pair of medical examination gloves. Putting them on, he wished he had the foresight to wipe his fingerprint from the elevator button- hopefully someone else would get the chance to smudge it.

"Might as well take a look." Finn said, approaching the largest of the touch screen computers that instantly sprang to life. Several windows filled the screen with different forms, documents, charts and photographs. Feeling as though he plunged into The Minority Report, he began looking through files he could barely comprehend, wondering if there was a way to figure out what his brother was after.

Standing over Finn's shoulder, Troy watched as window upon window popped up, most of which he didn't understand, except the occasional disturbing photo. "What did I tell you...the perfect place for keeping secrets. Well, is there anything good in there?"

Finn shrugged his shoulders and half-peered through files and half paid attention to the sound of any footsteps in the hall. While easily standing over Pulse's shoulder and scanning the different files that flashed across the screen, something familiar suddenly caught Troy's eye.

"Wait what was that!?" He asked with urgency. "Go back a little bit, a little bit more...stop, right there!" The file they were looking at had information on an experiment that took place over twenty years ago with a division called SXM. It explained how after dozens of failures they were finally able to achieve the results they desired, by creating a human with heightened senses that surpassed those of a normal human being.

The subject was kept in captivity and trained to become a living weapon. The test subject's name was Troy Evans but the code name it was given was "Number 5". A small video clip popped up of him as a teenager in a small training room scenario which showed him successfully taking down several armed men and clearing a dangerous obstacle course. There was also information on the subjects progress and the type of disciplinary actions taken to keep him obedient, some of which were very severe.

'Patient Number Five?' Finn thought,

"Well, I'll let you take the helm." He said, noting the other super's intent search into such a specific area. Troy knew it could help unlock his past and the experiments done on him. Taking over for Finn, he delved deeper into the files and seemed transfixed on the documents they were looking at, opperating the touchscreen computer like a pro.

Of particular importance to him was the fact that the SXM division was illegally funded by the former incarnation of Genetico, known as Chemtech, and how after Genetico acquired Chemtech, Genetico continued to fund the program. He tried searching for information on the biological parents of the subject but they all lead to a dead end. However, he was able to find information on several of the original scientists who worked on the project and one of the SXM hubs. He could only assume that the information he sought as well as the lead scientist, Dr. Martin Wade, was housed there also.

The name of a file appeared while looking into scientists related to the projects and SXM itself. Augustus Yelner, a high-ranking scientist at Beacon was also noted as a leading scientist at some of SXM's earliest projects. A specialist in Cosmic energy's effect on the human body, he left the program at an unlisted date. In fact, most of the file on Yelner had been redacted by Beacon and Genetico themself. His current project was just...

Across the room, Finn stood next to the large dentist-lights hanging above the reclining examination chairs. There wasn't a single paper file or document in the room, but the screen on an adjustable arm next to the chair still had windows open from the day's work.

"I guess they've got some patients here as well." Finn said loud enough for Troy. "Think it's the same kind of stuff as-"

The shorter super was cut off by a 'thud' resonating from the hall. He turned his attention to Blackjack, who was closer to the door and had more experience in these kinds of situations.

This was the opportunity he had been waiting most of his life for, to find information on SXM. Who would have known it would happen by chance? Unfortunately, he didn’t come prepared to save the information he stumbled upon, so there was nothing he could download it to. Additionally, he didn’t want to e-mail it to an address that could possibly be traced back to him. The only thing left to do was commit the information to memory. Although the rabbit was busy tapping and scrolling, he was still able to multitask and turned to look at Finn when he announced a new discovery. While trying to retain the newfound knowledge, his concentration was broken by the approaching sound of heavy footsteps, footsteps that sounded oddly familiar. He paused and slowly returned Finn's gaze. Raising a slender finger to his lips, he gave the signal for them to remain silent.

After quickly shutting down the computer, he stood without making a sound. Maneuvering around the equipment in the room, he stopped in a spot that gave him a glimpse of what was coming. He used the reflection in a glass holding tube across from him to spy on the newcomer and what he saw was an armored hulk headed in their direction. He recognized the individual as The Executioner but had no idea what he was doing there. Reaching for his weapon, he frowned when there was nothing there but a pocket watch. He could suddenly hear Papo’s warning from earlier in the back of his mind, about how this whole thing could possibly be a trap and that he would be walking into it practically defenseless. Troy sighed and mumbled to himself. “Ugh, don’t you get tired of being right all the time?” Well, he did say he would have to improvise and that’s exactly what he was going to do. If needed, he managed to conceal a few, pebble like, red explosives; similar gray smoke bombs and a miniature spade shaped knife inside the rabbits tail attached to his rear. Honestly, even if he did have his pistols, they wouldn’t be much of a match for the walking behemoth.

Turning to Finn, he spoke in a hushed voice. “Remember my friend from the armored truck heist the other day? Well it looks like he’s here too. Let's go say Hello.” He said impishly. "Besides, we're sitting ducks if he decides to go all Bazooka Joe on us in this little room..." Soon the door opened and Troy moved into the hallway. He turned to face The Executioner and smiled. He probably wouldn't recognize him as Blackjack, considering he was wearing bunny ears and an eye mask but he didn't intend on keeping his identity a secret. "Well, well, well. Look at what the cat drug in...I hope you're not here to try and blow me up again." He said while reaching up and twirling a gloved finger around one of the rabbit ears atop his head.

[betelgeuse]

Wisp and Jinx

NREEEP!!

NREEEP!!

NREEP!!

The freight elevator sounded its warning as it made its descent into the bowels of the earth, squealing and grinding on its gears as it crawled. Wisp tapped her foot impatiently, tapping her slender fingers on crossed arms.
"So you don't know where this elevator goes?" she grilled her nerd tech support.
"The map isn't perfect. I know there's quite a few rooms on either side where you get off, probably storage. If I had to guess, I'd say this has something to do with loading and unloading cargo. But I'm not exactly sure."
"Get more sure," the vigilante commanded, "I'm walking into a hornet's nest here, the least you can do is tell me what kind of hornets."
"That's all she wrote, Wisp. I'm sorry, but I don't have enough information and I can't just hack into Carver Industries to get better maps." The gravity bending heroine let out an irritated sigh, lolling her neck from one side to the other. The blood had stopped running down her face like a faucet, but that didn't make her nose feel any better. Now she just felt stuffed up and scabby. And soggy. And pissed. She liked to play to her strengths and get her work done with stealth and finesse, but at this point all she wanted to do was clock a motherfucker upside the head with her iron. Wincing, breathing heavily, Wisp reared her head back and let forth a powerful sneeze.
"Goddamnit!" she shouted.
"Blood start flowing again?" Seeds casually mentioned.
"Yeah... son of a cock-sucking box-munching bitch!" she cursed again, wiping her nose with inside of the bandanna tied to her face. Before this is all said and done with, it'd probably be crustier than a preteen boyscout's sock. Wisp growled angrily as she tapped her foot harder, the lights in the elevator shaft sluggishly passing by. Damn these things take forever.

She could see her past the grate as the elevator made its first and final stop: some Black Widow wannabe bitch about her age. She simply stood there as Wisp's platform lowered, herself doing much the same. It shook violently as it reached the landing, moaning on its hinges, and the whirring of cogs continued as the grating peeled itself back. Wisp took two steps forward, coming within arm's length of the girl, and the grating behind her slowly shut with a metal shaking sound. Just like that of a closing prison cell. Already more than mildly annoyed at tonight's events, Wisp made the silent decision to make her face hamburger if she got in her way. And she'd enjoy that. She'd enjoy the hell out of it.
"Well well well..." she snarked, sticking a hand in a pocket of her hoodie, "If it isn't one of the Teen Titans..."

"Impressive tussle. Listen, you're trespassing, assaulting multiple men  and destroyed quite a bit of private property." The raven haired girl  said plainly, her arms crossed and unmoving. "But it's time to turn  around and go home."

Jinx wasn't tall, broad or particularly  stocky in any way- there wasn't a great deal of mass connected to her  frame. Obviously physically fit, her uniform was a tight fitting black  two piece cat-suit that was seamless against her figure. The top flared  out at her wrists and at her collar, looking more like a business suit  than an exercise uniform. She wore a pair of high heels that clicked  loudly against the steel floor when she made three slow steps to one  side of the corridor.

"If you make me, you'll be heading out in a  body bag. Except we don't use those here." She said, cracking her  knuckles. "So I guess it'll be the dumpster."

Wisp sneered at her beneath her mask. Cocky bitch, but not as cocky as this bitch.
"I'm pretty flattered you'd want to show me 'round your place," she quipped, "...buuuuuut I'm not leaving yet." Wisp began to step around the girl, circling her with slow, plodding steps. Who was she, some sort of, like, secret agent or something? Apparently the Tower had a fetish for hiring weirdos. Dangerous weirdos, though. She'd have to stay on her toes, but that's one thing she already had an advantage over. Wisp was wearing flats, and this girl was wearing heels. Heels weren't a good choice to threaten someone's life in. Try boots next time, skank.
"I haven't gotten what I've came for. And besides..." Wisp nodded toward the elevator as it began to screech and cry, calling out in agony. Her head pounded as her eyes furrowed, increasing the weight to over triple what it was to include the elevator itself, ripping it from its moorings under its own load. The wiry twang of the cables could be heard to snap, and sparks shot up like fireworks as the emergency brake engaged, dragging the platform down almost a whole two feet before she mentally relaxed. Wisp chuckled breathlessly, prying her crowbar from her back fluidly.
"...the elevator's broken."

"Dumpster it is." Jinx said with a smile curling on the side of her lips. There was a low rumble in her tone, a lioness just waiting to claw its way out.

Taking a few broad steps forward on her loudly clicking heels, the petite vixen walked with complete confidence toward the armed intruder. Her head tilted to the side every-so slightly, she looked like a parent about to reprimand an unruly child. She reached forward, not trying to swing a punch or even scratch at Wisp's face- instead, she made a quick motion to take the crowbar out of the assailant's grasp, wrenching it from her hands. Wisp stood stunned for nearly half a second before she continued.

"Don't say I didn't warn-"
"Bitch!" She was cut off, only inches from Hope. Before the raven-haired girl could react, a clenched fist came crashing into her temple with enough force to send her sprawling backward. Or it would have, if Wisp's leather-gloved hand hadn't taken ahold of a hunk of her hair.

Pinned by her dark curls, Jinx let out a deep hiss and locked eyes with Wisp and the impressive beginning to the brawl. Swinging her leg up higher most trained cheerleaders, the steel toe of her high heel rocketed forward to make contact with Hope's already broken nose. Hope's foresight in wearing goggles was the only thing keeping her nasal bone from smashing into her brain. Jinx's foot landed square in the vigilante's face, her nose erupting in another fountain of blood as sharp, intense pain shot through her head and her ears began to ring.

Wisp yelped and stumbled back a few steps, her hand protecting her injury. Nails of white hot agony hammered themselves through her sinuses and into her brain, making her eyes water up with tears. And she began to see red. The hooded hero bullrushed the dark clad girl with a death scream, tackling her by the waist, and the two of them tumbled down the hallway as they entered freefall toward the massive metal doors, Wisp savagely grabbing and clawing at whatever she could get her hand on while beating her violently with the other.

Jinx let out a muffled gasp of air as she and Wisp went tumbling down the Level One corridor. The scrappy hero had a fist full of her hair and left a shallow scratch down her left jaw and chin. Propelled by the force of the tackle or Hope's powers, they slid across the seamless steel floor in a clawing heap until the sound of a sudden vacuum of air echoed in the otherwise silent hallway. The vigilante found herself clutching at a small bit of dark hair, alone and twenty five feet from the broken elevator. Eerily silent, there wasn't a trace of the smug-talking assassin. Wisp looked around wildly. She was just here a second ago! Her head whipped from left to right, and then she pulled herself to her feet and spun around. Nothing. Not a soul save for her own.
"Where the fuck did sh-urk!"

-BAMF!-

Jinx materialized in a cloud of purple smoke that appeared out of thin air and disippated just as quickly. The girl slid forward at the same speed she had vanished, her elbow smashing into the vigilante's ribs. She was propelled backward, letting her feet fly out from beneath her and delivering a push kick to the goth chick's chest. Wisp sailed through the air in zero-G, bouncing off of the elevator grating and settling on the ceiling, planting a hand to orient herself. Bitch knocked the wind out of her, but it knocked her out of her rage, too.
"Seeds... how the fuck do I beat a teleporter?" she huffed, breathing heavily. Before it felt like someone had been driving railroad ties into her face, but now it felt as if they abandoned the railroad ties altogether and just decided to smash her with the mallet.
"What? Why-"
"Notimeanswernow!" she blurted out, kicking off from her spot on the ceiling to bound across the walls in a spiral pattern, trying to gain some distance and stay high and mobile. She wasn't off to a great start, and if things continued to go this way she'd be screwed. And maybe dead.

Jinx tumbled backward from Wisp's kick to the chest, sending her rolling again with the other super flying across the room. When Hope made her return trip in a spiral, flying from floor, to ceiling, to wall and back again, it was hard to track. The dark haired girl rolled backwards from the impact and righted herself so fluidly that it looked almost rehearsed. She crouched with both hands pressed against the shining steel floor and jumped into the air just as the flying super was about to stream by.

As Wisp had hoped, the teleporter missed catching onto any part of her before vanishing in mid-air with another loud 'Bamf!' and puff of smoke. She reappeared, moving at the same speed, falling from the ceiling several feet down the hall just as Hope narrowly passed again. Jinx vanished before impact with the floor; Wisp was only ten feet from the steel doors at the other end and evading purely out of her random pattern. The teleporter appeared a third time, moving even faster because of her brief free-fall, this time headed directly for Wisp, her right aimed for the other's mirroring shoulder and collar bone.

[betelgeuse]

-Phoenix and The Architect-

The Architect was hardly an intimidating individual. A man at least  seventy years old, his silver hair was trimmed as neatly as the rest of  his appearance. He wore a tuxedo with matching black tie and was one of  the only other individuals at the party who hadn't opted for any type of  mask or costume. He held a black cane in his right hand, resting lazily  against his knee, the silver handle glistening in the soft lighting. It  was a simple handle, made of pure silver and designed to look like a  level, ruler and parchment shaped like a small pyramid. 

"Ah,  Mister Regel, your drink of choice?" He asked warmly, gesturing a hand  toward the waitress. "Everything is top of the line, I must assure you."

Michael waved her off before taking a seat, "I'm just here to handle our business. Who knows if you poisoned the drinks as well?" He knew he probably had to be careful with this guy, it was possible the man was hiding some anger that Pheonix hadn't shown up the previous night on time. Michael had some experience with how gang warfare tended to go, and the high class members of society were really just gangsters in suits.

The old man looked Michael over briefly, as if assessing the value of one of the paintings that sat in the silent auction above them. Rather than speak, he chuckled at the young man, tapping his cane lightly on the floor. The waitress nodded her head to the two and made her way out of the VIP enclosure.

"And an extra two shots of whiskey!" He called after her.

"You see," The Architect turned his attention back to Michael. "I like a drink when I discuss business."

"Let's be direct with this, shall we?" The elder of the two asked. "You didn't bring the flash drive to me last night. You see, I was under the impression that I paid you and your brother quite a bit of money for that safety deposit box. Seeing that I'm without my end of the deal; either you owe me money or you owe me a flash drive."

Pheonix looked at him for a moment before reaching into his clothing and pulling out the flash drive, holding it out in his hands for the man, "Alright, let's be direct, here it is. When you take this, consider my work with you done, understood?" He said this with no hint of anger, it was simply matter of fact. Michael had little wish to continue embedding himself further in whatever agenda this man had.

The Architect let the flash drive sit in Michael's hand between them. It was reflecting the soft light of the room, the scratches and marks from the previous day's escapades showing what the device had been through.

"Mister Regel," He said. "This flashdrive is far less valuable to me now than when I had previous need of it. Yes, I can gain some tidbits of information from this pathetic piece of hardware, but my real intent was time sensitive, you see."

The old man half-heartedly motioned toward the party, hidden from them by the thick veil of white fabric, still audible and boisterous. He wasn't physically a threat, seemingly old a feeble, unless he happened to have an invisible henchman waiting directly behind Michael, the fire-starter was safe for the time being.

"I'm not going to lie." The Architect said, sighing lightly. "I'm too old for that. The meteor that struck this city one week ago and somehow managed to grant you those amazing abilities has been on the move for the past six days. That flash drive was the only way to figure out where and when the stone would have the least amount of protection. Now that it's been placed deep below this building, it's far harder to retrieve."

"I choose not to worry about the fate of the stone for the time being." He started, looking out of the corner of his eye to the young Regel. "Your brother should be on his way to retrieve the item as we speak- whether he knows it or not."