fate0013

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

Time drew into a crawl as the commotion reached his ears. The empty bento box clattered to the floor, its contents having been inhaled seconds before. After having the words repeat in his head a few times to mack sure he had heard correctly, Alex's eyes grew wide. Dove. They were alive. DOVE IS BACK.

Boot prints were indented into the floor on takeoff as a quarter of a ton of super powered muscle dashed frantically to the workshop. He had enough sense to slam his helmet back on before nearly bowling over everyone trying to get to the front of the shop. Part of Alex that had lost hope long ago was nagging at him now. That someone was playing a sick joke. That people don't just show back up alive and well after being missing for this long. That-

There she was.

Standing over the back of the crowd. He could see Dove clear as day. Being hugged and welcomed. God he wanted to run out there and hug her, to trust something other then his eyes that she was real. Alex had few people he had considered trusted friends, even among the rogues. And here was one back from the dead for all intents and purposes. With the passing seconds an overwhelming sense of relief washed over him. The armored rogue continued to hang back and wipe away tears best he could without taking off his helmet fully. Shit was she gonna recognize him in his new armor? No, not gonna worry about that. just be happy that she's back and wait your turn. And for god's sake don't accidentally crush her when you go for a hug.

"If we had to go through that scream to get her back, then I wont complain too much about the interesting times we live in." He let out a shaky chuckle mostly to himself. not really aware that he was glowing again.

---

Back at home. Dean was actively ignoring a few unopened messages from Wolf while digging through some of his old family books he hadn't thought to touch in years. new notes and scribbling had begun to pile up on his desk and over some of the walls now too. Active attempts to try and figure out what the hell was wrong with his friend while keeping within his vowed limitations was . . . tricky. he was starting to regret making that lazy and somewhat spiteful decision when he was a kid.

At the time he had been taking a break from his serious businessDicking around watching cat videos when he was startled by Golem popped out of the ground and slapped the hedge mage's leg. "OW! What the fuck man?! Some pappers were knocked around as he glared daggers at his diminutive partner.

He was met with a serious look etched in stone. "THE THING YOU AND ARTEMIS SAW IS BACK."

" . . . Oh. Yeah that is important. I'll look into it. But first, owwWWWWWWW!!!" He then proceeded to dramatically rub and whine over his shin while the spirit of earth sank back into the ground.

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

A bit of the heroic facade cracked as he rubbed at the back of his neck habitually. “Yeah, and that’s why I’m not a doctor.” His voice sounded a lot more sheepish than the authoritative air he had moments ago. “To be fair, you aren’t the first person I’ve had to restrain coming out of unconsciousness. Said person was a speedster and hit like a truck so uh, forgive the excessive amount of caution.”

Umbri was carefully set down and the light winked out of existence, though Alex’s eyes didn’t stop glowing to indicate that he was still ready to use his powers. “Sorry if me being here makes you uncomfortable. But you are under my protection currently and I need to be ready to call in help if conventional medicine doesn’t help here.”

He clenched and unclenched his fists, before shoving them into well hidden pockets. The urge to call Zolya was growing. Still this was currently his problem and he had an obligation to try and resolve it himself first.

The first thing Umbri did when settled down was wipe the tracks of tears from her cheeks in two quick, almost professional strokes. Her eyes were dry of any more to offer and had been since they’d opened. Her body tingled and stomach churned from the floating. This was insane to her. Sounded like this was Tuesday to him. And annoying. Now that she was calmer that was something she couldn’t unthink. Her distress was annoying to him.

Resigned to not bother him anymore, she kept her gaze low while she detangled the wires from her head. She winced as she unplugged the device from the tip of her chrome spine and used the bed to lift herself until she could sit up on it. She swallowed, hating that her painfully slow ascent had an audience, then shrugged towards the doctor. “Well… you can… do it, now.”

The doctor moved over and resumed taking her blood pressure. Umbri still looked deeply uncomfortable, unsure of how to let herself be looked after, doubly unsure of how to behave with a hero in the room. She accidentally locked eyes with him while glancing around and instantly dropped her stare to his feet. Did they always glow? He wasn’t another vampire, was he?

She cleared her throat, desperate to get away from just being stared at. “How has your day been?” She ended with a brief pained smile.

There was a shrug from the armored rogue. “Kinda eventful so far. Had to deal with an edgy black and red costumed teen thinking he was intimidating with a cracking voice. Made him help clean up the property damage he caused.” Then he held up a finger as he continued. “And then Scarhide decided it was time to test Shieldtown’s wall facing the wilds, and I’m kinda the only person here able to really challenge that freakishly huge cat without wasting dozens of rounds of munitions.” There was a sudden pause as realization dawned on him. “Wait, I don't even know if you know what I’m talking about. Shit does everyone know what an Apex is? Double wait, does everyone even know what a Turbo Lion is?” Umbri looked on blankly, and slowly began to shake her head. This guy’s Rogue career was very different from what she knew of Temujin.

He half a hand to his helmet as if he were in thought. Just before Alex could begin to elaborate before getting an answer there was a deep gurgle growl that came from Alex. Specifically his gut.

There was an awkward pause.

“ . . . Shit, guess it's food time.” He fiddled with some of the straps on his breastplate to make some space and slid a rather compact looking backpack that was hidden under the plating’s back shell. A motion to sit down was met with a soft glowing chair that appeared beneath him before he would have crashed onto the floor. Two lunch boxes were retrieved from the bag and sat on his lap. The first one revealed a rather stuffed sandwich cut in half. Almost picturesque with crisp lettuce, tomato, chicken and all the fixings. Kettle chips were nestled in the next tray, which didn’t look store bought. The other box held a more traditional bento meal. Rice and an assortment of tempura. Mostly seafood with some veggies. Two cups to the side were simply labelled “sauce” and “spicy”. The box it came in had to be some form of tech because it was steaming when opened. Alex was just about to crack one open before remembering that he wasn’t alone in this room.

A nervous laugh escaped him. “Uh, hungry? I got sandwiches and bento. Some other snacks too but homemade stuff is always better. I think I remembered my soup thermos . . . Oooor I left it on the counter at home. Again.” His voice was sheepish again and he was rubbing the back of his neck once more.

Umbri regarded the boxes silently before pointing at the sandwich. She could definitely believe that he would’ve chowed down on these full sized meals no problem. She watched his helmet as the box was passed over, the thought obvious on her face. He can’t eat without taking that off. She was openly staring at the whereabouts of his mouth, only glancing down to briefly thumb through the sandwich’s contents. I guess he’s already started to take it off anyway.

As she raised the sandwich to take a bite, the doctor’s voice warned her, “You shouldn’t start eating before I’ve taken your blood.”

Umbri blinked. “... You’re taking what-!” Her head was twisted back to facing forward and she felt something slide into the base of her neck. “Ow!” The doctor pulled away and Umbri caught the needle full of her blood, the red and green swirling together into a dark swampy shade. Umbri was stunned as he just walked away from her without a word. “Will you tell me what you’re doing with that?” she demanded.
“I’m going to isolate the venom from your blood, get a sample of what we’re dealing with. Hopefully the venom is something we already have an anti-venom on the shelf for. If we don’t have a match, the amount of blood I’ll have to extract from you to synthesise an anti-venom with will be…” he looked over at Umbri as he poured the needle’s contents into a vial and inserted it into a device that began to whir like a blender. An ‘it will kill you’ look. “...Considerable. Did you get a good look at it?”

“I…” Her brain violently fired off their every encounter, the flood of flame that swallowed Ganta, the way it propelled itself after her and Temujin sliding down the rooftop, when it fell from the sky and melted the wall beside her and how the heat scorched her face and she felt the slow crush of its tail around her body and - and she was looking at her chicken sandwich like it had killed her entire family.

Given his line of work, Alex was all too familiar with the look he saw cross her face. “Shit.” Food and helmet were quickly put aside “I know I’m not the best person at this but bear with me ok?” He had quickly moved close and dropped to a knee so he wasn’t looming, but he still easily made it to eye level. “You're gonna have to talk to me here because I can’t tell what’s running through your head. You look like you want to hit something but I can’t let you hit the doctor again and I’m pretty sure you’d break something hitting me.” Fuck he really wasn’t the best at this. Genuine worry washed over Alex’s face as his eyes’ glow became softer.

Umbri reached out of the memory of being grappled on the wet ground and watching the snake come closer, her reflection rippling in the puddle beneath her. It felt like plastic wrap was pulled across her mouth. She tried breathing through it again, while her fingers made deep grooves in the bread, and focused… focus, girl, focus, focus on what’s in front of you.

A face. A nice face.

“I… it was… thirty feet, maybe. Looked like a snake.” Her recollection was laboured. She lulled her head and swallowed. “Spikes on its… no, that was the other one. Fins. And it moved on fire.”

“Did it glow?”

“Mmh…” she nodded at the doctor’s wary question, “From everywhere. Everything. Ah, this is hard, actually." She shuffled with a pained cringe then gazed at him through clouded eyes. “You took your mask off.”

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

Bounding across the air, Alex made it to the top of the wall in little time at all. He was met by a collection of nervous guard all geared up in their frames trying to keep a growing crowd of spectators from getting too close to the rail.His arrival was heralded by a round of applause and cheers. 

Right. Time to do the hero thing. He put on a big smile despite the full face helmet and waved to the crowd. As he got close to the edge one of the older and more grizzled of the guards present walked into step with him. “The old cat is pacing like a tiger out there. Hasn’t tested the walls yet but I’d rather not have it get to that.”

Alex nodded and rolled his shoulders. “Best not let him think he can take over my territory then huh?”

That hit him a flat look in response. “People have been talking. You’ve been a bit off your game the last few days. Nobody would think less of you if you had a little help this time.” 

Nobody but myself. Alex didn’t dare let that slip past his lips though, had to keep an air of confidence. “I’m fine, I got this.” Despite everything he was seen as more than just the top Rogue in the area. Being a symbol on your own was far from easy. He motioned for people to give him some space. When room was made, a flash of blue launched him off the edge. 
He tried to focus. Even not knowing where the cameras or drones were there was this keen awareness of a growing number of eyes focused on him. Let it fade, this is supposed to get rid of your stress and nerves. Ironic given what he was up against. Not one for a three point landing, Alex simply crashed to the ground feet first. Knees bending to absorb the impact entirely on instinct. What dust and debris were kicked up were blown away with a quick burst of blue. 

And there the beast was.

Regional Apex’s were near mythical in their reputation and often in capability as well. Scarhide was the more simple of the Undercity legends. A hulking feline form of pure muscle. A brute if there ever was one. Colossal was a fitting description. Each step of its egs made the ground rumble just so slightly. 

Alex met the beasts three eyes and began to pace along the same path as it or breaking eye contact as the mutant lion head snarled at him. Scarhide at some point had four, but one on the right side of their face had been scared over and blinded long before Alex even became a rogue. 
“Hey buddy. Been a bit. Your early you know. Wasn’t expecting you to test me for another week. Did the Scream make you all grumpy?”

He got a growl like grinding stone in response.“Oh yeah, your grumpy alright.” There was always a moment needed to really take in the sight of such a creature. There was little hair over its dark gray body except a mane of black hair on its high ridged back. Its body and front legs absurdly muscular, all connecting to the large hump that fused into its neck and back. On anything else the proportions would look forward leaning and top heavy. Alex was very well aware though of how much ludicrous strength that turbo lion’s body held. Too top it all of,  it’s head had a wicked pair of sharp bull like horns. One larger then the other. Alex had broken one off a year ago. Pretty sure the cat never forgave him.

Nearly in sync, the two stopped at the same time and squared up. Alex cracked his neck and clenched his fists. His usual floating array of secondary armor springing into existence. 

That was all the Turbo Lion needed. In one pounce, hundreds of feet were cleared instantly. It’s roar was a wall of sound that made Alex’s teeth rattle. Scything claws and a gaping maw of man sized teeth drew in fast, ready to rend. Alex however didn’t charge to meet his adversary. Instead launching right under it, and catapulting upwards. Uppercutting Scarhide’s breastbone. 

Not holding back, a second impact of blue kinetic force exploded out, knocking the feline away from the wall. Alex pressed the advantage and rocketed after the Apex. A flurry of blue as Alex landed blow after blow. There wasn’t as much damage as he had hoped though. The Lion recovered almost instantly. And Alex was unceremoniously swatted away. Instinct was the only thing that got Alex to bubble himself in time before a set of double claws could find purchase against his armored body. Didn’t look like Scarhide was playing either. “Shit. You really are having a temper tantrum aren’t you-“ Alex didn’t really have the time to quip to mostly himself however with just his barriers keeping him from being fully face to face with the oldest and biggest living Turbo Lion. 

“Oh fuck.” 

Ok, so maybe he didn't have this like the thought. He had no idea why he kept getting lost in his own head but it was really starting to piss him off now. What followed was best described as the most demented game of cat and ball of yarn ever. If said cat looked like it could use a main battle tank as a chew toy and the ball of yarn was a superhero trying not to scream. It was probably some form of Karmic force that was having Alex get rag dolled in one of his own bubbles. He however didn’t have that level of thought right now. Staying in the bubble, Alex let loose blasts and constructs of light in retaliation but was kept on the back foot from Scarhide's relentlessness.

A buzz of static hissed inside Aegis's helmet. A familiar voice cut through the noise. "Paging Alexander Dalton! Is this working? Can ya hear me?" Ako, of the Black Iron Workshop.

Despite his current situation Alex’s bewilderment at the sudden call threw him off. “Uh, hi?” He continued to be tossed around in the meantime.

"Howdy, Aegis. Pardon me for interrupting, but we need a bit of help at the Black Iron."

Alex was just a bit exasperated and a tad annoyed when he replied. “Ako, I’m a bit busy right now with the biggest of angry kitties! Can this wait?”

“Uhhhhhh, well, I hate to say it but no. There’s a woman here. She came to the ‘shop with Temujin, and a-a bad case of the dyins’.” Alex could almost hear her cringe from the smash and crash of combat, distorted and garbled through their comms. Her next words came out quieter, but no less urgent. “...It’s Thresher venom.”

There was a pause on Alex’s end of the line. Not a quiet one given the roaring, thrashing and snarling. “Say no more. I’ll be there with help soon.” He hung up the call and stopped the bubble he was in midair. Scarhide colliding with the suddenly stationary object. As much as people probably wanted a show, and he wanted to let off steam. People in trouble took priority. The bubble began to glow with great intensity as he charged himself up. In fact he felt like he had energy to spare. How about that.

Then without further warning, Alex exploded. 

The knock back was so fierce that the Turbo Lion was sent sprawling. Before it even had the chance to get up U shaped constructs slammed into the ground, pining its limbs, neck and tail. And then more came. And more. 

Alex stormed up to Scarhide. Right to the cats face. Before the beast could even let out a snarl a hardlight muzzle snapped into existence and clamped down tight. Alex then proceeded to grab the Apex’s ear and aggressively browbeat a local legend on how much of a bad kitty it was being and that he didn’t had time to play.

Catapulting back up to the wall, he was greeting by stunned science and slack jaws. Alex shrugged. “Something came up. If he gets uppity start shooting.” He had bigger things to worry about . . . figuratively.

---

A few minutes later and the bronze armored rogue landed in front of the Black Iron workshop. Carrying a rather flustered local doctor bridal style. "Got one of the Doc's here. Have a few other people I could grab and or phone if we need it." Aegis walked with purpose inside before setting the doctor down and taking the scene in. His eyes glowed through the visor of his helmet brighter then normal. Hell he still had a sheen of blue light around him that he hadn't noticed yet. Whatever had happened during the . . . . well it wasn't much of a fight but whatever that was that got him all jazzed felt awesome. Alex paused to look at his favorite cyber ninja, who looked like he had pissed off every Ripper all at once given how mangled he was. 

“Wow. You look like shit.”

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

This life was starting to get to him. Well, maybe it already had been for a while. But the stress from the past few days really put things into perspective. Seeing how quickly the damages from the Scream were already taken care of and basically forgotten nagged at a part of Alex. It was stupid to think one guy could protect so much space. Hell, he wasn’t even present at Shieldtown when shit went down. And they managed just fine without him. Even still, wasn’t he obligated to do everything he can at this point? Great power and great responsibility . . . . Right? So why did he feel so conflicted right now as he finished up his patrols?

When all this started, he just wanted to be another guy. Sure some of his powers meant he was always gonna stand out, but he came down here in the beginning for something new. It was a world almost entirely separate from the brand covered, corporate media hellscape that topside felt like daily. Ironic how being underground was a breath of fresh air.

He trundled along down the street, giving a few nods and waved as he went. The beloved Rogue of Shieldtown kept quiet though. Not really sure what would come out of his mouth right now as he stewed. Was he stewing or brooding? He assumed brooding involved some amount of isolation. Anyways. Dealing with that first Apex saved dozens of lives. Hell it almost ended Alex’s. But he’d thought about that day over and over again enough times to know he wouldn’t have done anything different. Which still left him where he was now. Stuck.

Caught up between obligations that came from answering the call to action and becoming less relevant in his current space. Granted all it took was one of the gangs trying to move in or a super with a considerable amount of power to prove the continued need for Aegis. Once again, Stuck. Alex wanted to punch something.

That was when a familiar roar caught his attention. He whipped around to get a sense of where it came from. Emergency lights up on the settlements wall confirmed it came from the east. ”Scarhide.” The local Apex was bellowing out a challenge. I like most of the walking disasters. Some through whatever means stabilized and didn’t just die off in a blaze of glory. Becoming near permanent fixtures of the Under Cities various territories. Old Scarhide was possible one of the longest lived of the bunch. And the most stubborn. Of course he made his territory right near the most fortified settlement. And the beast was calling Alex out again.

”. . . Well, I guess I did ask for it.” The lack of banging on the walls was a good sign, must be a more mellow day for the Apex. Probably wanted someone to “play” with that wasn’t gonna get torn to shreds with one bat from a pickup truck sized paw. ”Monster wrestling it is. Time to go get mauled.” the amount of enthusiasm he said that with did result in a few mildly concerned states. Alex opted to not explain himself and launched forward into the air. Time to go play with his cat. A gigantic scar covered cat thing that looked suspicious close to a behemoth from a certain famous fantasy RPG franchise.

Can you copyright a monster? He let that thought slip by as another roar rattled nearby windows while he launched pass.

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

"You're the one that was late, you figure it out." Nora playfully nudged ID's shoulder and stepped to the side. There was a momentary pause before she continued in a much more snide tone. "So, While I was out here alone eating my MRE's you had a home made breakfast and had some eye candy to look at as well. Am I getting all that right?" She slung her LMG to the side and crossed her arms, The face plate to her helmet slid open with a hiss to reveal a rather dubious expression. While not entirely upset by the turn of events, Nora was going to milk every ounce of teasing she could get out of it. Wasn't her fault her partner didn't have thick skin despite her powers.

"What?! No??" ID answered indignantly, though she couldn’t hide the steamy flush of rapidly melting snow. She folded her arms. "You know what?? Yeah! I did have a home cooked meal, and Mr. Muscles cooked it!" ID thrust her finger at the merc with an accusatory note. "And it was fucking delicious! You and your MREs," she muttered.

The little jab at her rations did little to stop Nora. "Oh so Mr.Muscles can also cook, can he? What, is he meeting all of your standards, hmm?" Despite the rather flat tone to her voice Nora was practically grinning as she leaned closer towards ID to try and see her face. Though given the rising heat she really didn’t need to see if she was blushing or not.

"Nooo?!!" The temperature rose again. "It’s purely contractual: I’m just helping them with a favor," she huffed, actively looking away under the guise of searching for the key panel, despite being shrouded in steam.

Too easy. "oh . . . So you aren’t interested in seeing him again?" Nora leaned in just a tad closer and began dropping the temperature just a touch. It had been a while since she had seen ID squirm like this.

ID spluttered uncomfortably rather than answer. Luckily she didn’t need to, since the rush of heat uncovered an oddly shaped rock nearby.

"O-oh hey there it is!" ID shuffled nervously past the merc, clearing her throat. "The elevator is powered by its own generator that goes dormant when it's not in use," she explained… changing the subject. "It’ll take a few minutes to defrost enough to send the elevator up," she announced, prying open a square cover in the rock to reveal a keypad. ID punched in her override code, and though there wasn’t any apparent change on the surface, she could sense heating coils activating far below them.

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

Years of tinker produced coolant runoff sure did wonders to a place. An arboreal tundra was one of several things you wouldn't expect to see underneath one of the worlds tallest tinker made super structures. Then again, you also wouldn't imagine there being a desert, lava field, temperate forest or giant ass mushroom jungles. God's this place was weird. Wildlife notwithstanding. Nora Had little to complain about truth be told. She was used to the cold anyway, it reminded her of home on a good day. A light snowfall had just started not too long ago. Fresh powder had already started to settle, covering tracks in pristine powder. Her helmet automatically cycled through lenses and filters to reduce the growing glare from the reflecting light.

The isolation was a bonus. With plentiful game and what could be considered an unexplored expanse, Nora really couldn't complain much about having to have relocate. The seemingly growing Templar presence was concerning though. On top of every settlement still buzzing from that damn Scream. Yeah, too much of a headache. The frigid Waste was fine by her. The woman had barely moved in the last couple of hours, a trained stillness from years of practice. Shifting about in a way that kept her suit from moving, a single eye flicked about her HUD, gauging wind speeds, time, external and internal temperatures. A secondary glance made her swear internally. The moisture collector was almost full from her sweat alone. It was about time to vent the suits heat. Not that there was much chance of anyone looking around for thermal signals in the middle of nowhere in the cold, but Nora was still alive from being too paranoid. Fuck now she wanted a shower. Now she was more irritated. Too top it all off, ID was late. Just a few minutes, but that was enough to be grating for the former soldier.

As if on cue, Nora got the signal. "Níðhöggr . . . Your late."
In one smooth motion MG had the suits heat vented and stood up. Snow instantly melted into a burst of steam . . . twenty feet away from the mouth of the cave, a looming figure strode out of the cloud and approached ID. Heavy spiked boots crunched against the ice and snow. Most people would be very concerned by the sudden appearance of a seven foot tall person decked out in armor and heavily reinforced clothing. Oh and armed to the teeth with LOTS of munitions. Most didn't Have said person as an operational partner. Even a few feet apart the shear temperature difference from the two whipped the air into a short lived flurry.

"Report." Nora's own voice was distorted and gravely through her vox. Granted, there were no hints of annoyance or anger in her tone even through the tech. But the curtness had an unmistakable edge to it.

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

It was becoming increasingly rarer for any sort of super fight to happen around the Undercity's most heavily defensive fortified settlement. And when it did happen it was usually underwhelming these days. Mostly just punks trying to make a name for themselves with too inflated an ego. It was even more pathetic when some angry teen calling themselves Crimson Doom messes up a few shops, calls Aegis out, and when the confrontation finally happens the kids blaster power lasers don't even damage Alex's armored suit. which isn't even tinker tech. "You know its a wonder how anyone gets the bright idea that they can muscle in here, any better then all the previous attempts." Alex remarked casually, taking a seat on the edge of one of Shieldtown's taller buildings.

"Something Something maybe ill be the one that gets lucky and beats the Rogue of Shieldtown." Dean's voice remarked over the comm's network. "Though saying that these guys have bright ideas to begin with is an insult to people who do think."
"So not you?" Alex snorted as a stream of profanity assaulted his ears before regarding the overly edgy red and black idiot he was currently holding over the side of the building. "You gonna stop being an idiot?" the wannabe villain nodded vigorously that they almost lost what remained of their half broken helmet that covered their identity. "Cool." Alex pushed himself off the edge as if it were the most normal thing to do, landing on a sudden platform of blue light before making a hole in the ground. The teen villain for their part didn't scream but was shaking like a leaf in autumn. They were then flipped about and set down on the ground, Alex kept a hand on their shoulder though.

"Your going to go and apologize to the people who's shops who made a mess of, help them clean up, and get the hell out of my town. Clear?"

There was an audible gulping sound followed by more nodding.

"Good. And tell whatever friends or other gangs you know to stop messing with us. Now git." Alex shoved them along and turned to go another way. wasn't really necessarily to make sure they did as they were told. People either knew better or got most of their bones broken. That or Wolf sniped the poor son of a bitch in both kneecaps if she was feeling nice. Nothing a dumb kid deserved though. Hell, the Town's defenders and hunters alone did a good job of keeping the peace these days. Maybe . . . a chance to stop? kinda hard to drop the call to action when you leave such a big impression. There were still other matters to address in the meantime.

"Right, so before little Timmy's first OC decided to throw a tantrum. I was confirming that we got the final headcount for the meeting. unfortunately Demon Mask is making an appearance so prepare to be mildly annoyed."

"Oh Whatever will I do? Anything else of note?" Despite the sarcasm Alex was met with a uncomfortable silence for about a minute which Dean broke before he had the chance to ask what was wrong.

" . . . We got the last call on casualties from the Scream incident. No big names, but we lost four Rogues. Should probably pay respects at the meeting."

More helmets and masks for the wall. Always hit hard when they lost someone. Didn't help that a lot of powered individuals tented to get snatched up by gangs or the roving bandit clans pretty quick. It felt like there were less heroic types in the collective as the years went by. Kind of a heavy reminder why Alex was still doing this in the first place. There really weren't many else.

"I'm gonna finish patrol then head back. keep me posted as usual."

---

Switching off his comm-link, Dean let out a breath. Glad he had kept the lack of feedback from the infamous local cyber ninja. Enough stuff to worry about besides a lone wolf full-borg. The fact that there was ANOTHER damn Templar down in the Undercity was enough to spike the blood pressure. Dean was supposed to just be the guy in the chair. Thing's were supposed to be easy, less stress inducing. He wanted to bang his head against the wall for a bit but wasn't resigns to having a headache for the rest of the day. not when he had MORE to do. Part of him felt the urge to say the forbidden words, but not wanting to tempt fate, opted to simply think them to himself.

Could this get any worse?

He could feel Golem staring at him incredulously. Okay. Maybe even that was too much. He could count the amount of mages he knew that would slap him upside the head for tempting fate like that on one hand . . . even though all the mages he DID know could also be counted on one hand, Family not included. It was going to be one of those weeks.

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

Boy was Dean familiar with that look the woman was giving him. Oh right, it was the same kind of look some of his family would give him. this was already going to be fun. Staying in the doorway, noting the use of Rat's nickname for him and the request about finding people. "Depends who you are looking for." There was a pause when two and two were put together as to who present company meant by his "girl".

Spirits he was so damn close to falling over and laughing again. A mental note was made to potentially tell Alex about that tidbit. Definitely telling everyone else though.

"No no, just give them a second." Dean turned his head inside. "HEY AEGIS! MAKE YOURSELF PRESENTABLE WE GOT WORK!" There was a loud banging sound followed by a minute of silence before Alex walked into view in his new bronze armor. Dean suppressed the urge to whistle. Certainty look leagues more professional then his old getup. With the big man all suited up Dean looked back to their "Guest." "Sorry, Aegis and I weren't expecting any jobs today after . . . everything that happened yesterday. Dean moved out of the doorway and motioned the woman to come in.

There was a nod shared between the too man before taking up spots in the living room. Dean flopping onto the couch while Aegis kept his helmeted visage squarely on the stranger. "So, who went missing?"

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

There was an attempt by the two men to give Ash some form of farewell before she left. They didn't manage a single word before the door closed. Alex having been confused as to her sudden rush, and Dean had only just gotten himself off the floor from his laughing fit.

"I'm just gonna clean." He went about the kitchen as various utensils and such were telekineticlly moved about with a practiced ease. Dean having only just brushed himself off and pushing the chairs back under the table before Alex spoke up while his back was turned. "Was she a brute or something? what was with the leaving bite marks on me comment?"

Dean did his best to stay strong. He held it in so hard he curled in on himself and gently planted his forehead onto the table. "No clue dude. Maybe she just thought you were a snack." He had to quickly dance away from a few half-hearted bolts of blue energy lazily slapping into his previous location. "It is a wonder how you are still single if you ask me."

Alex flipped Dean the bird without turning around. "Could say the same to you Jackass."

"I'm just in no hurry, at least I'm not clueless when someone is being so obvious." Dean stood still this time as more bolts came but didn't come anywhere close to him before fizzling out. Despite the banter, the air in the house couldn't be any more carefree now. finally felt normal again. Neither of them would hold it against her, but that Templar falling down here seemed to have kicked the proverbial hornets nest so bad it started a chain reaction that didn't seem to have calmed down entirely just yet. Even with the current mirth, there was an underlying tension. Word through the grapevine was that not all the other outer settlements had done as well as Shieldtown, the Forges, or Stoneworks. one of the smaller time Rogues was MIA, and two on the far side of the graves were out of commission. The Undercity proper wasn't that bad but that wasn't saying much given that there was apparently a resurgence in Ripper activity on top of new sighting from the Cult of Flesh.

Dean gave the big guy a look and sighed to himself. Sometimes he wished he had just [initiated] Alex and help out . . . just a little. couldn't catch this mage dead wearing a costume. Even if they got Silver Fang back topside in the next few days there was still gonna be a mess down here. And Alex might start suffering from the fucking Haze he's been storing up on his own somehow. Still not gonna let himself go for not noticing that detail sooner. and a Hedge Mage is supposed to be always cautious and prepared.

That's when someone knocked on the door. "Finally, someone with some manners. I swear if Ash somehow left something I'm gonna fucking laugh."

Alex cocked his head to the side to listen. "I think its Rat, You didn't leave the garage open did you? don't need him poking around in there. And I'm not making any more coffee or food for anybody today!" He was only partially serious on that note though and Dean probably knew that.

"No . . . No I did not. But i think there is someone else at the front door." Dean made his way into the living room and turned towards to the front door. "Just a sec." He opened the door to find a rather striking and fairly intimidating woman standing at his front porch. Though given his history with dangerous women he wasn't all that phased. "Sup, How can I help ya?" Dean kept a hand in his pocket around a piece of his jade, but for the most part kept his usual lazy demeanor and leaned against the door frame. Luckily the kitchen and dining space were offset in another space to keep Alex, or Aegis if there was trouble, out of sight.

Titan's Fall: The Abyssal Paradox

A bemused look grew across Dean's face as Ash spilled the beans. Though truth be told he couldn't outright laugh at the woman. Even in such a diluted state, Dawn's aura tended to be potent to those who hadn't had the chance to be around it and become acclimated. A snort did escape him however regarding her lack of makeup skills. Every mage had some degree of laziness that they relegated to "Just use magic" and he would forever be smug about that fact.

"It's a truth spell, and you aren't forced to say anything you don't want to, Just not lie. He shrugged nonchalantly as Golem sank into the earth behind him. The spirit content with the situation but choosing not to return to its diminutive form anytime soon. Maybe the ol'Box of Rocks didn't like being called cute? eh, didn't matter right now. "Now then, we are going to go back to my place, I'm going to offer you breakfast and some coffee, and then you are free to go about your business unmolested." Dean talked in a way that made it clear this wasn't up for debate before swinging around on his heel and marching down the street in the direction of his house.

Without turning his head back to check, he was more then sure that Ash was following him in dazed confusion and muted silence trying not to accidentally blurt out anything else embarrassing. Well . . . that and a mage not able to lie and keep their spellcraft secret among the mundane without years of practice was NOT great. And wouldn't leave her with other options of where to go right now. which Definitely wasn't a part of his plan. Nope, not at all.

---

A bundle of high tension springs, cables and restrains fell to the ground with a resounding clang. The tinker-made resistant suit worked like a dream. Alex felt worn for the first time in month from his workout. Working up a burn and sweat with superhuman biology and endurance took some work, but damn did was it satisfyingly to finally feel a workout. Almost comically large weights and dumbbell were moved back onto their racking before he toweled himself off.

Before heading back upstairs, Alex glanced at his workbench. Laying next to the worn and scared pieced of his original suit was the dull gleam of bronze. While the black and grey tactical style wasn't a bad look, Alex's powers weren't really conducive for stealth and sneaking around. He figured if his powers were always obvious when in use, he might as well go the extra mile and make himself even more visible. there was something to be said about heroes and rogues with highly visible costumes. The idea behind it had logical reasoning. If you could be seen coming and were so obvious in a crowd, you could easily draw attention away from civilians, points of interest, or less durable teammates.

With Alex having to arbitrate the big meeting tonight, he figured an upgrade in his look was finally warranted. Keeping the original bodysuit and utilities, every armor piece was now bronze with simple white trim. All of it was a lot more carefully worked and shaped. The gladiatorial skirt and other remaining cloth elements were a shade of blue similar to his powers. Honestly the only thing that would make it more professionally done would probably be greco-roman Meandering style engravings and patterns. Part of him questioned if he was worth wearing it after yesterday. He shook the thought away. " I Deserve this. New suit, better me. Just keep moving forward." He repeated his words of encouragement mentally as he ascended the stairs. He needed a shower. and possibly second breakfast. yeah second breakfast sounded nice.

---

Humming happily to himself, the large man prepared an omelet as the rice cooker buzzed. Now he wasn't entirely sure what kind of beast the eggs had come from. But they tasted similar to duck and were safe to eat so why complain? plus they smelled great! some light seasoning was added to the eggs he had been beating before prepping the pan.

That was about the time the front door was opened. "I'm Home! I got a surprise guest. And its not who you think it is." Dean laughed to himself. Right up until he noticed Alex cooking with no shirt on or apron for that matter. "Dude! Put a shirt on!" Dean made a scene of covering his eyes and turning away dramatically.

Alex Chuckled at his friends dramatic dismay. Only becoming confused when he turned to greet their newest "guest." "I'm not always the sharpest tool in the shed . . . but . . . um." The himbo was flummoxed seeing the woman before him that looked like his friend and templar guest but wasn't if Dean's statement was true. Seconds ticked by as he stared and try to process the situation. He eventually looked back to Dean. "You didn't bring a Stranger into our home did you?"

Instead of giving a helpful answer, Dean bust out laughing. Leaving Alex more confused then before.