Prime
Saeptum Agent
1%
Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Sept 5, 2010 2:18:45 GMT -5
A sense of tearing, of being flung through something wonderless, merciless and inhuman. He was a man, flung through the bowls of time and space, and the void between worlds. And somehow, he still made it home, though at a cost.
He could be seen for miles, an azure burst of energy spread across the sky as he hit the atmosphere. A bright streak of azure heading for the ground, burning brightly for all to see. He pierced the clouds and struck the ground with force, an azure dawn competing against the noon day sun.
He crashed through the side of an old, dormant volcano. Broke through into a dome deep underground, miles in diameter. And finally came to rest with a dull crash near the center of the cavern.
"Jesus that hurt," Prime said, climbing out of the shallow crater he'd made.
Standing nearly six feet tall, he was well muscled on a stocky frame. His hair had nearly burned off as he fell through the atmosphere, only a red fuzz covering his head.
He had a hard featured face, handsome, but not in the classic sense. And he stared at the world with eye's that knew to much, but remember to little. Especially little at the moment.
"How did I get here?" Prime asked the empty air, looking around. The exceptionally large cavern he was in could have contained a city, but instead was filled with blue crystal. Probably quartz, a part of his mind reminded him.
What part he was unsure.
"Who am I?" Vague images of combat flowed through his mind, people and faces he didn't know. Things he couldn't identify.
He was silent for a long moment, examining his surroundings.
Absently, he reached out and touched one of the crystals, and iimmediately it started glowing with a brilliant light, and changed shape. It took on the form of a sword, as wide as his hand, and nearly a full three quarters of his height. It was a double edged blade, curving smoothly to a sharp tip at its end, and nearly a quarter inch thick at its thickest point. One portion of the blade extended past the hilt, and connected with a much smaller more ornate blade at the end of the pommel.
"This is familiar..." Prime said, picking the sword up, looking at the pure white hilt, from which the crystal seemed to grow.
The hilt had more than enough room for two hands, and the grip was quite comfortable. For some reason, he couldn't help but smile when he looked at it. It just seemed so familiar, though he was uncertain the cause behind the crystals transformation.
Touching another crystal produced a similar effect, though touching stones produces no effect at all.
Prime spent some time experimenting with what he was recognizing as his own personal ability, and he also recognized an expanding pattern. If he touched something like the quarts, that could potentially be made into a suitable weapon, they would become a weapon. If it had no potential as a weapon, or at least a bladed weapon, nothing at all would happen.
He kept the origional with him, but left the other blades scattered about. He didn't see how he could carry them anyways. As he turned to walk away, he noticed them shimmering.
"Interesting," He muttered, "I wonder..."
He trailed off, and sat down to watch. The shimmer of the blades on the ground gradually grew more and more prominent, until around 10 minutes later, they all changed back into whatever they had been before he touched them.
"Cool." Prime said, smiling. "That is very, very cool."
He stood up, "Right, now how the hell do I get out of here."
He looked around, and saw the hole he'd made on his entry. It was quite a long ways up.
"Crap."
He slowly looked around the room. There seemed to be some caves, but no way to tell which one would be the way out.
"Ok, well, no point in just standing here." He said, and so started jogging towards the nearest one.
Upon which he realized something was wrong.
Something inside him told him to brace himself, so he swiftly brought up his blade to defend himself. He could feel the wind touching him, and something deep inside him told him something was wrong.
He surveyed the room with a serious gaze, patiently trying to work out what was wrong. His blade shimmered slightly, reflecting his naked form. He remained undistracted, and vigilant.
"Wait a second..." Prime said, looking at himself. "Clothing?"
The images of people flashed though his mind again, and this time he noticed they were wearing garments. He remember what garments were.
"I'm...naked?" He muttered.
He looked around again,
"Why am I naked?!"
He looked around quickly for any trace of his clothing, then noticed the hole in the ceiling again. And that he was practically bald.
"Oh hell, why me?"
Prime remained panicked for his entire stay in the caverns, which thankfully lasted only around two hours. His first choice turned out to be the correct one, and the cave led him outside.
It was a warm, sunny day, and Prime thanked God for that. He didn't need to be naked an freezing to. Some vague sense of winter had him shivering at the thought, as though the caves hadn't been cold enough.
There was a city below the mountain, and he recognized it. He wasn't certain why, but he did.
"Vancouver?"
A piece of his mind recognized the skyline, and geology class.
He laughed, he could see the ocean beyond the city.
He could also see several helicopters heading directly for him.
"Uh oh, I guess a naked man falling through the sky could attract some attention. Time to go." He said, taking off at a swift jog down a trail. A few meters down he ran across a sign that said 'Grouse Grind', though he was uncertain that was in reference to.
Probably the name of the trail, didn't matter.
"Right, first priority, I would like some clothing." He said, though a part of his mind questioned why he was talking to himself so much.
"It makes me feel better." He muttered.
A dull rustling came out from behind the tree's, and Prime sensed motion. He snapped around, his blade in a defensive posture again.
Two startled hikers started at him, open mouthed, and silent.
Prime lowered his blade, then covered himself.
"Ahem, excuse me, would either of you happen to have a spare set of pants?"
One of the hikers slowly took off his backpack, and pulled out a set of swim trunks, and a t-shirt that said 'Grouse Trail' on the back.
Prime took them gingerly, "Thank you."
He put the clothing on as fast as he could.
"Um, enjoy the trail!" Prime said, running off again.
____________________________________________________
Paul and Serena looked at each other silently, then continued down the trail.
"Well you don't see that every day," Paul said.
"No, you certainly don't," Serena replied, "But you don't see meteorites every day either.
Paul nodded slowly, "Good day to be a tourist I suppose."
Serena just smiled, "Pretty handsome boy in any case."
____________________________________________________
"Finally!" Prime said exuberantly, earning startled stares from several people. He just smiled back at them, as several of them pulled out cell phones and took pictures, or made phone calls.
He'd made it to the downtown block of Vancouver, a long way off from the mountain outside the city. He felt bad about stealing the car, but he didn't see he had a lot of other choices. It wasn't like he had any money, and a little part of him said waiting around for help, could end very badly for him.
The word 'dissection' was rather prominent in his thoughts.
"Yeah we're on Burrard Street, just outside the Skytrain Station." A voice said, Prime looked around curious. "Yeah there's a guy with a sword here, he's wearing some blue swim trunks and a grouse trail t-shirt. He, uh, doesn't seem quite right."
Prime heard a vaguely garbled response from the other side of the line. His heart fell, and he heard sirens start up in the distance. He could've stepped on his heart at this point.
"God hates me." He muttered, about to climb back into the car, when a police car came around the corner. It fought against the traffic and the one way streets, but pulled up on Prime quickly, and two officers got out of the car.
"What are you doing son?" One of the officers asked. His badge said Ron Harken on it, his partner was a younger woman, her named read Joy Addler.
Ron was a fairly large man, obviously Irish with red hair much brighter than Prime's. He wore the uniform typical of a police officer, lots of pain inducing objects around his belt, the puffed out look of someone obviously wearing body armor, and heavy black boots that probably had steel toes.
His partner was similarly equip, but was a light framed skinny blond, with her hair tied back into a knot and a face that said any attitude on his part was likely to get his head knocked off his shoulders.
"Just taking a stroll down memory lane officers," Prime said, nodding his head affiably.
"With a sword?" Ron asked.
"Yep," Prime said, "Its illegal to carry them around concealed right?"
Ron was silent for a moment, and looked at his partner.
"We're going to have to confiscate that." Ron said, stepping towards Prime and reaching out for the sword.
Prime stepped back and moved the sword out of reach.
"I don't think so," Prime said, Joy pulled her weapon and trained it on Prime.
"Jesus christ, you can't just go taking things from people. I know its not illegal to own a sword in Canada." Prime said.
"If you don't hand over the weapon we will be forced to arrest you!" Ron said, "Please hand over the weapon now."
His weapon was now trained on Prime as well. Several people up and down the street were making their way towards the nearest exits. It didn't take a genius to understand something bad was going to happen.
Prime thought the officers were being rather unreasonable, and he was nervous about them pointing their guns at him. He rather doubted that they wouldn't arrest him, even if he gave the weapon up, and that word was dancing through his mind again.
Dissection.
He sighed, and took a deep breath.
"Don't!" Ron said. Joy raised her weapon to point straight at Prime's head.
"If you do not surrender the weapon and submit to arrest now you will be subject to deadly force!"She yelled.
"Crap." Prime said, stepping forwards.
Both the weapons discharged, blowing fragments out of the wall of the concrete building behind Prime.
His blade had traveled two smooth arcs, he'd not been standing in the way of the weapons. Two high pitched metallic thwanks could be heard, as the weapons muzzles hit the ground. Both officers were holding only half a pistol, a slight azure glow highlighting the area's Prime had cut through.
Both officers went for their tazers.
Prime punched Ron square in the face, laying him out across the ground, and swept Joy's feet out from under her, stepping on the hand that held the tazer. He tapped the tip of his blade gently on her throat. "Drop it."
She slowly let go, he could see the fear in her eye's now.
Prime smiled, "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you." He said, kicking the weapon aside.
"Why did you fight us then?" Joy asked.
Prime paused for a moment, "Because governments protect and serve their citizens, they define their citizens as fellow human beings. And I somewhat doubt they'd consider me worthy of the same rights as those human beings." He responded.
"But to be more honest, because my instinct says I shouldn't trust you." He took his foot off her hand, though he didn't allow her to get to her feet.
"Stay there, don't move." He said.
The street was practically deserted. Those that stilled used it were ignoring him with all their might. He remained unsurprised.
"Officer down, send back up!"
Prime turned around and kicked Joy in the head, rendering her unconcious.
He then directed the middle finger towards the sky, and took a look through the cop car. Then checked Ron and Joy.
He ended up with a slightly dirty soul and 200 dollars.
Would've ended up with a bullet proof vest to, but he didn't really like the idea of undressing an unconcious man.
"I should leave this car here," Prime muttered, glancing at the Corolla he'd stolen from the Grouse parking lot.
He popped into the car, and pulled everything out of the glove compartment.
"Awesome," He muttered, taking the cap off a sharpy.
Sorry I stole you're car, hope you have good lives! -Prime
Prime smiled as he finished writing on the steering wheel, then locked the car and left it parked on the side of the road.
It wasn't like he'd stolen their keys.
Some direction from the local population led him to take the skytrain to a place called 'Metrotown Mall', where he spent as little time as possible buying some new clothing.
He ended up with some blue jeans, a white tshirt, and a black hoodie. He also bought an ornamental sword, which he then threw away as soon as he got outside, storing his sword in its leather sheath. A bit of the blue crystal poked out of the end of the sheath, but Prime ignored it and he doubted anyone would think anything of it.
"Soooo, what now." Prime asked himself, standing below the Skytrain station, with a Bus depot beside him.
"Where do people like me go..."
He shook his head, slinging his sword across his back.
"Anywhere else, I guess."
OOC- This is directly after Yoshimitsu flung Prime though that portal. He doesn't remember who he is really, you probably already noticed. Anyone who wants to chime in with a character who might recognize Prime, or who can sense what he is, is welcome to. I do have a story that I'd like this to follow, somewhere I'd like to go with it.
He is pretty weak at the moment. Characters like Valon shouldn't join this topic. El, I love you, but Yoshimitsu is way to much power for this too, unless you want to throttle waaaaay down.
If you want to take potshots or try to kill Prime...go nuts. Please avoid the use of tanks or rocket launchers. If anyone wants to play with government organizations that are interested in people like Zebby, Prime, Yoshi, ect, then now is a fairly good time.
I'll tell you if you strike a chord that would never fit in the story I have in mind.
Ummmm, I don't have a lot to say aside from that. I will introduce one spoiler. By the end of this topic, I intend to introduce a new city to RP. If you guys want to use it in your own or not is entirely up to you, but getting there will be fun, how it works is fun in my mind, so I hope everyone enjoys it. Ride on my creativity, and make your own contributions as much as you like.
This is a rough beginning, I wish I could've spun something initially that was a little more purpose oriented, but having Prime flung into a portal was harshing on my brain so I wasn't perfectly sure what to do. And the incarnation he was in before was to powerful with to little time in progression.
Gah, sorry for the wall of text, but please jump in if you're even vaguely interested. I hope we'll all have fun.
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Post by Kuroboom on Sept 7, 2010 12:15:47 GMT -5
Out of a shadow, a red glow appeared followed by a small cloud of smoke. A tall man stepped out of the dark corner extinguishing his cigarette by rolling the end between his index finger and thumb, which dropped the cherry and a few flecks of tobacco to the ground before he pocketed the remaining filter. He was a fairly tall man, standing at six feet even, with chocolate-toned skin and had a very short haircut. He was dressed rather sharply in a deep grey suit with a black shirt and a purple/violet banded tie and matching handkerchief in his breast pocket. The thing that would stand out most to regular passerby was the black cat hanging onto his left shoulder. Its knowing, golden eyes seemed to pierce your soul as it stared, purring softly all the while.
The man observed Prime for a moment from behind his square sunglasses, taking in the his appearance almost contemplatively, before speaking. "People like you, you say?" He let the words stick in the air for a moment before continuing, "I do hope you'd be kind enough to elaborate; you've sparked my curiosity."
Kalim doubted the man was talking about anything common, the simple fact that he was carrying a sword around like it was medieval Europe was proof enough of that.
OOC: :D Funfact - I imagine him to have Keith David's voice.
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Sept 7, 2010 20:34:51 GMT -5
"You see him?"
"Yup, with a weird fuckin' sword."
Samm and Felix were on observation duty again. This time, it was of a matter significantly more important. Though Felix normally hated stakeout missions, he had been subjected to a good twenty minutes on just how crucial this mission was and how much attention he'd have to pay if he didn't want his wages docked. Samm just stood and nodded, the stoic bastard.
He was stood a good distance away from the figure he was observing, on top of a building and looking down. His black hair ruffled slightly in the breeze, his posture very relaxed. A bottle of some foul-smelling but moderately consumable alcohol was in his free hand, the other on a device attached to his ear. Felix adjusted his headset, the eyepiece zooming in on the figure he could see. Buzzed hair, muscles, sword.
"Interesting... I would wager that's no ordinary weapon," Samm's voice came through the earpiece.
"Sorta like your swords then?" Felix replied.
"If you want to look at it like that," Samm agreed.
Samm was in a similar position, but in the opposite direction. It was a joint mission, with one person to observe the target and the other to ensure safety of civilians. Samm was on top of a considerably taller building, his eyesight sweeping around the roads. It was unlikely that there would be any trouble, but you never could tell with Powers. His gaze kept on resting on the target, trying to analyze his posture and body language.
"Heads up, civilian out of his fuckin' mind," Felix warned.
Samm's eyes snapped to the second figure. A man, clad in a dark suit with a cat hanging from his shoulder. How unusual.
"Whatchu think, peacock?" Felix asked, grinning a little. He sipped his drink, then continued. "Power or not?"
"Too early to say, though I suspect he may need monitoring too," Samm replied, ignoring Felix's nickname for him. "Not normal cat behaviour, that much is certain."
"You're the boss."
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 8, 2010 11:20:08 GMT -5
"Operator," a woman said after pushing a button under a blinking light.
"HQ, this is Field Agent Price," a male voice said through the woman's headset.
"Your call is coming from the reserved satellite network. Is there an emergency?" The woman turned to a computer monitor and started bringing up the relevant information on the man.
"Yeah, I'd say this is kind of a situation. Start tracking me."
"Triangulation started," the woman said as she pushed a button underneath another nearby monitor. "What's the problem?"
"Just saw a blue meteor crash into a volcano here not too long ago coming out of what looked like a paranormal portal. Cell networks are clogged, traffics starting to jam up, and we've got sirens all over the place. Jesus, I thought we told Vancouver authorities to stay the fuck away from shit like this."
"I'll relay your concern and this information. Price, do you have any requests?"
"Yeah. Send a team this way. I intercepted an 'officer down' transmission, but I haven't seen any explosions, so yeah. Do standard lock down protocol. You know the drill. "
"Of course."
"Can you send me the location of the nearest injection point?"
"You will receive it shortly."
"Thanks. Price out."
The woman pressed another button to end the call. Without any delay, her professionally manicured fingers dialed extension 0001. This wasn't the first time, nor would it be the last time that she dialed the number. As the electronic waiting tone began buzzing in her ear, she started a search on her computer. A map appeared as well as a list of locations. She selected the one nearest to Price's position and sent it as a text message.
The buzzing stopped and another voice started speaking through the woman's headset. "Damage control. What's up?"
"Field Agent Price has requested lock down procedure, coordinates 49°15′ north 123°6′ west."
A pause.
"Vancouver area. Gotcha. Contacting media channels, sending out fake videos, readying the bloggers, relaying false reports to authorities, etcetera etcetera. Lockdown protocol's been started. Anything else?"
"Agent Price expresses concern that we have not notified the regional authorities of paranormal procedure."
"Third largest city in Canada, so we should've. I'll get someone to look into it."
"Thank you. That is all."
"Right. Peace out."
The woman pressed the button to end the call again. She wasn't quite sure how one could be so unprofessional with a job like this. Oh well. One more call. She dialed another number.
"Field operations. What have we got?"
"Field Agent Price has reported a meteor of probable paranormal origin in the Vancouver area and has requested a team for investigation. No large scale casualties, though officers were reported down."
"Forward me the relevant injection point. I'll get a beta team assembled and on their way."
The line clicked. The woman paused for a moment, wondering if the other man had hung up or was busy with something. Another moment passed. She hung up.
Field Agent Alexander Price's cellphone beeped. He entered the pattern to unlock the screen and was greeted with a picture of a map. A route was traced with a thick blue line on the streets from his current position (a green dot) to what was probably the nearest injection point (a red dot). He quickly memorized the directions, put the device in his suit jacket's pocket, then began jogging along the route.
As he rounded the corner of a building, his eyes immediately focused on a young man with a sword on his back. The scabbard was fake. The sword was not. Price had long ago figured out how to spot the difference between a LARPer and a guy that wasn't playing for just points.
Shit.
Price immediately slowed his jogging to a businessman's power walk and entered the crowd between the bus station and the mall, hoping to get lost in the flow of people. At least this place wasn't panicking. Maybe they hadn't seen the giant fucking portal appear in the sky. Or maybe he jumped the gun on laying blame, and Saeptum was actually pretty damn good at covering this shit up.
He couldn't get to the injection point, where what he assumed would be a beta team would teleport to shortly. And he definitely couldn't pull his gun in a crowded area, nor would he have pulled it out without any backup. He pulled out his phone and sent a text over the satellite channels back to headquarters.
"Possible Power at metrotown mall. Revise threat to gamma and undercover."
He didn't want guys in body armor and rifles coming into a public area, but he still wasn't doing anything without back up. He tuned his phone back to listening to police channels then put his earbud back in his ear.
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
1%
Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Sept 8, 2010 15:33:05 GMT -5
Prime turned calmly but quickly the examine the man, keeping his expression carefully neutral. Something told him it was important that he looked comfortable in this sort of situation, it robbed the illusion of advantage.
His eye's took in the man's appearance, tall, well dressed. His eye's flicked over the cat, vague secondary memories playing through his head. He couldn't remember clearly, but he could tell the cat was looking at more than just the world around it.
"I doubt I need to elaborate." Prime finally said, "You have an aura that a normal, sane man, wouldn't dare walk with. No offense, but people would cross the street to avoid you."
Prime looked around carefully again, finally deciding that if people like him had a place to go, hanging around at a bus stop would probably be the last place they'd want to stay. He sighed.
"If you want to know whats not normal about me, stick around for a while. You'll probably find out." Prime said, as he moved towards the Skytrain station again, then stopped. A man in the crowd had made eye contact with him, and now Prime couldn't see him.
"Fuck," Prime bit off the curse like an epitaph, "Good sense tells me I'm being paranoid, but I think I'm justified being paranormal. I'm being tailed." Prime turned back to the visitor, "You may not want to stick around."
He started scanning the roof tops for snipers, and maneuvered himself somewhat deeper into the crowds. He didn't like using them as a shield, but he rather hoped this was a gamble that he'd win, not getting shot at would be a style of wonderful.
He made it across the bus station, and took a service road through the mall. There were no people in the narrow road, just loading docks for trucks and forklifts. A few boxes were piled up on either side, here and there, and the dumpsters near the end of the road looked quite full.
The roof tops had a sheer overlook, so anyone pointing a gun down from there would be remarkably obvious. Sadly seeing them was the only thing he'd be able to do, having no ranged weapon to retaliate with.
Prime growled, staying close to the wall as he walked calmly down the narrow road. He pulled his hoodie up and checked to see if his visitor had chosen chaos and uncertainty over order and safety. He had a feeling the man was still there.
OOC: Perfect so far on both Yoshi and Choobehs parts, you guys are gems. Props to Choobehs post for providing a needed plot device as well.
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Post by Kuroboom on Sept 9, 2010 0:17:46 GMT -5
Kalim could tell Nugget had been right about this man, he usually was after all. This man had not only accurately detected Kalim's essence, he also managed not to visibly show unease while in Kalim's presence or while Nugget stared at him. He decided to take the man up on his offer to find out more; the hint of blue crystal peering out of the scabbard had caught Nugget's eye and Kalim always benefited with Nugget happy.
Kalim trailed the man out of the station and down the service road. He didn't worry about following too closely or too far away; the people watching this man would undoubtedly have already taken note of him and if Kalim lost the man, Nugget would tell him where to go.
Kalim's voice cut through the air like a knife, "So you're trying to escape, but you pick the path that has the best ambush potential?" He let his words sink in only for an instant before saying, "My name's Kalim, by the way," as he extended his right hand.
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
1%
Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Sept 9, 2010 4:11:23 GMT -5
"Prime, and I chose this avenue because it offers less collateral damage. Getting people killed is no way to have the public on your side, plus if we do get ambushed, we know I'm not being paranoid. If we don't, then its one of two things." Prime said, cautiously walking down the alley.
"We either really aren't being followed, or they aren't prepared to control us for some reason." Prime muttered, eyeing that cat again. He couldn't say he was happy to have the visitor along, dude was very creepy, but he tried not to let it show.
Modern day politeness and all that, you'd walk right past someone politely, even if you thought they were a sociopath. Ah well, it wasn't like he was ill prepared for that event.
Prime stopped in the middle of the alley, looking around carefully for a moment. He couldn't see anyone from above or coming in from the side, so he hoped he was unobserved.
"Alright," Prime said, drawing his sword. He nodded to his companion, and shoved his blade into one of the sheet metal doors to either side of the alley. He cut a hole through it with some effort, but notably less than an average person might have had.
"Let's take the crowded route from here." Prime muttered, and slipped through the hole, motioning for his companion to follow if he was going to.
The loading bay was dark, it was heading on towards the after hours of the day, having taken a considerable time to reach Vancouver. The bay was shut down, the stores inside the mall slowly close, people milling about outside of the bay. Prime moved quickly down the hallways, looking for a service door, and slipped into the mall proper.
He doubt he could be totally inconspicuous next to his new companion, but he slipped into the sparse crowd none the less, and made his way slowly towards the north end of the mall, and the movie theaters.
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 9, 2010 12:49:50 GMT -5
Shit. Had he been that obvious? Price didn't even bother looking down to his phone to speed dial Saeptum HQ, despite it having a touch screen interface.
His earbud had a built in microphone, which he spoke into as soon as he heard the familiar word.
"Operator."
"Field Agent Price again. Forward me to the Field Operations Coordinator in charge of my case."
"Just a moment."
Price stood up and began tailing the potential power from a distance, keeping his walking speed the same as the crowd around him. God, what could have spooked him so much? A guy in a gray business suit, but no tie, shouldn't have attracted much attention in a metropolitan area at all.
"What's the situation?" There was no preface, no acknowledgment of names or titles. Just a succinct phrase to get the point across.
"Tailing a potential Power. He's got a sword on his back the same color as the meteor I just s– ah, shit, he's walking down a service road. I'll stick out like a sore thumb if I follow him there... wait, I think he's got a friend. With a cat on his shoulder."
"Right."
"I don't ev–"
"Just sit tight. The op team is nearing your position."
Click.
Price looked around. Useless, considering that the op team would be traveling in pairs at the most in order to blend with the crowd.
"Price," a voice said from behind him.
Price turned around, slightly startled, to find an ordinary looking man with a shaved haircut and a similar gray suit, though his shirt was blue and still had its tie.
"Lawson," Price said, immediately recognizing his coworker. No time for smalltalk, no need to preface names with 'agent' if someone should overhear. He did, however, grin with the name and patted the man on the shoulder. An act for any outsiders. "Possible with a sword walked down that service road, dressed in a black hoodie and jeans. He's with a guy with a cat on his shoulder."
"Right. HQ got us that info before coming, so we have people spread throughout the area in the crowds. Thoughts?"
"No casualties, so far, and he looks like he's paranoid. I'd say we take standard gamma Power procedure and observe."
"I was thinking the same. So we wait until someone spots them. Shouldn't be too hard."
Price nodded. "Has a DC crew been sent to the impact site?"
"Yeah. They've blocked access to media teams and are scrubbing the area for any artifacts. An event this big we can't cover up. People will know something's happening. We're just here to observe and make sure things don't escalate."
"As always."
"What, you wanted some action?" Lawson said.
"Jesus, the last time I had action I ended up with almost getting killed by a vase. A fucking vase! No, I think I'm absolutely wonderful with observation."
Lawson just nodded in understanding, no hint of a smile. Suddenly, a single beep came from his jacket. The agent pulled out his cellular device, scanned the screen, then put it back.
"Mortensen thinks she's seen them up north by the theaters," Lawson said. "Let's go."
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Sept 11, 2010 21:36:35 GMT -5
"Where's he at, peacock?" Felix asked, taking a healthy (or not so healthy) swig of his drink. It burned a little as it went down his throat, but it had been a while since he'd found that unpleasant. Soberiety was for people who didn't have fun.
"Lost himself in the crowd, but I've still got my eye on him," Samm replied, keeping his eye locked on the figure. It was moderately difficult to keep track of both him and the figure with the cat. "Felix, keep an eye on the second one. I'll follow the target."
The pair were silent for a moment, keeping their eyes locked on their relative targets. Despite any level of intoxication, Felix was still a professional. It was a simple matter of focusing hard enough. He absentmindly sipped his drink again as his eyes followed the figure with the cat. Samm was concentrating completely, not allowing his eyes to wander from the red shaven head. They were the best, especially at recon and observation.
A ringtone interrupted Felix's concentration, just as Samm's target left the crowd.
"Answer it, I've got them now," Samm urged quickly. Felix raised his phone to his ear.
"Felix here, 'sup," he greeted casually, despite knowing the call was coming from a higher-up. He listened for a minute, then hung up without saying anything else. "Samm, looks like we're not the only fuckin' ones who know 'bout this."
"What do you mean?" Samm asked quickly.
"Someone's planted a buncha fake leads and fuckin' media coverage," Felix explained. "Higher-ups say we've gotta watch our backs and make sure we don't get frickin' tailed."
"Gotcha. They're headed for the movie area, carry on surveying the area," Samm instructed. Felix downed the bottle and threw it casually over his shoulder, on to the rooftop.
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 15, 2010 7:48:20 GMT -5
Price and Lawson soon found a blond woman sitting idly on one of the mall benches near the theater area. She was dressed far more casually than the other two, opting for dark jeans and gray blouse instead of the usual business casual affair. A cigarette was placed behind her ear, and a cellphone of the same make and model as the other two's was clenched tightly in her hand.
"Gentlemen," she said with a smile. She stood up and gave each of them a friendly hug.
"Mortensen," Price said as he embraced her.
Like everyone else in this mission, she went straight into explaining the situation. "Saw our friends in this area, so I SMSed Philips and Reagan to watch the exits. Haven't heard back from them, though."
"When did you send the texts," Lawson said.
"About two or three minutes ago, then two follow ups a minute after each."
"I'll give them a call," Lawson said. He took out his phone and immediately began looking through his contacts. "I'll call Philips. Price, you call Reagan."
"Gotcha," Price said, quickly dialing the appropriate number.
Mortensen kept her eye on the crowd. She wasn't being subtle anymore. "I've got a bad feeling about this. Those two are usually really good about answering back."
"Maybe your phone is broken," Lawson said.
"Doubt it. I got a hold of you guys just now."
"Shit, I got nothing. No dial tone, no answering machine," Price said, looking down at his phone.
"Me neither." Lawson put his phone back in his pocket.
"I don't think both their phones would break."
"Me neither."
Mortensen chimed in. "Hey, you gents think it might be our friends playing a prank on us?"
"That's not a likely possibility. They only possibly saw Price's face."
"Christ, I know it's not my fault."
"I'm not saying it is."
"...Maybe it's their's?" Price said, his eyes stopping to stare at two nonchalant looking individuals wearing long black trenchcoats and dark sunglasses. They weren't looking in the group's direction, but they definitely stuck out. "I noticed them when were talking earlier, Lawson."
"I did as well," the other man said. "Do you think they're following and blocking us?"
"Who knows, but they definitely don't look like they belong."
"Shit."
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
1%
Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Sept 17, 2010 18:28:48 GMT -5
OOC: As Kuro has been deployed, and we don't yet know what his access is, I'm filling in a few small holes while his state is unknown. I've already spoken to him about it, so no worries. Prime frowned as he approached the movied theater, his guest still staying fairly close behind him. Thankfully the man appeared to be a silent character, hopefully he'd also prove to be violent if shot at. He kept his eyes on his surroundings, checking the stores as he passed them, once and a while casually glancing over his shoulder. He couldn't see anyone, not even as he frequently checked the glass rooves. Still, the feeling that he was being followed persisted. He sighed as they approached the theater through a side hall, still large but thankfully no roof windows. He looked around carefully, and motioned for Kalim to follow him. The pair rushed down a staircase three levels, and emerged in the second level of the parkade. Prime breathed a small sigh of relief, they'd either have to follow quickly and risk exposing themselves. Or they'd have to try and pick him up when he left. Several exits made his escape fairly likely. Prime shook his head trying to clear it, reminding himself that there was no proof he was actually being followed as yet. Prime sauntered casually over to an Acura Integra, trying to ignore the fact that Kalim utterly killed his casual routine. Looking carefully around him, Prime remained unobserved, and so unsheathed his sword. He frowned at it a long moment, and the whole thing shrank to the side of your average kitchen knife, though much thicker. "Should've thought of that earlier," Prime said, tossing the sheath aside. "Would've saved me a lot of trouble." He worked the edge of the knife around the edges of the lock, breaking the rubber seal. Then inserted the tip less than gently into the locking mechanism, and twisted hard. The whole mechanism broke loose, but remained in the door. Prime pushed the locking tumbler up, just angling it without removing it, and the lock popped open. "Right, get in." Prime said to Kalim, "If you're still interested in tagging along anyways." He unlocked the passanger door for Kalim as he climbed in, he doubted the man would've let Prime leave him behind anyways. Some of his more innate memories were telling him what to do, so Prime slipped the knife through the edge of the door, and broke the inner casing away from the door. Once that was done, he pulled a few wires out, and the power windows child lock button. He pried the casing away from the bottom of the steering colum, and disconnected the ignition. He crossed four wires, routing them through the child lock button. Afterwards pressing the button to start the car. He kept the whole assembly together with some sticky weatherproofing from behind the drivers side door. He noticed a few people giving him odd looks, and he smiled awkwardly. One of them took out his cellphone. "Time to leave I think, though he's not gonna get a call out down here anyways." Prime said through gritted teeth, watching the man frown at his phone and head for an elevator. "Right thats good, take the long way." Prime said, grabbing the steering column. He twisted it sharply, breaking the pins inside the wheels mechanism that would otherwise lock the wheel in place. Prime drove the car out of the garage somewhat awkwardly, dull reflexes not exactly helping him on the transmission, but at length he pulled out onto the road, and headed for the freeway. It was getting towards late afternoon, and traffic was fading away quickly. By the time he got to the freeway, any car on the road would be suspect. And then he would know whether or not he was really being followed. "Hold on," Prime said to Kalim, pulling up the on ramp. He gunned the car, quickly reaching speeds well in excess of the 100 Kilometer speed limit. If anyone was following him, he wanted it to be obvious. And if they were keeping up with him, as they'd have to if they wanted to follow, it'd be bloody obvious.
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 26, 2010 10:49:11 GMT -5
"We split up," Lawson said, his brow furrowed with concern. "There's only two of them that we can see, so they can't follow all of us." "You're the boss," Mortensen replied. "Where do we meet and in how long?" "Ten minutes, front entrance, but only if you're not being followed. If you make contact with any group, attempt calling one of the team again." "Alright. Gentlemen," Mortensen said. She half-waved with a smile, turned on a heel, and promptly began walking toward the nearest exit. She nonchalantly took the cigarette from behind her ear and absent-mindedly put it in her mouth, fishing in her pocket presumably for a lighter. Simultaneously, Price and Lawson exchanged a look as well as a mumbling of "good luck," then parted ways. Lawson immediately began walking south, and Price headed for the theaters. Out of the corner of his eye, Price caught one of the trenchcoated men take off after Lawson. The other one was staying his ground. Price didn't bother being discreet. He kept his hands in his pockets and stared right at the guy. So you're my guy, huh? Fuckin' hell, I hope you're reading my mind right now so you can see how ugly you are.No tingle on his surface thoughts, no look of disdain on the man's face, so more than likely, no direct mind reading. That was good. Hate having to share head space.There was no line to the box office, so Price walked straight up to the counter. He bought a ticket for The American (using his Saeptum credit card; no way was he paying for an overpriced cinematic experience with his own money) and went straight for the theater's darkened entrance. He noticed his 'friend' move to keep line of sight. Guy's not too good at staying hidden now that he was the focus of attention.Price took a quick mental inventory of possible exits. Of course there was the entrance, but Trenchcoat was probably hanging out there, if he hadn't already purchased a ticket to pursue. Bathroom windows might be a possibility, but those were notoriously hard to get through, especially at a guarded place like a theater. Last, and best, possibility was the multitude of emergency exits, probably at the end of the halls and in the auditoriums. Price casually walked across the faded red carpet, taking note of how many stains never got taken out. At the hallway choke point, he was greeted by a less than enthusiastic teenager. The agent held out the ticket which was taken without much question, ripped, and handed back. "Enjoy the movie," the pimple-faced boy said in a dull monotone. He didn't even make eye contact. The agent didn't fake a smile back. There was a reason Price got a ticket to the movie he did. It had "started" five minutes ago, which meant it was well into the trailers. It had also just come out, so there was bound to be a crowd. As the man entered the enveloping darkness, the brilliant flashes of the screen illuminated the audience, and just as he had predicted, most seats were taken. He needed a quick pause to make sure Trenchcoat wasn't on his tail still. Price headed for the seats farther back where he would have view of the entrance. A single woman sat near the edge and next to an empty seat. He promptly took that seat. "This seat's taken," the woman whispered. "Shhh." Price took out a $50 (again, Saeptum money) and discreetly handed it to her. "Just be quiet." The woman accepted. Price didn't bother trying to read her reaction; he was too busy watching the aisle for his 'friend.' There. Trenchcoat walked in and began surveying the crowd. Price took his eyes off of him and directed them at the beginning credits, though he kept the man in his peripheral vision. A minute passed. George Clooney did something witty and hilarious. Another minute. Then Trenchcoat left. One more minute. Another man was walking up the aisle, giving Price and the woman a questioning look. "Thanks," Price said to the woman. He stood up and made his way to the nearest exit, exchanging an awkward glance with the woman's date or husband or whatever on the way down. The agent opened the door and was greeted with the harsh gaze of fluorescent lighting. He blinked instinctively, but didn't bother waiting for his eyes to adjust to start walking down the hall. Suddenly, Price felt his pants vibrate. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Thank God, the phones were working again. 'where r u?' Mortensen, of course. Lawson spelled out his words. 'lost tail. on my way.' It took the agent another five minutes to find his way down some stairs and out into the open air and finally to the front entrance. He caught Mortensen's blond hair before he could smell her currently burning cigarette. "You look stressed, love," she said with a smile. "Yeah. Got an extra cig?" "'Course." OOC: Ok! I think I found your narrative voice, MR PRICE. NEXT
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Post by The Evil Biscuit on Sept 27, 2010 22:43:07 GMT -5
Lawson mused as he wandered through the steady crowd, hands in his pockets, eyes drifting from window to window, each one packed with vibrant designer garments and the latest unnecessary cutting-edge technology. Who needed a laser-guided bread knife, really? The agent allowed himself a few more moments of window shopping before he returned his attention to the trenchcoat tailing him. He caught a glimpse of him in the stainless steel trim of a pylon, gliding through the crowd with surgical ease. This guy had style. He flicked his wrist and let the low-hanging Breitling swing around to show its chrome-dressed face. Four minutes had passed. Time to nut up or shut up. ----------------- He fell in behind a neatly dressed man, walking deliberately with his head tucked down into the entrancing glow of a Blackberry. Lawson eyed him carefully, sizing him up. That was a good-looking jacket he had. Slate gray, subtle pinstriping, tailored. Yeah, he grinned, he'll do. He glanced ahead. They were approaching the elevator to the upper floor. This was it. 'Hey, buddy.' 'Wha- hey, let go of my arm! Hey!' 'Relax, friend. I'm just window shopping here. That is a nice jacket you have, you know that? Turn here, let's take the elevator.' 'Let go of me! SECU-augh...' 'Wouldn't do that. I can pinch that nerve clean in half if I want to. Listen, buddy. I gotta make a quick deal with you. It's worth your time, I promise.' The elevator began to close, carrying a full crowd. The trenchcoat moved in swiftly and crossed his hand between the sliding doors, arresting their motion and drawing them back into the walls. As the doors began their slow crawl together behind him, he settled his eyes on the back of the man in the corner, hiding his face, but unmistakable in that agency black suit coat. Unblinking eyes watched from behind tinted lenses as he laid a heavy hand on the man's shoulder and spun him around. ----------------- 'Can't you read? No smoking within fifty feet of an entrance.' Lawson's dry humor always remained perpetually trapped in the gray area between seriousness and joking. He brought a wrinkled cigarette to his lips as he coolly descended the stairs towards Price and Mortensen. He pulled his sunglasses out of the pocket of a neatly cut, slate gray blazer and began to polish the lenses. 'We're clean. For now, anyway. Check your phone, Price - we've got an agent who says he saw our boy steal a car and take off up 1A.' He tucked the polishing cloth into his breast pocket and glanced at the Saeptum agents. 'Looks like,' he placed the shades casually onto his face, 'we're hitting the road.' YEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH
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Post by ch00beh on Sept 29, 2010 7:37:01 GMT -5
OOC: *guitar* Price took his cigarette out of his mouth then blew the smoke away from the group. He looked down at it for a moment, then at the entrance, then took three steps to his right. "That's about 50 feet." The agent's phone vibrated again. He checked it. Apparently he had missed Reagan's text while messaging Mortensen. 'Target stole a light blue Integra. Headed up 1A' "Shit," Price said. "You call HQ, Lawson?" "Not yet." "Alright, I got it." Price closed the message on his phone and speed dialed Saeptum HQ again. He didn't bother with the earbud and just put the device next to his ear like a normal person. "..." "Price again. Could you forward me to Field Operations?" "..." "The target's stolen a light blue Acura Integra and is going down the 1A. We'll need a car to follow and satellite tracking to find them for us since they've got a pretty good head start. Some guys in trenchcoats were tailing us, too." "..." "Not sure. Maybe not yet." "..." "Thanks— Gah I hate it when FO hangs up like that." "You know how they are with their work, Price," Mortensen said. Smoke drifted lazily out of her mouth as she spoke. She put the cigarette back in her mouth. "Prob'ly handling five other cases as we speak." "Yeah, probably. Anyway, we've got a car getting sent to the injection point, and Communications is looking for the target's car." "I'll send the other two boys an SMS to meet us there." Mortensen pulled out her phone and began tapping its screen.
It took fifteen minutes for the trio to get back to the "abandoned" warehouse the team had originally appeared in. Moments before arriving, Price had received a phone call saying the satellite tracking team had found the car and were watching it. Directions and plate number would get forwarded to the GPS in the car. Apparently the guy was gunning down the highway like a bat out of hell, so he wasn't too hard to find. The side door was slightly ajar, and the lights inside were on. The other guys must have made it in first. Price opened the door all the way and stepped in, then regretted that action. He immediately drew his pistol from his belt. "Bloody hell! What the fuck happened?" Mortensen shouted. She took out her own gun and scanned the room, then walked forward to the surprise that had awaited them. Propped up against a rusted, empty shelf was a large African American male, somewhere in his twenties, with a sharpened shaft of rebar sticking out of his chest. Blood had dribbled from his mouth and stained his white collared shirt. Mortensen squatted next to him and put her fingers to his neck. "Dead." Price already had his phone out. "Operator, get me Field Op." Beat. "Price here. Philips is dead. Murdered. Jesus Christ... ah... FUCK!" The agent's voice echoed within the warehouse. He took deep breath and closed his eyes. "Ok, we're going to need a new car, and the old car is going to need scrubbing. Shit. Put some guns in the new car, too." Price hung up then held his gun steadily with both hands again. He scanned the area as he made his way between the dust laden shelves to an emptier clearing. In the middle of the area sat a large black suburban. He wasn't touching it. If someone got Philips, they probably got the car. From the look of that rebar, the guys had a touch of the paranormal to them, or they were obsessive compulsive about sharpening sticks that normally aren't used as weapons. Mortensen came up behind Price. She looked back to cover the area that Price couldn't see. "You think it was those bloody Powers we've been chasing?" "I'd say the Trenchcoats, if anything. Looks like they can do a bit of magic." "What are we going to do with the body?" "Field Operations should be here in a bit to take this car out and Philips back." Mortensen sighed. Suddenly, there was a flash of light. When the agents' eyes had refocused, they saw five men in hazmat suits running up to the car. Two others went up to Price and Mortensen. "Where's the body?" Price just pointed down the aisle. "We've got it from here. Your new car should be coming in as soon as we get this one out." The people who had gone to the car brandished a slew of hand-held devices to scan the car. Within thirty seconds, they had gone over the entire thing. One of them made a motion with his or her thumb then attached a device to the vehicle's hood. A moment later, there was another flash of light and the clearing was once again empty. No sooner had the black suburban disappeared did another flash of light occur. In the black car's place was another suburban, this time middle gray, still with tinted windows. Price hurriedly went up to the driver's side and opened the door. He looked in the back seat and was slightly comforted to find a couple Benellis and M4s as well as four bullet proof vests. He reached over and took one, putting it on fairly quickly, before getting into the driver's seat.
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Post by Kuroboom on Oct 8, 2010 14:52:36 GMT -5
Kalim didn't buckle his seat belt. One because he wasn't concerned and two because Nugget had taken up to napping in his lap while he scratched Nugget's ears. The cat purred softly.
Prime seemed to be concentrating heavily on driving. He was being chased by strangers and he had a stranger (and potential murderous psychopath for all Prime knew) in the car he just stole from a parking garage; Kalim was struck by how calm Prime seemed with all of this going on. Kalim kept his eyes on the road and passing scenery, gathering his thoughts for the questions he had. Nugget was right about this guy, he wasn't anyone normal and his weapon seemed decidedly unique. Even if Kalim had no use for such an object, it could fetch a decent price.
"So," Kalim spoke at last, "What exactly is your story and where did you find such an interesting weapon?"
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
1%
Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Oct 13, 2010 11:16:18 GMT -5
"Hmmmmm," Prime said, momentarily distracted from driving. He downshifted and feathered the clutch to slow the vehicle down. No one seemed to be following them, and he'd be remiss if he caught the police's attention again.
"Ah well, my story is a rather short one I'm afraid." Prime said cooly, "The bright blue streak you saw in the sky earlier was me, hitting the side of a mountain. Which didn't hurt anywhere near as much as it should've."
Prime frowned, continuing, "As for the weapon, it seems as though anything I touch that has the potential to be changed into a weapon, is changed into a weapon."
Prime twisted around in his seat, looking behind him, into the back of the hatchback car. He pried up the board covering the emergency equipment, keeping and eye on the road, and pulled out the tire iron.
"See?" Prime said, as the tire iron shimmer a cool blue, a fallen piece of an eldritch sky. Its shape liquified, then spurted forwards. It twisted, and shaped a deep grey longsword. Classic style, like the knights of old used to carry.
Prime put the sword in the back seat, knowing it'd return to its former state fairly shortly.
"As for the rest, I don't know. I think I have a mild sort of amnesia. I do remember my name is Prime, and I've gotten flashes of memory here and there, but for the most part I think I'm cut off from my past." He frowned.
"Not sure whether thats a good or bad thing."
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Post by Yoshimitsu on Oct 13, 2010 12:41:18 GMT -5
"Both targets are in a car," Samm stated, zooming in on the car in question. It was moving too quickly for him to keep observing now. Within minutes, it would be completely out of sight. "Do we have a satellite image?"
"Affirmative boss man," Felix replied. "Just boot it up."
Samm whirled the dial on the side of his visor. Instantly, an aerial image of the car in question appeared in one eye. It was moving much too quickly for them now.
"Begin pursuit."
It took both agents less than five minutes to descend their buildings. Both of them had the foresight of bringing their standard-issue gear with them, including motorbikes. Capable of reaching speeds of up to two hundred kilometers per hour, perfect steering and handling and enough grip on the tires to allow for any kind of slowing or stopping. The absolute best. Samm kicked the stand from his bike and revved the engine. He swung the bike round and accelerated rapidly, weaving expertly through the traffic.
"Avoid arousing suspicion," Samm instructed, as Felix came into sight behind them. They both hit the highway, Samm a little further ahead. "Accelerate past the targets and act casual."
"Stop bein' so fuckin' uptight, man," Felix replied with a laugh. "How often do we get to mess around on these beauts?"
Samm had to admit, Felix had a point. It wasn't often they were allowed to really put the bikes through their paces. He took his speed up a notch, hitting one-twenty kilometers per hour. Felix shot past on his bike, a grin on his face. Samm recognised the look on the other boy's face, he was gunning for a race. Not today, though. This work was serious.
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Post by The Evil Biscuit on Nov 3, 2010 20:36:38 GMT -5
'Fuckin' phone...'
He was lost. Big time lost.
Reagan looked up. Buildings bordered him on all sides. The streets were unmarked here in the industrial complex, and everything was bedecked in tin siding and sheeted roofing. He was surrounded by sunlit silver. He was lost.
'So... that building didn't have the pigeon poop on it... but... that one also has pigeon poop on it... so I've... been here before?' Reagan scratched his head. Landmarks were hard to find when everything looked the same. He glanced at his phone and tapped the GPS service for the twentieth time. The cell beeped in response. No service. No location. Lost. The agent sighed. This was only his first week.
'Maybe it's this way... no... pretty sure I've seen that tin building before. Or maybe it's that one. Probably this one here.' He depressed the button on his walkie rapidly, absent-mindedly. The chirp-chirp echoed sharply off the sheeted warehouses... then came back. Reagan turned.
Had he just heard that? He chirped the walkie again. There, that wasn't an echo, that was another radio! Reagan bolted down the street.
---------
When he rounded the corner, Lawson, Price and Mortensen were waiting for him. Lawson eyed him carefully.
'Where ya been, tiger? Been listening to your Morse code for ten minutes.'
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
1%
Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Nov 4, 2010 6:53:45 GMT -5
Prime finally let off, letting the Integra slow down to normal highway speeds. Around 20 over the limit, the cops wouldn't sweat it and the car shouldn't be reported stolen for a while, if he was lucky.
He cast a curious sidelong glance at his passanger, his mind charged with all the abnormal things he'd just experienced, that somehow felt normal. The fact had begun to disturb him, that maybe he didn't know what a normal life was.
But then, he hadn't chosen anything to fight for yet, or whether to fight at all. He cast another gaze at his passanger, deciding to distract himself.
"So, whats your story?" Prime asked as he was braking the car, "Why the interest in my nervous disposition? And whats with the cat?" Prime asked curiously.
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Post by ch00beh on Nov 4, 2010 7:39:27 GMT -5
"Get in the FUCKING car, you twats!" Mortensen shouted. She was sitting in the front passenger seat of the car, window rolled down, cigarette in her mouth. With her last word, her cigarette went flying out of her mouth and onto concrete floor. She cursed.
Price was leaning on the hood of the car next to her. "Jesus Christ, calm down," Price said. He jogged around the front of the car and hopped into the driver's seat. The keys were already in the ignition.
Mortensen already had her pack out and was pulled another white tube from the box with her lips. She kept the pack on her lap while she pulled out a lighter. As soon as she had her cigarette lit, she took it from her mouth. "Calm down? Fucking calm down? We've lost Philps, Price!"
"What do you mean we 'lost' Philips?" Reagan said as he climbed into the back seat.
"What do you fucking think I mean? He's dead! And because we've been waiting on you, we've probably lost the asshole we're trying to keep track of."
"Wha-"
"Just keep your mouth shut and follow directions."
"Mortensen," Price interjected. He was pulling the car out of the warehouse. He drove down an alley which ended at a minor road. The GPS spelled out a route for him to get to the highway.
"What?" The woman took a long drag from her cigarette. "Don't fucking tell me to calm down again or—"
"Lena."
The woman took another drag from her cigarette, even longer than the previous, and crossed her arms. She looked outside at the passing buildings which suddenly transitioned into the concrete wall of the onramp. "It's a coping mechanism, apparently."
"What is?"
"The cigarettes."
"I figured."
"Yeah, I didn't. I always thought it was something simpler like 'addiction.' But no, saw a therapist after the Lodeno Incident. What's her name, Romanesco? Yeah. Figured out that I only smoked three packs while the final casualties were getting tallied without me having to actually say anything."
"Oh. Lodeno. You were there. Fuck." Price eyed the GPS. He sped up. Lawson grabbed a flashing light from the floor, rolled down his window, and stuck the device to the top of the car so that they could speed without any problems. Highway patrol would have been alerted by Saeptum already.
"Twenty three dead. At least we got the fucker who masterminded it all."
"And for all that, all you got was a cigarette problem?"
"Could've been worse. Therapy's a great thing, and Romanesco is good at what she does. She didn't even get all high and mighty on me about smoking. Said it was better than alternatives, and we'd 'work on it later' or something like that."
"Huh. Maybe I should switch doctors."
"What, you got some deep, dark secret?"
"Maybe I do. Or maybe Dr. Spear's office smells. Doesn't concern you."
"Alright, I'll drop it. Though I will say that Romanesco's office smells like Febreeze."
"Right." The GPS beeped as another update came in from Saeptum's satellite team. "We're getting close. Reagan, can you still ID the car?"
"Y-Yeah."
Lawson rolled down his window and took the light off the car. Price slowed down to normal speeds. Needed to stay under cover.
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Post by Kuroboom on Nov 4, 2010 13:31:24 GMT -5
Kalim let out a bassy chuckle while still petting Nugget. "It was all his idea, really," he spoke in reference to the cat, "You see, Nugget loves treasure and was certain you would lead us to some. I don't really have any need for it myself, but it's always wise to keep him happy as it ensures his continued loyalty. Not that he'd be disloyal, but he can be somewhat fickle." Kalim was certain a normal person would raise an eyebrow at him for speaking of his cat this way, but he was pretty certain by now that memory loss or not Prime wasn't normal.
Kalim let a moment pass before continuing, "Nugget's about fifty years old by now, by your years. We don't really measure time very well where we came from; there isn't much light to judge the days passing..." Nugget looked up at Kalim lazily and spoke, "Ya don't gotta tell tha dude everything. Jeez, man, you just met 'em."
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
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Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Nov 4, 2010 18:56:59 GMT -5
"Ok, the cat talks and you two aren't actually from Earth." Prime said, supressing the urge to arch one of his eyebrows. His mind was processing, trying to figure out where they were from. But the only thing he could figure, was that they could be demonic. Outside of that he didn't have much recollection of experience with other worlds.
"Sorry," He said, speaking to Nugget. "Hard to get a handle around an animal as a part of the conversation, quite honestly I don't think its ever happened to me before." He cast his gaze back at Kalim.
"So what are you, demons? Or just Outsiders? Or we talkin more along the lines of an alternate reality here?" Prime asked, "I might say aliens, but then, I don't see how a cat form and a humanoid form would be from the same world. Unless one of you is a machine." Prime's brow furrowed, and he paused for a moment.
"Dear Lord I feel like my head is going to explode," Prime sad, giving a dry chuckle. "There are always far to many possibilities."
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Post by Kuroboom on Nov 4, 2010 22:14:10 GMT -5
"Relax, Nugget, I think we can trust this man. After all, he DID take us with him and for all he knows we could be murderers," Kalim spoke. Nugget merely flitted his tail in an irritated manner.
"Let's see, how can I explain this best?" Kalim paused for a moment while he gathered his thoughts, "All of the mythological creatures that have ever existed do exist in their own worlds and dimensions. Nugget and I are from a pocket dimension that's full of darkness. Only one of us is a Demon though; Nugget is an Imp. I guess to you people they're similar to or the same as demons, but we see ourselves differently. Not to refer my friend here as being a lesser species or unevolved, but to us that would be like saying that you are the same thing as a chimpanzee." Nugget's tail flitted a little at the last sentence. Kalim sighed inside; Nugget was so moody right now.
"I myself am a Demon, though not in the traditional Biblical sense where I want to lead you to darkness and eat your soul or whatever. Nugget is my familiar and that's why we came here, really. He loves treasure and I like to keep him happy and as far as treasure goes, you guys are loaded here."
The mention of treasure got Nugget purring again. Kalim continued to stroke his ears before finishing his explanation, "Obviously these aren't our 'true forms' but I'd much rather blend in than have everyone panicking from the two of us wandering around. You look like they do and you have a mob of people hunting you down."
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
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Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Nov 7, 2010 5:06:48 GMT -5
Prime sighed, "I wish I could say I was surprised, but somehow I think life would be far less interesting in the instance." He noticed two speeding motorcycles behind them, pulling up fast. Nice bikes, Prime grinned in approval, giving the riders a wave.
He didn't even notice the black unmarked sedan in all the traffic on the highway, the subdued colors of mass marketed cars droning together. What he did notice, was a faint point of light around 1400 meters straight down the highway, off angled and with a good vantage point.
"See, that for instance?" Prime said, pointing. He waited until Kalim had aquired the target before speaking again. "That little point of light, which I'm unsure whether your familiar with, could mean one of two things." He said slowly, "Either its a coincidence, a reflection off a window or something."
Prime eyed the low sun beside them, and the dot of light didn't fade away.
"Or, its a sniper scope, tracking us." Prime said, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Sadly, since it hasn't disappeared, it means the angle is tracking us." Prime sighed, and gave a sad little laugh.
"Brace yourself."
A sonic boom rung across the landscape, and one of the Integra's tires practically exploded into black rubber dust. The bare rim against the highway concrete threw up heavy sparks, a blaze of bright orange and yellow matching and mixing with the setting sun. Prime jerked the wheel, his arms visibly straining as it fought him.
"Aaaand, number 2!" Prime yelled grimly. A figure wearing dark scarlet and black armor appeared out of the brush beside the highway. He was covered head to toe, and the armor had a vaguely organic look to it. His hands were engulfed by larger hands, acting as puppeteers for the much larger smashing devices.
"Oh hell," Prime said, as the figure smashed a fist into the side of the car, knocking it inter the divider. More sparks flew as Prime fought to keep the vehicle under control, and the figure fell back. He was quick, but not fast enough to keep up with the car in a dead sprint.
Not that it mattered anymore, the frame has twisted, the driveline was clinging only tenuously. The engine revved randomly as the clutch plate skipped over the flywheel, failing utterly to transmit power to the wheels. The car slowed to a crawl, and then to a half.
Prime looked up to a soft tap, seeing a smaller man with two knives bracing his foot against the hood of the car. He was head to toe in armor similar to the other, and his knives glowed an ominous plasma purple. His armors highlights were coloured to match.
"Fuc-" Prime bit off, his sword coming round from the back seat to intercept the long knives as they darted for his throat. He parried twice, grappling with his seatbelt, and a long smoking gash appeared on his arm. Payment for his safety oriented mindset.
He ripped the seatbelt free just as the scarlet armored foe caught up, ripping the passanger door off and reaching for Kalim with casual strength. Prime was sadly unable to pay further attention to him, as the violet armored foe renewed he assault, and Prime booted him back out the windshield.
He followed him, flourishing his sword was casual, experienced grace. He was using his left hand now, acting to unsettle those viewing him. Martial artists inexperienced were often hit with a sense of wrongfulness and confusion when confronting a left handed martial artist.
It wasn't something they were used to dealing with, handing Prime a slight edge. And costing him nothing since he was ambidextrous to begin with.
Another sniper shot rang out, this time aimed dead center for Kalims cat. Primes sword flicked out, catching the edge of the bullet, but he was to slow. It deflected marginally, but was still heading straight for the cat.
Prime flinched as he heard the bullet thud into something, but couldn't spare the time to check, a whirl of bright blue was confronting a double cresent of violet in the dimming light. Prime pressed forwards with a vicious smile as he realized, this pair was used to working as a team.
And for the moment, they were seperate, since one had to deal with Kalim and the other with Prime. As long as Kalim could hold his own, it was pretty much dead even. Though they would both have to guard against the snipers attacks.
And then, he felt the blunt muzzle of a gun on the back of his head. He turned fractionally.
"Goodbye." The black and dark silver suited woman said. Prime just managed to move out of the way as a dark blue plasma discharge streaked past his head and burnt a two foot hole in the ground.
Crap, Prime thought, not so even after all. He growled as another steaming wound appeared in his flesh, streaking across his chest this time.
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Post by Kuroboom on Nov 7, 2010 7:29:34 GMT -5
Kalim eyed the glint Prime noticed and only had time enough to nod before the car's tire exploded. He winced with pain as Nugget dug his claws in to avoid being thrown around as he braced himself for a crash when the scarlet armored man punched the vehicle sideways into a divider. More pain as purple fluid seeped from the wounds Nugget was giving him as he hung on for dear life.
The crippled car rolled to a stop and as Kalim was checking to make sure Nugget was okay, the car door came flying off and the man in the black and scarlet armor ripped Kalim out of the car with Nugget still clinging on, hissing furiously. Kalim and Nugget were hurled to the ground and skidded a bit, with a dust cloud appearing behind them. The beast of a man stared down at them coldly whilst Kalim struggled to get to his feet. He looked over at Prime and time seemed to slow down as Prime shoved his blade out to deflect the shot. Kalim watched the bullet race towards his familiar. The sickening sound of a bullet penetrating something meaty filled the air. Purple blood oozed out of Kalim's back as he looked down at Nugget who was held tightly to Kalim's chest. "He ruined my suit," Kalim said to his little friend.
Kalim started sinking into the ground still clutching Nugget tightly. It would have seemed he and Nugget were gone, but his shadow was still there. The shadow crept along the ground and snaked it's way up the woman's legs, up her back and around her throat. Kalim materialized where the shadow had been; his suit was tattered but his wounds were healed. In his hand, which was pressed to the woman's throat, was a rather vicious looking straight razor. "I'd advise you to drop your fucking weapons," he rumbled.
Meanwhile, Nugget was perched on Kalim's shoulder facing the scarlet man. Nugget didn't seem to be hurt, he didn't even seem to be paying attention. His eyes were closed, but he was muttering something under his breath as the scarlet man prepared to attack Kalim from behind. The man (Nugget and Kalim assumed it was a man) readied to sucker-punch Kalim just as Nugget's eyes shot open. A sinister red glow came from them as two pillars of bone shot up from the ground on either side of the man. Skeletal arms gripped the figure's limbs and forced him into a spread eagle position as the pillars raised him high into the sky. Nugget continued to mutter as a swirl of sickly glowing purple appeared at the base of the columns. The swirl expanded until it encompassed both pillars and jagged black and purple crystals shot up from the earth itself. With that, Nugget closed his eyes. The skeletal hands released their prey, flipping him off as he plummeted down towards the spikes.
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Prime
Saeptum Agent
1%
Agent of Truth
Posts: 399
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Post by Prime on Nov 7, 2010 8:05:07 GMT -5
The spikes, despite being magically re-enforced and basically defying the laws of physics, still shattered when the armor man landed on them. He quickly regained his feet, nothing more than disgruntled, while the woman in the dark silver armor had caught Kalims arm. She flung him over her shoulder before he'd even finished his sentence.
"Don't waste your time!" Prime yelled, parrying and a cool display of steel. His reflexes were slowly improving, warming to their task, as though they'd been in a deep lethargy before.
"These guy are professionals!" Prime ducked under a wide sweep, heat licking his cheek as the violet blade swept past. It left a disconcerting neon afterimage in his retina's, but he did his best to ignore it. He grabbed the back of the man's arm, and pulled him forwards, delivering a sharp knee into his stomach.
The man barely seemed to feel it as he responded by attempting to stab Prime in the throat, who then kicked him away to establish some distance.
"They aren't going to negotiate or respond to threats, if they die they die, if they win they win. There is no in between for them, and they have the advantage." Prime flinched as a sniper round punched into his thigh, grunting as he clapped an involuntary hand over it.
He was bleeding, and it hurt, but aside from the hole the damage was mostly superficial. His apparently enhanced physiology scabbed it almost immidiatly. He ignored the pain as he resumed his deadly dance with the younger man in violet.
"You might as well ask a priest not to exorcise you!" Prime finished, right before he was punched down flat into the ground. There was an angry burn covering most of his back, where the lady in silver armor had shot him. Once more his physiology was resistant, but it was far from an optimal state.
On top of hurting like hell, it reduced the strength of his sword arm, via the damage it'd done to his muscles. Horizontal strikes wouldn't have the same punch as usual, his application of force would be lacking. He scowled as he realized it was the weight of the blade which would have to do the cutting.
"You people cheat." Prime growled, rolling out of the way of a second blast, and howling as his back touched the ground. He caught another shallow nick across his cheek for his distraction, and backpeddled away from the knife wielding maniac. His cheek smarted where the blood steamed, and his chest wasn't doing so well either.
At least the fools blade cauterized his wounds, as long as it didn't the muscle all he'd have to deal with was the pain. Pain is transient, you either live through it or you do, but it in itself can't kill you.
The woman and the violet armored male were working together now, one running distraction while a second attack was aimed to hit home. Alternating or skipping turns, keeping him off balance, and their armor made them terrifyingly strong. Physically speaking the gent in the violet armor was even stronger than Prime.
And to his dismay, Prime found that their armor was also amazingly difficult to cut through. His blade made only a shallow impression in the armor, the sliver of blue light that struck his chest quickly fading away. It must be self repairing to. Prime smiled as he realized that the people in the armor must be ordinary humans, otherwise there wouldn't be a need for such extensive armor capacity.
This went beyond focusing on defense, it was a suit that changed a man into a weapon.
"Christ, I think its nanotech." Prime grunted out. Another plasma blast flew past his shoulder, burning the cloth away and singing his skin. "This sucks!"
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