The Awakened - First Pillar (IC Thread)

[Ragnar]

"I think i have the slightest idea on what Utopia is, they're a bunch lunatics, that's what they are! i mean this guy is carrying a freaking sword like some sort of a sith, convincing me to join their side. i mean what's up with that? Anyways i think we're safe now and ready to go home. so beam us up scotty Ced." Ace said through the phone.

[K_H]

Kenny frowned, then spoke.

"Hm. In any case, I'm going to carry through with my end of the bargain. As promised, Rebecca is yours."

Kenny then put Rebecca gently down next to Beetle, and walked back to his previous position.

[Arkhi]

So Hades offered to kill the remaining men in his place. That would likely be the best he could get from Hades. And with just one more room, Keaton would have to get it together so he could wallow later.
Keaton wiped his tears as he got up. "You're right," he said quietly. If machines can adapt- and he works with such machines all the time- he, too, would need to. He pulled out the laser from its large holster on his side. The weapon was small enough to fit in a holster along his back, but large enough to cause some burden as he moved. Keaton pulled it out and placed his hand in the hollow portion along the bottom. (OOC: Think like Mega Man's blaster-ish)

It was surprisingly light- that was why he didn't realize it earlier. After pulling a switch along the rail, it faintly light and emitted a low, pulsing hum.
"R&D had better have made this versatile," Keaton mumbled. Shots along the arm and legs should be damaging enough, Keaton thought. The only way to deal maximum damage, though, would be to aim for the head. Like a machine, prepped for re-optimization, Keaton dropped his moral for playing this safe. The Pillar lit up in his mind as this happened. This was its gift to him. He need not sidestep the fact he was a freak of nature. Just like that, Keaton bucked up, opened his eyes, and walked forward. His voice tightened.

"I turn the power off. Immediately after, the final room is to be breached. With this laser, I can aim for any non-armored patrols, vaporizing them. Gunfire and shots from this laser will leave me enough light in the room to know exactly where everyone is. You do not need light, so attack as you will."
This mental transformation left Keaton without hate, nor love. He became a machine, acting on pure logic and mentality. The only limits were his physical stature.

Keaton pulled out his phone, tapped the screen, and all the lights shattered, pulsing with as much energy as the building could rush into them.

(OOC: Imagine this scene takes place in a very short time: a minute, if that)

[Sutoratosu]

The moment that they were out of the Party, Anver looked to Lux, urgency in his eyes as he recalled the Barkeep's words. "I need to speak with your boss," he said, already moving for the doorway. "Can you point me in his direction? The less time I have to take to find him, the better."

His mind was already running a mile minute even though his feet weren't, coming up with the proposal he'd pitch to the man in order to convince him. It would be a straight forward deal; In return for conducting an Infiltration on wherever Utopia was based and helping him get his loved ones, Anver would give this group full use of his network for the foreseeable future. This of course, obviously meant he'd have to stay on with them as the intermediate between them and his contacts, as they likely wouldn't listen to strangers if Anver didn't introduce them in person, but... well, Rebelling didn't seem too bad a path at the moment, given that in a way, the Government started this whole mess for him. And like he had already said... Can't become any more wanted than he already is. Unless he had a bounty on his head or something, that would be a much different story...

[Jory]

Lux pulled his hand up into a gun position and pointed it at Anver, a deadly serious look on his face. His fingers were sheathed in a corona of light that seemed to be shuddering as though it wanted to escape forward. "We're in his office. You're not leaving this room until you speak with him, so I'd recommend you take a seat and wait it out." He gestured to the chairs in front of the boss's desk, the young man's fingers still glowing. "I don't mean to threaten you, but I'm sure you understand the need for secrecy. And until I get the boss's okay, I can't let you into the rest of the building. So please, as I said earlier, just wait here. He should be back briefly."

[Sutoratosu]

Even when I've already said I'm don't intend to be an enemy to them, I still get the equivalent of gun pointed in my damn face... Guess I should've gotten use to being threatened by people after all this time though, god knows the cops and feds have given me more than enough practice... "Very well then..." Anver said simply, clearing his voice. He moved away from the door way, Strafing around the boy still pointing his fingers at him and taking a seat slowly in one of the chairs. "Fine, you want to keep the secrecy, I can understand that. But you know, instead of that gun trick there, a simple 'We're standing in his very office, he should be back momentarily' would've sufficed just fine to stop me in my tracks..."

[Jory]

Lux sighed, taking a seat next to the man. "It's a different story when we're in our base of operations. You can never be too careful. You of all people should know that, Anver." He then reached over, extending a hand to the man. "I'm Lux. And it's not that we mistrust you. Again, we just have to be careful these days."

[Sutoratosu]

The memory of hearing the fire of a sub machine gun over the phone earlier played through his mind as Lux held his hand out. That's right... you do have to be careful. But after this, I will find you Allan. And if whoever fired those shots wasn't you... There will be hell to pay for it. " I completely understand your position," he said, shaking the boy's hand. "Hell, if things were reversed, I'd be doing the exact same..."

[Flux]

typhlosionrulez, Snap Crackle Pop, King Murdoc, K_H

Just as Ace finished speaking, there was a flash of blue light a short ways down the forest. Blue and Cedric were there, walking towards the group when they caught sight of them. Cedric stopped near Ace, taking a glance at all the unfamiliar faces.

"...So you're all her friends then?" he asked, placing his hands in the pockets of his denim jacket. "Well, I had been hoping to recruit your friend here," he said to Beetle, Alice, Alan, and the others, "...but I won't take her from you unwillingly." He smiled. "I guess that leads into my next question: I think it's fairly reasonable to assume most if not all of you are Awakened, if you were able to attempt a prison break in a place like that, so I'd like to ask -- How would you feel about joining the Organization?"

(((This is a legitimate choice, so don't feel forced to accept if you don't want to.)))

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Hukuna

Viktor's shots all hit their mark. The man fell onto his back from the impact of the shots, the knife falling from his hand. The darkness slowly faded back into light as the young man died, and Zeus allowed the electricity in the rain to dissipate. There were whispers from those of the civilians that were still around, but they were too far away and too quiet to make out. Some of them seemed grateful, while others appeared terrified. The rain resumed at a more normal pace, but the skies were already clearing above. Zeus and Poseidon knelt on the ground, both breathing heavily. They looked exhausted, which was not to be unexpected from the tasks they had completed. The sound of many vehicles could be heard approaching, and armed soldiers in black body armor rushed through the gate. They all wore helmets that surrounded their entire face, looking like black soldiers from a sci-fi movie. Zeus stood slowly, coming over to Viktor and placing a hand on his shoulder.

"That'd be BOA..." he said quietly. "They'll wrap things up from here, dealing with any stragglers and calming the civilians. For now, we should head back to base. I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted..."

--------------------------------------------

Arkhidon

"I turn the power off. Immediately after, the final room is to be breached. With this laser, I can aim for any non-armored patrols, vaporizing them. Gunfire and shots from this laser will leave me enough light in the room to know exactly where everyone is. You do not need light, so attack as you will."

Hades raised an eyebrow.

"Well, you certainly turned around fast..." he mumbled. Maybe he was a better motivational speaker than he thought...

As the lights shattered, Hades wasted no time. He ran through the room, opening the final door on the map. He was in a large circular room, and three armed men turned to face him. They had assault rifles, and they were aimed at Hades. There was one more man standing farther in the back, at the top of a small staircase. Hades quickly ran back out of the room, pushing himself against the wall as the sound of gunfire started. He glanced at Keaton, holding up 3 fingers on one hand, to signal the armed men, and 1 finger on his other hand, to signal their boss. He expected that Keaton would understand the gist of it. Now he just needed to get close to the boss.

The three men followed Hades out of the door, the first two running past without realizing he was now behind them. He grabbed the third man with his right hand, stopping him in his tracks. There was a deep purple glow from Hades' hand, and the man dropped. One of the other men turned to face Hades, and the other leveled his gun at Keaton. Hades just raised his hands in surrender, hoping Keaton had a plan for this.

[Arkhi]

Hades managed to take out one of the patrols. One continued on ahead cautiously, while the remaining one had his gun trained on Keaton. Without a word, the guard approach. "I am placing my gun on the ground and my hands up," Keaton said, bluntly. He pointed the gun at the wall as he began to remove the gun from his arm.

Just then, the lights pulsed again with incredible energy and the lights went out. He lunged diagonally from the patrol, knocking his legs hard as he rushed past. From this position, Keaton estimated the remaining enemy's position and shot mid-range, so the shot had the greatest chance of hitting in the torso. There was no sign he was hit, but the chance of it missing was slim. Hades would have to take out the final patrol Keaton hit with the gun and then the odds would be in their favor.
Just then, though, Keaton returned to the metallic-gray room.

I came back then, to the silent room. This seems to be a sanctuary from the physical world. At any rate, I've got to plan. There remained the guard in both my and Hades' immediate vicinity. After Hades takes them out, the final one remains. As an "awakened", his prowess in combat is unknown. A shield would be required. I shall use a guard as a shield and Hades another, if appropriate. No mercy for the unknown enemy. After we enter, one of us must-

A terrible, aching pain struck Keaton's head, as he threw his hand to his face, covering his eyes. He removed his hand, looked back, and saw Hades through a deep shade of red.

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

"Hmm, sounds good to me." Viktor said drawing a short breath. He removed another Iron cross from his trench coat, it was nearly depleted. He focused in onto the gash on his arm and forced the blood there to clot and seal the wound. It wasn't a perfect heal, the wound still hurt like one, but it stopped the bleeding. The cross he was holding disintegrated in his hand, and the leftover ash fell to the ground in a small heap. He had used 2 today. That brought his stock of Iron down to 14 crosses. 14 left before he started having to use the iron in his own blood. Hopefully he found some way to get his hands on more, it was a lot more dangerous to use his powers when he didn't have any spare iron lying around.

[Flux]

Arkhidon

Hades ran over to the last guard as he recovered, quickly placing his right hand on the man and releasing his power. The man slumped back to the floor, and Hades walked to stand next to Keaton.

"Looks like you've discovered you're limit," he said, leaning down next to Keaton's ear. "It's to be expected. All power comes at a price..."

He then laughed, walking into the final room.

"One, left!" he called back. "Join me when you feel up to it..."

As Hades entered the room, the other man descended from the staircase at the back wall. He wore a white jacket and pants with white gloves, and his blonde hair was slicked back. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglasses, and his cleanly-shaven face was calm.

"So, you managed to take them all out," the man said, tugging one of his gloves tight onto his hand. "Impressive. I didn't expect you to get this far." He showed a hint of a smile. "However, you won't get past here."

Hades simply laughed. "Pffft. Of course we won't. There's a wall behind you. We'll just go back the way we came when we're done here."

The man smiled. "So be it."

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Hukuna

Zeus sat in the lounge back at Olympus, bandaging the wound on his shoulder. Poseidon had left already, saying he had "business to attend to." The was a knock on the door from outside, and a woman with a clipboard entered shortly after.

"Ms. Archer would like a report," the woman stated. Zeus nodded, motioning that she could leave. He looked up to Viktor.

"Sorry about this, but could you give the report?" He sighed. "As an unfortunate cost from using my ability that much, I don't think I'll feel up to moving for a while. I suspect Poseidon went home to rest as well." He smiled lightly. "It's nothing too bad. She'll likely just ask you for a recap of what happened. If you don't remember the way, just follow that young woman that was just here. Just make sure you knock. She hates it when you don't..."

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

"Then she should know I hate giving reports." he said with a chuckle. "Fine, I will do it. Lead the way Miss." he said bowing to the lady who had come in. It was a jest, obviously he was being a little bit silly because he wasn't happy with having to it. He never liked giving reports, then again, it is probably because quite a few of them fro him where pretty bad. Not often did a man give 2 reports about his entire team going dark. He cracked his neck, waiting for the lady to lead him to where he needed to go. Needless to say he didn't really remember the way there, other things were weighing on his mind the first time he entered this place.

[Arkhi]

As Keaton felt his machine-like trance come to an end, his eyes stopped bleeding. He dabbed the edges of his eyes, but small red splotches remained. He would have to get this checked out- both due to pain and the splotches.

He removed the magazine from the laser gun. Whatever source of ammunition was there, it seemed plentiful, so he wouldn't have a problem with running out. Keaton could remember the trance he was in, recalling the words about their final target being an unknown enemy. "No mercy", he echoed. Keaton heard talking from the other room and peeked in, making red-stained eye contact with The Awakened. Whatever came next, Keaton knew he and Hades would be in for a fight.

[Flux]

Hukuna

The woman led Viktor out the door and across the walkway to the adjoining building, headquarters of BOA. The passed through the main entrance and lobby, taking an elevator to the uppermost floor. Viktor was back in the same hallway as he had been in the previous day, whn he had first joined Olympus. The glass walls on either side of the hallway looked out over the city, now drenched in the dark of night rather than the sunlight of before. The woman who had led Viktor this far, gave a short bow, returning to the elevator and leaving Viktor alone with the door to miss Archer's room. After knocking, a Ms. Archer's voice could be heard from the inside.

"Enter."

She was seated at her desk, hands clasped in front of her. Just as last time Viktor had been here, there was a large stack of papers to one side of her. She looked tired. There were lines forming under her eyes, and her bun was coming undone.

"Viktor Grimes, the newest member of Olympus. You were attending the dinner party at Mr. Taylor's estate during the attack. Correct?" She sighed. She didn't appear upset or worried, but rather tired and downtrodden. "Tell me what happened, from your point of view."

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Arkhidon

The man glanced at Keaton as he entered the room. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, as the sunglasses obscured his eyes, along with the darkness. One could only wonder why a man would be wearing sunglasses indoors, much less when the lights were out. It was Hades who made the first move. He rushed at the man, extending his right arm for a grab. The man sidestepped, bringing his own right arm down towards Hades. Hades rolled to the side, but the man continued the motion, placing his palm on the floor. The instant that the floor made contact with his palm, a deafening explosion occurred. Flames flickered as they died on the stone floor, but smoke obscured Keaton's view. When it cleared, Hades was standing in a relaxed position, his back angled towards Keaton. He appeared unscathed by the explosion. Even his white coat was uncharred by the flames The other man had a more aggressive stance, arms outstretched and ready to take motion. Neither of them moved, each for their own reasons. They both glanced at Keaton, who stood a short distance away with his weapon.

[Arkhi]

As soon as Hades made a move towards the man, Keaton rushed to nearby cover. He heard an explosion and felt heat radiating from the explosion. He turned around the corner, taking aim at The Awakened. As Hades stood up, he glanced back, just like the other man. Having pauses in the battle could help Keaton plan, but may also benefit the enemy.
Keaton shot the laser gun from his arm, strafing from one piece of cover to another, firing off four shots. He glanced about the room. It was a very plain room, seeming to be made primarily of stone. From behind cover, he shot his gun at the ground beneath him, blasting out a bit of stone, but not enough to help. He needed another plan.

[Flux]

Arkhidon

The first three shots hit the man in non-vital areas: The first two hit his arm and the third hit his side. The fourth, shot however, was a direct hit to the chest. The man staggered backwards, smoke rising from a deep gash burned into his torso. As he stumbled backwards, his features slowly changed into that of Hades, hunched over. The other "Hades" laughed as his own features changed back into the leader of the gang. He rushed towards Hades, placing his right hand on Hades' head as the explosion occurred once again. When the smoke cleared, Hades was lying on the ground, motionless, blood pooling from the mangled mess where his head used to be. The other man was nowhere to be seen.

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

"All I know is some group....Utopia? Haven?....EH, some stupid new society bullshit name, attacked. I don't know what they were after. Definitely were awoken like me though." Viktor said, he struck a match as he lit a cigar. "One thought he could convince me to join them, I blew his brains out. Later, another attacked had the power to create complete darkness. Zeus and Puddleboy had to use almost all of their power to get enough light for me to see the bastard, and swiftly end him. The entire attack hinged on an explosion caused in the estate. It was said to be set off by a man named Cyrus. I was told he was confirmed dead by Zeus, but that is as far as I know on that matter. Anything else, Ms. Archer?"

[Arkhi]

Keaton had shot Hades.
He managed to incapacitate him long enough for the other Hades- the true enemy, the Awakened- to rush forward and blow Hades' head off. The echo of the explosion remained. His head was nowhere to be found. Only blood and gore remained where his head was. Keaton's eyes widened, as he took in the scene. This time, he didn't scream. He stood for a good five minutes, simply looking at the blood collect.

Keaton swallowed. He walked forward, and looked at the body. Maybe he frisked it, maybe he didn't. The whole event was blurry in reflection. Keaton's mind went blank, bar one thought: search the room. He walked slowly around the room, touching objects, holding them, placing them back. Perhaps he took something.
After he searched the room, he walked out, his vision darkening at the edges.

Outside that building, life seemed to be proceeding as normal. Keaton stood from the entrance to the building, waiting. For what, he didn't know.

[Flux]

Hukuna

Lydia Archer nodded, as Viktor told his tale. It matched the other stories she had heard. When he had finished, she spoke.

"Yes, there is something else I wanted to ask you. Just a curiosity." She looked him in the eye. "Why do you think Utopia acts the way they do? Why were they formed? What are they after? Furthermore, why would they attack a dinner party for seemingly no purpose?"

-----------------------------------------------------

Arkhidon

After a few minutes passed, a white limousine pulled up. It was the same car they had arrived in with the same driver. Apparently, Hades had set up a time in advance for them to be picked up.

...However, only one of them was here for the departure. The driver asked no questions, simply opening the door for Keaton to enter.

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

"You don't attack for no purpose, they are after something." he said, taking a long draw on his cigar. "As for the others things, we need only look at the name of their silly organization to realize their overall purpose and goal. They wish to bring about a perfect society, but only for the Awakened. There had to be some connection, or something tangible they were looking for there, or it was a distraction, something to pull attention away from somewhere else. It could be many things, but they are clearly after something dangerous to humans, that furthers their goal. Thus, clearly their goal to wipe us out. Extremists. Innocent lives mean nothing to them, and we best treat them as what they are, terrorists. No group worth it's weight attacks something so public if they don't mean to harm people."

[Flux]

Hukuna

Ms. Archer smiled.

"All very accurate assumptions based on what we've been able to discover of the group. Tell me, based on what you know, what do you think Utopia was after at the dinner party?" She clasped her hands, awaiting his answer. Her facial expression said that she knew more than she was letting on, but clearly wasn't about to reveal it.

typhlosionrulez, Snap Crackle Pop, King Murdoc, K_H

How would you feel about joining the Organization?"

There was a long stretch of silence before Beetle spoke up. He looked back at the others, who gave no hint as to any opinion they might have.

"I-I think we're all right for now, but thank you for the offer, really. Perhaps we could talk it over among ourselves for a while?"

Cedric nodded. "Of course. Here..." He reached into a pocket of his jean jacket, pulling out what looked like a business card. "Call this number if you change your mind. You're always welcome with us."

He turned to Blue, nodding. "All right Ace, Kenny. Let's go home."

Stratos, Jory, rustytengo

There was a flash of blue light in the office as Blue returned with Cedric, Ace, and Kenny in tow. As soon as they were back in the room, Blue disappeared again in another flash of light. Anver was able to get his first glimpse of the man known as Cedric Sterling, though perhaps he didn't really know who he was yet. He had black hair that hung down to his lower neck in the back and long bangs that ran down the side of his face, stopping just above his chin. His beard was well-trimmed, hugging his jaw on the bottom and looping over his upper lip. He wore a short jean jacket that stopped at the bottom of his ribs, with a white shirt underneath. He wore blue jeans beneath that, with black dress shoes completing the image. It was all very casual for somebody in his position. He smiled as he saw Lux and Beverly, returned safely from their mission.

"Ah, I see you made it back. Good, good... Did everything go all right?" He turned his gaze, as if noticing Anver for the first time. "And who is this?"

[Jory]

Lux smiled as Cedric and Blue appeared with the other members of the Organization. He was eager to report the success of his first mission and the survival of the Bartender. Suddenly, the course of conversation changed as Cedric spotted Anver. Lux was the first to speak up, and did so with little hesitation. "The mission was a success, sir. Beverly's recording device has all the information we could get form the host of the party. Unfortunately, we were halted in our interrogation by an organization called Utopia. He frowned, then perked up again as he looked over at Anver. "However, we ran into this man on our way out. He's another Awakened. I'll let him introduce himself, but from what I know of him he'll be an asset to the Organization should he choose to join us after you speak with him." With that, Lux looked expectantly at Anver.

[Sutoratosu]

"Anver Dun," Anver said, rising slowly from his seat and offering his hand to the man who was apparently this 'Cedric' he'd been hearing about, though he had to admit he'd expected someone looking a bit more... official. But eh, this was a group of rebels against the government, after all... "I've had a run in with these Utopia Terrorist myself; The bastards kidnapped my family and threatened to kill them unless I eliminated the Bar Tender at the party tonight, though I abandoned the mission when I was actually faced with the opportunity to pull the trigger. From what I understand, he happens to be a crucial agent of yours..."

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

"How should I know? I am just muscle. If I would have to hazard a guess it was something or someone important. Exact motives I can't really say, but an explosion is usually used as a distraction. However, that covers both theories. An Object, you want people out of the way. People, you want there to be crowds, easier to slip away with a person in one. But, it is hard to reckon what they would want. A bio-weapon? That could be both a weapon...and a person. A VIP. All that stuff lies in their interest. Whatever it was is damn important to them. You don;t blow up a team member let alone explode anything for nothing." He said blowing smoke out his nose.