Infinite Justice: Beyond (Marvel,DC,DBZ X/Over, IC, Open)

[Pygmalionia]

Sonja walked over to the far wall of her suite, placing a hand on a lighter-colored part of it.

"Your mission, Mr. Hope, will be to accompany Ironheart into the streets of Gotham. You will go where I tell you, and clean up the mess left by Vannis and Dent. If you fail, as determined by me, I will order your death. Nothing personal, you understand. I'm protecting my assets."

The wall slid aside, revealing a small, black square of what looked like fabric. "As for your new gear," Sonja said, pulling the square from the container it was in, "this is the T-800 NanoSkeleton. It is the product of corporate espionage to LexCorp, Argus, SHIELD, and Stark Enterprises, plus my own personal touches."

Sonja walked across the room, slapping the NanoSkeleton on Laz's chest. It stuck there, and then grew, forming into what looked like a white suit and tie, a black duster, dress shoes, and a pair of white gloves. The suit then went upwards, covering Laz's face, forming a mask that, from the outside, was blank white. Then, at it's apex, the suit formed a trillby hat, also white.

"The NanoSkeleton is actually thousands of self-replicating nanobots." Sonja continued, circling Laz and Aaron. "These nanobots can shape to whatever form the user-that is, me-desires, and though your face is covered, you should have a HUD display. This shows you how much damage you've taken, how much energy the bots have-even though they can run for years without needing a recharge-all that fun stuff. As for weapons, in your suit pockets you'll find buzz batons, which are basically Tasers you can thump people with. There are also holoblades, energy weapons that you trigger that can grow up to two feet long. I have one on my person now." Sonja said, pulling out what looked like the hilt to a knife: a small, black rectangle. She pressed a button on the side, and a short blade, like a knife or dagger, shot out. It was around six inches long, and a translucent white color.

"Also, there are a few regular guns in there, Desert Eagle pistols. Please don't break your wrist trying to fire them stupidly. Also, the blades will cut through most material, given time for thicker things. And the NanoSkeleton also funtions as armor, able to stop bullets and blades, and some energy attacks. And don't fight the GCPD unless they start it."

Sonja paused, thinking. "Aaron, did I-"

"Nope, you covered everything. Are we ready to go?"

"As soon as you change."

"Fine," Aaron grinned, twisting a ring on his little finger. His grey-and-black costume shot out, covering him and leaving no trace of his clothes on him.

"Any questions?" Sonja asked Laz.

Lazarus took a moment to move around in the nanosuit. It was incredible that technology such as this was feasible. He got all the information he needed through the HUD. He took a moment to examine the handguns, or more accurately, hand cannons on his person. They were heavy, but he figured not to abandon them just yet. Next, he pulled out the holoblade. Light. Perfect. The Butcher thought. With this gear he had, he figured he wouldn't have to use the word at all for this task - which was good; the less people knew about it, the better. He turned to the Knightstone Matriarch.

"Well, I'm good to go. I figure I'll learn to modify my appearance with this tech once I finish this task. Aesthetics is the least of my priorities right now." Lazarus said. "Thanks for the gear. Aaron, I'm not powered like you are. You alright with just travelling on foot?" The Butcher finally asked, with a less than serious tone in his voice.

[Pygmalionia]

A smile broke out across Aaron's face. "Actually, the plan was for me to carry you," he joked. Sonja allowed herself a smile as well, before pulling a keychain from her pocket.

"Aaron'll drop you off downstairs, in the parking garage. There'll be a vehicle there. These keys," she said, tossing them to Laz, "are the operating system for said vehicle. Try and follow Aaron, and do what I say. Are you ready, Aaron?"

"Ready as I'll ever be, Miss. Let's go, Hope." Aaron said, grabbing Laz under the arms and rocketing upward, through the conveniently open skylight. He rose above the tower, before swooping downward, into the parking garage's top level. The motorcycle was waiting there, for Laz to mount up.

"Check check. Can you hear me?", Sonja said, her voice crackling through Aaron's earpiece and Laz's speaker system.

"Loud and clear, ma'am."

"Good. Your first assignment of the night is to pay a visit to the GCD headquarters."

"On our way now, ma'am. You ready, Hope?"

"That was fun!" The Butcher chuckled at his momentary moment of flight as he mounted the motorcycle; which he looked at with glee. He lost his old bike, but this one was on a whole other level. He was beginning to see just how good Knightstone was. His smirked as he remembered his ignorance - he didn't even KNOW of Knightstone before the Gotham incident.

"Of course I'm ready, Aaron. Guess I might come across an old acquaintance there. Not like he'd recognize me." Lazarus answered as he revved up his vehicle. His nanoskeleton's HUD was tracking how far the HQ was. "Lets do this, eh?"

[Pygmalionia]

After a moment of confusion, Reclaimer cracked his knuckles. "Now we can." He promptly landed a super-strength enhanced hit square on Aaron's jaw. "Gah!" He held his fist, wincing.
Boxer sighed after putting his gun away. "Really? You get on to ME for bad quips, then you go and say that? Look, whoever the two of you are, the Commissioner is talking to Batgirl right now. Any chance you'd be willing to wait your turn?" His tone was obviously friendly, though he was serious in his question.

Aaron sighed. "Bruh, I asked to see both of them. Together. Perhaps in bed, cause that'd be hot. So no, I will not wait my turn, I will go see your boss and Batgirl, and if y'all bitches try to stop me, it'll end badly. C'mon Laz," he said walking toward what looked like a door, "we're gonna see a man about a bat."

"Aye. I didn't know the Ironheart'd be turned on by a poor old commissioner." Laz quipped laughing as he followed Aaron. He kept his weapons at the ready, though. Something - might be intution, might be common sense, might be Genesis - was giving him a feeling that the two men won't just let them get into the meeting.

[Pygmalionia]

Aaron stopped abruptly, causing Laz to bump into his back. "Fuck. Then where's the HQ?" he asked, spinning around to face the group. His eyes glowed red with suppressed heat vision, which he found to be a useful skill when it came to intimidating bitches. And it seemed to work.

Reclaimer raised an eyebrow. "Mate, I'm not even sure if I CAN die. I got my arm blown off earlier tonight by a grenade, and it came back a couple minutes later. Besides, if you had just asked kindly, without the eyes, I would've already told you by now." He sighed. "Eh, you're looking for the middle warehouse on the right."
Boxer suddenly spoke up. "I should probably warn HQ about you guys. Since we live in Gotham, there's standing orders to have targets painted on the back of every Mask but the Bats if they're in the room. Might as well tell them it won't work."
The two seemed... Almost too casual. The astute observer would notice that when they mentioned the Bat, they relaxed the most, as if having her at the HQ left the GCD invulnerable.

"Thanks for the info." Laz said to the two before following Aaron to the the HQ. The duo walked towards their destination

"Seems security goes out the window when the Bat's here." commented the Butcher, who was still puzzled as to what they were to do there.

They then entered the HQ without making a scene. A white Batsuit? Odd. Lazarus thought to himself, failing to take into account that he was dressed in mostly white as well. Lazarus looked to Aaron as if to say "now what?".

[Pygmalionia]

"And what did these gods offer?" she asked, a bit surprised that the Vokoronians, at their levels of power, had worshiped other beings. She turned, looking upon the Duke, eyebrow raised. "Welcome to Asgard, Duke Meloku," she said. "How long have the Vokoronians been split into separate collectives, and what is the difference between them?" she questioned both of them.


Valancy grasped her neck as Cora took him on, grateful for the intervention. "Now that really was impolite, she commented to no one in particular. Raising an eyebrow as Floyd ripped off his armor and charged, "Thanks for making my job easier," she said with a smile, waving a hand, vines wrapping around him and dragging him back. She had apparently unlocked the full power of chlorokinesis, so that was nice. The vines pulled his arms back, tying them tightly, and then Valancy had them tie his body to a pillar. Knocking him out with a swift punch, she turned to Katie and Cora, oblivious to what had happened between them. "Well then. I'll call the authorities and then we can go home," she said. "Good work guys."

"Going rogue?" Elena scoffed. "You were already that. Go ahead, I really have no time for this. But a hint of trouble from you two and I will bring you down hard." she firmly said, turning her back in a dismissive manner. "Now, where were we?" she asked the Commissioner.

"I'd rather we continue this in private, away from self proclaimed rogue aspects." The Commissioner scowled pointedly. "Our next ferry to Blackgate leaves in four minutes. Care to finish our discussion on the way there?" He turned towards the Reclaimer and Boxer. "Reclaimer, take your squad and escort our visitors out. Boxer, you're relieved from Dispatch. Your replacement is already there. I want a tally of our munitions capability. Once you finish with that, oversee the Officer list. We have many names to add from Recruitment and..." He paused for a moment, clenching his fists. "A lot of good names to remove."
"Yes Sir." Boxer replied somberly.
"I'll try, Sir." Reclaimer replied, waving an arm towards a nearby group of men. The six officers, who looked more like soldiers than police, formed up around him. He looked at the two visitors expectantly, motioning slightly towards the civilian exit.

Lazarus looked at the Commissioner, then to the Bat. He was annoyed that the Bat would choose to work with a bunch of allied gangs yet have a bias against a company known to be capable of dealing with the current problem.

"Fucking moral high grounds, hm?" Lazarus quipped, finally breaking his silence. "The Bat would turn down Knightstone because everyone thinks the problem was made worse with Vannis' death. I get that. Now, though, the same guys are offering to help clean up the mess that you think they made. Besides, what makes you think the GCD is what they say they are?" Lazarus continued with a slightly irritated tone.

"In fact, lets set the record straight." Lazarus said as he looked to the Commissioner. The Butcher's eyes turned red beneath blank white mask - something the people in the room did not see due to the mask appearing to have no eye holes. If this..thing really does work, now's the time to test it Lazarus thought to himself as he prepared to use the Word of God.

"Tell me, Commissioner. Once all this is cleared up, do you intend on ending the GCD? Would you join the GCPD, or would you try and replace them? What's your true intention? Who's to say you won't just control Gotham after all this is said and done? Tell us your plans." Lazarus said, his voice projecting unlike anything the Commissioner has ever heard; but to the other people in the room, he was using his normal voice. The Word was working. The Commissioner felt compelled to tell the absolute truth - to answer the question with utmost honesty. As he finished speaking, Lazarus' eyes reverted back to the original color.

[Pygmalionia]

Lazarus looked at the Commissioner, then to the Bat. He was annoyed that the Bat would choose to work with a bunch of allied gangs yet have a bias against a company known to be capable of dealing with the current problem.

"Fucking moral high grounds, hm?" Lazarus quipped, finally breaking his silence. "The Bat would turn down Knightstone because everyone thinks the problem was made worse with Vannis' death. I get that. Now, though, the same guys are offering to help clean up the mess that you think they made. Besides, what makes you think the GCD is what they say they are?" Lazarus continued with a slightly irritated tone.

"In fact, lets set the record straight." Lazarus said as he looked to the Commissioner. The Butcher's eyes turned red beneath blank white mask - something the people in the room did not see due to the mask appearing to have no eye holes. If this..thing really does work, now's the time to test it Lazarus thought to himself as he prepared to use the Word of God.

"Tell me, Commissioner. Once all this is cleared up, do you intend on ending the GCD? Would you join the GCPD, or would you try and replace them? What's your true intention? Who's to say you won't just control Gotham after all this is said and done? Tell us your plans." Lazarus said, his voice projecting unlike anything the Commissioner has ever heard; but to the other people in the room, he was using his normal voice. The Word was working. The Commissioner felt compelled to tell the absolute truth - to answer the question with utmost honesty. As he finished speaking, Lazarus' eyes reverted back to the original color.

"The GCD is better equipped mentally to handle Gotham, but the GCPD has better gear and training- Becoming equals with them, most likely eventually merging the two organizations, is my ultimate goal." The Commissioner suddenly coughed violently, leaning on a desk. "What- What the hell did you just do to me?!" He turned towards Lazarus. "What the HELL did you do?!" He suddenly unholstered a pistol, aiming it at Lazarus. "How?!"

Boxer and Reclaimer, seeing their boss in this state, both immediately unholstered their weaponry. Reclaimer's men did as well.

Lazarus smirked under his white visage. He looked to the Bat. "There you have it, ma'am. When it all comes down to it, this is about the control of Gotham. Call me a cynic, but what I say is the truth, you just heard it from Mr. Commissioner himself. Pick your poison, Bat. Both are willing to help. One's just better at hiding their intentions than the other."

The Butcher looked at the three men aiming guns at him. "I simply asked you a question, Commissioner. I don't know why you feel compelled to point your guns at me after answering. I don't expect you to put them down, but know that I will defend myself if you fire." Lazarus declared as he put his hands in his pockets, grasping the taser-batons. Being lethal wasn't needed, all parties in the room want to clean Gotham up regardless of their motives.

[Pygmalionia]

Lazarus walked out from the GCD HQ before sitting on his motorbike. He talked to Delacroix through the HUD. "Well, things didn't go as planned. We weren't allowed to help the GCD, the JLA and the Avengers are back. The Bat told us to help them out. Oh and the GCD's final plan is to merge with the GCPD. Your orders, ma'am?" Lazarus asked.

[Pygmalionia]

Lazarus Hope
Hell?

Lazarus retreated into his apartment after his boss asked him to leave. It seemed like he’d have nothing to do for the next few days. Sonja had her crisis with Aaron she needed to sort out, the JLA-Avengers team up would clean Gotham up without his help. Hope crashed onto his bed and let his thoughts run amok in his mind. The Superhuman Registration Act had been passed, but he didn’t know just what side of it he was on. There were some immoral supes who needed to be watched, but who’s to say that the government was any better? He didn’t know where to find Aaron, either. The guy flies, fuck knows where he’s gone? Lazarus thought to himself. He figured if worse came to worst, the Word would be able to help him get by. After about half an hour of his mind musing chaotically, the Butcher fell asleep. Of course, this wasn’t going to last as long as he’d wanted it. Lazarus has been plagued with visions ever since Genesis had entered him; however, what came was something different.

Hope awoke with a violent, burning pain within his stomach. He felt a lump in his throat as if he were about to vomit. He rolled off his bed and rushed into the bathroom, his breathing labored as he began moving. He was dizzy, too. Lazarus tried to cough up whatever it was that he was experiencing, but nothing came out. He was puzzled. He doesn’t drink or smoke or do drugs. He rested his back against the bathroom’s wall, as he felt cold sweat on his body due to panic. Looking to calm himself down, Lazarus takes a few deep breaths. A few minutes later, and his predicament left as suddenly as it came. The nausea, the pain – all of it gone abruptly. He got back up to his feet and began walking towards the door, but was stopped dead in his tracks with a look of confusion. The door leading to his room had changed into a long, dark hallway. He couldn’t see where it led. What the fuck is going on? Hope thought to himself, briefly considering that the Cheetos in Sonja’s office where laced with drugs. He quickly dismissed the thought, however. He had nowhere to go, so he decided to explore this new area within his apartment.

As soon as he was enveloped by the darkness of the hallway, he felt the temperature drop once more. It was incredibly cold, his breathing slowed once more as he slowly trekked through the unknown. After what seemed like an hour of walking straight through the blackness, he felt a warmth ahead of him accompanied by a door with light peeking through its cracks. Naturally, Lazarus journeyed towards the door. As he reached it, he pulled it open and was surprised to find where it led. It was his old apartment, his first crime scene. He entered the room, which greeted him with the smell of decomposing flesh. His first victim still pinned to the wall – something which sent chills up his spine. He began rummaging through the things in the room: old textbooks, abandoned works, clothes. What came next assured Lazarus that he was either drunk, stoned out of his mind, dying, or all of the above. The crucified corpse spoke. The first man that drove him into what he is now. The pervert he mutilated.

“They’re all laughing at you.” The corpse croaked as he stared at his killer without a hint of emotion.

“What?” Lazarus asked, confused that he’s talking to a dead person.

“They’re. All. Laughing. At. You.” The corpse repeated in an almost mocking tone. “Really how different are you from I, or anyone else? We’re all a bunch of sinners! You want to rid the world of wrong? You rid the world of all!” continued the corpse.

This incensed Lazarus, who suddenly threw a haymaker at the talking dead man. The corpse disintegrated into the air as the wall began to fall apart, leading into another room – one which was familiar to him.

He walked past the broken wall and found a huge owl monument. This time it seems, he was in the labyrinth. Of course, at this point he was expecting anything. He just saw a dead man talk, for fuck’s sake. He walked in front of the colossal idol and admired how well done it was. It was a testament to the Court’s power to have such a huge vanity symbol made for a secret area. The stillness of the room is broken by a presence which makes itself known from the back of the room.

“Your moral means nothing.” Said the unknown voice, who quickly stepped out of the shadows to reveal himself as William Cobb; Lazarus’ mentor, and another man he killed. Lazarus was awash with shock, he tried to say something but he could not make even the slightest sound. His teacher walked closer to him, before suddenly drawing a katana from his back and swinging it down diagonally onto his student. This attack is in vain – Hope catches the blade with one hand then follows it up with an upward strike to the chest, almost like clockwork. No thoughts, he just does it. It’s part of his system. He soon regrets this, however. Due to his amplified strength, his fist ended up going through his mentor’s chest. Cobb’s body begins disintegrating from the bottom slowly, his fragments dispersing into the air. Lazarus is consumed by guilt once more. He was shaken, his hands were once again drenched with the blood of an ally.

“I did nothing wrong, and you killed me. Your rule meant nothing. It never did.” Said the Talon, only half his body now remaining. “You’d kill me again, as you can see. You realize it, don’t you? To fix this world, you must rid it of everyone.” Continued Cobb, before finally disappearing. That isn’t true. thought the Butcher over and over again into his head like a desperate mantra, something to stop him from thinking of their dark conclusions. Whatever this was, it was taking a toll on him. It felt like his head would burst in any minute. This was too much. Suddenly, a quick tremor occured, which triggered everything around Hope to suffer the same fate as Cobb. The walls flaked to the sky, and so did the ground.

Eventually a gaping hole was formed beneath the Butcher, and he fell far down into the abyss, consumed by the unknown. As he opened his eyes, he got back to his feet and examined the area. It was familiar, but he couldn’t quite determine where he was. As he surveyed his surroundings, however, he saw a crimson drenched chair facing a wall. The floors soaked in the same color. The stench of rust lingered through the area. Lazarus knew exactly where he was. This was where he off’d some pedophile from Metropolis who filmed amateur child pornography. Sick shit, Lazarus still had no regrets about that. He noticed a figure sitting in the bloody chair, and seeing the trend; he prepared to talk to another one of his victims. Before he could address the figure, it stood up and faced Hope. What he saw wasn’t a victim, but a reflection of himself. White hair, white mask, a trenchcoat, a butcher’s apron, cleavers on the floor. It was him. Lazarus didn’t know what to do, he just stared in disbelief. Unexpectedly, a female voice emenated from beneath the mask.

“Do I really need to talk? The past two have explained thoroughly enough.” Said Hope’s female doppelganger, who walked towards him. She was a bit shorter than Lazarus.

“Who are you?” was all Lazarus could say. So far he’s seen his apartment turn into a portal to other locations, has talked to dead people, and has seen things disintegrate slowly. At this point, he shouldn’t really be surprised, but he was.

“I’m you. More accurately, I’m who you really are. You know in that damn head of yours that to rid the world of scum is to rid the world of men. Accept the truth, Lazarus.” Said the woman smugly, her gaze set on the Butcher.

“This can’t be! I’ve seen it. Not everyone’s a deterant!” Lazarus barked back. This wasn’t him. It couldn’t be.

“So naive.” Commented the woman. The doppelganger picked up a cleaver and put it close to her eyes. “Perhaps if you let me take control, you’ll learn quicker.” Remarked the clone, before immediately lunging forwards with the blade. Like before, Hope reacts like a machine, swatting the blade to the side. He knocks it off his reflection’s hands and catches it. The Butcher retaliates, thrusting the cleaver into his doppelganger’s chest.

“You’re not me.” Said Hope, as his hand began to get drenched in sanguine. The Doppelganger laid silent for a while, but then Hope caught her hand move. Lazarus leapt away at the last second, resulting in the woman narrowly missing him with a hidden knife. The white haired man stared, puzzled and angered.

“You may not understand now, but you’re going to need me eventually.” The woman declared in a positive tone. “And when you do, you’ll find that everyone’s a cancer to this world. One which should be dealt with with violent efficiency. In the mean time, take care of yourself.” Continued the doppelganger, before everything around Lazarus started disintegrating once more. It is at this point that Lazarus lost consciousness once more.

As Hope awoke, he found himself on the floors of his bathroom; staring at the open door which leads to his room. A nightmare? Manic episode? Illusion? Vision? He didn’t know. One thing was certain though, if this dark reflection of his where to resurface; he needed to be in good hands. He dreaded what his other, nihilistic side was capable of. At that moment, as he was layed out in his own bathroom like a drunkard; he knew what side of the Registration Act he was on.

[Pygmalionia]

Lazarus Hope
She's Lost Control

Lazarus laid in bed for half an hour trying to get a bit more rest after his strange predicament. It was no use, though. He couldn’t shake the thoughts off no matter how much he tried to clear his head. The nightmare wouldn’t stop flashing in his head every time he would close his eyes. It was no use, so he just got up from his bed and got ready to go out. Take a walk, probably. That’ll help take his mind off of things. He wore new attire he got from Knightstone under his nanosuit. A gray trenchcoat with golden outlines. Before he went out of his room, he remembered that the nanosuit was simply numerous nanobots which could be altered. Knowing this, he altered the suit’s appearance to be transparent; concealing the existence of the exosuit in the process. He also altered the appearance of his plain porcelain looking mask to that of numerous bandages completely covering his face. Perfect he thought, before rendering his mask transparent and moving out of his room.

Gotham was still under a dark sky when Hope got out of the apartment building. He started walking along the still unruly streets. Fires could be seen decorating the skyline. Flashing lights of blue and red were visible in the corner of his eyes. It was chaos. Lazarus knew the GCD and the Bat were right in saying that Vannis’ death only made things worse. Even with the JLA and the Avengers in the city, things weren’t even close to clearing up. He didn’t care. Those fools wanted the easy way out he thought. As long as it may take, they will annhilate that which stains the world – permanently.

He wandered under the moonlight taking solace in the noise of the city. It helped distract him from the ominous nightmare. His peace of mind was abruptly cut short as he crossed the intersection. Gunshots. Innumerable bangs coming from an alleyway to his left. Knowing that a confrontation was possible, he quickly materialized his bandage mask over his face and brought out two holoblades from his pockets.

He entered the alley way and saw a family gunned down, with 4 people standing over them. All armed. Vannis’ remnants he decided, as he protracted the glowing energy blades from his weapons; slowly walking towards the four like a predator does to its prey. The thugs quickly took notice of the rather grotesque looking man closing in on them.

“The fuck are you waiting for? Bring the fucker down!” ordered what seemed to be their leader. Immediately, they began emptying their clips into the bandaged assailant. Most hit, but the Butcher barely flinched. The nanosuit took care of most of the damn lead, and even then; he could regenerate. The men displayed looks of shock, and fear closely followed. The smallest of them began trembling, dropping his gun in the process. The others began reloading as they ran back, attempting to climb over the ledge behind them and escape. Their effort was in vain. Hope quickly sprinted at them and began butchering the men. Each swing rewarded with a gush of crimson; and in turn gratifying his devilish desires. He was lost in the blood shed by those he hated; and in a few moments, he wasn’t aware of his actions. Overwhelming ecstasy was what he felt as he cornered the last man.

The leader, who at this point had his back against the wall with tears in his eyes. He tried to speak, to beg, but a sense of dread overwhelmed him as he eyed the mangled bodies of his comrades. One had his throat slit, the other eviscerated and breathing slowly in his last moments, the other on the ground bleeding out with only half his limbs left. The delinquent tried to scream but all that came out was a whimper. He was frozen in horror as the Butcher closed in on him, grinning beneath his bandaged facade. As he brought up his blade, he saw another hand identical to his holding on to his wrist; then he lost time again. It was as if he jumped to another point later in time. He regained his bearings in front of a different scene. The head thug had been pinned to the wall by both his holoblades. His breathing labored, desperate. He was bloodied, and as Hope inspected more carefully, he had holes all over his body. The armed man had been reduced to a human pin cushion. That’s when he looked down onto his arm. He was holding onto a piece of bloodstained rebar which he seems to have picked onto the ground. A hand was still holding onto it, and when he looked over his shoulder, he saw his doppelganger once more.

“I told you, you’re me. There’s no use trying to fight it, Lazarus. Accept yourself.” Said the Nihilistic woman in an accomplished tone before giggling, then disappearing in front of his eyes. Hope was once again awash with horror and regret. He wanted to simply get rid of that which littered the streets of Gotham. The girl wanted them mutilated. Dehumanized. His train of thought was interrupted by a barely audible gasp for air by the broken man who layed pinned to bricks in front of him.

“End it.” He begged, blood dripping from his mouth as he coughed another time. “PLEASE!” he screamed as his breaths went quicker. Lazarus remembered he had a pistol on his person, and that would be a quick way to do him in. He pulled out the silver pistol – a Desert Eagle, he remembered. He aimed it at the poor man’s crainium and pulled the trigger, ending his misery as a big hole was blown into his head. Lazarus was surprised by the firearm’s power, though. Bloody, yet quick. He figured using it may feed his hunger, but not enough as to bring her out. He examined it carefully, then remembered Knightstone was responsible for it. If he could have them manufacture a similar firearm that would work on supes, then he would be covered in the impending chaos of the SRA without losing control of his mind. He recovered his holoblades and sheathed his pistol, before running up to the rooftops of the city to Journey into Delacroix’s HQ.

---

Knightstone HQ

The blood soaked Butcher landed in from the whole Aaron used to land into Sonja’s penthouse suite. The woman seemed distraught, not even noticing his arrival.
“Care to talk, Ma’am?” Lazarus quipped, rendering his mask invisible.

[Pygmalionia]

Sonja didn't even look up. She'd been sitting in her chair, at her desk, in the same suit, for hours now. Her makeup was stained and smeared all over her face, and the TV was playing. Some episode of some TV show about a young man named Clark. Wasn't there some famous reporter named Clark…Clark…K-something. Whatever. Who gave a flying fuck?

Or, as Laz heard it, "Who gives a flying fuck?" Sonja not realizing she'd spoken aloud, buried her face in her hands for a moment, thinking herself alone in the world.

As Hope saw Sonja, he quickly put his requests aside to try and talk to the woman.

"Jesus H. Christ." Lazarus remarked as he saw the state of the Knightstone Matriarch, picking up the remote to the television and switching the show to one of the many news outlets reporting the leak of Craig Thomsen's experiences. "I know you don't feel good about Aaron, but really I don't know why you thought asking him to do something like that would be a good idea. LOOK at this shit." Lazarus continued as the scene of violence fluttered on in the glowing screen. "Besides, he doesn't need monitoring. He's sane. He's stable. He does it for the money. He doesn't need to be kept in check by the damn government." reasoned the white haired man as he began wiping off the crimson from his clothes, ever so slightly hinting at his inner disorder.

"Explain to me why you're siding with the UN and I may just hear you out, Ma'am." Lazarus asked, looking to bring up his intention to sign up due to fear of his own capabilities.

[Pygmalionia]

-snip-

"I'm sure you're aware most laws have flaws. In my opinion, you should have your legal personnel study the act as thoroughly as possible." Lazarus said, his eyes not looking away from the reports. He was still conflicted on his stance on the subject. On one hand, Waller was scum, and aiding those against the act would be the most obvious action. On the other, he had the lingering presence of the nihilistic Woman ready to take over his mind once he loses control in the heat of battle.

"I'm not entirely sure what the Act requires yet, but if all it's asking for is a supes' registration; things may get easier to deal with. I assume being registered doesn't automatically mean aiding them, so having a superhuman under Knightstone register and just leave it at that isn't too bad of an idea." Lazarus says, as he eyes the next news clip featuring a Supe taking out the UN.

"We wouldn't have to fight as much, really. As you can see, that man just attacked the UN. If you can find ways to aid him without being caught, then the government will barely be able to carry the situation on their shoulders. Strikes, Thomsen's Torture, and so far the attack on the UN will leave them way too preoccupied to try and sniff you out, Ms. Delacroix." Lazarus finally states.

"While the attack on the UN may cause in the loss of hero supporters, the release of Thomsen's torture will do the same to those supporting the act. It operates on keeping supes in check, not the government having a plan to kill them on a moment's notice." reasons the Butcher as he pulls out his armaments and placing them on a table.

"By the way, I might be insensitive to your situation but I did come here initially to ask about these. Is Knighstone capable of replicating the Desert Eagle in such a way that it'll be able to harm even supes? If it was, I'd need two as a precaution. Fighting in melee has been wrecking my mental state lately." Lazarus asked his boss.

[Pygmalionia]

"I'm sure you're aware most laws have flaws. In my opinion, you should have your legal personnel study the act as thoroughly as possible." Lazarus said, his eyes not looking away from the reports. He was still conflicted on his stance on the subject. On one hand, Waller was scum, and aiding those against the act would be the most obvious action. On the other, he had the lingering presence of the nihilistic Woman ready to take over his mind once he loses control in the heat of battle.

"I'm not entirely sure what the Act requires yet, but if all it's asking for is a supes' registration; things may get easier to deal with. I assume being registered doesn't automatically mean aiding them, so having a superhuman under Knightstone register and just leave it at that isn't too bad of an idea." Lazarus says, as he eyes the next news clip featuring a Supe taking out the UN.

"We wouldn't have to fight as much, really. As you can see, that man just attacked the UN. If you can find ways to aid him without being caught, then the government will barely be able to carry the situation on their shoulders. Strikes, Thomsen's Torture, and so far the attack on the UN will leave them way too preoccupied to try and sniff you out, Ms. Delacroix." Lazarus finally states.

"While the attack on the UN may cause in the loss of hero supporters, the release of Thomsen's torture will do the same to those supporting the act. It operates on keeping supes in check, not the government having a plan to kill them on a moment's notice." reasons the Butcher as he pulls out his armaments and placing them on a table.

"By the way, I might be insensitive to your situation but I did come here initially to ask about these. Is Knighstone capable of replicating the Desert Eagle in such a way that it'll be able to harm even supes? If it was, I'd need two as a precaution. Fighting in melee has been wrecking my mental state lately." Lazarus asked his boss.

"Hmm…" Sonja said. And that was all for about three minutes as she thought. Then, deep in thought, she paced about the room. But this didn't seem to help much, so she leaned against her desk, tapping her fingers against it's dark teakwood. Then she straightened suddenly, grabbing Laz's shoulders and violently shaking him.

"Yes! Mr. Hope, you're a genius! I have Waller killed, and my problems disappear. Oh, no. That won't do. Too messy. But if I, a leading industrialist, business-woman, and rich famous lady, release a press statement on the issue, Waller would have no choice but to come after me. Then, I could demonize her, and still not suffer for it."

Then, as she processed all of what Laz said, Sonja scoffed. "Please, Mr. Hope. Do you think that I didn't think of that at first? I made sure that the guns can hurt low-level metas. Anything above that, and you're on your own. Hope you're badass enough to live through a super-fight."

Sonja walked around her desk, wrote on a tablet with a stylus, and new information appeared in Laz's suit's HUD. Lex Luthor, 1160 Metropolis Street, Metropolis
Bruce Wayne, 344 Prince Lane, Gotham
Tony Stark. Big obnoxious tower. Vaguely phallic in shape, probably to compensate for something. Can't miss it..

"Mr. Hope, I've given you some addresses. Get your suit, and go to them. From there, let me figure out what to do. Go to Wayne Manor first, though."

Hope looks to his firearm, examining it. "Only useable against low level supes? Shame." he commented, walking towards the elevator. He got into the lift and went to the HQ's parking lot, mounting his motorbike and revving it up loudly as his mask materialized over his face. He advanced and rode up the building's ramp, soaring above Gotham's skyline just for a minute before dropping down to the road and speeding up. His bike roared throughout the streets and through reckless speed and agility, Lazarus found himself in front of the Wayne Manor in a few minutes.

"I'm here. I suspect the Bat wouldn't be here yet as he's helping out with the JL. What are your orders?" Lazarus said into the HUD, spinning his firearm's trigger around his finger.

[Pygmalionia]

---

Sonja Delacroix
Central City

"Phah! Laz, lookit. They're calling it 'The Civil War'. Please. It wasn't long enough to be a war."

Sonja was reading the newspaper on her computer, in the Knightstone Central City office. She'd moved from the Gotham office as soon as things calmed down, and brought Laz with her. Business was, as usual, good.

But then, her computer flashed blue, showing an "urgent" item. Sonja read it, her face paling. She snapped the computer shut, stowing it in her bag. "Mr. Hope, come with me. There's been a spaceship crash outside of Metropolis. Get the jet, please."

"Which one?" Laz asked, grabbing his suit.

"The blue one."

"Yes ma'am."

Within minutes, Sonja and Laz were aboard the CEO's plane, a sleek blue jet. It shot off from the roof, the AI pilot guiding the plane to the reported crash site. Sonja spun her pleather chair to face Laz, and smiled.

"So, Laz…a crashed ship. Do you know what that means? To us, I mean?"

"If I'm to base shit off by a thousand campy sci-fi movies, then we're probably going to go see if there's some left over tech or organism or whatever the hell kinda futuristic thing we can find. Then study the thing..I guess? I really have no clue." Lazarus admits, caught off guard by the question courtesy of him spacing out.

[Pyrade]

The town and Inn containing Masami, Garnet and (un)friends
Taro
The small black fox had been watching the town for quite a while from a spot not too far outside. Things had been calm and quiet, exactly what Taro was looking for. Here hopefully he could rest for a bit without remaining in fox form. It got exceptionally tiring after a while what with the constant use of magic to sustain the form. He stood up on his four paws, shaking out his dark, black fur. Then he bounded into the town with his white tipped tail streaming out behind him.
There, the Inn!
He thought as he passed by the building, circling back slightly to get to the entrance. Now came the part where he prayed and hoped nobody screamed. A thousand years ago he was praised as a disciple of a god, now he was a freak.
Why do they forget everything so quickly?
He thought frustratedly, wishing that stupid demon hadn't laid that damned curse. His body had grown considerably larger when he let go of the shapeshifting magic, like an elastic band snapping back his body returned to its original form, growing to his full size. The paws formed more hand like appendages but the claws stayed, and grew larger as well. He stood up to his full height, stepping through the door as his tail split into four. The new tail had been a reward for slaying that demon, but he had yet to get well acquainted with the powers in his 4 year stay in the modern world.

He ducked down a little, avoiding a collision between his head and the door frame.
"Shinpaishin-"
He began asking anyone inside to stay calm but froze. The smell was all wrong, there wasn't the normal stink of sweaty human. This was an altogether fouler smell for the kitsune. He saw the fox tails attached to one of them and the couple dozen others in black with cat ears and tails. There were an extra three who weren't quite the same as the black clothed bakeneko.
"Well, that's . . . Unexpected."
He muttered, momentarily stunned. This town had been quiet for the whole day almost, where had these bakeneko come from? And what did they want with the adorably human kitsune? What the hell was the kitsune doing there?
He placed a clawed paw/hand on the hilt of his sword and readied himself. He had heard one of the three unique ones call the Kitsune her niece.
This is why I can't hunt demons anymore. Too many blurred lines dammit.
He thought and waited for a reaction from someone. The shadows here were too small for him to make a disappearance, so all that was left was patience. His white rune pulsated in time with his heartbeat as he slipped into the realm of hyper senses. The magical signatures before him where immense. From the Kitsune there was definitely magic, but then the large, regal cat-woman's signature was clouding the rest of the signatures. It was like he was trying to read a book through a fire. Immediately he slipped out of the hyper senses, growling irritably.
"Damned cats."

[Pyrade]

Taro
Taro listened quietly to Azami and Masami's exchange, glad that he had avoided detection so far.
Family feuds, it would appear that some thing's will always exist when emotions and greed are involved.
He reminded himself of the family conflicts he had witnessed over a millennium ago. The lineage of leaders that had been tainted by a lust for power. He dismissed the idle reminiscing rapidly, there was no time for such wasteful concentration. The exchange of words had drawn to a close, leading to combat, and Taro had lost his concealment. He growled savagely as his hackles rose in response to the oncoming bakeneko.
The blade Kiba-Tsume practically flew from the holster in Taro's enraged grip, immediately swinging out at the nearest Bakeneko that attacked Taro.
"Just had to be cats."
He muttered as his claws followed the slice of his sword, digging into the Bakeneko as he stepped in closer, flinging the cat into another one. Two of his large black tails began to radiate shadows. His jaws opened and released scorching black flames onto the pair of downed bakeneko. He turned away from the pair covered in all-consuming flames only to be forced to block a strike from another bakeneko which was soon joined by another. Taro grimaced under the onslaught of blows that came hard and fast. For a while all he could do was deflect as many blows as he could, focusing on those targeting his more vital areas and simply weathering the other strikes and slashes, knowing his tough hide and thick fur would lessen the damage if not protecting him entirely. There were more Bakeneko approaching though, and they would surround him if he didn't make a plan soon. He jumped backwards from his two assailants, sweeping his blade in a semi-circle as he rounded on the approaching Bakeneko, driving them back slightly, creating the space he needed for his plan. He leapt with his powerful hind legs onto the wall and dashed a short distance on the vertical plane until he was out of the circle of entrapping bakeneko. With a savage grin he raised his left hand. Shadows filled his eyes and his hand radiated shadows similar to two of his tails. One of the Bakeneko's shadows reached out with its shadowy hands and dragged the cat-ninja to the floor while further shadows wrapped around her throat, crushing her larynx before slipping back to the normal shadow. Another ninja's shadow erupted in a sea of shadowy tendrils that lashed out at nearby bakeneko, leaving stinging lacerations or ensnaring the ninja and dragging them towards the shadow which now resembled something out of a nightmare. Taro laughed wickedly and reached out his swordarm. Causing his own shadow to extend, the shadow's claws wrapping around a bakeneko and yanking it towards him and impaling it upon his sword.

[Pyrade]

Taro
Taro felt his power being sapped by the shadow magic he was sustaining. One of the bakeneko had already been shredded by the tumultuous, seething morass of shadowy tendrils that had sprung up in one poor neko's shadow. This left only 2 neko for Taro to deal with, which meant he didn't need to sustain the control anymore. He relinquished his control over the shadows at much the same time as Masami's sword was engulfed in fox-fire. The released control brought a feeling of relief, not so much energy regained as the absence of its usage. Taro, noticing Masami's magic in his peripherals, took note. He had indeed found an genuine Kitsune, despite how human she looked. He focused his mind on the task at hand his breaths, regulating his air intake to avoid exhausting his power too quickly. The neko charged him simultaneously, one leaping onto the wall with far more grace than the large kitsune had. He braced himself with his blade at the ready and took the brunt of one charge, the blade colliding with the silver katana in an angry clash of metal. The second attack Taro had been expecting never came, not until a second later when the Neko that had faked out leapt over its comrade, sword ready to decapitate the pre-occupied kitsune. Taro's muscles bulged threateningly as he applied an overwhelming amount of strength into his push, knocking the first neko back before barely managing to deflect the airborne katana, his own blade held one handed once more. He turned to the first Neko, plunging his blade into its chest. He left the blade in the falling corpse and rounded on the second neko, dropping to all fours with a savage snarl as he ran. The neko saw the past demon-hunter charging and brought its blade up to challenge him. Mere moments before the collision Taro switched direction, leaping up onto the wall and pouncing on the neko before crushing its throat in his jaws. He stood up, casting the corpse aside and removed his sword from the first neko in time to hear the smaller nekomata ask the new arrival if she was defending the 'dog'. Taro had only just noticed the gun-wielding sister of Masami, his attentions being occupied by other things but now the other small neko had annoyed the demon hunter with her brattiness.
"Nanda yo! She is no dog you impudent little gaki! Ii kagen ni shinasai!!*"
He shot back at the little nekomata, his kitsune youth not changing the fact that his voice sounded remarkably like an upset father. Taro cleaned the blood from his blade with a wipe or two. He gave Akari a questioning look, wondering exactly how she was related to the other kitsune and exactly what happened here. He walked towards Masami and Azami, sheathing his blade to show Akari she would not need the guns for him. The proposal of a deal made him raise his eyebrow curiously, wondering what exactly Azami could possibly want from them.
"I believe you are intelligent enough to realise how ridiculous that sounds."
He muttered as he drew near, directing the remark to Azami and shooting a glare at Uyami. He did not feel like regaling Azami with all sorts of rants and rages about how she literally just tried to kill them. No doubt she was aware of this. She had been the one to give the order.
"Okugata-sama, this is your family. So I shall not interfere. But should you require assistance my blade will be available."
He said seriously, speaking this time to Masami as he stood nearby the group, trying to ponder exactly how he felt about this offer of work.
He hoped that if Masami heard the offer out and made her decision it might sway his. On the other hand he knew he would likely tag along with the kitsune and the human anyway. They were going places where he would be useful. Places unlike bakeries, and fashion stores.

*Scolding phrase used on children which effectively means "Don't behave that way"

[Pyrade]

Taro
Taro's warning glare was all that Uyami received. He had been tempted to chide the nekomata further, but it was not the time for such a triviality. His brow furrowed slightly when Azami requested they hear her out, but he was of a similar mind, dying was not a preference. His ears perked up when he heard mention of yokai and a dark spirit.
"Seems I was hasty to hang up my role as daemon hunter . . . "
He said with a slight smile and a glimmer in his eyes.
"I would be glad to lend my blade to this fight. And if it helps you find out about your mother's fate, then I guess we both gain."
He replied to Masami as opposed to Azami. He had already decided it would make more sense to speak through the person that hadn't tried to kill him. Besides, right now Masami and Garnet were about the closest he had to someone that was on his side. . . Well, in the sense that they had all been attacked by the same faction, and neither had attempted to kill him yet.
Emphasis on yet . . .
He thought deep within, keeping the cautionary thought around just in case.
"Besides, my magic is more effective on demons and dark spirits. I understand if you find it hard to trust her Okugata-sama, but I think this might be a good offer."
He said with an indifferent shrug, whatever they chose, life was about to get more fun than it had been hiding amongst the humans as a fox.
"I suppose and introduction is in order though. . . My name is Oni-sutoka Taro, you may call me Taro. I am a demon-hunter by profession."
He replied, figuring if they declined and were all slain there, it might be good for someone to know his name.

[Pyrade]

Akari cocked her head. Confused at Garnets confusion. "Yes. I am actually." She remarked, then her eyes widened. "Oh right." She remarked, remembering the obvious racial differences between her and the Kitsune. She shrugged. "It's... a long story. I'll let Masami explain." She remarked.

Meanwhile the Kitsune nodded to Oni, and then smirked at Garnet's response. "I knew all that. It's simply considerate to ask a friend their opinion at times like these. Don't you agree?" She asked, then shrugged, her face becoming more serious. "Glad to know you're on board though. Your companionship and support has been immeasurably invaluable to me."

Azami spoke then, after yawning. "This would be cute if you weren't wasting my time." She remarked. "Do we have a deal or not fox?"

Masami turned back to Azami, nodding.

"Good. Akari. I assume you're going to be accompanying them?"

Akari nodded too. "Yes Aunt Azami. I will be." She had a look of determination.

"Very well. Your target is a group in Tokyo known as the Red Fang. We're not yet sure of their purpose. But they have been kidnapping many humans and innocent Yokai. Between the four of you, this shouldn't be too difficult. Considering Masami's tracking skills, finding them shouldn't be too hard."

"Any questions?"

Taro
Taro looked to Garnet with a raised eyebrow,
Someone seems to be slightly testy . . . I wonder if she's always like that.
He thought while he listened to Azami outlining the details of the job at hand. He thought it strange that they were hired for this task so quickly, but it seemed like Azami was not picky when it came to her labour.
"The spirit you mentioned . . . Azami-sama."
He said, pausing slightly as he considered what to call her. Thankfully Akari had named her.
"What area is it in? And what form of attacks does it launch? And, if I may, should we expect possession?"
He asked curiously as he felt his kabuki mask hanging from his belt. He sincerely hoped the enchantments had survived the millennium of slumber.
"I can track astral creatures, and neutralize possession. Not to mention I can rend the creature even when it believes itself untouchable. But every hunter needs information."
He explained and bowed his head respectfully. There was no need to insult the neko that had nearly slain them.

[Pyrade]

Eldara/Sparky
The ship bucked violently when its retro thrusters slowed it down in preparation for re-entry. Eldara clung tight to an overhead rail as inertia attempted to shake her loose. Hand over hand she moved towards the controls of the ship and took a seat. Her metallic hands danced over the impulse pad which gave of a small pulse wherever her fingers tapped its blank surface. She was already hooked into the ships system, she could feel the fragment of her mind inhabiting the vessel, transmitting control knowledge straight into her cyber mind. The display she saw through her eyes was alight with millions of glowing warnings and cautionary flight suggestions. She lowered the heat-shields on all the viewing ports moments before the ship juddered violently.
HULL BREACH
The warning flashed bright and somewhere in the ship a siren sounded.
"Ooooh chips . . . "
She muttered to herself as a piece of orbiting space debris punctured through the fragile hull, ricocheting around the cabin, further adding to the peril of the situation.
Correct entry angle. Retract gliders.
Eldara thought, her fingers dancing in response. Mentally she was trying to block out the sensory overload that had begun. The sounds of that stupid chunk of metal rattling around, threatening to at any moment come hurtling forwards, likely killing her. The sound of sirens and air rushing out into space. She didn't need the air at all, but the sound was deeply unnerving, and she couldn't quite shut off her emotional synth, only ignore it. The looming blue orb was intimidating as well. Although she was currently aimed at a white patch according to the ships computer. Hopefully that was soft. Then there was the datastreams she had crossed into, the wireless satellite communication grid. Thousands of GPS's, TV channels, satellite phones and she could hear and see everything. A lot of what the humans did made her quite uncomfortable, why would anyone want to watch half of these things? Then, to add to her problems, a small bluescreen on her shoulder flashed red, outputting a group of glyphs. She yelled loudly as her left arm detached, flying forward as the nose of the ship punctured the atmosphere.
"You piece of drek!"
She yelled loudly as she attempted to keep the ship going with one arm. The constant warning was flashing in her vision,
MemoryUsageOverflow
Pulsing in the background as her single hand flitted across the impulse pad frantically correcting the shuttle trajectory as it began to list under the push of the earth's atmosphere. In the background her emotional synth had been synthesizing restrained panic. She knew she could handle this. It wouldn't be fun, but she would survive. The ship rattled and shook, the roof tearing further apart under the halo of fire. The journey from atmosphere to ground was lengthy and filled with fire, and a surprisingly annoying left arm which went flying across the cabin on occasion.

The landing itself was more of a crash. The crafts flaming nose crumpling into the white Canadian snow beneath. For a few seconds all was silent, until a crumpled hatch was ripped of its hinges and sent flying out. From inside a loud, angry muttering could be heard until a triumphant shout preceded the appearance of what was clearly a gynoid. Eldara stepped forth into the white snow and looked around the odd landscape.
"Okay . . . Now . . . Where to from here?"
She asked while wiping some soot off her exoskeleton.

[Pyrade]

Frank Mayhem

---

The last few days of my life, eversince the clash with Liberty, have been spent to training. Training. Training. Training. It's not as insane-sounding when you remember that a Celestial Android, with consciousness, living on Earth wouldn't have to do anything else. I don't need to eat, sleep, drink or spend my time chatting with anyone. I'm pretty sure I can't get insane from loneliness.

Anyway, where was I? Training. Training the Power Influx form. It's basically the only way I could come close to Liberty's power, and she's an Earthling model. Earth is too OP. They alwags make the cool stuff. I was fighting an energy construct opponent, and trying to basically catch my thoughts. Left jab, right jab, energy blast. It dodges all of them and retaliates. I move away from it's attacks, counter back. Such is life-

...What was that? Is that a comet? An asteroid? It's coming this way... I noticed that this Solar System has a large asteroid field. Maybe it's from there... and then ZAM! It crashed into the snowy ground below, a few hundred feet away. Well, it wouldn't hurt to check. If there's something useful in there, I shouldn't miss it. Maybe it's an update to Power Influx? I de-transformed and descended down from the sky, and next to the crash site. What I saw was the remains of a spaceship and a woman without an arm outside of it. What?... Why?... How?...

"I have several questions." I merely exclaimed.

Eldara looked to the Celestial Android curiously as she held her left arm's shoulder close to the open joint. A small bridge of nanites formed, gripping the joint and pulling it closer as the nanorobots worked to join all the necessary cables and mechanisms. Her visual display began to analyse him from her database. His features appeared Hinteranian, but his heat signature was all wrong. The hot blooded, triple hearted hinteranian physique was merely mimicked by his outside shell. Besides that, his heat signature was far different from anything she had yet to encounter, although due to her having been in space for the only year of her life, she still had very little knowledge about life-forms. She looked Frank up and down, her own incomplete body readjusting her snow white outer-shell that had been dented slightly.
Her vision was filled with diagnostics of all kinds as the joint repair was completed. All her, quite obviously artificial, joints had survived the crash despite their lack of cover.
"Please identify yourself before you continue with your questioning. You are not Hinteranian, nor any species I know of, please clarify."
She requested in a perfect mimicry of a human voice, what with human and hinteranian being almost identical, apart from some shifted internal anatomy.

[Pyrade]

-----

Taro
Taro frowned slightly as Azami spoke. What she said made him wonder exactly how far Yokai and humans had drifted over the millennium.
"They are not the only ones who make a mess."
He muttered and stepped towards the portal after Garnet, eager to get started with the mission as well. He was unaware of what these yokai laws might have been, in the days he had lived, humans had freely acknowledged his existence. It seemed such a thing was a problem now.
Is this related to the other Kitsune's more human appearance? Maybe . . . Spirit imbalances I guess.
He thought and paused, shifting to his fox form before jumping through the portal.
"No sense attracting unwanted attention."
He murmured aloud.

[Pyrade]

Frank Mayhem

---

A quick scan of the person in front of me yielded some interesting results. She was not an Earthling, nor seemed to be built by one. You know, one could get this information by rationally analyzing the fact that she came here in an asteroid. Or a spaceship, or whatever is the cool thing nowadays. But I digress. The nanorobotic regeneration she used also picked up my attention. Self-repair. Why don't I have that?

All in all, she looked like she was of mechanical origin, and especially following her direct and nigh-program wording. "You know, that's not the nicest thing to say to someone you've just met. I tried it, got slapped." I replied to the command. "I'm a Celestial Android, built by gods in a human's image. Class X. If you're wondering how you're still alive with this information at hand - I'm not with the others. A bit of a loner, though. Can I ask questions now?"

Idiot. That's not how you do a good first impression to a woman.

Eldara
Eldara analysed the so-called celestial android for a moment as her database extracted and stored what data it could from his introduction. She raised an eyebrow when he mentioned the danger posed by his species and smirked,
"Yet I'm the one who needs to work on their introductions? At least I didn't tell you I am a threat to your life."
She said as her social and emotional programming worked in tandem, producing a mimicked blend of sarcasm and condescendance. Her cyber mind has eased up the restrictions on her synth now that the important data had been gathered.
"Sure, ask if you must. But I probably won't be able to answer a lot of your questions."
She said and turned back to the ship tearing off the control that had once been used to open the ship's door. She bit into the metal, her own jaws slicing through it easily as it dropped into her nanite production area. She continued to munch on the door control like a biscuit as she waited for Frank to begin his questions.

[Pyrade]

"Yeah. That would be bad." The Kitsune spoke, smiling a she saw tokyo in all it's glory from atop an old building. She actually quite liked this city, despite the fact that most Kitsune weren't fond of cities, being the nature lovers they were. She sighed. "Akari, did Auntie Azami say anything about where we could find them?"

Akari got up, sighing as she dusted herself off. "Ugh. All this dust is clinging to my suit! And I just had this one dry cleaned!" She whined. Then paused. "Well, she did say you could sniff them out. Do you smell anything?"

Masami sighed. Sniffing the air briefly. She sniffed, and then stopped. Then made a face. "Stupid Oni. They stink like crazy..." She complained. "I smell..." She sniffed, gagging again. "Six nearby. One seems to be away from the others. Though I remember Azami said there were only supposed to be five..." She muttered. "And one of them smells slightly less bad than the others."

"Can we go to the less foul smelling one please? If that's okay with all of you?"

Taro
Taro walked to the edge of the building, sitting with his paws up on the edge as he gazed out across the city of Tokyo.
"I . . . Have never seen anything like it . . . "
He murmured aloud, astounded by what he saw. In his fox-form his deep voice was softer, a side effect of the shapeshifting magic. He had been in the modern world for about 4 years and those had been spent in the wilderness or around small, rural villages. Thus he had to witness the full extent of technology on the world, although he had had a rather nasty run in with a particularly vengeful waffle iron. He coughed and sneezed as smells of urban life and pollution assailed his nostrils, causing the lean black fox to go reeling back, pawing at his nose.
"What in Ancestors' names is that horrid smell?!"
He asked as he gagged,
"It is like somebody threw a pot of vegetables on the fire and then covered it in raw fish entrails!"
He muttered as he sat with his forepaws clasped over his nose.
"Well, better smelling would be a good thing right now I'm inclined to agree. Though I don't think it will make much difference. Like our human friend here says, we have to hunt down 5 yokai. Regardless of which we start with."
He said and looked to Garnet with his paws still covering his nose.
"By the way, what might your name be? I don't think it is particularly satisfying to be called human the entire time."
He said affably, his voice sounding slightly off due to his covered snout.

[Pyrade]

Frank Mayhem

---

"Alright, in order - remember it:

What?

The hell?

How?

Why?

Who?

Is this real life?

What's your problem?

Sequence over. You can see that I'm confused, and alien androids falling to my backyard in a comet is not as common as stereotypes about Earth may lead you to believe." I frowned, then continued. "Oh, and if any of those is answered with 'to destroy' or 'to kill', I'm sick of this and I'll immediately return the favor."

Eldara
Eldara sighed in minor annoyance as Frank interrogated her. Luckily she had time though. Rayertech would not have left the planet yet, they had other things to worry about in the mean time. She looked at Frank irritably as she began answering his questions in order.
"An android crashing to earth in a wrecked escape shuttle.
Not an actual question.
With an escape shuttle capable of traveling through a vacuum.
Because a company known as Rayertech on my original planet is trying to get hold of my blueprints. You may or may not have noticed, but I'm incomplete, I'm a prototype, and they want my tech, I don't want them to have it.
The X-27 Executioner prototype otherwise known as Eldara.
Probably, unless you're capable of dreams or delusions . . . Wouldn't be surprising."
She muttered in response to his second last question. When she was about to answer his last question she entered the ship and returned holding an ancient, scorched satellite.
"My problem is how much space debris your planet has. Seriously not okay."
She replied and tossed the satellite back into the ship before rolling her eyes,
"I don't know any stereotypes of this planet, I wasn't supposed to leave my homeworld. And seriously? You're going to hope that you're talking to an Android that wasn't made to kill or destroy? People only make androids as weapons or for pleasure, they never make us for peaceful means. You ever heard of an android built for space exploration alone? Because where I come from Rayertech and Cratora are currently locked in an arms race. Each building more weaponised androids and vehicles than the other."
She retorted feeling rather annoyed with this android for threatening her twice now. He hardly seemed to be trying to foster peaceful relations.
"And I'm not an alien, I'm just not from around here okay? I doubt you are either so just back off sunshine. If you're done threatening me and accusing me of wanting to crash into this planet with out a single clue about it, would you kindly tell me where we are?"
She asked traipsing back through the snow to the ship as she inspected it, there was still a lot of good tech for her to use, could be helpful once she figured out what she wanted to do.

[Pyrade]

Frank Mayhem

---

Oh boy. This will be a tough nut to crack.

"Well, at least you're right about all of us being made for destruction. But being made for killing doesn't always mean you're actually bent on killing. A gun is made for murder, but I usually don't worry that any passersby with a pistol is going to try and shoot me. You know, I was just making sure you're not one of those 'DESTROY EVERYTHING, TERMINATOR STYLE' types of androids."

This conversation just isn't going the way I want to. Wait, what way do I want it to go to... None, really. I usually don't bother talking with strangers, so my social skills aren't perfect. "Anyway, 'Eldara', since you asked so 'nicely', you have crash landed on the third rock next to Sol, which the locals call 'Earth'. To be fair, it's a nice place to live, if you like fighting." I raised my right hand to be around in the same height as my chest, and opened my outer hologram GUI. "Currently, we are 70 degrees north and 110 degrees west, in northern Canadian wilderness, but I assume you don't need this specific information. The species here, on this planet, like politeness, by the way, so I recommend shaping up just a little."

Eldara
Eldara would have sighed if she could, instead she rested her forehead in the palm of her hand while a soft static noise left her mouth. When she looked up at Frank she had a tense smile pasted on her face,
"Threatening someone is not conducive to a friendly polite atmosphere so I don't think you fit in very well with the locals either then. Besides, they're more likely to ask me 20 questions and then try dismantle me to figure out what makes me tick."
She replied tersely, her emotional synth making her feel exceptional annoyance towards this android.
"So, what exactly do you do on this third rock from the sun?"
She asked, letting her stress go for a bit.
"Seeing as I'm kinda stuck here for now."