Young Bloods(IC, Reboot Open)

[United Kingdom of Poland]

"I don't know Roy." Wendy replied, giggling as Elle did her inadvertent best to embarrass Renata."Just because we lucked out in avoiding being immediately lined up against the LA firing squad doesn't mean we shouldn't come up with some plans. That being said..." She moved closer to Roy. "I wouldn't mind a quick trip to Time Square."

-----

The Next Morning

"Sorry I'm late." Wendy called out to the others as she walked into the arena, her mechanical pet/ bodyguard right next to her. "Had a late night last getting the information on the rest of the teams in our division sorted, and it took me a little bit to get out of the hotel without the paparazzi camped out outside noticing." Looking around at everything Shi had set up for their squad, she let out a low whistle. "Shi, have I ever told you I was too lucky by half to get you assigned to my squad. Thanks for doing this."

[The Republic of Atria]

Renata

Mars

A few pictures and autographs later, the small group of fans that had showed up had gone away to go try to snag more pictures with other heroes. Just in time too, Bael checked the time and saw that he had about ten minutes before the opening ceremony started and rushed to the locker room to make sure he was ready to go. Not that he had to change to much. Maybe make sure his loincloth wasn't going to come loose in the middle of the ceremony. The remaining time was spent trying to psyche himself up for appearing on national television and in front of tens of thousands of people.

His face crumpled at the thought. And the minutes that he had left to mentally prepare went by far quicker than he would have liked, but it would have to be enough. He paraded out with the rest of the team to the cheers, and occasional boos, of the crowd. His faced appeared confident, and he gave out waves to where he heard the most amount of cheering from. The boss stung a bit, but it was a huge sporting event and most everyone there was definitely rooting for a bigger, more popular team. Even Naja seemed to be enjoying herself quite a bit at all the attention. He wondered how many of the cheers were for her...

After the rest of the teams all came out, he wondered who they would have to fight in the prelims. Hopefully luck wouldn't completely dash their hopes and have them go up against the Stars in the first round. That would just be rude. His thoughts were interrupted by Renata's telling Naja to go home and boasting to Mars and Roy about how Squad 3, his squad, would be carrying them out of the preliminaries. He had to take a breath. "Renata. Mars is on our squad. Second, please, for the love of all that is good sportsmanship, stop being such a jerk. Last, save the bragging for after we win. Even then, keep it to an absolute minimum." He spoke, in a slightly hushed, but commanding tone. He wanted to take her aside and tell her to knock it off more privately so he was sure it got through her head.

Though he did agree with Mars when it came to coming up with strategies. He turned from scolding his teammate towards his friend. "Yeah! Assuming they're not gonna be a bunch of jerks and just throw the Stars at us in the first round. I think we could beat... At least three, maybe four with a bit of luck."

Sina

"Huh. So we do." He noted. "Appearances, aside, there's a good amount we have in common with them." He nodded when she suggested that they should go get something to eat. "I've eaten some stuff here. Dunno if you've ever had human chicken, it's what I imagine what was once dinosaur. But it tastes like chicken. Guess they kinda changed into chickens and birds over time, but still. It's pretty good. They wrap it in this weird bread thing. I really like it."

The jovial mood he found himself in, soured just a little when Sina mentioned that she wanted to go meet his parents. "Uhhhhh... I'm pretty sure they're still at work. As much as I would like for you to meet them, I'd hate to interrupt them doing whatever stuff they're doing. I think they act as translators and intermediaries with the humans." He said, not actually sure whether or not they were home. Though he really didn't want them to meet Sina, solely because he was sure he'd die of embarrassment. "Let's just go get something to eat, and maybe afterwards we can go check out that place on the card Aegi gave you." He said, trying to change the subject."

"Or let's go to the museum after! Probably don't want to be flying that hard after a full meal! Yeah, let's do that."

[Finland SSR]

San Diego’s Greatest Battle Couple!

September 14th

---

“Naja!” Renata called out as soon as her eyes registered the figure of the team’s reptilian leader, the heroine having run across the dense patchwork of corridors in the Freedom’s Nest for the last ten minutes. “Something’s wrong? I justreceivedyourmessageandyousaidthatIshouldhurryupsoIfiguredsomethingmustbe-”

“Renata, calm down. You’re just in time.” Naja calmly replied, shutting down Renata’s ensuing word avalanche. Briefly looking her up and down and seeing that the girl was in her casual blouse and skirt, she continued. “Why aren’t you in your costume yet?”

“Oh, uh, I left it in my locker room...”

“Then go, put it on, quick.” Naja followed up her request by opening the door to the Young Bloods’ girls locker room - Renata stormed inside as soon as a gap opened, slammed the door shut and locked it. While she was undressing and putting on her Stella suit and Naja was standing guard next to the door, however, the two of them struck a conversation again:

“Hey, so, you didn’t really explain - what is all this about?”

“Against my better judgment… I’ve picked you out to represent us in an exhibition match.”

Rolling her eyes at Naja’s first statement, Renata latched onto the other. “An exhibition match?”

“Yeah, it’s exactly what it sounds like. There’s usually a gap of time between all the teams arriving and the first preliminary matches, so to keep the public entertained during that time, the NASL usually organizes exhibition matches. One on one, two on two, to show off what the public can expect this year or what the new generation of heroes might look like - though your team participating in the tournament steals some of the thunder from the second justification.”

“Alright, I’m with you so far… So who am I fighting, then?”

“The Stars got matched up with us for an exhibition, so you’re fighting one of them.”

Renata suddenly stopped. The Los Angeles Stars?.. As amazing as it would feel to get recognized to the point of being trusted with battling a Stars member… wasn’t this a bit too much escalation? “You… you can’t be more specific? That’s a pretty strong team we’re talking about... ”

“Don’t worry, you’ll know them well.”

“What?..”

Renata blinked a few times, unsure how to respond. She had seen the Stars briefly alongside the rest of the team before the battle with Warwolf, but didn’t get to talk with any of them, much less ‘know them well’ or figure out the full extent of their abilities. Hell, why’d Naja even pick me of all people? The only member of the Stars she knew was-

The bra in Renata’s hands suddenly fell to the floor.

“...Mierda.”

---

“Welcome everyone to the first of today’s spectacular pre-tournament exhibition matches, here at you live in the center of the Freedom’s Nest - and let me tell you, folks, we have a real treat for you today! Because...”

The voice of Jim Dohnoven, a former member of the Hartford Hounds and one of the two announcers for the Tournament, was as powerful as it always was, echoing across the entire enormous stadium. Renata stopped paying attention to what the man was saying halfway through, however, as she slowly stepped onto the vast circular arena where today’s exhibition match would be held - as soon as both of her feet arrived on the platform, the air behind her buzzed and summoned a protective force field.

The terrain for today, randomly selected from a list before the match, was Urban. The arena resembled an average American suburb - a single street stretched across the entirety of the arena, both of the fighters standing on it, and lines of houses surrounded it from both sides. Though the inside of each of the houses was barren, resembling concrete boxes, there were plenty of items littered outside - trash cans, benches, road signs, a few cars. Plenty of junk to be thrown around, plenty of places to hide and terrain to take advantage of, but not to the point where it would resemble a labyrinth.

Renata tried her best to quench the feeling of unease, seeing herself be watched by thousands of people from all directions - instead, she struck a resolute, determined smile and stepped forward.

Across the arena, another superhero stepped onto the platform, a familiar figure in an unfamiliar attire: a young man with long blond hair tied up in a ponytail, clad in a blue and silver uniform of sorts which gave him a noble appearance; what appeared to be a pair of scabbards hung from his sides, each letting out a soft hum. He wore no mask or helm of any sort, his face fully exposed to the world.

Walking towards the center of the arena, he seemed to hesitate for a moment as he managed to better observe his opponent, a look of surprise apparent on his face. Nonetheless, he continued walking, and soon he was standing at the center of the battlefield, right next to Renata.

“I had no idea they would be sending you of all people.” The former vigilante admitted in a hushed voice as he held out his hand for the protocolary handshake between the opposing heroes. A soft smile crept into his face. “You look gorgeous, by the way.”

Renata flinched at the compliment, a faint blush forming on her cheeks, but the girl quickly shook it aside. “Thanks, you too.” she replied as she accepted Icarus’s handshake. So it was official, then - she was going to have to fight her boyfriend. After a month of barely keeping up contact, of him training under the Stars and her preparing as much as possible for the tournament...

“Don’t think this is an excuse to hold back or anything, though!” Renata suddenly exclaimed, her voice brimming with energy and a resolute smile shining on her face, then clenched her fist. “We’re opponents now, nothing else - and if I’m beating you, then I’m beating you when you’re at your best.”

Without any further ado, Renata stepped away from Icarus and moved to her side of the ring, awaiting the bell of the match to finally ring.

“We’ll see about that.” Was the only response from the blond haired boy as he too turned away and walked back to his starting position, a confident smirk on his face. If our bout against Inferno is anything to go by… I like my odds. He thought as he dropped to a crouching position, similar to that of someone about to go on a sprint, and awaited the start of the match. Stella favors attacking from a distance, so my best shot is to close the distance quickly.

After a bit longer of the commentator droning on about the hot-headed Young Blood and the rising LA Star, Jim declared at the ring of the bell that the battle had begun. Without wasting a single instant, Surge shot forward like a rocket, crossing the suburban battlefield with blinding speed as he headed straight towards Renata, suddenly breaking into a zig-zag pattern to throw off her opponent’s aim. A pair of gauntlets formed around his hands as he ran.

Show me what you’re made of, asteri mou.

Renata narrowed her eyes, trying to keep track of Icarus’s movements at first, but quickly giving up on it once he purposefully started throwing her off. The fact that he rushed straight towards her was not the surprising part - in fact, she had completely expected it - but how fast he was going certainly was.

Show me what you’re made of, Carito.

A powerful burst of plasma and heated air suddenly fired off from Renata’s feet, propelling her dozens of feet into the air, where she immediately clasped her hands and started condensing radiation between her palms.

He’s too fast for any ordinary blast, but he’s stuck on the ground, and... If ordinary blasts won’t cut it, then the obvious solution is saturation bombardment. Renata released her gathered energy forward, blasting the ground below her with several dispersed blasts of plasma.

Trying to stay out of reach, huh? The thought crossed the reformed vigilante’s mind as he saw his opponent take off to the skies. Fortunately the protective dome around the arena prevented her from flying too far out of reach without risk of being disqualified, which gave him an idea. I just have to survive this carpet bombing of yours...

Surge’s speed and reflexes allowed him to dodge the first few blasts, but it was more than obvious that he wouldn’t get through unharmed if he relied only on this. The hero formed an aspis on his right arm and used it to block any blasts that he could not dodge, costing him a little speed each time but leaving him otherwise untouched by the Young Blood’s attack. Of course, as he got closer to her the attack became denser, which meant that getting through it would be an ordeal.

But that’s fine. I don’t need to get through it, just make it seem that way...

A blast collided with a wall next to the hero, filling the air with smoke and dust, and as if on cue, the hero jumped into action. His movements concealed for the time being, he climbed up onto the rooftop of the affected building and then bent his legs before taking a mighty leap into the air, almost reaching Stella’s altitude. Further exerting his powers, Icarus created a platform right behind him, with both him and Stella perpendicular to it.

Let’s see how you deal with this. Without giving her any time to react to his gambit, Icarus kicked off the platform with as much force as he had used to jump a second earlier, darting through the air straight towards Renata. He wouldn’t even have to hurt her - if he could grab ahold of her, then earning himself a victory by knocking her out of the ring would be a simple enough matter.

Renata winced as soon as she witnessed Icarus leap straight at her - once again, the electric hero’s speed was off the charts. This wasn’t the end of the world, however - she had prepared for a dilemma like this in advance. The heroine’s eyes remained locked onto Icarus, her right hand clenched into a fist, and she watched her opponent come closer and closer.

Out of the two of us, I’m the one more accustomed to aerial movement.

Twin bursts of plasma shot straight out of Renata’s feet, propelling her forward. She cocked back her fist, only to suddenly fire off a jet from her elbow, accelerating her punch to ridiculous speeds and throwing a super-powered blow towards Icarus.

Needless to say, the blond hero was quite surprised when, instead of trying to fly out of reach or blow him away with another barrage like he expected, she decided to try to beat him at his own game and flew straight towards him at an astonishing speed, rearing back her fist. Bringing up his shield to block the crushing blow, he had only his reflexes to thank for not failing to react to this sudden development, but he was still blown back quite hard by the blocked fist.

Renata didn’t have the chance to celebrate, however, as she found herself pulled along by her boyfriend - the aspis, which had shattered on impact, had reformed into a manacle around her wrist, connected to a chain that was now in her opponent’s hand.

Thinking of his next action quickly in hopes that she wouldn’t have time to react, Icarus conjured another platform construct, landing roughly on it and quickly getting up before pulling on the chain with all of his strength and then swinging it forward - his goal was to throw Renata out of bounds.

Faced with the real threat of getting eliminated so early, the pink-haired heroine went for the first option which came to her mind. A flash of light briefly sparked at the tip of the index finger of her raised left hand, before she suddenly descended it downwards. It instantly slashed across the chain and split it in half, a narrow trail of burned concrete and asphalt left below. She continued flying away out of sheer inertia, but managed to stabilize herself with jet bursts directing her towards the ground.

The shock dampeners on her legs immediately came into effect, buzzing from the pressure, her boots were scorching from the friction while Renata was sliding across the ground - and even before she came to a full stop, the heroine was already firing. Hoping to take advantage of Icarus being stuck on platforms, she released plasma blast after plasma blast to try to catch him in mid-air.

Unfortunately for her, Icarus wasn’t in nearly as much of a tight spot as she had been moments earlier. Even as the heroine began her descent after breaking free of his chain, he began moving after her, dropping from platform to platform as the previous one disappeared each time. Renata’s onslaught didn’t take long to reach him, but the platforms provided some cover against the first few blasts. Realizing that she was desperately trying to hold him at bay, the electric hero decided to go all in and covered himself from head to toe in an embellished suit of medieval armor, all blue and glowing brightly. Forming yet another aspis over his dominant arm, Icarus was now in free fall heading straight towards the enemy, his shield construct protecting him from her plasma attacks.

Not a great situation to end up in by any means. Renata suddenly stopped firing in the middle of Icarus’s platform charge forward, instead clasping her hands and charging up energy between her palms as quickly as possible. None of her normal blasts seemed to have any effect - Icarus’s construct platforms and armor were able to endure them without much of a problem. So if I want to break through, it’s either all-in or nothing...

Renata stood and waited until the very last moment, and when mere seconds were left until impact, a burst of plasma ejected from her feet to yank her to the side. Narrowly escaping from the path of Icarus’s descent, the heroine rolled across the ground before coming to a full stop, throwing her hands forward and releasing all of the energy she had built up in one massive blast.

Icarus landed with a thunderous impact, leaving a small crater on the stadium and standing up just in time to see the deadly wave of energy shooting towards him. Without a second thought he threw up his shield to protect himself from the attack, grunting from the effort it took merely to stand his ground. Things were better when she was only trying to arrest me... He thought as he shed his armor, pouring all that energy into the aspis to make sure it would endure. I have to end this soon.

As Renata continued blasting away, the rising hero began pushing back against the wave, closing the distance step by step as the burst of energy chipped away bits and pieces of his shield at the edges of the construct. Once he felt he was close enough, he let the shield float a short distance in front of his arm, holding the energy wave at bay, and then bounded over the attack, landing behind his opponent just as his shield was disintegrated by Renata’s attack. Grabbing her by the shoulder with an iron grip, the young hero ran straight towards the edge of the field, only stopping as he was about to cross it and hurling the Young Blood through it to end the fight.

“W-wha-”

Renata flailed and blasted around while getting suddenly dragged across the battlefield, all of her effort ending up for naught in the face of Icarus’s stalwart push forward - until finally, she got thrown straight out of the ring. In the midst of impending defeat, her mind went in a frantic frenzy, hands stretching out forward to try to summon a hardlight construct and pull herself back to the fight, only to get a rather painful reminder that it’s been over a month since she has been last able to do that.

Oh...

Renata’s flailing body flew across the force field surrounding the ring, the field opening immediately upon her passing through. A loud buzz rolled across the entire stadium - the exhibition match was over, and the announcer was already declaring Surge to be the winner.

Taking a deep breath, Icarus rose from his throwing stance just in time to hear the bell. The blond boy blinked, pausing for a second - his mind had already been running over various strategies to defend himself from a potential counterattack, under the assumption that his girlfriend might pull another last minute trick, but there was none of that. She flew cleanly through the arena’s boundary, and Icarus looked up, his eyes meeting the expectant crowd. After another moment of pause, he raised his arms in triumph and the crowd exploded into a roaring cheer, celebrating the victor of the match.

Smiling, the young hero allowed himself to bask in the glory for a moment, and the next, he stepped out of the ring. Were he to linger, he might grow used to the sensation and crave more, and he had vowed not to let fame get to his head or make him forget his convictions. Instead, he walked over to the grassy expanse outside the arena proper where his girlfriend had landed, arriving next to her and offering a hand to help her up.

“That was a good fight, asteri mou.” He smiled at her.

Instead of helping Renata up, however, Icarus got his hand swatted away. Renata jumped back up on her feet immediately, her face bearing not a smile, but rather a furious frown. She had lost, sure, the rules would tell her exactly that, but she did not see herself as someone who lost. Or should have lost.

“What? No! That wasn’t a good fight!” Renata yelled out. “That… Why is getting thrown out of bounds an elimination anyway?! That’s not how real battles work, that just makes the entire match a competition on who can throw the other out the fastest! You saw, with your own eyes, that if that dumb rule weren’t in place, I could have won fair and square!”

The blond boy was taken aback by the hot-headed Young Blood’s response. While he was already familiar with her temperament, he had never been at the receiving end of the girl’s competitive drive in the past, and the sight of his girlfriend throwing a tantrum instead of accepting his help and showing some sportsmanship was hardly pleasant. He stood there frozen for a moment before his eyes narrowed at Renata.

“You know, you’re free to do this in front of thousands if you want, but I’ll have no part in it. I’ll talk to you when you’re feeling less upset.” Icarus spoke sternly before simply moving past the pink-haired girl, leaving the field.

“H-huh?..”

Renata’s vision continued trailing after Icarus as the scorned hero departed from the field, leaving her alone in a stadium surrounded by thousands of eyes. His sudden decision to simply leave broke the girl’s frustrated outburst, leaving her frozen and nearly agape. That… wasn’t how this was supposed to go.

Well - first of all, she wasn’t supposed to lose, that’s one thing Renata was convinced with. But besides that… it wasn’t hard to tell that their exchange left a poor taste in Icarus’s mouth, and she really really didn’t want that.

“Wait, but I...” Renata muttered, far too late - Icarus was already gone by then - and began making her way out of the field as well.

[Aidannadia]

September 14th
That evening

Al: hey
Al: hows new york
Rena: Aleta?
Rena: It's been a while, hi!
Rena: It's pretty sweet
Al: thats good

Aleta leaned against the wall of the coffee shop, rubbing her sore shoulder. She thought about ending the conversation with that, but there was so much pressure on her head; she needed to get it out. With the news of her mother, with her aunt's proposition.... She just needed someone she knew would be in her corner

Al: are you free to talk right now
Al: i mean i can text you later if youre busy
Rena: ...is everything okay?
Rena: I'm... free to talk, I guess.

Aleta winced at seeing the message, noticing how uncomfortable her friend must be.

Al: um well ive been thinking
Al: like why did you become a hero
Al: thats probably a stupid question nvm
Rena: That, uh...
Rena: Well I've started it because I really looked up to my father.
Rena: And I guess I've just clinged on that since then...
Al: yknow i dont know why i started what i do?
Al: i mean, the first night was....
Al: i was mugged. put the guy in the hospital
Al: yknow the sick thing
Al: I think I liked that
Al: And I just dont know
Al: If that's what I want anymore
Rena: Al, uh...
Rena: I'm serious, is everything okay?
Rena: Because that sounds like you're the opposite of doing okay.
Al: im fine

Aleta put away the phone, momentarily fighting the urge to keep talking. [i]She's off in New York having the time of her life. I don't need to bother her with this right now... I can deal with this on my own.

Al: i'm just
Al: Off
Rena: Off.
Rena: As in...
Al: i dont know if i want to be Pitch anymore
Al: i dont know if I want to be Aleta anymore
Al: I think I'm just

Aleta sipped her coffee, spinning in on the table after setting it down, trying not to freak out in the middle of the coffee shop.

Al: Scared?
Rena: Scared?..
Rena: What happened?
Rena: Did someone hurt you or something?
Al: i mean maybe i almost got hurt
Al: okay
Rena: You can't be maybe hurt, Al.
Rena: You're either hurt or you aren't.
Al: Maybe i lost a fight
Al: And im safe now
Al: dont worry about me
Al: But I just found out all this stuff about my mom and

Aleta covered her face with her hands as she tried to hold back tears. She wouldn't let herself do that. Not here. Not now.

Al: its just a little much
Rena: ...Sorry if I touched a wound there.
Rena: But I can't not worry about you, Al.
Rena: When my friend calls me telling me that they don't want to be themselves anymore...
Rena: Could I not be worried?

A tear managed to escape from the corner of her eye and the dejected vigilante sniffed, having to give in to the crying despite her best efforts.

Al: im sorry
Rena: You're making me wish I could give you a headpat across the screen.
Al: id like that
Rena: Don't... don't be sorry, though.
Rena: It's not your fault, isn't it?
Rena: I mean... what happened to you.
Al: I got thrown through a few walls
Rena: The next time they show up, call me and we'll throw them through a few walls together.
Rena: Sounds fine?
Al: heh
Al: Sounds great
Al: I'll do that
Rena:
Rena: Stay safe
Al: Will do
Al:

Aleta managed a smile, then stood to leave, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Sorry, Rena." The vigilante mumbled, a look of determination clear on her face. "But this is my fight."

[Finland SSR]

Wyatt

September 12th

Renata Martinez, the heroic Stella!

September 12th

---

Well this was a wash. Wyatt suddenly jumping up and trying to tell Renata to knock it off was to be expected and the pink-haired heroine could have guessed what he was going to say word for word. How did he not understand it? She wasn't even bluffing, Squad 3 had some of the strongest and most dedicated heroes in this entire team, of course they're the best option when it comes to clearing out the preliminaries... Before Renata could respond to Wyatt, however, a long unseen person suddenly joined the scene.

"Elle..." Renata groaned, then continued repeating it during 'Shadoukiru's' introduction, louder and louder, until she was practically yelling at the end of her friend's introduction. Until finally, Elle ceased - seemingly not even because of Renata's efforts, apparently - and continued to stare at the pink-haired girl with a look of admonishment. Renata stared back at her - but instead of surprise, wonder or happiness, it was instead the type of face you'd give if your friend picked up a roadkill and waved it in front of your face.

"Elle, Elle, Elle..." Renata muttered and let out a long sigh. "Stop it. Get some help."

To the side, Mizu was rolling on the floor and laughing - though Renata wasn't sure on whether she was laughing at Renata's reaction or... everything about Elle's introduction.

---

Bael

The Mad Lass, Sina As'tari!

August 8th

---

Hearing Bael immediately get flustered and try to divert the conversation elsewhere as soon as his parents got mentioned got Sina to crack a sly smile. It was pretty easy to tell exactly why he would get uncomfortable with the idea of bringing a girl his age to his family - even if the two of them were just buds, nobody wants to endure constant questions from mom, dad, and anyone else they might be having over at that time.

"What's the matter? Hiding a seeeeecret from someone?" Sina spoke, smirking, wrapping her hands behind her head. "It's okay, Bael, I feel ya. I would probably react the same if you wanted to meet my family. Not the least because Dad would probably challenge you to an arm wrestling match and then painfully find out that you're a-"

Sina stopped for a second, looking around to check if nobody was keeping tabs on their conversation. "-well, that you're an Elder. Okay! We decided on food, let's get food! I could eat a boar right now!"

---

Mika

The Great Floyd Tolson!

September

---

"Merde, that bastard..."

Finding herself under several hundred kilograms of rubber and concrete, the twenty arm woman began pushing them off of herself and rising from the shallow grave which the great Floyd Tolson had so wonderfully dug for her. Her staff was still in her hand - good. And the criminal who had attacked this building did not even try to escape - instead, his eyes were turned towards a nearby rooftop, where a woman in tears was pleading for her life and offering to delete all of her pictures.

He's in the middle of a life and death battle and still has time to threaten innocent civilians... The Crimson Host stumbled forward, her eyes catching a brief glint in the moonlight, next to the broken brunette. His sword... Without it, he's nothing. Carpe diem.

"Watch out!" the multi-armed woman yelled out, making her way to the rooftop in a single bounce and leaping straight towards the unfortunate photographer... Only for Floyd to suddenly catch one of her fists mid-air a few meters before she could grab the embedded weapon, holding her tight and leaving the two of them in a physical clash. For the span of a few seconds, before the woman suddenly received a powerful kick in the chin and was sent rolling off the roof.

"Yeah, uh... all I gotta say is one thing." the swordsman muttered, addressing Mika, as he made his way to his weapon and pulled it out of the wall it got embedded into in a single stroke. He was about to tell her to listen to what she just said and sod off from here, only for the words in his throat to stop when he registered something glowing underneath him. He and Mika were now standing on a complex glowing circle looking like it got ripped straight out of a Satanic ritual - which wasn't even that surprising, Floyd could immediately tell where this was going. Really? Now?! What happened to patience? And she's gonna take the teenager with him, too...

"...Strap in, kid."

The circle grew brighter and brighter, the light eventually overwhelming their vision - anyone watching from afar would see a pillar of light engulf them and leave an empty rooftop. For Floyd and Mika, meanwhile, their vision would distort and then revert into a demonic, hellish landscape, They were standing on a long, narrow bridge over a lake of wailing damned, leading towards an enormous floating fortress.

For Floyd, this was a slight slowly and slowly turning familiar.

---

Angelica Dalin

Steven Baker.

September 12th

---

The locks on the heavy wooden door started popping off one after another, until finally it got pushed aside, Steven's head peeking out through the gap. Really, that was her? From the way how the last time the two of them met had gone, he wouldn't have been surprised if she wanted to never see him again. Hell, she could be already moving to a different school or a different city and he wouldn't have been left shocked by it. And yet, here she was. Asking if she could come in.

If she were to peek through the gap left by the opened door, she would see that the corridor leading towards the exit was a bit of a maze. Several travel bags and suitcases were standing there, one of them with a "New York" sticker slapped on it - the teacher himself got caught in the middle of putting on his coat, too.

"Angie? What is it?" Steven replied, stepping away from the door to give room for the teenage girl to enter.

[Absolon-7]

Opening Ceremony

Casimir & Viviana September 12th
Evidently, the surprise meeting with Icarus had ended sourly to say the least with Mike's unneeded intrusion had Icarus leave the two early although at least they had the chance to bid him farewell. After, that Ash and Casimir would go to the buffet to gorge themselves while drawing the attention of at least a few onlookers at their absurd amount of food. Casimir would spend the rest of the time trying to teach Ash how television networks worked so she'd grasp how many people were going to watch them but eventually it was time for the entire team to reconvene at the tunnel leading out that lead onto the field. Casimir in particular scooted himself as forward as he could so his chance of getting out first was the greatest once they were called out.

On the other side of the coin, Viviana had pretty much spent with her squad, Mizu, and the Vixens talking about all sorts of things. She found it really easy to connect with them and was glad they were so down to earth. It would've been a nightmare if their true selves were like the complete opposites. Evidently she scooted along with everyone to get ready for the opening ceremony and she herself preferred to stay near the back once the team migrated to the tunnel. She fastidiously messed with the bands tying her braid together in an attempt to calm herself but she couldn't help having her bare legs cartoonishly wiggle about. She'd never had the thousands of people all looking at her effort before as at most there'd be a dozen to three dozen people at her basketball games back home. To have thousands in front of her just a few meters away and literal millions more in television and online was almost suffocating. Maybe she could skip out this once? Naja wouldn't midn if she explained why she bailed right? Right? She began to take a step back from the group before she suddenly felt a gloved hands hold her own.

"You okay there?" asked a concerned Casimir before leaning in closer, "It looked like you were gonna y'know."

"Ah, thanks I'm fine," she said holding his hand tighter, "Just need to take a breather. Uhm, are you sure you want to stay back here. What about your glory hogging?"

"It's a shame but I'll have time for glory hogging once I win my squad's match," boasted Casimir giving himself a thumbs up.

"Oh hush you. Now get that silly helmet away from my face," said Viviana giggling.

Soon enough they were called out to be greeted by the crowds onto the large white platform with cameras eyeing them like vultures. Viviana gave them a small wave while Casimir proceeded to pose and flex for the cameras ignoring the boos and only filtering in the cheers in his mind. After the LA Stars got their mixed reception it was time for the groupings which were confusing for Casimir but Viviana nodded along perfectly as her dad was big on how sport tournaments worked. As for their own grouping Casimir wondered how the team would set up the fights for this round as two squads would have to sit out but whatever as long he got to punch someone stronger then him then he'd be satisfied. Viv was busy recounting everything she knew about the three which was admittedly not much. The rest of the ceremony passed by quickly and then it was time for the opening dinner.

"Holy-moly I can get more pudding!," squeeled Viviana squishing her face in excitement, PUD-DING!"

"Oh great I'm starving," commented Casimir.

"Didn't you finish the buffet's entire tray of steak?" asked a baffled Viviana.

"Yeah and?" asked Casimir, "Don't worry I won't eat your pudding."

"Oh never mind," brushed off Viviana in faux indignation.

The team was all sitting together on one big table and eventually something had to start as Renata said something disparaging which Casimir didn't really disagree with but Viviana looked on with concern. Then came Elle acting like Elle. Both of the lovebirds looked at her like she had spontaneously grown a second head. They both moved back to eating and chatting with each other once Wyatt stepped in for damage control.

"You know what I want to do," said Casimir.

"What?" inquired Viv slurping down a fancy soup.

"I swing down the tallest building in New York and catch you by the hip for a joyride through the city," said Casimir.

"Oh please," said Viviana rolling her eyes at him.

[The Templar High Council]

On a Northbound Plane...

Zoe sat tight in her seat as the plane she was in climbed to cruising altitude. Before long, a gentle ding sounded from above. "Uh passengers, this is your captain speaking. You are now free to move about the cabin. We'll be arriving at LaGuardia in just under two hours, so please enjoy the ride!"

With that out of the way, Zoe unbuckled and shot out of her seat with an exuberant cheer. This is the greatest day of my life!!! She said to herself, looking around at the official members of the NASL team, the Carolina Bluejays: Hardlight, Tiger, Accelerator, Zookeeper, Twinblade, Foreigner. Zoe spent the last year and a half living and training amongst the team, honing her skills in order to eventually debut on the team when she turned old enough. And now that day is almost here!

"So Jordan, tell me again what exactly is going on again?" Zoe walked around from her seat to speak to Jordan Forris, also known as Accelerator, who was her designated trainer on the team. Jordan cared a lot about his appearance; his black hair was kept in a clean undercut and his beard was always trimmed neatly, not to mention his signature leather jacket that he always wore when he wasn't in "uniform." He looked a lot like a male model, as he looked up from his phone while smirking knowingly at Zoe.

"It's the start of the season, Kiddo." He always referred to Zoe as a kid, and he knew that it annoyed her endlessly. "Starts somewhere different every year, but all the league teams across America gather together for the inaugural tournament. Part team-building exercise, part promotional stunt, all spandex and superheroes trying to strut their stuff." Jordan unbuckled from his seat and went to convene with the rest of the team, with Zoe following behind him. The plane was private to them, but it wasn't the team's personal transportation. As such it came with all the luxury amenities that those who rented private planes were used to, and some of the team were currently indulging in them. Namely, Tiger and Twinblade had started a drinking competition with the previously well-secured liquor behind the bar, while Zookeeper stood nearby cheering them on and Foreigner watched with a mixture of concern and slight interest.

"Come on Richard! Are you gonna let Chester beat you so easy!?" Zookeeper, also known as Alana, said as she cheered the two on. Zoe watched as the physically dominating Tiger started to pull ahead of the relatively smaller Twinblade, when the latter finally lay his head on the bar, defeated. Chester cheered triumphantly, with Alana joining in on the celebration immediately. At the exact moment the two of them started to share the remaining bottle, the team leader Hardlight returned from the cockpit with the expression of an exasperated parent.

"Are you all serious?" Kylie said, looking around the cabin with a stern gaze. "We've barely started the flight... and you already started partying without me? Unacceptable!" Everyone on the plane laughed in response, welcoming Kylie into the room to continue ringing in the first league tournament of the season. After a short while, everyone seemed to settle down and Kylie gathered everyone's attention.

"Alright all, I know we've got a long road ahead of us this year, trying to finally take number one from the Stars, but I have a little announcement to formally make." Kylie smiled broadly as she spoke, as if she couldn't wait to get the news out. "Our newest member-in-training, Impulse, is joining us for her first tournament trip. As you know, minors competing in the tournament proper is somewhat frowned upon... however the recent rise of the San Diego Young Bloods has this unofficial rule being reexamined. That team will be at the tournament to compete, however our lineup currently doesn't offer Zoe a slot. If something comes up and someone here has to drop out though, you're next on the list.

"That being said!" Kylie continued despite the excited murmurings from Zoe and Jordan. "There's another young rising star who's joined an official team: a new hero by the name of Surge has joined the Stars, just a few months older than Zoe here. With that in mind... after speaking to Captain Quake, I arranged for an exhibition match between Zoe and Surge. Sort of a 'new league prodigy training sparring session'." Zoe sat speechless as Kylie continued. "This kid's tough, heard he's got some experience under his belt from some vigilante work, and he went toe-to-toe with Armorer to earn his spot. But I wouldn't have done this if I didn't think you had a chance; good luck out there Zo'."

Zoe was unable to react, even as the other Bluejays congratulated her and wished her luck. It was a lot to take in for one sitting, coupled with the fact that this was her first trip to New York (she even planned to do some tourist activities while they were in town for the tournament, believing that she would have a few days for herself). Overwhelmed, she excused herself from the continuing celebration and sat in the bathroom for a while; trying to reconcile the anxiety she would feel at fighting on a stage in front of thousands of people against someone who had way more real combat experience than her with the excitement of finally having the chance to prove herself, and not just in simulations. Before Zoe knew it the pilot was already announcing their landing, and she got out of the bathroom and back in her seat just in time for the plane to begin its descent. Zoe could feel her stomach going along with it...

---

After the plane touched down, the team was let out onto the airstrip with the sound of cheering fans not far away. The gang had mostly recovered from their in-flight refreshments, and Zoe had struggled to prepare herself for the publicity. She was dressed in casual attire; a corduroy jacket with a fluffy collar and a t-shirt underneath paired with jeans and sneakers, and her lucky goggles. Fairly unassuming, if she weren't surrounded by famous superheros who for the most part thrived in this atmosphere. The Bluejays started walking towards the airport terminal, with Kylie in the lead as she boldly opened the doors and the cheering only got louder. There had to be more than a hundred people inside waiting to see them and the other arriving teams, and the screaming only got louder as the seven of them started through the lane that airport security had created for them. Zoe watched as the other team members did their part to act famous and fun for their fans, but she herself stuck to the back as they moved quickly through the airport and to the limousine waiting outside to take them to Freedom's Nest.

Settling in the car, Jordan slid in next to Zoe and looked to her with concern. "Probably the biggest crowd you've seen that's here for you, huh?"

"Yeah, and they weren't even there for me specifically! I just..." She groaned and threw her hands in the air. "I haven't even been out on patrol with y'all before, how does Kylie expect me to get out in front of so many people and fight some other kid!?"

Accelerator shrugged and watched his apprentice lower her shoulders. With little hesitation, he nudged her in the side to try and get her out of her slump. "Just think of it as a performance! Live on stage for the first time: Zoe 'Impulse' Foster! Complete with her new Bluejays blazer!" Zoe chuckled at what he had to say, but he wasn't wrong. This was her time to shine, her shot at the big leagues, and it wasn't a chance she planned to pass up.

Zoe dug around in her pockets for a pair of earbuds, hooking them up to her phone and opening her music player. She scrolled around for a while before reaching her playlists, continuing until she found one titled "Get Pumped!" She mashed the shuffle button over and over, looking for something to capture the confidence she sought to carry into the stadium. Before she realized, they were pulling up to the front entrance, and she hit the button one more time. As she watched the name of the song scroll across the screen, she nodded quietly in approval and steeled herself for the conflict ahead.

---

Zoe entered the arena with her team dressed in her temporary hero outfit, the only goal of which is to give her enough room to stay mobile (trying to use her powers to shore up her durability). She watched as the rest of the teams filed out onto the field, a few of them appearing to have members around her age. That was, until she saw the Young Bloods. A swarm of teenagers emerged from the tunnel following what looked like a snake lady, certainly an odd bunch, and Zoe was honestly surprised that people her age were admitted to the tournament after only being an official group for a few months at most.

The cheering for the other teams paled in comparison to the reception the L.A. Stars got, running out like they owned the place. In their midst, Zoe caught a glimpse of her presumed opponent; the only member of the team who appeared to be near her age. Tall, blonde, holding two swords on his hips, seemed like someone who had already seen his fair share of fights. Zoe tensed up, but tried to get that out of her mind at least until it was time to get down to business. The groupings for the tournament were announced, and the Bluejays cheered as their name was called. From what she knew about the other teams in their pod, the Bluejays had a clear lead on everyone else here, though she was interested to see everybody in action.

After the opening ceremony came and went, the teams returned to their lockers and waiting rooms before being called to the opening dinner. It was held in a massive hall that managed to hold all of the league members in attendance, and everyone was mixing and mingling with the other teams over an equally massive buffet of food. Zoe was wandering the tables, looking at all of the dishes with a mostly-empty plate as she scoured for her favorite foods.

[Tomia]

Roy
Roy smiled as Wendy took a step closer to him. 'Well that certainly sounds fun." He replied, putting his arm around her waist. "I know Naja has a plan for us, but I'm sure she wouldn't mind if the two of us took a little detour." He was glad his girlfriend seemed to be feeling better about being at the tournament. He wanted her to be able to enjoy herself just like everyone else.

That moment was spoiled however when Renata started bragging about how squad 3 would carry the team. Roy couldn't hold back an eye roll. "You realize we're supposed to be fighting the other teams, not our own right?" He quipped at his teammate who loved to push buttons. "Like it or not, you're going to have to rely on your teammates here."

Mars
The tech hero frowned as Roy and Renata bickered back and forth but was glad when Wyatt stepped in and took charge. He was doing a good job as far as Mars was concerned and he felt like he was learning about leadership from the dragon hero. He nodded at his friend's optimistic take on their chances. "Ya I'm really excited. I think we have a good chance if we work hard." He said confidently.

After the Ceremony
With the opening ceremony complete, the participating heroes headed to the host hotel. After unpacking, and changing for those who weren't worried about their identity, the team headed down to the large ballroom where dinner was being held. The food was an elegant assortment of pastas, grilled chicken, salads, bread rolls, accompanying an open bar. After listening to a few speeches, the team dug into dinner, and shared some laughs and chattered about the tournament and their experiences of their free time before the ceremony.

After this somewhat stuffy event was over, Naja ushered the team back to their cars. "Since most of the teams tend to hangout at the hotel bar after dinner, and before you even ask don't bother, I've decided to plan something else fun for us." She said, before handing out Alexis' holo watches to certain team members. "So that you can enjoy a night out just as kids, these will slightly alter your facial appearances so that people won't recognize you." She said as they all filed back into the cars. After about twenty minutes, they arrived in the heart of Manhattan, the busy streets all around them. On the corner sat a large building with a bright sign that read "Play Zone" in blue letters.

Roy couldn't help but worry that might end up being lame, but once they headed inside, he realized he was quite wrong. The large room was lighted with tinted blue lights and popular music played in the background. All around them were retro arcade games mixed with things like ski ball and classic shooter and racing games that are common in arcades.

"I looked into this place in advance. It seemed pretty cool. There's a food stand in the back corner and upstairs there is laser tag and I'll hand out cards that will let you play games down here." She said with a smile, clearly proud of herself.

"Okay, this is cool." Roy admitted before turning to Wendy. "Come on, we have to play some street fighter."

Meanwhile Angelica turned to Alexis, "How is your pac man game?" She asked with a playful smile.

"Nicole!" Just then a woman approached the group, a big smile on her face. Roy quickly recognized her as Kylie.

"Oh ya, I forgot to mention, I invited some friends from the league around to join us." She said as two people that Mars recognized as Red and Blue came into the building as well.

[North America Inc]

-Renata-

Shihong Smith

"Then in that case, I'm sure wherever we go is the right one." And with that, Shi walked back into her apartment. With a snap of her fingers, servants got to work taking care of her various whims; from doing her hair to pulling an outfit out for her. In the span of ten minutes, Shi was already back outside the hallway with a stylish, new look: a more casual styling of an outfit she saw at the HKFWFW earlier this year; as she reflected on her outfit, she realized it might be too much. It really wasn't fair for Renata. Wrapping herself in her baige-blue overcoat, she asked, "So what movie are we watching? I haven't really paid attention to what's out right now."

The duo, afterwords, then began to walk down the hallway as she took her phone out. Taking a few pictures of herself, Shi typed a few seconds only to turn to Renata, "You have an IG right? I can tag you if you want. We can even take one together... if you want...I heard NASL fans love to see teammates hanging outside of the arena."

---

-Wendy-

-Jason-

-Mark & Ava-

Kazakhstan, 2016
"I want to address this now..." High above the plains of Central Asia, near the peaks of Pik Talgar, the Red Princess stood before her subjects. A Blackout team, wearing PLA uniforms, all knelt before her; they all were well acquainted with stories about her. As Royalty spoke, they listened. Five men were at each of her sides in a line, their faces obscured by gear. "I know what you are all thinking...she's just a child, that's understandable..." The Princess smirked before shaking her head, "However, whatever your preconceived notions are, they end now."

"Yes Ma'am." the team said in unison.

"You are now a reflection of me. And as such, you are now held at a higher standard. I understand the pressure. But.." The Princess adjusted her body armor as her helicopter flew off in the distance, "If you hesitate, I will not hesitate to correct you. We have one mission and I expect to accomplish said mission in a timely manner..." She dragged out the last syllables before turning her attention to the other line of men.

"As I've been informed, these two fugitives have eluded all of you for the past month. I'm sure I don't have to remind the importance of keeping our heritage a secret. Should that come out, consequences will be dire for all of us. Most of all, you."

"Ma'am. You have to understand..." The Chinese Commander of the team spoke up, "These meta-humans, with their abilities, it has made it almost impossible for conventional..." His words are cut off as a presence leans directly over him.

"Of course they are or I would not have been brought in. Do you have such a low opinion of your men that you have to repeat the obvious?" She shook her head before relaxing her brow, "Captain, I'm sure you spend you struggled to rise so high within the organization; exceeded your peers and everyone's expectations. Its' very admirable. However, what we are dealing with is something beyond you. Excellence, or rather true power, is something you are born with. You powers' are limited; theirs' is limitless."

"I see..." the Captain said with slight disgruntled tone.

"Let me make that point clear..." The Princess looked up and around the whole cabal of men around her, "That goes for each and every single man here. Luckily for all of you, I am here. But as I said before, by the time we have recaptured Subject AZ735 and eliminated the other, you will be a reflection of me. And that alone is more than enough."

---

New York City
The androids lit up just as Jason arrived. He made his usual self depreciating comment but at this point Shi was so used to it that she expected it. Nodding her head in agreement, "I did pay for it. But it's not a big deal. I'm too modest to boast." Shi replied with a smirk strung across her face. "And as for actually making some money...after this I'm sure you'll get a few brand offers. Assuming the whole team actually does well during the actual games."

Then Mark came in, with Ava clinging to his shadow. As Mark got ready, Ava said, "You have too many strings to pull, this is crazy, Shi. Thank you so much."

"It's okay. It's not a big deal." Shi motioned towards the robots behind her, "I figured that we need to actually practice and develop some team cohesion if we are going to progress forward and get Jason some sponsorships."

Just as she finished her joke, the door burst open to reveal the final member. "Sorry I'm late." Wendy walked in, awe struck by the expansive facility at their disposal. Wendy commented on it and thanked her, but Shi merely shook her head; it was time to get to work.

"While we won't know the opposing team until later today, our squad is in dire need of some team practice before then." Shi walked back and forth in front of her squad-mates. They stood still as she talked, "There is no denying it. We are at a disadvantage. While Wendy and I worked together during the Mayor operation, our team back then was only made up of three people. One of which was reassigned. Jason you were on another squad..." Shi walked towards and pointed at the two new recruits, "And both of you didn't join until after WarWolf was dealt with. While other squads have deep connections with their teammates, I have to be honest, I barely know all of you behind a complimentary high. I'm going to assume its true for everyone else. We haven't been given the opportunity to truly a bond between us. "

"That might sound disparaging..." Shi stopped walking and placed herself in the exact center across from the team, "But it's not. Often times, pre established relationships can be as destructive as total strangers working together. Other team's have have so much baggage and issues to sort through; we do not. You think Mike and Casimir are getting along? Renata and her squad? We don't have to deal with that here, and I can't begin to describe how thankful I am because of that. The Young Bloods is my team, but this is my squad, and I'll do anything for it. I hope by the end you'll feel the same. I want our team to know each other limits and strengths so well that when we are actually fighting for real, we won't even need to make call outs. I know that might sound rather hopeful, but I don't think so. With enough training sessions we can really be the most effective squad on our current roster. I think all of us want to succeed."

"But before we can do that, we need to take the first step." Shi spoke in a clearer and more clinical tone, "Unit one to five step forward." The robots on the first row moved forward, only stopping when they were nearly arm's length away from the team. "These are Shenzhen Automation Combat Androids; besides being support units for the PLA, they will have the honor of fighting us today. Or at least you four. I'll be watching from above as the rest of you fight them. Before we can plan I need to say what we can do. Work together or don't. I'll be taking notes of all of you and we can discuss them after."

Shi walked behind the robots until she was behind both rows, "As you can see there are ten androids altogether and two support drones. All have enhanced strength, speed, and durability. Some have special attacks. Others don't. On top of that, they are self learning..." Shi looked up in the air trying to think of an example, "If I was to say that I CODE-NAME Sludge is weak to fire attacks they'll make note of that." As soon as she said that, all ten androids simultaneously swiveled their heads directly towards Jason.

"I hope my little prep talk didn't turn you off, but I know we can do great things as a team. Any comments or questions before we get started?"

[The Republic of Atria]

Lotsa stuff

Pretty much as he expected: Renata ignored him, but she did stop being so full of herself for the moment. Instead turning her attention to Elle who had changed outfits for the worse in his honest opinion, which meant he agree with Renata for probably the first time since he's know her.. Not to mention the terrible use of Japanese honorifics when she in fact only spoke English and Spanish. Though he kept his opinions to himself, she wasn't on his team and therefore it wasn't his place to criticize. Not that it stopped Renata from telling her that it was indeed a poor choice of... Everything. At least Mars agreed with him that they had a chance of beating a few of the teams while not being a jerk about it.

Next came the dinner. Which was pretty nice. He ate his fill of various meat and carbs, but was careful not too eat too much, lest he be too full to actually compete if he and his squad got selected for the fight. No one approached him and he thanked the Spirits for that. He barely knew anything about any of the teams. At most a basic overview of a few of them, but nothing beyond that. What concerned him was the after dinner party but as fate would have it, since the Young bloods were mostly still minors, they would not be allowed in the bar. Naja gave them an alternative to that.

An arcade. Bael sighed internally, for once he was disappointed with what he got. While some of the other members of his team seemed to accept it perfectly fine, he couldn't help but feel insulted. He and the rest of the team had done so much over the past couple months, putting their lives in danger, and this was what they got? The more he thought about it, the more he felt a insulted. He understood that despite everything, they were technically still kids, but they had earned SOME level of respect by now hadn't they?

"I..." He started and sighed. "I... This? This is what we get sent to? An arcade? For children?" He asked to no one in particular. There was no point in making a scene. Instead he faced his team and let them know what he was thinking. "I'm not going to lie. I feel like I'm being treated as less than. I figured we were at least a little more mature than this. We're not twelve years old. You guys have can stay if you want, I'm gonna go... Not here." He admitted as he left the arcade, his experience soured just a bit. He and the rest of the Young Bloods were better than cheap video games. He wanted to be treated at least as if he wasn't some child playing superhero if not outright equal. Spirits forbid.

The good news was that he came to a directory which showed a nice training area for the competitors and decided that if nothing else, it would keep his mind off being treated as less than.

Shi

Jason crossed his arms, his half smile creeping along his face as Shi mentioned that she did indeed purchase everything. Which made him wonder where exactly she got all that cash. It obviously wasn't from superhero sponsors, since she literally just started and had done just about as much as he had. Maybe it was an investment? That's still quite a bit of money to just throw at a one, maybe two day training thing. Shi explained that they needed to work on their teamwork and synergy and all the other big fancy, which he thought they had been doing over the past month, but then again, there was always room for improvement. To which he actually had to agree.

"Heh." He muttered as Shi joked that they should work on getting him a sponsor. "You seem to already be sponsored. Can't see where else you'd pull what..." He trailed off looking the androids she bought up and down. "I don't know what these things go for, but based on what you said they, it can't be less than fifty grand a pop. Yeah, they're made to train supers, and I can see the big names having cash to throw around. But no offense to us, we're not as popular as them. Yet. But uh, you mind puttin' in a good word with them for me? If they're paying you this much... Least they could do is extend a little bit of that cash flow towards us." He mused in his usual aloof tone.

"But yeah. I'm cool with more practice." He said and looked at the team. Wendy had her Scooby Doo bot but wasn't much on her own unless there was tech involved, Mark and Ava were a thing. Mark seemed kinda like Wyatt, big, tough, strong as hell. Ava was in the business of making constructs. Useful in a lot of contexts. Shi had her fire and lightning powers. He could see some stuff working with Ava, but most everyone else had powers that were best used on their own or just didn't mix well. "Next question... What kind of practice did you have in mind for team play?" As he asked, Shi explained about their learning abilities, mentioning his vulnerability to fire, causing all the droids to lock onto him.

"Yeah... That's not completely horrifying or menacing in the least. Not gonna lie, I kinda like supervillains better. They get mad when you call 'em names and try to suffocate em. I don't get the feeling that's going to work on these guys."

[New Neros]

Darklight

It felt a bit off that her friend wasn't around, Ava even got a bit worried as she took her spot at the dinner table and politely began to eat, the empty seat she had saved going to waste as Mark never showed up. It wasn't like him to just dip out without telling someone, and Ava was too much of an introvert to ask other people if they had seen him. Sighing, the girl whipped out her phone and sent Mark another message, adding up to six unread at that point. She ate solemnly and without much interaction, glancing around the room every now and then to see if Cosmic had came. Ava managed to grab a plate of food and dump it into a to-go box, hoping to save some for her pal, as the dinner started to wind down and the after party began.

"No bar?" Ava asked no one in particular, "Where the hell else are we supposed to go, then?" She continued as the team was led back to their cars and driven away, arriving at a big arcade, complete with games and laser tag. Though the idea of superpowered laser tag sounded like a blast, she couldn't help but feel shafted at not getting a chance to mingle with other heroes in the League, and above all, was still on the lookout for Cosmic. Just as she began to look around the mid-Manhattan street corner, though, she caught a glimpse of a car pulling up behind the line of limousines, and a toned teen male exiting the back seat.

"Thanks for the ride, man." He said as he stepped out onto the sidewalk, the driver giving a quick nod.

"You're welcome, you paid either way." The car politely exited the drop off lane and re-entered traffic, leaving Mark Nemo standing by his lonesome for a moment. Clothed in a tank top and a pair of basketball shorts, he was casual as can be, and turned on his heel to join the crowd now entering the arcade. He nearly ran into Ava, though, and gave a weak smirk as she leaned in and stared at him expectantly, waiting for an explanation.

“Did you watch my fight?” He asked, Ava looking confused for a second, moving her hand to the side and continuing the look, Mark got the hint that he needed to explain himself better. “I, uh, had an exhibition match a little bit ago. It was around dinner time, and I didn’t want to make y’all miss that. I fought Star Griffin from the Flying Squirrels, and won.” Ava’s look of confusion turned into concern, and breathed a quick sigh.

“Mark, no one knew you were fighting.” She began, turning her body away from him and urging him to follow. “Some of us would have watched in person or on stream. I would have, why didn’t you tell me?” Looking up at the locale chosen, Mark gave a grimace, and felt like a play palace was a bit too obvious of a place to party for some teenagers.

“I didn’t want to bother anyone, and I kinda wanted to do it on my own.” He quickly stated, standing his ground as Ava stopped walking as well, “And I don’t want to go to an arcade right now. I want to go find some fun here in New York. Just because we’re a bunch of teen heroes doesn’t mean we have to go to some fun time play arena. I want to do something memorable and meaningful.”

“What do you want to do, then?” Ava replied, turning to face Cosmic and crossing her arms, “I just want to hang out, I’m down for whatever.”

“Something… Superheroic? I was just in a stadium full of people, cheering for me and for the guy I was fighting, and it felt fun as hell. I don’t want to play laser tag, I want to go on patrol or go fight someone again. I... “ He trailed off for a minute, sighing loudly and relaxed his tense body. “I only feel alive when I’m fighting or working my body. It lets me take my mind out of the equation and not think about bad stuff.”

“Everyone has bad stuff, Mark,” Ava began, “They work through it, you just punch things until you feel better.”

“We get the same fuckin’ result.” Cosmic said, raising his voice, “We both feel better at the end. And I!” He declared, “I don’t have any money to spend at the arcade.” He admitted, turning his head away in slight embarrassment, “It isn’t like I get an allowance, and I get paid a bit from the Corps, but there isn’t exactly an exchange rate for dollars.” At that point, Mark noticed Wyatt walking out of the arcade slightly disgruntled, and moved past Ava before she could respond. “Hey, man.” He said out of the blue, “You ditching this place too? I’m looking to go anywhere else, if you’re down to hang out for a bit.”

He looked back at Ava, wondering if she’d tag along too.

---

Darklight and Cosmic
Team Training

-Shi-

-Jason-

-Wendy-

"Wow," Mark commented as Jason sized up the androids and called their price, "That's a lot of collateral damage to just throw at some teens with powers. But I mean..." He looked up at Shi for a bit, and figured it wasn't much more than a used punching bag for her, "If you're offering, I'm more than happy to test what I can do on the bots. My only question is, are we allowed to destroy them, if we can?"

"I don't think you should break them." Ava replied before Shi could, "Why waste the equipment when you can get the most out of it? You don't just break free weights when you're done lifting. Challenge yourself!" She declared, forming some hardlight constructs in the air with a wave of her hand, building some spears and spheres, her usual collection. She turned to Jason briefly, though, asking him, "You think you could swing off of my constructs? Or do you think you could use some construct armor since the bots are definitely going to target you with some fire?" This was team building after all, and though Wendy should be the one leading the exercise, Shi seemed to have prior experience in this field. Ava figured Cosmic would try his hand at one on one with some androids and Wendy would probably let her companion do the dirty work while she reprogrammed an android, leaving herself and Jason as two compatible teammates who could work off of each other.

"Unless you have another suggestion, of course." She added, not wanting to just dictate things to Sludge.

[New Neros]

The History of Cosmic
Origins, Part One


Mark Nemo opened his eyes, and what greeted him wasn’t the usual water-stained ceiling of his bedroom, but a sleek metallic panel board that displayed numbers and letters that he couldn’t recognize. He closed his eyes and tried to wake up from the dream he was in, but opening his eyes once more proved that he was very much awake, and that the events of the previous night were not some vivid imagination. His chest tightened as fear took hold, the sounds of beeps and distant buzzing painting a very eerie portrait of an alien spacecraft. Closer than he’d like, he heard voices speaking, unsure of the actual language they spoke.

“Human from Earth, nothing exceptional. Not even one of the superpowered humans at that, a bit underweight for his age, shorter than average as well. He couldn’t have been the one to take down Lorn, most powered Humans on that world would struggle to do so, much less this specimen.” A male voice rattled off, palming through some slides that held information on the planet and the boy in question. “There’s no doubt, though, he does have a conduit inside him.”

“Not just a conduit, he has Lorn’s conduit.” A female voice corrected, “How did he attain it? Only exceptionally strong beings can produce the force needed to remove the connection to the Ultra Force.”

“Why don’t we ask him?” The man noted, nodded at their captive, who was now awake and staring around the room with a wide-eyed look of surprise and fear. “You there, human.” The man began, “You would like to ask you some questions, if you would be so kind as to answer them for us.” Mark looked around for the source of the voice, but figured it must be some intercom in the room. “Let’s start with names. Tell us who you are.”

“Mark Nemo.” He stated clearly, “Is this about those two aliens from yesterday?”

“Two? Er, yes. Please, tell us all what happened in as great detail as you can possibly remember.”

“I saw a beam streak across the sky and land in a park next to my house. I went to see if there was a meteorite, but I found… Someone not from Earth, he didn’t have a nose, three fingers, purple blood, things like that. He was hurt really bad, and I helped him up and over to an alley away from the park. I couldn’t understand him until he gave me some glowing sphere thing, and it just… combined with me, I guess? I don’t know. He told me about the Ultra Corps, he told me someone really bad was coming, and to hide until his subordinates arrived. I hid, but watched another alien come down. He just reeked of… Villainy, I guess? Just bad news, I kept hiding and ended up going back to my bed. And now I’m here.”

“Huh…” The woman spoke, placing a finger to her lips. “He described Lorn Zol perfectly, and I suppose he got a glimpse of Hasht-Zy-Lok. If what he says is true, Lorn gave him his conduit. Did Hasht injure him that badly? Their battle was titanic, but Lorn is more than capable of handling traitors like him… Allow me to make sure this isn’t some trap set by the renegade.” As the woman spoke, a door appeared in the metallic walls that housed Mark, sliding back and revealing a tall, humanoid-like woman with several cybernetic implants dotting her face and visible parts of her neck. Her armor was also technologically advanced, but it’s sophistication was lost on a simpleton like Mark. “Mark Nemo, I am the former lieutenant of Lorn Zol, the alien who perished on your world, and who gave you that connection to the Ultra Force. You may call me Mentor.”

“M-mentor…” Mark Nemo repeated, swallowing a bit, “Nice to meet you. Did I do something wrong?”

“Not yet. I need you to follow me.” She said, gesturing for the teen to come as she walked away, Mark shuffling to keep up, his eyes constantly looking at the walls, floor, and ceiling of the spaceship as he was just awestruck. Mentor began to explain what will happen next as they walked, “Conduits for the Ultra Force are highly sought after in the universe, they allow an organic being to unlock immense energetic powers that should only be wielded by those in pursuit of order and justice. Lorn would not give his connection away so willingly if he didn’t see some potential in you, and I am here to see if I can see what he saw.” She came to a stop in the middle of a hallway, the walls suddenly expanding away and giving the two of them a large amount of space, the size of an entire gymnasium at least. “That burning in your chest… Unshackle it.”

Mark seemed a bit confused, but what he felt as heartburn was an actual source of energy, and by forcing himself to burp, suddenly engulfed his whole body in an orange hue. “Whoa, holy shit…” He said, watching as flames covered his arms and torso, spreading to his legs as well. “What is thi-” Without warning, Mentor slammed her fist into Mark’s abdomen, and just as quickly swung once more and upper-cutted the teenager, flinging his head back and knocking him out cold. The older woman tilted her head to the side, watching the unconscious Mark Nemo for a moment as he lay motionless on the floor, his energy retracting into his chest.

“He is untrained in every sense of the world. A blank slate. Lorn, why did you give such a power to a simpleton…” She wondered aloud, reporting her findings, and quickly making arrangements on what to do with this greenhorn now that they were responsible for him. It would take two more weeks for Mark to get adjusted in his new life, as the young man threw himself at the new challenge as best as he could. He revealed little of his past life on Earth, and from what the rest of the Ultra Corps members could piece together, he seemed much happier with them than back home, despite the ill-treatment he received during training and on missions.

In that time, he had made great strides in becoming a well-wounded member of his team, including becoming friendly with most of his squad, finding a close companion in the strong, monstrous tank of the team, Soldier. A blue-skinned, red-eyed humanoid from some distant planet, standing at nearly seven feet tall, the brute assisted Mark in learning to fight properly and has been his partner while training so that he could reach peak physical condition. He also aided in unlocking his Ultra Force abilities, showing him extensive use and allowing Mark to get practical experience through sparring. Collider, in comparison, taught Mark to use and utilize his secondary powers given to him by the Ultra Force, allowing the teenager to make rapid strides in learning his Shatter ability. He acted as if the job was a chore, and often would deeply criticize Mark for not following his instructions to the letter, leading to some resentment between the pair.

Mentor and Prodigy took turns in educating Mark, teaching him needed skills for space travel and how to handle certain situations, cultural barriers, and other abilities a Corpsman must possess in addition to overwhelming firepower. Mentor took a rigorous approach that showed off her domineering nature, but had good results as Mark was hard pressed not to piss her off. Prodigy, meanwhile, would use her technological skills to run Mark through simulations and let him solve problems on his own, fostering a creative mindset that required out of the box thinking. She was the first to notice that he often seemed distracted when looking out into the stars.

“You only lose your attention when a window opens up.” Prodigy stated, shifting her helmet to look at Mark as he snapped back to attention. “Don’t worry, sorry if I startled you, but I want to know - What draws you to gaze upon the stars with such wonder each and every time you get a glimpse?”

“I, uh, well,” Mark stumbled a bit, feeling embarrassed that he was caught slacking, but decided he was safe telling Prodigy how he felt. “On Earth, you don’t see the stars all the time where I’m from. And you really don’t see them up close like this, either. I always wondered what was out there as a kid when I could see the night sky, but I never thought it was this beautiful.”

“Oh, how wonderful!” Prodigy said with a cheery clap, “You can look as much as you like, it’s infinite, ever-expanding in all directions, it really is beautiful.” She continued, looking out the window through her visor. “I believe I’ve gotten used to the sight, though, as it doesn’t hold the same magic for me anymore. Another pale light in the distance is another world in need of help, the beauty only masks the pain from a distance.”

“I’m… I’m sorry.” Mark stated, turning away from the window and preparing to focus on a holopad in front of him.

“No, no, don’t be!” Prodigy quickly tried to correct her misstep, “What I mean is, don’t lose that magic. Always see the stars for the beauty, don’t assign them or categorize them, simply let them be. You should always be reminded that the stars all around are mesmerizing no matter where you go, right? Maybe that’s a name you should choose.” Prodigy was right, and Mark had yet to be assigned a codename from Mentor, as that was reserved for when he finished his training. He had several more weeks to go, but he would be ready for accompanying missions very soon.

“Why do you like this name, Cosmic?” Soldier asked, swinging a vicious right hook at Mark, who stepped back and out of the way of the strike, countering it by jabbing Soldier in the ribs and backing the behemoth up. “Choose something more intimidating, something to strike fear and dread across the star ways! Bear, perhaps, Bullshark, another.” He stated, unphased by the hit, continuing back in to deliver multiple solid strikes at Mark, who held his guard fiercely and tanked each hit that Soldier put out.

“Cosmic is like, all of the stars, the worlds, everything around that you can see in the distance is cosmic. The cosmos, you know?” Mark explained, finding an opening in Soldier to burst forward, opening his palm and unleashing a fierce blast of energy against the powerful bruiser. Knocking him back once more, Mark continued, “I want to always remember the beauty of everything, no matter how bleak things are.” Soldier flew back at Mark, sweeping his leg from underneath in a quick motion, Mark stopping his fall by floating for a moment, falling into Soldiers’ trap, and receiving a face full of Ultra Force energy as punishment.

Recoiling from the hit, Mark had to listen to Soldier, “Too big, too vast. Needs precision and impact. Soldier! Soldier is grand, fierce, loyal, goes the distance. Go with Warrior, strong, never gives up, savage also. Do Earthlings have warriors?” Soldier asked, walking towards Mark as he clutched his face. “Prove to me you are big, cosmic sized. Then I will agree.” With that incentive, Cosmic cracked a smile through his burnt face, and ignited his aura. Soldier did the same with a wide grin, his aura quickly overtaking Mark’s smaller, confined flame with his wild and flaring one. Mark made the first move, concentrating his power in his punches, and went wild on Soldier. “Oh!” The man declared, putting in actual effort to block the punches and kicks that Nemo dished out, “You are ready for full-contact, yes?”

Before Nemo could respond, Soldier reared back his fist and slammed it into his partner’s face, an orange spike of energy erupting from behind Mark Nemo’s head and nearly flooring the newcomer immediately, but the teen counterpunch before he could recover from that hit, belting Soldier across the jawline with a left hook, jarring the big bastard. A slight hint of anger flashed in the blue alien, his aura flaring quickly and burning hot, causing Mark to retreat away from his teammate. He caught himself and calmed down, though, and Soldier looked at Mark Nemo like a proud parent. “Cosmic,” He said, Mark responding quickly.

“Yes, Soldier?”

“Training’s done for today. Get rest, eat well, I will talk with Mentor.” Cosmic retracted his energy with a face full of happiness, and did as he was told. Gathering up some snacks in the cafeteria, Cosmic snuck away to his room to eat and drink as much as he could before passing out, recalling the times he did a similar thing in his foster home, but never once could he remember doing it with such a big smile on his face.

[The Republic of Atria]

Sina

At first he was embarrassed feeling he face get hot as Sina prodded a bit, but felt it recede quickly after she explained herself as just messing around and understanding that he didn't want to have to deal with the constant questioning from his parents and further embarrassment as they inevitably revealed some even more embarrassing moments from when he was a child. He shuddered at the thought and silently thanked the Spirits for Sina being suspiciously cooperative. Though his headed darted around when Sina mentioned the thing they weren't supposed to talk about in public. No one was within earshot as far as he could tell so he breathed.

Well, not suspiciously, she was more interested in getting something to eat, and honestly, the hunger pangs were hitting him too. "Just... Keep it down about you-know-what." He muttered. "Food's just a few buildings over that way if my memory serves. Went there with my parents a few days ago." He said, taking off. "It's pretty cool. You just swoop in and they get you a seat if there's an open one. We're in between the lunch and dinner rush, so we should have a good seat." He said, careful to keep a tight grip on the small money pouch he had. "By the way, you're paying for your own food." He mused, half jokingly as they landed. Almost immediately after, a female approached them. Presumably the waitress.

"Hello!" She spoke in a casual tone. "The couple's table is open just over there!" she pointed. "Would you like to order now or do you need some time to decide?"

Rather than bring up the fact that they were just friends, and Spirits willing that's all they'd ever be, he just reluctantly nodded. "T-Thank you. I think we'll order now. I'll take the mixed meat wrap. Spiced please." He said.

"Alright... And what will you have?" She asked Sina.

Darklight and Cosmic

He didn't have to mope for long. Before he was even halfway to the training area, he was approached by Mark and Ava, the pair wondering where he was going if not the arcade. "Yeah, I'm not headed to the arcade. I'd rather be practicing. I mean, don't get me wrong. I'd really, really rather be playing superpowered laser tag with my friends but... No. We're at the biggest sporting event in the country. We're gonna be fighting actual professional heroes and I don't want to want to be caught with my tail between my legs." He explained. "So I'm headed to the training area, get some last minute practice in, keep my reflexes sharp and all that."

"I'm more than happy to have some partners. Have we sparred yet Mark? If not, I think that'd be a fun thing to try out. It's pretty rare that I get to spar with people who I don't have to pull my punches." Mark was tough from what little he'd seen. He wasn't sure where the space hero fit between him, Casimir and Alexis with her mech, but he knew that the more experience he had with fighting other bruisers the better. Not that Mark needed the experience, but he got the feeling that he was going to have a good time regardless.

[Zarkenis Ultima]

September 12th

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Icarus mentally sighed as he heard the same hot-headed Young Blood from before interrupt the conversation once again, though he seemed focused primarily on Ash and Casimir's interview at first. This guy sure is bossy. I wonder if he's pulling rank or if he's just that way. He mused as he watched. Sure enough, Casimir simply dismissed him offhand yet again before turning back to him and Ash. He raised an eyebrow in amusement at the notion that there was someone to challenge the great Kabuto's appetite. As his friend asked about his training, he simply shrugged. "Not so much my powers as the way I use them and my fighting skills in general, but yes, Armorer's a pretty strict mentor."

Then came his turn to be addressed by Mike. The Young Blood started out well enough, and Icarus' apathy towards him subsided somewhat as he listened. It was true, while the Stars were world-famous and loved by many, they were not exactly paragons of heroism, especially Quake; there were many heroes out there, like the Northern Lights, who provided a better example of what it meant to be a hero. As Mike went on, though, the blond boy could feel his anger rising.

"I've saved the little guy even when the threat was a corrupt officer and not a flashy supervillain. I got shot in the chest for defending my ideals. I think I know damn well why I do what I do." He growled. "I'm sorry if I seemed happy that things are working out for once in my life." Meeting with his best friend and the moth girl had been fun enough, but now his mood was soured, so he decided to take his leave, bidding farewell to Ash and Casimir before stalking off to find something else to do while the opening ceremony started.

---

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It was his first opening ceremony, and despite the fact that he usually didn't care about public events, he was nervous. Not just because Donovan would never let him hear the end of it if he messed anything up - it was the first time he found himself before not dozens or hundreds, but tens of thousands of viewers, some of them fans and some of them haters. There was something inherently unsettling about being under the gaze of so many people all at once, especially to someone who had avoided drawing attention to himself as much as possible during the past year.

Still, he wasn't one to back down, especially when he owed so much to his sponsors from the Lo Angeles Stars. Thus, when the time came for them to walk onto the platform, Icarus trailed behind Armorer, putting on a solemn facade as he stood next to the other members of the Los Angeles Stars and looked at the crowd. He didn't care for the show that Quake put on, preferring the stoicism of Star Queen and his own mentor, though he smiled slightly at Red and Blue's enthusiastic display. Besides his fellow rookie Andrew, they were the youngest members of the team and the friendliest by far, which made him appreciate their company.

They were received amidst both rapturous applause and deafening jeering, but soon enough the presenter showed up and explained the various groups the superhero teams would conform. He cared very little for the Stars' placement, knowing he wouldn't be participating, but he paid slightly more attention to the group where the Young Bloods ended up in. He hadn't done much to keep up with the NASL, knowing that he wouldn't be participating in the tournament, but he had heard about the Baltimore Braves being one of the strongest team around.

Good luck with that. He thought as the ceremony came to an end and the teams were ushered back to their private locker areas.

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Some time had passed after the opening ceremony, but Icarus had one more hurdle to cross before this whole circus was out of his hands - for the most part, at least - and that was the opening night gala, perhaps the worst part of that day. Dozens of heroes dressed in stuffy clothes, bragging to each other about their fame and accomplishments as the media swarmed around the dining hall, trying to get a good shot of the public's idolized guardians.

He would perhaps not mind so much, if he was not forced to play along. As he was now Armorer's sidekick and the newest star in the Los Angeles Stars, however, he had to attend to the opening dinner and play pretty boy in front of the cameras. Wearing a fancy navy blue dinner jacket and a matching pair of trousers, the blond boy smiled at the cameras as he walked past the crowd into the dining hall, while inwardly groaning. Fortunately it didn't take long before he was able to sit down with the rest of the Stars - even if it wasn't the friendliest environment, it was much better than being alone amidst the paparazzis.

Shortly after everyone had sat down, an older man stood up to give a speech, something or other about how they had come along way since the beginning of the League. He was a veteran of the North American superhero scene, someone Icarus didn't recognize, nor particularly cared for. Luckily, that was over soon, which meant Icarus was free to do as he wanted as long as he didn't make a fool of himself. Excusing himself, he grabbed his plate and went over to the buffet tables, slowly inspecting the food there and serving himself some salad and grilled chicken as he went - he wasn't particularly hungry, but spending his time like this was better than listening to Quake's stories.

As he moved around the table, he came to stand behind a redheaded girl that looked vaguely familiar. Have I seen you before?

Then it hit him. Something Armorer had arranged on his behalf. Curious, Icarus walked up to the girl and lightly tapped her on the shoulder. "Hello, sorry to bother you." He said with a friendly smile. "Are you Impulse?"

[Aidannadia]

The roar of the fans nearly had El Hechicero flinch. The sheer amount of people, despite his attention grabbing nature, was intimidating, and the various cameras and machines and doo-dads only added on to his anxieties. The whole city seemed designed to stress him out. Dinner was okay; he was able to find some portabella mushrooms among the vegetarian table, but he mostly kept to himself, somewhat craving some alone time after such an eventful day.

The arcade only compounded on the problem. The whizzing, the whirring, the beeping and the booping only added to his lack of feeling like he belonged in New York. How he longed for his garden back home, where he could peacefully tend to the plants and practice his magic. Here was a jungle of concrete with lightbulbs, taxis on the prowl, and the constant buzzing of electricity in the walls. Here was a prison of modernity from which he could seemingly not escape.

The wizard zipped towards the back of the arcade to the snack table, teleporting haphazardly through the arcade and sitting down in a chair to relax in relative peace, trying to grab some meditation time despite the ample distractions.

[Finland SSR]

San Diego’s Greatest Battle Couple!

September 14th

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Renata made her way through the patchwork of corridors stretching across the Freedom’s Nest, her hand clenching onto her chin and her mind lost in thought. Icarus didn’t sound like he would be thrilled with getting to talk to her right now, but if she wanted to clear anything out to him, it’s better to do so earlier than later, while the incident was still fresh in both of their minds… but what was she supposed to say to him when they do get to talk?

Apologize? For what? She didn’t say anything wrong. Was the plan just to approach him and then try to figure something out from there?

Renata approached one of the many doors lined up by the corridor, this one in particular denoting that it was the locker room of the Los Angeles Stars. There was some noise coming from the other side, so the heroine figured that Icarus might be changing - she didn’t even get the time to do that herself, staying in her Stella uniform for now. So, to not break into the locker room while her boyfriend was still busy, she chose to simply stand in front of the door and wait. He’s gotta come out sooner or later, after all.

Eventually, the blond boy emerged from the locker room. Contrary to Renata’s expectations, he hadn’t yet changed out of his outfit, as Armorer had signed him up for other exhibition matches, but he had wiped the sweat on his face and seemed in a better mood.

At least, until he saw her. After a moment of surprise upon noticing her outside of his locker room, he glared at her, still annoyed at how she had acted after her defeat earlier. Rather than address her, he simply crossed his arms and waited, letting her say the first word.

“...I’m sorry.” eventually escaped Renata’s mouth, even if the fact that she ultimately chose to apologize sent a chill running down her spine. “I… lost control of myself back there. You’re right, maybe I shouldn’t have broken down like that in front of everyone...”

The pink-haired girl froze for a second. “I-I mean, if you’ve still got matches to attend, then go, I don’t want to hold you up or something...”

Watching her apologize, the young hero’s glare softened, and after a moment’s pause he let out a sigh, before reaching out and pulling the girl close to his chest. “It’s fine, you’re not holding me up.” He told her, holding her for a bit longer before pulling away. “It’s just… you know you don’t have to let a competition like this get to you, right? I mean, I know you want to prove yourself, but… whatever happens in a stadium, that’s not what really matters, you know?”

“I mean… does it not?” Renata interjected, turning the question presented to her around. “This is a tournament, after all - and probably the biggest event in both of our careers by far. I couldn’t let myself look like a failure in front of thousands watching - and yet I did, so… I feel like I’ve got at least a bit of a reason for erupting out there...”

The pink-haired girl took a sigh, glancing to the side. “Besides, Dad was probably watching that match too.”

“Who cares?” The blond boy replied immediately, with perhaps more hostility than necessary. Catching his outburst, he quickly calmed down. “Renata, you’re wonderful. You’re a great heroine. If your father can’t see that, it’s not your fault, it’s his.” He assured her.

“But, getting worked up over this thing, over losing in a place like this… we’re heroes because we save people, not because of what others think of us, or because of how well we do in a tournament…” He said, though with noticeably less enthusiasm than before. If all this was to her was a career, as she’d called it, then it certainly made sense that she would be more focused on moving up in the world.

“Um...”

Hearing Icarus’s energetic rebuttal, Renata stopped, her face grimacing and eyes set towards the floor. Out of all the words she could use to describe it, “unexpected” was not one of them - Icarus was exactly the type of person to go out of their way to declare that being a hero is not a matter of fame or achievement, but rather the simple need to save others. The problem was that he projected this idea onto Renata, though.

How could he not?

“...We’re not supposed to lie to each other, right, Carito?” the heroine spoke up. Knowing that a sentence like that would immediately send red flags to anyone hearing it, she continued without giving Icarus a chance to respond. “That’s... not why I became a hero. I-I mean, I do want to save those in need and risk myself for them, but, when I first stepped out of my plane to San Diego, there was one thing on my mind. And it wasn’t to selflessly sacrifice myself away - it was to become a famous hero in my own right, instead of living in my father’s shadow for the rest of my life.”

Renata took a deep breath, giving Icarus an apologetic glance. “...And that’s why it really stings if I get passed over, or ignored, or, well, in this case, beaten without much effort.”

Icarus remained silent for a moment after the pink-haired girl had finished. What she said confirmed his suspicions: saving people was secondary to her main goal as a heroine, even if he didn’t believe she was the sort of person to trade one for the other. “I see… maybe I should have guessed.” He mumbled. “Well, I’m not sure there’s much I can tell you if that’s the case… though, if you want to become a beloved heroine, I think you should still try not to let your emotions get the better of you like you did earlier. A gracious loser earns more respect.” He advised.

“Anyways, I uh, I have to get ready for my next match.” The blond boy said somewhat awkwardly after a brief pause. “I’ll see you later.”

Renata remained somber during her boyfriend’s response, it serving as a rather deep reminder of all the other times she ended up only making things worse while getting overwhelmed by emotions. Regardless, however, as soon as he mentioned that he was about to leave, a smile crept up on her face once again. Without hesitation, she suddenly walked up to the departing hero and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“¡Animo!” she spoke after pulling back and faintly giggled. “You can do it, Carito.”

Kick their asses.

[Bentus]

Lisette Aveline - The Nefarious Marionette!
August 5th
Freedom’s Nest, New York

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Despite the long hours and the constant threat of Daniel being his infuriating self, Lisette spent the whole trip to New York practically bursting with excitement. She couldn’t sleep a wink despite the luxurious first class seating arrangements, and instead spent the time devouring all the latest gossip, rumours and news on the upcoming tournament. She scoured the internet on her phone while adding her own thoughts to the bustling forums that were already considering each team’s chances on overdrive. A part of her was sad that she’d missed some of the exhibition matches already, but it couldn’t be helped - and she was at least able to watch the replays online easily enough. It had been busy work trawling through all the nonsense and uninteresting commentary to pick out the details that were actually useful, but now that she sat in the Stars’ booth waiting for the teams to make their grand debut, Lisette knew that it had all been worth the effort.

Flicking through her carefully looked after and maintained notebook, the heiress’ eyes scanned the meticulously bookmarked pages. Each section on the different teams and heroes had clearly been crafted with an idolising care: notes were underlined or colour-coded according to some unknown methodology, while images had been diligently taped into place wherever necessary. The notebook was Lisette’s private cheatsheet, and she’d poured her heart-and-soul into making sure that it met the most exacting standards; after all, how could she be the villain that her heroes deserved unless she put in the effort to study and learn? But now, as she sat in her LA Stars branded t-shirt and jeans, the notes served another purpose: they gave her an excuse to keep her eyes lowered to the page as she tried to keep her overwhelming excitement from bursting to the fore.

She could feel the presence of Jackrabbit and the LA Stars’ other sidekicks and aids around her, even if she concentrated on not looking over towards them, lest she wake up and realise that it was all a dream. Her heart fluttered in her chest when she heard the heros’ voices as they casually spoke with one another mere metres from where she sat, and she could’ve sworn that the butterflies in her stomach were on the verge of carrying her up into the sky. But as incredible as the experience of being so close to some of the world’s greatest heroes was, Lisette couldn’t entirely put off the connected, nagging concern in the back of her head.

She’d put off asking Weatherman whether he was fine with her trip, frightened that he would say no and criticise her lack of dedication to their villainous scheme. Deep down, Lisette knew that she should have been willing to put aside her own personal desires if she really wanted to be a great villain, but oh she really, really, really, wanted to go to the tournament this year! She’d tried to come up with a multi-step plan to convince her mentor that the trip would be a great learning experience, and that it would help teach her how to fight heroes properly, but it had all proven to be unnecessary. Weatherman’s eyes had lit up at the proposal, agreeing and granting her permission with an eagerness that had caught her by surprise.
Lisette’s eyes narrowed slightly as she thought back to the exchange, her initial surprise stopping her from questioning why the man had seemed to excited at having her out of the city. Maybe he really did think that her trip would be a good chance for her to learn more about villainy, but something about it didn’t quite sit right. She was certain that he was hiding something from her, for whatever reason, and while she was fine with that - she was only a sidekick after all - she hoped that she hadn’t accidentally let Weatherman down somehow.

Before she could dwell on the thought anymore, the announcer’s voice cut through the haze of Lisette’s mind as the crowd suddenly erupted into a torrential outpouring of cheers and shouts. The girl’s head immediately shot up, her eyes wide as she realised that she’d become so distracted that she’d lost track of time and was about to miss the first team to walk onto the stage. As the Anchorage Avengers walked onto the field with beaming smiles and friendly waves, Daniel made some snide remark that Lisette promptly filtered out and ignored. Jumping out of her seat, she raced towards the tinted window that surrounded the viewing box in an effort to try and get as good a view as she could. Team after team was announced and she quickly added her own voice to the excited shouts and cheers, cheering louder for the LA Stars, of course. But she made sure to save some of her voice for the last - and her personal favourite - team to be called.

"Now, ladies and gentleman, give a warm welcome to the newest member of the NASL family, the San Diego Young Bloods!"

Immediately, Lisette screamed at the top of her lungs - doing her best to add her voice to the cheers that competed loudly against the boos that accompanied the controversial team’s arrival. She’d made no attempt to mask her support for her hometown’s team, and she proudly wore a Young Blood’s cap over her blonde hair as she jumped up and down out of her seat. She was wearing a wide grin on her face as she watched each of the teens walk out onto the field, her eyes glued to the field as she eagerly recalled her past encounters with the rising heroes. It was a real shame that Kiris hadn’t come to the tournament, and she felt that it probably really weakened the team’s chances, but she knew that they would still be able to succeed with their determination and unfailing belief in one another.

Of course, Dan had to step in and try to spoil the exciting moment. She was about to scold him for underestimating her new favourite team, but instead giggled as Jackrabbit delivered a quick one-two to the pretentious snob’s face. Sheepishly, but with confidence, Lisette came to the defence of the Young Bloods.

“I wouldn’t underestimate them, you know.” She declared. “They’re young, but they’re determined to succeed and are learning quickly. I was a fan of theirs from the very beginning and they’ve improved probably more quickly than any other NASL team I’ve seen. They rely and trust each other completely, and are determined to be real heroes one day - I just know that they’re going to be an awesome underdog tale this year!”

[Finland SSR]

Shihong Smith

Renata Martinez, the heroic Stella!

September 12th

---

Shi didn't raise any more questions and immediately got to work preparing to go out. And by that, meaning to get her butlers to work preparing her for going out. Renata stood in the doorway and watched the scene unfold - it wasn't common for her to get to see someone who can live a lifestyle even more pompous than hers, especially not a teammate. The two girls walked out shortly thereafter - well, Shi walked out, while Renata would constantly break into her usual overly energetic sprint and stop to wait for her peer.

"Oh, uh, it's Atomic Blonde," Renata responded as soon as Shi asked on what movie they were planning to see. "It's a spy action movie. Something about double agents getting smuggled to the United States - to be honest, I tried to read as little of the summary as possible so I can see for myself. But I imagine it's going to be fun."

The conversation soon moved on to photos - Renata stopped for a second while her mind figured out what "ai-gee" meant. Of course it's Instagram. "Yeah, I have an account there... I don't ever use it, though, I prefer Whatsapp." Taking a few pictures with a fellow teammate wouldn't hurt, right?

---

Bael

The Mad Lass, Sina As'tari!

August 8th

---

"I mean, that's what I beat you for, wasn't it?" Sina sent a remark back immediately when Bael joked about her paying for her own food. It wasn't a bother at all - she won more money than him in the race, anyway. The two of them soon landed in the diner Bael pointed them towards, and after a brief incident regarding them being offered the couple's table, the ordering process began. Bael ordered the mixed meat wrap almost instantly - of course, he probably already knew what was available from the previous times he visited. Sina did not have such luxury - and so, she spent about half a minute browsing through the menu.

"I would like to have Bael-just kidding." Sina made a verbal U-turn, then turned a page in the menu and pointed at one of the items - an assortment of crisp barbecue ribs. "I'd like to have this one, please. Double- no, triple portion!"

[Zarkenis Ultima]

September 12th

---

---

After a short car ride, Alexis stepped out and saw what Naja had prepared for the team instead of a night at the bar - not that she cared to drink, even if it might've been fun to hang out with the Vixens some more. A two-story arcade called "Play Zone" wasn't her idea of a heroic celebration, but unlike various other members of the team, she decided to roll with it and see what it had to offer. It's not like she could complain when Naja decided to find someplace fun to spend their time at instead of simply heading to their rooms while the rest of the NASL hung out at the hotel bar.

As the doors opened and she stepped into the arcade with the rest of the team, she let out a whistle. "Wow, this actually looks pretty fun. Thanks Naja!" She said. At least someone could stand to show some gratitude. Looking around, she saw quite a generous variety of games, with things like air hockey, Metal Slug, Dance Dance Revolution and everything inbetween.

"How's my what?" Alexis replied to her girlfriend, puzzled, before noticing a particular machine nearby. "Oh they have Time Crisis 5!" She said excitedly, walking off towards the game.

Meanwhile, from behind Red and Blue, or James and Jenny as they liked to be called while out of uniform, a third figure stepped out, a certain blond boy. Since he couldn't go to the bar either, the twins had decided to bring him along after giving him a chance to change out of his stuffy blue suit and into some more casual clothes which included his favorite white jacket. Noticing the snake woman standing in front of all the Young Bloods, he smiled and walked up to her.

"Naja!" He greeted her cheerfully, grabbing her hand and shaking it with enthusiasm. "Thanks again for everything. I've gotten a lot of help thanks to you, even if the Stars aren't the easiest people to deal with." He said.

"Hey! I resent that!" Jennifer called out with faux indignation.

"Not you two, you guys are great." The blond boy corrected himself, smiling at the twins.

[New Finnish Republic]

Red

New York City

---

A sudden jolt caused Red's eyes to flash open, much to his irritation. Looks like we're here, he thought to himself as he uncurled himself from the awkward sleeping position he had been in. After a small session of stretching himself he reached underneath his seat, finding the small bag worth of provisions he had with him. Inside held a small protective casing, which inside it rested a pair of masks, one for him to wear and one kept as a backup. Fitting the piece of cloth tightly against his face as to hide the prominent portions of his facial features, Red couldn't help but feel anything but thrilled as they prepared to exit the plane. He wasn't in any kind of mood to deal with what was sure to be an unrelenting crowd of reporters, fans, and otherwise unwanted gawkers as they arrived, but he supposed this kind of thing was to be expected when one belonged to a team as relatively notorious as the Young Bloods.

Unlike some of the other members of the team, Red did everything in his power to avoid interacting with the crowd. Thankfully most of the attention seemed to be on the more popular members of the team such as Roy and Casimir, but Red still could hear the chants of some misguided idiots screaming at him as he walked past them. Thank God for security, he thought to himself with a grimace as he watched the uniformed staff keeping the crowd at bay.

As the team entered the stadium, they were informed that they had some time to kill before the opening ceremony. Most of the team seemed eager to explore the city, but as for Red he felt no desire to venture out into the city he had despised for so long. When was the last time I was even here? Three years ago with Frank? Red shook his head to clear his thoughts, not wanting to dwell on the memories of a time when things were much more different than they were now.

Glancing at his exosuit which had been already prepared for him ahead of time, Red couldn't help but let his gaze wander over the fresh scratch marks still scarring the metal plating. Without thinking, he found himself tracing the lines with his fingers, recalling what had all occurred only days prior. Closing his eyes, he found himself thinking of the person they had been forced to leave behind, this action done by Red's own hands. I bet you've got one hell of a view of this tournament from up there, you dumb bastard, Red silently thought, opening his eyes to gaze upwards for a few moments before finally letting his hand drop to his side.

After changing into his under suit, he hopped into the exosuit, waiting as the various levers and screws tightened themselves to fit around his body. His chose to leave his helmet visor down, not having any need or want to wear it for the time being. He gave the other boys a meek wave of his hands as a gesture of goodbye before he exited the changing rooms, pushing past a small group of eager reporters and fans attempting to stop him for questions.

"Damn vultures," Red muttered underneath his breath as he made his way towards the elevator. While the stadium was already starting to become crowded with spectators, Red knew there were viewing areas high above in the balconies that were restricted solely to heroes. While being completely alone was what he truly wished for, at the moment this was going to be his best option.

Walking over to lean on a nearby wall, Red's eyes shifted over to the tilted glass in front of him which provided a clear view of the stadium below them. He can't imagine how much these kinds of seats would have cost for this tournament, let alone any other kind of event. I'd rather spend the money on some box seats in Yankee Stadium, he thought to himself while shaking his head.

"Enjoying the view?"

Red was suddenly brought out of his thoughts as a familiar sounding voice rang out behind him. Turning to face the noise, his expression immediately turned into an annoyed scowl as he saw none other than Quick Shot standing behind him. "What the hell are you doing here, old man?"

The insulting question caused the hero to roll his eyes. "What do you think, genius?" he answered, his tone heavy with sarcasm on the last word.

"Probably here to hit on women while bragging about all your 'great achievements', only for them to laugh when your most notable one was you getting hit in the face with a frying pan?"

Red's response caused Quick Shot's mouth to twitch slightly as the weight of the words sunk in, but he seemed to quickly brush it aside as he simply shook his head before leaning up against the wall next to Red. "While that definitely is in the plans for later tonight when people start to hit up the bars, I'm afraid I've got bigger and much less productive goals in mind."

Red raised an eyebrow at his reply. "And that would be?"

Quick Shot scoffed slightly before reaching over to ruffle up the red hair of the kid next to him, much to his disdain. "To see how San Diego's newest breed of heroes are going to do against the rest of the world, of course." A small grin appeared on Quick Shot's face. "Especially this uppity member of the team that goes by the dumbest name I've heard of, 'Mask'. I mean Jesus, what's the next? 'Pants. T-Shirt. Underwear?' Kid these days, I swear," he continued, shaking his head in mock disappointment.

Taking his hand away from Red's hair, Quick Shot's grin suddenly disappeared, turning into a concerned expression. "Naja talked to me about what happened," he said quietly, his tone heavy as he rested his head back against the wall. Red tensed up upon hearing this, his eyes staring directly at the man standing next to him.

"...And what about it?" Red replied, unsure of what kind of response he was going to get.

Quick Shot remained silent for a few moments, seemingly mulling over his thoughts until finally replying. "In this line of work, kid, sacrifice is something that is both common yet held dearly. From what Naja told me, you didn't have any other options other than what that kid wanted you to do."

Quick Shot's gaze seemed to wander for a few moments, the man seemingly lost in his own thoughts until eventually his attention returned to Red.

"Naja could tell that it's weighing heavily on you. All I can say is...," Quick Shot's expression softened slightly as he reached over to lightly place his hand on Red's shoulder. "...that means you're finally becoming a hero." Returning his hand back to his side, the man moved away from the wall, turning around and beginning to walk away. Before he disappeared into the crowd, however, he turned around to face Red one last time.

"Just don't let us down, especially that kid."

Red stood there, motionless, as he watched the hero turn into the crowd of fellow heroes. A whirlpool of emotions stirred within him as he tried to break down what was just said to him. He's not...angry? Red tried to wrap his mind around the thought, but he couldn't help but feel as if the man had just hidden what he had truly been thinking. Surely Quick Shot couldn't have been approving of what he did, at least to the extent that he seemed to be. That's what Red thought, at least.

Yet the man hadn't yelled, cursed, or even scolded him. He could have even had Red in jail already if he had wanted. Yet he instead had chosen to comfort him, out of anything he could have done. Why? Red didn't have an answer, at least one that made any sense to him in the slightest. In his own view, Red had done the one thing he had said he'd never do again. And yet now the one person who should have been the harshest to him was now showing compassion.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the opening ceremony will begin in ten minutes. Please take your seats."

Red's attention was grabbed by the sound of the announcement, the boy cursing under his breath as he too got up from the wall. While his mind screamed at him to focus on what had just occurred, he forced himself to ignore such pleas and instead began to head down towards the elevator so that he could make it to where the others were in time, mumbling under his breath as he entered the now crowded space.

"I'd rather have dealt with the vultures..."

---

After the ceremony...

---

Red couldn't help but grumble as Naja announced her decision to send the team off to a play center. Given everything that had occurred thus far tonight he craved some form of alcohol, yet Naja had practically shut down his opportunity to drink away his worries. I'll see if I can still nab some later on, Red thought to himself as he entered the area with the others.

For some time, Red was content enough to sit by himself as the others seemed to be enjoying themselves. Red rolled his eyes more than a few times at the sight, wondering how people his age could get into this kind of stuff. However, his peace was suddenly ruined as he heard someone plop down into the seat across from him. Turning around, Red immediately knew that he was doomed.

"Oh Christ, what do you want now Casimir?"

[The Republic of Atria]

Sina

"Ha ha." He muttered when Sina mentioned she beat him in the race. So much for her beign a good sport, but she did beat him completely fairly, and he was kinda cheating. He sat down where the nice waitress pointed them to and waited for Sina to place her order.

A second or so later, he forced his eyes shut in a hilariously visible wince when Sina mentioned that she wanted to have HIM for a meal. Times like these made him question why he was friends with her in the first place. Sure, she quickly retracted her statement as a joke, but he had again felt the shame with the intensity that he wished to not exist. Afterwards, she ordered herself a gigantic meal that he wasn't sure she would be able to finish. He could probably mooch a few bites off her. She probably wouldn't mind.

"So, do you enjoy embarrassing me?" He asked, slightly annoyed at his friend's eccentric personality. He would try to return the favor, but couldn't come up with anyway that was just mean spirited or worse, she would enjoy. "Okay, maybe I'm taking it a bit seriously, but still." He admitted with a shrug. "That aside, how're you enjoying your stay so far? Think you're gonna settle down and go join the Sandstorm, or head back to San Diego?"

Their food arrived a few minutes later, as they were mid conversation. The wrap he ordered looking rather quaint into the order Sina got, requiring a second waiter to come out and help the first with it. "Wow. That is a lot of food."

[Finland SSR]

Casimir Herman, the Great Kabuto!
Jan Sorok, the Hero of Poland!
August 13

---

In the usual sunny San Diego atmosphere there stood a convenience stores nestled in between the busy skyscrapers and bustling streets and out from its automatic doors came a particular insect themed hero. One arm clutched onto a paper bag, engorged with snacks and drinks, to his chest and in the other he popped his helmet just a bit above his mouth so he could take a huge gulp of soda. He took a few steps toward his motorcycle parked in front of the store and was about to put his snack bag away but a few screams of terror and a car crashing onto another would put a stop to it.

“Can’t a guy get high cholesterol in peace and quiet,” mumbled Casimir popping his helmet back down.

His bag was suddenly dropped as he broke into a run towards the chaos. The sight that greeted him besides fleeing civilians was one exquisite looking limo had crashed onto a pickup truck’s rear but the strangest part was a giant metallic dragon person on top of the limo ripping the roof off it and trying to reach inside. Is that a freaking dra’qunni? It was easily a head or three taller then Wyatt and he was already a big dude.

“MEIER! MEIER! I KNOW YOU’RE IN ZERE YOU TRAITOR!,” screamed the strange being in a metallic voice with every syllable lighting up the eyes in a bright green hue. The weirdest part was the thick German accent of all things. The being grabbed some middle-aged bearded man from the limo and held him up by the head with one hand to the sky. “Prepare for ze reckoning of a lifetime, Meier!”

“I turn off my scrying for some peace and quiet for once in my head and this crap happens,” angrily barked Kabuto as he ran up to the villain.

Kabuto leapt upwards and delivered a spinning double kick at the being’s wrist. The surprise made him drop the rich limo man and Kabuto landed on the vehicle’s roof palms first. He spun his legs around and tripped the metallic being over to the street and flicked a wrist out to the would be victim. He leaned back and launched himself off the car’s roof bringing the older man with him like a sideways bungee. He landed some meters away on his feet and casually caught the older man being slung towards him bridal style.

The bearded man in a suit was let down and Kabuto made a motion for him to hide. The metallic dragon man by this time had jumped back on the car with its sheer weight bending the remains of the roof inwards. It roared a metallic screech at Kabuto as it leapt into the air. It landed on the pavement cracking the black asphalt upon impact and each footstep ripping the floor as its speed began ramping up.

He stopped right in front of it and held out his palm, “Sorry pal, but I don’t think you’re the taxi I called over. They’re more yellow and less ripping limos in half.”

“Change of ze company branding, little insect-man,” shouted the beast clenching its metal claws.

“It’s not insect-man it’s KABUTO!,” raged Casimir as he leapt towards his foe.

He made a full revolution in the air as he went over his foe’s head but once directly overhead he shot twin streams of webbing at the head and neck. The one aimed at the head missed entirely but the neck targeting strand hit its destination. He landed in a crouched squat position and spun around to pull the metal behemoth downwards. The enemy still fazed by Kabuto’s gross speed was caught unaware and collapsed hard on the pavement like a demolished building.

Kabuto leapt upwards in an arc and upon his downward decent his boots collided with the metal dragon’s back but a swift thwack with its metal coated tail knocked him to the ground. He was quick to recover and after rolling on the ground once he got up on all fours and lunged at the metal giant’s feet. He initially succeeded as he tripped his foe forward but as they fell he was grabbed by the foot and in some shocking feet of flexibility the dragon man seemed to have started a cartwheel and slammed him to the ground upon rotating around fully once. The entire metallic being’s mass was on him for a brief time but it was enough time to make him yelp in agonizing pain as the being got back up.

“Sorry, child. I don’t have time for your tricks,” he paused before taking a look over the chaos he had created and to his shock the limousine had disappeared and was speeding away from the scene, “It was fun playing but I’ve got personal business, little insect boy.”

At the last word a strange flying contraption zoomed in from a nearby rooftop and the metallic dragon man hopped on top it. Without another word and instead maniacal laughter he flew off after the limo and its occupant. This left a battered Casimir to get up from the ground staggered like a newborn foal. A very very angry foal. He sprinted at full speed after the dragon man and was just right behind it as he leapt meters into the sky. He flicked his wrist out to shoot webbing at the now much larger target of the glider and using his downward momentum he swung like a pendulum boots first into metal being’s waist.

Casimir expected him to be knocked over but looking down it looked like its feet were clamped onto the glider. He was grabbed yet again by the leg and thrown to the side of a building they sped by but he was quick to recover and threw his arm out to shoot webbing at a building on the other side. He missed and instead it hit the branch of a streetside tree. This had the unfortunate consequence of his self diving to a free fall once the branch broke almost immediately. He would only be saved by landing and bouncing off a street sign and at the last second leaping off to grab the leftmost end of the glider.

“Look he howls and swings through the air like a circus monkey, wahahah!,” mocked the villain.

The sudden shift in weight would make the glider start to barrel roll midair nearly throwing him off but it just ended with the glider nosediving and hitting the side of a building and nearly coming to the ground. The metal being suddenly turned back to Casimir and pointed his finger at the hero grasping the glider’s wing. The metal around the finger started to twist around until it extended and jabbed at Casimir’s shoulder piercing his hide. Blood splattered on the metal and the metal protrusion seemed to push Casimir off forcing him to fall to the street below. Luckily they were only a meter or three off the ground so he simply rolled furiously until he came to a stop only to see the villain fly higher and higher into the air cackling like a hyena.

“Your tenacity will win you nothing boy! Gahahahaa,” guffawed the villain as he vanished turning a corner.

Clenching his teeth as he stood up Casimir checked with his swarm where he went and it seemed the limousine had long gone but the villain would be upon it soon. Shit! I need someone to intercept him! Icarus is all the way in LA. Squad 4 would take too long to get here… His head jerked upwards as he remembered his house wasn’t too far from here. He rummaged through a belt pocket before he got his phone out and called Lech ignoring the blood seeping from his wound.

“Pickup pickup,” he angrily mumbled through the ringing.

Meanwhile at the Herman Residence

Having a roof over your head is surprisingly nice. The fact that Jan had to stay in the Herman residence instead of going out vigilanting for the duration of Warwolf’s presence, in fears of getting captured again, gave him a chance to take an easier breath, instead of being on the edge of death all the time.

He even started taking on some of his childhood hobbies, all of which had to be dropped and forgotten ever since that one incident. The Herman residence had a somewhat worn, but still working guitar, which Jan picked up almost immediately as he came across it - of course, asking for permission first. Four years of no practice meant that his skills were really rusty, however, and he only remembered a single tune. One which he heard play loudly from above while he was resting underneath a bridge, for almost an hour on end - hell, it wasn’t even Polish, but the lyrics somehow stuck.

All of that didn’t mean that he couldn’t try replicating it. Slowly, with a thick Polish accent, but replicating it nonetheless.

“Knock, knock,” promptly said Jadwiga once the Polish teen ended his song. She stood almost leaning on the doorway and she brushed away her bangs as she spoke, “<Couldn’t help but notice your sweet tunes. Glad to see you’re putting that old thing to good use. Haven’t played it myself since I started highschool..on account of some unfortunate stuff. Anyways, I just came to ask what you want for dinner tonight. I’m leaving in the night to cook for my boss’s client so I wanted to make you food before I left.>”

“<Oh, uh...>” Jan stumbled a little bit when he realized that he was being listened to. His answer to Jadwiga’s question was the same as it always was. “<Thanks, anything will be fine.>”

The young telepath carefully placed the guitar in his hands on the bed. “<I haven’t played for the longest time, either - four years or something at this point. But now that I’ve found it lying around, I figured I could get back to an old hobby.>”

A few corridors and rooms away, Jan’s phone, hooked up to a charger, started to ring, but the telepath didn’t even notice the incoming call at first.

“Tsk, tsk,” nodded Jadwiga, “<I’d have liked a challenging dish from you but I guess I’ll surprise you. Hmm maybe I’ll try something Mediterrenean.>”

She turned away from the room and started into the hallway but the incessant ringing of a phone caught her attention. She followed the noise to its source and found it to be the phone she bought for Jan a while back. Her eyebrow raised in suspicion as it was Casimir of all people calling from looking at the contacts. Jadwiga swiped it and headed back to where Jan was playing the guitar.

“<Hey, Jan. I think Casimir needs you for something>,” she said looming into the room and holding the phone out to Jan, “<He’s called you like three times the past minute.>”

“Huh?” the vigilante spoke and raised his eyebrow, using his telekinesis to carefully snatch the phone out of Jadwiga’s hands and leave it floating in front of him. If he’s called him three times in such rapid succession, then it clearly must be something important. Critical, even.

“<Hello, Casimir? What’s happening?>” Jan exclaimed instantly as he accepted the call.

“Jan! I need you to kick ass for me! There’s a metal dragon man about to fly through the neighborhood on a glider. He’s after some limo. You gotta ambush him until I catch up!”

“<W-wha-?>” Jan yelled out, caught off-guard by the sudden request. He was about to ask “where”, too, only to come to a halt when the sound of the first wailing sirens reached him through the window. Screams, honking cars, and the faint buzz of an approaching engine in the distance followed.

There was only one possible answer to Casimir’s request, then. “<Don’t need to tell me twice!>”

There wasn’t a lot of time left, so Jan went frantic. With one hand, he reached out to the window of his room and pushed its lock open with his psionic powers; with the other, he burrowed in the wardrobe, pushing past all the shirts and suits Casimir had long since overgrown and finding his cloak.

Right as he was about to leap through the opened window and run towards the street, the psionic vigilante offered a glance towards Jadwiga. “<Are you gonna be safe out here?>”

“<Don’t worry, if things get too bad I can always go into the place’s basement,>” confirmed Jadwiga as she stepped aside to let Jan through, “<Don’t take after my brother and get beaten half to death every time alright?>”

“<I’ll try not to,>” the young vigilante gave the assurances he could and leapt through the window. You never know what’s going to happen to you when you live the life of a vigilante… but being a little more careful can only do good to you.

As soon as Jan ran to the street, he witnessed the exact thing which Casimir told him to look out for. A limousine was speeding through, ignoring any and all traffic laws in existence, moving past cars and frightened citizens alike, while something… which resembled a metal surfboard, or a glider, flew after it. Standing atop the glider was a tall, heavily armored humanoid dragon. That’s exactly what Casimir had told Jan, but it looked ridiculous nonetheless.

And dangerous, too...

A psionic construct of a rapier formed in the vigilante’s right hand, and he stood his ground, using his telekinetic powers to pick up several trash can lids and throw them towards the glider like deadly frisbees.

The glider user in question seemed to be flying at a speed much slower than it would be capable of as it was always just behind the fleeing limo almost as if it was toying with prey. As its user flew through the air, ignoring the blaring police sirens behind it in the distance, it was caught off guard by metal lids smacking it’s arms and side. As if that wasn’t enough the metal lids seemed to have been absorbed into its armor. His glider came to a stop revving forward a few feet before swinging back as if he was riding an ocean wave. He turned around midair and upon spotting the gracile polish teen with a sword he let loose a raucous mechanical laughter.

“What’s zis? Another little itty bitty pest in the way?” snarled the being. The front portion of its glider seemed to open up and out it launched three highspeed spherical cases that would explode into thick clouds of irritant gas. He extended his arms forward and out came the very same lids that were launched at him now aimed at Jan’s location. “The Drakon doesn’t time for interlopers, boy! GAFAHAHAHA!”

“<What language is he even speaking?>” the psionic vigilante muttered to himself under his breath, then reached forward with his free hand. Suddenly, the three spherical canisters slowed down and stopped in mid-air, before shooting out straight towards their origin. Jan had to immediately roll to the side and hide behind a car - as not only did this ‘Drakon’ somehow shoot out the same trash can lids which he had tossed at him, but the limousine which he had been chasing after was speeding by at record speed.

Which means that Casimir should be coming shortly... If this dragon had the ability to absorb the metal thrown at him, then there wasn’t all that much he could do against it all on his own...

By now some stray police cars had shown up and the officers in them had begun firing rounds at Drakon but he took little notice besides flying down to the ground. He reached out with one hand and grabbed the cruiser’s bumper making the car flip over another nearby car as he flew upwards. As he flew upwards yet again he was caught unaware of Jan launching his chemical bombs back at him.

“BAH! You’ve made me lose my prey!,” he shouted as the green gas cloud enveloped him but he all he had to do was just fly lower out of the gas cloud, “Are all of you Americans so greedy?”

“I’m not American-”

Abruptly the screaming sound of a motorcycle could be heard in the distance and as Drakon flew towards Lech a familiar green and black figure rode his motorcycle over the flipped over police cruiser and used it as a ramp to tackle Drakon’s back. The metal giant crashed against the pavement seemingly dislodged from his glider and the bike rider hit the street hard skidding along their wheels before coming to a perpendicular stop. Kabuto got off, his upper shoulder crimson with blood, and pointed his clenched fist at the villain.

“Gotta admit, you got a mean streak there bitch. I’m here to beat it out of you,” he snapped.

“Mean? I believe I’ve been very sporting Insect-man,” growled back Drakon as his metal fingers extended pushing him back to his feet.

“...Why are you two talking like this?” Lech spoke up as well, blinking in confusion.

“It’s called banter, Lech. Not everyday you meet a villain that can keep up with quick wit,” Kabuto turned his head towards the psionic vigilante and nodded at him to acknowledge his help but he crouched to a boxing stance afterwards.

He ran towards Drakon at a blinding speed and let loose a fury of punches but Drakon got his guard up in time and hid behind his armored forearms shielding him from the blurr like punches. Minor fist shaped dents dotted the armor but it would certainly hold for a while. Drakon’s tail would snake around and attempt to jab at Casimir’s shin but he had easily spotted it with his swarm and had raised his foot in time to stop it hard to the ground. Drakon would throw a punch at Kabuto but he would deflect it and grab Drakon’s wrist. Using the immense force of the punch as fuel and the foe’s tremendous weight Kabuto threw Drakon against the ground pinning him down. He bent the wrist back as he held on but he seemed to have forgotten a crucial detail. Drakon’s fingers warped to drill like shapes and shot outwards and Kabuto barely got out of their way.

“Come on, hero, you can do better zen that,” growled Drakon, “Now where’s zat little trash friend of yours?”

“HAAAAAAH!”

Having stepped aside from the clash when his ally charged forth with a vengeance, Lech returned to the fight with a bang - more accurately, with a comically oversized psionic construct hammer in tow. Swinging the giant weapon as if it had no weight at all, the vigilante descended it upon Drakon in a powerful smash. The weapon hit its mark spectacularly smashing the already downed villain into the asphalt.

“<You got a clue what this guy’s deal is?>” Jan yelled at Kabuto while lifting his hammer back up, ready to strike again.

“<No clue besides that he wants some rich guy in a limo dead,>” responded Kabuto as he shot twin streams of webbing at the villains hands.

It would seem that the villain was incapaciated but he in fact and two more limbs free. He roared at the two heroes as he raised one foot into the air and one of the metal toes extended forward and sliced the webbing one one hand. Kabuto rushed forward to pound him but he was grabbed by the leg and thrown into a car on the other side of the street. Drakon cut the webbing on his other hand before getting up and laughing maniacally like some deranged coyote. He jumped up once and landed in front of Jan a small gust of wind rushed from the impact on the street. He raised his arms and clenched his fists together before bringing it down like a giant hammer.

Jan created a psionic construct shield around himself on instinct, but it wasn’t enough to halt the attack - the shield broke apart like glass and the smash struck him straight in the head, slamming the young telepath’s body into the floor. The impact of the strike was enough for it to then bounce off, rolling across the street, a pained grunt punctuating each roll.

It’s quite a fit of luck that he even managed to stand up after that, and enthusiastically so. The shield he put up must have at least slowed the strike down. Regardless, Jan certainly looked worse for wear, a deep bleeding cut now going across his forehead and forcing the vigilante to close his left eye.

“HAAAAAAH!” he yelled with no less vigor than before, summoning his hammer construct yet again and striking Dracon right back.

Drakon cackled like a broken record at the attack almost like a toddler breaking his favorite toy and welcomed the attack to hit him. The psionic hammer hit him right in the chest denting the metal inwards slightly but this allowed to finally get in right and close with Jan. Drakon extended his arms forward and pointed all fingers at Jan’s head. They extended outwards like harpoons and formed a crude cage around Jan’s head. The vigilante immediately raised his hands to try to rip the cage off, only to stop when the villain before him started to speak.

“What do you zink will happen if I only clasped my hands together ever so slightly? Maybe your head will turn out like some grinded meat,” mocked Drakon menacingly standing over Jan. The mock, however, was responded to with only a scoff and glare.

In the background the screaming of a car being dragged against the ground could be heard and if one were to look they would see an incredibly angry Kabuto dragging a police car on its side towards Drakon like a struggling train charging on ahead. Once he was right next to Drakon, he grasped the rim like a vice grip and scraped it against the road creating a shower of sparks. At the last second before collision Kabuto raised the car a few inches and let it Drakon’s side. Both their combined weights were enough to toppled Drakon a few meters forward. Kabuto on the other spun forward before falling to the ground hands first. He was on all fours panting like a dying dog as his arms were shaking like newborn foals. It seemed the fight was over but there was one last thing they were forgetting.

The familiar hum of the glider signaled the machine dive bombing Kabuto’s side and carrying him off into the sky as it turned a loop and dropped him to the ground.

“Kabuto!” Jan yelled out, but did not get to focus on his ally for long, as while Kabuto fell, Drakon pushed the car over him and glared at the vigilante. He pierced the metal roof with his hands with the metal shell buckling and warping around his fingers. Next the entire metal top of the car seemed to bend and twist into his hand to form a giant crude hammer to rival Jan’s. He got back on his feet and with both hands slammed the hammer down right in front of Jan laughing all the way.

However, instead of smashing the frail psionic into pieces, or even striking a construct shield like last time, the hammer slowed down and finally came to a screeching halt in mid-air. Jan stared at the tip of the weapon, his hands outstretched and telekinetic force flowing through them - the weight meant that he wasn’t able to hold it for long, but a few seconds was more than enough. Once Drakon’s hammer got freed from the psionic grip, all it smashed was the ground, while Jan rolled to the side and stepped back.

As cathartic as smashing a giant dragon-man with an equally giant hammer might be, it clearly wasn’t working. So, Jan opted for a different approach. Slowly backing away to not get in the range of Drakon’s hammer again, the vigilante reached out with his hand, locking his eyes to the villain’s autonomous glider and turning it around to head towards its wielder. He shouldn’t… catch wind of what’s happening, right?

To say Casimir was absolutely of the hit-and-run tactics he seemed to be forced again and again by this new enemy was the understatement of the millenium. As he fell through the sky he noticed Drakon focusing yet again on Jan and this indignation was a complete slap to the face. How dare that villain just keep ignoring him like some throwaway sidekick. Casimir flicked his hand out and him his wrist right at Drakon’s neck. Falling in the air he gulped in anticipation he didn’t miss yet again. Success! With his great strength Casimir wrenched himself towards the foe acting like a black clad missile.

Meanwhile Drakon stared perplexed as his crude hammer seemed to have missed its mark and instead embedded itself into the ground. It appeared the steam from overheated circuitry was coming out of his nose and the area connecting the headpiece to the rest of his body. Almost like a classical dragon breathing out smoke fumes. A sharp beep from inside notified himself that his glider was heading right towards him and with letting one hand go of the hammer and motioning it to the incoming glider it stopped midair from its wayward trajectory.

“The wonders of modern technology fool. They didn’t have zis in ze Cretaceous,” sneered Drakon, “Nothing like radar and remote control zrough implants.”

Drakon doubled over in laughter seeing the attack fail so miserably but this left him unaware of an incoming Kabuto crushing into his neck from behind. Drakon lurched forward as Kabuto bounced off and proceeded to run forward and pummel his head back and forth with his fists which admittedly didn’t seem to do much. If someone to Drakon’s back would notice a peculiar oddity they would see that there was a certain warping around the neck area where the metal was now askew exposing a polymer sheet and several circuits.

“What’s wrong with you why don’t you scream and die!,” boomed Drakon at Casimir.

“Cause I’m not a can of food waiting to be ripped open!,” yelled Casimir hoping Jan would take the hint as he threw an uppercut.

Jan had spent the last few seconds catching his breath and watching his ally take on the villain by himself - all the charging, screaming and flailing with his hammer had put a severe toll on his stamina. However, seeing Casimir grant him a chance to strike again, the vigilante acted upon it immediately, rushing forward and summoning a construct hammer in his hands yet again. Drakon’s armor seemed to be imperfect - steam was rushing out of it, the neck area was warped and exposed. He shouldn’t take much more, right?

“But you are!” Jan yelled out, completing Casimir’s sentence, and leapt into the air right after the uppercutted dragon, swinging his hammer straight at their upper chest and neck area.

The twin attacks wrenched apart the dull metal armor rending the upper portion to peel forward like a can’s lid. Casimir’s uppercut acted like a strong anchor as it pinned Drakon on the opposite incoming force of Jan’s hammer with the psionic weapon almost peeling off the head portion. Casimir sidestepped then backflipped right next to Jan as the metallic foe fell forward to the ground. Raging circuitry and white fume clouds jettisoned out of the opening. From the angle where he was at the two wouldn’t be able to clearly make out his face but as he got up Kabuto saw with startling shock that the dragon head wasn’t some aesthetic choice. Drakon’s own face was that of a grown dra’qunni with charcoal black scales. The sight was slightly obscured by him bringing his arm up to cover himself while the other bent the peeled off section back into place.

“Some day but not today it seems,” growled Drakon at both of them as his glider few right next to him.

Their enemy hopped onto it and began flying vertically upwards curving away from where the limousine went. Kabuto leaped at the flying menace but the glider was too quick in the air as it twisted to the side as the bug hero leapt at its side. He had no choice but to fall back down to the ground barely landing on his feet. He took a staggered step forward but caught himself clutching at his shoulder.

“I got a horsefly tailing that Drakon so it's not like we lost him,” huffed Casimir as he turned back to Jan, “He seems less interested in major mayhem then dealing with beef had with that rich dude...he’s not too far away so we could catch up on my motorcycle. Listen, I hate just letting him go but questioning that guy could go a long way in figuring out what the hell happened. Granted if you want to kick Drakon’s ass for a round two that's just dandy too.”

Jan stumbled towards a nearby wall and rested onto it, taking a few heavy huffs to catch up with his breath, and letting the psionic constructs in his hands to dissipate.

“<I… wouldn’t mind a little break, even if it means that villain will remain on the run. I already barely held my own, so… I’m not sure if my exhausted self could cling on for longer.>” the vigilante responded in Polish. Even if it was quite surprising that he did manage to hold his own as well as he did - they were talking about a man, well, apparently a dragon, who was able to go toe to toe with Casimir in raw strength. “<Where’s ‘that guy’, then?>”

“Gimme a few...need to pinpoint him,” breathed out Kabuto.

He closed his eyes and connected himself with the various scattered insects throughout the city looking at multiple viewpoints at once before switching to the next set in rapid fire succession. A limo wasn’t the hardest thing to spot but it would take some time. Ignoring the blaring cars and random scenes in the city he finally spotted the roughed up limo stop before some automatic steel gates.

“Found him. Drove into some sort of compound but nothing too hard for us to sneak into,” snickered Casimir straightening himself as cracked his back, “Now for some breaking and entering!”

[Tomia]

September 12th, Arcade
"Wait what?" Angelica asked in shock as she followed behind her girlfriend. How could a tech genius have not heard of him? The frost hero was just as surprised as she was amused.

"You've seriously never heard of pac-man? It's like, one of the most popular arcade games of all time?" She said, standing next to her as she booted up Time Crisis 5. "Really, you have to play Alexis, it's a total classic." She insisted to her girlfriend.

Meanwhile Naja smiled back at Icarus. "Well I'm glad you could come Surge, as well as you Red and Blue." She greeted the group. "I know there's been some problems between our teams, but I'm glad the three of you decided to come." Then she turned over to Kylie. "Have you three met Kylie?" She asked, as the bluejay captain waved over.

"I've met Red and Blue here, we've fought . Surge though, I haven't." She said, offering her hand out in greeting. "Nice to meet you."

While Roy was hanging by the food counter, he was suddenly approached from behind by a fox eared girl with red hair. "So, no call when you come to town?" She asked playfully as he turned at the familiar voice.

"Katie!" He called out happily, pulling his old friend into a hug.

"It's been too long, I'm sorry I didn't call. Been really busy with the team. So are you fighting with the Freedom Fighters this year?"

"Yup! I finally made the roster this year!" She told him proudly.

[New Neros]

-Wyatt-

Darklight and Cosmic

Cosmic's face lit up with joy at the idea of getting another round of training in, knowing Wyatt was one of the strongest Young Bloods on the team. "I know exactly what you mean," Cosmic began, "It sounds fun and cool if this was a chill night, but we're literally at the epicenter of the strongest heroes and heroines on this planet. I want to do my people proud and I want to be at my best. I'd love to get some sparring in, I've seen what you're capable of, absolutely impressive, and I want to know how I stack up." He began to walk alongside Wyatt, Ava following close behind as the two continued to engage one another as they neared the training facility.

"So," Darklight interjected, "I always wondered and wasn't really sure how to ask, but do you prefer Bael or Wyatt? I always followed the rule of costumes, I guess. When I'm suited up or using my powers, it's Darklight, but casual conversations when I'm not all powered up, Ava."

Cosmic nodded in agreement, "I'll answer to Cosmic or to Mark, I don't exactly have a secret identity if I don't wear a mask." Upon arriving at the training center, it seemed like a relatively modern building sandwiched in-between some shopping centers and apartments in downtown Manhattan. Unassuming, for the most part, and though it seemed small from the outside, going in showed it much more spacious and roomy. "B4, superpowered training arena." Mark stated, looking at a directory for the building, "Down in the basement, that's pretty cool, far away from disturbing everyone else. Session available! Let's get it," He said with a grin, eager to see what Wyatt was made of.

[The Templar High Council]

Icarus

By this point, Zoe had finally started gathering food. She held in one hand a plate laden with foods that were familiar to her: chicken tenders, macaroni, french fries, and the like. She was wearing a deep red dress for the occasion, one that she hoped to not get any food on at this fancy event. Feeling a tap on her shoulder, Zoe turned to face whoever had approached her and was shocked to see it was Surge, her future opponent. She sort of fumbled with her words as she started to respond to him.

"Uh, yeah, that's me. 'Impulse of the Carolina Bluejays,' that's my trading card. Future trading card, I mean." She nervously chuckled, still clutching a plate of food with one hand as her other arm moved up to adjust the bun she wore her hair in. "And you're Surge, right? You're new to the L.A. Stars?"

---

After the Ceremony

Kylie made her appearance at the arcade by shouting across the venue to her old teammate. Approaching behind her, in a much more comfortable outfit than she wore at the opening ceremony, Zoe jogged after her team leader trying to keep up. Kylie had brought her along to the arcade to meet the other young heroes in the league, and also to catch up with some friends of hers. Watching Kylie say hi and introduce Zoe to Naja, the younger hero looked over to the slowly-dispersing crowd of teen heroes with a mixture of apprehension and interest. She hadn't met many other heroes her age. Not for lack of trying, just everyone else she knew in the field was older than her. Kylie and Naja continued to collect a crowd of heroes around them, including a familiar face from the earlier celebrations.

"Oh hey Surge, fancy seeing you again." Zoe had changed out of her dress into a tank top and some loose-fitting jeans, looking much more at ease than her formal attire. "Are they leaving you at the 'underage heroes party' too?" She made air quotes to accentuate her point, but she didn't sound altogether upset with the situation.