Black Fall - The IC (The Day a new Monster was Born)

Hugh, always up in the morning, before the sun even started to rise, had casually strolled to the All Father's Park, carrying an instrument case with him. A fainter, chilling breeze picked up, covering much of the park, although he could not determine if it was the weather system coming in, or if it was him, generating the gusts unconsciously. Sometimes he did such things with his powers, but thankfully, nobody ever thought a calm puff of wind was strange, especially not on a day when it was expected to storm. It would definitely start to pour, though, the change in pressure was obvious. It was clear that it wasn't ideal weather to play the violin, as the change in temperature and humidity would surely ruin the sound, and Hugh would likely have to tune it later. However, not sure when exactly it would start to rain, he wouldn't spend time trying to return home to put back the case. He would just have to carry it with him. He finally stopped next to the statue of Theodore Roosevelt, and sat down at a bench close by, breathing in deeply, and relishing the crisp morning air.

"Father please I'm not going to be kidnapped!" Merry shouted back to her father as she dragged him towards the door. "And let go of my chair! I need to go out! I'll die if I stay inside too long!" Merry didn't want to be irrational, or worry her poor father, but she didn't want to stay inside on such a nice morning. "But my sweet child" Her father blubbered, hooked onto her chair as if trying to delay her leave. "You are so delicate someone could snatch you up!" With a final tug forward Merry had freed herself from her father. "Father. I'm more capable of protecting myself then you know. I'll be back before you know it."

Once Merry was outside she realized she had no idea where to go. "Might as well go to town." She thought outloud as she began to wheel herself towards town.

Ivete

While Ivete was sitting down on the bench, a boy sat down on a bench near her. He seemed to be much younger than her, she guessed about half her own age. The boy seemed to be carrying an instrument case around. She pondered for a second what could be inside, the shape gave away that it was something like a guitar. While she wasn't the kind of person who hung out with little kids. She figured that at least talking to someone would be better than sitting here quietly. Ivete sighed quietly before she spoke to Hugh while staying on her bench, asking about what's in the case (Not even thinking about if there's something in there he doesn't want people to ask about) "Hi, I'm Ivete. That's a cool case you have there, what's in it?" She spoke in a cheery and polite tone to not sound like she's interrogating him. It was more like she was trying to start a conversation.

((Okay, writer's block hit me hard here. This post was bollocks))

Hugh glanced down at his case, the expression somewhat harder to determine, as he was wearing sunglasses, "This? It's my violin. I came here this morning, intending to play it, but neglected to acknowledge the weather. It's too cold for instruments to make the proper sound, for today, and as it will surely rain later, I don't see the point of making a trip back home to return it." He was slightly surprised, most random strangers didn't just walk up and ask you what was in the instrument case. At the same time, though, when he still took lessons, he was on a campus filled with music students. Most people could identify the instrument the case was intended to carry. Hard violin cases for full-sized violins, like Hugh's, were generally smaller, with a rectangular shape, being about two feet long. Most people outside music class didn't identify instrument cases. It was no different than how identifying herbs was common knowledge to Hugh, but usually wasn't found among anyone other than talented cooks. You could have told Hugh to go find basil, and he would have gotten it. Most people his age would just scratch their heads and shrug.

Regardless, he would be polite, "I'm Hugh, by the way, pleased to meet you." He said, introducing himself.

"Careful- there are undead are roaming in this area. Proceed with caution," and electronic voice rang through the headset. The soldier nodded as she began to run into the crumbling building, gun at ready. A hand rose from the ground grabbed at the soldier's legs, pulling her down through the broken floor tiles. The soldier expertly shot at the hand, disintegrating it in one blow. The soldier continued into the building, shooting at the undead. She then saw it- the bunker she was supposed to get to. Only 20 feet away. 15 feet. 10 feet.... 5 feet.......1 foot....

Faith jumped in surprise as the T.V. suddenly switched off.
"Mom," she whined as her mother stepped in front of the television and unplugged the Xbox, "I was about to make it to the next level!" Faith's mom, Ms. Kelson sighed in annoyance, "You've been on that thing all day, I don't care about any video game." she tossed Faith her bag, "go outside and do something. Try and socialize for once." Faith let out a huff of air, "I'm not gonna get obese from sitting all day, if that's what you're worried about." Her mom was one of the few Faith had actually heard Faith yell.... or talk, for that matter.

"Just go," her mom ordered, opening the front door. Faith let out another angered huff of air before picking up her bag and grabbing her jacket, "Fine.... if you want me to." She walked outside and slammed the door behind her.

"Socialize my butt...." Faith whispered to herself as she started walking down the street. She didn't really pay attention to where she was going, but she somehow found herself at the park. She looked around. People.... if they noticed her, it would be fine.... talk to her, not so much. Faith never really knew why, but whenever she met a new person and tried to talk to them, her palms would get sweaty and her voice get quieter, and she felt like going into a hole and hiding until the person left. She was fine with people noticing her though.... she actually kinda liked being noticed.
Faith sighed as she sat down at a park bench that had no one sitting at it and touched her gold necklace, deep in thought. Probably thinking back to the time her grandmother was alive. She sat still for a few moments before pulling her 3DS out of her bag.

"Mom can't take away all my games," she smiled to herself as her fingers quickly began pushing the gaming console's buttons.

((not that big of an opening post, but oh well ^_^'))

"Nick, you owe me around ten dollars anyway. I'm not going to 'put it on your tab' any more until you pay it back." the adult said, rolling his eyes in a half frustrated, half friendly manner at Nick. "Fiiiiiiiiine...." Nick grumbles, picking up his longboard and heading out the door. "I'll get the money to pay you back for the sodas... Tell Logan I said 'Hi'." He said, before leaving the surf and skate shop. It was owned by his friend's father, who generally let him get away with things that normal customers couldn't since the family liked him. Logan and Nick had become friends in elementary school due to the thing that that they both had in common- Both of their mothers had passed away. Although Logan had closure, knowing that his mother passed away from lung cancer. Nick, on the other hand, had no idea about the whereabouts of his mother.

He scratched his head through his gray, flat top Volcom hat, and picked up his skateboard from the entrance of the shop, and began heading out. While skateboards weren't his specialty, Logan had taught him how to use it to a certain degree. The farthest he had gone on it was a Kickflip. "Oh wait, Nick." Logan's dad said, coming out the door after him with a rolled up newspaper in hand. "Did you see the newspaper? People have been disappearing without a trace lately. You stay safe, you hear?" he said, tossing the newspaper to Nick, which he caught. "Thanks Mr. Wiseman." Nick replied, eyeing the rolled up pieces of paper in his hands before pushing off to get on his way. He often took the bike path on the road instead of the side walk as people sometimes didn't get out of the way fast enough.

As he skated, he noticed people gathering at a park, and being the curios person he was, decided to check it out. Doing a quick ollie over the curb and off the bike path to get onto the sidewalk. One quick push kept him moving at his speed of choice. He eyed the people moving around before putting the heel of his shoe on the ground to stop. He made no move towards them, and was content to simply watch for the time being.

Merry had wheeled herself over to a shaded part of the stone path, not wanting to risk tipping over on the grass. She watched as the crowd size got larger and larger. Maybe some sort of friendly gathering or concert was about to start. She certainly hoped she wasn't intruding on any sort of private event if the park had been rented out. However this crowd seemed a bit too diverse to be just one sort of gathering. Maybe everyone this morning had the same idea that Merry had. Go out and find some adventure.

Merry watched with a small grin as a young man skateboarded past her. Working up a bit of courage she called out: "Nice wheels man!" She almost chuckled at her own little joke, since she was also on wheels. Wow that was dumb.

The next park-goer to catch her eye was a young girl, younger then her at least, who was sitting by her self not to far off. Maybe she would start conversation. After scounting out the quickest stone path route Merry was on her way. As she got closer something with the girl caught her eye, a handheld game device. Her eyes lit up, they shared a similar hobby. Once she was in talking distance of the girl Merry called out. "Good Morning!"

Faith heard a girl talking. She looked up, not noticing until the last moment the girl was talking to her. Faith felt her hands get sweaty as they always did when someone new talks to her. "I...um... Hay," she managed to say quietly, her face bright red. Faith noted the girl was older then her and in a wheelchair, though it wasn't a big deal to her. Blonde-ish hair. Seemed like a nice person.

Wait, what else is she supposed to say to someone who might wanna start a conversation? Faith racked her brains for what to say next. Good day, isn't it? Too weird... Sup? Too casual. Faith gave up on what to say and looked back at her game, her thumbs quickly pressing buttons. 'Wait to go with talking,' she scolded herself in her mind.

Lacey

Earlier that morning, Lacey found herself laying in bed under her soft warm comforter. She sat upright quickly, and then fell back on her pillow, dizzy. She lazily swatted at her droning alarm clock, causing it to fall to the floor and begin bouncing haphazardly, still screaming in an insect-like screech. She got back up, more slowly this time, and stretched, bringing her arms out widely. She looked around the room, trying to figure out what had happened. She didn't remember going to sleep, as usual, and she was still in her clothes from the day before, something Lacey never did. She found the answer on her nightstand, a cup of coffee, still warm. She rolled out of bed, and picked up the de-thorned rose. Now she remembered.

Lacey smiled as she slipped her slender feet into a pair of fuzzy white slippers. She grabbed the coffee off of her nightstand, and walked into the main room of her house, where she filled up a clear vase and put the rose in. She sat the cup of coffee down, still smiling, and shivered as a cold draft blew past her. She followed the burst of cool air to an open window in the corner of the living room which led to her fire escape.

"Couldn't leave through the front door, could you, ace?" Lacey muttered sweetly as the walked over and closed the window. The one thing she hated above everything else in Black Fall was the cold; it was summer and the air outside felt like autumn did in Baltimore. Lacey stood there for a moment, her coffee in hand, and decided to go get ready for work.

Now, several hours later, she sat at her desk in the office, sipping at her third cup of coffee. Today was one of those days. Nothing of interest had happened in the last hour and a half, and Lacey's pile of paperwork was so big that she thought it would grow a life of its own and rise against her.

Dante

That morning, Dante decided not to do anything. As usual, he had woken up way too early for the fact that he stayed up until 3 AM DJing. Despite his rather outlandish job, Dante's home looked like it belonged to a preppy college student or a wealthy doctor. It was a condo along the same street as Lacey's, though his was only half as big. The walls were painted a light beige color, and in some places (in his bed and study) they were lined with books, nonfiction tomes in the study, and fiction in the bedroom so he could read himself to sleep. Luckily, it was his off night, and he decided that he would spend the day relaxing. Maybe he'd go to the park and read a book, or perhaps he'd go to the beach. He opened the window in the corner of his room, and decided that it was not a beach day.

Not long later, Dante found himself on an elevator going down to the ground floor of his building. He was wearing a white long-sleeved button-up shirt with a brown-and-orange striped sweatervest and a black scarf thrown about his neck for fashion purposes. On his head was a black cap, and a pair of black circular sunglasses covered his eyes. Under his right arm was a thick red copy of Dante Algheri's The Divine Comedy. Upon exiting the elevator, Dante greeted the doorman and walked out of the sliding double doors into the crisp, brisk morning. A minute or so later, he sat down in the seat of his black 1971 Chrysler Imperial, a gift from his boss. Dante took a moment, as usual, to thank the car gods for this beautiful car, and he drove off.

???

Appropriate music:

Outside of the Black Fall city limits, in the woods obscured by dense woods. There was a small building that appeared to be a dingy run-down warehouse. Except; that was merely the ruse. It was secured tight, and where it appeared to be abandoned... It was quite full. Inside of the building was a seemingly high-end lab with two areas. The examination rooms, where people were strapped to tables and forcibly examined. Then there were the prison rooms, extremely durable and high-end rooms where people were "imprisoned", until they're needed. These were the various people put into headlines that disappeared without a trace. They were taken off the streets... by a certain individual with less than stellar morality. Count Vicious, was the name he had given himself. He's a scientist, gifted with such intelligence that he knew the human body inside and out--- Among other knowledge. While he is a man of science, he's much more of a mercenary. Skilled in combat as well as scientifics. He works for anyone who has money to pay for his works--- No matter what job it is, or where it takes place. He's been all over the world. Lately, most of his jobs involved the growing number of Meta-humans. Whether it was the Mafia, Warlords in third world countries, Rich men and women--- People wanted to take advantage of this growing... Change. Most of these jobs he's been getting were simple mercenary work, or attempting to discover the secrets behind these powers, and how others can gain them. Most of the latter jobs went no where, and Vicious didn't get paid... And whenever Vicious doesn't get paid, people die. Really fast.

Vicious is a Meta-human himself.

He has stopped taking missions about discovering how Meta-humans work because it was near impossible. However, there was one mission, from a very special man. He was rich, yes. Rich enough that you should do whatever he says. Vicious was no fool when it came to people full of money. But, his sources say that this man upholds his deals. If this job goes through, then Vicious will be a very rich man. He'll never have to work for anymore scumbags for the rest of his life. The best part of the deal was that he was given equipment. A working and high tech lab, places to put people, and best of all amazingly good technology. Vicious's part in the job was that he was supposed to "examine" the Meta-humans of Black Fall. To be more specific, he was to gather information about them, after he finds out which person is a Meta-human. Their powers, how strong they are, how skilled they are with their powers... And to capture a few that interest him and commence "thorough" examination. After he was done, they were to be shipped off to an undisclosed location, to his boss. If anyone died they were to be sent to the same place. No one knew who Vicious was, nor did they know he was behind anything... Though, the news report was going to make things very difficult if people took it seriously.

Vicious was a very large man, standing at 6'4 feet tall and has a very wide and muscular build. He was Caucasian, of Australian descents, his skin was a healthy beige color. Vicious had only one eye. He lost his right years ago in a fire-fight. Over that eye was a black eye patch with a skull on it. Vicious also only had one hand, which was also lost in fighting. In place of it was a large Anchor-like hook made out of iron, that was curved downwards and the tip was razor-sharp. This hook (in total) was three feet long. It appeared that Vicious could lug around this hook very well. Due to Vicious's power; he can change the hook from this massive weapon to something much smaller and less noticeable when he wants to appear causal. He has spiky red hair, which has been dyed dark red. Vicious's outfit changes depending on what he needs to do. If he wants to appear normal, he usually wears a suit--- Sometimes he wears something bland to blend in with the crowd. Out on combat missions he wears a Kevlar vest (Even though he doesn't need it) and various outfits. Usually something with a villainous feel to him.

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

In the Prisoner's section of Count Vicious's base. There was a man, in his mid-twenties and had a thin build. He had short blond hair and scars all over his face and chest. His outfit gave the feeling he's a swimmer, he was wearing nothing but yellow swimming trunks. Power: Phosphorus Skin. He escaped because he melted his jail cell enough to get free. He was running around frantically, going in circles and sending himself into a panic. Unfortunately for him... He's attracted the attention of the last person he wanted.

Walking down the hallway behind him was a large figure, the lights in the base were dim, making it hard to see. All that could be seen was a shadow walking closer and closer causally. It was none other than Count Vicious himself. "Ah, you've escaped? That was unexpected, yes?"

The prisoner quickly turned around and had a fierce look in his eyes. He snapped his fingers, causing his skin to burn anything much like White Phosphorus. His skin sizzled as he charged Vicious. He attempted to punch his captor in the face with his phosphorus burning skin--- Only to have his fist grabbed by Vicious, who had coated his entire body (including clothes) in harden titanium to resist the phosphorus. He squeezed his victim's fist, crushing it with ease. The man screamed at the top of his lungs, attempting to pull free, but Vicious wasn't going to let go.

"Oh, oh, no.... Young man you have made a fatal mistake." Vicious says with a grin a mile wide. He raised the man into the air. "You do know that you can't leave until you're done volunteering, yes?" He says in a cocky tone, before he slammed the man into the ground with incredible force, letting go the second he heard the thump. A few of the man's bones were broken. That didn't break his drive to escape, however. The man tried crawling away, before he somehow climbed to his feet. He limped away very slowly, as blood lightly dripped down from him. His skin stopped burning like Phosphorus. Vicious did nothing but look with surprise. The man managed to get ten feet away from Vicious, before his captor took action.

Vicious quickly closed the distance between the man and himself and grabbed the man by the back of his head. He lifted up the man and had a smirk on his face. Before he spoke, "You're trying to leave, oh? My employer did tell me something about the volunteers who resist like you..." He sarcastically tilted his head and tapped his chin with his massive hook hand, "... Oh yes! I am permitted to terminate" Vicious ran at full speed towards the wall on the opposite end of the hallway. With the man's face extended straight out. Vicious had incredible speed for having skin made out of titanium. He smashed the man's head into the concrete wall face first. There was the ominously loud crack of his skull being broken into several pieces, and his brain being smashed. The man was (obviously) killed instantly. Vicious had held this position for several seconds, a puddle of blood formed at the now deceased man's feet. He let go of the corpse and let him slide on to the ground, dying in a slumped position on the wall.

Vicious examined his work, "Oh well, the boss did tell me to execute anyone unruly to send a message to quash any ideas of rebellion..." He spoke loudly enough for everyone that was a prisoner to hear. Everyone who heard got the message really well. They just didn't show it. His metal form was covered in the blood of his victim, that was quickly rectified by taking several steps back and reverting back to human form. The metal seemingly retracted back inside of his body. "Alright..." Vicious says in a soft tone. He turned around and walked through the halls of his base to his office. As he walked he looked into every cell that had a prisoner. They were all hopeless and dark. Vicious had already crushed their hopes and dreams of escape. That gave him pride, that makes his job easier.

The moment he got into his (rather cramp) office, he threw his door open and slammed it shut behind him. He walked behind his crescent-moon shaped desk and sat down on his computer chair. Not noticing the figure that was hiding behind his door. This person was wearing an enormous black cloak, that obscured his face and all other features. To everyone else, this person was an enigma. To Vicious, he was "Boss". He smirked and loudly says, "Boss... Didn't expect for you to drop by in person... Again."

"Yes... Vicious. I need you to report on your progress." The unknown man spoke with a deep and elderly voice.

"Ah, boss. We couldn't discuss this by phone, or telegraph at least?" Vicious replies.

"No, haven't you been reading the news? They have been tapping into that. If my identity is comprised... Then I cannot guarantee that you'll be paid for your efforts--- Or won't be arrested for life." The "Boss" spoke, "And that brings me to this." The Boss reached into his cloak and pulled out today's news paper, then threw it on Vicious's desk. "They are catching up to you, be ready to pull out with any subjects you have left..."

"Ah, yes, the Black Fall Inquirer.... Can't you just, uh, bribe them to pull the story?" Vicious sarcastically asks.

"No. It's already out there and doing that will arose even more suspicion--- But, that's not what I am here for, Vicious. Have you gathered the data I asked for?" The Boss states in an emotionless tone.

"I'm getting to it. You see, there's a lot of Meta-humans out there... gathering this information is... Difficult to say the least" Vicious pleads.

"You have one week. If you are not done by then, you will not get paid a penny for your endeavors." The boss threatens.

"You know who I am right? Count Vicious. The underground mercenary who kills whoever doesn't pay?" Vicious attempts to counter.

"I do. You're dead," The boss starts off, "Do not even attempt to pull that with me, Vicious. I have forces outside your control that not even you can handle... I'd suggest that you comply. Facing me will not end well for you."

"Alright, alright. You'll have your info before then. I'll have to try more 'aggressive' tactics now." Vicious smiles very creepily.

"You must keep your anonymity at all costs, Vicious. If you are exposed then you will not be paid... Before you say anything; there are no ties to be severe. They have never been there from the start." The Boss says, before he opens the door and walks out. Disappearing completely.

Haha... Boss. Little that you know; my little hacker friends are digging into you as we speak. The second I find out the man under the mask; you'll be my puppet. Vicious thinks to himself as he leans back in his chair. Before he gets up and suits up in a causal outfit. He wore a black cube-striped suit, with a small and pathetic silver hook. That looked like it would hurt no one. Vicious proceeded out into town, hoping to find some new subjects... His methods will start to get more brutal, effective and far less subtle.

((Who wants to get kidnapped?))

Celo wrote:: "I...um... Hay,"

Merry felt herself frowning as she wheeled past the gaming girl. She didn't seem like the type to start a conversation with now that Merry was closer to her. It would have been easy to make a joke like: Hay is for horses. Or asked her about what game she was playing. But instead Merry decided it would be much easier on the both of them if she just moved on.

Once Merry was farther away from the girl she shivered, the morning was quickly turning cooler. She wished she had taken a warmer coat with her.

(I volunteer to be kidnapped if the plot demands it!)

Nick heard something all to familiar. He tuned into his hearing and listened. He heard the distinct smell of a Nintendo handheld console. He listened closer trying to listen in on what kind of game it was playing. Sadly, he could not tell from the distance he was away. He turned around, falling back on one hand to support himself and unconsciously felt the soft and slightly wet blades of grass beneath his his skin. Grass had not existed until after the dinosaurs, and it was quite the food source for modern day mammals. He panned his head, looking around to see a girl in a wheelchair rolling away from another girl who was playing a 3DS. He had one, and was recently doing another run on the games X and Y that had been released for it not long ago. The groundbreaking 3D game had been a big step from what it had been before. He stood up, taking his skateboard with him and walked down the stone path towards the girl playing the 3DS. As he walked, he passed another girl in a wheelchair. He silently appreciated the fact that he could walk, before flashing her a smile and a, "G'day, mate.", as he passed.

As he approached the gamer, he did the first thing that came naturally. In this case it was to lean just above her shoulder and try to see what she was playing. While it could be considered a largely creepy thing, it was solely innocent curiosity. As he stared, he noticed he could see himself in the screen because of the slight glare that was ever present when people played games outside. He knew this from experience. He stood up straight from his leaning position and moved beside her to sit down. "Whatsup." he said, sounding as Australian as he could. He had a saying about his accent: 'It's a blessing and a curse. It's the ultimate ice breaker and makes it easy to start a conversation. On the other hand, if I'm a jerk to anyone, they could meet a hundred other jerks that same day, but they're going to remember the one Australian guy who was the jerk.'

He turned his head to look the girl over, before speaking. "So, what game are you playing?"

Faith felt disappointment when te girl left. There goes another person she could have made friends with. She tried to choke out sorry as the girl left, but couldn't. Why was it so hard to talk to people? Faith hesitantly decided that the next person who talked to her she would attempt to talk to and attempt to carry on a better conversation. She went back to focussing on the game, shooting a soldier of the opposing team and expertly dodging shots.

After playing the game a while more, she suddenly felt someone looking over her shoulder. She didn't mind that- people noticing her was good. Then he said hi to her, which made her shoulders tense up. Talking... Already the twisted world where fate was in charge wanted her to carry out her self-promise? Maybe she should just try talking to the person after this, that would be easier. She would be more ready. Besides, what could she talk abou-

Oh. He asked her about the game. Faith felt relief flood over her. Gaming was pretty much the only thing Faith felt a little comfortable talking about. Wait, what was the game she was playing again?

"um...uh... Honestly I have no idea- some war game... Have too many games...do you have a 3DS?" Faith managed to say. There were a coupld words between "idea" and "honestly," but they were too quiet to be understood and Faih was too nervous to remember.

"As a matter of fact, I do." Nick said, taking his out of his pocket. It was one of the first, so it had a few scratches here and there, but the blue sheen of the device remained. It had been purchased the day the 3DS had been launched several years ago. Nick never could stop commending Nintendo for their work on making nearly invincible objects that were actually good quality. He shivered in his own mind at the reminder of the Nokia Lumina 3310. He heard that if you dropped one of those, it broke the ground. He also heard that when one feel from two thousand feet it killed off the dinosaurs.

Unlike this girl, who seemed to have some sort of nervousness, Nick had grown up with several friends who had become poular despite being gamers. He played pokemon all through high school and although he was picked on every now and again, he didn't mind it. It wasn't his fault he liked the idea of a Godzillasaurus Rex that created sandstorms whenever it felt like it. "Ah, a FPS game. Interesting. I haven't seen many of them on the 3DS." He commented, leaning over once again to watch her play. "I just play pokemon and animal crossing on mine. I save those games for my Xbox." he said, grinning. "Name's Nick, by the way. It's nice to meet you." he said, extending his hand opposite to the girl so she would be able to shake it easier.

Faith felt herself relaxing a bit more. This guy-nick- seemed nice enough. She paused the game and shook Nick's hand, "Faith," she introduced herself, "I have those games... I...uh.... Don't really like the anime they made for Pokemon though." c'mon, Faith, you're doing good socializig, dont end the conversation now. Wait, what could she talk about? She felt like scolding herself again- finally gt into a conversation and don't know what to talk about, even if it was about her forté.

She looked at his blue 3DS, then at her pink one, quickly reading the dates with her special ability. "so you have one of the first ones, too?" she remarked. Instantly Faih regretted bringing up the date- its hard to tell with some electronic devices if something's new or old. If Nick were to ask her how she knew, she would have to think of a lie quickly or risk explaining her power. She started scolding herself again. Last time she told a potential friend he ability, they had accused her of cheating when she beat the person in a game. Of course she hadn't- when someone grows up with video games you don't need to cheat to win.

She felt her shoulders tense up again, "a-at least I think it's an older model"

Ivete

"You play the violin?" Ivete looked around for a moment. She was a bit disappointed to hear that Hugh won't be able to play the violin for her. She didn't think that she should try and ask him to play anyway. That just would have made her sound stupid. For a few moments, Ivete thought about how she can keep this conversation going. The problem was that there was a huge age gap between her and Hugh. That was something she wasn't good at, interaction with the youth. Unless they were her siblings, that is. "So, how good are you with the violin? I've been to concerts and seen that people can pull off amazing things with violins." Ivete said the first thing that came to mind. The only thing she could think of talking about was the violin.

Ray

While Ray was wandering the concrete pathways of the Park, he noticed someone familiar. The girl he had bumped into yesterday. He recalled that her name was... Merry? He wasn't sure. The park was getting a bit more active at this point, so it'd be difficult for him to find Sage or another Valos (if they're even here). Ray wasn't going to stop his mission--- but, there was no rush to finding out what's going on. Merry looked rather uncomfortable, so he was going to take this slow. He swallowed his pride, and called out to her, "Hey, Merry.... Uh, I'm that guy you met last night." If Ray wasn't wearing sunglasses right now, Merry would notice that he rolled his eyes up into his head. "... Didn't expect to meet you again." He shrugged, before he took a bite out of an apple.

Caden

Caden was wide-awake long before May left to go speak to Sage. There was something on his mind. He was standing on the roof of his new safe-house (provided by the lovely May). There was something that interested him going on. He was reading a newpaper that he stole from a house across from him. There was one article that caught his eye... the front page story; People going missing without a trace. "People going missing... Just like that? Without a trace? Now, now, that's quite a mystery..." Caden was the least bit convinced that this was random like the article implied. Nothing in life is random. Everyone has a motive, even Caden. If it's what he thinks it is... Then it'll play into his favor (He has the feeling that Meta-humans are being kidnapped). The first step would be finding someone who is related to someone that's been kidnapped. He dropped the newpaper, and let it flow into the wind. Then he "dissolved" into a puddle of black, metal-like darkness. He slide back inside of the Pimm house and reformed. He needs to speak to all of his allies about this.

"Associates! Where are you? We need to speak this instant!" Caden shouted loud enough to echo through the house, trying to get Carlos and Warpig's attention.

"Faith, interesting name." Nick said, putting his 3DS back in his pocket and returning to watching her play. He listened as she talked and was impressed by her ability to unconsciously multitask. "That's understandable, never was a fan of anime myself. At least they focus more on the battling and less on the people then, right?" He then reached up and rubbed one of his eyes. His brown contacts had been bothering him. He must've put the right one on wrong this morning. He mumbled a few inaudible curse words before fixing it. He hated that he had to wear contacts for the sake of being normal. It was a massive pain.

"Hey... It's not that bad is it? Yeah, my 3DS is old, but I didn't think it was that easy to tell." He replied, frowning slightly at the prospect. "Oh well." While Nick wasn't a mechromancer, he could see that the one Faith was holding was in good condition. Pink, of course, because that was probably her favored color being a girl, just like how the blue was meant more for the male gender. "It's help up pretty well over the years. Nintendo makes them out of good stuff. I never bought the XL's that they had around. Too big. I couldn't fit that in my pocket." he mused, turning around in his sitting position and falling back in the grass. He put his hands behidn his head to act as a cushion and began looking at the clouds. "I personally dont understand how everyone buys those Call Of Duty games, even me. I don't understand why we all want to kill each other with no consequences." he said, looking up at the sky.

"It makes me think we're all secretly sadists." he said, looking over to Faith and cracking a toothy grin. His canines were easily distinguishable from his other teeth in the fact that they were slightly longer than the other teeth. Of course, this was natural for some people and Nick was one of them. "How about you, what do you think about them, Faith?"

Hugh thought for a moment, pondering a response, "I would like to think I am a good musician, but I cannot prove anything that I say in this weather, as the cold and high humidity will leave my violin out of tune. All wooden instruments, or those with metal strings, have such an issue; violins and cellos especially, because they are made of more than one kind of wood." He answered, specifying why he could not play. "I do, however, know I use a correct form, which is surprisingly less common than one would think. People sometimes don't respect the instrument, but this is partially because they aren't aware of the smaller details. People believe the proper form looks easy, but in truth, I spent two months solely learning to hold a bow properly. I didn't even play my first note until I spent three more learning to simply hold the violin itself. You have to teach your fingers to be independent of one another, and then the muscle that controls the little finger must be exercised so that it is strong enough for you to support the bow between the little finger and the thumb alone. If you hold a violin wrong, you will develop serious health problems in the future." He said, before stopping himself, "Sorry, I think my teacher rubbed off on me, to a degree. Now he has me rambling about form."

"no, an old 3DS isn't bad... I guess I was just noting it...I dunno," faith shrugged. At least Nick didn't ask how she knew. That ment she wouldn't have to think of an excuse. Hope he wasn't too offended by the comment- oh, he wasn't, he continued talking. "I didnt get the XL version either- I was fine with the DS."

Wait, Call of Duty? Faith was now relaxed, "in the zone" as some may put. She noticed Nick's long canines, but didn't find any problem in it- it's normal, anyways, and at least someone was talkin to her and she wasn't as nervous as usual. "then I'm the biggest sadist of them all," faith smiled. "I mainly play the Black Ops one. Don't ask me why, but out of all the games I'm addicted to that ones my favorite." she paused, thinking about what Nick had said, "I see what you mean though. It doesn't teach the best um... I guess you could call it lifestyles."

Merry could feel her expression untwist from a frown to a slight smile. She recognized the voice, even though he was behind her and thus she didn't have a visual aid, as the young man she met last night. With a bit of maneuvering Merry was able to spin herself around to face him, but his name was escaping her at the moment. It was something funny, a name you don't hear very often. After looking him over for a second she remembered, Ray, it was because he was wearing all black and now had sunglasses. Merry was a bit surprised to hear that Ray had remembered her name, it was almost flattering.

"Good morning Ray." Merry finally said. "It's weird seeing you here as well." Merry's mouth began to curl into a smirk. "I see you're eating another apple, it's like you thrive off them."

Caden

Caden hadn't known where Carlos and Warpig was. They were probably off committing crimes and that kind of stuff. What savages. He didn't have time to waste with them especially since there was something afoot. He dissolved on the floor into a liquid-y black puddle. Then slide out of the nearest window. He traveled along the ground quickly, attempting not to be seen. He slide into the nearest drain and traveled in the sewers. His objective was the nearest park, which he was hoping to be a lot of people and even more places to hide. With the ability to detect people's darkness, he can keep a steady eye on everyone around him. Caden traveled through the sewers towards what he believed to be the park. He approached the park from the wall. There was a minimal amount of activity on this part of the park. He slide out of the nearest drainage ditch and up the wall. On the other side of the wall was nothing but bushes. Absolutely no one to see him. Just what he needed. The darkness pooled up and formed Caden from bottom to top. He slowly formed together, except as a liquid, metal-like form with no color to him. The second he was fully formed, his skin turned back into it's usual color, as a half smirk crept across his face.

He stepped out of the bushes looking creepy as always. He eyed two young people ((Faith and Nick)) that had to be years younger than him. Both of them were opposite genders, the boy looked like a skater, and the girl looked like she played too many video games. Kids these days, always indulging themselves in their hedonistic pleasures--- Then again, their futures will merely be living as a cog in the system. He smirked, he needed to get information out of someone about these kidnappings, and he wasn't going to stop until he asked every single last person here about it. Caden smirked a mile wide and walked over to them. He was completely silent as he tried to think of what he should say. Be direct or indirect with his questions. It was a few obvious seconds--- They probably noticed that he was here. So, he scrambled together something to say, "Lovely weather we're having here today?" He speaks in a nearly sarcastic manner, making it obvious that this isn't what he really wants to ask. It was the perfect conversation starter.

Ivete

Ivete listened as the boy told of his Violin techniques. She felt disinterested in the conversation all of the sudden. She knew that she wouldn't be able to have any real conversation with the young person merely because of the massive age gap in between them. Ivete stood straight up off the bench, and told the boy the first thing that came to mind, "It was nice talking to you, Hugh. But, I have to go now." She walked away from Hugh slowly. Hopefully he won't take it the wrong way.

Ray

Dragonbud wrote:: "I see you're eating another apple, it's like you thrive off them."

Ray listened to everything Merry said with focus and silence. Until she mentioned his apple eating habit, he managed to laugh
slightly and half-smiled. Before he spoke to her, "Yeah, I love eating apples." He spoke rather blankly. He promptly ran out of conversation. He isn't exactly the type of person who constantly converses with people. The only thing he could think of was the generic conversation starter, "How are you doing, anyway?" He started off, before deciding to hint at what he was doing yesterday, "... I found what I was looking for last night."

Count Vicious

Emerging out of the bushes in Brigit's area was someone that she would regret even coming in contact with. Count Vicious. Wearing his suit, and extending the length of his hook hand back to it's usual three-foot length. Ready for combat. This was his lucky day, he was going out to grab a few people and he just finds an obvious Meta-human not very far from his base. It was especially interesting to see the ants that had followed her around. They must be connected to her powers--- Given her several obvious ant features. Vicious was slow to approach her, even though he felt that he could easily defeat her if it came down to fighting.

After he was within a few feet of her, he smirked and spoke, "Hello there. You have been volunteered for research specifically into your... 'Gifts.' If you would be kind enough to come with me" He told her his intentions, because there was no way that she could escape now. He would see if the girl would go with him willingly, there was no need for violence. Vicious also assumed that the girl didn't read too much news. That made it so much easier.

Faith looked at the guy who was talking to her and Nick. Great, did everyone want to hear her stammer or something? Just when she had gotten used talking to one person... Wait, the weather? The way the guy was talking wasn't as welcoming or nice as Nick and the girl in te wheelchair had talked to her like. He might not be okay with any wrong or stammered words. He also looked... The only way Faith could think to describe him was creepy.

Right, the weather! Faith's face turned a light shade of pink. How long had she been sitting there wondering about the guy's appearance? She needed to answer him, not get anyone angry. Her hands felt sweaty. "the weather? It's, um... Good... Chilly though... Um... Yeah." Faith quietly said and she began scolding herself inside her head like she always did. It didnt take long for her curiosity to overpower her worry, though, and Faith began wondering about what the guy really wanted to talk about. The sarcasim in his voice made it easy to tell that's not why he was talking to them. The thought brought the nervousness back. What if he attacked? What's the most she could do? Send a text for help? Yeah like that would be any help. Threaten to crash any electronic device he has. Yep, most terrifying thing ever ((sarcasim)). It's official- they were so dead. Just hope the guy isn't gonna do that... Yeah that's what she was gonna do...

Nick sat up as the man approached, his brows furrowing together. His dad had told him all about the crazies out there. This man was a similar image of what his dad had described to him. He was extremely tall, six foot five inches, but instead of being a more muscular guy he was a thin man with long limbs. He had circular glasses and wore a dark unzipped hoodie with a white shirt and had long pants that Nick didn't pay much attention to. As Nick was turning back around to face the man the same direction Faith was, he began speaking about how the weather was. "Just beautiful." Nick replied with his accent coming out, his voice laced with sarcasm of it's own. He was unnerved, no scared of this man's cheshire smile he had on, bu he did not show it due to the fact that it would make him look like a coward and scare Faith to no end.

It was blatantly obvious that this was not what the man wanted. Nick reached over behind him and rolled his skateboard over in case he needed to use it as more than just something to have fun on. He was especially on edge due to the fact that people were going missing. "What do you want, mate?" He said, deciding to cut the crap as delaying the inevitable would serve no purpose. He wanted to know if fight or flight was necessary and if he needed to get Faith out of there. Faith began stammering once again about how the weather was chilly. He would have to help her work on that next chance he got. "Because if you've read the news, you'd know that doing what you just did would put anyone on edge."

Merry had chuckled in response to his love for apples. She was more of a banana person herself, not liking having to eat the skin of an apple and it wasn't possible to carry around a peeler all day. The way he worded it though was even more funny, he liked eating apples, like it was his hobby or something. There was a long pause after this, Merry didn't choose to speak up though. She wanted to hear what he had to say to her.

Merry skipped over the question asked to her about how she was, same old same old, except today might end a bit differently if she had any say. "I'm glad you found what you were looking for." Merry started, recalling with great clarity that Ray was in a rush to get somewhere to do something. "May be so bold as to ask what you were searching for? You see, I too am seeking something out."

Brigit

Brigit's face wore a confused and disappointed expression, as she looked at the stranger. "Volunteered? I don't remember, but then again, I don't even know anymore. I think I may have memory lapses, each day and night blurs into the next. Perhaps I do, but how would I tell, when nothing changes? I suppose it does not matter, in the end." Her voice was quiet and dry, as though she didn't want to break the peaceful calm that existed deep in the woods. She looked around as her ants busily gathered food, "I will follow you, sir. But this may take time, the soldiers must form a safe path for the others." She blinked, and the ants immediately began to move into some sort of line. The largest ones, soldier ants, began to form what looked liked a tunnel, all the way to the entrance of a strange-looking ant hill. Smaller ants then began to pour out of the entrance into the tunnel. Even though she had said it would take time, the insects all moved extremely fast. It seemed that the soldiers were guarding the weaker ant forms from anything that might attack. Brigit turned to the stranger, "Lead, we will follow." She said blankly.

» Black Fall - (Closed)
» And Whatever Days May Come: "I love zombies. If any monster could river dance, it would be Zombies."