NationStates Jolt Archive

Man is a narcissistic species by nature. We have colonized the four corners of our tiny planet. But we are not the pinnacle of so-called evolution. That honor belongs to the lowly cockroach. Capable of living for months without food. Remaining alive headless for weeks at a time. Resistant to radiation. If God has indeed created himself in his own image, then I submit to you that God is a cockroach. They say that man uses only a tenth of his brain power. Another percent, and we might actually be worthy of God's image. Unless, of course, that day has already arrived. The human genome project has discovered that tiny variations in man's genetic code are taking place at increasingly rapid rates. Teleportation, levitation, tissue regeneration. Is this outside the realm of possibility? Or is man entering a new gateway to evolution? Is he finally standing at the threshold to true human potential?

(OOC: Sorry for the use of this but i'm not very good at writing meaningful stuff. Besides, that works perfectly imo.)

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Flashing lights lit the street. Blue flashing lights and large red trucks dominated the small suburban area. Police tape held back the large crowd that these lights had attracted while black suited firefighters began packing away their equipment. A house fire was not that odd in Ustio. It was a typical way to go. Some old man fallen asleep with a cigarette or someone who'd forgotten to turn the gas off.

With the Fire crews finished checking the house for anything unsafe, they exited, handing the charred remains of the building over to the Ustian Police Force. There was not much left, not enough to put in a skip. The fire had been quite severe.

As the fire crews began to leave the scene, a black sports car pulled up and a man in his forties stepped out. He stubbed his own cigarette out on the ground and showed his ID to the Officer by the yellow tape, brushing his greying hair back and placing his hat on his head. The officer squinted at his ID, then let him pass. He walked up to the officer in charge, an old friend of his in the force

"Hello Tom" he said as he approached "I figured they'd send you - mysterious death and what not"

"It's the tenth this month" Tom said, tipping his hat "It's starting to look suspicious. Shall we?" he gestured for the officer to enter the house

They stepped into the ashen remains. On the floor of what was the main sitting room was the skeletal remains of a person

"Who's this?" Tom asked

"Don't know, yet" the officer answered "CSI are on their way now"

"Hmm, I wonder if this one is like the rest" Tom mused aloud

"What do you mean?" the officer asked

"Unconnected. All these people were completely unconnected as far as I can tell " Tom said

"Well, I can tell you something suspicious" the officer began "This one must be a murder"

"How so?" Tom asked

"We ran a UV light over the body. There was a fingerprint on the skull. Not the skin, the skull itself" the officer answered

"Have you run it throught the system?" Tom asked

"Yeah - whoever it is isn't on the system" the officer replied

Tom pondered as they exited the house. Although he hadn't told the officer, this wasn't the first time they had found this fingerprint seared to the skull of one of these burn victims. Ten dead bodies and fingerless print. I couldn't just be paranoia. Something was going on.

OOC: about a day from the investigation
Toral was finally out of Aresion, so at least one of his problems was solved. However, he faced a new one now--survival in a place barely known of to him. He'd wandered about for ages before coming upon a house that appeared deserted. This is a horrid idea...but there's probably food, and that's just what I need. he thought. As he entered, he was surprised to find a dead body nearby, as well as a shadowy figure. How'd they find me here? Toral despairingly thought.

The sun was creeping through the blinds, It was 11am, A young, goodlooking hungover D.I.S agent rolled outta bed, Getting up he walked over to the mirror and looked at his reflection, Looking behind him he saw a young attractive women asleep in his bed, Connor smiled to himself, looks like the stripper didn't just take off her clothes for money,ofcourse Connor hadn't actually paid her, he was just a charmer and a heartbreaker, the best part of being a D.I.S agent was the gap year holiday you got to take, and upon reccomendation from his co workers, ustio was the place to go.

Connor grabbed a shower and left the young lady asleep in what had been his rented apartment for the first 2days in Ustio, Complements of the D.I.S, Connor was a young CSI Graduate, confident, cocky, and very handsome, probelm was he knew it, he had heard sirens earlier on and decided to go take a look see if the hub ub was anything interesting, Unfortunally police tape covered the area and suited men were all around.

Looking dissapointed Connor headed for the nearest Starbucks.

Luckily for Toral, the personage hadn't seen him yet, and clearly wasn't expecting him when he snuck up. Toral felt his whole body redden and smoky substances come out, and watched as the agent fell to the floor. In his dying breath, the agent said "wha...special division should've..taken care..." he died before he could say the rest, but Toral knew what that was. He had learned of his power far more quickly than most, as he'd been hunted down by plenty of Aresion's many troops. But if they weren't after me, who were they after? he wondered.

Looking dissapointed Connor headed for the nearest Starbucks.

Starbucks are few and far between in the urban areas of Hydria, which often makes foreigners wonder how people from Ustio cope during a boring work day. Despite this, the city contined to work, and those who enjoyed a Starbucks were generally the lucky few who had an office near to one. This was mainly due to President LaSalle's new legislation, limiting most foreign companies to give more leeway to local businesses.

Tom Magellan flipped through his note book in a small coffee shop in the Market District. He was sat outside with his coffee and the sun beaming down upon him. Every now and then a van with some sort of satelite dish on the top and the words P.E.A emblazoned on the side would pass on the street he was on. Another of President LaSalle's desicions, the PEA was supposed to "keep racism, prejudice and other offences in check", although the truth was that they just used it to keep track of people who were bad-mouthing the Ustian Labour Party.

Tom drank some coffee and pondered. Ten deaths, all random yet all connected by this mysterious fingerprint. Figuring out why the killer had killed them was the first of many obstacles. How he had killed them was the real question. It was undoubted that they had been killed by fire, but it was impossble to think how a person could put a fingerprint on someone's skull and escape from a burning building. Nothing made sense anymore to him.

He stood up, having finished his coffee. Passing the waitress a tip and thanking her, he decided to take a walk through the Market District's many skyscrapers and enjoy the sun while it lasted, while contemplating what he'd tell his superiors later.

Toral had eaten his fill, and had decided that he should leave, he'd pushed his luck enough already, due to the agent's death. After disposing of the body, he searched around for a quick way of transportation, hoping to find something soon.

OOC: it's not the same house already investigated...

Toral had eaten his fill, and had decided that he should leave, he'd pushed his luck enough already, due to the agent's death. After disposing of the body, he searched around for a quick way of transportation, hoping to find something soon.

OOC: it's not the same house already investigated...

OOC: OK, I was a bit puzzled to be honest.

Nikolas Starck, Tocrowkian expatriate walked through the streets of Ustio. The cliche of "stranger in a strange land" rang true for him. He looked different than these people. He moved differently. He talked differently. Before he had fled here, he had never even heard of this country. But the more obscure the place, the better for him now. It had been some months, but his failure to stop what was transpiring in his homeland still haunted him. How many innocent people had died? How strong was Mahone now? And Strife? They were practically demi-gods when he was there...now...he shuddered to think.

The fact he simply wasn't strong enough irked him. Anyone could learn to despise the feeling of weakness, especially him. He knew it was still his responsibility though. He swore he'd return one day when he had the strength to defeat him. He'd save his country and his people. He'd...his thoughts were interrupted when he accidently collided with someone on the street. He'd been too deep into his own thoughts to notice...

((OOC: The person he ran into can be anyone.))

Hydria, Ustio North, International Airport, Cargo Terminal / 8 a.m. local or so…

Charli handed over the last of the paperwork needed to lay claim to part of the cargo rolling off the impressively sized Antonov 225- it was the worlds largest cargo plane. The massive plane was clad in the dramatic gold and ebony livery of Tanaaran International Aircargo, and it gleamed just as brightly as the finish on the three vehicles rolling off. The huge plane was too big to fit in any save for specially built hangers, but it wasn't staying long. Charli's vehicles had been just 'incidental' cargo.

"Thank you very much Ms. Firewalker" The loadmaster stuffed the electronic notebook back in his hard case and handed back her copy of the printouts, as the last of the three vehicles was pulled up in a tidy line. He waited as the off load drivers handed her the ignition and door electronics then the group jogged back up the ramp and the tail ramps lifted. They had not had to upraise the entire tail section and that had let the offloading go quickly.

Charli stuffed two sets into her denim jacket pocket and flicked the hot start mode on the third. The engine turned over with a low, throaty growl, but the thunks of the doors unlocking could scarcely be heard. This was going to be the one she kept, and would, hopefully sell the other two to her potential clients.

The Hexx Armory custom built Black Knights (http://www.atddm.com/conquest.jpg) were the most luxurious, and largest SUV's about. They each had taken nearly fifteen hundred hours to hand build and were worth nearly quarter of a million aurics. That would put them well over a half a million Ustian Pounds, but she had done her homework, the national economy was very strong and there was plenty of discretionary income available.

Charli hummed a happy tune as she shuttled the three vehicles to the small hanger she had rented. The governmental agent who’d patiently waited while the SIV’s were unloaded inspected each vehicle and signed off on that set of paperwork. He looked longingly at the posh leather seating and the young Tanaaran grinned and nodded. “Take him around the hangar once or twice, See how he handles” It wouldn’t hurt, to indulge him a little, he’d been kind to her and done is job very quickly and efficiently.

“What? Not a she?” The graying haired man joshed with a twinkle in his brown eyes.

“Oh they are real brutes, nothing feminine or dainty about them” She returned his smile as he shook his head once again over the keyless ignition. He was in the ultra dark grey metallic called ‘midnight smoke’ and that one was still ‘unpersonalized’ – whomever had the Tabb-it could engage the engine and operate it.

Finishing up stuffing the additional paper work in her case Charli almost laughed at how heavy it was getting to be. Some four years ago she would have arrived by tramp freighter and hoped they didn’t bang the Phoenix up to much when the half drunk crane operator fouled up. But those days were over, and her life was much more settled now. She was only semi nomadic. Tanaara had become home, and Wildfires Ltd. was flourishing. Technically she was on vacation, but she hoped to make this more of a busman’s holiday. Learning about the wilder and thus more interesting side of Ustio North, picking up some well heeled clients who wanted adventure lux style, and selling the two spare Black Knights.

Once Mr. Pothingham had finished two careful rounds – he knew exactly how much in import duties Ms. Firewalker had laid out – about the hanger he pulled the SUV back inside and delicately lined it up with the other. He handed over the Tabb-it back with a sigh. “Oh that was a fun bit and than you very much. Be careful and check all the locks. Trandoor Management does a good job with upkeep and security, but one can never be too careful.” He also let her know that overall airport security had recently been increased. ”They’ll want to see your international drivers license and passport every time you enter and leave the environs.”

“I’ve also arranged for an extra sweep or two each night” Charli replied reassuringly as she patted her jacket. Both of those documents were in a secured inner pocket, but readily available. Her belt, which cinched a trimly fit waist, also had concealed money and credit card inner pockets. She had made sure to exchange a sizeable amount of aurics for pounds after her own arrival the day before. “Mr. Pothingham, if you need to contact me I am in suite 215 at the Claridge.” She advised him, but hoped he’d have no need to contact her in any official capacity.

She loved the art deco styling of the spacious Linley suite, and the luxury of having a butler. She hadn’t grown up with anything like that, and still didn’t have such, but she chuckled to herself that “I could grow to like that”. Her twenty plus hour days ran her ragged, but she didn’t mind paying that price to get Wildfire Ltd off of the ground.

Waving good by to the customs and import agent she double checked the locks and after one more exuberant stretch and spin climbed into her Black Knight. Sun burst through the clouds as she headed out of the airport, and the strong light revealed that the SUV wasn’t black but a green so dark it almost seemed such.

Once she showed her documents to the exit guards she put her foot down and took advantage of the country’s fine roads as she headed back into Hydria. Shortly she was showing the valet how the Tabb-it worked and watching with a cocked eyebrow as he carefully maneuvered the bulky vehicle from the main lobby entrance. Once she had stowed her brief case in the ensuite safe she was going to take the rest of the day off and walk about the city. She arrived on the dinner flight, and though she’d flown first class she had been too tired to do any thing after the long flight more than bathe and climb into bed.

Charli was free until the dinner meeting scheduled with clients she had guided last year. Their company had transferred them to Ustio North, but they wanted Charli’s personal touch. They had also been instrumental in lining up a number of native prospective clients.

Just before noon, Market District, not that far away from the haven represented by Starbucks...

An hour later she was back down stairs having taken the time to shower and change (http://www.atddm.com/charlia2.jpg) then query the butler as to the location of the nearest Starbucks. Orienting herself she turned left and headed down the sidewalk, moving alertly and taking in the sights with observant and discerning eyes.

Charli Firewaker was worth looking at herself. Standing just under six foot tall she was long and lean, well built and glowing with good health. Glossy auburn hair spilled down past her shoulders and highlighted her emerald green eyes. She carried herself with an air of graceful competence and athletic assurance that drew the eye without trying.

It was just about noon, and she thought if she didn’t see a bistro that looked interesting she’d just have a Chonga bagel and a Mocha Valencia.

What she saw first however was a minor pedestrian collision. The woman, built like she had carried bricks for a living, was even taller than she was and about ran over the man who seemed to have been day dreaming. But the woman had been tottering along on spike heels and lost her balance with a wild windmilling of arms. She went down in a cursing heap.

"Woah! Careful there" She advised as she helped the woman back to her feet. Charli's accent certainly wasn't local -and as much as her life had been spent moving around, it carried traces of dozens of tongues. It was currently over lain with much of the Tanaaran drawl and perhaps it was that strangeness that made the woman pull away with a huff and prance off.

Now sitting down across teh road Connor laughed to himself when he saw the crazily tall woman bump into the day dreaming guy, he could see it was going to happen a mile off, Connors attention however soon was on the tall beauty who had helped the woman up, a waitress came over to offer Connor a re-fill as she glanced him up and down Connor just smiled and accepted the second cup since he had sat sown and wondered why there were so many suited men around that house ruins, Having just graduated from CSI he was eager to put his new found skills to the test.

After 10more minutes of pondering and deciding not to get the waitresses number Connor set back off for the burned down building.

No matter where you went some things were always the same. Some things were indicative of human nature. And that was proven when the woman Nick had collided with walked off in a huff despite his attempt to apologize to her. English was probably the most universal language in the world, and all Tocrowkians were taught it as a secondary language as children. It was hardly ever used in conversations with fellow Tocrowkians of course, but it still useful to know when traveling abroad. And as he, and billions of other Tocrowkians had known the language since a young age his English was only mildly accented.

A tall woman, another passer-by had come over to assist them. However the pair of foreigners (Which the tall woman was, judging by her accent) seemed to intimidate the woman and she huffed away. Nick shook his head and sighed, flustered by the encounter. He turned to the tall woman and nodded. "Hm...some people. But thanks. I appreciate it."

Wondering back down the street he had came Connor took a small alley around the back of the houses Including the burned down house, eager to have a look he snuck throguh un noticed there wasnt much of the house left, luckily connor had trained in fire safety and new there was a risk on entering, he entered anyway, slipping on his gloves from his jacket pocket, the young suited man couldnt really see anything interesting left, Just then he heard voices and footsteps approaching...

Summer absentmindedly drummed her pen on her desk as the professor droned on monotonously with his lecture as she stared at the notes she had written for the past hour and a half. It was a lecture on Human Anatomy, something that Summer thought would have been a quite interesting topic. While the material was interesting the professor was anything but.

This wasn't what I expected when I wanted out of the country... She thought to herself, reflecting on her decision to continue her studies out of country. Life at home in the Enlightened Worlds was easygoing and calm, but far too calm for her tastes. Too calm, too isolated, it felt too much like a cage. She wanted to go out and see the world for what it is, a choice that took a great deal of effort to convince her parents.

Summer briefly returned her attention to the professor, a distinguished man in his 60s with graying hair, well-trimmed mustache, dressed formally in a suit and a bow tie. He was busy scribbling away on the blackboard, hastily drawing scattered diagrams as he droned on with his lesson.

"... and during the second week of development, different populations of cells..." At that point Summer's attention drifted off again, and she began to click the button on the back of her pen out of boredom, letting her imagination wander off.

God, I can't take much more of this. How long till this stupid class is over? Summer thought to herself as she glanced over at her watch. The digital display read 2:46 PM. Fourteen minutes until the class was over.

Great. Summer gave a quiet sigh as she tried to scribble down the professor's words as he lectured on.

OOC: Giving my original post a makeover due to horrible writer's block.

Hearing the voices Connor paniced, a million and one thoughts rushed into his head, if he was caught he was sure to be thrown out of the D.I.S the 4yrs at Uni would be a waste that 5figure career would be nothing but a dream, as the voices grew louder as did Connors panic, just then he felt as if he was about to black out, as the 2 suited men enetered the room Connor stood there, waiting to be asked 1000s of questions, the men looked right at him, atleast thats what he thought Connor remained silent not knowing what to say, It was as if they were looking through him?

"There was a fingerprint on the skll" the young officer said to the mysterious looking man with him, the man didnt reply, the young nervous officer filled the awkward silence "Anyway sir I'll leave you to have a look around" The man just nodded as the officer left the room, the mysterious man could tell he was still not alone, he approched Connors direction Connor was so nervous and still had no idea what was happening, with each step the man seemed more alert, just then more voices, it was the young officer again "Im sorry sir the man claimed to be you! he had the badge and everything?" "I dont care if he had a badge how the hell did you mistake me!", "Ive never seen you beore sir said the young officer" "Hmph" Replied the gentleman

The mysterious man had been distracted by the voices and now seemed to panic just as Connor had, just as the young officer and another gentleman entered the rooms gun drawn, Connor witnessed the strange man dissapear.

"Shit" Connor whispered to himself, maybe there was some kind of radiation in the building which had made this man dissapear and for that matter why connor wasnt seen or maybe this had some kind of link to connors beculiar dreams for the last fornight, as the officers ran outside again looking for the mysterious man, connor made a break for it as he neared the corner of the alleyway, it hit him, did he really just exeprience that? he had to get back to his apartment.

why couldnt the officers see him? how did that man just Dissapear? who was he? all these ran through the young agents mind, then he was interupetd "Hey!, You!" an officer from the house shouted Connor turned to see several police officers running towards him guns drawn, Panicing Connor ran, the officers close behind him Connor turned round a corner, It was a dead end, feeling the panic he had felt back at the house, he felt strange again, almost faint, the officers rounded the corner "Where did he go?" "Forget it he's gone" Said another

was this really happening, connor asked himself, he needed a drink, he headed back for the apartment.

OOC: Sorry if this is crap im suffering the same as EW

"Hm...some people. But thanks. I appreciate it."

Charli shook her heard in mute agreement, as she watched the woman scamper away "You know I had a cat once like that, always seemed to be walking on claw tips, and never could quite catch his balance." The smile she gave him was reserved though, she had had similar encounter methods used on her before when the Shop was actively hunting her. Still as her eyes took him in and cataloged him she relaxed minutely. He was conversely at once too slick and yet not slick enough to be Shop, and that accent wasn't anything U.S., or native.

"As long as you're okay." She spied the Starbucks she had been looking for over his shoulder, just where it had been said to be. Her stomach rumbled ever so faintly and the tiniest blush stained her cheeks.

"If you'll excuse me, there is a bagel and caffeen calling my name"

A tall, fair haired man walked down the streets of Hydria. He wore some faded blue jeans, and a brown tee, he had a backpack over his shoulder, and he held on to it like it was his last hope for survival. It had been forever since he had been in Ustio North, come to think of it, the last time he had came here was his first year of freedom from the company. He remembered the things the company had put him through, running on a treadmill until he collapsed from exhaustion, or had blood samples taken until he had holes on every limb of his body. Good Times... he thought to himself. The man spotted a Starbucks, and as he walked by his stomach growled hungrily, he didn't want to risk being caught by a stray company agent, but he was starving. He opened the door, and stepped inside. He walked up to the counter and ordered a BLT and the soup of the day, as well as an expresso. When his food was finished, he paid with cash and went to sit down. As he eat he thought to himself, I can't be the only one the company is after, maybe there are more gifted people like me out there somewhere. Know what? I think today I'm gonna start searching for some.

Luke was out walking around, he was restless he was floating around with out aim nor direction nor purpose. He had an amazing ability, he had the ability to talk with machines, electronics and gadgets of any kind getting them to do anything he wanted. He had power, especially in this computerised world to do almost anything he wanted to.

But why what for? He used to play games, but why bother when you can cheat so easily? It's not fun anymore. The Company had been shut down and his mothers death left unavenged.

He was one messed up kid living alone in a strange country trying to find out who he really was and finding a purpose for his life, and one wasn't finding one.

Tom Magellan from the PEA was walking past with coffee in his hand as they passed each other Luke was rather unremarkable to look at though it did seem the world had gotten him down bearing under the weight of a large emotional burden.

It's over, its finally over! Summer cheerfully thought to herself as she picked up her books to leave. After fourteen minutes of eternity, class was dismissed at last. Weaving through the crowded hallways, dodging binders, backpacks, and people in a hurry, Summer began to plan on what to do with her after-class freedom.

It was the last class of the day and only three in the afternoon, and Summer didn't feel like going back to her dorm room just yet. Looking around herself at the crowds of people everywhere, she felt somewhat lonely being the odd one out. It was only the first few days of classes and she hadn't get to know anyone just yet. Everyone seemed to know someone else already.

As Summer stepped through the exit of the school building, the bright sunlight shone on her eyes and she reflexively shielded her eyes from the glare. Through squinted eyes she could see the clear blue sky above, completely free of any clouds. It was quite a change of scenery compared to the lightly gray and smog-filled air of the Enlightened Worlds.

Spotting a medium-sized park nearby with a few benches under shade, she decided it was probably a good idea to take a rest for a while. As she made her way towards the park area, Summer shifted the load of her textbooks uncomfortably in her arms, and made a quick mental note to go buy a bigger backpack.

Hanson and Dwyer were calmly awaiting the arrival of their cab, their plane having arrived some time ago. When it arrived, they boarded as the cabbie loaded their cases into the trunk.

"Where to?" the cabbie growled as he slid behind the wheel.

"Hotel Baltimore." Dwyer replied. "You share this cab? ID is a black."

"Can we add bigotry to your failings?" the cabbie turned. "Your absconding with my share of our loot is hardly going to win you friends-and doing so with a weaponsmith of the Ordo Zorak Zorani is hardly life-extending."

They gasped. "Halloran! You're dead!"

"Please-even someone of your limited faculties should realize you can't gun down a man who becomes mist." Halloran sneered. "And it is you who are dead."

Pressing his foot to the accelerator, he steered the cab off a cliff...

Connor rocked back and forth on the bar stool, the game on the tv got more out of focus by the drink, there must of been some sort of radiation effect in that house, Connor needed to get checked out, but by doing so wouldnt he get experimented on? He didn't know what to do, serveral shots and 1 hour later Connor stumbled into his rented apartment door, the stripper had gone, luckily nothing had been stolen or anything, just a note with her number was on the pillow, Connor laughed to himself aloud and looked in the bedroom mirror, he was determined to make sense of what had happened, he concerntrated hard for over half an hour, but nothing happened, eventuallly he managed to conjur up the feelings at the allyway and the house.

Connor couldnt believe his eyes, the same blackout feeling overtook his body and the moment he looked back at his reflection it was gone, he could see his hands his feet, everything as usual but no reflection,

"No way" he whispered just then his refrlection re-appeard, "I need a drink" walking unstably to the minibar he grabbed a drink and one of the ciggarettes the stripper had left behind, lighting up he looked at his image again,

"I need some answers" he said.

Market District. No matter what country you were in, it was always unnecessarily crowded. A lone copper walked past. The fedora I wore over my silver hair was beyond cliche, but I liked the style. Pulling it low, shading my face, I stepped back into what shadows were provided there. Pulling my duster close to my body, I tailed him.

Quervon walks into the starbucks he works at and signs in.He's relieved to know he made it in time after a delay.

"Hm...some people. But thanks. I appreciate it."

Charli shook her heard in mute agreement, as she watched the woman scamper away "You know I had a cat once like that, always seemed to be walking on claw tips, and never could quite catch his balance." The smile she gave him was reserved though, she had had similar encounter methods used on her before when the Shop was actively hunting her. Still as her eyes took him in and cataloged him she relaxed minutely. He was conversely at once too slick and yet not slick enough to be Shop, and that accent wasn't anything U.S., or native.

"As long as you're okay." She spied the Starbucks she had been looking for over his shoulder, just where it had been said to be. Her stomach rumbled ever so faintly and the tiniest blush stained her cheeks.

"If you'll excuse me, there is a bagel and caffeen calling my name"

"See ya..." Nick replied. Of course, it was impossible for Charli to know this, but he was just as wary of her at first as she of him for similar reasons. He wouldn't put it past the Reich to try and recapture him even at this point when he was of no real threat to the current regime. But she didn't look or sound like a Tocrowkian, even years of training couldn't completely camouflage the arrogant, superior way Tocrowkians carried them selves with. She wasn't here to get him,

"Oh, wait!" He called, noticing some local currency lying where she had been standing. Quickly and discreetly, he pulled it into his hand with one of his abilities. "Is this yours?"

"Is this yours?"

That spun Charli back around quickly, tense and now ready for trouble.

"What?" She looked at the Ustian pound notes in his hands and shook her head sharply. Her cream hued slacks had no pockets, and the soft caramel leather purse slung over her shoulder had a discrete bio keyed latch under the flap.

"No it's not mine, ..." Her voice trailed off as she looked about for the towering – she had stood a full head taller than Charli - people dozer. However the woman had vanished as quickly as any cliché ever used to get two people to meet.

"I did help some one rather substantial up, didn't I, after she all but steam rolled you?" Her voice held half a laugh, and disbelief with a huge soupcon of exasperation, her tenseness easing.

Charli shook her head after making one more visual sweep of the streets. “Gone as a ghost” she muttered to herself then looking at the young man. “Well it looks like found money to me, the butterflies in Tokyo repaying you for your near flattening”

Leaning back into the park bench, Summer let out a light sigh of relief as she stared off into the trees and general flora around her. A light breeze blew by, sweeping a few loose leaves into tiny funnel shapes, blowing around dust and dirt as it spun, then dissipated.

This was what Summer wanted. Peace, calmness, the feeling of getting away from it all, far from the noisy streets and polluted industrial air from her home country. If it were not her parents' insistence that she continue in her studies, this would have been the perfect stress-free life. Summer tilted her head slightly to the side, pondering on applying for Ustian citizenship. While it seemed like a sound idea at first, settling down wasn't what she wanted. Life in the seclusion of the Enlightened Worlds gave Summer a deep desire to avoid being chained down to any one place.

Still deep in thought, a stronger breeze blew past, causing the nearby trees and shrubs to tremble. Summer noticed a few leaves - no, they were petals - drifting downwards around her. The petals were small and curved, tinted white with a few hints of pink along the edges and a circular pattern in the middle. The petals seemed to float and dance around Summer, as if gathering to offer comfort and companionship. The sight of the dancing petals intrigued Summer, for she had never heard of or seen any tree that had petals like these.

As gravity slowly drew the petals to the ground, Summer held out a hand to catch one of them. In a moment of serene calm, time itself slowed to a halt between the tiny petal and her outstretched hand, as the other petals around her continued their way to their destinations.

---

OOC: And at last, I indicated Summer's TK manifestation without completely botching up the post.

Halloran coalesced into a solid on the cliff overlooking the flaming wreckage of his treacherous co-conspirators, humming a small paean to Zorak Zoran, who blessed all matters of vengeance.

The money wasn't important-in the long run, it never was-but the idea that a pair of imbeciles could shoot him in the back and waltz away unscathed...

Halloran shook the wrinkles out of his coat. Nothing like a bout of righteous wrath to work up an appetite, he thought. Too bad Hamda's Bakery is so far away. Sigh....oh look, a Starbucks.

Shrugging, he wandered into the coffee shop for a nice cup of Irish Creme and something chocolate...

Connor needed some answers, but first he needed to sobar up, He decided to head back to the starbucks in order of some heavy espresso's, Do I have superpowers? he thought to himself he laughed it off this only happens in comic books and films he thought. the thought had crossed his mind wondering if he had bragged about being a D.I.S Agent maybe the stripper had drugged him and they were having a slow effect? upon arriving at the starbucks he saw the tall beautiful women still there, and still talking to that guy, "Lucky sod" Connor mumbled, sitting down at the table the same waitress eagerly came over, "Can I help?" she said with a cute smile, "Double espresso please" Connor said with an effortless smile, "Heavyday?" she asked, "Could say that" he laughed, "How about an easy night then? Take me out?" asked the Ustian beauty she must of been 19 or so Connor only being 20 and already earning more than a D.I Doctor it wasnt hard to tell Connor was Classy, handsome and very arrogant, the Ustian waitresses did have a certain charm about them though, "Sure why not" Connor smiled "I finish at 6" Replied the waitress walking off to fetch Connors espresso

James rubbed his chin as he thought, Ok, so how would I find more like me? I mean it shouldn't be that hard. Maybe they are looking for people like me also, if that were the case all I would have to do is show off my powers. But the company could find me at the same time. Damn, it's really risky. Know what, I think I'll give it a whirl.

James stood up from his seat and looked around, he was determined to find someone in this little shop who spoke a difficult language. Then he spotted his first lucky break of the day, an Ordo Drakulian. He walked over to the man, sat down and spoke in Flawless Ordo Drakulian, "Sorry for interrupting your meal, mid if I sit down and chat with you?"

Lucien sat at a small corner table in the Starbucks, grimacing into the polystyrene cup cheap coffee, until recently he had frequented a tiny Autesian-run cafe, but since the proprietor died in a mysterious fire, Lucien was forced to drink his coffee here. He lifted a hand and ran it through his white hair. He brought it back down again, fairly hard and in the process his sleeve knocked the teaspoon that rested next to his coffee off of the table. He quickly leaned over and reached out his hand towards the spoon, telekinetically dragging it into the grasp of his long slim fingers,centimeters from the floor. It was so quick that Lucien was confident no-one would notice. When he had first arrived in Hydria, Lucien had been very careful never to use his powers where there was even a minute chance of detection, honing them, instead in his tiny flat with the doors locked and shutters closed. Now, however, he was somewhat more lax, he was confident that no-one cared enough to notice tiny movements like the spoon, and those who did wouldn't believe themselves- life was full of stress. He took another sip of the coffee and considered some food.

ooc: how right is Lucien on this one?...

Connor stared deep into his coffe, out of the corner of his eye he saw a white haired man, sitting in the corner of the starbucks, he had just dropped his teaspoon, Connor couldnt believe his eyes when he witnessed the telekinetic power of the gentleman, "What the hell?" he said was it the coffe? or just the nation itself? Connor wanted to ask him how, but he was nervous, he wondered how the man done it? maybe he was just an illusionist hoping to be noticed? Connor looked at the man thoughtfully and wondered.. Could I? he thought no I couldnt he said to himself, but what if I can he thought, staring hard at his coffe, connor focused until his head was aching, nothing happened, fustrated he felt like an idiot and stared back at the gentleman, looking at the man spoon connor felt stupid, as the feelings rushed through him suddenly the mans spoon slid straight off the table again, did I do that? connor thought looking shocked

James rubbed his chin as he thought, Ok, so how would I find more like me? I mean it shouldn't be that hard. Maybe they are looking for people like me also, if that were the case all I would have to do is show off my powers. But the company could find me at the same time. Damn, it's really risky. Know what, I think I'll give it a whirl.

James stood up from his seat and looked around, he was determined to find someone in this little shop who spoke a difficult language. Then he spotted his first lucky break of the day, an Ordo Drakulian. He walked over to the man, sat down and spoke in Flawless Ordo Drakulian, "Sorry for interrupting your meal, mid if I sit down and chat with you?"

OOC:The native tribe of Ordo Drakul are the muri, and their language is Shadowspeech-difficult begins to describe it, as vowels are pronounced normally, or with a subvocalised or hypervocalised accent that can change the meaning of the word entirely.

IC: Halloran looked at the man who hooted and clacked in Shadowspeech so expertly. "Certainly, certainly." he rose and pulled out a chair for his guest, and signalled the clerk for two coffees, remembering his manners as he did:

"Pray, sit. Come freely and of your own will-enjoy all that is here, and when you depart, leave some of the joy you have brought."

Once his guest was seated, he gathered the coffees and sat opposite the man, offering a cup as he did so. "You have visited Pamaltela." This was a statement, not a query. "Did you stay at Big Rubble, or did you venture inland? If you do not mind the question nor answering, of course."

OOC: James has the power of Omnilingalism, he can speak and understand any vocal or none vocal languages so I think he shouldn't have much problems :p

IC:

James seated himself and clacked in Shadow-speak, "And much joy shall be left when I depart." hoping what he had said to be the correct response, it had been a long time since he had conversed with a Muri. "It has been long since I have travelled among the Muri, but when I wandered across your homeland I found myself on all parts of it. I spent most of my time Inland however, some unsavory characters had been following me since I left my homeland of Oblivion, going inland was the only hope I had of losing them you see."

Nick winced. He'd never heard that particular saying before and the womans foreign accent made it sound very....well, odd to say the least. He tried to cover up the wince though and gave her a polite nod. "I see...guess you're right. This will pay for a mocha, or maybe a pack of cigs anyway." He was about to big her a good day as well when he noticed something. Well, you'd have to be blind not to notice it but still. The entire area around them went dark, as if a cloud cover had moved over the sun.

But as there hadn't been a cloud in the sky the last time Nick had checked. He looked up and saw something unexpected, to say the very least. There, high in the noon sky the sun had been obscured by the earth. A solar eclipse. There wasn't one expected today to his knowledge...even though he paid very little mind to the news today. He found him self staring at it for a moment, it was beautiful. It was the first time he had ever seen such an event in fact...


((OOC: Sorry if it seems like god-modding, but what would a heroes RPG be without an eclipse?))

Tom looked up as the shadow fell across the city. A solar eclipse. Such an event is something that should not be missed. He, like several other people, looked up to watch what looked like a collision in the sky. For most people in Hydria though, life went on as normal, as if only a cloud had obscured the sun.

---

In the starbucks, someone watched Connor from the darkness as he smashed the plate...

(OOC: DI, don't go to him - he's to stay secret for a bit :))

Connor concerntrated on the plate before it smashed against the wall, taking everyones attention just before the eclipse, Connor looked at the stunned people, "What? yeah im superman" he laughed just then, Connor was distracted by the Eclispe, moments ago before the plate he had pretty much figured what had happened, with his grandfather into power and super abilities, connor had read many books in his early teens and childhood, he was taking a guess that he had abilitiey replication, Considering he was fine before the run in with the mysterious man at the house, and now the telekinetic powers after sitting near the white haired guy, and how he all of a sudden understood shadowspeech, and could tell what the guys were saying a few tables away, Connor had snapped out of thought into staring at the solar eclispes, there was not meant to be one of these for a long time but hear it was, something was going on

James looked into the sky, an eclipse had taken hold of the sky. He felt strange for a few moments, as if a part of him had left. He looked around the room and saw a young, handsome looking man staring at him, almost as if he could understand. Then James thought, Is he leeching my power? Is he one of them? Damn it, if only I could know for sure.

OOC: Ustio, TG sent to you

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I see...guess you're right. This will pay for a mocha, or maybe a pack of cigs anyway."

Charli relaxed even more as he looked genuinely puzzled over the supposedly chance remark. If he'd been Shop a specific reply would have been automatic, tumbling from his lips before he could check himself. Her smile fully reached her eyes and she was about to explain when the unexpected eclipse drew her own eyes upward.

The moon moved slowly across the face of the sun, until all of the stellar primaries orb was blacked out, leaving only the solar flares, the prominences of the solar corona to writhe eerily against the sudden darkness. She enjoyed the dramatic effect, but now she was frowning as she double checked her memory. Solar eclipses were rare and she had not only the next couple of such dates memorized but where the best viewing zones would be. And this wasn’t a date or an ‘best viewing to be found at’ location.

She shivered inwardly, thinking of her nine years dead mother, and of one particular story she had told her ever interested daughter. Closing her eyes for a moment she looked at the young man. He was still gazing up.

“Be careful, you don’t want to damage your eyes. How about I treat you to a mocha, and you can save the pennies from heaven for cigarettes?” She wasn’t sure why she was offering him a treat, but he seemed nice enough. And it wasn’t as if she was incapable of taking care of herself.

Summer's eyes slowly widened with curiosity as she gazed at the sight of the lone petal floating above her outstretched hand, and she dared not breathe for fear of ruining the moment. What was going on? How was this possible? The petal remained motionless, unmoving despite the gentle breeze that blew past. She gazed upon the frozen petal, and its light pink pattern gazing back like a single eye.

Suddenly, the gaze was broken as a slow, lumbering shadow crept from above. The lone petal resumed its calm descent as Summer's attention broke off from the petal to look up and see the sky darken from what seemed to be an eclipse - she wasn't very sure as she had never seen one with her own eyes before. Leaving her small stack of textbooks behind, she slowly rose from her bench seat, moving past the shade of the surrounding trees, and looked in awe at the darkening sky above.

As she gazed upon the eclipse above, the bright eye of the eclipse appeared to gaze back upon her in silent response. Out of the corner of her range of vision, Summer could see all the falling tree petals around her slowing to a gradual halt.


---

Tiny OOC for Daniels Island: Does Connor's Ability Replication replicate abilities in proximity to himself permanently/temporarily/one-ability-at-a-time/etc? Just a little confuzzled.
Tiny OOC: Is the eclipse "just an eclipse" or is it an ability granting/depriving eclipse as in the Heroes TV show? I'm going to assume the former to be on the safe side.

Luke looked down at his watch...

"10 seconds..." to said to himself as he was making his way home again. "8 ... 7 ... 6 ... 5 ... 4... 3... 2... 1..."

The street darkened as the eclipse started, he didn't look up it as he didn't have the proper glasses for it and he could always see it when he got back to his place, or on a television screen.

You know that's what he did, he back tracked to an electronics store with TV's in the window and asked the TV's to show the eclipse. They did they all changed channels as if of their own accord and displayed a channel showing pictures of the eclipse.

However as eclipse passed the fun and games were over and he made his way back home. He was connected to the world via an internet connection one he kept going by keeping his ISP thinking that he had paid when he hadn't.

Though there was something of interest a report that his computer spat up on the screen. He'd asked it to let him know on the screen whe somone bought the old "company" facilities, and someone had... an organisation known as "Medical Utilisation, Training and New Technolgy Research Center" purchased the facilities... he'd check up on them.

OOC: To Enlightend Worlds

Connor obatins abilitys when in the same room as someone with power, he gains abilitys with in 5minutes of the person staying in the area, within 10minutes of same room contact with that person it becomes permanent and he's ready to adapt another ability if avalible, if however the peron with the ability leaves the small area of 50yards within 10minutes Connor does not remember it, is that okay? I dont wanna god mod :)

Connor was irritated when he noticed his "Magic trick" had had its 10second fame and everyones attention was diverted to the eclispe, Connor decided he needed to go talk to the white haired telekenetic guy.

Halloran raised his mug. "This bodes well-the child of Annilla masks the bitter Yelm. To your health!"

The man's story was odd-inland was only for those adopted or friends with one of the many Clans and Tribes, who kept their hunting lands sacrosanct. If any had followed him there... Well, the bellies of the muri were filled with such fools.

However, the portent was clear. Annilla had given her blessing to commune with this alien, and one did not question the Blue Moon. "There was no eclipse in the paper-do you think some odd paranormal has announced himself?"

Lucien was slightly surprised when the spoon slid back off the table, and slightly more so when the plate smashed. He probably would have pieced it together pretty quickly had it not been for the sudden absence of light. he stood up and stepped over to the window, peering out as the moon glided slowly over the Sun. He gazed at the stunning effect and recalled the words on his ring, thinking briefly of home. He retrieved a pencil and a small black notebook from his pocket and quickly sketched the effect, capturing it as well as was possible in monotone pencil. On the page opposite he automatically scribbled, without looking at the page:
Who are we to question
the workings of the world?
The smiling face that guides us,
whispering secret words.
His face is hidden,
his black hand unbidden
draws across the canvas.
Who are we to question why,
when shadows tremble and angels cry?
It wasn't very good, but in Lucien's mind it held the moment, if only for him.

Halloran raised his mug. "This bodes well-the child of Annilla masks the bitter Yelm. To your health!"

The man's story was odd-inland was only for those adopted or friends with one of the many Clans and Tribes, who kept their hunting lands sacrosanct. If any had followed him there... Well, the bellies of the muri were filled with such fools.

However, the portent was clear. Annilla had given her blessing to commune with this alien, and one did not question the Blue Moon. "There was no eclipse in the paper-do you think some odd paranormal has announced himself?"

James looked back at the Muri and said, "Indeed, something very mystic surrounds the very nature of this Eclipse, I feel although the world has changed somehow, as If the very nature of the people who walk this planet has changed. But perhaps I am just over thinking things."

[SIZE="2"]

“Be careful, you don’t want to damage your eyes. How about I treat you to a mocha, and you can save the pennies from heaven for cigarettes?” She wasn’t sure why she was offering him a treat, but he seemed nice enough. And it wasn’t as if she was incapable of taking care of herself.

Nick looked away. Not that he was afraid of permanently damaging anything of his considering his power, but because the offer took him off guard. Ever since arriving in this country he'd never been really acknowledged like that. Never been treated like an equal. He didn't know why, maybe it was just the way he carried him self. But it felt good, so he nodded.

"That sounds nice, thank you. But it'd only be right if I got to repay the favor by treating you to that bagel."



((OOC: Enlightened Worlds, I'd imagine it's the latter. This IS a Heroes RPG after all.))

OOC: With the GM's permission...

"That sounds nice, thank you. But it'd only be right if I got to repay the favor by treating you to that bagel."

Charli was not naturally a 'people person'. As a small child she had run from people, far preferring the companionship of animals. But something about him seemed as lonely as she often was and that bothered her.

She looked ahead to the intersection, traffic had been moving along at a good clip before but now the street, fully four lanes either way, was rather close packed. It was not completely blocked but here and there were clots and jumbles of vehicles, the drivers having stopped abruptly. It seemed as if no one had bothered to pull to the parking lanes. They were craning their heads to get better views, and looking up had been dazzled by the solar eclipse. Though a couple were out and arguing over the fender bender they'd found themselves in.

"Sounds fair enough..." Afterwards she was never sure exactly what had whipped her head around. She would guess it was the distinctive sound – one she had never thought to hear on the flat, civilized grade of city streets…the unmistakable aural punishment of a semi desperately sounding it’s ‘runaway horn’. The one reserved for the time when you were at eighty on a fortyfive down grade and your air lines have failed, both of them…

Patel knew he never should have taken his truck this way, but he was so far behind schedule, and he needed to make it to his last stop before the verclempt policia noticed him. He ground the gears hard as he cleared the traffic light, looking anxiously down the side street. His narrow shoulders relaxed slightly as he saw no sign of nosey traffic wardens. The blessing bestowed by his aunt and the many talismans that hung from the slovenly kept cab's rear view mirror were protecting him.

The elderly, incontinent tanker (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3143/2481425581_f79639d18f.jpg), dribbling just a faint but noticeable trail of high octane responded slowly at first to his foot on the peddle and he cursed under his breath. He pressed harder, and cursed loudly now. Then the engine sputtered and he howled The last thing he needed was for the semi to go tits up. He looked up though, puzzled at the sudden darkness, and his jaw dropped. Merde! The sun!!!! was being eaten some part of his superstitious brain yammered as unstoppable fear swept though him, paralyzing his body. He was dead, but he didn’t know that. All he knew was that he was behind schedule.

The ancient but powerful diesel growled low as it surged into greater motion, the gas pedal jammed down as far as it would go, flat on the nearly rusted out floorboard. All at once it picked up, in but the space of a dozen feet, speed such as it would normally only have been pressed in to on a wide open highway. Then its wheels churning it attained even greater speed, lurching frenetically from the realm of 60 mph to 70, then even faster, to nearly 90 miles per hour. Building up momentum an unnaturally short distance.

Patel’s hands were clenched in his death grip on the wheel, and the first car vanished beneath the bulk of the tanker with the terrible crunch of metal overlaid with the high notes of ruptured glass, then the next, and the one after that …and people began to scream. However those feeble wails were lost under the savage sound of the tractor tankers emergency horn. It reverberated off of the ‘concrete canyon’ walls of the buildings on either side of the wide street becoming a physical effect, battering the pedestrians and vehicles alike, jittering them like coffee beans on a drumhead pounded by Thor’s own hammer.

The semi’s brakes went on, adding their own painful screech to the tympanic explosion, but they did little good as they failed bare seconds after they were applied. Their failing, however, slewed the rig around sideways, so that two lanes of vehicles were grist for its reaping mill. Until it's front right fender clipped the corner of a armored car pulled over to make a pick up at the Citizens’ Bank of Hydria. Then it was airborne, tumbling, rolling, its rust encrusted tank splitting, spilling fuel that in less than a heartbeat ignited into a massive, moving fireball.

Less than half a block from the Starbucks…

Additional OOC: Please see the OOC thread for pertinent details!

Quervon hearing the excruiatingly loud noise that the tanker was making rushes outside to find out what was going on.Instantly seeing the tanker he shouts out"What the hell is that thing?"

Connor stared at the tanker, the noise was extremely loud and hurt his hears

Lucien was jolted back to reality by the excruciating sound. He snapped the book shut and charged towards the door of the Starbucks, shoving fellow patrons out of the way in his haste. He got outside and instantly caught the smell of burning and the sound of tortured metal and shattering glass. He gasped at the sudden heat. He didn't know exactly what was happening, the carnage not yet visible from his point of view, but he was pretty sure it was coming from the road, and he was pretty sure it was traveling in this direction. His gaze flicked from his own long-fingered hands, to the gawking crowd, to the mass of cars stuck or waiting on the road. Perhaps, he thought, there was no more time for discretion...

ooc: Is it okay with everyone if I shift some cars out of the way?

Charli lost a few seconds goggling…

A runaway, then violently exploding tanker truck was not part of her expectations for the posh market district of Hydria are there any explosions that aren't violent?![i] her mind protested, half angry at the ruining of her supposed to be carefree day. [i]Ha! I should have known better! She jeered at herself. But that was only heart beats for someone who made a living fighting wildfires as the owner and lead of a company specializing in disasters of the fiery sort..

Why couldn't this have happened on a conveniently empty back road!? she yelled silently to the uncaring fates. She had spent her life hiding what she was, what she could do, and she could solve this problem if she chose to reveal herself.

She didn’t, but she couldn’t let some one close enough to reach out and touch get hurt…

“Sorry but…” Charli grabbed her new acquaintance and spun him about so that he was facing away from what was coming. “Brace!” it was an authorative, undeniable demand

Looking over his shoulder, she didn’t flinch as the tumbling mass of destruction hurtled ever closer, smashing cars into flattened, flaming pancakes as if they were but cardboard. Many of their drivers, especially those that had left the nonexistent safety of their vehicles, dying before they could comprehend that their own deaths were at hand..

One hand came up, involuntarily as she wrapped a set of nested shells about the pair locked in a tight survivors hug.

It had taken her years to develop the shields she generated, for they were nothing simple.

Roughly a yard out in all directions sprang a wavering ghost of a shimmer, reminiscent of a heat wave rising off a blast furnace. IF Nikolas reached out to touch it, the shimmer would feel slightly chill, but molecules away, the ‘outside’ of the shield was reaching the temperatures of the surface of the sun. However that was not the only shield there was.

That inner shield would melt then vaporize-in nanoseconds -anything it came in contact with and would ignite every thing about it, and so Charli had learned to ‘coat’ it in another shield to contain that awe -full heat. But anything that pierced that coating would never pass through – such as pieces of flying debris, nor would any heat and fire pass through the inner side.

Though the pressure wave would take them off of their feet, that was unavoidable given the circumstances. And it slapped the pair like a titan’s hand swatting a fly…

As Summer slowly reached out with a single finger to touch one of the floating tree petals, she suddenly jerked back her hand in response as she felt a deep rumbling vibration from the ground below, almost like an earthquake. As the tree petals all fell in unison towards the grassy ground, Summer heard the distinctive noises of blaring car horns, metal being crushed, and glass smashing, and as she turned her head to the direction of the sounds, she could see in the sky dark billowing clouds of smoke off in the distance.

These sudden mysterious events: the floating tree petals, an unexpected eclipse, and a sudden explosion? These events could not have been a simple coincidence. With her interest suddenly piqued, Summer quickly ran back to the bench to pick up her books, then began to make her way to the west towards the rising smoke in the distance. Ahead she could already see the cars in the street all piled up. Some drivers were out of their cars gawking at the eclipse, some still in their cars aggressively honking their horns.

Connor stood, shocked he didn't understand what was going on, the Eclipse, obtaining power, and now this? Connor wondered if it was all a sign, he looked back and saw the telekinetik man standing at the entrance of the starbucks, what was he gonna do? Connor thought

Halloran watched the explosion impassively. "You must forgive me, friend, but I believe we shall have to continue this later-Life is too valuable to toss away even for discourse as engaging as yours..."

He shifted into mist and rolled out to the scene-if any survived, he could solidify hands to carry them, or perhaps absorb enough oxygen into his gaseous form to snuff the flames of the aftermath, but he would have to get there first...

"Yeah you got that right," Said James right back.

OOC: Before I make a post, I want to know what's going on and how I can introduce my foreign drug addict.

OOC: Before I make a post, I want to know what's going on and how I can introduce my foreign drug addict.

OOC Reply:

The major current event is the "runaway tanker" incident that's happening, details (in case you haven't read them):

http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14617168&postcount=46
http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=14620032&postcount=109

Some characters are in a Starbucks, some on the street, my character is en route to the tanker scene to investigate. If you want a suggestion on how to introduce your character, maybe have your character be one of the people in a taxi/car in traffic somewhere close to the tanker incident. Just a thought.

OOC: Also please use the OOC Thread for purely OOC posts.

To introduce him, you can just have him there and do stuff

Keleman Borsos didn't know what he was doing: not in the slightest. The LSD was drifting through his veins and causing him to perform well below prime...if he had a prime that was. Despite being pump up with the hallucinegen Keleman still kept his hands partially under control with fear in his eyes, running from something which those around him didn't understand because only he could comprehend it in his drug-laiden state. He turned the corner at a Starbucks or some other kind of store. Then he stopped to stare, not at the eclipse but something much more horzintally aligned with him: the semi. It's flaming mass was hurtling down the road straight towards people like Keleman and all the young druggy could do was stare in shock, the LSD taking a fearful grip on his muscles that froze him in place.

Lucien caught sight of an obviously totally drugged up man standing in a very inconvenient place,gawking at the fireball. He sighed and thought for a moment about all those years of discretion and secrecy wasted. But these were human lives, he told himself, and he couldn't stand by and watch them be snuffed out.
He reached out both hands and yanked the druggy towards him, landing him (a little roughly) behind him. Then he turned his attention to the mass of panic-stricken people on the road. He spotted instantly a crying woman trapped in her car with three children about to be engulfed in the roiling mass of flame. He hoped that the car would not be too hot for them to survive in and that he would be able to move it, he had moved similarly sized things before. He clenched his teeth and lifted it up and forward towards the intersection. He lowered it down just on the pavement corner, allowing the family to get out. He let out a breath, getting tired already, he could not move every car like that. Even more than he ever had before, Lucien wished there were more people like him.

Keleman watched as he was flung through the air. He could only gasp until he made contact with the ground...and a very bad thing happened. One thing about Keleman's power was it was predominantelly controlled by his hands unless he focused it elsewhere, and he always had to focus to keep it under control and not cause damage at the slightest hand movement. Keleman lost his focus when he hit the ground. The huge wave of uncontrolled kinetic energy flew through the air. The windows of several cars shattered and one nearby tilted a little before settling down. Several people who were close enough were knocked around with some falling to the ground completely. Meanwhile Keleman lay on the ground groaning while he tried to recover.

As the blast rippled, it spread and dispersed halloran's form further, requiring an effort of will to draw his substance together enough to form a thick cloud. The first order of business would be simple-to contain or extinguish the flames.

Spreading himself out, he absorbed as much oxygen as he could, displacing the rest away from the hungry flames...

James saw the muri, seemingly vanish, as the blast tore through starbucks, then in it's place he saw a rather debse cloud of vapor or gas. James looked at the gas with an odd expression then a thought struck him, Oh snap, what if this Muri has powers? I am not the only one! Woo Hoo Take that you company bastards! Score one for James!

Connor woke up to find himself in a hospital bed, he had blacked out once the explosionhad tore through the starbucks, Doctors had been stupmed that Connor wasnt only alive, but also did not have a scratch on him, A suited man approached Connor's hospital bed, "Hello Connor Im from the Company" He said smiling, "What company?" asked Connor tired and confused, "The Company thats going to help you" He said grinning, "I cant go anywhere without informing the D.I.S" insisted Connor, "Oh but they think your dead, Infact they know your dead" "Connor, you look tired get some rest" Connor speechless felt the needle stab his arm, he then fell into a deep sleep.