January Event Post [OPEN]

[neosapienmods]

WHO: Everyone!
WHAT: Kicking off the game's plot with an event post
WHERE: Various Locations
WHEN: January 16th
WARNING(S): Violence

WHO DECIDES WHO THE HEROES ARE?

Watch on YouTube

1: CHIPPIN' IN

Things have calmed down in Arcadia since the Yakashbah banner protest, mostly through the increased presence of police there. Several arrests had been made, the streets cleared out of possible ill influence, and in general given a clean sweep to make certain nothing like that would be happening again any time soon. An unfortunate side effect, however, to the increased presence and awareness of authority in what was meant to be a youth-friendly zone was a drop in business. Fear of coming across trigger-happy military police kept a lot of kids from returning to their regular hangouts, and several business owners complained that this was well worse than simply having a banner hanging around. Thankfully, the commerce-minded at Douman Zaibatsu had a solution that they figured everyone would get excited about.

A new video game.

Kamo Entertainment, the famed media wing of the Douman Zaibatsu, had a workable build of their latest project ready to demonstrate to the public, and Arcadia needed to draw people back in after a police crackdown, so it was a win-win situation as far as they were concerned. Hyped up all over the net, the debut of the public demo of "Heroes II", the long awaited to the co-op arena game that swept the world for years, was going to be a huge event.

Massive crowds spill in to give the game a try. While it's still the standard "build your hero" virtual reality co-operative arena game, where a team of players of various classes and abilities work together to take down waves of terrorist forces, the sequel sports an "augmented reality" mode where elements of the gameplay can be overlaid onto the immediate environment around you, allowing you to take down "New Horizon" mutant thugs in places you know well, with the game constantly adapting to your physical space.

It's... impossible not to notice that like the last game, all of the heroes are human and cyborg peace officers and military types associated and sponsored by various allied corporations of the Douman Zaibatsu, and all of the enemy units are "loosely" inspired by Yakashbah and other meta-nationalist groups. "New Horizon" isn't a subtly disguised name, after all.

But it's causing crowds to form again, and a somewhat positive atmosphere to settle once more into Arcadia - for the moment.

2: WOKEN FURIES

... A moment that doesn't last more than a few days into the event. In the middle of the night, the streets of Arcadia are rattled by several violent explosions. Panic, far more pronounced and sharp than that which had struck before when it was just a banner, swept through the late night crowds, fleeing away from the sound of blasts and bursts. DZ military police, which had lightened their presence previously, immediately mobilize to address the threat, but are quickly overwhelmed. Baring the familiar symbol of a struck-through eye, a unit of super-powered 'terrorists' have come to make a statement about Kamo Entertainment's thinly veiled propaganda, a statement with an exceptionally violent exclamation mark.

They seem to be targeting Kamo Entertainment equipment and employees, as well as anyone that gets in their way. DZ police, ordinary citizens, even other metas. If you're here to stop them, you make yourself a target. Previous Yakashbah attacks were more focused than this, aimed at minimizing civilian collateral, but this particular group seems to revel in violence, wanting to be as destructive as possible, to make their own point about how real life is no video game, and their war is incredibly real.

Fight or run, the choice is yours, but Arcadia's just become a real life battlefield, instead of a virtual one.

3: AFTER HOURS RUN

For those that stayed behind in NSO Headquarters, just as the news broke of the attack and the more competent and trained amongst the group mobilized to try and help people, the NSO Headquarters goes on emergency lockdown. An alarm sounds, and red lights drone, as Aya Hosada's voice comes out over every terminal, tense and terse.

"Intruder alert! Everyone stay where you are, we've got NSO security looking for them right now! Don't do anything stupid!"

She sounds like she means it, but as a means of preserving trust with their occupants, the rooms at NSO have no autolock function, at least not an active one, and while they CAN be locked from the inside, there is no actual force keeping residents from hunting down the intruder on their own. Rumor spreads through the building quickly, and someone swears they saw a shadowy figure making their way down to the sublevels of the building...

Do you pursue? Or do you try to keep yourself, and those around you, from playing hero?

4: IN THE FACE OF EVIL

In the Parish, crowds gathered for an entirely different reason. Namely, Yakashbah, in their makeshift bandana masks, have been holding a rally, signs out, in the name of Meta rights. They're angry about the power outages and rolling blackouts, particularly in the winter, where most people will suffer greatly from having a lack of access to heat. All in all, it seems like a peaceful protest, and there's no visible sign of any of them even being armed. (Though, with them being Metas, the police are still there to keep an idle watch. They don't seem particularly bothered, as this is a regular thing for them.) Everything seems routine until the news terminals all light up to the same footage as the night draws on.

Attacks in Arcadia. Yakashbah foot soldiers causing chaos and violence at a video game demonstration held by Kamo Entertainment. There's shots of blood on the streets, eruptions of energy blasts, explosions, gunfire...

Everyone, the local police of the Parish included, look deeply confused. Yakashbah was right there, weren't they? Conducting a peaceful protest? The Meta-nationalist group quickly disbanded, fearing the immediate worst, despite the local police doing little in the moment besides respond to their radios with confirmations that, yes, nothing violent was happening in The Parish at that moment.

Just what is going on? Everything in the media was pointing at the attacks in Arcadia being Yakashbah's doing. Several are murmuring, even shouting, that this is what happens when leadership is weak, that this is what happens when people are forced into a corner. That an even more aggressive sect rising within Yakashbah was inevitable. That the current 'leaders' of Yakashbah have lost control of the group, and soon enough nothing in Lower Ward would be safe...

Run into the Underground to chase the fleeing Yakashbah members, or stay around to try and keep a riot from breaking out in The Parish.

Comments

QUESTIONS

[neosapienmods]

ask your ooc questions about the event here!

Re: QUESTIONS

[burndownforwhat]

are the sub-levels usually free access at all hours, or would it be monitored / secured after hours unless someone has a good reason to be down there? (for example, performing maintenance...)

[burndownforwhat]

oops second question, which is also more general for the characters who have been with the NSO longer:

has there ever BEEN a lock-down or other alarm like this in the past?

[psychokinesia]

[A - Before the attack]

Naturally, Add waits until the dust has fully settled before even thinking about venturing into Arcadia. The last thing he wants to deal with is the cops—even if he's not carrying anything illegal, they sure as hell still make him nervous. Anyway, things seem to have finally calmed down, so it's fine for him to make a trip out today, right?

He's picked up a few things, mostly small components that aren't worth fencing and some cheap electronics he can dismantle later, nothing too exciting. Now he's just killing time, and eventually that boredom leads him to the game demo going on outisde the shops. He finds himself a spot in the crowd that isn't too packed, sipping at an overpriced coffee as he watched the screens with mild interest.

The tech itself seems pretty cool. The game's concept, though...

"Wow, that's fucking subtle. Surprised they didn't just name the protagonists 'ZD'." Not directed at anyone in particular, but he's not keeping his thoughts to himself, either.

[B - Arcadia, during the attack]

And then everything goes to shit. Of course this happens the very day he convinces himself it's fine now. Of course.

As dumb as this new video game might be, an attack like this is excessive at best, and Add is already stuck in the middle of it. He forces his way through the panicked crowds, searching for some kind of escape route—he absolutely does not want to end up stuck here when backup arrives. Either side's backup. This whole situation is a pain in the ass and he doesn't want to deal with it.

So, getting out of here is his top priority. He definitely shouldn't be getting involved, or drawing attention to himself in any way.

... except, well, one of the terrorists just happens to hurl a chunk of metal in his direction, and some stupid bystander kid just happens to be in the way, and at that point he really doesn't have much choice but to jump between them and deflect the attack with a magnetic burst, and somehow this ends with Add locked in a game of shrapnel baseball with a ferrokinetic while several police officers fire on both of them. This day blows.

He eventually finds a moment to catch his breath, ducking behind a parked car near the edge of the conflict. "Fuck me, stop giving them more ammo!"

A

[fonewearl]

This makes the second time in just as many weeks that Mirys has crossed paths with Add, as she's come out to Arcadia as well, but as long as he gives her no trouble for being here—if he even notices her—she'll give him no trouble either.

She initially went and killed some time at the arcades, and then paid a visit to a few of the stores in the area. She's bought a couple things at one of those stores from the look of things, and judging by the bag she's carrying, the store in question is the same electronics store that Add had been in earlier. The actual contents of the bag, however, are currently a mystery.

She eventually finds herself watching the game demonstration as well. While the tech is interesting and could probably be utilized in a number of other ways outside of gaming, everything else about the game rubs her in exactly the wrong ways.

Add's remark is acknowledged when he makes it, but that acknowledgment is a simple "tch" with no additional commentary.

B

[deviousdetonation]

For a moment, Jinx is almost certain that there's no way that massive dork jumping into the line of fire could have been Add, but, sure enough, from her little perch, there was no mistaken that very same dork to be any other. While Jinx didn't have doubts that Add should very easily be able to slip out using the chaos as a cover, since the officers have way more important matters to deal with at the moment, they sure were moving a bit too close to comfort, weren't they? Or, maybe she just wanted the excuse to stir things up a bit more herself. Really, it's hard to tell.

"Hey, officer nerds! Catch!!"

It's not as if this place needed more things that went boom... Well, actually, no, it did need more things that went boom!!! According to Jinx, anyway. Really, what was a party if something didn't blow up?? The more the merrier... all that jazz.

Regardless, the point being that Jinx's lone, characteristically hot pink grenade definitely didn't need to be added to the already piping hot mess they had on their hands, but here she was... doing that anyway. Granted, this time, it's not just to see what happens. The area is filled with more smoke than actual destruction, popping different colors of blues and pinks. While it obstructed Jinx's exciting view of everything... at the very least, the cotton candy cloud served as disorientation for the cops. Which, honestly, it's always fun messing with cops, and she finds herself spending most of her time making her way over to Add, anyway.

"Heya, Sparks. You know, you pick the weirdest seats to watch the show!"

A

[carvedintostone]

"Quite overt, isn't it?" Lora says, walking up from behind Add.

She has her hands in the pockets of her white coat, slid through, and her nose is wrinkled distastefully. She steps next to him, then glances upward; her eyes flicker to look at him, read his expression, and then back at it.

"I'd say I'm surprised, but all told, I'm really not." Is it wise to voice their discontent here, in front of everyone? Maybe not, Lora reasons, but she is mad enough to be frustrated. She is frustrated enough to be a little careless. She reaches up, a finger tapping against her cheek for a moment. "We should make our own. Er. The more general 'we,' I certainly lack the skillset."

B

[windblownrose]

The bullets don't stop flying. Andrei looks up from his safe little ball at the young man who has just ducked into his hiding spot and raises his eyebrows, trying for an insouciant tone.

"Good afternoon! I'm afraid the officers aren't nearly so sensible about all this as you are."

A bullet ricochets from the metal shutters covering the shop windows in front of them and zips past Andrei's ear with an evil whine to embed itself in the side of the car. He flinches.

"Although," he adds, a little faster and less insouciant, "you have to show me that electromagnetism trick someday when we have more time on our hands, right now, shall I slow down a few of those officers and give you a shot at the young man tossing metal around?"

B

[nephtunium]

Wouldn't be a day in New Gate City without some sort of shit going down, would it? Might as well nickname it "Cyberpunk Gotham". But it's normally not this bad, goodness. At least, for Add's sake, he gets a reprieve as a plate of metal flies by in front of his spot, blocking off any bullets that might've threatened him. That's when he's joined by someone rolling into the same cover as him with a rifle brought to bear.

"That'd require 'em to know how to deal with us without bullets!" She grumbles in a very Southern accent, before looking to Add. "What's the situation with ya an' the asshole over yonder? Made sure the kid's safe." Making sure this guy's still up to fight and doesn't need an emergency evac is kind of a priority for her.

[OOC: Not sure if Add got the kid out period or not, so if he did she made sure the kid was at least running the right way to not get hurt. I'll roll with whatever!]

A

[fibrillate]

And why should he keep his thoughts to himself? Levi's certainly on the same page now that they've had some time to get acquainted with the game itself. He might have noticed them eating shit against the wall earlier, or popping off some ridiculous synchronized attacks with Zeke that they were actually pretty proud of, but even though Levi had enjoyed themself a lot... some things were hard to ignore.

"It's a little on the nose, huh," they say, taking the chance to lean back against a nearby wall and try to get their breathing back under control. "I'm glad I wasn't the only one who noticed."

this is the third time I've tried to post this, come on dreamwidth get it together

[fonewearl]

1: nopin' out

It isn't terribly often that Mirys actually goes anywhere, and when she does, it's usually to pick up some things at the Market Ward. On some occasions, though, she does wander into Arcadia to spend some time at the arcades and browse some of the nearby shops, partly so she can say she isn't just spending all of her time back in her apartment, but also partly because some of the games and other things there interest her.

It just so happens that one of the days she comes out here is the same day of the Heroes II demonstration, so the crowds are quite a bit bigger than expected, which makes her feel uncomfortable. She considers turning back and going home, but ultimately doesn't go through with this.

The original Heroes hadn't been terribly interesting to her for multiple reasons—the genre, the presentation, basically everything about it really—and the sequel looks like more of the same, so that's a hard pass. Her lack of interest in it doesn't stop her from watching others play it for a short time, but eventually, she turns her attention toward some of the other games and keeps her focus largely on those.

Maybe she should go and play some of the rhythm games so she can focus on listening to something that isn't Kamo's newest attraction.

3-ish: on the sideline

By the time everything else is happening, Mirys has already returned to her apartment and has been there for some hours, and the door is locked, because of course it is. The apartment is awfully close to NSO HQ itself, close enough that anyone there that would concern themselves with her might want to check on her, but with that lockdown, it would probably be quickest and easiest to try doing so over the network.

1

[psychokinesia]

What's that, you want to relax and play some rhythm games? Well too bad because someone is already hogging the best Boogie Boogie Riot machine and it's Add. He's doing pretty well at it, too, even if his song selections are somewhat questionable... this may or may not be where most of his exercise comes from.

But hey, the 2P spot is still open!

[deviousdetonation]

A. A little firepower never hurt anyone (except when it hurts everyone)

It's hard to tell whether Jinx had just not heard about the event, or was just well not enticed enough to care about it entirely. The latter is probably the more likely, as, well, who hadn't heard about it? While video games are technically fun, Jinx just... never feels welcome at an arcade. The low frame rate explosions just don't have the same umph! that the real deal had, you know? Why try to find yourself having fun in a virtual reality if you're able to make reality reality fun, right?!

It's still hard for her to stay away from Arcadia for too long, anyway. After all, chaos tends to draw in more chaos, and even if she isn't the cause of all the ruckus around these parts, sometimes it's fun to sit from the sidelines and watch. Sometimes. But not especially when some chemtech morons try and steal her M.O. That just won't fly with her.

Sure, okay, some wanton destruction isn't new or anything, and Jinx wouldn't deny that, just for a moment, when she hears the familiar sounds of bombs popping like big devastating balloons, she can't help but be filled with a child-like curiosity turned excitement. It's exactly why she scurries up to the highest vantage point she could quickly get to for her front row seats to the show.

But something is off.

She can't quite put her finger on why! This requires some investigation. And, of course, she glanced down quickly to call out to any passerby's-- fleeing or otherwise-- her grievances.

"Hey!!! Any idea where those guys are headed?!" Not to self, shouting over loud noise isn't the best plan! Makes conversation challenging... but challenges can be fun! She decides to up the volume. "I gotta tell them they're doin' it wrong!!!"

B. Burning out

"Hey-- Just what do you mean you don't need me here right now?!"

Seems nothing in the ward is quiet right now, but Jinx's voice always carries no matter where she is, so maybe it's not all that surprising to hear her shouting about something. But to sound distressed... now that's new.

There's a man shooing her out of an establishment... a store of some kind, maybe, but there's no signs to indicate so. Despite his gruff appearance, he just looks tired.

"Listen, all fingers might be pointed towards the other filth we got crawling around, but I don't need to be dealing with the aftermath of anyone deciding it'd be much easier to throw a hairpin trigger like you under the bus."

And... that's it. The door is slammed in Jinx's face before she can protest more. That doesn't stop her from trying, however, as she bangs her fists against it, yelling how insulted she was that anyone would pin such "a sloppy mess with absolutely no flair!" on her. But her words fell on a deaf ears. Well. Mostly. You might've not been the intended audience, but she still turns to you like this was absolutely a conversation you were a part of.

"Isn't this just...!!!!!" She wildly gestures with her hands. "You know!!"

Wildcard!

If Jinx is a wildcard... and I have a wildcard... then who's driving the plane?????

a

[windblownrose]

"I'm not sure that's a good idea, miss!" Andrei's at the center of a snowglobe's worth of sparks, crackling out from his gray-streaked hair and snapping between folds of his clothing as he skids to a stop beside the young woman, peering around. "Once the bombs come out, it's hard to go back to reasoned debate-- where did they come from?"

He darts her a glance, gray eyes round with concern. "There must be casualties. Those were major explosions."

[lightnovelexperiences]

1: These are the things I can do without, come on
She streams Heroes II for one day, and drops it the moment there’s a vulpine villain that looks a lot like her.

She spends the rest of her Arcadia time helping make Dungeoncrawlers for the people who asked to join her tabletop game, and streaming good video games, like LMAO - Heroes direct competition. At least the character that looks like her is a good guy in that one.

4: In black and white, they really, really ought to know
Jess finds it quite surprising to hear about the mob violence.

Because she’s at the peaceful protest, livestreaming it.

She sends a message across the Org network:

This is Jess. Spread my livestream of the protest like wildfire; we need to catch the Zaibatsu lying about it.

4

[friendofdorothy]

Liir recognizes that corner and heads toward it immediately. He's only mildly out of breath when he arrives there.

He feels a little weird about just approaching her though, so he sends her a message instead.

good idea

i'll put more eyes on it

He waves awkwardly at her through the crowd, other hand holding his phone up to the protest.

[sea_salty]

3.

Between hearing about Arcadia going straight to hell (making life for Metas so much worse) and the sudden intruder alert here at the NSO, Lapis naturally does not take it well. At all.

The first thing she does is run to the door and try to lock it... then curl up in a ball.
Eventually she'll feel ready to peek at the network again... once she stops feeling like the Sword of Damocles is about to drop on her.

[theghostbird]

[3]

Ever since agreeing to help the NSO study mutations from an ecological perspective, Lena had reveled in the lab space given to her. It was a heady feeling and that rush would often keep her up until well past the last maglev train, from where she would just pass out curled up in a corner of the room, head supported by a piece of equipment, wrapped in her labcoat, drifting to sleep to sterile scents.

This was one such night. When the alarm sounded, she started, turning face down and on to her hands and knees instinctually.

Stay there? Not likely. She was going to find out what was disturbing her rest. Training she barely remembered anymore came back to her and she scuttled to the doorway, then after she'd verified it was clear, into the hall. She sniffed, looking for scents. The Brightness would help her here, giving her the senses of a hound.

Now where was that trail...

[friendofdorothy]

[2]

Cutting through Arcadia was usually the quickest way home from Little Emerald City, the middle class Ozian immigrant neighborhood where Liir could get snacks from home whenever he felt homesick. He'd sneered at the game of course, but since he didn't play them it wasn't much of a problem for him in the first place.

When all hell broke loose, Liir's first thought was to curse himself for his own stupidity. He was raised by a terrorist, after all.

His second thought was to find some cover. Something flashed by him, loudly, instantly (re)cooking the bag of traditional Mi'nqinlander pastries he had. He pressed his back to an advertising pillar, which showed a heroic armored figure facing down a menacing, half-human looking creature with a way too wide mouth and slobber dripping between unhealthy looking sharp teeth.

Third thought: avoid dying by stating allegiance, assuming the blasts were coming from Yakashbah.

"I'm a meta, you idiots!"

He said goodbye to ever taking this shortcut again. Take cover with him?

[4]

When he stumbled into another Yakashbah stunt, he flinched, expecting to have to cower for his life again. But this time they were just...silently making a statement. A statement that was being quickly drowned out by the rest of the news media, Liir was finding as he flipped through different channels on his phone.

Someone, or multiple someones, wanted to portray Yakashbah as terrorists with no particular guiding ideology. To exempt them from the being political beings in the first place, to make them into the monsters the human media portrayed them as.

Liir had to know why. He followed, looking not to chase the fleeing group members down (which would probably result in nothing good) but for anything they might leave behind, scraps of clothing, recently smoked cigarettes, etc. He knew the back alleys they were dispersing through fairly well and it was not difficult to weave through them.

Of course he wasn't a trained detective or anything so it was completely possible he'd run into them by accident in his searching. Or you, for that matter.

2

[windblownrose]

Taking cover sounds like an excellent idea. Andrei had gotten himself into this situation -- he'd thought that someone would need to help with first aid, and rescue, but he hadn't realized he was running straight for an ongoing fight. Flying bullets was beyond what he wanted to tangle with, and he'd found himself on the target side of a few shots from policemen who'd seen the electricity flying around his hair.

In a situation this chaotic, a meta-human didn't need to be wearing the horizon eye to start drawing fire.

The pillar was just wide enough for two, provided they were willing to be friendly; Andrei dived behind it as another shot cracked in the neon-lit smoke, and found himself next to a young man shouting about being meta-human himself.

"Please don't advertise," he gasped, pressing his spine against the pillar's concrete and scooting close to the stranger. "It'll draw different fire."

[burndownforwhat]

(1 - do you wanna get by, wanna be blind?) [action ; text]
[ Yang just came out to Arcadia to have a good time and honestly? all this marketing is making her feeling so attacked right now. maybe not directly, since nothing in Heroes II is specifically relating the events of the game's world and lore to what's happening in the real world, and video games would never be political...

no, fuck that. to Yang, only someone sheltered and naive, the brainwashed, the ones who are "in" on it, or the truly ignorant would look at the premise of the games in this franchise and not put two-and-two together on its message. when the crowds start to gather it churns her stomach to watch people throwing themselves into the fantasy of the violence on display. having that AR component in play, thinking about the game overlaying its mechanics on the real physical world, makes her more ill than the last release. ads were everywhere, the hype was inescapable, and as much as Yang would like to hang around to at least see if she recognized anyone stepping up to play the demo, she can't stand it any longer.

at her core, Yang knows she shouldn't judge those who just want to play the game. it's just make-believe, right? except she can't hide the sneer of some off-duty security officers making jokes about how realistic the game was, things like "I wish I could get away with stuff like that", and then the profound disappointment she felt when a teen was absolutely begging their parent to let them get in line to try the game out...

she needs to get the hell out of here. find a place to grab a quick burger and a drink, take a seat, and get online. ]

hey heads up for anyone wanting to hang at arcadia
kamo has a demo of their sequel to heroes out today
yeah
THAT game
whole place is crammed full, ads everywhere, full media blast
a real mood killer

[ there's a pause between messages as Yang looks down at her sandwich. she's not even really enjoying it, which is saying a lot for her. she needs her mind of all of this, and fast. ]

anyone want to party somewhere else today hit me up
I could use the distraction
biggest one you've got

[ some people know how Yang likes to party. more so when she needs to cut loose with her frustrations. ]



(3 - we're under panik kontrol) [action]
[ it's late. Yang by all reason should be in bed and not fiddling around in the electrical panels outside one of the sub-basement labs, but her work ethic didn't obey circadian rhythm. not when recent developments have left her feeling on edge. enough so that when the red lights flick on in the otherwise dark hallway Yang starts and drops her crimping tool to the floor with a loud clatter. ]

Oh what the hell now? [ for a split second, Yang thought she had accidentally set off the alerts herself. then she remembered that the circuit she had cut off was on was different from the one controlling the emergency lighting and response systems, and the confusion and frustration turned into alarm. she looked both ways down the hall shining the light stuck to the elastic about her forehead this way and that.

then Aya's voice came in over the P.A. and solidified that alarm into fear. on many levels, this? this has never happened before, as far as Yang knows. she quickly snatched up her tool to finish up what she was doing with those loose wires, jammed them swiftly into their appropriate sockets, then slammed the panel shut so she could access the controls and cut the main lights back on. ] Come on, come on, come on...

[ footsteps in the hall caught her attention right as she finished that up. there's a loud noise coming from her right arm as she raises it up in front of her defensively. it sounded an awful lot like a shotgun being cocked and loaded. ] Who's there?!

1.

[thezekeinator]

Sorry, babe. I'm out at the event. Don't tell anyone but I'm playing damage control. (don't want their opinions of me to be ruined)

I'll hit you up later though. Crash a club or something?

[thezekeinator]

1. Thundercats, Ho!

"Down you go, villain!" Zeke leaped up and whirled the big VR-baton that he was using for his in-game controller in a controlled swing. On one monitor above, a first-person-view sword chopped through some horrible villain, sending them sprawling. Another monitor showed Zeke's character dramatically whirling his sword above his head in victory as the real-life 'hero' spun his baton around with a two-handed twist.

Sure, he looked ridiculous! But he was enjoying himself with an infectious enthusiasm that didn't mind the rather-biased 'opposition' of the game one bit. If a known NSO-meta could enjoy a game like this, it showed they weren't too full of themselves and were above the politicking, right?

Whatever the case, Zeke was at least getting laughs out of the crowd as he scrambled around, frantically dodging AR-bulletfire. "Sniper! Sniper! Where's the ranged support?!"

2. Round 1. Fight!

Against the backdrop of roaring flames, gunfire, and screams, a relatively calm circle opened up in the chaos of the attack. Not because of any special power, or even just coincidence; the fracas around it had apparently acknowledged stuff was About To Go Down, and was giving said stuff all the room it needed.

On the one side: two of the Yakashbah goons, each wearing body armor marked with the organization's unmistakable symbol. One held a riot baton, the other nothing at all; given the nature of meta-human powers, the second was likely the most dangerous.

On the other, stance wide and his hands both held up, fingers curled like claws, in a pose that certainly didn't belong in any martial arts training, was Zeke von Chaos. Completely unarmed, quite literally; he neither had a weapon nor a meta-human power to break out in self-defense.

"This isn't a game," one of the Yakashbahs snarled, voice all the more raspy and obscured thanks to the protective mask that both shielded them from ask and smoke and protected their heads as well. "We'll kill you too, you NSO stooge. You're a bigger traitor to our kind than anyone!"

Zeke tipped his head back slightly, wicked condescension in his smirk. "You really think you can take down the Zekeinator? Because if you try, fair warning. You'll get Zekeinated."

Tying up two enemies meant two enemies weren't out there attacking his friends, his comrades, or the innocent bystanders. He planned to grab one of their powers and hope it turned into something really useful, but despite his smirk and confidence, truth was he could really use a little backup right about now.

1

[fibrillate]

It takes a handful of syllables before that suppressing fire shows up and one of the AR enemies drops, shattering in an explosion of voxels. And from less of a distance than might be expected, a bright-eyed person bounds into view and takes up perfect lockstep behind every single one of Zeke's movements, mirroring almost everything he does with absolute precision.

Levi doesn't usually snipe in these games, but sometimes that's what you gotta do. They settle in and break apart the two-piece baton they've been using; the AR, then, makes it look much closer to a shorter, electrified scepter.

"Did you ever have a doubt? Come on, Zeke. We've got a game to win."

[idk_idk_idk]

1. Before the Attack

"A-actually, I'm not very good at games..."

The last time Nie Huaisang had played an augmented reality game, he'd chased cute virtual monsters through the Central Ward's parks while a beleaguered nanny ran after him. That had been over 20 years ago. And yet, over his stammered protestations, someone had forced an AR headset over his eyes and a colorful plastic gun into his hands, and told him to go kill mutants.

While Huaisang had little interest in gaming, he was the representative of a lower-middle-tier company within the Douman Zaibatsu, and as such he was expected to attend events like these in an expression of corporate solidarity. His company was in the bioengineered foods business, so his role was to provide the hors d'oeuvres for Kamo Entertainment's lavish reception. Somehow (alcohol was surely involved) he'd been dragged into the crowd of test players... and now Huaisang was shuffling though one of Arcadia's shopping streets, tripping over his silk robes, as dark, menacing shapes surged after him. It was hard to tell whether they were mutant thugs or cyborg police.

"Someone help me!" he wailed. "I don't know what I'm doing!"

2. During The Attack

The first explosion was almost indistinguishable from the Heroes II gameplay footage that played across massive video screens set up in Arcadia's main square. Despite the threatening Yakashbah demonstration a week earlier, the game's launch party had once again filled the Middle Ward with fans, celebrities, professional gamers and corporate executives. The wealthy sipped cocktails on private party platforms while the common people chased virtual monsters or danced to DJs in the square below.

The second explosion shorted out one of the video screens, and the black slab sagged for a few moments before crashing down into the panicked crowd. Subsequent explosions were lost in the screams.

Huaisang, who had been socializing on one of the Zaibatsu's private platforms, gave a yelp as the floor suddenly caved below his feet and sent him rolling towards the public square. Fallen tables and chairs pinned attendees to the ground as gunshots rang out all around them. Huaisang could only throw up his hands to shield himself from the bullets... but they bounced harmlessly away as his own meta-human ability activated. With his lack of control over his magnetokinesis, though, fighting back against the black-clad terrorists wasn't an option. He wasn't a soldier, or a strategist, or a leader.

"We need to get out of here!" He was, however, very good at running away.

2

[ashencoyote]

Coyote doesn't really spend much time outside of the Underground and today shouldn't have been any different, but he needed to make a delivery. Hell of a time to make a delivery, it seems. The explosion doesn't make him jump, it makes him freeze. He freezes, but doesn't panic. Huaisang's cry catches his attention, enough to get him moving again.

With quick steps, he rushes over to the other man, seemingly appearing from the darkness he just ran out of.

"I'm going to put my hands on you and we're going to run in the shadows. Just stay close to me, okay?"

Without waiting for permission, he puts his hands on Huaisang's back. Nothing looks any different to either of them, but to everyone else around them they are invisible. His meta-human ability is situational and this is certainly a situation where it's very, very useful.

[carvedintostone]

3. Playing Hero

Lora may look and act cool and composed... but the truth is that she can be a hothead. When she hears that there is an intruder in the NSO building, she steps to the side of the common room that she was in. She opens up the cupboard, and pulls out several boxes of matches: matchsticks to act as fuel for her gift as a Meta, to make weapons that might last longer. She moves with a quiet intensity.

The intention becomes more obvious when she opens a weapon locker. Lora pulls out a sidearm, checks the magazine, and then slides it into its holster -- and clips it to her belt. She makes no explanation.

No suggestion.

Her actions are her statement for her intentions. She turns, and starts walking for the door.

[windblownrose]

[2]

Andrei had been on the way to the NSO headquarters when the first bomb goes off in Arcadia. The flat thump of the concussion rattles its way up through the soles of his sneakers and deadens the sounds of the world for a long moment before they return.

When they return, they come with screams. He wheels around, abandoning thoughts of his late-night helpline shift and running for the chaos instead. This is no harmless publicity stunt like last week's banner drop. This is violent. This could be murderous. He feels his stomach drop as he sports the first masked meta-human with a crudely sketched eye on their windbreaker. Yakashbah?

Is this about that nasty game? But the players are harmless, and the shoppers are innocents, and he can see a few too-still bodies in growing puddles already as he approaches the blasted concrete where the first bomb had gone off. The Yakashbah don't usually go in for this kind of casual murder.

Targeted murder, yes, sometimes, but--

"Why are you doing this?" he shouts at the figure in the painted jacket

"Fuck you, normie!" A woman, from her voice, and young. She bares teeth in a scimitar smile through her knit mask.

Andrei falters, then, as she unsnaps something black, palm-sized and cylindrical from her belt and raised it, he pulls. The multicolored screen beside him, advertising pep pills, dies in a shower of sparks as lighting arcs from it to his hands. She's moving too fast for him to target her nerves and shut her movements down without hurting her. He doesn't know what the device in her hand might do, but he's betting it's another of the explosives.

He darts towards her, tiny bolts of electricity hissing between his fingertips. If he could just touch her, he would be able to control the power discharge enough to immobilize without killing.

She dances backwards, bringing the bomb up to do something with her other hand -- arm it?

Someone moves behind her.

He yells, velvet voice cracking with panic, "Get out of the way! She has a bomb!"


[4]

By the time Andrei drags himself away from Arcadia's ravaged streets, it is so late it's almost morning. The Parish's familiar streets are still busy with traffic, tight knots of residents speaking in low voices, the occasional harried police officer moving through with a patroller's ground-eating stride. He keeps his head tucked down into the collar of his purple velvet coat. He's singed, exhausted, reeking of cordite and blood, with several of the wire necklaces draped around his throat still giving off leftover sparks from the charge in his aura. One lens of his glasses is chipped, and there's blood clotting on his cheek where the shrapnel had deflected from the high-impact plastic and sliced his skin.

He ducks his head further down as he catches someone stopping to stare, trying to avoid their gaze. Friend, foe or stranger, he doesn't know, but right now all he wants is to get home....

2

[nephtunium]

"Now she don't!"

Whoever had moved behind his attacker yells that, and that device gets ripped from her hands and upward in an arch to get it well away from the danger onto a roof overhead.

Funny how bombs almost always have metal in them. Dangerous, always; useful, occasionally.

And while the terrorist wonders what the hell just happened for a split second, she'll find metal bands flying out of seemingly nowhere towards her to pin her to the ground and make it easier for Andrei to subdue her!

[mammal_robot]

-2-

Robo didn't sleep. Ever. He was in his office doing paperwork when the explosions went off, and had stepped out into the street, curious to see what was going on.

Following the sounds of explosions and gunfire (bad planning, really) had led Robo to the midst of the action, where he was having trouble figuring out what was going on.

What he DID see was someone shooting fire from his hands at a retail clerk. Retail was bad enough of a job already without people setting you on fire, so Robo leaped into action and threw himself in the way of the fire, which splashed more or less harmlessly off of him. Some temperature warnings went off, and his shirt was set on fire, but that was about it. "This really isn't a productive way to-"

And then he got another blast of fire in the face. He staggered back and covered his face. "Augh, RIGHT in my eyes!"

-4-

The next day, There was a protest, and Robo was still trying to make sense of the chaos from the night before, so he was just off to the side, with a fresh shirt on (It was a t-shirt with a reference to a webcomic printed on it. He gets RSS feeds in his head.), watching the rally, and trying to figure out how this was connected to the night before, or if it was at all.

Most robots get more or less ignored unless people have specific business with them, but Robo was something of a minor celebrity, so it's only a matter of time before someone recognized him.

Or maybe someone might recognize that if a robot is watching something, it might be getting recorded.

2!

[ayoungman]

John was already overwhelmed by the chaos that was going on all over the place. In fact, he wasn't quite sure exactly what to do with it all! He was only here because of a gaming event! But now the building was falling apart and there were metas everywhere, attacking almost everyhting they could see on sight.

He had heard and seen the chaos caused by the Yakashbah, but never once did he think it could be this bad. And he never ever thought he would get caught smack-dab in the middle of it all!

He was hiding under a nearby counter when he saw the fire-meta attacking the nearby clerk. And he was even more surprised by what appeared to be an android of some sort suddenly showing up to challenge by him-- Only to get a blast of fire to the face.

Oof. That couldn't be good.

It was just as he was wincing in reaction to the battle unfolding a mere few feet in front of him that he suddenly spotted something. A small bit of rubble from the ceiling above resting on the ground within arms reach.

It was a stupid idea, but hey, since when was John ever a rational kid?

The fire meta most definitely didn't see it coming. The fist-sized rock that came out of nowhere hitting him perfectly along the back of his head just in just the right way to daze him for a couple of seconds.

"Stop picking on him you jerk! What did anyone here ever do to you!?"

Yep. This twelve-year-old boy just threw a rock at a terrorist in order to save the cool looking robot guy.

[nephtunium]

I. See The Truth For Yourself

A.
After the madness of the last attack, Nephenee's been down here a few times to keep an eye out for trouble. However, this is also one of the redhead's normal spots to unwind, so she was already planning to come by...and, well then. This feels a little on the nose...trying to make a point, DZ? She suspects so. But she'll play the game for a bit to see if it's as bad as people think and help others play too if they need melee or ranged support. At least Sentinel isn't well-known enough to get added into this build...

If she's on the van, she's absolutely a melee fighter using a polearm and shield...and she's pretty good! But there's a nasty fight incoming, and she asks of whoever's nearby:

"Hey, wanna help me kick this thing's rear? Pretty sure it's meant for two people."

B.
When she's not doing that, though, and not making a character for Dungeoncrawlers...two games are the big ones for her: BBR and Beat Sword. Boogie Boogie Revolt/Riot (the name a matter of localization versus the original title) is one that she's pretty decent at, but Beat Sword? Uh yeah. The cabinet has a small crowd gathered around it as she's playing, one cheering loud enough at times to grab attention, but after a few songs, she removes the headset, switching out the band inside for the next person. "Hey, ya wanna try?"

II. Never Let Them Drag You Down to Their Level

Shit. See, this bull is why they can't have nice things! Literally!

After making sure innocents are clear of the immediate danger area, Nephenee goes to work. Armed with her normal weaponry and in her guise of Sentinel, her top priority is keeping people out of harm's way...

A. ...and if you're one of those folks, she's shielding you from incoming attacks with an actual shield of thick metal, seemingly held aloft by telekenisis.

"Stay down! Ah'll keep 'em at bay...are ya hurt?"

B. But eventually, she finds herself in a nasty firefight with some of the attackers that, while they have powers, they also have guns. And while she can drop bullets, she's got too many bearing down on her at once to do more than slowly wittle them down...

Little help?

II-B

[defencive]

Weiss doesn't know exactly who she's saving here, but it doesn't take a genius to deduce it's probably someone she knows given the circumstances and the superhero outfit. Weiss isn't masked herself or anything, but that does have one advantage: the Yakashbah goons mistake her for a bystander, and not a threat, until she can get close enough to reach out with her powers and encase the guns they're shooting with in ice - enough that it's certainly going to distract them even if it doesn't foul anything.

Of course, that gets their attention quite thoroughly, and guns aren't the only thing they have, so Neph's savior is quickly going to duck for cover herself.

[defencive]

1

"This isn't going to end terribly."

Weiss has never been much of a video gamer, but she's very familiar with the monetization and sale of propaganda. She's half disgusted with the product itself, and half disgusted with Kamo for not putting any effort into subtlety. Then again, subtlety is kind of a dirty word to their parent company.

For her part, Weiss isn't partaking in the...game, and is having to work fairly hard not to flinch at kids who don't know any better playing electronic cowboys and indians all over public space. She's taking a lot of mental notes as she indulges in mediocre coffee. You won't catch her playing, but she does want to keep up with whatever trend this is.

She's certainly irritated enough by it to need company, even if she won't seek it out.

2

Weiss might have predicted a poor outcome here, but she wasn't expecting something quite this...extreme to erupt so quickly in Arcadia. As she starts realizing what's happening, though, she can't help but think of it as typical Yakashbah - attacking the wrong people, doing nothing but continuing the violent cycle. She can't sit by and let this happen. She's not exactly combat trained, either, but no one's going to fault her for defending herself. Except the people shooting. They're definitely going to give her a hard time for not dying.

Weiss keeps her head down as she moves, small stature coming in useful for once, even if a giant trailing braid of white hair isn't great for stealth. She needs to get close to those Yakashbah bastards to be effective, but fortunately her Meta powers are quite suitable for her goal: freezing their weapons before they can turn them on civilians, and then running the hell away. It's a gutsy maneuver, but there can't be that many Yakashbah here...right?

Someone please help her not get shot.

1!

[ayoungman]

Speaking of kids who don't know any better-- It seems this particular child was intensely focused on the game. Gear in hands and eyewear on his face, he just so happened to be quite invested in hammering down some fairly realistic looking hologram baddies as he ran past Weiss's table in excitement.

"Hah! Is that all you've got?! Take that!" He swing his holo-weapon again, seeming to take down two opponents with one blow. Unaware that another was sneaking up behind him for the attack until just as he turned around--

"Ah! Oh shit!" Startled, he just barely dodges the blow, only to trip backwards and go crashing right on-top of the table where Weiss happened to be enjoying her coffee.

CRASH!

[ayoungman]

1 - Gamer Kid Hangs Out At New Game Release: News @ 12

[John was always extremely weary whenever a mainstream game was released to the public by Kamo Entertainment. He knew who sponsored them. He knew who sponsored most of the AAA gaming industry. But this game was something that had been long talked about on forums for YEARS. So many spotlights at shows providing views into the new tech and intricate and adaptable gameplay made it impossible for anyone to ignore the moment it was given another official hands-on tiral. And apparently this new reveal was supposed to be the best and most interactive teaser yet!

Which was why John was among the crowds of people lined up. Brainwashing corporate media be damned- He was gonna play the hell out of this game!

He had been prepped for it too, setting himself up in line first thing in the morning at the main arena in Arcadia with food and clothes packed should anything happen. Which was perhaps a good thing, as it seemed he needed to use almost all of his supplies by the time he became next.]

Awww yeah! Let's go!

[He was quick to hop into his booth, having his headpiece affixed just over his glasses and his gloves equipped. Next, he just needed to fill out the official waver, give a small bit of info to the all-knowing government and--]

Alright! Who wants to partner up and nail down this game in record time!?

[He even gives an enthusiastic fist-bump and a doofy little smile as he searches around for a potential partner.]

Hey you! Have you found anyone to play with yet?

2- All GG's Must Come To An Endgame

[By this point into the event John must have snuck out of his home about 4 times so far to come back to replay this new 'ultimate gaming experience'. Standing on line and rolling back eagerly on the balls of his feet to once again get a hold of the controller and take down some super-powered baddies.

It wasn't long before he managed to get the gaming gear on, stepping down to look around for yet another partner-in-crime when a large crashing noise erupted, forcing him to look up. The ceiling apparently seeming to almost be caving in as shouts and cries echoed out from all sides.]

Woooah, is this some sort of new upgrade or event? So cool--

[His ogling is his own downfall though, as a piece of debris from the very ceiling he was staring up at seemed to be falling right for him! Causing him to shirk back out of reflex but nothing more.

Seemed this kid was directly in the line of fire! How could he possibly get out of a situation like this?]

3.Free Space!
((Have something else you wish to play out with John? Have any questions or comments about one of the starters? Feel free to write up a starter here or shoot me a question via PM or at chohakkaifan))

II, I will never apologize for hamsteak refs

[lightnovelexperiences]

Oh for fucksake. This kid is gonna get himself killed because he won’t unplug.

Yeowoo has been patrolling, trying to keep the ultraviolent from harming the innocent, when she caught sight of this same freaking kid risking his life in ways that were neither heroic or just. This is, in fact, stupid.

So she’s gonna just Do The Limby Thing, springing at him with hyperextended legs (a neat biokinetic trick) in a diving tackle to prevent the roof from coming down on him. It might break the helmet, but if it doesn’t break the kid, she doesn’t care.