Heroes: Shadows over Millenium

[Cynical Cat]

Blackheart threw back his head and laughed. He laughed and laughed and laughed. "That's it? I don't know what it is and its growing within you? That my power grows with it? That its a nasty piece of work? That's not news. I've known that for half my life. That's not news. Kill it? I'll die first. It was too late the day it was found and that was fourteen years ago. Its only grown since then. You've told me nothing new." He took a long pull on his vodka glass. "I will not go gently into the long night. I will not mourn the dying of the light. I will fight the good fight until the water rises above my head and I can swim no more."

[SirNitram]

Undoutably to the relief of everyone else, Gravitas picked up the next section of the song. It was a song that resonated well with him, and it let him ignore the strange Japanese man, and his declarations that demons were about, and yet someone, Gravitas had just an ego(So unfair! He was totally capricious! Sometimes he let little old ladies step into puddles!).

Red red wine you make me feel so fine
You keep me rocking all of the time

Red red wine you make me feel so grand
I feel a million dollars when your just in my hand

Red red wine you make me feel so sad
Any time I see you go it makes me feel bad

Red red wine you make me feel so fine
Monkey pack him rizla pon the sweet dep line

[Dark Silver]

Of course, it came back time for Garth to pick up the song, hoisting the bottle in the air, he took a long pull of whiskey, felt the burn go down his throat, and apparently found the perfect tone for the part, with a jamacian accent

Red red wine you give me whole heap of zing
Whole heap of zing mek me do me own thing

Redred wine you really know how fi love
Your kind of loving like a blessing from above

Red red wine I love you right from the start
Right from the start with all of my heart

Red red wine in a 80`s style
Red red wine in a modern beat style, yeah

[Comrade Tortoise]

"Indeed. WHat am I? Eh, you superstitious quack? A liujing*? Oh yes, I am familiar with your mythology. It is just that. Myth. Easily explained by natural causes if one puts the effort into researching them. Blaming human weakness and wickedness, or bad calamity on demons and devils is the easy way out. The way out of the coward who will not take responsibility for their actions, or those too lazy to figure out a real solution to a problem"

*or insert the name of a crocodile/dragon demon here if the information tev game me is incorrect

[LadyTevar]

Garth.... sang?

Well... Attempted to sing.

OUCH. that was painful... He was far too drunk, or he'd never try that. Lei would try to take the bottle from him, but it wouldnt' work. One thing was sure... he was going to be on the couch tonight.

Interesting to find out that Blackheart had something inside him... she'd have to ask him later if it was the reason for the 'background hum' she heard from him emotionally. But there was more important things to do right now. Like keep Garth from singing anymore.

[SirNitram]

As the last of Garth's Jamacian impression faded away, Gravitas had apparently picked a song, and quite an appropriate one for this group.

I am so high. I can hear heaven.
I am so high. I can hear heaven.
Oh but heaven, no heaven dont hear me.

And they say that a hero can save us.
Im not gonna stand here and wait.
I'll hold onto the wings of the eagles.
Watch as we all fly away.

Someone told me love will ALL save us.
But how can that be, look what love gave us.
A world full of killing, and blood-spilling
That world never came.

Gravitas had apparently found something more than just his ego was into; the empath wouldn't be the only one to notice the emotion poured into this.

[Dark Silver]

Garth was up next, after Gravitas finished his song.

The song was suppossed to be fast, but Garth sang it a bit slower than meant to. His eys were closed as he sang it, and the bottle of whiskey was put down.

No, we cannot see
Who are we to look to
No, it cannot hear
What is to believe in

His voice rose slightly, but not unpleasent as when he was singing Red Red Wine, and it even seemed his emotion went into the song, like with Gravitas' last song. His voice sounded like a small chorus as he sang

And we keep dreamin' of a world
Where all that's good so we were told
We need a hero
And we keep dreamin' of a time
Where good is all that we can find
We need a . . .
We need a . . .
Hero

No, we cannot tell
Who's the one to lead us
But you know that we'll be there
Waiting for them to find us

And we keep dreamin' of a world
Where all that's good so we were told
We need a hero

And we keep dreamin' of a time
Where good is all that we can find
We need a . . .
We need a . . .
Hero

Small tears wet his cheeks as he moved back to the sofa, collapsing in it, letting the whiskey and emotion work through him. Oh yeah..the song affected him...

Even so that he was still singing bits of it under his breath...

[LadyTevar]

Lei slipped over to the couch, tears touching her eyes from the combined emotions of both men; both hurt by their pasts, both blaming themselves for having so much power yet still unable to help those they cared about. She leaned over the back of the couch, slipping her arms around Garth's shoulders, hugging him gently as she silently drained away the worst of his pain, locking it up inside herself for the moment.

It was not something she would try on Gravitas. The emotional weight the Nova carried was more than Lei wished to handle without some where to dump it immediately, becoming merely a outlet channel. But Garth's pain was ... manageable. Eventually she might be able to remove the hatred, the need for vengence, and he could be the hero he'd never quite been able to become.

[SirNitram]

Gravitas let the last strains of what could, in the right light, be called music fade.

"I think that's enough sadness for one night." He winked at Garth. "This one's for your hangover tomorrow."

My head hurts, my feet stink, and I don't love Jesus
It's that kind of mornin'
Really was that kind of night
Tryin' to tell myself that my condition is improvin'
And if I don't die by Thursday I'll be roarin' Friday night

Went down to the snake pit
To drink a little beer
Listen to the jukebox
Merle was comin' in clear

All of a sudden I wad'n alone
Pickin' country music with ol' Joe Bones
Duval Street was rockin'
My eyes they starting poppin'

Because there she sat at the corner of the bar
As I broke another string on my ol' guitar
Someone call a cab
Lady won'tcha pay my tab

And now my head hurts, my feet stink, and I don't love Jesus
It's that kinda mornin'
Really was that kinda night
Tryin' to tell myself that my condition is improvin'
And if I don't die by Thursday I'll be roarin' Friday night

Gotta get a little orange juice
And a Darvon for my head
I can't spend all day
Baby layin' in the bed

I'm goin' down to Fausto's get some chocolate milk
Can't spend my life in yer sheets of silk
I've got to find my way
Crawl out and greet the day

[B4UTRUST]

Kyosuke glanced up at the lycanthrope.
"You are a a hafu, a chikuhso. A half-breed beast. As for the explainations of science for everything I'm afraid to inform you that you are quite wrong. The spirit world lies very close to this one and often its residents cross over.

"But who am I to argue with a man of science? You know everything there is to know about this world. Spoken like someone who has never brushed against something that defies comprehension or logic. I can not disuade you nor will I waste effort on futility."

He turned to Legacies, staring into the mocking face.
"Uchujin. I see one who is of two minds that should not be. I have no blind faith, simply the knowledge and experiance I possess. You, however, should not be so quick to threaten violence. Nor should one open their mouth so wide least their foot easily fit in. Which would be a drastic improvement over the stench eminating from your gullet. Perhaps a breath mint?"

[Comrade Tortoise]

"No, you wont waste your efforts on someone who is not going to accept your bigoted supersitous bullshit on your say-so, someone who demands actual evidence instead of the inflammatory pronouncements of a self-righteous prick. I have seen your type before, on the pulpit; denouncing homosexuals, or metahumans, or atheists, or jews. Or how about the Chinese and Koreans, that may be a bit more appropriate for you dont you think?" Alex reveled in that, pointing out that he was well aware of the mutual racism that often took place between Japanese and other west-asians.

"Your talk of spirits is nothing but a cover for your bigotry against that which is different from you. You even go so far as to call me a half-breed beast. Apparantly, you need a refresher couse in lycanthrope genetics.I have three nearly seperate genomes who's expression is controlled by a series of regulatory genes and hormonal signaling. But of course, you ignpre such prosaic explanations in favor of mumbo-jumbo about spirits and inherently selfish entities. So ask yourself who the beast really is. The one who accepts others and gives them a chance at proving themselves, and is willing to forgive personal transgressions, or the one who declares authoritativly that assigning moral characteristics to another person is a pointless endevor because of their allegied heritage? In short, Fuck You, right in the ear."

[frigidmagi]

"Can all of you shut up and drink more?" Blast asked. He had wondered away from the group to sample Blackheart's Jack Daniels bottle in addition to the Rum... Course now the Rum was gone and he was lying on the floor.

"Mother of God, this is suppose to be drinking party. You! Ka...Kai... Japanese guy! Drink like you're a salaryman on an all expenses paid tab. Croc dude, chug! Last man on his feet has to clean up the mess. Anymore agruement and I start experimenting with urban renewal via plasma bolts. It can wait til we're sober assholes." Blast ordered from his prone position.

Just to show how serious he was he held up his hand and ran a visable current of energy from his thumb to his forefinger.

[B4UTRUST]

"Are you quite done spouting your genetic reighteousness? I am a metahuman, fool. I have no problem with any sex. Nor do I have any personal feelings towards Koreans or Chinese. Perhaps your own biggotry is forcing you to make generalizations about others?

"And as for your great and all encompassing knowledge of my land and myths, you've said nothing that couldn't be learned from watching a cartoon. I hear our animations are quite popular in this country."

His wooden sword appeared in his hand. He gripped it tightly as he turned it and put the tip against the floor.
"Deru Kami Kubira."

A mist issued from the blade followed by the vauge shape of a wolf. The wolf soldified then grew, and changed. The wolf stood on its hind legs and stood. The fur slid away and the body shifted into the form of a rather buxom brunette.
"You see Mr. Wizard, lycanthropes are not the only beings with animal forms. Kubira, introduce yourself to the nice chikuhso."
"Of course, master. I am Kubira," the woman began.

Her words were energetic and bubbly, her ample breasts bouncing wildly in her top that barely contained them. They jiggled and bounced with every movement, of which there were many as she couldn't seem to stand still.
"I serve my master Kyosuke. He is such a great and kind master. Tehe!"

Kyosuke turned to Blast when the young man started slurring his name.
"I think you'll find, Blast-san, that you are the only one who is drunk at the moment..."

He too raised his hand out. A splash of cold water fell on Blast's hand.

[Comrade Tortoise]

"No, just illustrating a point, not making an accusation of racism, just using an example which you would bemore familiar with. i have read the statistics regarding racism toward ethnic Koreans and Chinese in Japan"

At the so-called spirit, Alex just raised his eyebrows. He had long ago supressed any sexual attraction he may feel out of sheer necessity.

"You are certainly interesting" he said to Kubira "And I would like to get to know you better

"However, she neither defies logic, nor engenders belief in that which is supernatural. Granted, our understanding of numerous fields has rapidly expanded in the last few decades. But, if Kubira can interact with this world, she can eventually be understood in accordance with physical and biological laws. Even if doing so changes our understanding of those laws."

"I do apologize my dear" he said to Kubira "for talking about you as if you werent there. However I could not think of another way to frame the sentences in context of our discussion"

[B4UTRUST]

Kyosuke resisted the urge to laugh. He would love to see the scientist try to quantify Kubira as a physical or biological exact. She could act and interact in the physical realm at her chosing but she was not restrained to it. And biological? She wasn't even technically alive in the mortal sense, much less capable of being defined by modern day biology. She simply, for lack of a better description, was.

Kubira looked at Alex and shrugged, a totally free and open smile crossing her face. She bound off in an instant, passing through Alex on her way across the room. On the other side of him she turned and playfully flicked his ear before going over to watch the two men dance and sing.
"Tehe! Soooooo tone-deaf!"

"And what do you do when you can not classify, quantify or catagorize something? What happens when you encounter something that defies all your laws and theories and proofs and nothing that you do can explain it or rationalize it? What then?"

[Comrade Tortoise]

"It's never come up. Although, there are some theoretical frameworks that would allow us to manage."

[SirNitram]

"It's interacting with the subquantum framework." Gravitas said as he stepped away from the dancing for a moment to refresh himself. "A constant connection through the foam to the noetic reality, yet able to interact with us. In laymen's terms... Yes, an actual spirit from a 'higher' plane of existance. To put more precisely, it is an idealized wolf; an example of the template from which subnoetic wolves are derived. It's existance and interaction with our reality is conditional, and I suspect, at it's discretion."

Gravitas sipped at his wine. "But that's the extent I can derive from it's interactions right now. I'd need more data to more fully flesh out the theory. Perhaps we can do that sometime. It's not like I haven't seen Heavens and Hells with my own eyes."

[Comrade Tortoise]

"That would be... interesting." Alex said

"I am no theoretical physicist, but there is no rule saying she has to be from this particular universe. Whether spirit is the word I would use is a different story"

[SirNitram]

"That would be... interesting." Alex said

"There is no rule saying she has to be from this particular universe"

"Lightyears off, Doctor." Gravitas replied. "I'm from another universe. This thing is from your universe but within the Noetic framework of it. Read some Plato. It's the cosmic realm of souls, within which all is idealized. The physical reality is it's reflection, or perhaps it's the reflection of our souls. In short, it's very impressive stuff."

[Comrade Tortoise]

"You mean that magical realm of idealized forms? You must understand that this is going to take a bit of convincing for me to swallow right?" he said, raising his eybrows, thinking that Plato was a loon, which he was

"Though, even if her ability to interact with this 'plane of existence' is conditional with her whims, she still 'exists' on another. She is a sentient entity which requires energy in order to think and interact. She may not exist in accordance with what we know of the laws of phsyics, existing on the set of rules for her '[lane of existence' but those rules still exist""

[SirNitram]

"I would think the spirit in front of you would be convincing." Gravitas shrugged. "Her interaction is subject to the rules of our reality, but even if you were to, say, make it so her interaction was forced to cease, it would simply cause a reversion to her realm of existance. It's complicated. Spirits aren't my speciality."

[Comrade Tortoise]

"I would think the spirit in front of you would be convincing." Gravitas shrugged. "Her interaction is subject to the rules of our reality, but even if you were to, say, make it so her interaction was forced to cease, it would simply cause a reversion to her realm of existance. It's complicated. Spirits aren't my speciality."

"Oh, I admit she exists in some manner, but that is the point. She does in fact exist according to rules, on our plane and in hers. On either 'plane' she has mass, for example. SHe can be quantified in some way, even if the results are different on one plane or the other. She is still a physical or 'natural' entity. The rules admittedly have changed a bit since Hume and the other early empiricists. But the principle remains the same"

[Charon]

Legacies dropped the face, becoming a plain mask with a simple mouth once again. "Well, we would not consider ourselves a spirit, but if that makes you feel more comfortable, we shall not hamper you." He watched as the she-wolf appeared out of thin air and then turned into a human.

"How curious." He looked at the two who were discussing Kubira. "The female can hear you. We doubt she appreciates being spoken of as a scientific curiousity as though she were not there."

[Comrade Tortoise]

"Do you have another way to frame the sentences?"

[Pcm979]

"Oh, for fuck's sake." A.J. muttered under his breath. "If this keeps up I'm going to need to be drunk." He popped a can of beer and slid into a chair as his 'teammates' argued. Again.