Heroes: Shadows over Millenium

[LadyTevar]

As the wave of hatred, death and destruction washed out of the Other, a snarl appeared on Argent's face, her black-on-black eyes opening like dark holes in her face as she and the two men were locked together in the trance. The look was terrifying enough, without the shadows that started writhing on the ground around her before they sunk like claws into the floor and walls as if seeking egress to the outside.

Inside Blackheart's mind, Lei was trying to protect Blackheart and Legacies from the worst of it. As she'd planned, she was trying to divert the onslaught, channel it away from herself (and Saibot most of all), out into a more harmless setting. It was her fallback when emotions overwhelmed her, her default from childhood, and the one thing that all major cities had in abundance.

Pigeons.
The loud, disease-ridden, manure-dropping, flying pests had annoyed her as a child, roosting under the attic eaves and driving her nuts with the noise of raising multiple broods of chicks throughout the year. The manure outside her windows was disgusting, as were the countless lost downy feathers that got everywhere. Channeling her excess emotions into the bird-brains caused massive diebacks of the over-populated vermin as their little minds couldn't handle the strength of human emotions.

Outside the Ultima building, a small flock of pigeons erupted into confused, frantic flight, that rapidly devolved into ferocious infighting as the Other's hatred was channeled into them. Beaks and claws pecked and slashed, wings pummeled, and those that won their own battles attacked their reflections in Ultima's shiny windows. It was a scene from the Hitchcock classic The Birds....

... and it diverted the majority of the negative emotions away from those around Blackheart, leaving a ghost echo in the doctor and her assistants. They could only hope that the emotions were not effecting the three meta in the room as well.

[Cynical Cat]

The symbiote continued to psychicly poison those who attempted mental contact with it. There were no words, no reason, nothing at all except a bottomless lake of malice. Blackheart was unaffected, but the when Argent and Legacies tried to enter the symbiote, they were hit with overwhelming waves of hate.

[Charon]

Legacies stood stalwart against the flood of hate, these were not new things to him, even as deep as this. He was weakening slowly, but it would take quite awhile before this young creature could break through the barriers of the elder. Slowly, silver tendrils slipped through the cracks, an intricate pattern of black and white slowly began to appear in the minds eye of all those involved as Legacies attempted to channel.

His mind stood resolute against the waves of malice like a breaker in the water, though cracks were beginning to form.

[Cynical Cat]

There was nothing anyone could sense from the symbiote but malice. Death. Destruction. Nothing else.

[LadyTevar]

Argent was loosing the battle to the flood of hatred. She needed to break free, to get Legacies out of there before the cracks in his mental armor broke as well. Whether Blackheart felt the apology she sent him as she let go, mentally and physically was not as important as making sure she could break herself and Legacies totally free of the Other's influence as well.

Thus, to those watching, the shadows plunged into the walls and floor broke free and swarmed Argent and Legacies, shoving Blackheart backwards from the two of them.

[Cynical Cat]

Leaving the symbiote was easy. As they retreated, the flood of malice was left behind. Blackheart continued to be completely unaffected.

[Charon]

Legacies disappeared into the shadows with Argent for only a few brief moments. Then wild silver tendrils shattered through the semi-hardened shadows and a silver blur flew from it's confines. It latched against the cieling with a dozen tendrils, the limbs hanging limply. Then it's form began twisting and boiling for a few seconds, before the tendrils released their grip on the wall and Legacies fell to the ground heavily where the silver figure sat there, deep breaths obviously being taken by the being inside.

[Cynical Cat]

"I warned you," said Blackheart.

[LadyTevar]

The shadows slid back to their normal positions, and Argent also sank to the floor, collapsing first to her knees, then catching herself on one arm to stop herself from lying straight down.

All the shadows, even the ones that most people didn't catch following her around, the ones that she used to play into the 'mysterious/dangerous' look she had taken as second nature, had dissipated for the moment. She was totally, honestly human ... except for the black eyes that seemed to have no pupil, but finally had a touch of white around the edges, like a frightened horse.

If anyone had seen a picture to make the comparison, she was her mother's spitting image.

[Charon]

Legacies slowly got to his feet. His form had ceased it's undulations and had once again come to rest as it always looked. The silver figure's head turned to look over at the no doubt slightly startled medical team before looking over at Blackheart.

"We do not look forward to the day we have to kill you."

Legacies turned towards the door and started to limp out of the room. It was more pronounced than before now.

"We require rest, it would be appreciated if we were not disturbed further."

[LadyTevar]

A weak apologetic wave came from Lei, where she was not yet able to rise. "... sorry.... Legacies...."

It was clearly taking her longer to recover from the ordeal, yet she raised a hand to wave off whichever medic tried to make the first move. Her head rose, those slightly more human eyes looking at Blackheart. "You warned me......." I didn't believe you was left unsaid.

[Cynical Cat]

Cavanaugh raised an eyebrow. "I've been treating metahumans for twenty years and Blackheart has been part of government sponsored metahuman teams for fourteen years and you decided you knew better? There's a word for that: hubris."

[LadyTevar]

Argent slowly steadied herself, going back on her knees and assuming that perfect Oriental poise that looks so uncomfortable to Western eyes: knees together, back rod-stright, hands folded in her lap. She rested there a moment, her gaze still on the silent Blackheart. Slowly, visibly, faint shadows were creeping back onto her face. Like a woman applying makeup, they started darkening her eyes, making them look larger, alluring and aloof at once.

"If Legacies had not been there, I would have broken far sooner," was all that she said, whether in answer to the doctor's rudeness or explaining to Blackheart was for them to call. In no other way did she acknowledge anyone but Blackheart.

[Cynical Cat]

"Argent, I appreciate the concern, but I've been part of the Fed for fourteen years, ever since they found this thing," Blackheart said. "Getting poked by docs is normal for me. Same deal with metas who have handy powers. Fourteen years. Billion dollar equipment. Geniuses like Cavanaugh and others, people who can't publish because their medical expertise is top secret. This is all old news."

He turned to Cavanaugh. "Thanks for coming doc." He held out his hand.

She shook it. "You're welcome Da-Blackheart. This is actually good news, of a sort. The symbiote is reacting differently to your nervous system than with the rest of your tissue."

"So you're saying there's evidence to suggest it might not just eat my brain."

She smiled. "Exactly. We can't be sure, but there's more reason to hope, not less. Even if the experience was somewhat painful. I'll have Ultima keep me informed of further developments."

"Got to grow more super troopers and feed more juicers, eh doc?"

"Of course not. The US government does no such things and if it did, I'm completely unaware of any such activities." She smiled. "Take care," and then moved past Lei to leave the room.

[Charon]

Legacies found a nice quiet room again and sat down, a tendril silently slid out and made certain the door was locked, and then Legacies fell into another light slumber as his body slowly rejuvinated it's weary self.

[LadyTevar]

The shadows finished sliding back into place, deepening the hollows and lines of her face to give herself strikingly sharp, yet still pretty features. One might wonder if she even knew she did this with her power, making herself look more remote, more inhuman, less like the far more approachable human she'd been without them.

Hearing dismissal in Blackheart's tone, she rose to her feet effortlessly, a rocking motion that wasted no movement or time. She said nothing to Blackheart or the Doctor as they parted ways, yet the shadows around her still form slowly started deepening, gathering as she regained both strength and composure.

She'd thought about asking the doctor if they were to save the body for autopsy, once forced to kill Blackheart ... yet the slim hope the doctor was projecting to Blackheart didn't deserve to be crushed. Both he and the doctor wanted that hope, wanted to believe it could happen.

Lei wanted it to happen as well.

[Cynical Cat]

"So my odds have gone from one in a thousand to one in a hundred," said Blackheart with a bleak smile.

"It's rather hard to give accurate odds an a phenomena that has never occured," said Cavanaugh dryly. "Unless you have access to a study on magical tumour symbiotes. I hate magic."

"Should only be making your superhumans in billion dollar labs with genius docs trained in the best facilities in the known world. No hoary old rituals conducted by home schooled sorcerers cast in dark basements invoking forgotten gods and twisting physical law like a pretzel."

"Actually the don't really twist- never mind. I still hate all that mumbo jumbo. Give me cold hard science any day."

"Maybe I should go looking for Aladdin's lamp. See ya doc. Don't let Flashback give you the round the world special."

"What's that?"

"You don't want to know. And if you go through it, you won't really know. You'll be too busy pucking up your gets. Take care."

"You too."

[LadyTevar]

Argent picked up on the commentary about 'magical symbiotes'. Her mind flashed back to what Kyosuke, the Japanese demonhunter had said to Blackheart the night before: 'a demon is inside you, and will kill you'.

The Other inside Blackheart seemed brainless, nothing more than a well of malice and hatred, and a lust for death and destruction. Now that she was no longer under attack by it, she could make her own calls, her own comparisons ... and there was only one place she'd felt anything like that before.

Silently, she slipped into her shadowdragon form, not saying a word to the doctor or to Blackheart. She had to doublecheck, to see if she was right. She had to go back to where her connection to this team -- to Saibot -- began.

Back to the Astronomer's lair.

[LadyTevar]

First, however, there was someone to collect.

Not Saibot. He seemed to have left the building, but she found him easily by focusing on the link. It was a strained meeting: whether backlash from the contact with Blackheart's Other or simple hangover, Garth told her bluntly that he wanted time alone, rising into the sky as he told her he'd see her at the apartment later.

It ... hurt, causing Argent to retreat back to Ultima. Hiding in the shadows, she saw the rest of the team waiting for Blackheart, yet did not want to join them. Still, she needed someone to go with her....

Ah. Yes. Kyosuke. He had left the party sometime in the night, returning to Ultima. It should be easy to find where he was staying. Swimming and porting from shadow to shadow, Argent found the 'bachelor apartments' as the temporary living facilities were called. They were small apartments set up for Ultima agents who did not own homes in the City, or spent too much time on assignment to have a permanent residence.

Argent was polite enough to appear outside the proper door and knock.

[B4UTRUST]

The door opened, revealing the japanese agent in a pair of white hakama pants and a loose fitting gauzy shirt. A sheen of sweat glistened on his skin. Behind him in what passed as a living room the cheap furniture was stacked and slid as far against the walls as possible opening up the room. His bokken was still gripped in one hand, the other on the doorknob.
"Can I help you?"

[LadyTevar]

"I am hoping so, DemonHunter," Argent replied, her black-on-black eyes flicking over his shoulder to take in the room, then back to him. "Will you listen to what I have to say?"

She was trying to be formal, polite. There were ways and forms used by the Yakusa in America, and she had moved within that circle as an outside agent. The ones that had been in America for a while had picked up some of the Western ideals of rushing to the point. She was not sure what line to walk with Kyosuke, however.

[B4UTRUST]

"That, Demon, depends entirely on what it is you have to say. Kyosuke stepped back from the door.
"Please, enter. May I offer you some tea?"

He went right back into his formal routines. Even potential enemies were still honored guests, up until the moment they offered violence. Of course that meant that often times ones enemies could strike with the hidden blade before one could ready themself, but to do otherwise would be a grave loss of face. He had already made a potentitally grevious breach of politeness the night before.

[Comrade Tortoise]

(sorry folks, bogged down in exams)

Avatar returned to HQ via a wind burst at about the time the pigeons went insane. He wanted to check up on Blackheart and the others, but he would have proboems of his own

All he could do when he landed was try to keep the bleed off from hitting him. he erected mental defenses against the tide of emotions through his own empathic link with them. His levels of lactic acid began to rise and his control began to slip. He felt cells start to replicate. He felt his body start to pull energy in from the environment to power the billions of chemical reactions which would turn his human self into a half man, half reptile beast. He fought to regain control Dealing with relatively quick deaths of bats was one thing. But dealing with the sustained panic hatred and aggression was another. The former only hurt. The latter tried to invade his mind and take advantage of his more basal instincts, which he only just kept buried under his human flesh.

he cut off the flow of emotions, singing My Favorite Things from the Sound of Music to calm himself down as he mentally siphoned off the energy his body was pulling in to waft up from him as heat. The air around him increased by 90 degrees celcius. Thankfully he landed on the roof and no one was damaged by the burst of heat.

[LadyTevar]

"Thank you," Argent replied, bowing respectfully. "I would be honored."

Her eyes flickered to see if he had set up a place for shoes, and noticing his own were set just inside the door she concentrated a moment, wrapping herself in shadow. It faded, and she held her boots in her hand, placing them beside his shoes.

His place. His rules. It was a lesson learned with the Yaks, and hopefully by following the rules of Japanese guests, she could gain a little of his trust, despite being both Demon and Chinese. She entered and took a seat as he started brewing the tea, saying nothing until he was ready.

[B4UTRUST]

Kyosuke entered the small bedroom, pulling a simple kimono from the closet and pulling it on and removing a heavy laquered wooden box from the top shelf.

He walked into the kitchenette and found a small pot to boil water in. The kitchenette had been equipped with the basics for cooking a simple meal but nothing nearly as extravagent as what Kyosuke was planning which was why he carried a lot of his own ceremonial items.

He filled the pot with water then set it on the small stovetop set into the counter. He closed his eyes for a second and brought his hand to rest against the side of the pot. Inside the water began to boil. He let it cool for a moment as he opened the box he had brought with him, removing a bamboo ladle, two deep tea bowls, a few pieces of cloth, a bamboo whisk and a tea caddy. He carefully measured out a quantity of tea into the bottom of the bowls and set them on the counter. Taking the fukusa cloth he grasped the pot of water and the ladle which he placed into the pot. He returned with these to the living room, kneeling on the ground in front of Argent, placing the pot delicatly on the ground on the fukusa cloth.

He returned to the kitchen with the two bowls and the chakin cloth. The bowls appeared to be a dark stained wood, laqured and smoothed nearly to perfection, gold painted characters for harmony visible on them. Taking the chakin cloth he ritually cleaned the outside, lip and inside sides of the bowl before setting it on the ground by the pot, taking the ladle and pouring a measure of hot water into it. With the whisk he gave it the proscribed number of stirs and the water took on a heavy deep green color. He picked the bowl up with two hands and handed it, front first, to Argent, bowing as he did so.