Ex_Libris

I can't help but supressed a small grin as the First Strike Security ad played. No doubt some of the other "Hero's" would be spitting mad, what with they're oversized, "Code of the hero", fortune cookie perceptions. Truth be told, it was'nt the gratitude of the people or ethics that drove most of them on, but ego. "I'm a hero, I'm as pure as the driven snow. Look at me, I just saved your life from a bunch of weakling street punks who posed no threat to me whatsoever. Show me gratitude citizen! Look at me, look at me!"

Makes me want to retch.

The truth was, it took capital to finance a true war on crime and evil. Any cape could slug a few street thugs and call himself the peoples hero, prancing around in brightly colored tights and capes, basking in the glory of the publics fickled gratitude. In the end, they were just soothing the symptoms, not treating the disease. F.S.S. was about the big picture, not public or corporate image, that was just a bi-product of the deed itself. It was about justice, REAL justice. Thats something most other "Hero's" just did'nt get. F.S.S. was just as dedicated as any, they just had a better battleplan than "hit the streets and hope to find some bad guys".

Money meant stronger, more skilled, and better prepaired operatives. That translated into better results. Fewer casualties, less collateral damage, faster and better response. It was as different as taking a torch to the cancer instead of a squirt gun.

My alarm clock just went off. 8:00 a.m., time for work.

Sullen - Virtue Server

Thomas "Hateful Tom" Odieux chuckled to himself as he followed the clicking noise the strange device in his hand was making. What a fool he had been! Why had he been content to rob banks and steal paintings when he could plunder humanity's greatest treasures? With Dr. Welles' time travel device and his own extensive knowledge of history, Hateful Tom was poised to make the first of many thefts he and his minions would carry out throughout all of time!

"Soon, mes amis," Hateful Tom chuckled, "soon we weel enjoy ze first of our ill-gotten gains!"

Tom's minions, Red Roger and Denny the Dentist, rubbed their hands together greedily. They had no idea what artefact Tom had located, but it had to be valuable the way he had been going on about it. "How much further, boss?" Roger whispered.

"Not long now. Just around zis corner!"

Denny shone his flashlight on the large crate sitting alone in the middle of the darkened warehouse. The words 'Carpathia', 'Congo', and 'Honolulu' were stamped on the side in big black letters. "Is that it, boss?" the hulking brute asked.

Hateful Tom smiled. "Zis device has picked up ze compounds in ze centuries-old dust and is reading zem loud and clear. Open ze crate and let us feast our eyes upon our new acquisition!"

Roger pulled out a crowbar and jammed it under the edge of the crate's lid. To his surprise, it came away easily. Roger let out a terrified squeak as he saw what was inside the crate.

"It's the night watchman! He's dead!"

"Where's the artefact, boss?" Denny asked. "There's nothing in here but a dead guy."

"Impossible..." Hateful Tom murmured. "Ze signal is still coming in loud and clear." He moved the device around, listening to the tell-tale crackle intently. "Ze signal...is coming from...above us?"

Suddenly a dark shape plunged from the rafters onto them with a keening howl. Denny was knocked heavily to the ground, his flashlight spinning out of his hand. In the inky blackness, he could hear Roger's screams, Hateful Tom's curses, and the sound of Tom's custom-built Viper Gyroc pistol firing again and again. His hand fell across something cold and metallic...the flashlight! Denny switched it on and turned its beam in the direction of the noises.

It was rather ironic that the last thing Denny the Dentist would ever see was long, sharp teeth.


* * * * * *


William Warr's eyes swam to the surface of consciousness. He turned his head slowly, gritting his teeth against the pain. The last thing he remembered was hauling himself up off of the pavement and staggering away from the wreckage of the accident in the alley. His ears had been ringing, his shoulder throbbing, and he was leaving a trail of blood from a wound in his leg. He must have passed out...but where was he now?

He was in a hotel room, a nice one by the looks of it. Two beds, fruit basket, a stack of cheesy romance novels on the night table. Maybe his luck was finally beginning to change. Maybe he'd been rescued by some tall blonde Good Samaritan with a great set of...

"Good evening."

Warr sat up on the bed, instantly alert. On the other side of the room, smiling serenely, was the biggest Japanese he'd ever seen in his life. He was wearing a blindingly white suit, but Warr guessed this guy wasn't selling ice cream. "Welcome to my humble room," the man said, and reached into the inside pocket of his jacket.

Warr rolled off the bed, his gun readied in a flash. But the man wasn't there, and Warr suddenly found himself surrounded by white suit and muscle. The man launched Warr into the air, and for the second time that night Warr found himself sprawled on the ground, his gun spinning away. Warr clambered across the floor towards his gun, only to have a huge white shoe come crashing down on it. The man reached into his pocket a second time, pulling out a policeman's badge.

Nope, the ol' Warr family luck was the same as ever. Bad.

Warr rolled aside and sprang to his feet, but the cop was blocking the door. Warr drew his knife and both men dropped into a ready stance. The cop was quick for such a large man, but he kept his distance as Warr's knife flashed and thrust at him. A sudden slash backed the behemoth up a step, giving Warr all the opening he needed to race for the door.

A hard fist came out of nowhere and caught him on the side of the jaw. Warr stumbled backwards, dropping the knife and having his legs swept from under him. He landed on his injured leg and a thunderbolt of pain stunned him long enough for the Japanese to whip off his necktie and truss Warr up like a chicken.

Warr glowered up at the Japanese, who sat down and dabbed at his brow with a small white handkerchief. "Hojo-jutsu, ancient art of knot-tying. Very useful skill for policeman to learn. Please excuse this unworthy detective for not properly introducing himself. I am Inspector Murasami Toku of Honolulu, known to most Americans as Sammy Tsunami."

I can see where he gets that moniker, Warr thought. He towers over everything like a tidal wave. "I take it I'm under arrest, Inspector?"

"I hope it will not come to that, Warr-san. Yes, I know that you are wanted for questioning in the shooting of a man called 'The Brawler' and the unfortunate demise of a man suspected of being a German spy, but those matters are not what I wish to discuss. Prefer to discuss matter of dockside murders on previous night."

"I didn't kill those men."

"I believe you, Warr-san. This humble detective also believes that these murders have some connection to murders that have taken place across two continents. Murders that we have been trying our utmost to solve."

"Who's we?"

A bare foot wearing a bone ankle bracelet padded into Warr's field of vision. He looked up, and up, and up to see a gorgeous amazonian blonde glaring down at him. She was wearing what appeared to be a bikini made from various grasses, leaves, and fronds, and her right hand was still curled into the fist that had nearly knocked him into next Tuesday. Despite the ache in his jaw and the pain in his leg, all Warr could think about was how much he regretted not having any weed-killer on him.

"Please excuse rudeness of this worthless detective," Sammy said with a small bow, "This is Miss Shekla of Africa. She has been most helpful to investigation, being only person on two continents to have seen murderer and lived to tell the tale."

"A foul, unnatural beast," Shekla growled. "It is as your Rudyard Kipling said, 'the female of the species is deadlier than the male'."

"Female?" Warr said. "The thing that killed those dock workers was male. It calls itself Protanos."

Shekla and Sammy looked at each other, then Sammy shook his head. "Darkest suspicions are now all too possible. Not one murderer, but two."

"Will someone tell me what is going on?" Warr snapped. "And how about untying me as well?"

Sammy freed the struggling soldier with a quick tug and proceeded to replace his necktie as he spoke. "There is businessman in Germany with ties to National Socialist party and love of antiquities, gotten legally or otherwise. Recently, man sends team to Carpathia to dig up ancient fortress. Team ships two crates out of Carpathia, one to Lisbon, one to Congo."

"The contents of the crate that reached the Congo got loose," Shekla explained. "It massacred an entire tribe of harmless natives. I fought and wounded it, but it disappeared. It must have somehow made its way back to its crate and shipped out on the next cargo vessel."

"Crate then arrives at Honolulu," Sammy went on. "More murders committed. This unworthy detective is asked to investigate. Encountered Shekla, who had followed crate, and learned that crate had then been shipped here to Kappa City."

"But why send the crates here?" Warr asked. "Why not ship them back to Germany in the first place?"

"Suspect German businessman has American confederates," Sammy replied. "Confederates hold onto artefacts until heat is off, as Americans say. This humble detective had hoped that the second crate contained nothing but harmless antiquities, but it seems that now our difficulties have doubled."

The huge detective stood up and bowed low to William Warr. "Please accept humblest apologies concerning rough treatment, Warr-san, but was necessary in order to detain you. Interview is at an end, so may this most unworthy detective escort you to a hospital?"

"Take me to St. Vincent's Volunteer Hospital," Warr said. "There's some people there who need to hear this story, too."


* * * * * *


Volya Maneshcu licked her bloody lips one final time, savoring the delicious flavor of fear and anguish. These ruffians had been woefully unintelligent, but she had absorbed enough from them to know that she was in a place called Kappa City, thousands of miles and thousands of years from her home.

But Hateful Tom, oh, she had enjoyed the taste of his blood! The brilliant intellect, the overweening pride, the delightful cruelty! She would have savored his death like a fine wine.

But alas, she had only gotten a taste of him. He had shot her with something called a Viper Gyroc, and it had hurt. By the time she had recovered, he was gone, leaving the Viper Gyroc and something else behind.

She stroked the funny little device she had bound to her thigh with the shredded shirt of one of her latest victims. The part of Hateful Tom that she had stolen told her that this machine allowed its user to travel to any point in time or space that he chose to. But she still lacked the knowledge to operate it, and that irked her. Volya decided that she would stalk the streets of this city and track down the man called Hateful Tom. She would drain him of his precious blood, devour his soul, and steal his vast knowledge, including knowledge of the time machine.

And then, oh, what fun she'd have.

"No, no, no!! Up!! UP!!!" Mercury yelled as he dangled perilously from the cord trailing the Lady Fortune.

Protanos had led Danger Ace and Mister Mercury a merry chase through the concrete canyons of Kappa City, and with a terrific burst of speed pulled out above the ribbon of the West River below.

"Crazy knothead...." muttered Danger Ace as he threw open the throttle and yawed to the right, "That guy had better be luckier than I am to pull this off..."

Lady Fortune accelerated past the flying monstrosity, swinging the cable from which Mercury dangled fully around the creature.

"WOAHHH!!" Mercury shrieked as he swung wildly from the cord.

Protanos felt the cable wrap around his chest and wing. With a snarl and slash of steel-like claws, he sliced through the tether like a wet noodle. The sudden detaching of the cable caused Danger Ace's plane to pitch wildly into a dive.

"Come on, honey, don't do this to me." Ace whispered as he fought the controls and watched the river rise to meet him, a highway of glistening death.

"BANG!" A shot from Mister Mercury's Colt tore into Protanos' ribs, followed by two more. The gruesome figure whipped its head down on an elongated neck of sinewy flesh to look at its attacker, clinging tenaciously to the scrap of cord entangling the vampire's torso.

"Fool!" he barked, "Your efforts will not help you, or your friends! This city will become my new empire of death!"

"Yadda-yadda-yadda....here's a little Christmas present from me to you!" snarled Mercury. He whipped out the watch given to him by the Revenant, and with a massive blow slammed his fist, watch and all, into one of the wounds in the creature's side!

"YAARRRRGG!" Protanos writhed in agony from the attack. As he pitched over with a flap of his massive wings, Mercury lost his perilous grip on the cable, grabbed at it with a blood-slick hand....and fell...

"Mercury!" exclaimed Ace, glimpsing the mystery man's perilous drop over the river. Instinctively, he dove the plane after his former passenger. A wall of water rushed up at him, the masked figure turning end over end above it in seeming suspension. Over the roar of the engines and rush of air outside of his cockpit, he was almost certain he heard the vampire lord's evil laughter.

Danger Ace's vision began to narrow into a black tunnel as G-Forces pressed in on him. "C'mon, c'mon," he muttered between his teeth.

The river grew closer in a rush like an express train shooting out of a tunnel, Mercury's form growing larger in the cockpit window. Jerking the stick back to come out of the suicide dive, Ace brought the plane up and under the falling man.

The world was a blur of sky and water. Images of his family, of Marla, spiraled in his mind's eye. Grasping out at anything in his terrifying, dizzying freefall, Mister Mercury found his fingers clamping down on a red fuselage. They slipped and he slid down the side of the Lady Fortune. Then, they found purchase in a port. Digging his hands into it and bringing his feet up onto the relative security of the wing, he slumped against the plane.

Levelling off and slowing down, Danger Ace brought the plane lower over the river. An exhausted Mercury stumbled back into the cockpit, legs rubber, arms numb.

"You maniac!" Ace reprimanded the other man. "What the devil were you thinking?"

"I guess its true what they say, about your life flashing past..." Mercury gasped. "He got away, didn't he?"

"Yes. Are you sure you're--"

"Never mind me. Get back to the Hall. I've got to check on somebody."

Turning the plane back toward the city, Ace asked, "Who was that, anyway?"

"I don't know his name," Mercury mused, slouching and catching his breath. "But he's got plans and I aim to be there to screw them up. So step on it. Or pull it. Or whatever you do to make this thing go faster."


* * * * * *

"Fascinating," Dr. Jackson said, "and you formed this 'Midnight Society' to deal with the creature that attacked the Benefit tonight?"

"It's something of an experiment," Revenant replied. "As you can see, we're dealing with something far too dangerous for one man to handle."

"Indeed. You know, I'm something of an amateur inventor and have often contemplated becoming a mystery man myself. All too often, I end up dealing with the aftermath of violent crime. Perhaps I could do more good preventing crimes from happening. Preventative medicine, you might say."

Revenant reached into his coat and pulled out a pocket watch on a fob chain. "Well, if you ever do decide to take on the mantle of 'dangerous vigilante' like us, turn the hands of this watch to twelve o'clock and we'll find you."

Dr. Jackson turned the watch over thoughtfully in his hands. "Twelve o'clock...midnight...Doctor Midnight?" He smiled to himself as he put the watch into his coat pocket. "How's the sling?"

"It's fine, doctor. What about Bria, will she be all right?"

Dr. Jackson shook his head sadly as he regarded the two still figures on the nearby beds. "I've stopped the bleeding, so they're in no immediate danger. But their breathing and pulse rate are dangerously low, and I can't seem to revive them."

"They are beyond the help of your medicines, doctor," the Soul Trader murmured. "They have been infected with the corruption of the fiend that attacked them. In time, they will become creatures just like him. It would be safest if we killed them now and ensured the sanctity of their souls."

"I'm afraid that course of action is unacceptable," the Revenant said icily, his hand on his pistol. "Furthermore, if you were to attempt that course of action I'm afraid I would have to put a bullet between your eyes."

"Calm yourself, Revenant! There is another option."

"Enigma!" Revenant cried. "Where did you disappear to?"

The Man Who Isn't There had reappeared as mysteriously as he had vanished. "I paid a visit to a friend of mine, an author who has done some research into the supernatural." He set a leather case bearing the initials H.P.L. down upon a nearby table. "I believe he has provided us with a way to save these women and destroy the creature that calls itself Protanos." The Enigma opened the case and retrieved what appeared to be a large wooden stake covered in strange sigils.

"The Thorn of the Lightbringer!" the Soul Trader gasped. "How did you acquire such a powerful relic?"

"It was entrusted to my friend following an adventure he had in Romania. This weapon has sealed the fate of many vampires. Once Protanos is dead, these women will be freed of his influence and whole again."

"So Protanos truly is a vampire?" Red Crow asked. "He doesn't look like any vampire I've ever heard of."

"There are many different varieties of vampire beyond the one immortalized by Hollywood," The Enigma replied. "The hopping vampire of China, the Macedonian vampire of Greece. The creature we are hunting is a type of vampire not seen in centuries, a type long thought to be extinct."

"The vampiric equivalent of a dinosaur," Dr. Jackson mused. "Fascinating..."

"Protanos Sczirenczy was a tyrant who ruled over most of the Slavic territories during the Dark Ages," Enigma continued. "His depravities were so great he was said to be more beast than man. He was finally ousted from his stronghold by the armies of his enemies and driven into a river to his apparent death. It seems the 'Butcher of Carpathia' was more resilient than originally thought."

"At least now we know what we're dealing with," the Revenant said. "I just wish we knew what's happened to Mister Mercury and William Warr."


* * * * * *


"G-I-5-1234 please. Thank you. Hello? Yes, I need to know if you have any information on a patient that has been admitted tonight?"

Danger Ace put his feet up on his desk and stared at the ceiling. When he and Mercury had flown over Dupont Hall, they'd seen nothing but squad cars and news reporters. Eager to avoid both, they had returned to the airfield where Mercury had spent the past half hour trying to track down some dame named Marla.

"Her name's Marla Storm...I mean, Farris. Look, I don't know which name she might be using. Could you just check both? Thank you."

Nipsey had been plenty mad about what Ace had put the Lady Fortune through, but the old girl was a real trouper and had made it through far worse scrapes before. Still, Nipsey had insisted on grounding her for the rest of the night.

"Dammit!" Mercury slammed down the phone and began pawing through the phone book again.

"Calm down, man," Ace said. "It's not worth it giving yourself an ulcer over some dame."

"She is not 'some dame'!" Mercury snapped. "She's my wife...my ex-wife. Oh God, what if she's dead? What if that thing killed her? My son...what's going to happen to my son?"

Danger Ace got to his feet, a look of wonder on his face. He'd just seen this man swing hundreds of feet in the air to grapple with something out of a nightmare without batting an eye. But the thought of something happening to his family obviously terrified him. "Listen, I've got some connections. Maybe I'll have better luck tracking her down than you have."

Mercury looked up at the Sentinel of the Skies. "You...you'd do that for me, Danger Ace?"

"Sure," Ace replied, then he held out his hand. "And my friends call me Nat."

Mercury shook it firmly. "Nat?"

"Nathaniel Risk. That's my real name."

"Mine's Gabriel Storm. Look, I really appreciate this. I--"

"Don't mention it. Go grab yourself a cup of java, I've got some phone calls to make."


* * * * * *


Protanos hunched in the shadows and licked at the black wounds that scored his body. The Deadspeaker and his little friends, they would pay for their interference! Protanos would savor every second of their terror, every drop of warm red blood as he humbled them and made their loved ones the slaves of his army of death!

He raised his head as a strange sound was carried to him on the night wind. His face split into a horrifying rictus grin. It was a sound he had never expected to hear again.

It was the cry of his mate.

I understand that Virtue is the unofficial RP server but didn't find that out untill I'd already created a character (and played more than I'm willing to give up) on the Champion server.

Are there any Roleplayers on the Champion Server? If so can you drop your character name and playing times here.

I play 'Lady Myd-knight' (9th level Magic Scrapper) for a couple of hours every evening, sometime from 7pm-12pm GMT (that's 1pm-6pm CDT, I think).

Thanks in advance for any replies.

The voice came from a mysterious young man in a grey hooded robe, wielding a wooden staff colored a deep earthy brown. The man's face was wreathed in shadow, but a bright light shone from the tip of the staff which he thrust forcefully at the leering Protanos. "Back, foul creature of darkness and death!" the man commanded in a voice thick with a mysterious accent. "Back to the sinister hell that spawned you!"

A beam of pure white light shot from the staff's tip, searing Protanos' clammy grey flesh. Protanos shrieked, the pain from this newcomer's wand felt like sunlight at its hottest. He had no fear of the devices that threw metal, but he was too weak to battle with someone this accomplished in the mystic arts. This interloper had to be a sorceror or holy man; Protanos could sense the magical energies the stranger had at his command. With a malicious hiss, Protanos coiled his body like a spring and shot through a nearby window in a shower of plate glass.

Mister Mercury groggily extracted himself from the pile of broken wood and glass he had helped create. "What happened?"

"Don't ask me," said Warr. "Ask Friar Tuck here."

"The creature is escaping!" the stranger cried. "It will return to its lair to recover its strength."

"Not while I'm still breathing!" growled Mercury as he charged out of the Hall.

"Who are you, stranger?" the Enigma asked. "How were you able to harm this creature that shrugged off our best assaults?"

"I am the Soul Trader," the stranger replied. "I have come to this city to protect it from supernatural menaces. It would seem I have arrived not a moment too soon."


* * * * * *


Danger Ace had set Lady Fortune down in the middle of the street, drawing confused glances from a pair of drunks on the corner. He had his pistol ready when something smashed out of one of the Hall's front windows and into the parking lot. "Hey, you! Freeze!" Ace shouted.

His jaw dropped as the strange grey beast before him began to nearly double in size. Six enormous leathery wings burst wetly from the creatures body and it took to the air with disturbing grace. Danger Ace looked on in amazement as the thing flapped its way past him and then banked sharply as it struggled to gain altitude.

A bloody hand grabbed him by the collar. "Hey, flyboy! That your plane?"

Ace was startled by the sudden appearance of a battered man in a blue cowl.

"Uh, yeah."

"Well then, start that puppy up. We're going after that thing."

"We are? What in blazes is going on here?"

"No time for that, junior. I'll explain in the air. Now hustle!"

Protanos swept down the moonlit street like a cruel shadow, passing over the sidewalk where the women and the Revenant lay. Revenant glared up at the monster, his eyes gleaming with hatred, and a vile voice echoed in his mind.

"Ahhhh yessssss, Deadspeaker! Hate me, for we will cross paths again soon!"

Wings beating faster, Protanos hurtled through the air and into the night.

The two Gypsy Six engines came to life with a cough and sputter, and soon the Lady Fortune circled around the parking lot and headed down an alleyway. Racing forward with a roar as the pilot throttled up, its wingtips nearly touching the brick walls on either side of it. Dead ahead, Mercury saw a line of stalled traffic left in the wake of the monster.

"Uh," Mister Mercury said from the rear seat, seeing a head-on collision imminent, "You sure you know how to fly this thing?"

Moving down the alleyway at a rapid pace, the plane suddenly leapt off of the ground. Its landing gear clipped the top of a stopped cab, removing the 'On Duty' sign atop it with a hail of sparks.

"Sorry about that," Ace muttered.

Pointing the aircraft's nose toward the heavens, he pulled back on the stick, zooming off in pursuit of the flying beast.

"Revenant!" Warr ran to the fallen mystery man, with Crow, Enigma and Soul Trader in tow. "Are you all right?"

"No," Revenant replied, "my arm is broken. And the creature has gotten away. It flew off less than a minute ago."

"It flies now? Terrific. Where's Mercury?"

Revenant pointed to the plane speeding off into the distance. "I think he's on that plane, heading after the monster. I just hope he leaves enough of it for me to deal with."

The sound of sirens heralded the less-than-timely arrival of the Kappa City police. Red Crow let out a sigh of relief. "Finally, some help has arrived."

"Freeze! Drop your weapons and put your hands behind your heads!"

Crow's jaw dropped. "What? What's going on here? Why are they pointing their guns at us?"

"Well," Warr remarked, "some of us are wanted by the police. Plus we're wearing masks and carrying guns, we've got blood on our clothes, and there's no one here to back up our 'monster' story. You have to admit, it looks kind of suspicious."

"You're right..." Revenant said, "it does!" The five desperate men suddenly made a break for the abandoned cars nearby, bullets whizzing past them like angry hornets. Revenant found Alexei crouching behind the Benz, watching over the wounded women.

"The police have surrounded us, tovarisch. And Miss Bria's pulse is growing weaker."

Revenant swore under his breath, then spun and trained his LeMat on the man sneaking up on him and Alexei. The man was wearing dark glasses and a derby hat, and he held up his hands which were clutching a cane and a small black bag.

"Don't shoot! Don't shoot. My name is Jefferson Jackson. I'm a doctor."


* * * * * *


"You're losing it!"

"Pipe down!"

"Make this thing go faster!"

"I said, pipe down!"

Danger Ace was trying to concentrate, but Mister Mercury's backseat flying made it difficult. Despite the distractions, Ace had the monster in his sights and was closing in. Ace knew that he had no mental powers, but when he concentrated...when he set his mind to something...it was almost as if he could will it into being.

"Getting closer."

"What are we going to do when we do get closer?"

"I don't know," answered Danger Ace. "Shoot him down?"

"He's not the Red Baron! He's a vampire bat! How'd they kill Karloff in that movie?"

"It wasn't Karloff, it was Lugosi!"

"Lugosi? Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure! And they killed him with a wooden stake! So maybe..."

"What about silver bullets?"

"That kills werewolves!" exclaimed Danger Ace.

"Any wood in this plane?" asked Mercury.

"No, but you're kind of a blockhead, if you know what I mean."

"Watch out for the billboard!" Mercury shouted. "Who do you think you are, pal? Danger Ace?"

"I AM Danger Ace!"

"What? I thought Danger Ace was somebody the radio station made up to sell coal."

"I get that a lot," Danger Ace replied, "You'd be amazed how rarely people in this town look up."

"Bring us in closer," Mercury said. "I've got an idea."

"Like what?" Ace laughed, "You're going to swing out on one of the cargo straps, jump on its back, and force it down?" When he got no response, Ace chanced a look behind him and saw that Mercury was not in his seat. Then he felt a tugging on the right hand side of the plane, and looked down to see Mister Mercury suspended from a cord, trying to get a hand on the vampire.

"When am I gonna learn to keep my mouth shut?"


* * * * * *

"These women have lost a lot of blood," Dr. Jackson said. "We have to get them to a hospital immediately."

"Are you sure you want to help us?" the Revenant asked. "As you can see, we're not exactly friends of the law."

"That's between you and the police. My interest is in saving these women's lives. St. Vincent's Volunteer Hospital isn't far from here, but we have to move quickly."

"Which brings us to the problem of being pinned down by police gunfire," Red Crow remarked. "Not to mention our possible exits being blocked by squad cars."

Warr reloaded his pistol and stuffed it into the back of his pants. "Cover me. I'll try to draw enough of them away for you to get out." He waited for a break in the gunfire, then bolted from the shelter of the Benz as Revenant and Enigma drove the police back behind their cars. The motorcycle's engine roared to life, and Warr sped past the police roadblock shifting gears with one hand and returning fire with the other. Several cars peeled out of the lot in pursuit of the masked soldier.

"Now!" shouted the Revenant. Alexei dove into the driver's seat and started the Benz while everyone else piled into the front and back seats. Revenant winced as his arm was pressed against the car door, but Bria's pale face chased all thoughts of his own discomfort from his mind. The car sped out of the parking lot and into the street while the police were still fumbling for their keys.

Warr shot a glance at his rear-view mirror and hoped the others had gotten out okay. He'd lead John Law on a merry chase, then ditch them and head for St. Vincent's. He'd made this play before, and so had several of his ancestors. These cops didn't stand a chance.

Warr weaved in and out of the oncoming traffic, putting some distance between himself and his pursuers. A quick trip along the sidewalk carried him through a busy intersection, followed by a bootleg turn onto a side street. He'd lost all of the cars except for two. With a screech of rubber, he faked left then went right down a nearby alley. A classic from the Warr family playbook.

Unfortunately, these cops weren't using that playbook. Warr found himself staring into the headlights of two oncoming police cars while the two pursuing him filled the alley behind him. All of Warr's ancestors suddenly shouted in unison.

JUMP!

Warr flew over the handlebars of the motorcycle and bounced off of the roof of one of the cars in front of him. There was a sickening crunch as all four police cars collided, crushing the motorcycle like an empty can. Warr fell to the pavement like a rag doll and lay still as the sirens of the ruined cars slowly grew silent...

The man stood on the observation deck of the Rockford Building, looking out over the skyline of the city. The night wind tugged at his coat like a malicious imp, delighting in his suffering. He was silently thankful that the deck was deserted on this particular evening. There would be no one to see his despair, his ugliness, and his tears.

The Nothing Man leaned heavily on the railing, the weight of the world seemingly upon his shoulders. It seemed like only yesterday that the accident had stripped him of his humanity, his identity, even his name. The filthy rags that encased his head and limbs seemed to be the only thing keeping his body together, but he was far more resilient than he appeared to be.

His was an ageless body, a body without pulse or breath. All that remained was purpose and pain. The Nothing Man could not stand to live in a world where he would have to watch his daughter grow old and die, never getting too close for fear of terrifying her with his wretched monstrosity. The gun, the rope, and the gaspipe had all failed. He climbed up onto the railing and whispered a prayer to the heavens.

"Please...please, let it end."

A single step plunged him towards what he hoped was eternity.


* * * * * *


Danger Ace gazed out over the city lights with a smile. All was quiet in Kappa City, and his evening patrol was almost complete. Not that he would be taking the rest of the night off. He had promises to keep and miles to go before he would sleep.

Lady Fortune was purring like a kitten as she banked lazily over the business district. The Sentinel of the Skies was scheduled to make a personal appearance at the Women's Social Club Benefit for the Humane Society, and flying there sure beat taking the subway. He might have to press the flesh a little with some stuffed shirts and society matrons, but there'd also be champagne, free eats, and no doubt some pretty girls to dance with. All in all, there were far more unpleasant obligations he'd been forced to undertake.

The sight of an ambulance speeding towards the Rockford Building made him frown, as he saw a crowd had gathered at the building's base. Probably another jumper, he thought. Poor devil. Seeing tragedies like that makes you grateful for all the good things in your own life. I've got plenty to live for, but I guess some sad souls have nothing.


* * * * * *


The pain seared across his body as The Nothing Man lay motionless at the ground floor of the Rockford Building. He couldn't feel his left leg and his nose clogged with bloody mucous as he attempted to breathe through the rags around his face.

He had hoped the church fall had been too short and had just been another miracle or whim of his imagination. Surely, the Rockford Building would claim his life if nothing else would.

His eyes watered in both physical and emotional pain as he came to the realization that this life was not going to end. He would have fully wept and sobbed, but his lungs were too crushed to aid him in breathing like that.

His body gave up, just as he had given up hope. His eyes hung in a gaze as he watched people gather around in horror, believing him dead. It was all slow motion. Something told him not to watch but he couldn't help it. He resented these people for the way he knew they would treat him once his rags were removed. But there was nothing he could do, lying there, bones broken and in severe agony...nothing except lose consciousness.


* * * * * *


That was NOT Hateful Tom.

The Red Crow's zip-line launcher had allowed him to reach the Dupont Hall ahead of the mystery men in the Benz, but he had not anticipated the scene of horror before him. A great grey creature howled in triumph over the cowering forms of two helpless young women as screams of terror replaced laughter and conversation. People were trampling each other in their frenzied search for escape, panic evident in their eyes. Charles Lamb knew that this was the thing that had left the claw behind at the docks. It had killed six men and was obviously intent on adding these two women to its victims.

Not if he could help it.

Red Crow swung towards the creature, his cloak billowing out behind him like red raven wings. He drew from his belt an oddly shaped crimson gun and brought it to bear on his adversary. A shrill squawk filled the air as he pressed the trigger, assailing the monster's ears like the cry of a massive bird of prey. It was this sound, this distinctive "caw-caw", that had caused the newspapers of his own time to dub him the Red Crow. The beast was wracked with pain and turned furiously on its new attacker.

There was a squeal of tires as the Revenant's car pulled up outside the hall. "Who is that?" Warr asked.

"Who cares? He's shooting that thing, so that means he's on our side!" Mercury snapped. He and the Revenant charged towards the balcony, guns at the ready. Mercury gasped at the sight of his ex-wife lying at the creature's feet, a gaping wound in her shoulder.

"Ga...Gabriel..."

"Monster!" Mercury shouted as he emptied the Colt into the thing. "Get away from her!" The Revenant's eyes betrayed his own hot anger at the sight of his beloved Bria's blood staining the balcony's bricks. His LeMat spat hot venom at what was now his life-long enemy, a creature whose suffering would be legendary.

The murderous beast snarled as the bullets smashed into its dark flesh, then laughed. "Fools! Your pitiful devices cannot stop Protanos Sczirenczy! I shall feast upon your loved ones' souls!"

"It talks!" Warr cried.

"Then it better come up with some last words!" Mercury snarled.

The Enigma seemed to float through the hail of bullets, speeding towards the being that called itself Protanos. The foul fiend could not pass up such a tempting target and lunged viciously forward. To his shock, Protanos' charge carried him straight through the Man who Isn't There and into the silent auction table. Without a word, the Enigma scooped up Marla and carried her away from the fighting, Warr following him with Bria in tow.

Protanos raised himself up from the wreckage with a roar, which changed to a howl as a bola wound its way around his neck before jolting him with an electrical charge. Red Crow smiled as his devious device brought Protanos to his knees, but his eyes widened as the creature tore the bola to shreds.

Before Protanos could stand again, a heavy chair smashed down onto the back of his head. Mr. Mercury wound up for another swing as the Revenant drew a swordcane and plunged it into Protanos' back. The brutish beast lashed out at the vengeful duo, sending Mercury crashing through a crystal punchbowl and Revenant flying out onto the unforgiving pavement.

Revenant clutched his arm and writhed in agony. He turned his eyes to Bria, lying still and pale on the sidewalk nearby. He reached for her. "Bria...I...I'm sorry."

Danger Ace's eyes widened as he saw the pandemonium issuing forth from the Hall. "What on earth...I'd better get Lady Fortune down on the ground. It looks like trouble!"

Red Crow was rapidly running out of ideas. What would it take to stop this thing? Anything he hadn't tried was too dangerous to use with all these innocent bystanders around. The ghostly figure and the masked soldier had opened fire on the beast, but bullets hadn't been all that effective thus far.

Warr gave a frustrated grunt as each of his bullets struck home without any effect. "It's too powerful! It can't be stopped!"

"Step back! Your weapons cannot hurt him!" cried a strange voice.

great little show from the early 90's - yep I remember that But our group is nothing like that. Pulp stories is our bag! Been writing on the boards here for the last 3 years.

Name: Astro Creep
Height: 6' 8"
Weight: 320 lbs
Turn ons: Earth girls, blood, brain matter
Turn offs: Fat chicks, those zombie things that puke all over my best boots.
Hobbies: Beating people up, saving chicks and getting their phone numbers, "finding" stuff, throwing things at people, trying to start World War III, looking for visible panty lines on every female superhero I meet.
Favorite hot spots in Paragon City: Uhhh well I like to hang around at train stations and take a leak in the corner. Just markin my territory. And then I also hang around at the Paragon City Police department. Just spent the weekend there in detox, in fact.
Ideal first date: A stroll through King's Row, beating Skulls within an inch of their lives.

Okay ladies, I'm kinda new to this here planet and I'm lookin to meet some new people. I'll be upfront and say that I got a criminal history on my homeworld, I was supposed to be executed for war grimes or genocide or somethin like that - I dunno, I'd ask my lawyer but I ripped his lungs out for overchargin' me. Luckily, my prison transport crashed here on Earth, so now I got a new home.

But the women of this scumbucket planet are the ones that have really lucked out. Not only is Astro Creep the ultimate solider, and the greatest warrior in the universe - I'm also the best male specimen you'll ever find. Not just compared to these normal wimpy earth men, but even those freaks that run around in their underwear can't compare to Astro Creep.

So if you're ever on Protector and wanna meet the greatest thing the universe has ever puked up, look for Astro Creep. I also kill people/things if you ask me nicely, pay me, or show me your honkers.

Astro Creep out.

I have a bunch of guys now Here they are:
The Grey Lady
Jordan Black
Cheetari

Well, three. Three's a bunch right?

*pulls the string on his CoH see n' say*

The Astro Creep says:

"You ladies lookin for a fight?!"

"Sir, you are under arrest."

However, the bullet usually hit's their skull at about "Under."

Agree. awesome! nice putting together... music, pictures, scenes, phrases - whatta pretty sweet symbiosis!

Your city is a cess pit.

You know what I saw the other day??? A cop being mugged by two hellions.

While I was fighting them off her, a car swerved INTO me.

Across the street two of her brothers in blue walked by without a care in the world, ignoring the three other hellions breaking into a car.

After running off the 5 hellions, I walk through an alleyway to find a man being attacked by fly infested animated corpses! I fight them off and make my way to a contact only to find out not only are their Na z i's in the city, but they've kidknapped a physicist.

Well, at least once they've got the bomb they might be able clean the city up.

And you know what the worst part is?

I get back to our Detective agency headquarters, and there is Cyrus McDavril, my Captain, finishing up a cup of coffee, right next to an empty pot.

Sigh.... Civil servants in Paragon is get about as much appreciation as a beer vendor in an AA meeting.

You know what? The question is accademic. Perez park is a RESTRICTED zone. There were no civilians in a picnic near by.

Personally, If someone wants to help me make an arrest, it makes my life that much easier, but that's me personally.

Until we get Perez under CONTROL so that people civillians can actually return there, you go there under your own risk. That's why you need security clearance.

Personally, I'm not going to send anyone to the hospital to prove a point, but they knew they would be heading into a dangerous area of the city. When I go into Perez Park I know that I can depend on three people: Myself, the good lord, and Jamison's Whisky.

They knew what they were getting into...

By the way I'm sending around a petition to bulldoze that damn park and pave it over. 75 Starbucks might not be pretty, but neither are 300 wizards doing experiments.

Today I had a similar experience myself, I had been contracted to deal with an Abborent Rector that was terrorizing the streets of Skyway City, and had found the beast preaching its doomsday prophecies to a small flock of its followers in a fenced off culvert. I knew I couldn't face the beast toe to toe, so instead I lured it away capturing it and its followers in a trap of my caltrops and a well placed smoke grenade.

For many minutes I dodged in and out of the battlefield spreading mayhem and subduing as many of its mutated flunkies as I could manage. My plan was working, my trap was a success, soon only the beast itself remained, defiantly staring at me as it struggled against the tiny robotic caltrops pinning it painfully to the ground. The fight between us was brutal with me barely escaping to tend my wounds and do my best to maintain my sanity given the horrid blasts of mental energy he continued to project when I came to fight him.

It looked as if he was done for, exhausted and still trapped, I knew he could not stand much more of my attacks. Then out of nowhere another 'hero' arrived attacking from the opposite side of the barriers I had put between myself and my prey, his energy blasts threatening to knock the beast loose of my trap.

I yelled for him to stop as I dove behind a barrier barely escaping death after another skirmish against the brute. I could tell he was no match for it alone, just like I would be had I tried to defeat it toe to toe. For the moment he was lucky it was still focused on me, but hiding behind a concrete pillar nursing a nasty cut I knew it would soon notice the new arrival.

I yelled again, telling him it would kill him soon if he didn't desist in his attack, but again he did not listen, pursuing personal glory perhaps? For me it was unimportant if he was trying to steal any glory or not, the beast was almost defeated and I knew at this point regardless of who landed the killing blow my contract would be complete, but my repeated warnings fell on deaf ears.

Three blasts of horrid thoughts burst from the Rector in rapid succession, ripping through the other hero's mind and leaving him a gibbering heap on the ground. I knew there was nothing I could do for him, save try and finish off the brute before it escaped and finished him. However just as I was about to, the hero activated a device on his belt restoring clarity to his mind and unbelievably causing him to rejoin the fight.

All the time he had been pounding away at my target I had failed to notice it being nudged inch by inch out of my trap. His next blast was the final draw. Caltrops flew through the air as the brute's feet ripped free of my trap and he tumbled out in front of me. For a moment I thought I was done for, wounded and without cover there was nothing standing between the hunted becoming the hunter.

However, the beast did not attack me, instead it leapt at the other hero knocking him into unconsciousness with a single blow. I staggered to my feet throwing another barrage of caltrops in a hope to capture the beast once more, but it was too quick and in a single bound it leapt off a nearby wall falling three stories before disappearing into the dark twisting alleys below.

My prey was lost, my contract unfulfilled, my body nearly broken, and the fool at my feet knocked senseless.

For what?

Because he wouldn’t listen.

In Gamble’s situation the fools threatened only to steal some of his glory, but if such single minded heroes are allowed to continue with such a lack of respect for their allies wishes, it can lead to situations such as mine where their foolhardy attitudes lead to a monster escaping back into the streets of a populated area to wreak more havoc and cause more destruction. It’s good that Gamble did what he did, these ‘heroes’ need to learn to listen to their allies, whether they like what they say or not.

thanks for all the submissions!

I added three more today, The Soviet, Cannonball and Ifrit.

Keep em coming!

The name is Garoth. Pleased to meet you all. Perhaps we can get togerther sometime and give the thugs of Paragon City something to be afraid of.

That was an awesome flash. Definetly tight.

"And We Shall Know No Fear!!"

just a comical one i came up with:
"Prepair To be House Broken!

after seeing this anouncement he slams his t.v into the ground and decides to start his own advertisment

Advertisement for the pinnicle server
A modest hero needs a modest group. people are saying too many groups have high standards or high presiquites.
our group is one where people have fun grouping and chatting, hanging out and leveling
and remember our motto is
And We Shall Know No Fear

Red Starr -- "I must break you."

And so the rivalry begins!

Red Starr turned off his television in disgust. He thought the heros of Paragon were pure of taint, but it seemed he was wrong. He slammed his fist into a nearby counter. These ridiculous capitalists must be stopped! Charging for what should be freely given?! It is a mockery of everything he and the Spetsnaz stood for. He Adjusted his red and black uniform, and placed his full helmet on. He climbed out the window and started to make his way to 'First Strike Security' head quarters. He was going to give this monster a piece of his mind!

"Don't tempt me Frodo!"

I need Tp for my Bunghole!