Heroes: The Road of Good Intentions

[LadyTevar]

Argent was in mid-air, slowly descending in dragon-form when she felt/heard Blackheart. She took her eyes off the sight of Hotfoot playing Pinball with Shingure for a moment to answer the question.

"Blackheart, I think I just pissed off the demon-hunter. He's not playing anymore," she warned with more than a little touch of concern. "He means to kill me now."

[Cynical Cat]

"He's looking pretty stunned at the moment," said Blackheart as he walked towards the fallen Japanese man. "Still, better that he's closer to me than you when he gets up. And don't smack around the good doctor too much. He's head is worth a lot unscrambled."

[LadyTevar]

"I'm not hurting his head," Argent answered, gracefully touching down behind Blackheart as suggested. "I do apologise if I'm holding the mecha too tightly," amusement and sacarine-sweetness tinged her voice, "but I wanted to make sure he couldn't move." The shadows loosened a little, but didn't let the mecha go yet.

"Is the exercise over, Blackheart, or do we wait for Warpath and Shingure-san to surrender?" the lithe dragon asked, not yet resuming human form in case of the latter. If the Japanese priest was crazed enough to attack Blackheart and his demon, Lei planned to throw as many shadows in his way as she could. Kyosuke could dispell them easily, but each one he was forced to react to was an opportunity for Blackheart to make his own moves.

[Marcao]

Even though he knew his way around the Ultima HQ compound, finding the exact location of Team Mirage or Blackheart proved to be somewhat challenging. Still, he was not without options and as he purposefully strode along the halls of the compound he had an idea of where to start. It took a handful of minutes and visits to two separate locations before he was informed of the most likely location of Team Mirage. It did not take him long to make his way towards one of the several gyms scattered within the compound. He entered through the top floor and immediately he was aware that something was amiss.

He came to a stop, his eyes sliding from one person to another as he sought to understand what it was that he was seeing. Gyms such as this one were often used for training purposes; he had trained in this one several times before. Still, there was something about the postures and body languages of the people that he saw that suggested that there may be something more at work than simple training. There was an armored humanoid or some sort of cyborg pinned to a wall, the serpentine form of what could only be described as a Chinese Dragon, a blur of motion that he imagined had to be the speedster and others. For a moment, a fraction of a second he was torn with what exactly he should do. The rational part of him suggested that he should simply wait and see. He had not been invited into this practice and as such, he should not interfere. It was a valuable opportunity to see Team Mirage in their natural state.

The dragon began its descent before it spoke, his eyes immediately drawn towards the source of the response. He knew that voice. He watched as Blackheart entered his field of vision and began to make his way towards what looked to be a fallen member of the team. He caught the full exchange between Blackheart and the Dragon and decided that if things looked like they were winding down taking a wait and see approach would be best. He remained motionless on the top floor, watching the interactions between Blackheart and the rest of his team. It was the most prudent course of action at this time. Besides, the team as a whole seemed busy enough focusing on the fallen man for the time being. Due to the nature of his powers, it was unlikely that the Empath in the group would be able to easily sense his presence. Nonetheless, he made no effort to hide himself from sight either. If he was to be discovered skulking about, it would be possible that Team Mirage would react…poorly.

[Cynical Cat]

"Lets assume the exercise is over, shall we?" said Blackheart. "We're getting a new member, a guy by the name of Tachyon. He's on his way over. Teleports, force field, energy blasts. Since he isn't running the other way in fear he obviously crazy enough to fit in."

[B4UTRUST]

Kyosuke was repeatedly hit by Hotfoot. Pass after pass rocked him till he finally collapsed, knocked unconcious by repeated blows to the head at high speeds. Blood trickled from his nose and mouth as he lay on the gym floor, unmoving.

[Hotfoot]

Hotfoot rushed to Kyosuke, watching him carefully for a few moments before sliding out of his shield to check him for a pulse. Once he was satisfied that he was still alive, he got up and shook his head. "Dude, what the fuck was that about? He looked like he was about to kill someone." He looked at Blackheart, shrugging helplessly. "Um, I guess we should get him down to medical? Who the hell is this guy anyway? What's his deal?"

[LadyTevar]

"More fool him," Argent said absently to Blackheart while frowning down at Kyosuke. "I'll teleport Shingure-san to the medical bay while we wait for the new guy to show," she said, elegantly stepping around Blackheart to move to the Japanese agent's side. "Just so you know, Hotfoot, Agent Shingure is a demon-hunter ... and the last words he shouted were a threat to kill the demon for fucking with him." She looked at Hotfoot wryly. "He meant me."

She reached out with one three-toed claw to touch the fallen mage-priest, then there was a flash of light, a snapping sound, and the scent of scorched skin.

"FUCK!!" the young Asian woman shouted, clasping her hand to her chest as sharp pain briefly danced around the heads of those linked to her. Somehow, she was sitting literally at Blackheart's feet, thrown there by the same thing that had burned her hand. A mutter of sing-song words flowed from her, definitely Chinese, more than likely impassioned invectives against the priest.

Quite the show for the spying Tachyon, ebony and jet dragon to lovely Asian girl in a split second.

[Cynical Cat]

Blackheart jerked with the pain feedback. "Why don't you not have those links active in combat situations Argent? I don't need refreshers in what pain feels like. Legacies, why don't you carry our Nipponese friend down to medical. Sans katana."

[Dark Silver]

With Argent shocked, and no longer in he shadow form, Warpath was finally freed from the shadows which threatened to crush the armor.

Amazingly enough, the amount of pressure she was managing to exert with those shadows went over all his previous projections - she could have cshed the armor and him if she wanted to.

Warpath slowly got back to his feet with only a little trouble, the optics focusing on Blackheart and Argent as he moved towards them, "If that is what you call a training excercise, I don't think I want to know what you people go against."

His words were flat, as he was running diagnostic scans on his armor's internals.

[Cynical Cat]

"The more you sweat in training the less you bleed in combat," said Blackheart. "This is a cakewalked compared to some of the shit I've been through. Doc, you seriously need to reconsider getting the fuck back to the lab. There's a number of good tin soldier jockies out there. Losing one of them would be a tragedy, but it won't hobble American power armour design for the next forty years. You're not expendable enough for this job."

[LadyTevar]

Argent gracefully rolled away from Blackheart's feet, rising to stand a respectful distance away, still holding her injured hand. "I'm sorry about the pain crossing over, Blackheart, but I didn't even have an active link to you at the time."

She looked over the mecha as Blackheart berated Doctor Stone. She was tempted to point out that the *last* training session, Saibot nearly killed Avatar. But that was also her fault, in a way.

[Hotfoot]

Hotfoot rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Wonderful. Yeah, I'm feeling a lot of confidence here for this whole place." He glanced to Blackheart, a flustered look on his face. "Seriously, how do yoaaarrg!" He grabbed his head as Argent's pain came through the link, wincing at the sharp pain that didn't have a specific point of origin, and fled away after a few moments.

"Hooo...that's better'n coffee. I don't think I'll be sorry to see him go. Tell me we don't see him often, please."

He eyed the powered armored doctor, clearly not impressed with him. He had joined with the guy that just tried to kill Argent, talking about fairness as an excuse. He bit his tongue and just watched the conversation with Blackheart. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a bit of movement outside of the gym, his eyes eventually drawing him to Tachyon. His eyes slid from Blackheart to Tachyon, with a small head motion indicating that there was something there to see.

[Cynical Cat]

"We don't see him often," said Blackheart. "That's even the truth."

[LadyTevar]

"Mainly because he hates demons and thinks we and anyone we 'deal with' should be put to death," Argent muttered, although her eyes slid upwards to see what Hotfoot was trying to point out.

Odd... how long'd he been up there?

[Cynical Cat]

"Exchange program with the Japanese," said Blackheart. "We get him, they get Tarot. A deal that sucks all around except for Tarot who gets to avoid doing serious time. Its not a problem that he thinks the team leader is an abomination, its a problem that he keeps getting pissy about it."

[Marcao]

He had to admit that his decision to remain silent and watch had been the right one, if for nothing else than seeing first hand the dynamics of Team Mirage. The incident with Argent actually brought a surprised smile to his lips, hmm, the file clearly did not give her justice but while he could admire her obvious beauty a part of him whispered that she was also dangerous. His eyes slid towards Blackheart then, catching the exchange between the team leader and the armored human.

Doc? Mecha design for forty years. That was Dr. Stone? What the hell was he doing in Team Mirage? That was a surprising revelation. The email that had been sent to him had not mentioned Dr. Stone being part of Team Mirage. Still, there had to be a reason for the assignment. He took a deep breath and held it for the span of seven breaths. The injured agent had been teleported away and things seemed to have calmed down. It was high time he introduced himself.

He could have blinked right to Blackheart's side but he did not. His sudden appearance may be interpreted poorly especially considering that the training that had occurred moments before had probably been more strenous than intended. He walked to the edge of the balcony which overlooked the gym below and using his left hand for leverage slid over it. He utilized his gift to slow his descent before his feet touched the ground. He took a step towards Blackheart and then another before he spoke.

"Agent Blackheart, it is a pleasure to finally meet you in person." He spoke firmly, his words carrying through the gym as he moved towards the team Mirage's leader. He was dressed from head to toe in black which was not at all unexpected, Black was a favorite color for Ultima agents. His clothing was very functional and lacked much ornamentation. Moments later, he stopped before Agent Blackheart and bowed, although he could not help but glance towards Argent out of the corner of his eyes.

"I am Tachyon, reporting for duty sir." His tone was serious but underlined with amusement. If Argent tried to get a sense of his emotions, she would feel remarkable emptyness. It was as if he either possessed an inhumanly trained mind or something else was at work...

[Dark Silver]

"No offense Agent, but the reason I built the first Warpath was because I didn't want to sit on the sidelines while others risked their lives to keep regular people safe. Especially after the the Black Arion's attacks."

The diagnostic information flowed into his brain, the armor was still operational, maybe Argent had better control than he had given her credit for.

"I don't come into these missions very often Agent Blackheart, and only when there's a need for what I can bring to the table. Until I'm reassigned, I'm afraid your stuck with me."

The helmet/head of the armor turned to Argent, "I'm sorry for choosing Agent Shingures side, but I didn't think it'd get that serious. And to be honest, I wanted to test the armor against a wider range of power than what he offered. Gomen nasi."

And with that Tachyon walked in, seems another new addition to the Team besides him. Warpath pivoted on a single foot, half turning to the man as he approached, but kept silent as he introduced himself to Blackheart.

[LadyTevar]

Argent's lips twisted upwards a little at the American accent to the Japanese apology. "I'm Chinese, Doctor.. but apology accepted either way," she assured him, her eyes following the young man walking up to them.

As Tachyon introduced himself to Blackheart, the petite Asian caught the glance thrown her way. Caution and curiousity both had her sweeping his emotions; the result had her black-on-black, seemingly pupil-less eyes shooting wide open.

She couldn't sense anything from him. Nothing. He was a blank spot that even the ever-present emanations from Blackheart's Demon-heart seemed to slide around. "Blackheart... what did you say his abilities were, again?" she asked cautiously, her head tilted towards him, but her eyes still on Tachyon.

[Cynical Cat]

"Good to meet you in person," said Blackheart. He extended his hand. "Welcome to the zoo. This is Tachyon, I'll let everyone else introduce themselves. He'll be joining us unless he regains command of his senses and runs for the hills."

[Dark Silver]

Warpath nodded to the newcomer, "morning, call me Warpath. Welcome to the team Agent Tachyon."

[Hotfoot]

Hotfoot waved, giving his best effort at a smile. "Hey, welcome. Don't mind me, I'm just a guy they found on the street. I'm Hotfoot, by the way. I really shouldn't be welcoming anyone, I'm not an agent and I just got acquainted here last night. Just one thing, you're not going to kill us, are you? I think I've had enough of that for one day..."

[SirNitram]

"Would someone mind telling me what the hell that was?" The voice was Gravitas', coming down the communications frequency. "One minute I've begun turning my attention to a particularly interesting ballet of singularities in a galaxy this world has no name for yet, the next pain is stabbing into my brain. Is the training just being a bit rough, or should I focus my attention on you guys for what support I can give from here?"

[LadyTevar]

Argent flushed bright red as Gravitas griped like the old man he was. "Sorry Gravitas." she said in honest apology over the team comm. "You'll soon see Legacies bringing Agent Shingure Kyosuke up there with you. What you felt was me trying to teleport him."

Since she was already speaking she stepped forward and bowed slightly to Tachyon, before offering her hand. "A pleasure, Tachyon."

The rest of the team might get suspicious here... Argent never shook hands, and touched them as little as possible since touch made her empathy stronger. But she had to know how Tachyon was blocking her.

[Marcao]

He missed Argent's apparent surprise for the moment Blackheart demanding all of his attention. When the man offered his hand, he took it without hesitation. It sealed the deal between them, gloved hands offering a firm shake.

"It is a pleasure to be here." He assured Blackheart, his eyes sliding about the gathered congregation of supers. "I am rather looking forward to working with you all." He could not help but sneak a glance towards Argent for a fraction of a second as he did so, but that was purely to get a better look at Hotfoot of course.

His attention flickered towards Dr. Stone an eyebrow arching as his codename was offered. "Seems like a fitting name." His eyes flickered over the armored suit before his eyes slid towards Hotfoot. His words were surprising in honesty and humility, he could get used to that although he nearly laughed at the end.

"You are part of Team Mirage Hotfoot, that gives you certain priviliges. As far as I am concerned, you have every right to welcome me and no, I don't plan on killing you at least not yet." He grinned at that last bit but he shook his head. "I do look forward to working with you and Blast however." He blinked as he spoke of Blast, where had he gone anyway?