Heroes: The Road of Good Intentions

[Cynical Cat]

"Torture probably won't work even if I was inclined to do it," said Blackheart, "but his gear and his emotional responses might tell us some interesting things.

[LadyTevar]

It was a very dark look Argent gave to Blackheart at that moment, as she managed to get some control over herself and try to stop trembling from the sheer -wrongness- of Tholos' Word of Blood.

"I'm assuming you want me to read his emotions then?" she asked in obvious annoyance. "Because he's wanting to die before he's a complete failure."

[Marcao]

He forced his eyes away from the devastation that they had left behind. He remembered too clearly his choices; he should have killed that Meta when he had the chance. His assumption that the man would die in the fall had been wrong and that arrogance had cost human lives. He sighed softly, his attention returning to the gathering of meta-humans that currently surrounded him. The two newcomers where not known to him and even less well understood. That they had been connected to the attack was obvious and he had been paying some attention to the exchanges between members of Team Mirage and their guests. Still, he did not know nearly as much as he would have liked.

It was when one of their guests spoke of healing Argent that his attention firmly anchored itself around him. The exchange between the man and his companion caught and noted. His eyes flickered towards Argent then curious as to what he reaction would be about the offer. Her response was somewhat expected, it did seem as if the world did revolve around that man. He frowned for a moment, a part of him wondering if he was being fair to them both. Blackheart was more heavily wounded than Argent was, in that context her words made sense. It was then that he began to consider Argent’s current position. Was she siphoning off Blackheart’s pain? It was possible. He had expected that Blackheart had very good pain tolerance but Argent’s abilities could indeed be assisting in that as well.

Their guest offered his reply to Argent’s question and within the span of a handful of breaths Blackheart demanded action. His eyes flickered from Blackheart to Argent and finally settled to watch their guest closely. If this word of blood was used in anyway but the way that Blackheart had asked, the consequences would be dire. Of course, by that point whatever may occur would be done with as well. It was strange, he liked the thought of Argent being healed and yet a part of him was quite anxious about the process itself. He did not yet trust these two and putting the safety of a team member in their hands was less than ideal.

He watched quietly as the man put his hands on either side of Argent’s face. He caught sight of the blood as it twisted itself and slithered back into her ears. His eyes widened, what the hell was that? It was as if time or reality itself had reversed itself. Argent’s reaction was telling to it all, the way she leaned against Blackheart and her body seemed to tremble like a leaf caught in the grasp of the wind. He did not get a good look of her eyes, but he had no doubt what he would see. His eyes flickered towards Blackheart for a moment as if judging his reaction to it all. There did not seem to be any pain but discomfort was obvious.

He forced himself to stay calm and objective. Argent was alright; his eyes flickered from Argent to their guest and back again before it seemed to be all over. Argent’s response to the man’s inquiry leaving little doubt that she did not look forward to going through that ever again. Blackheart spoke what he felt, and he was somewhat grateful when Legacies spoke forcing him to look away from Argent and focus on their prisoner. There had been a time when the idea of torturing a prisoner would have made him sick to his stomach. Those days were long gone. After that what these men had done his sympathy for his well being had dried up like spilled water in the middle of a desert.

His eyes flickered towards Blackheart as he spoke. “If torture won’t work perhaps we should just get this over with then?â€

[Bloody Good]

Feeling better after his shadow-induced panic, Tasat watched Li Na's response to Tholos. "The woman is a bit frosty, yes? Most people choose health over injury. Some even sell their souls for it, the simpletons."

The shining mass of flesh was speaking again. The mere fact that something like that was apparently one of the heros just seemed wrong. "Torture works if you are proficient enough. At the very least, allow me to try. I owe his masters much retribution. He can be a messenger if nothing else." He walked over to the captured demon. To himself, he muttered, "Must use a gag. Cannot allow him to bite off his tongue." He glanced around the room, and his eyes settled on his own bandages. Lifting the edges, he peeked under, made a kind of back-and-forth gesture with his head that seemed to say 'It will do,' and slid the entire mass of dirty cloth off his arm like a sleeve. Beneath it was a pattern of primitive tattoos, leading from the wrist to his shoulder and presumably under his shirt as well. The pattern was somewhere between tribal flames and jagged spikes, and seemed to have been done using charcoal-based ink. About half the shapes were a deep red, the rest black. They were fresh, maybe a week old, though the ones nearest the wrist looked like they had had more time to heal.

Clamping a hand over the helpless man's nose, Tasat waited for the man to gasp for air, and jammed the wad of cloth into the prisoner's mouth. He looked the man in the eyes, a cruel light in his eyes. "Before I begin, I want to tell you that your masters taught me everything that I intend to do to you. Remember this when you see them, and tell them that I will hear their screams just as they heard mine."

[SirNitram]

"Leave him as he is." 'Mike' said firmly, eyeing the dead man about to engage in torture. "If his destiny is in Hell, his return will alert his masters to our plans. I would prefer them to find out our plans when we hit them, not before. A soldier always favours the element of surprise."

"You still have yet to explain yourselves. You are clearly dead. A Spartan and a Sumerian. Yet you apparently wound up in Christian Hell. I must say I'm confused there. Are the forces there making some move that dragged you two into this?"

[LadyTevar]

Feeling better after his shadow-induced panic, Tasat watched Li Na's response to Tholos. "The woman is a bit frosty, yes? Most people choose health over injury. Some even sell their souls for it, the simpletons."

"The woman," Argent snarled, uneasy shadows moving with her emotions. "can sense demons and their powers, and hates their touch!" But she'd allowed herself to be healed by demonic power, and she was also really starting to get annoyed by the Demonheart's presence pressing against her mind. Only the fact that Blackheart needed her to block the pain kept her from dropping his hand and vanishing. Only Blackheart had overruled her instinct to let herself heal naturally.

"Leave him as he is." 'Mike' said firmly, eyeing the dead man about to engage in torture. "If his destiny is in Hell, his return will alert his masters to our plans. I would prefer them to find out our plans when we hit them, not before. A soldier always favours the element of surprise."

Dammit, why can't we just leave already? Dump the prisoner here, he's already badly hurt! Li Na's internal monologue said darkly. Stupid man is like a beaten dog; scared of his masters but loyal all the same. I'm surprised his masters haven't killed him themselves yet! The rest of his team's in hell already, so they already know what happened....

Where the next thought came from was murky. So kill him, and we can leave.

"You still have yet to explain yourselves. You are clearly dead. A Spartan and a Sumerian. Yet you apparently wound up in Christian Hell. I must say I'm confused there. Are the forces there making some move that dragged you two into this?"

A surge of annoyance as the conversation was once again deflected from the prisoner and leaving. Dammit Gravitas! Argent's eyes shoot over to the bound prisoner, now with a gag in his mouth.

It would be so easy....



Suddenly Argent shouted over everyone else "POWER-SURGE! Legacies, Stop Him!"

[Charon]

Legacies didn't hesitate a moment. He couldn't feel anything, but then again, he didn't know demons as well as Argent did. More force than the water at the bottom of the Marianas trench suddenly converged on the entirely subsumed man. On the off-chance he actually suvived the attack, spikes drilled out deep into the flesh, driving deep into vital organs. Assuming the man was dead, Legacies would drop the crushed and punctured body to the floor to bleed out on the floor.

"Done." Was all the symbiote said.

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost stood and walked from the room. Finally, a team that didn't try to kill each other all the time. He took his time and finally got to the evidence locker, before the others got there. His mind wandered to the team, odds were the older two had seen action, and then Shingure had as well. The others seemed to green.

[Bloody Good]

Tasat quick-stepped back as the prisoner was thoroughly killed. "Damn. I wanted him. Oh well. Now then. Our story. This is almost long enough to be an Epic by itself, so make yourselves comfortable."

He seated himself against the wall, absently rubbing the tattoos on his arm. "Tholos and I met in Alexandria, at the Great Library. We both wanted the same secrets, ones that would allow a man to claim powers not meant for us. We agreed to work together, and settled on a method of stealing what the demons called the Blasphemous Word. That is not the real name. The name has no translation in any mortal tongue I know of, but this name is close enough. The Word has a tale of its own. The Lords of the Underworld feared it enough that they shattered it and gave the pieces to their servants. Each piece holds great power, and the nature of the Word did not allow demons to steal it. One needs a soul to take it by force, and demons don't have a soul. Men do."

He cleared his throat. "There are seven pieces. Words of Fire, Blood, Decay, Change, Lies, Pain, and Madness. The seven demons who carried the pieces wandered the earth, and we set out to take the Word. We found Vazgor the Hellbound on Mount Vesuvius. I made the killing blow, and took the Word of Fire. We met the Mistress of Change, the demoness Varuli, when we retuned to the Library. She changed me, Tholos slew her, and he changed me back. In Gaul, we saw Duamerthrax the Indestructible slaughter an entire Roman Legion. We battled him for an entire afternoon, and every cut and burn healed as we watched. Tholos changed him, stripped him of his defenses, and pierced his body, thus claiming the Word of Blood. In the far East, we found Zesixair, Tormentor of Innocence, infiltrating the Dynasty of some lord. I have forgotten his name. The Demoness failed to incapacitate us with the agonies she threw at us, and my spear pinned her to the wall. I claimed the Word of Pain. We found Ndoth the Fallen wandering the ancient battlefiends of Greece. I do not belive that he was a true demon. Perhaps a doomed warrior. Tholos fought him alone, and the rotting corpse finally laid down and died. Tholos won the Word of Decay."

He worked the spit around in his mouth a bit. "Ngkog hunted us down. I assume that he and Lasciel finally realized that they were being hunted, and he decided to strike first. He tried to break our minds in the same manner that I tried to ruin the demons' aim. I will admit that it was a lucky throw that slew him. I took the Word of Madness. Lasciel, the Deciever, visited each of us during the night, and convinced us to travel to Rome alone. When we met in the Colliseum, she cast a glamour over us, and we slew each other. Our quest for power damned us, and we have been in the Underworld since then. Lasciel laid claim to our souls, and it is by luck alone that she did not trick either of us into giving away the Word."

He turned his head to Gravitas/Mike. "As for your question, I know very little about the Christian beliefs other than watching as they paraded the corpse of a godchild through the streets of Hell. A few days later, the god was transformed, and took countless souls with him as he shattered the Gates and left. Being left behind was as worse than the demons' handiwork. I would guess that there is only one Hell, and all the gods discard their rejected souls there. A little disillusioning, yes? I remember two Judges, but they did not look very much like my gods, Uta and Nanna. I suppose that the one in white could be Uta. A sun god might wear white, but a burial shroud is not the garb of a moon god."

He addressed the entire group again. "Not long ago, I spotted a way out. There was another Gate, one that led out instead of in. The spark of hope was enough to give me strength to shatter my bonds and run toward it. Tholos must have seen it as well, as I met him along the way. The two of us carved a path through the demons before us, and stepped through. We almost did not survive. I do not think the Gate was built to carry souls. Demons have much less spiritual weight than human souls. The Gate felt as though it collapsed behind us, but I cannot say with certainty. We woke in a cold room, in these bodies. Men stood before us in strange white garb, speaking of things I do not understand. Something about empty bodies."

Grinning as he recalled the tale, he continued. "They were corrupted. Servents of the demons who had tormented us. There was not much left after we struck them. We took what we could use, and fought our way to freedom. The building was filled with demons. Most were weak creatures, and the power of the Word splattered their bodies across the walls. You should have seen the pus and gore that Tholos left in his wake. He made more kills than I, but many of them were busy gouging their eyes out after I smote them with pain and madness. In the end, we had to blast through the walls to escape, but escape we did, and this was the first city we found. Nanna has made two full cycles since we came here, and we have been living in the tunnels beneath the city while we learned what we could of this place. All I have found so far is that the food is good, and the women are very pretty. Oh, and there are no slaves. That is fine for me. I could never afford to buy slaves after buying my father's freedom, and I am even poorer now. Poor Tholos did not take news of his beloved Sparta well. The fate of my home came as no real suprise. With neighbors as vicious as the tribe of Israel, survival would have been unlikely."

[SirNitram]

"Only one Hell?" Gravitas frowned a bit. "Something's gone terribly wrong with the multiverse. I've been to Hades and the Underworld and many other realms of punishment in my travels, as many as there were realms of reward. But if there is only one, something has... Gone very strange." The godling frowned to himself.

"I can understand why you wanted the multiparted Word... I fear it is best left shattered, though. I would require time to research it before I could locate the original word that made the demons fear." A glance was sent at the corpse, and a sigh. "Well... It seems we best move on and in a hurry."

[LadyTevar]

Tasat's casual reaction was explained by the bloody tale he spun, but Argent barely listened.

Was there... really a surge? Had she really felt that? Or did she just want the prisoner dead, and imagined it?

The answer was one she didn't like, and set of a low frenzy of Mandarin curses, ending with (StupidStupidStupid!) as Tasat slowly came to the end of his tale.

The look she gave the team was frantic as she shifted form. "We leave. NOW." To cut off protests, she gave a minimum of explanation. "The power-surge shocked him as well."

If the team or the two DeadMen couldn't read the message there, too bad for them. She was already moving, encircling the team, the dead men, and the bags of clothing, but avoiding the body on the floor, dragging them Between

.. Again, it was the pitch blackness of the darkest cave, or the cloudiest night. Argent's body was a pale silver in the dark, holding them somehow close to her as she swam through the emptiness. The great heartbeat sounded out like BigBen on the hour... One. Two... Three...

At Ten she broke through to the light, emerging so far west that the sun was three hours behind where they'd left. Mid-morning light glinted off a rectangular pool as the team appeared on the tiled deck around it. A large house blocked one side, while a wall enclosed the deck without hiding the grand view down the hillside to the fog-strewn city sprawling far below.

[B4UTRUST]

When Ghost got to the evidence locker Kyosuke was already there, stepping out of it. He looked momentarily surprised to see Ghost there. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and leaned back against the chainlink wall.
"Taking Blizzard's words on timliness to heart I see."

--------------

When Lenox came to his senses once more he took one look around and sighed in quiet resignation.
"...shit..."

An instant later he was torn apart at the torso.

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost chuckled, "Wasn't his words. I just want to catch the bastards who did this." He looked at Kyosuke. "So, what were you doing in there? Looking for yourself?" He asked, with a light tone, though he did consider the possibility that Kyosuke had taken or altered something.

[B4UTRUST]

"Looking at evidence for another case. Nothing really important. Just wanting to make sure that it was actually filed and not just left to disappear."

Kyosuke pushed himself off of the fence and walked towards the door and out of it.
"I'll be back shortly. I'll catch up with you guys."

[Agent Fisher]

Ghost waved as he walked off. He wondered what case Kyosuke was taking care of. As his mind dwelled on that, it shifted and his thoughts drifted to his old team.

[Cynical Cat]

"Frisco," said Blackheart. "Nice. Know where a bed is that I can collapse on?"

[LadyTevar]

It was good to see Blackheart had his priorities straight. Otherwise, she'd have had to explain what happened back there, and at the moment she wasn't sure she could.

Maybe he trusted her, again.

"There's four guestrooms, and the ones in front of the house has their own bath," Li Na offered, looking to the rest of the men. "Two bedrooms upstairs, two on the main floor. The one through that door," a shadow tendril pointed out a door to one side, ".. is mine. Invitation only. Trespassers will be thrown in the pool and drowned, unless I can convince Legacies to eat you."

She sighed, rising slowly to her feet. "I guess it's time for the grand tour...." Then she herself could collapse, although she was highly surprised that Hotfoot hadn't jumped and ran yet. I hope he doesn't go downstairs....

She led Blackheart (and any following) away from the pool and through the glass-inset double doors. A right turn lead them into a large vaulted room casually decorated in blues and greens with an Oriental theme. The furniture looked comfortable, in that way something used daily gets after a few years. An L-shaped sofa set with Laz-E-Boy chair took up one side, facing what would have been a fireplace if it'd not been replaced by a decorative TV stand.

Passing it by, Li Na continued down a short hallway, past a well-appointed dining room that looked like it had rarely been used, nodding to a small door opposite it. "The half-bath, so you know." She didn't mention the curving bar that took up the space under the stairway, but simply paused at the base, nodding on into the house. "The two bedrooms are down this hall, help yourself. The kitchen is through the dining room. There's one more bedroom upstairs, then you gentlemen will have to start finding roommates."

She looked to Blackheart with a small teasing smile. "Team leader gets one to himself, if he can make it upstairs."

[SirNitram]

"Just give me somewhere I can have some piece and quiet. Bed optional. Nice clear ceiling with nothing on it is not." Gravitas said simply, the eufiber reconfiguring itself dramatically back into his three-piece suit. "After all that fun, I need to meditate and refresh my energy stores."

[Cynical Cat]

"I can still float," said Blackheart. "If no one objects I'm going to collapse and leave off asking questions and making decisions until I can do a better impression of a healthy man." He floated upstairs and collapsed on the bed of the Gold Room.

[Bloody Good]

"I can understand why you wanted the multiparted Word... I fear it is best left shattered, though. I would require time to research it before I could locate the original word that made the demons fear."

Tasat looked confused. "Find it? We have most of it. Lasciel has the last piece, and I suspect that she will remain hidden until we two die of old age. She's too crafty to risk us taking it, and I doubt any other mortal knows how to do so. I've carried it for eons, I understand its nature very well. It is not something physical you can carry away or steal in the night. The Word is knowledge. We can take it by the virtue that a soul has more strength than a demon's spirit. I have always suspected that this is also why demons must always bargain for souls, and never outright steal." He made a subtle motion with his head that suggested that he was snapping back to the topic at hand. "The stories about the Blasphemous Word claim that if a single creature knew the entire Word, they would be 'as a god,' and if the Word were spoken, the whole of creation would be undone."

He shook his head. "If the last part is true, then I would guess that the Lords of Hell did not feel like dying because some fool with more brawn than brain claimed it and said it. I am afraid to even speak a part of the Word. I may not be a bard, but I have enough imagination to see the world bathed in flames or overrun by armies of mind-shattering horrors." He shuddered. "Enlil protect us if Tholos were to loose one of his pieces. The Underworld would be as welcoming as a harem in comparison."

Snap. Back in the Shadows. Tasat didn't even come close to to choking back the metaphysical screams.

Pop. Back out again. He exited badly, and ended up on a knee, trying to keep the contents of his stomach on the inside. "I told you to warn me." He recovered faster than he had last time, and managed to look around, shakily. "Though I suppose the palacial surroundings are a fair enough trade."

He followed as the Serpent-woman led them on the tour. He made a mental note to ask about the nature of the shadows that did her bidding. The almost reflexive use of them reminded him of how the the Word was thoroughly embedded in his mind. More pressing in his way of thought was the almost irreverant way they seemed to view this place.

Perhaps such luxury is more common in this age. I do not know most of these things that fill this palace, but they must be valuable to be in a building such as this.

Wait. Bath. He knew that word. If the Romans ever did anything right, it was those bath houses. "The guest rooms in the front have their own baths? I hope that no one will be offended, but I ask that further invitations wait until after I no longer smell like a leather-worker's shop in the middle of summer."

[B4UTRUST]

Indigo team arrived a short time later. They signed in on the roster and started searching through the evidence locker for the boxes they were looking for.

Kyosuke appeared again while they were doing this, helping them grab boxes. Everyone seemed to be carrying at least one or two of the big bins, each containing serially tracked, carefully labled and stored pieces of evidence for different cases. Some of them appeared completely unrelated however Mindborn was sure there was something there.
"Alright, back to the room. We've got to go through this shit and get it back before dinner."

When they got back to the room the started unpacking the boxes, pulling out bits and pieces of random objects; clothes, papers, bricks, nails, pieces of wood, blood-stained fabric.

"Alright everyone, you know the drill. Watch Mindborn, make sure he doesn't hurt himself or one of us. You ready for this, man," asked Negator. Mindborn nodded and sat down in his chair, closing his eyes. He took a couple of deep breaths. His right hand clenched down on the arm of the chair, a silent nod of knowingly tempting those fates, a nod of respect and fear. His left hand was held open before him, waiting. He stared straight ahead, not blinking, concentrating.

Slipping on a pair of rubber gloves Prophet drew the first piece of evidence from its protective bag. One of the nails that held Cascade to the wall. Prophet carefully dropped the nail into Mindborn's hand. Mindborn's right hand clenched, his eyes lost focus but shifted rapidly as he jerked his head around, looking at something only he could see, only he could feel and hear.
"Cool bricks... daylight... afternoon... pain... confusion... fear... He's there, holding me somehow. I can't move, can't act, can't run. I'm powerless, helpless. I.. I.. I see him. He's not alone. There are others... But they're all shadows... I see them but I can't see them... I...I... AAAAAHHHHH!!!"

Mindborn's eyes went wide as his body started to convulse. His left hand tighted around the nail, piercing his skin. His pupils shrunk to pinpricks and his eyes rolled up into his skull leaving only the whites showing. Blood trickled down his hand from both sides where the nail pierced the skin. He kept on screaming.

[LadyTevar]

Li Na started to protest as David dropped her hand and floated upwards, but bit it back. "Fine... I'll check for pain pills..." she muttered, looking back at Gravitas.

"Mike, there's a game room upstairs, as well as the Blue and Gold rooms. Don't know which one Bl... David took. If you don't need a bed," she nodded to an arched opening. "That's the living room... I never used it," she said with a slight frown. "Ember wanted leather."

"As I said.. the other two bedrooms are down there, your choice, Green or White." She looked back up the stairs, wincing a little. "I have to see what pills we have around here..." and she slipped into a shadow and was gone.

She reappeared in the Master Bath, trying to sooth Bl... David... DAVID... from a distance. It was harder, and the Demonheart spoke louder when David's body wasn't there to block it. Just shut up... or weren't you happy to see that man die? she snarled its way, knowing it wouldn't really understand her.

There. That should work. She shadowstepped again, grabbing a glass from the kitchen then up to the room she felt David was in.

[Cynical Cat]

"Thanks," said Blackheart wincing. "What's a lethal dose with this stuff?"

[LadyTevar]

"Thanks," said Blackheart wincing. "What's a lethal dose with this stuff?"

Li Na winced with him, from the shared pain and from the idea of a lethal dose. She gave him the bottle, the glass absent-mindedly handed off to a shadow tendril that vanished into the bathroom. "No clue. I'm going to assume you know what you're doing, David, and that -He- will keep you alive?"

Water run briefly in the bathroom, then the shadow returned, carefully balancing the glass before Li Na took it away.

[SirNitram]

"...If it is that Word of Power, it doesn't make you as a God. Just as a Destroyer." 'Mike' said immediately, shuddering at Tasat's statement and the implications. "Go. Bathe. We'll figure out how the hell we strike at the demon's staging grounds after we've all rested up a little bit more. But call me Mike in public. I have other names, but Mike will do."