Ohio: Eagleopolis

Synapse observed unmoving as the bullets pinged off the creature's eye. The beast's power levels were far off the charts, perhaps even comparable to Zealot. He also took note of how the beast raised it's snout and inhaled, as if it relied more on smell than on sight.

As it made it's way further into town, the android pursued, hoping the stench of sewer gas would not raise any alarms.

Accident was very happy to be in a grocery store. Perfect location for a hungry blood-loss victim. First things first, he came upon the frozen breakfast section. This was where things got hectic. In a matter of minutes, every package of frozen waffles had disappeared from the shelves, been eaten, and become discarded waste. Truly, it was a sight to behold.

What a sight to behold, a pale young boy gobbling down all those waffles and emptying the box of every last one of them. Since no one was here to stop here, Signal picked up one of those green bags and what was left of the bottled water, stuffing that and the candy from Sugar Shock into the bag. This would do for now. The bag itself floated since carrying it would be cumbersome, even if it didn't weigh that much (but it freed her hands which was a benefit that outweighed the cons of wasting her telekinesis further).

She looked outside, waiting for anybody that might try to take a potshot at either herself or the boy.

Tilting his head to the side and thinking about the words that had managed to free themselves of the mouth of the man he'd just killed before he...well, crushed the man's mouth, his eyes closed. The two shots that had rung out and flown into the men's heads forced their way into his mind as well, and...well. Mind control, that was...that was definite. Obvious, really; nobody would charge him so suicidally if they'd had a choice. Releasing his grip on the jellied stub of a neck and allowing the man's corpse to fall to the ground, a sigh left his lips.

Well, presumably, at least; hearing the sigh over the giant sewer explosion that happened almost immediately after probably would've been difficult. Smoke, corpses, everywhere...shrapnel hits him, useless against his skin. Looking up to the sky as the smoke clears around him, he releases another, actually audible sigh, and flies up above the city. Arms crossed, higher than the tallest skyscraper, Zealot's eyes close and he thinks...people believed he was dead. He must inform them that he is not. Also, Titan: Good place to hang out?

Shifting his head to the side, something...distant was in his ear. Was that...were those...radio waves. He could hear radio waves. What the fuck. Idly...tuning in, to the waves, taking quite a decent amount of time to figure out this odd thing as best he could, he focuses on the frantic screaming of the police about something massive stomping through the city. Eyes open, and he looks down towards the area the screams seem to be coming from-well, the most screams. In an instant, he's flying there; in another, he's there, in front of a grocery store, right in front of Signal's vision.

Signal stares down Zealot, having just arrived at the grocery store.

A twinge of fear is struck into Signal's heart. While superheroes weren't a big thing over at the strip, Zealot (before that whole mess in South America) was still something of a boogeyman to the children of Vegas; even in adulthood, looking into the face of the man who could kill you instantly was something of a shock. Amazing that she didn't feel this way back at the museum.

"Is there a reason you dropped by... Zealot?" Signal asked, tilting her head ever so slightly to the left.

58664 entered a barren store that had been looted thoroughly.
He slumped against a wall and breathed heavily as the distancing of titanic footprints moved into the distance.

That was all he had left.
A source of power on the edge of his consciousness, and he couldn't tap into it.
He squeezed his guns hard; deeply ingrained instinct had made him draw the second as he ran.

As he caught his breath, he mourned the loss of his last bullets; Agent loved these guns more than he would have imagined.

He thought about the mechanics of the pistols; he knew everything about them. He could visualize the bullet being loaded into the chamber, each step it took to fire, how the silencer muffled sound and how those who were hit often died before they felt the shot.
He smiled grimly as he shot the counter across from him... and raised an inquisitive eyebrow as a small shimmer of purple energy seemed to undulate across the surface where his bullet would have hit. He tried again... and again... with the 2nd gun... and then the counter, which had shown no signs of damage, collapsed into a dark, ashen pile.

Agent 58664 check the chamber of his pistol and saw within a small, crystalline bullet of deep purple.

Thinking back to the documents he had memorized, 58644 laughed. Visualization seemed to be key. Shooting DarkForce from his hands was not something he could do because the very idea seemed preposterous to him. Firing specialized ammunition from a gun he knew better than he'd know his own life was perfectly natural, however.

Agent groaned as he got up and had to fight back a smile. Silent bullets that leave no trace until it's too late; what secret agent wouldn't be giddy about such a gift.

A little more testing told him that he did not have immense range... 50 ft at most, but it would have to be enough.

Agent 58664 set out stealthily to hunt a beast.



<Megaman X Music here>
Agent gained:
Darkforce Imbued Silenced Pistols (Device - 14 points)
Only useable by Agent (other than as normal silenced pistols)
Blast 5 – Range 50ft; DC 20, Autofire 1; Penetrating 2, Insidious, Subtle 2 (Unnoticeable)

Bat-cruz was shocked. By 2 things:
1) Humans were pigs
2) That man....there was no mistaking it now....

Following Signal and AB to the store in batform was simple enough, he'd expected the usual mindless chatter as he waited for the chance to strike but this...

"Everything is going my way, it seems. It doesn't matter who is where, even that infinite blood doll doesn't matter. This...this I need to know.

Bat-cruz could wait no longer. He HAD to know who this man. He HAD to. Justice was....the only human he thought of as a friend. He was someone even a monster like Valencruz looked up to, and so, he no longer cared what he had to do. He would have his face-to-face with this man. Valencruz had spent most of his life shying away from news, as well as doing anything that would cause someone like Zealot to even know of him or vice-versa, unfortunate for Valencruz.

A bat fluttered behind Zealot and, in a moment. The bat was no more. Valencruz was there. Silent. Serious. No sign of his usual theatrics or flair for the dramatic. He had only 1 thing to say:

"Is that you, Justice?"

"...." He paused, having heard Signal address this man as 'Zealot'.

"My...mistake." Then it was true. His longtime friend was...gone.

Not bothering to look at her, he just...stays there, hovering in the air. Man, what a creep. Suddenly, the voice tears from his throat, and he speaks. "Something is attacking. Big. Think you'd be up to taking it down?" Head shifting down and towards her, that...eugh, always with those fucking eyes, that stare sets itself down on her. "Unless you don't think you're...strong enough." Small, mirthless smirk appearing, his head goes down to the ground for a moment before turning back up at her. Mind seems twinged with regret at the subject, but...not very different from his words. Strong enou...? Oh.

Looking down at the candy in her hands for a moment, his mind switches to a different subject for a second-before deeming it less than important and moving on. Seeming to stare past her, his eyes narrow; he looks into the store, shoulders rolling. "Somebody else in there?" Fists clench and unclench, muscles strain against the dark blue spandex of his suit.

Accident looked at the man who now stood before him. "Can.. I help you?" He asked, sure he had seen this man somewhere before. "You look... familiar."

Finally reaching the crater Behemoth found it empty bar a few corpses and his target already lost and in a fit of anger tore down a nearby building and roared a message understandable by all to the city "Those who run and hide despite their strengths face me and take your judgement standing or be hunted and slaughtered as the prey you choose to be" Behemoth then found a scent not obvious at first of a creature that left the crater human but at the same time not. Deeming this to be his target Behemoth began following it.

Valencruz felt no need to hide. He stepped out (as apparently he was hiding) to face Zealot. Justice was the pinnacle of humanity. He was the reason Valencruz had (past tense) been so adverse to taking human life. He knew, deep-down, everyone could be Justice.

That alone made human life worth preserving. No matter what. Maybe that was his true goal all along? He would ponder his philosophical purposes later, for now.

"Zealot, was it? Why did Justice see it fit to give you his power? Who were you to him?.." He paused, before adding

"And is it still possible to avenge him?"

"Hmm... not really. He's not the kind of... thing I'd fight anyways. Out of my league by several miles. And yes. Someone else is in here." Without turning to Accident, he adds, "Someone recovering from a vampire attack. I'm actually thinking of hijacking a car and taking this kid far away from here. Somewhere that he can call sanctuary. Maybe even get on a plane and take the poor kid to Rome if that'll stop the guy in his tracks."

She didn't care that the vampire was now right there in the open. You could call it a challenge, what Signal just did. You could even say what she did was the equivalent of firing a flare in the sky. A... a warning signal to the man that was now waxing philosophical.

Finding a 30ft monster rampaging through a city when you know its destination is no mean feat, but Agent managed somehow.

He paused to calm himself; battle always made him tense (as he could tell from the 2 fights he'd been in against cannon fodder), and this was his first real battle against a super.

His bullets were DarkForce, an energy which was, by-and-large unknown.
Would it work on living creatures?
Would it work on a Super?
Would it be powerful enough to pierce the beast's hide?
So many questions, so few options other than 'shoot it and see'.

If 58664 had been a drinking man, this is where he would have taken a swig of liquid courage.

He rounded the corner to face the beast and started shooting.

Looking down at the both of them and shaking his head, a hand comes up. "Neither of you watch the news much, do you? No, I guess not-it's not as though it particularly matters." Continuing to hover in the air above them, he looks up into the night sky, skyline obscured with smoke from the burning city. Car alarms blare, slamming from the Behemoth's feet..."He did not give me his powers. These powers I have are my own; his ended with him. To him...I was someone he encountered little; I had no reason to go after him, and he could never catch me. But he...is dead. He cannot come back."
Eyes shifting down to stare directly at Valencruz, it may be...unsettling, for an undead man to stare into the eyes of a being who is to entropy what Justice was to sunlight. Zealot breaks the gaze after roughly a second. "To avenge him, you would have to fight the universe itself; a being of pure life was the cause of his death, and it is now gone. He is dead. He will never come back. Seeking him will only result in the revelation of the impossibility." Arms cross, and he shrugs. "I can take you out of the city, if you'd like. I need to go to New York, anyway."

The robot, hearing this declaration, and descended to street level and commandeered one of the abandoned armored vehicles. Many of the officers had fled for their lives, leaving their firearms strewn about in the streets like children's toys. Still, there were some weapons that had not displayed their uselessness, unique to the military. Soldiers had been here, and soldiers had abandoned their posts. Interesting.

Built without fear, the machine hauled as many of these weapons into the only un-overturned van in the , vicinity and gave chase to the monstrosity, giving no heed to traffic laws, as most individuals had already evacuated.

Still, the sirens blared and the engine roared as the hardy little truck traversed the behemoth's path of destruction.

"Not me, Zealot. The boy snarfing down the waffles. He needs safety. Protection. Not someone like me..." Signal looked away from Valencruz; she needed a quick getaway route for herself and the boy if the vampire decided to pull anything sneaky. If he controlled Zealot somehow... oh man...

"Ha...I'd gladly that fight and more if it would have even the smallest chance to do anything for Justice." Valencruz had to examine things. Before it was the usual, 'Justice is dead he'll be back soon' now it's "the greatest person I have ever known and my closest friend is gone forever...and I did nothing.".

Valencruz couldn't think of anything more to say. He didn't know what to feel. Sadness? Regret? Rage? Rage was high up there. He certainly wanted to rip out Signal's haughty throat and murder the man would bring him such horrible news. He wanted to but...

"What would Justice do?" He pondered. It seemed like an eternity since he last truly thought about who he was and why. At last, something clicked. He will do what Justice could not, he truly would. Empty and broken, he shot a stare at Signal and Accident Boy, different from the usual one filled with malevolent intentions, and said only this:

"You don't need to be scared anymore. I will avenge Justice, the only way left I can...
I will save you. All of you. No matter what." Valencruz's vow renewed and his drive stronger than ever, he vanished. Only the unsettling black fog remained, soon to be blown away by the wind.

As behemoth followed the path he found a smell he recognized from the earlier gunman only to receive a feeling he didn't recognize instantly due to how foreign it was to this form. Wait he knew it pain very real although small pain. turning to face the man Behemoth roared and accepted his challenge ignoring the small injuries as a cost of battle. Out of respect Behemoth did not respond lightly to the opening salvo and used his full set of abilities to smash open the earth and force the shooter to the ground.

Signal didn't know what to feel by the vampire saying that. Even a creature of the night looking up to someone like Justice... what influence. Shame he died. She relaxed and sighed as the black fog moved away. Feeling genuinely relieved, Signal walks over to Accident Boy and tells him, "I think it's over. You don't have to worry anymore."

Signal stepped out of the grocery store, past Zealot, with a bag full of candy and water floating by her side.

...Maybe if he truly turned hero, he'd be a little prettier. Just a little.

Signal flew off, wandering the city in search of a useable car.

58664 say the beast smash the ground and threw himself unto his back, firing all the while, better to be prone as you chose than by tripping.

The landing did not go as expected as the ground deformed quick than Agent jumped and he landed on a piece of upturned cement.

Rolling to his side, Agent managed to get into a kneeling position. His back was killing him and he needed to be ready to sprint back around the corner should the monster get closer.

58664 kept firing fitfully at the beast, letting lose a barrage of tiny bullets against a hulking brute, hoping that a 'death by a million cuts' wasn't just a pretty little saying.

All those hits were nothing to Behemoth as he grabbed a girder from some nearby wreckage and swung it in a low arc to swat the man away but at the same time something felt wrong about the injuries.

This battle must end quickly lest this wrongness affect his mission Behemoth decided that the weapons of this man must be removed from this battle as soon as possible.

As the earth buckled underneath the van, the rocking cement underneath flung the van onto it's passenger side. Deciding this was as close enough as he would get, he cleared himself from the vehicle and unloaded one of the rocket launchers he had scavenged from the beast's first entrance.

Mounting himself atop the toppled truck, the android took aim with his weapon, attempting to zero in on the eye, nostril or ear of the bovine behemoth. Once he was sure his aim wouldn't be improving any more than it had, he loosed the first missile.

Amidst the remains of some buildings and the still-standing leftovers, Signal flies around Eagleopolis with her bag in one hand and the almost-finished candy bar in another.

Whenever she had times like this, she would go introspective and relive every single recent conflict, each detailing a bad end and how it can be avoided. Her thoughts go back to the sewers, and she imagines dying in the explosion, probably of debris piercing her vital organs or gaining a concussion strong enough to kill her. Then she moves on to the fall from the building. She doesn't stop herself with her telekinesis and dies of the impact. And then she goes to flying by the behemoth... which quickly swats her out of the air and dies, of course, of the impact. Signal thinks of so many horrible, gruesome possible deaths that never actually happen; it helps her calm down somewhat because she then feels glad that all these were avoided either by her own actions or by pure chance.

And every single time, her thoughts wander back to the vampire. Dying horrifically was one thing. It either ended immediately or it took a while and the agony would last for what seemed like hours, but you still died one way or the other. Turning, though... that was a different story, one Signal was not familiar with at all. And she kept repeating the scenario, over and over. Pale face, drained body, risen again as a servant of the undead, and...

Signal quickly silenced (again) the part of her head that was romanticizing becoming a vampire, because that's terrible, and found herself above the mostly empty lot of what was once a car dealership. There were still a few (mostly) unharmed cars. Did they have fuel, though? That was the question. She landed on the lot and ran into the dealership building. Signal had no business hot-wiring a car; she had to at least look like she owns it.

Accident continued to stand in the store, completely unfazed. He simply stood there, drinking some apple cider, waiting for the worst to happen.

As Agent 58664 saw the beast take a wide, street-clearing swing with its club, he sprang like a gazelle around the corner... a decision he immediately regretted as his back injury flared up and made him stumble. Having just cleared the corner by a few paces when the club smashed into the side of the building, Agent was spared the brunt of the attack, but debris bruised and battered him.

Looking around to take stock of the situation, Agent saw a manhole cover.

"Might as well," he told himself.

Shooting at the beast's legs with one gun through the new gap in the corner and the manhole cover with the other, Agent moved for an escape under ground.