Toronto, Ontario, Canada -- another land of the free and home of the brave. The largest city in Canada, with a population of over three million (and a metropolitan census of over double that), it is everything for its country that New York City or Los Angeles is for the United States. It is, however, nicer, what with its country being Canada and all.

Situated on the shore of one of the largest inland freshwater seas in the world, Toronto is a city of culture, commerce, and opportunity. Unfortunately, among those opportunities are many chances for criminals looking to make a buck.

Federal attitude towards the Gifted tends to fall on the side of civil rights (at least, until cause for fear is given and the government needs to look tough). Officially, however, there is no censure on using Gifts in a way that doesn't violate an otherwise existent law.

With perhaps three dozen Gifted in the country altogether, the people of Toronto often forget about or disregard the revolution that has engulfed much of the world. But, perhaps because of that very scarcity, the city can be seen as a tempting place for Gifted foreigners to come and try to make their mark on the world.

Toby was minding his own business. Just making his way downtown walking on the sidewalk and listening to his Ipod. It had been a week since his full breakout. He was just thankful that where he had been standing no camera caught his face. The last thing he wanted was a lot of attention on him from his "gifts". All he had wanted to do was protect his family. However, he had ended up destroying half the bank instead. His parents looked at him with a mixture of love, fear and pity. His sister was glad he had protected them and she did not judge him for what he had become. For that he was thankful. He missed the old days, when all he had was the portals. Things were much simpler then. Just go where he wanted and have fun. Now he could potentially blow up a building and he had almost no control over it. The only thing he could do was not use his powers.

Suddenly, as if fate itself were just spiting him, there was a screech of tires. Toby looked up in time to see a car just barely swerve to miss one that ran a red light. While the cars did not make contact the one that swerved was now barreling down on Toby. Instinctively he threw up his hands to protect himself....and in response half the street peeled up and made a wall around him. He heard the first crash form the car hitting his barrier and then four or five more from cars either entering the now large hole he had created, or slamming their brakes and causing more accidents to avoid it. He panicked and quickly made a portal underneath him to an alleyway he had passed a few blocks back. He cursed himself for lack of control and, with tears in his eyes thinking of how many people he might have just hurt, quickly made his way in the opposite direction of the now catastrophe he had caused.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:42, Sun 11 Dec 2016.

David bounded through Palmerston, traversing the urban neighbourhood at about sixty kilometers an hour afoot, hurdling entire houses in order to keep his more or less straight line approach.  The app he ran on his phone to monitor emergency calls had relayed to his earbud a somewhat confused-sounding report about a vehicular incident involving the ‘Larger Than Life’ statues.

LTL was a trio of ten foot tall statues, cast in bronze, in a variety of heroic poses.  They were the work of a local artist, commissioned in the wake of the Awakenings, purportedly to remind people that the world has long had a mythic tradition of powered heroes, and the presence of the Gifted should be seen as a sign of hope as well as a reason to fear.

Apparently, having them erected on the border of Christie Pits Park meant they were a reason to not go off the road unexpectedly, although he had to admit that car vs sculpture was a far better scenario than car vs playing children.

Emerging from Little Italy onto Bloor street across from the park, he veered west toward where the statues resided.  He wasn’t certain how badly the driver or passengers had been injured in order for there to have been a 911 call, but if he could assist, he….

He stumbled to a halt, just inside the park, as he saw a couple of things that didn’t make sense.  For one, there were two cars clearly in distress; one, on its side up against one of the park’s trees, the other halfway onto the sidewalk, its trunk crushed in heavily and its rear axle clearly broken.

The second thing?  The LTL display was…missing.

Bounding over to the first car, he carefully tipped it back onto its wheels to discover it was already empty, but before he could approach the second car he heard the screeching of tires from up the street followed by the familiar crunch of an automobile accident.  Screams rose as well, followed by breaking glass.

This was…atypical, to say the least.

Loping down the street toward the source of the disturbance, he found…well, he found the trio of statues.  One was in the process of shoving aside the car that had just crashed into it, while the other two were smashing their way into the front of a building that proclaimed itself to be ‘Toronto Gold – Buy and Sell!’

…that was something you didn’t see every day.

Still, statues were good – statues weren’t people, and that meant he could discourage them from continuing what they were doing a little more aggressively than usual.

Leaping high into the air, he came down like a cannonball in the middle of the back of the car-struck sculpture, driving it face-down into the street – not that it had a face, per se, being one of those more ‘abstract’ creations that had more of a suggestion of features than anything requiring great detail…or great talent, possibly.  He hit with more force than he should have for his size, thanks to his enhanced inertia, and the sculpture boomed into the asphalt with a resounding impact.

”Bad statue!  Down!  Stay!” he barked at it, under the theory that giving it orders and having it ignore him was better than not even trying.  He didn’t have time to make sure it stayed down, however, and rebounding off the divot he’d left in its back, he turned on the other two.

”No, no, no!” someone cried from further up the street, and snapping his head around that way he saw, in amongst the variety of pedestrians running the other direction, someone was approaching and waving his arms angrily.

A young white male, eighteen, maybe twenty, dressed (in all things) in black jeans, many-buckled boots, a purple shirt, black trench coat, sunglasses, and a purple fauxhawk.

Yeah.  Seriously.

“You’re not so mighty!” the kid sneered, as teenagers only could.  “You’re just one guy, whereas I’m,” and he actually paused for effect here, while the other two statues continued to smash their way into the building. ”The Master of Puppets!”

The Mighty shook his head, then strode over to grab one of the pair of statues by the elbow.  This one had been cast with its hands on its hips, and it seemed to be stuck that way despite being animated, so it had been flailing a little less effectively than it might have been in the first place.

Hauling it away from the storefront, he flung it stumbling to smash into the first one he’d tangled with, sending both of them crashing to the street again in a cacophony of abused metal.  Was this kid for real?

”Okay kid, look,” he sighed, pointing a gloved finger.  ”Points for going a little different for a name, but really?  Metallica’s lawyers are going to eat you for breakfast; they don’t let anything slide.  And as for—“

He lost where he was going with that as white light burst inside his head, and he found himself embedded in the wall of the building across the street.  Hauling himself out, he swung around to find the third statue stomping toward him, her hips rolling back and forth as she advanced.

How about that – guess the kid could control them a little more remotely than he’d thought.  And the fact that he’d been knocked forty feet across the street was…disconcerting.  They were a lot stronger than he’d have anticipated, if they were able to move him that far with a hit – he was pretty hard to get moving unless he was the one doing it.

”All right, kid, that’s enough!” he barked, invoking Adult Authority as best he could.  It might not help, teenagers being what they are, but he likely wasn’t far out from under parental thumbs to have fully lost the sensation of Being In Trouble.  He ducked under the grab the statue made at him, reached up and grabbed her in return under the arm, and rolled her awkwardly over his shoulder to slam her into the ground.  He did not like it when people were bigger than he was, even when they weren’t actually people.  He wasn’t used to it, and it was just…wrong.

He stepped back, seeing the other two were getting to their feet, and realized he’d have to do something different.  This wasn’t working very well, and—

Well, that was when the streetlight reached down and wrapped itself around him.

”Oh, come on!” he protested, caught off-guard as the punk laughed scornfully at him and the steel lamp post tightened its coils like the strangest constrictor snake ever.  Just how much could this kid do at once?  He’d never heard of a Gifted like this guy – he must be newly Awakened.

”You’re seriously doing this?” he called out, taking a breath and flexing his arms, prompting a series of cracks and groans from the suddenly stressed streetlight.  ”This is your big debut, robbing a gold shop?  Are you—“

He broke off and closed his eyes as the mailbox one of the statues had hurled at him smashed against his face, bouncing back and spraying undelivered post everywhere…and actually possibly landing this kid in federal crime territory, come to think of it.

”Are you just about done?” he continued, his voice lowering ominously, and the streetlight column shattered into several pieces as he dropped bare-footed to the ground.  Apparently not, as the three Larger Than Life continued to stalk toward him.

Well, he had an idea of how to deal with this.  It was…unconventional, but it should - probably - do the trick….

---

---

It being twenty past ten on a Wednesday morning, business was fairly slow at the Walmart Supercentre in Dufferin Mall.  There were two cashiers open, and only a handful of other employees on the floor, all doing their best to avoid doing any real work if they could manage it.  Only a couple of them were close enough to the door to hear the deep thump of impact that came shortly before the doors whooshed open.

The Mighty strode into the store, stepping lightly despite his mass.  Streamers of smoke rose from his hair, and parts of his charred shirt still glowed with embers.  He left a trail of smudged black footprints as he walked, his bare feet slapping on the polished floor.

He smiled and nodded pleasantly at a slack-jawed Filipino girl who was spraying down lettuce in the produce section as he passed, heading back toward the men’s clothing department.  He stripped his sorely damage shirt off over his head, tearing it most of the rest of the way free as it came off his arms to reveal an impressively muscled chest and back.  Improbably, the shirt seemed to have taken almost all of the soot and char off his face and arms as it had come free, and when he ran his free hand through his hair it fell stylishly back into place.

”Catch,” he suggested to the older Hispanic woman who was working in ladies’ clothing, and gently tossed the scorched shirt to her without breaking stride.  She caught it reflexively, scowling at him with likely just as much reflex.  Dusting absently at his pants with both hands, he got rid of the worst of the scorching in moments as his eyes roamed over the racks.

”Ah!” he exclaimed happily as he spotted the racks that sold his shirts.  Leafing through them until he found an extra-large, he removed it from its hanger and popped the tags off as he walked back toward the front of the store.  Pulling it on over his head, he hid the intriguingly muscled view from sight as he tugged it into place, and carefully opened one of the pouches on his belt as he approached the cash lanes.

Extracting a glossy green plastic twenty dollar bill, he dropped it and the tags on the conveyor belt as the plump, red-headed girl behind the till stared up at him.  Waggling his eyebrows at her with a smile, he nodded and continued his way out of the store, the doors whooshing shut behind him again.  His shadow on the wall outside crouched, then flashed upward and away.

Toronto was a big city, there was likely something else that would need his attention sometime soon….

Toby was being passed left and right by curious goers trying to see what the commotion might have been since traffic had been stopped up. Toby did not notice nor care that he was the only one walking, very quickly, directly away from the accident.

 JOHNNY-5 roared through the interwebz at blazing speeds. Toronto was a well connected modern city so he had no problems sifting through it's networks. He landed on one of the candidates that he'd seen in various news clips already. However this was not the culprit, that much was certain. Currently he was carousing with Supercentre folks. He listened and watched impassively at first. As he watched from the digital realm, he saw various eruptions of social media surrounding his actions like a trail. He factored many different clues about the man into his assessments and decided to take more direct action, a test if you will.

 He split his attention between the Mighty and the unknown assailant at the site of the seismic epicenter downtown. There were people amassing and media of all kinds were picking up the scene quickly so he had a good idea of what it all looked like.

 A buzz came through the man's communications earpiece and then a crackling radio signal, followed by a bass filled voice. >>>There's something transpiring at Eastern Ave. and Cherry Street. It's a rather well populated area, some seismic activity has been detected there... Will you bask in the glory of your recent victory or will you pursue this new lead?<<<

Startled by the unexpected voice in his earbud, the Mighty missed his landing and had to step lively in an awkward little shuffle to avoid totalling a teal SUV parked at the curb.

"I'm sorry, what?" he replied reflexively, looking around suspiciously -- although the likelihood of seeing someone who might be responsible was vanishingly small.

"Look," he went on, thinking furiously.  "I'm going to skip over the usual tropes of 'who is this', and 'how did you get this number', and segue right into clearly, you don't know me.  I don't 'bask in glory'," he denied flatly, which wasn't necessarily true but was absolutely the public image he tried to maintain.  Yes, he absolutely enjoyed the positive attention of his works, but he made an effort to keep from seeming to do so too overly -- nobody liked a cocky, self-absorbed glory hound.

"Eastern and Cherry?" he repeated, orienting himself by street signs and consulting his mental map of the city.  "Fine.  I'm about four clicks as the crow flies, should take me five, six minutes if I'm going to avoid trampling anything important.  You don't get that tightly focused 'seismic activity', so what you're telling me is there's yet another Gifted messing around in my town today."  This...was shaping up to be an unusual day, to say the least.

Starting to move, he travelled alternately in great, building-clearing bounds and low, loping strides along streets that took him in the generally east by south-easterly direction he needed to go.

"Just so you know, Agent Bubbles," he went on matter-of-factly, "I don't go looking for fights.  I appreciate the heads up on the need for some damage control, though."  He'd likely missed the emergency calls regarding this incident while embroiled in his altercation with -- he rolled his eyes -- the 'Master of Puppets'.

Guilt finally overrode his need to flee. He just couldn't leave the street and people like that. He had to do something. He started to make is way back to the scene of the incident avoiding eye contact on his way.

When he finally arrived a block away he could se the damage he had caused. He felt horrible for potentially causing so many people to get hurt just to save his own skin. He concentrated as hard as he could and was able to use the earth to raise the one car out of the hole before using the wrapped up part of the street and placing it back in its correct alignment. Unfortunately a water hydrant decided to burst from the water pressure he was pushing aside at the time. It landed harmlessly a few feet away. Thankfully he did not give off any glowyness or had to make any silly hand gestures so he was not obvious. As soon as the street was fixed he quickly started away from the scene again.

(Giving the Mighty a chance to catch up to the scene.)
This message was last edited by the player at 04:17, Thu 15 Dec 2016.

 "Calls are coming in at that intersection, looks like seven injuries and some kind of crater," the voice went on ignoring the jide, "by the way, did you happen to be on a team with ducks at some point, that's a team right? Nevermind, all joking aside, looks like you'll have to ferret out the culprit. There's no good shots from any cell in the area, nor surveilance footage..."

 "Okay, bypass the next intersection if you can, morning traffic is still piling up," the voice warned, "by the way you had a LOT of viruses on your phone..."

 JOHNNY wanted to talk straight with him but he couldn't until he could assess this guys potential, suss out any 'evil' connections and see what was going on at the Triangle. "No rooftop movement either within two blocks of the incident. No, to answer your earlier question, I don't pick up your bounding though you did make quite a raucous with that statue fiasco...really, Puppet Master? That guy was a schmuck, but someday he might be more dangerous."

 A minute later they had reached the intersection, it formed a triangular shape as it merged with traffic from the freeway headed downtown. There before them was a gathering crowd and several smashed up cars, one actually had slid into the hole. A cop car had arrived but they curiously chose to hang back with the crowd waiting for EMTs to arrive. One waves at Mighty.

 "Aw, you got a fan. No actually I told them there was a chance of radioactive contaminants in the hole," the voice chuckled, "don't worry I'm giving them instructions to follow your lead. An ambulance is only a block away and coming in. So what do you see Mighty Man?"
This message was last edited by the player at 06:08, Thu 15 Dec 2016.

"Never been to Anaheim," David replied shortly, ignoring the commentary about the state of his phone and the opinions of the kid he'd been forced to subdue.

Clearly though, he'd been being watched before contact had been made, and he was starting to think it was some sort of technopath Gifted poking around.

"I'm going to have to come back to one of my waived questions," he went on as he drew near the scene.  "You've got an awful lot of access -- who exactly are you, that you're tapped into everything and giving instructions to--"

He broke off as the car in the hole shifted, then lurched upwards as the ground beneath it filled the hole like water rising in a glass.  The car rolled back onto the still-intact asphalt, and after a moment the raised and rippled curtain of street tried to settle itself back into place like a duvet being spread across a bed, with limited success.

"That's--" he began, and was interrupted by a loud but muffled crack, followed by water geysering into the air as a fire hydrant toppled over.

"Oh, come on!" he protested, shaking his head and bounding into the intersection.  He hadn't seen any signs of who had been messing with the street, but likely they had to be close in order to see what they were doing.  The gawkers and rubber-neckers as a mass yelped and moved away from the fountaining water, and he resigned himself to getting a little wet.

"Morning, officers!" he called out over the rush of running water, and scooped up the broken hydrant as he passed it.  Taking a hold of it in both hands, he eyed the spouting stream for a moment before bringing the hydrant firmly down atop it.

Water sprayed everywhere for a moment as he tried to align the edges of the pipe, then subsided to a minor halo of water escaping through the crack.  His pants were gradually getting soaked from the knees down, but it was certainly better than it had been.

"Better," he smiled conversationally at the patrolmen, making sure to keep the hydrant held as still as he could.  "If you could get on the radio and contact someone in city services to get the water to this shut off, that'd be great," he added.  "Any idea how all this happened?" he inquired, not willing to trust the nameless voice on his phone for all of his information.

Toby saw him. Mighty. A really awesome super hero, and he looked like he was here to help. That was great, and then he started asking who might be responsible. that was enough to make Toby fearful again and he quickly set off away from this mess looking back over his shoulder at the Mighty hoping he would not be seen.

 "Yes, I wonder how all this happened too. Though I'm willing to bet from this weird self-repairing street, they are really close...but their motives might be to cause problems or perhaps they aren't in control."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:56, Tue 20 Dec 2016.

David snorted, amused at the theorizing.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious," he replied dryly, wondering yet again just who it was that had latched onto him like this.  It certainly didn't seem like a 'fan' -- not the right flavour to the discourse.

Lacking anything productive he could do while he was keeping a cap on the broken hydrant, he looked about the intersection while one of the patrol cops was on his radio trying to get the water shut off.  People were aimlessly standing about, rubbernecking as the general public were wont to do in such situations, with a few who seemed to be just trying to pass through on their way to somewhere else.

And...one kid, who was acting not quite like anyone else.  He was scuttling away, but kept shooting guilty-looking glances over his shoulder, and his body temperature was a little more elevated than it probably should have been, as if he had been exerting himself.

The Mighty was willing to play to his hunches when the occasion seemed to call for it.

"Hey, kid!" he called out the next time the young man looked back, trying not to sound antagonistic.  How he reacted might give an indication as to whether or not he'd been involved in this whole...event.

Toby was trying to get away. He turned his head around again and not only heard but saw the mighty looking right at him and calling out to him. For a moment he froze in his tracks unsure of what to do. Then the creeping fear took over his mind and he bolted down the alleyway right next to him.

 Within the digital realm Johnny continued to monitor and for the once decided to stay quiet, analyzing the scene taking place. He tapped into all the connected equipment in the area and watched the scene impassionately and objectively. He zeroed in on the kid's phone, it was an outdated and inexpensive phone, logs showed it had been purchased eight months ago, and had one hundred and forty-five minutes left on the prepaid plan. The phone records revealed nothing except that this young man was no criminal, but rather had close ties to his family...

David's head dropped with a long-suffering sigh -- sometimes, he hated it when his intuition proved fruitful.  And, unfortunately, whether this kid was doing it out of a sense of mischief or because he had insufficient control -- malice didn't really seem to be a viable motive -- he couldn't let him just go running around half-cocked like this.

Looking over at the pair of officers, he shrugged apologetically.

"Sorry," he called over to them, then dropped the fire hydrant to one side, letting the full force of the water geyser upward again.  Even before the renewed fount of water began to patter back down to the ground once more, he was up and away in a prodigious leap that carried him to the rooftop of one of the buildings that formed the alley of refuge.  Striding to the edge, he located the fleeing boy and jumped down to land in his paht with a crack of bare feet meeting asphalt.

"Hold up a sec, kid," he urged, raising his hands unthreateningly, palms out and held wide.  "I'm not looking for a fight, I just want to talk with you."  He'd had more than enough fights with adolescents this morning already, thank you very much.

Toby was just about to open a portal and go home when the Mighty crashed down next to him. Fear and panic froze his mind and he did not even hear what the Mighty said. He immediately dropped to his knees and tears began to fall. "Im sorry....I am so so sorry. I didnt mean for anyone to get hurt...the car was coming and it just happened....I tried to fix it I swear but I dont know what i am doing."

As he cried rain began to fall where they were standing however it seemed to be centered on the kid. The mighty was barely getting wet, although he was already pretty soaked. The kid however was in the middle of a mini downpour. He looked up at the clouds above and yelled at them. "STOP IT!!" a quick bolt of lightning shot up into the clouds and detonated making a hole that caused the rain to stop. Toby then just hung his head in shame.

Despite himself, the Mighty flinched -- it was difficult not to react instinctively when the elements were sounding off with such vigour.

"Geeze, kid, settle down already," he asked plaintively, blowing some of the water streaming down his face off his upper lip.  While he'd always liked a good thunderstorm, he didn't much like being this close to the heart of one being fulled by Teen Angst.

"It was an accident, I get it," he continued soothingly.  "You don't have full control over what's happening, I get that too -- it's not easy to make things go how you want to, right at first."  He'd inadvertently broken any number of things until he'd gotten the hang of the right amount of pressure to use, in the way of his own Awakening.

"You just gotta calm down, take a breath, okay?" he urged, advancing slowly.  "Getting all worked up is only going to make things harder to keep under control.  Tell me your name," he requested, abruptly changing the subject in a manner he hoped would distract the boy.

Toby took some deep breaths. "Toby." He was starting ever so slightly to calm down as soon as he realized the Mighty was not about to just up and arrest him.

David touched his own chest with his fingertips, still moving slowly so as to not spook the kid if he could manage it.

"I'm Dave," he replied -- it was hardly a secret, after all.  He lowered his hands, keeping his posture non-threatening.

"So," he went on, glancing up at the unnatural cloud that was still dispersing.  "I'm guessing I wouldn't be out of line to suggest that what happened back there was something to do with you?  An accident, maybe?"  Given how the kid -- Toby -- was reacting, he was pretty sure he hadn't ripped up the street deliberately.

Toby nodded. "Someone swerved to avoid a wreck and almost ran me over. I just wanted to be safe and the next thing I know the street was wrapped around me. I tried to put it back to fix things."

The small asian man blended into the background well.  He had noticed the sounds of a crowd and allowed his curiosity to draw him to the scene.  He was dressed simply in black jeans and a long-sleeved white t-shirt with black sneakers and a Jays cap pulled down over his dark glasses.

He had arrived in time to see a man he recognized make a dramatic appearance.  The Mighty was much larger than he had thought, there was something about him besides mere size as well.  His Qi was as powerful as that of any master.  The big man was, no doubt formidable.

As he watched, the Mighty leapt to a rooftop and then bounded away.  Zhiquan decided to follow.  Perhaps he could ask a few questions of the Gifted man.  He turned, sniffing the air and then began moving swiftly and gracefully through the crowd.

 "Interesting," Johnny stated into The Mighty's ear, "so what do you plan to do about this young man? He seems to be telling the truth. His background indicates he's sixteen years old. A similar incident happened last week downtown at one of the Toronto Savings and Loan locations, according to their surveillance feed this kid was there with his family, though things get a bit sketchy after the robbers begin opening fire, hard to tell but it sure looks like this kid trapped 'em...seems like a powerhouse. Geez, what do they feed you guys in Canada?"

 Someone else was studying the exchange with interest. A creature only days old, it's only job was to watch things for it's master and as a result it only had a single large eye in the center of it's face flanked by large black ears not unlike a bat, it had a small mouth to facilitate its ability to eat though it only had a small box of crackers in it's miniscule collar-case. It appeared to be something of a flyer and climber. Using it's stretchy skin as wings, it could glide for hours and it would do so to follow this young man, now that it had heard him confirm that he was the cause of the supernatural accident. The creature's waited patiently as a shadow on the rooftop, presenting it's master with all it saw and heard. It grew excited, knowing that it's master was pleased with the discovery, with someone he could use in his magikal endeavors. He only needed a moment of vulnerability to catch him...

Zhiquan moved quietly until he found The Mighty and the young man he was speaking with.  He took a deep breath then exhaled it slowly as he willed himself calm, stifling the anticipatory excitement that was building within him.  Then he stepped into the street.

He approached the two men, one larger than life and the other but a youth, albeit a youth with apparently great power.  As he did, he caught a flicker of movement from a nearby rooftop.  Dismissing it absent-mindedly, nothing but a bird, surely, he stepped forward and bowed deeply.

"Greetings, I am Li Zhiquan.  Like the two of you, I number amongst the Gifted.". His voice was quietly melodious and it was clear that he was not a native english speaker.

David tried to ignore the voice rambling unasked for in his ear, although he did make note of the bank incident of a week ago -- he recalled the event, but he'd been nowhere near that part of the city and the situation had resolved before he could have gotten there.

Besides -- despite his earlier encounter with (sigh) the Master of Puppets, he tried not to get involved in situations of violence without being invited.

"I get that you didn't do it on purpose," he replied to the boy, "and I'm sure that everyone appreciates that you tried to fix things -- not everybody cleans up their messes," he added approvingly.

Unsolicited or no, his hijacked earbud had a point -- what was to be done, here?  The kid didn't do it on purpose, he could hardly be arrested for vandalism.  He himself wasn't looking for a 'sidekick' -- not hardly!  Not in the least because Toby was a minor, not to mention the fact that he didn't have a whole lot of advice on how to get a handle on such extensive elemental powers.

Before he could figure out a likely course of action, however, they were joined by....

He raised his hands incredulously.  "Are you kidding me?  Is there some Gifted boy band rehearsals in town that I missed a memo on?" he demanded of the uncaring sky.  Why was he suddenly being deluged by kids with powers today?

"...you're probably some fifteen year old sitting in his parents' basement hacking me with a tablet," he muttered for the benefit of his remote listener.

Pulling himself together, he smiled at the newcomer.  "Good morning, Li," he replied cheerfully.  "I'm David, this is Toby.  What brings you by today?" he inquired politely.

If it was something along the lines of making a name for himself by beating on other Gifted, his next response was going to be a little less polite.

"I was hoping that you could answer some questions about being gifted.  I have traveled a long way hoping to understand what I have become and why!"  He smiled shyly.  "I was on my way to the library when I found myself in your path."

He looked at the bigger man for a moment before removing his dark glasses.  His revealed eyes are green and split-pupilled, the eyes of a cat not a human.

Well...he really only had himself to blame for this.  While he would consider himself quite far from an expert in matters Gifted, he did have this whole positive public image that he'd gone to great effort and no small expense to manufacture.

So, when impressionable young men showed up to ask advice from someone who, according to the news, seemed to have things fairly together, was it any big surprise?

David had to reflect for a moment on the three very different encounters the morning had brought to him; an arrogant teen, drunk on power and angry with the world; a frightened boy, causing havoc without intent and frightened of the results; and now a calm, collected seeker of wisdom.

Kids these days.

"I hope you're not looking for an explanation on how things work, because understanding how Gifts function is above my pay grade," he replied wryly.  "Although, if I had to guess based on what I'm seeing here, I'd say you're strong, fast, agile, can see in the dark, have a good sense of smell, and are really good at climbing?" he suggested.

"Yes.  I have knowledge of my gift.  I seek a purpose for it."  He paused a moment, frustrated by his limited knowledge of this language.  "I seek the reason I have been made that which I am.  I wish to find my destiny."

He sighed.  "It was a long journey from my monastery to this place, my life is longer journey.  But what path do I choose?"

If one like The Mighty cannot help him, he's not sure what his next step should be.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:21, Sat 14 Jan 2017.

Toby just hung his head muttering something about at least this guy was wanting his powers.

Zhiquan turned to the young man with a slightly sad expression in his eyes.  "It is not a matter of wanting or not wanting, it is a matter of accepting the path you have been placed upon.

This path we have been placed can be a grave burden, indeed.  But it can also be a gift, allowing us to find a great destiny."I

Zhiquan sighed.  "We are like a current in a great river.  We may flow around the rocks and make our way swiftly to the sea, or we can smash our fury against the rocks and flow angrily to the sea.  Whichever we choose, though, the sea is still our destination, our destiny."

Ah.

With words like 'monastery', 'path', and 'destiny', this Lee fellow had just revealed a lot about himself, and hopefully giving David a handle on how to talk to him.

"I get what you're saying," he told Lee, but made sure he was including Toby in his address.  "None of us asked for this to happen to us, but it has.  There's no going back," even if one wanted to, "and so we have to accept that this is who we are now, and move forward."  He took a breath, trying to organize his thoughts.

"What happened to us...it gives us the opportunity to be more of who we are," he suggested.  "These powers aren't good or bad, in and of themselves.  It's how we use them that's important.  If you want to take this extra ability and be an asshole or a conqueror, there's not a lot that most people can do about it.  Me, though, I make an effort to help people when I can.  I'm better suited to dealing with dangerous situations than just about anybody, and so I make a point of doing so."

He shrugged.  "If I make a mistake or if there's collateral damage, I own up to that mistake, and I put right what I can.  If we're going to do things that are frightening, then people will fear us.  If we show them we're responsible and accountable, they'll come to accept us."

That was, in any case, a large portion of his standard plan of action.

Toby sighed. Own up and show responsibility....do good if you can because you can...He wasn't sure what to do with his life at the moment. "I see the point...still. It is a bit difficult especially when you cant control what you can do. Speaking of which. Do either one of you know someone who could help me?"

"I can help you to learn greater control of mind and body.  That might help you to control your gift.". Zhiquan smiled pleasantly.  "Perhaps teaching such things is a part of what I am called to do."

Toby actually chuckled. "Well if it would help me not make something explode whenever I get angry I will try it."

"Good,  We must choose a time and a place.  Perhaps a park would be good to begin your studies."  Zhiquan bowed deeply to the younger man as he planned a course of study.

"It will require much of you.  But learning focus and control will help you to control your gifts."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:26, Sat 21 Jan 2017.

David smiled, a smile that was as Mighty as the rest of him.

"This," he stated in his voice that was, against expectations, not a bass rumble.  "This is also something that needs doing -- working together to help each other out.  For me, that extends to everybody else," he waved a hand vaguely down the alley, back toward the city street.  "Not just other Gifted.  I try not to get in fights, and I, ah, 'grab stuff down from the high shelves', as it were."  He had done that as a matter of course before his Gift, let alone now what he was capable of.

"You say you're having control issues," he addressed Toby, his expression speculative.  "Been there.  Is that issues with things happening when you don't want them to, or not happening when you do?  Because if you could smooth things out a little more back there, it'd go a long way setting people's minds at ease about what happened," he pointed out.

And endorsing a nervous new Gifted who's trying to do the right thing with his abilities would just happen to be a good PR opportunity....

Toby thought for am moment. "More happening when I don't want them to. Like when I tried to repair the street I accidentally caused the water pressure to build and pop the hydrant..even thought I was not trying to control the water."

He then looked around the edge of the alleyway towards the scene he had caused. "I dont see how I can smooth things over....but if I can help I will."

The Mighty smiled again.  "Sometimes, it's being willing to try and help that's more important than any actual help that results," he pointed out.  "That's where the whole accountability thing comes in."

The big man glanced over at Lee. "If you still want to talk, hang around until we're done here?" he suggested.  "Or if you have to go, my contact information is online -- just put the word 'peaches' in the subject line, it'll get to me immediately." Filters were a wonderful thing.

"You ready to do this?" he's asked Toby.

Zhiquan tilted his head slightly to the side, smiling slightly.  His starting green, split-pupilled eyes gazing at the Mighty and at his new student.  He doesn't speak, but shows no signs of not following his new acquaintances.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:50, Mon 30 Jan 2017.

Toby just sighed. "Yea yea I guess so."

Nodding his approval, the Mighty lead the way out of the alley, back to where the original incident had occurred.  It appeared that the water main to the hydrant had been shut off by this point, but a fair bit of water was still draining out of the damaged street.

The massive Canadian Gifted lead his short train of followers directly to the police officers still on the scene, nodding a polite greeting to them both which was returned with cautious looks.

"Officers," the Mighty began, ignoring for now the curious looks and slowly growing attention from the bystanders still in the area.  "Sorry for bailing abruptly like that.  I've had a discussion with this young man here," he turned slightly to indicate Toby, "and he's decided to come speak with you.  It seems that he was nearly hit by a car by accident, and all of this," he waved a metal-gloved hand about the still-distressed intersection, "was an instinctive reaction to protect himself.  He certainly didn't intend to hurt anyone, and he was trying to put everything back again when he inadvertently cracked the fire hydrant."

He smiled ruefully.  "When you're new to all this, fine control can be tough," he confided.  "Especially when you're stressed out."

The younger of the two cops, a tall brunette, frowned and stepped forward so she could see Toby better.  "All right, kid," she snapped, one hand dropping down near her gun.  "You--"  She was interrupted by a hand on her arm from her partner, an older man with flecks of white starting to show in the black hair at his temples.

"Hold up, Anderson," he told her mildly, and she stepped back with obvious reluctance.  The older cop turned his attention to Toby and smiled, although those who were used to such things might notice that it didn't reach as far as his eyes.

"I'm officer Thomas, this is officer Anderson," he introduced them.  "Is what we he says true, son?" he asked of Toby.

Toby had instinctually been flinching back when the younger officer started on him. However when the older one looked down on him he felt a lot more at ease. "Y..Yes sir. I have only had these abilities for a week or so. I do not have full control over them. I did not mean to pull the street out. I was only trying to protect myself. And I tried to put it back as soon as I realized what had happened."

For a moment, you could almost see the phrase 'didn't mean to pull the street out' replaying behind Thomas' eyes before he continued.

"Well, son, I'm certainly glad to hear that you didn't do something like this on purpose, but you can understand why we have to be concerned that it happened by accident," the older man informed him seriously.  Anderson snorted, as if this was the understatement of the year, but continued to hold her tongue -- and the butt of her holstered gun.

The Mighty, too, remained -- uncharacteristically -- silent, letting Toby forge his own way for now.  The boy was young, but he wasn't powerless, and he couldn't let people dictate how he responded to things.  He was the only one who could learn to control what he could do, and so he needed to take the lead on this.  The Mighty was there for him for support, but this was his life.

"We're lucky that nobody was hurt in all this," Thomas continued, glancing around the disrupted intersection.  "This time." He turned his gaze back to Toby.  "But what about next time, son?"

Toby motioned towards the Mighty and Li. "They said they were going to work with me and help me control my abilities." his eyes kept nervously glancing towards the woman who kept her hand on her weapon. "That way there wont be a next time."

Zhiquan smiled pleasantly at the officers when Toby gestured to him.  He hadn't replaced his glasses, allowing them to see his large, green eyes.

Thomas gave Toby a long dubious look, followed up by a second one to Li -- he had no idea who Li was, but by those eyes he was either yet another Gifted or a hardcore fanboy with expensive contacts.

However...it certainly was nice to have a quiet, civilized discussion rather than adrenaline-infused yelling of threats and warnings, or worse yet an exchange of gunfire and...whatever.

And while the Mighty wasn't officially sanctioned, or even -- officially -- condoned by the Greater Toronto Area, he'd made a point over the last year or so to be as much of a public aid and as little of a public nuisance as possible.  It seemed that for as many on the force who were die-hard opposed to the mere existence of the Gifted, let alone their running around sticking their noses into things, there were those who, quietly, approved of the extra help when it was needed.

"All right, son," Thomas sighed, pulling a notebook off his belt and flipping it open.  "Accidents happen.  I'm going to need to get your full name, a contact number, and the address of where you're staying," he went on, pulling out a pen as well as his younger partner took her hand off her service revolver with a look of disgust that she swiftly schooled into professional indifference.

"You are eighteen, correct?" the older patrolman prompted Toby.

As for himself, the Mighty was...satisfied with how things were turning out.  He didn't ask for any sort of protegees, but he wasn't strictly opposed to giving some basic advice where it was requested.  He wasn't being hassled by anonymous voices in his earpiece any longer, and he should still be able to make it to the airport in plenty of time to catch his flight to Vegas, despite the no-doubt rigorous pre-flight 'interview' he was most likely due for.

Fortunately, Vegas was about as Gifted-friendly a place as one was likely to find on this continent.  He didn't want to create an international incident simply by landing where he wasn't welcome....

Tobias was not sure whether or not the cop was trying to lead him on by asking if he was 18. However he did give him the contact info as he requested and then truthfully shook his head. "No sir. Just turned 16 two weeks ago."

Thomas sighed -- he'd hoped, just this once, things might actually decide to go easy on him.

So much for that.

"In that case, we're going to need to get in touch with your parents, have them come by and pick you up." he told Toby soberly.  "Probably need you to come down to the station while we wait for them," he continued.

"Might I be allowed to come along, Officer.  The boy is to be my student in learning to control himself and I would like to speak to his parents as well."

He bowed politely.  "I am Li Zhiquan, a humble follower of shaolin.  It is an honor to make your acquaintance."

Toby's eyes widened. "Is there any way you could just take me to the house? I don't want to make my mom and sister walk all the way to the station."

 Johnny marvelled at the ease with which Mighty seemed to handle all the attention. He ranked it on a list of his talents. When they the number of qualities and pros reached a threshold that the Boss had laid out, he would make his recommendation. For now he watched the situation from one of rapt awe, in addition two new possible allies had appeared. "Glorious," he said into the Mighty's earpiece, "still here just wanted to let you know. Doing great champ. I can have a Tesla-Z routed to your location in ten minutes. Sound like a way to "exit stage left" on this public display?"
This message was last edited by the player at 10:57, Sat 18 Feb 2017.

Aaaand almost as if thinking of it had prompted a return, the voice was back.  The Mighty made a slight face and turned a few steps away to converse in relative privacy.  With his much-enhanced hearing, he wouldn't miss anything important being said in the vicinity anyway.

"Was beginning to think I'd lost you," he replied, not bothering to keep the faintly sardonic note out of his voice.  "Super relieved.  While I appreciate the mildly creepy offer commandeering resources for me, I'm good to go on foot."  He smiled tightly, despite the fact that it wasn't visible to the stubbornly nameless voice.  "Image, and all."

Meanwhile, officers Anderson & Thomas continued their wary, non-confrontational confrontation with Toby and Li.

"If you could wait to conduct your business until we're finished, that would be appreciated, Mr. Zeekwan," Thomas replied even as Anderson's face darkened.

"Considering what you just did, kid," the young policewoman retorted hotly, "do you really think it's a good idea to be making requests?"

Thomas gave his partner a steady look, and she backed off again but with obvious ill-grace.  He turned back to face Toby.

"If it would cause difficulties for your mother to make the trip, we can bring you around in a patrol car," he continued evenly. "If you'll give your information to Officer Anderson, I'll inform dispatch."  He flipped his notebook closed and shoved it back into his belt, and with a glance at her partner Anderson put on her neutral professional face and got out her own writing supplies even as Thompson made his way over to the black and white Camaro parked nearby.

Toby gave all the info that the police officer requested of him. "She just works alot and its hard on her. I hate being more of a burden than I already am."

"Mmmmhmmm," Anderson replied, looking unimpressed.  "If you could hold off on ripping up any more streets, you'd be less of a burden on everybody," the young patrol woman added a touch acerbically.

"Come on," she told him, gesturing curtly at the waiting black and white, clearly wanting to get this over with.

Zhiquan smiled at Officer Thomas.  "As you would have it, Officer.  And, um, in your language it would be Mr. Li.  Zhiquan is my given name, which you are quite welcome to use as well."

He bowed respectfully to the officer.  He had decided that he liked the man.  He was performing his duty with competence and courtesy.

Toby would follow silently.

It seemed that Toby was in good enough hands, being returned to his mother and in contact with someone who seemed confident that he had training to share that would help with control.  The Mighty gave kid and cat's eye a wave and a smile, both out of genuine good humour and (as always) playing to the public.

"Keep in touch, boys," he called out, reminding them that they had a line of communication with him if they so wanted.  Giving a casual salute to the officers, he took two quick steps before launching himself into the air, bounding away with ease.

<< Exeunt Scene >>

The GTF transport landed without an issue, the automated controls working flawlessly. After the door opened and a ramp extended, Frank stepped out into the land of maple syrup and hockey. He was here to look over some possible recruits, however first he needed to finish up a few loose ends on a matter with the ITSDA and then grab some lunch; he was really hungry, but if he didn't fill his mind with other things it would immediately switch back to the matter in Boura; he hated getting benched, even if he did understand the reasons for it.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:00, Tue 25 Apr 2017.

Thanks to his boss' AI assistant, Frank had contact information on hand for those he was supposed to get in touch with here in the name of the GTF; he could just call The Mighty, but the man did love his fame from the looks of things and the ageless Gifted would probably just end up trying to convince some agent he wasn't trying to sign his client to some endorsement contract.

Jackson preferred one on one, it gave you a better feel for a person as opposed to over a phone. He walked to a rental agency, produced his company credit card, swung a leg over his temporary motorcycle, and was on his way.

Zhiquan had been having a good day.  His last few runs had been to very good neighborhoods and they had, without excetion, tipped him well.  Especially when they saw that he was delivering their orders on one of the restaurants old delivery bicycles instead of a car or truck.  Mr. Kwan had explained that the wealthy whites "eat that type of stuff up with a spoon".  The idiom had confused him at first, but now he was relatively certain that he understood.

He pedaled back towards the restaurant at a more leisurely pace.  He was, by a wide margin, the fastest deliveryman the restaurant had. And as much as he had come to enjoy the exercise, he had also learned to enjoy the gentle wind and the weather that came with the more leisurely pace.

Frank had been unable to get in touch with The Mighty, so he decided to try another name on his list; it also didn't hurt that the next guy worked for a restaurant, and the old fighter could do with a meal. He had gotten a table, picked the buffet, and let it be known he'd like to speak to Li Zhiquan when possible.

The deliveryman might be fast, but the American had some speed in his own right; he was on his fifth plate when Li returned.

Toby was just walking down the street. He had finished his chores and decided to go meet up with Li and have some food while he waited for his teacher to get off work.

For the fifth time since he'd arrived, Frank checked in with the Johnny AI to see if there was an update on the team; still none. Letting out a frustrated sigh, the immortal man looked around where he was seated, wondering just how long it was going to take to get some service in this place.

Toby finally made it to the restaurant. He did not see Li's bike so he decides to wait inside. He walked in and sat down in the corner. There was one other man in the restaurant who apparently was eating alot. Toby waited hoping Li would arrive soon.

The big man sighed, deciding that this must be a slow time of say when the staff did inventory and he wasn't going to get a refill on his drink. Worse than that, the guy he'd come here to meet seemed to be a no show; this just didn't seem to be Jackson's day, first he missed out on what could have turned into a good rumble, and so far he'd struck out twice on his recruitment drive.

Figuring he might as well cross the last name from his list, Frank noticed there was a boy sitting over in the corner by himself. He didn't make it a habit to walk up to children and start talking, in fact as a police officer he'd spent a good deal of time warning children about that very thing. However, there didn't seem to be anyone else to ask, and the information he had on the last guy was scant at best. If this kid was a local, maybe he'd have heard something and at least give the GTF member a general direction to go in.

Tossing down some bills to cover his lunch, the Greaser made his way over to the occupied corner. He grinned at the boy, but given his figure he doubted that was in anyway reassuring.

"Hey kid, my name's Frank. I'm new to town, and I'm looking for a man maybe you heard of. Goes by Mystic, I think. Ring any bells?"

The boy look cautiously at the large man who had approached him. "Mystic? No sounds like a silly superhero name, what does he do hypnotize people?. Never heard of him. You sure your not looking for the Mighty guy?"

What Toby was not saying was that Mystic was actually a really cool code name. He would love a name like that. It would fit with his abilities. Apparently though someone already took it.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:53, Mon 17 July 2017.

Frank tapped an ear with the tip of one finger as he held the other one in front of Toby to indicate he should wait.

"Hey Johnny, I'm talking with a local here, and they said they never heard of this Mystic guy I'm supposed to find. Wait, what? YOU gave him that name? Well no wonder it's a dead end, next time you might just want to include that little side-note the next time I ask you for information."

Jackson rolled his eyes, took a deep breath, let it out in a sigh and resumed talking to the unseen party.

"OK, what actual facts do you have? Sixteen years old, five feet eleven, one hundred and sixty pounds, kind of lanky, spiked black hair and green eyes...

"...You overgrown screen saver! You just described probably a third of the boys in this country! Please tell me you've got something more than that."

The big man listened for another minute, then a growl escaped his throat as he responded.

"Really? He wears jeans, tee shirts, sneakers, and might be either wearing glasses or carrying a backpack, or both? Yeah, now you're just yanking my chain. Do we at least have a general idea of what he can do? Uh huh. well it'll have to do. I'll be in touch."

The ex-cop dropped both hands, and once more looked the the young man before him.

"Let me try this another way; there's a teenager who wouldn't stand out in a crowd, but he ripped up a chunk of street around himself as easy as tearing toilet paper off a roll. Have you heard any rumors about that, anything at all. He's not The Mighty, I already tried to talk to that muscle head but he was probably too busy staring at himself in a mirror to take my call, overstuffed prema donna that he is. There was another guy supposed to be working here, but he's a no show too. So now I'm down to this guy my, uh, friend you heard me talking to decided to call Mystic. So I don't know his name, he looks pretty much like at least half the young guys running around here, but it's important I find him, if I can."
This message was lightly edited by the player at 22:41, Mon 17 July 2017.

A quick show of fear crossed Toby's face as he heard the discussion Frank was having. "What..but..but I didn't hurt anyone. Mighty and the police said that it would be ok....are you from the government? Your here to arrest me arent you!" he had backed up into his corner "Mr Li has been trying to train me. He says I am doing better with my control. I haven't even caused a major accident since I started training!"

Frank's expression changed as the stranger before him revealed that he himself was the very person Jackson was looking for, into one of relief.

"Wow, you mean I finally lucked out. One outta three isn't great, but I'll take it."

When the boy backed away from him, the big man gave the teen a sympathetic smile.

"I've been many things over the course of a long life, but the most important of those right now is I'm a man of my word; I offered you lunch if you helped me find who I was looking for, and since you did the grub's on me. I'm not sure if the staff here is in a meeting or what, but maybe it'd be best if we went somewhere else. Personally, I always liked a nice street side hotdog cart. The food's always delicious, the price reasonable, and since a hot dog is mystery meat the contents can be changed per religious practices allowing for those little wheeled restaurants to be universal as best as I've found.

"Of course that's just my preference, you pick what you like. We can even stay here, but looks like we'll have to get our own drinks until whatever black hole swallowed them barfs back up the employees."

The war hero winked at Toby, in an attempt to use humor to make him feel more at ease.

Toby stopped cowering but was still weary of the man. He never said whether or not he really was going to arrest him. However Toby was not one to turn down free food. "There is a hotdog cart I passed a couple of blocks back. If you are really not going to arrest me that is. I'll take us there."

Frank laughed good naturedly.

"Here's two things that should put your mind at ease; one, I was with the ITSDA but I resigned, so I have no legal authority to arrest you. Two, out of all the times I did slap cuffs on a perp, I never once offered him a meal first. So, I'd say you're safe. I'm only here to talk o you, and if after we're done eating if you're not interested in what I have to say then I'll be on my way no harm done. So, what say you take me to this cart, we get a couple of dogs, and find a quiet place where we can chat for a bit? Sound good to you?"

Toby nodded his head and smiled. "Alright. Sure thing I suppose." He thought for a few moments. "There was a dark alleyway about a half a block from the cart. That should do just fine." He turned towards the wall and snapped his fingers. A shimmering purple portal opened. "Right this way." He stepped through and waited for Frank.

Frank didn't blink as the portal appeared before him, and walked through without a moment's hesitation. Once he was abreast of Toby, he grinned once more.

"There was a guy at the ITSDA who could do something like that, but he just here and then over there in the blink of an eye. I like the light show, nice touch. You know, if I had this Gift I could have saved myself some travel time, fuel cost, and a rental fee all at the same time. Oh well, lead on my friend."

Toby smiled as they walked. "Thanks. I cant go extreme distances with the portals especially if more than just me is going through it. Well here we are hotdogs."

Frank took out his company credit card since everyone and their brother had a reader in this day and age, and laid it on the cart while ordering a dog with the works as well as a soda.

"Give Junior here anything he wants, and tack on a twenty percent tip for yourself too my friend."
This message was lightly edited by the player at 07:13, Mon 24 July 2017.

Toby ordered a hotdog with mustard and relish. He walked with Frank as they ate. "So you said you had someone to talk to me about?"

Frank's white maine shifted forward with the movement of his head, or would have at any rate if it was not forever sculpted in place by styling gel applied many years ago.

"A few someones to be honest, and a something. You, to start with, and your special talent. You got some idea at least roughly of what you can do, and you said you were working on your control which was improving which is a very good and smart move; some let it fly free, think it makes them better and above the average Joe. Others, they get so scared they lock it away, never think about it, until it tends to sort of explode out of them in usually unintended and pretty destructive ways.

"So you know you got it, and you're trying to learn how to deal with it. The next step after that is, what are your plans regarding it? I'm mean, do you plan to get a nine to five job, then rush out after dark in spandex saving the day? Or do you plan to incorporate it into some career, like working for a construction company? Or, maybe when you're down and out, the temptation of some easy cash taken without breaking a sweat from the closest bank looks really good to you.

"It's part of your life now, and one thing I know about it that stretches between all other people like you is, you get changed by it. You can't do anything about that, but you do have some say in how it changes you."

It might be thought in general that talking about such things on a public sidewalk in a major city would be quite foolish indeed, yet Frank had served in New York City for decades and had learned one undeniable truth; the more folks around you, the more invisible you became. Millions of people crowded into a mass of concrete and steel, most unknowing of those they walked past or even rode next to on the bus each day. Parents walked past urging children to keep up, countless drones lost in their media devices moved around without even taking their eyes from tiny screens, business men talking urgently on phones trying to swell their employer's bank account by another million never missed a step avoiding those they never actually saw.

Some old man sharing a hot dog with his grandson? Who cares?

Toby sidnt even hesitate to respond to Frank. "I want to help people. It is what my mom would have wanted. She always told me if you could do good by others make sure you do it. It becones your reaposibility and your calling to help those in need."

He smiled. "Not to mentiom Spandex is not my style."

"Huh, your mom sounds like she was a smart woman. Some now might call what she told you worn and corny, a catchall; personally I think you can't go wrong with the classics.

"So, you want to do good, does that mean in a couple years you'll be signing on the dotted line with the ITSDA? I worked for them for a bit, they give you a roof over your head and food in your belly along with training to boot. Travel the world, fighting villains, have jurisdiction in almost every corner of the globe; sound like something you'd be interested in?"

Toby looked at him questioningly "You say worked. Why did you leave and what do you do now.?

Frank drew in a breath, then let it out in a long sigh as he shook his head.

"I was never more than a probationary Agent with them, because I'm just the kind of guy who's got his own way of doing things and that didn't always sinc up with theirs if you know what I mean. Sometimes I was suspended, others I was their golden boy; changed so often I didn't bother keeping track.

"I guess a couple months back now, the ITSDA received information that the bad guys, called Namadians, had a secret base outside of this place called Gaultown. I was on one of the transports with a bunch of armed men and women ready to fight, plus a couple of civilians that were the ones who alerted us to the base's possible existance to begin with.

"Everything seemed so perfect, it didn't set well with me. So, I did a little digging on my own, and found any information on the spot we were going to was classified; that would only happen if it were an actual government base, no hidden one would want to wave a huge flag like that. So then I checked public records, and looked at the energy consumption of Gaultown; there was a restaurant that was really sucking up the juice even at four am in the morning. We were ordered to attack our given target, so I turned off the radio and told the others I was commandeering the transport and they could leave if they wanted. They all stayed, and when we arrived it was a blazing hornet's nest.

"There was a army waiting for us, complete with anti-aircraft missile launchers. Those scum bags even got reinforcements from the legit base, got the soldiers to believe we were the bad guys.

"We gave it our all, and the two civilians opted to join our cause for the length of the battle. Between us, them, and the army, we managed to kick the stuffing out of that town something fierce. We lost some, but managed to capture to high profile criminals. For all that, I had to go to the International Court to answer war crime charges.

"They wanted a scape goat, so I tossed my badge on the floor in front of those robes and walked out. One of my team had been in the room with me and also resigned, while a civilian who had given us a hand was allowed to go free since I knew all they wanted was someone to pin the mess on.

"The other guy who helped us, he's got both brains and money so he used them to start his own group; the GTF, or GaulTown Foundation. I tried to warn the powers that be but was ignored, managed to save the day anyway with help, and after the smoke cleared all those same powers were interested in was how to make it look like it wasn't their fault. The entire town was a fake, a front, no actual real person lived there. Just Namadian operatives with phony backstories and such. But spoon fed information was just so much better, and my saving the needless slaughter of armed forces men and women plus who knows how many ITSDA Agents resulted in me being smeared across newspapers so those who gave us bad orders remained squeaky Clean.

"I wasn't unemployed a full ten minutes before the guy who started his own thing offered me a job, and the two with me as well.

"The ITSDA will want you because you're the way you are, and your importance to them will be directly related to how deadly you are. For example if you could emit a knockout gas and render the enemy harmless, you'd rank around the level of crowd control. But incinerate a supposed Nadadian hideout in seconds? Top shelf living for you; best trainers, best food, best equipment.

"They use you to fight your own kind, and tell you it's for peace. But they don't care about how the world sees you, or your kind; they're perfectly happy letting the world quake in fear at the thought of those markedly different, while using them to kill the same.

"The GTF, we have the same stuff the ITSDA does; our own transport, HQ, beyond the latest tech since the boss man builds it himself, and enough money to probably fund our own small country if we had a notion. We are not only dedicated to doing what's right, protecting the common man from others with talent who would abuse it, but we go beyond that and try to show the world that you guys aren't some terrible, hideous monstrosity; you're just a kid that's different, one who shouldn't need to fear being arrested when all you did was protect yourself like any person fond of living would have."
This message was last edited by the player at 13:08, Tue 25 July 2017.

Toby listened the whole time with the last of his hotdog almost to his mouth. When Frank had finished his story he took the bite chewed for a few moments then swallowed. He took out his phone and sent a quick message to Li about someone who wanted to meet him and where they currently were. "I let Mr. Li know that you were here and wanted to talk to him as well. The GTF huh? Where do I sign up?

Frank finished his own dog, chuckling as he chewed. After swallowing, he said,

"Thanks for letting your friend know I'd like to bend his ear, but he was a no-show at his job so I'm honestly not holding out that much hope.

"As for getting you on board with us, the first step is I evaluate what you can do. The trip to the hotdog stand covered part of that, is there some place around here we can go where you can show me the rest? An abandoned warehouse would probably be best, plenty of junk left in them to play with coupled with plenty of room. But a condemned building is good too, or a junk yard. Your pick, whichever you feel the most comfortable with is fine by me."

Toby thought for a moment. Mr. Li had shown me a large abandoned warehouse on the west side of town. It is completely locked down and noone can get in." Toby smiled. "Unless of course you have a way to walk through walls."

Frank grinned.

"I like you kid, I think we're going to get along just fine. Yeah that sounds perfect, do we take your shortcuts to get there, or stretch our legs?"

Toby sent Li a new message updating him of their soon to be location. "Well it is on the complete other side of the city. So unless you want to walk about 50 miles. We can take my way."

Frank smiled to himself, as though amused by some internal joke.

"It wouldn't be new to me, and I've got the time. But, I want to see what you can do, so wearing you out before we get there wouldn't be the best idea. OK, find us a spot, and do your thing."

Toby smiled and walked back to the alley they had originally come out of. Another portal opened in front of him and he stepped through. When they emerged they would be in an empty warehouse probably used for lumber or steel. There was alot of open space for Toby to safely use his powers. "Well here we are. Training camp"

Looking around, Frank gave an approving nod.

"Yes, this will do nicely. OK, I've seen the portal bit, show me what else you can do."

Toby walked a ways a way. There was bits of random objects and debris strewn about the place. "Well fory next trick I am gling to need you to throw something at me." Whatever Frank picked up and launched would make it within 3 feet of Toby before bouncing off something that shimmered when hit.

Frank looked around the open space, then picked up a broken bolt and pitched it at Toby per his request. It got within three feet of the boy, then hit some form of shimmering barrier and bounced off. The old man seemed to have no noticable reaction to this, instead simply saying;

"Anything else?"

Toby shrugged "I can project that barrier about 10 feet and decide who and what it lets trhough. Although I can only keep it up for awhile before enough damage will cause it to fall. Takes me a few minutes before I can bring it up again."

He then looked up at a hole that had been lasted in the roof from a former training session. "Yea. Got one more trick." He stretched out his hand as his eyes glowed ever so softly an iridescent green, and a thunderous crash came down as a lightning bolt struck his palm. He held it for a few moments before dissipating it into the ground. "I can do a few other elements too. Air, Water, Fire, Earth. I am sill working on perfecting control but I can do a little bit. Li says the glow in my eyes might be a sign of me getting stronger, since I did not used to have it when I would use my powers."

Frank watched, then gave a bland nod but nothing else. Instead he looked about some more, until he found an old, rusted pipe junction about wide enough for Toby to stick his unfolded hand into. He moved toward the center of the warehouse, motioning that he wished the GTF candidate to follow him. When he got to his goal, the old man cleared a spot and set the worthless item down on the ground. Then, straightening up, he looked once more to Toby.

"Do you know where's there's a Wal-Mart? If so, could you pop up a portal to take me there? You stay here, but I'll need a ride back in a couple of hours."

Toby nodded. "You will need a way to contact me so that I can let you back through. Also if you do not come back to the exact place I put the original portal I will need to know where you are. I have to have been or be able to see where the end point is going to be. Also I can only keep it active for a minute at a time."

Frank stroked his chin in thought.

"Hmm, so let me ask you a question; do you yourself have to be the focal point of these portals? What I mean is, if you opened one for me at the store, could you put the other end where ever you liked as long as you could picture it, or would it have to lead back to you?"

Toby thought for a moment. "I have to be at one of the ends of it."

"OK, here's what I want you to do; open a portal to the outside of this building, I'll step through and then right back again so your minute limit won't be an issue. Then, put me back in the restaurant where we met, and I'll take it from there. Oh, and give me your number so I can call you."

Toby does as instructed opening the portal and then another to the restaurant after givi bf Frank his number.

Several hours later, Mystic can hear a vehicle outside; a larger one with a strong engine from the sounds of it. It died out, then after some various other noises came a loud thumping and whirring . The next thing the teen was aware of, it was getting darker fast. It only took a look at the windows to see why; someone was covering them! That explained the noise, a generator hooked up to a power sprayer, one filled with black paint.

What the hell? Toby thought as he quickly ran to the back and then portaled his way across the street to the roof of another building so that he could see what was going on.

Outside of the warehouse Toby had just been in was a white extended cargo van, the backdoors currently open. Not so far from it sat a most likely empty gas can next to a portable generator, into which an air compressor was plugged. This in turn was making a power washer operational, by which laid some used paint cans. Even from this distance the teen could make out white hair, a black leather jacket, and a pair of jeans all on the operator; it was Frank Jackson.

This must have been why he wanted to see the outside of the building before he left, so he could find it again later via driving and by himself. Then he must have rented the van, and done some shopping. His current actions, combined with him placing an old piece of metal in the center of the structure earlier, suggested the possibility the old man was setting up a test of some sort. Toby had shown the man what he could do, but perhaps the Greaser wanted to try things under different conditions that he was currently arranging.

Either that, or a mental gear slipped...

Toby decided to portal down next to the man. " Need a hand?"

Frank didn't seem at all surprised.

"Can't use it, only got the one sprayer. But this might take a while, why don't you pop somewhere and grab us some burgers? Also some beer for me, and whatever you like for you. I know you're not legal yet, but just teleport the suds away and leave the money behind; no harm done that way."

Toby followed the instructions except for the beer. He was underage and it would technically be stealing. He brought back some sodas for them to drink with their burgers. "So what are you working on?"

"I need to know you got what it takes to join the GTF, and the only way I can do that is set you up in s simulation Since this old warehpuse is what I have to work with, it'll have to do."

Toby nodded it made sense. "Sounds good. Just a heads up I still do not have full control. Sometimes if my emptions get the best of me i react without thinking."

Frank took a break to enjoy his burger, and grinned at the teen.

"If you're worried about hurting me, don't be; I'm tougher than I look, and that in itself is pretty damned tough if I do say so myself."

Jackson got up while still munching his meal in one hand, and retrieved something from the back of the van. He carried it over to Mystic, and showed the man a very large revolve.

"I'll be using this during your evaluation, and you might well think it's overkill; but if you look closer, you'll see it's nothing more than a CO2 powered pellet gun I bought from Wal-Mart. The worse you'll get from a hit is a welt or maybe  tiny drop of blood if the skin breaks. It might be bad if one hit your eye, but I'm a very good shot plus I got you some goggles to wear.

"My point is, all of this is fake and made up of everyday items. That's what a simulation is after a mock up of something real. The thing is, when we start, you need to forget this is all a up on; for you, this is one hundred percent real, and you need to pull out all the stops. If you hold back during this simulation, I will have no reason not to think you'd pull your punches in a live fire situation.

"I'll be evaluating not only your Gifts and the use of them, but also your creativity, your ability to think on your feet, and other such things. After all a Gift is only a tool, and those who decide to let it use them instead of using it are not worth consideration. I'm here to review you, not your Gift."

Toby nodded. Real Lfe. Dont hold anything back. He could do that. He just hoped he would be able to keep control. It wasn't Frank he was worried about hurting. But bringing attention to them if he tore up the city block or hurt some random person who happened to be nearby.

Frank glanced over to the teen, and seemed to be able to read something in his eyes.

"Look, you have nothing to worry about; I scouted the area on my way back. The only thing out here are abandoned buildings, and any homeless are currently enjoying an all you can eat steak dinner after being driven their by limo and will then be treated to a night's stay at a five star hotel. Yes I'm telling the truth, and if you don't believe me just listen for the sound of my boss yelling when he gets the bill. So all you can hurt here are some old wrecks that need to come down anyway, nothing more. So blow the roof off this thing if you think you need to, there's no orphanage to smash, no bus of tourists to wreck, no baby carriage that's going to accidently drift into danger."

Toby visibly relaxed after Frank's talk. He nodded again but his eyes this time had a look of determination.

It took a while for Frank to finish the windows as the structure was quite large, yet in the end he managed. Next he grabbed some backpacks from the van he'd rented, as well as a bucket that seemed heavy and some tarps still sealed in their wrappers. It was then he turned to the boy.

"Mind giving me a lift to the roof?"

Toby nodded and opened a portal up to the rof to help jackson.

"Jackson, this is Black Magic. The meeting dissolved rapidly into violence, both Meta and Vandal are currently unconscious yet stable. The last member of our group did not fair as well I fear, they barely cling to life despite the best effort of a skilled nurse Meta had on standby it seems. We are inbound for Toronto, once we get there I shall be directing the craft to the best hospital available. There might be possible retaliation for our actions, for which we might well need your help. In the event that does not happen, we still have a special package I believe you should take possession of. Black Magic out."


Frank went silent as the transmission played over his comm piece, then looked over to Mystic.

"Sorry, but our play date will have to wait; my team's coming into town, sounds like they got roughed up. Forget the roof, and open me a portal to the best hospital in town. You can come too if you like, meet the big boss for yourself when he's up for it."

Toby nodded and opened a portal to the side of the best hospital he knew of in the city. He went through went Frank. "What happened?

"A big bad wanted a pow wow with my boss, had some hostages he was willing to give up in trade for a <i>'peaceful'<i/> meeting."

The sarcasm was so heavy on the stressed word, that it seemed Frank's tongue was trying to twist in his mouth from the weight of it.

"He and three others went to the meet, I wanted to be there as well but he surprised me with the announcement I was second in command of the GTF and if he fell he trusted me to carry on in his stead. According to the message I just got, things went south which I admit doesn't surprise me. That they're coming here for help instead of going to the HQ with all it's fancy bits and pieces, that does come across as a bit strange. But if I want more answers, I guess I'll have to wait to ask for them from the sound of things..."

---

Frank stepped through the portal and arrived at the hospital in a matter of seconds, then checked to see if a transport had arrived yet. He didn't think so and his hunch was confirmed, so he waited; a couple of hours later it arrived, and there was a flurry of motion on the roof as the loading ramp lowered and nurse J filled in the medical personnel that rushed forward to take possession of the wounded. Meta and Vandal were found to be stable and moved to beds, a saline drip place in their arms. Black Magic's wound was checked, confirmed to have been treated correctly, and was urged to get some rest which he delayed on doing and instead grabbed a hold of The Commander and vanished in search of Jackson. Bighteyes was moved immediately to an operating room, her outlook a grim one at present...

Black Magic appeared in the waiting area where Frank and Mystic were, giving a smile to his comrade as he motioned to the bound prisoner.

"So sorry you did not get invited to the party my good fellow, yet I did bring you a souvenir."

The performer then turned his masked eyes to Mystic, placed one arm across his waist, and bowed.

"Allow me to introduce myself, I am Black Magic."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:33, Fri 08 Dec 2017.

Toby waved. "My name is Toby. I go by Mystic."

 "...and I'm Brian Jameson. You can call me Brian or Meta, whichever you are most comfortable with," the man said limping down the hall of the emergency room says, "I was very excited to meet you Mystic."

 The twenty-six year old looked like he'd seen better days, and his normally wavy hair looked fairly dishevelled as if he'd been put through a washing machine. His face was black and blue in a few places including the orbit of his eye socket which looked like it had been a gusher recently as well. He moved gingerly as if he'd been a man twice his age, and in truth his whole body hurt like hell. His broken clavicle told that story. Those Gift-stopper rounds were nothing to ignore in the future, and the effects still left him with a nagging feeling of something missing in his mind and a tingling feeling in his left palm.

 "I only hoped it would be back at our base in Seattle. However, circumstances have forced us to delay a homecoming at this juncture," he sighed wearily and put his sleek sunglasses on, "anyways, I eagerly await a report from our point man. How have things been going here?"
This message was last edited by the player at 06:28, Fri 12 Jan 2018.

The big man shrugged in response to the question.

"Been quiet here Boss, so much so in fact it looks like most of those you sent me here to scout pulled up stakes and left town probably hoping for some excitement. The kid here's all I could find, no trace of anyone else."

Frank looked between his two teammates, then his eyebrws rose slightly in realization;

"Where's Vandal?"

 Brian touched his sunglasses to push them up his nose. "Frank, come take a walk with me. I'll take you to her, she took a pretty good hit, but she'll be alright. She saved our bacon out there, you know, like she does."

****

 Moments after making the introductions Toby was left with the inevitable Black Magic. Suddenly Toby's cellphone began to ring...

Toby answered his phone. "Hello. Tobias speaking."

Frank gave a nod but no verbal response, his concern for his teammate blinding him to the presence of the boy he had been sent to find. The old man's face looked as though a storm cloud had moved into his features, eyes hard and stained teeth clinched. As his hard-soled boots clicked against the linoleum floor, staff and patients alike parted before the ex-cop though he seemed not to notice.

Vandal was prone in a bed, exposed parts of her body telling the tale of the battle she had recently endured. She was asleep, made as comfortable as her situation allowed, with an oxygen tube under her nose. The Immortal Greaser walked to her side, and placed one hand on hers; there was a slight flutter of her eyelids yet naught more. Jackson turned his head to look sideways back at Meta, death and destruction reverberating in each bitten word that came from the fighter's lips;

"What...Happened...To...The...Commander?"

"Toby, this is Brian, Meta, I wanted to have a conversation with you. That is, if you'll let me...and yes, this is one of the abilities I have, it's not strictly technokinesis as these things go, but it can give you a general idea of my capabilities."

 Up ahead Toby could plainly see Brian walking down the hallway at that moment, he gave no indication that he was engaged in a conversation on a phone. Trickery or machine telepathy?

****

 "Now Frank, she'll be fine. We happen to have an important member of the Namidian wave on the GT-mobile. He's gagged and bound, given a sedative to keep him from using his mouth even if he gets the gag out. Nurse Jackie is watching him right now, preventing him from getting free...," he paused as he rubbed his temple to assuage the headache coming on as a leftover of the battle, "the pressing question now is how to get home. I need you to help me focus on that. Is the kid going to be useful in a tense situation?"

Toby just nodded to Meta as he walked towards him. "Sure go ahead." he was amazed by the power this guy was using.

 "Good, I'm multitasking here with Frank as well," he paused with a sigh, "things aren't looking so good for us back home in Seattle at the moment. That's beside the point right now though, as my current thoughts are on you. I know you've been spending a little time with Frank and I wanted to get a feel from you for how you want to proceed, either way there will be danger unless you never use your Gifts again. On the one hand, you can stay out in Toronto with your family and meeting crises as they appear and with the Namidian wave recruiting young people with powers it's definitely a possibility that you'll be on that list. You'll have to keep watch over your shoulder because they're likely to take you when you least expect it, we'll help if we can of course but you'll be on your own for the most part. You were on my list, if that's any indication."

 "Which brings me to the second option I see, come with us. Learn to use your powers from people who know what they're talking about, help protect your family by drawing attention elsewhere but also learn your potential and join the fight to protect humanity."

Toby was silent for some moments as he thought hard about this decision. He looked over at the group of individuals who had come to help him try to understand his powers and he thought about his family. "As long as I can say goodbye to my family first. I don't want them in danger. If I can help them more by leaving....I will."

 There was a pause from the other side of the phone as Brian drank his words being fed back to him from young Toby. It sounded bitter, and deprived of hope, not by Toby's manner of speech but more by the content of the message. "Toby, I don't want you to think you're in trouble. You seem like a good kid, Frank seems to like you. Like Frank, Sara and Black Magic, I'm looking to make a team of talented people. Do you want to join us or do you just want protection? I wouldn't blame you either way, but joining the team does come with some perks..."

Toby looked back at Meta. "I want to join and help people. Thats how my mom raised me. Do the best I can and help those that need it."

 "God I'm happy to hear you say that," he said with relieved chuckles, "we could use some good news for a change."

 He takes in some air, "like Frank, Sara and Black Magic, it'll be a job after a fashion, so you'll get paid.  My goals include getting technology to level the playing field for the world, opposing Namidias's gang and gangs in general and basically trying to make the world a better place. I have some ideas about where you could be useful for those goals, but think about it, see what you come up with and let me know. That is if we ever get some down time to do anything else. Heh."

 "At any rate, I'll have a contract written up today and we can get you official. Welcome aboard!"

Frank turned around and walked past Meta, a cracking of knuckles his only response that he had heard his boss at all. He found a stairwell, then began walking up toward the roof. From the fury in his eyes to the clench of his jaw, the old man in every inch of his being encompassed the nickname of 'War' given to him so long ago. He was after an injured, unarmed and wounded man; now it was u to thee smartest man on Earth to keep the oldest from committing murder...

 Brian wheeled on Frank as he opened the door to the stairwell, "Frank, wait. Did you lie to me when I hired you?"

 He ripped his shades off to look the unstoppable man in the face with an intensity to match his tone. He couldn't stop the man physically, but he knew Frank to be an honest and forthright one; a man that knew reason and justice to be paramount to personal vendetta.

 "Did you lie to me when I talked about wanting to do things differently than the way the world has done it so far?"

Frank stopped at the sound of Meta's words, one hand reaching up to remove the old man's sunglasses so his hard eyes looked into those of his boss.

"Differently than the world has done so far... For someone who's supposed to be smart, you don't seem to listen to what comes out of your own mouth. Bad people do whatever they like, hurting, maiming, killing, while the good guys try to take them alive so they can suck on the federal teat for medical coverage and food and shelter until some idiot with a fancy piece of paper decides they can be tossed back out among innocent people. Think of all the deaths Dieter was responsible for, and for locking him up those in charge wanted my head on a platter. If we turn that sorry sack of crap up there to the authorities, he'll be seen as a human being with a chance of redemption no matter how slight and not as a statistical casualty number as he views you, or Vandal, or anyone else. That, right there, is the way the world handles things; me taking care of it directly, that's the difference. No judge trying to get reelected on a humane ticket, no public defender trying to make a name for himself, no prison full of harden criminals he can turn into his own army. Just the cop and the outlaw, like they solved it a couple hundred years ago."

 The two men stood face to face at the door to the stairwell as a nurse slipped between them with a bit of an overwhelmed expression of incredulity.

 Brian's brows furrowed in frustration, "I get that, and I understand you think this is what he deserves, but tell me how an eye for an eye is any different than the old ways? It's literally the original form of justice."

 He sighed and shook his frustration out and his features softened, as he began attempting to steer the conversation away from an actual fight, "Look, I'm not trying to grind you down, I do want you to check your blind anger. It's not your best trait, and a revenge kill isn't the only way to do damage. I've got a few ideas being cooked up. Especially since Green has been giving us some juicy gossip while we've been plumbing that grey matter of his, if only we can get back to base. Lucy has engaged the enemy, and two guesses about who they want to get their greasy Namidian hands on?"

Johnny chimed in over the comm units both men wore.

"In eighteen seventy-seven outside of Lincoln New Mexico, a merchant named John Tunstall was shot and killed. Sheriff William Brady was sympathetic to Tunstall's competition and refused to investigate the murder. Henry McCarty was a friend of Tunstall's, and became deputized as a member of the Regulators. He took revenge on Brady and killed him along with two other men, and continued to add to his count until at the age of twenty-one when he was brought down by Pat Garret he had ended the lives of nine men. Thought he wore a star and claimed at first his actions were in the name of justice, Henry McCarty would live on in history as the murderous outlaw Billy The Kid.

"Current actions cannot undo those of the past, and I calculate killing The Commander will have an overall impact on murder and crime statistics of point zero five within the first year. Chances that he will be quickly replaced by a new villain, are currently ninety-seven percent.

"Though this is a fictional reference, I believe it has a relevance to the matter at hand; in the nineteen-nineties there was an animated series named 'Darkwing Duck', about an anthropomorphic duck who fought crime in his city. There was an episode of this show in which the main character suffered a personal loss, then resumed his crime fighting activities on an increased scale. Once he had cleared his home of all villains, he began controlling what people could eat and considered the consumption of meat a crime due to health factors. His grip on the city became iron as he fired his sidekick for suggestion that people be given a trial before being sentenced to death, and he created a robot army to patrol the streets. He still considered himself a hero, yet became the greatest villain of all."

Frank held up a hand, the look of disbelief strong on his face.

"Wait a minute, did a multi-trillion dollar computer just call me a duck?!"

Jackson shook his head, as if trying to clear it.

"OK, I'm gonna keep this nice and simple for ya, boss. Let's say you see a kid get hit by a truck, but it's not real 'cause it's only in your head. Then, an hour later, you see that exact same kid running after their ball out into the street. What do you do? Because what I'm planning on doing is no different, stopping death before it comes calling. You, Black Magic, Vandal, I get you're willing to take the risk and fight the good fight. But what about those students The Commander grabbed? They like bad music and overpriced coffee, spend too much time studying, you know just everyday people to you and me. But to that scum bucket up there? They're fair game, just because they happened t be where he was. There's billions of potential targets running around, everyone of which has a target painted squarely on them in his eyes. Hetried to kill you, Vandal, Black Magic, and Brighteyes, and that's not taking into account any brainwashed toughs who followed him blindly just because he has a Gift. Your screen saver is right in that I can't fix Vandal or anyone else by putting a bullet in that wwaste of space, but what I can do is make damned sure the talley doesn't grow any higher under his watch. It might be just a drop in the bucket, but a drop is a waterfall to a thirsty man."

 Brian's brain buzzed with the thoughts Jackson was bringing to the forefront. They were arguments he had been prepared for but now somehow, they seemed to lose some of their strength in the face of these thoughts. He did want to stop Namidias, but he didn't want to become them in the process. Finally, he raised his hands, he would take responsibility for this even if he didn't do the action himself, "fine," he said with a resigned sigh.

 "I name you executioner then. Kill that sonuva bastard."

Frank gave a grim nod, and started up the stairs. When he reached the transport, he activated the panel to lower the gangplank and allow him access. right as he was about the step foot on it however, something hit the ground right by his boots and exploded into a blinding, smoking cloud of some sort. It dissipated within a few minutes and the old warrior was fine aside from a runny nose and streaming eyes, but when he looked into the back of the craft he noticed The Commander was gone. He activated his comm unit, not exactly sure how he'd explain this fubar situation.

"Ah Boss? The Commander's gone, and I don't mean I sent him to the Pearly Gates. I mean gone gone, as in someone dry-gultched me once I opened the transport and took him."

 Inside, Brian sighed with relief. He hadn't wanted to be a murderer, even if the cost were higher and the danger greater, like now. His mind leaped into the communications network they had with one another. "Black Magic, prisoner escape, protect Sara and Toby. To everyone, keep your eyes peeled and give me status reports minute to minute. He can't have gotten far, Frank, you and I will try to seal the hospital and conduct a search hopefully with hopital security's help. Tell Toby I'll need his help with this too. Let's move people, he's got a two minute lead!"

Frank took a wipe at his eyes with his wrist, then blinked and moved towards the transport. His eyes carefully moved about the interior, until he found a few dark spots on the floor of the craft. Kneeling down he tentively touched them; dried blood. This was where The Commander had been, the travel time to the hospital allowing whatever wound had left this behind to clot. There was nothing else inside, so Jackson walked back out onto the roof looking down and around as he did so. Something slender and small had rolled up against the ramp; an empty hypodermic needle. The Immortal hit his comm again.

"Boss, there's some dried blood in the transport where he would have been, but nothing after. Him moving should have agrrevated his injury and some trail or trace should be here, but it's not. That means he didn't walk, he was carried on something like a stretcher. There's no restraints left behind so they took him bound, and I found a spent hypo which says to me he was drugged. According to the evidence on hand Brett didn't escape, someone kidnapped him..."

 Brian didn't stop to consider, he calculated, "look around you, any chance you can see where someone might be able to go with a stretcher in tow? Stairwell seems unlikely unless there were two perps..."

****

 In the back of his awareness Brian tapped into the phones again, he needed Toby's powers now if possible. "Toby, are you still there? We have a situation, are you ready to use those abilities of yours? In specific, any chance you've got any enhanced senses?"

"Our transport used a landing pad that was already here, one meant for lifeline helicopters no doubt. That means the stairwell could handle a stretcher, it would have been specially made to. Plus it's be about the best camoflaug they could hope for, how many moves have you seen where people walk right out dressed as doctors with a buddy or prisoner on a stretcher disguised with nothing more than a sheet? Someone was waiting for one of us to open the transport instead of setting off alarms trying to hack in, they had gas strong enough to stop even me, and a handy dose of drugs to keep Brett managable. Someone who planned all that, yeah they could have a partner or sevral for all we know.

"The evidance to date tells us whoever took him wanted him bad, assuming or discounting anything else without evidence or the lack of is not a good idea at this point."

Toby shook his head even though no one could see him. "Senses no. I can open us doorways to other places but that's about it."

 Brian nodded physically as each of the conversations happened. He was nearing Toby and the ER lobby on his way to Sarah's room. Brian buzzed into the shared comm-net the team used, "Thanks Frank, I think I got it. Black Magic, need you on Sarah!"

****

 He was calling now from down the hallway to the lobby where Toby and Black Magic were, then reversed course, skidding to a stop and preparing to beat feet back to the stairwell to the helipad. To Toby, "Ok, if you can help me sweep this hospital for anything suspicious, probably a two man team dressed as nurses or doctors, with a haggard looking dude on a stretcher. Keep your phone on, 'k?" Toby might've realized by this point that his boss wasn't that much older than him by the way he spoke.

****

 "Frank any unusual sounds up there? The only way they wouldn't be coming down the stairwell right now is if they have some air transport, maybe leaping, cloaked or Gifted, maybe, too soon to tell..," as Brian chattered whatever clues his mind calculated into the equation he also began to stream his consciousness into the building itself, flipping through the hospital's security camera DVR footage. He flipped his subjective time into fast time as he divided his attention three ways, watching the seconds tick away like bullet points on the report of how his evening was going so far.

Toby nodded in understanding and opened a portal to the main level of the hospital before making his way down to the lower levels just to check to see if they might be going that way.

Frank perked his ears up, but heard nothing.

"Got nada here boss, but a chopper or the like would be too easy to spot and it looks like these people are playing it low and quiet."

As Meta pushed his mind into the systems to try and locate The Commander and whomever had snatched him, he found a very surprising thing; a program, unlike anything he had encountered up to this time. It had been dormant until his thoughts touched it, then it triggered as though that had been the activation command required. All camera feeds had already been sent into a loop, yet now triple encryption locked the cycle down making it all that much harder to untangle as the servers of stored footage was not only erased yet saved over to destroy any chance at recovery.

At the same time, the fire alarm rang filling the hallways and corridors with a sea of patients and staff.

If he examined the program, Meta could learn that it was a very basic rudimentry version of his own artifical intelligence; not self aware and years away from even being a fourth of what his was, yet still to make it someone had been studying and researching things quite close to his sandbox.

Whatever this was, it was not random; someone had intercepted Black Magic's transmission to Frank and knew the transport would arrive in a few hours. They had a gas that could occupy Frank for long enough to grab The Commander, a program designed it seemed to blind only Meta, and now hid among a flood of bodies to escape discovery. Someone had put time and planning into this, so far back as to they could not know when they would need such things yet wanted them on hand all the same.