[center][img]http://i362.photobucket.com/albums/oo63/NMShape/coollogo_com-101751246_zpssjrrpnzb.png[/img][/center]

"Fucking STRIKE." Commissioner Valdez growled. She was seated at her desk watching a recording of the Nightly Show with Stuart Walsh. Boom and Thunderbolt stood on the opposite side of Jessica's desk, watching the broadcast as well. Boom was just as angry as Jessica about this; while Thunderbolt was more worried about the safety of the people of Lost Haven now that STRIKE had lied to them. "All they've done is just sit on their hands while Umbraxis marches across the state murdering people in droves. Now they want to wave him off as nothing more than another psychopathic metahuman serial killer?" Jessica placed her head in her palms before turning around and addressing the two superheroes. "After Ryder's little 'talk' with Walsh, we can kiss any chance of assistance by the big names goodbye. Going against STRIKE is bad publicity." Boom turned and started pacing around the room. She was anxious of the coming conflict with Umbraxis. Could the speedsters stop an alien planet killer on their own? She'd had her fingers crossed that someone like Icon or Iron Knight would show up. But any hope of getting some half-decent help was dashed when STRIKE went on national television and did all but call them a pack of paranoid nut jobs.[color=6ecff6] "What about the little guys?"[/color] Thunderbolt asked, his arms crossed over his chest. [color=6ecff6]"There's plenty of small timers who'd like nothing more than to stick it to the government and fight the good fight at the same time."[/color] Valdez shrugged. "It's possible. But if Umbraxis is as nasty as he makes himself out to be then we'll need a lot more than a couple of amateurs to take him down." Jessica reached into her desk drawer and pulled out a pistol and a stack of files. Boom dashed across the room and looked through the entire stack in the time it took the police commissioner to blink.

[color=f26522]"What is this?"[/color]

"If you two can't take Umbraxis down, and no one else shows up, then I'll be forced to call in a couple of favors." Valdez said simply.

[color=f26522]"Most of these guys are criminals!"[/color]

"You're young. Naive. I wouldn't expect you to understand that the world isn't as black and white as the cartoons make it out to be. These guys are as eager to stop the world from being destroyed as you are; just not for the same reasons."

Thunderbolt picked up the files to see for himself. [color=6ecff6]"Concrete? El Toro? Tinker? Succubus?"[/color] Thunderbolt read off the names of the some of the files. [color=6ecff6]"I've fought most of these guys. No way they'll work with us."[/color]

"Criminals all want the same thing: money. Everyone has a price; even him." Valdez commented as she tapped on one particular folder. Thunderbolt slid it out of the stack and opened it up. [color=6ecff6]"Gray Owl nearly killed my sister and me the last time we saw him."[/color] Harvey shook his head slightly in disbelief. Were they really going to put together a team of super criminals to take down an alien death god? This all felt so surreal. Like the first time Harvey's powers manifested: it was akin to walking on the clouds. As if he weighed less than the air around him. [color=f26522]"Let's hold off on making any calls until we know for sure what we're dealing with. Maybe Ryder is right; maybe we can take down Umbraxis on our own. I mean no offense commissioner, but [i]I[/i] could have taken down the Augusta Police Department on my own."[/color] There was a knock on the door to the commissioner's office. A young beat cop stepped in and cleared his throat before addressing Jessica Valdez. "Ma'am, there are a couple of metas outside. They want to speak with you and your..." The officer looked towards the two speedsters before continuing. "Cohorts." Jessica nodded before standing to her feet and walking briskly out of the room. Thunderbolt and Boom followed behind her at a distance. The trio arrived in the expansive lobby of LHPD Central. Men in uniform and suits walked to and fro as they went about their business keeping the city safe from all manner of crimes. While the superheroes were often given the most credit for taking on Lost Haven's crime, it was the boys in blue who dealt with the common, everyday street crime. For every alien assassin Icon took down, the police brought in two dozen crooks and murderers.

The doors to the police station opened and in waltzed the strangest group of people Harvey and Laura had ever seen. Five people who couldn't look more out of place next to the army of uniformed officers walking around them. A blonde woman stepped out from crowd and towards the commissioner. She walked forward with a purpose and strength that Thunderbolt couldn't help but envy. The sway of her voluptuous hips came to an unfortunate end when she reached Jessica and shook hands with the commissioner. The mystery girl's freckled face lit up like a thousand suns when she smiled. [color=6ecff6]"I think I'm in love."[/color] Harvey whispered. Laura responded with a swift elbow to the ribs. [color=f26522]"Close your mouth, T. You're drooling all over my boots."[/color] Thunderbolt grunted in discomfort and adjusted his footing to appear taller and his chest more broad. "You must be Commissioner Valdez. A pleasure. My name's May; but most people call me Skyquake." May spoke with some sort of accent; [color=6ecff6][i]Irish, perhaps.[/i][/color] Harvey thought. "Nice to meet you. Would I be wrong in assuming you're here to join the task force?" Valdez responded. Skyquake smiled and nodded. "Yup. These boys behind me are a part of my crew; we call ourselves the Vanguard. Where do you need us?" Valdez walked past May and approached the Vanguard. She inspected each member thoroughly. 

The largest of the bunch was a brute in a construction worker's garb. He towered over the rest of the team at an unnatural 7'3. His arms were as thick as tree trunks and his chest looked to be the size of a small car. "We call him Demolition. He can change his size and shape. Nasty fellow, aren't you, Gary?" Demolition smirked and adjusted the cigar between his teeth.

Next in line was a man dressed like a wannabe mercenary. Black fatigues and modern body armor with a stereotypical skull design on the helmet wrapped up the "I think I'm a badass" motif. A pair of metal baseball bats were slung around his back inside custom made sheathes. Valdez glanced at the pistol on the man's hip before addressing him. "And who are you supposed to be?" She asked. "Skull-Thrasher's the name, lady. Remember that when I save yer life." May gave Skull a pointed look before crossing her arms and debriefing the commissioner. "Regeneration and nigh-unbreakable bones. Jeremy here spent two tours in Iraq and a third in Cambodia. Not that you'd ever know that last part. He's got a big mouth but a guy who can't die is pretty useful; trust me, I've tried."

"Interesting." Valdez muttered as she looked at the next member of the Vanguard. The majority of the man's face was covered by a Keffiyeh but what little skin showed was a shade of beige. An AK-47 rested on his shoulder. The black hoodie the man was wearing did little to hide the kevlar vest bugling from underneath. "Aban Ali Sahar's his name, but most of us call him Supercell. He can control the weather." May explained. "We found him in a tiny airport in the middle of Kansas. Didn't speak a word of English for the first week on the team. He grew up in Damascus fighting the military as a part of the FSA. Hell of a right hook too if I remember right."

"Last but not least is Martin." Martin bowed slightly in respect. He appeared to be in his late forties, and was dressed like a character out of Final Fantasy. He carried a massive sword on his back and an ancient looking book on his belt. The armor and robe combo was pretty unique, too. "He was possessed by an inter-dimensional monster calling itself...God, I always forget how to pronounce his name-" "Graa'tazken." Martin interrupted. "I am the Harold of Graa'tazken. I suppose you would call me a wizard of sorts." Valdez nodded her head in approval. "A fine team. I'm glad you could join us." Thunderbolt and Boom approached the Vanguard and introduced themselves. [color=f26522]"I'm Boom. This is my brother Thunderbolt. Come on. We'll tell you what we know when we get to the Commissioner's office."[/color]

The eight of them headed back upstairs and down a labyrinth of hallways until they found themselves in the spacious office Commissioner Valdez called home. As soon as the door closed behind them, however, the unmistakable sound of gunfire started up back in the lobby. Jessica grabbed a phone off her desk and contacted the front desk. "What's going on down t-" She started before the sound of screaming panic interrupted her. "It's Umbraxis! Oh Jesus, oh mother of God...He's killing them all! HELP!" A cacophony of murder and death echoed throughout the halls of the police department as Umbraxis slaughtered wave after wave of cops in his march towards the Commissioner. "You've got to get down there!" Valdez ordered.

Thunderbolt and Boom turned towards the Vanguard. [color=f26522]"Alright, let's hope you're up to the job. Move it!"[/color] The door to the commissioner's office was blown off its hinges as Boom and Thunderbolt rocketed down the hall at full speed. Papers were kicked into the air and fleeing secretaries were thrown aside as the two speedsters ran towards the action. The sprint took less than a second before the Smith children came screeching to a halt. The Avatar of Umbraxis the Destroyer was appeared at the top of the stairs. It seemed to be made of pure darkness and shadow; save for its chillingly white eyes. [color=6ecff6]"Shit."[/color] Thunderbolt muttered. [color=6ecff6]"He's scarier in person."[/color] Boom began to dance on the tips of her toes. She clutched her calloused hands into fists. Her face contorted with anger as she stared down the most powerful being on earth. [color=f26522]"I thought you'd be taller."[/color] A trail of lightning appeared as Boom blitzed across the floor towards Umbraxis. At the same time, Thunderbolt ran up the nearby wall at an angle. The two reached Umbraxis and simultaneously threw all of their body weight behind their fists as they collided with the mass of shadow.

The speedsters didn't skip a beat before racing into the lobby and out of Umbraxi's reach, wondering if he'd so much as felt their attack. [color=f26522]"Rapid-fire punches now. In and out; don't take more than half a second. Can't let this guy touch us, T." [/color] The speedsters dashed back up the stairs after their quick huddle. They raced around Umbraxis in a circle, throwing out hundreds of punches in less than half a second before racing away from the cosmic deity and running back in for another attack. After five of these maneuvers the speedsters rallied again, this time at the end of the hall leading to the commissioner's office. The Vanguard team, running at full gait, rounded the corner just in time to meet the speedsters. [color=f26522]"How fast can you fight, Skyquake?"[/color] The Irish girl answered quickly. "About mach 3." Boom cursed under her breathe. [color=6ecff6]"We need to get back in there. I doubt he'll be reeling for long if at all."[/color] Thunderbolt reminded the team. Skyquake nodded. "Alright Vanguard. Let's do this!"

The team charged. The speedsters ran forward and did another drive-by attack, this time aiming at the Avatar's 'knees' before running back out again. Skyquake rocketed forward, the sound barrier cracking as she hit mach 3 in a single stride and flew towards Umbraxis head on. She let loose a powerful right hook with all her 100+ tonner strength before following it up with a left cross. When she was knocked away, Demolition ran in behind her. He grew to ten feet tall (he needed to duck at that point) and tackled Umbraxis down the stairs and into the lobby. The Harold of Graa'tazken drew his sword and spoke in a dead tongue before his blade began to glow as bright as the sun. He charged towards Umbraxis sluggishly swiped at the more powerful villain with the massive blade. Skull-Thrasher and Supercell stood away from the fighting, letting the bigger guns do what they could. "We need to take this outside." Supercell yelled in broken English. "My powers no work inside!" Skull-Thrasher tackled Supercell to the ground as a pair of tentacles came flying in his direction. "You're welcome maaaaatteee!" Skull screamed as he was tossed away.

[color=6ecff6]"He's barely doing anything."[/color] Thunderbolt wondered aloud as he stopped next to his sister to catch his breath. [color=f26522]"Probably wants to see what we can do before he lets loose. Smug bastard. Is that all you've got?!"[/color]