[hr][i][h1][color=cornflowerblue]Shizuka Takashiro[/color], Daphne "Holly" Hope, and...[/h1][/i]
[hr][hider=Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~ OST - Watchdog][youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeDFYSflC3Y[/youtube][/hider][hr]
[b][code]DOVE/RAVEN Joint West Coast Headquarters, White Coast_[/code][/b]


"I'm sorry that things have to turn out like this," Holly started off across the table in Shizuka's overly pristine office room, setting down the coffee mug. "You did your best."

"Doesn't matter." Shizuka waved her concern off. "I've always wanted a [i]real[/i] vacation from work, anyway." When Holly continued to stare at him with a disbelieving look, he raised both hands in defeat. "Fine, I'm lying - I know still have a lot of things to do even though I'm off-field for the time being." His suspension was the perfect opportunity to do some intelligence in secret, under everyone's nose.

Holly could only shook her head at his nonchalance at the situation he was now in; deep down she admired how much his mentality had developed ever since Verthaven. "Well, don't forget that this is the only time you can get a break - especially with the whole Founding Family and Black Hound things going on lately."

"I'll let the rest handle the Fags and their poodle." Shizuka shrugged. "Now that Mei's back being Cindy's right hand, both of them can deal with the rest themselves."

Holly raised an eyebrow at his choice of words, though she smirked slightly at his tough act. "Be glad that Keagan isn't around to hear that, when she had been trying so hard to cover for you." It was the one side of Shizuka that would never change no matter how much he had matured over the years.

Shizuka frowned to hear that Holly had been eavesdropping on the meeting through her 'green friends'. "...I'll never get used to that freaky plant power of yours."

"Back to you, too - try to come in from the door properly when you visit me the next time." Holly smiled, then her face went back to its blank, professional state. "Anyway, there's something I need to discuss with you---"

The sudden ringing from Shizuka's desk phone drowned out the rest of Holly's words. Shizuka narrowed his eyes at the telephone before he pressed the loudspeaker.

"[i]Mr. Takashiro,[/i]" the voice and language was foreign to Holly, but Shizuka knew exactly who it was. "[i]Ah, you're finally in the office.[/i]"

Shizuka gave Holly a look to keep quiet before he replied in a clipped tone, "[i]...Mr. Yang. What a surprise.[/i]" He scowled as he pulled out the profile of the caller mentally from his head. Yang Wei - second-in-command in the Chinese Metahuman Agency MAP, who possessed a dangerous cerebral power... to read minds like an open book, and no one's deepest, darkest secrets could be kept away from him.

Shizuka rolled his eyes at the fake chuckle coming from the phone speaker. "[i]We'll save the pleasantries for other time. Long-distance call isn't cheap, after all.[/i]" Then the light tone became firmer. "[i]Before I get to the point, I would like to congratulate on your successful operation to rescue the hostages from the Black Hound... with minimal civilian casualties. You never fail to amaze me - and I can see why my niece is head over heels for a man like you.[/i]"

Shizuka ignored the last bit, his tone still flat and unemotional. "[i]...Shall we get[/i] straight [i]to the point?[/i]"

"[i]Of course, of course...[/i]" Shizuka could feel the other man smirking over the call. "[i]I have received... reliable information that Song Jiang is currently hiding in America. Baybridge, to be specific.[/i]" Shizuka's expression darkened. "[i]Song Jiang is an extremely important person to us - we would like you to share everything you know about him with us... and return him to the Chinese authorities[/i] immediately [i]if you have him in custody.[/i]"

Before Shizuka could formulate a response, Yang Wei added, "[i]You are an intelligent man - I trust that you know what you should do.[/i]" Then he laughed. "[i]Also, I'm sure you're familiar with this name - 'Qiaolian'.[/i]"

Shizuka clenched his fists on the table. This was clearly a threat - he had wanted to stay out of the Zhao family's little problem as much as he could, merely acting as their informant and leaving them to sort out their own business, but now he knew he couldn't continue to take the back seat and simply watch anymore. He had a very bad feeling about this - he just realized that there was something off about all this...

"[i]...I'll see what I can do about this,[/i]" Shizuka was able to keep his voice even, refusing to show any weakness to the man he hated to deal with. "[i]Well, if your intel is that[/i] accurate[i], you'd know that I'm currently on leave from work for awhile.[/i]"

"[i]No hurries... as long as you understand what are the stakes here. Enjoy your holiday while you can, Mr. Takashiro.[/i]" With that, the line went dead.

"...Shizuka," Holly began softly, after a long silence. "Are you alright?"

Shizuka sighed, finally turning to look at Holly in the eyes. "You know I can't really lie to you as well as to other people..." Even so, he had promised Lihua to keep whatever he knew about her family's secrets to himself. "...Well, just another thing that's out of my control." He shrugged.

While Holly couldn't understand a word Shizuka and the caller were saying, she could make a good inference that it was probably one of his contacts in Asia (the language they were speaking in sounded oriental). However, rather than mulling over a conversation that Shizuka obviously didn't want to tell her about, she needed to tell him something - which she tried before the unexpected phone call cut her off just now.

"This is from the Chinese news a few days ago," Holly said as she passed him a file. "Took me some time to extract the relevant ones - and no thanks to Google's horrible translations. The name would probably ring a bell to you."

A look of irritation flashed across Shizuka's face as he read the news clippings. "...I don't have the time to deal with something like this." He could feel the dread rising from within him at the thought of receiving another troublesome phone call, from someone a million times worse than Yang Wei.

Holly was surprised at his reaction. "That's not what I mea---"

"Yeah, I know," Shizuka cut her sentence short. The clippings were about a missing man named Yang Jun... and Shizuka did enough research in the past to know that he was the brother of Yang Wei. He didn't like where this was going, after piecing the puzzles together.

[i]...Everything was completely out of his control.[/i]


[hr][i][h1]...[/h1][/i][hr][hider=Massive Attack - Angel][youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiK2JlBpzvI[/youtube][/hider][hr]
[i][u]London, England.[/u][/i]


With the Black Hound in Baybridge, someone had to... [i]finish[/i] his work in Britain.

A man wearing similar armor to him, but much smaller, and lankier, stood on a rooftop with a massive sniper rifle - bearing the same symbol of the snarling dog. A Barrett .50 cal, one of the most feared sniper rifles in the world. It was a dark, and rainy night in Britain. He knelt on the edge of the rooftop and looked through his binoculars, and eyeballed a black vehicle speeding down the streets. Ever since the Black Hound went on a rampage in the Palace of Westminster, the British were trying extra hard to keep their politicians alive. Every single one was to be escorted by the military back to a protected area. It would be clever, if they didn't have so many people on the inside that knows all the routes they take.

Lionel Patel, Angela Scott, Everett Evans, Fremont Evans, Dorothea Morris, Graham Thompson, Jesse Williams, Hanley Cooper, Jennessa Hill... and Penelope Walker.

They all had one thing in common. Each of them foolishly opposed the Founding Family, and were killed by the Black Hound. Jane Phillips were going to be the last target - for now - and the Founding Family's politicians could finally begin to subsume Britain into the Founding Family. The assassin could take the flashy approach the Black Hound takes, but he choose not to emulate his master. He aimed for the tire of the vehicle, then swiped the rifle across where the vehicle was going. He waited for the wheel to fall within it's sights, and then fired the round that traveled at super-sonic speeds that hit the tire and caused the vehicle to careen out of control. It crashed into the side of a building, and the assassin was willing to just call it a day. He hoisted his sniper rifle, and got ready to call Zenith...

...But, the Black Hound told him to always confirm the kill.

The assassin was some distance away - but that was no problem. The assassin was surrounded in a disgusting, inky black smoke that consumed him. Suddenly, the assassin was launched through the air - through any and all objects - until he arrived on top of the car. He pulled out his sidearm - an MP5 - and investigated. The first thing he noticed was the back door being open, and there being no dead body. [i]Wait. How did she survive this crash?[/i] The assassin thought to himself. The vehicle was in flames - extinguished by the rain. The first thing that he thought of was; [i]Who was escorting her?[/i] The MISW had a heavy hand in this protection program...

... A bullet hit the Phantasm right in the back, and he was fortunate enough to be wearing body armor. But, the shot was low enough caliber not to pierce his suit - but also high enough so that the impact hurt like a bitch and made the Assassin stumble over. On mere instinct alone, the assassin teleported through the vehicle, and took cover on the other side.

"This is MISW Agent Nickel, I need immediate reinforcements on York Road!" The Assassin heard the man call for help, and just had to shake his head. Jane must be making a run for it. He was merely getting stalled. The Assassin was thrust through the air yet again, and appeared on the other side of the vehicle next to the man, and put the MP5 to his head before he could react. He sprayed the man's skull full of bullets before he could even react, and the Metahuman assassin continued on. He was thrusted through the air and landed on top of a rooftop. They couldn't have gotten far... but, the Assassin picked up this profession for a reason.

He closed his eyes, and focused. When he opened his eyes, everything was an transparent black color. And every sound was a darker shade of black that "floated" to the assassin. He could hear on a whole another level.

"...This way Jane!" A man said. "Help is on the way."

He grinned underneath his mask, and blinked one time - which was enough to cancel the vision - before he teleported on the buildings above them. He knew that the CTC would be here any moment now, expecting a fight with the Black Hound... but someone far weaker. The assassin caught eye of his target, and pulled out his .50 cal yet again. Before aiming it at Jane - a brown-haired woman with matching brown eyes - and taking the shot. The shot was so powerful that it blew a hole clean through her chest. She dropped dead, and the assassin smiled. That's when the helicopters approaching caught his attention - a stray shot from a sniper shot that had the luck (or unluck) of missing [i]him[/i].

"Zenith." The mysterious assassin said as a helicopter utterly [i]unloaded[/i] a barrage of bullets. He turned intangible and every bullet went through him as he fell backwards into the fresh portal that opened for him. When the portal closed, he was gone, and there was just another dead politician.

...He was the [i]Phantasm,[/i] after all.


[hr][i][h1]One Week Later... Friday, October 27th, 7:59 PM.[/h1][/i][hr]


Baybridge was in utter fear. With the disastrous mall situation, the National Guard has been called into the city to help keep order. However, that was difficult with all the unease going on in the city. Against Metahumans, and worst of all, against RAVEN. All over the news and social media there was pure outrage against RAVEN for their reckless actions. Worst of all, the hysteria in the city was going up due to the Black Hound not only destroying a festival, but holding an entire mall hostage. Even though the Intimidation Unit wasn't active, the world feared them. Making in clear that even though the Black Hound had lost, he still managed to spread fear and make RAVEN look bad. All while mysterious disappearances have been cropping up all over Baybridge. With no consistent pattern as Metahuman and man were being taken.

It was a Friday night... not too many people were out in fear of the Black Hound, but there were a few brave souls. The night sky was cloudy, and it was clear that rain would show up soon.


[hr][i][h1][color=gray]Quentin[/color] & [color=darkslateblue]Reed[/color] [color=gray]Tay[/color][color=darkslateblue]lor[/color].[/h1][/i][hr]
[i][u]RAVEN/DOVE Headquarters, Hospital Wing[/u][/i]


Despite having his own room in the Hospital Wing of HQ, it was a dull period for Quentin, who found being bedridden to be a shitty situation. Yet, he stirred as he caught sight of a visitor stepping inside the room. "You again?" He asked, with a hint of sarcasm in his tone. The veteran RAVEN was hooked up to an IV line and was dressed in a hospital gown, which seemed ill-fitting on him.

"Nice to see you too." Reed's smile betrayed his amusement as he pulled up a seat beside the bed. "How's things? You're looking, well, hell of a lot better than the state you showed up in."

Quentin snorted at the question, not even bothering to hide the sarcasm in his answer. "Oh... y'know, I'm [i]fine[/i]... shot, slashed up, stabbed in the gut and I lost a lot of blood, nothin' major, really." He raised his hand to give his younger brother the thumbs up. "Aside from that, yeah. Feels less like being run over by a train."

"Well, those things aside, I'm glad to hear it." Reed nodded, reclining in his seat a little. "I miss anything?"

"Well, had some surgery a couple days ago to get the other bullet fragment out, that was fun."

"Least you're conscious, now. Should've seen you last time, I've never seen you so doped up."

"Probably because I don't make it a habit." Quentin said, with a somewhat sharpened tone. "I forgot to ask... how's the hand?"

"Healing." Reed flexed his gloved palm a couple of times. It had taken several days for the stump to regrow and it had mostly returned at this point, but it remained stiff and tender.

"What's this... third time you've had that thing messed up, now?" Quentin chuckled hoarsely. "Seems like it's whenever we're all together."

"It's not an experience I'd like to repeat." Reed rubbed his palm, before deciding to change the topic. "You need anything? I don't mind doing a couple grocery runs if the food here's not your thing."

"Not unless you can get me back into the field." Quentin gave his stubbled jaw a rub. "Food could be worse. Still, I'm eating out once I'm discharged."

"Speaking of that, how long are they keeping you in for, exactly?" Reed asked, with an arched brow, though it seemed to achieve a frown on his brother's part.

"Doctors want me kept in a little longer, another week or so, maybe. Load of bullshit if you ask me, but I haven't been given much of a choice."

"Jesus man, you lost a lot of blood and took a beating, you're lucky to be alive for god's sake..." Reed started off, with that lecturing tone of his. "Given the alternative, I think everyone would prefer you here."

"Yeah?" Quentin asked, rhetorically, "Like I'm any use to anyone right now. How are the others doing?"

"They're all good..." Reed said, with a somewhat reluctant tone. There were a couple things that Quentin wasn't exactly aware of and he would have preferred to keep them that way.

"What else?" Quentin asked with a raised brow. "Something else you're not telling me?"

"No, it's nothing to worry about, man."

"I might be hospitalized, but I'm not stupid. Don't bullshit me."

"Alright, look... fine. Two things you probably want to know. Mei got attacked by the same asshole who went after her Mom in Prince Ed-field, the one who uh... burned my hand."

The veteran RAVEN leaned forward, albeit just a little. "She alright?"

"Yeah, she's fine. Little roughed up, but still in one piece."

A hint of relief washed over Quentin's face. "And the other?"

Reed hesitated for a moment, before finally answering. "...Shizuka got suspended from RAVEN."

"[i]What?![/i]" Quentin exclaimed, thumping the side of his bed so hard it gave off a loud metallic rattle. "That's some bullshit, what happened?"

Reed ran a palm across his face and sighed. "People are blaming RAVEN for the people who died at the mall."

That only stoked the fires of the veteran RAVEN's temper. "Yeah? Well what else could we do, exactly, huh? We lost people too, good peopl-" At least, until Reed cut him off.

"Look, I'm on your side, man. It's a scapegoat, everyone knows it, but it's gotta be done. Max Cornell had to do it himself, even understood."

"Yeah, well y'know what, fuck 'em. I stopped caring about public opinion a long time ago." Quentin's fury was abated, though one could easily tell he was unhappy about the arrangement.

"Wish I could say the same sometimes, but it's the hard truth." Reed said, folding his arms, though a hard stare from Quentin prompted him to continue. "Look, if it's any consolation, it's only a temporary suspension and Shizu didn't seem too beat up about it, seemed like a vacation for him."

"Whatever... but what about the rest of our people? That bastard's still out there and so are more like him." The veteran RAVEN had never liked the idea of leaving his colleagues behind, especially not with the likes of the Black Hound out there.

"Don't worry, we'll manage." Reed assured him. "Just, I dunno, focus on getting some rest."

It prompted a sigh, before Quent finally relented on that front as well. "Alright. Anyway... where are you heading next?"

"Meeting with the others, could all use a drink after this shitshow."

Quentin frowned, then started sulking again. "Are you sure I can't just check out and check back in tonight?"

Reed chuckled at that one. "I'm [i]really[/i] sure that Jade'll appreciate that. Get some rest and for christ's sake, stop thinking about work. God forbid you take a break from things every once in a while."

"But.. ah, fuck it. Fine." The elder of the two Taylors relented in their argument, which was a nice change. Before Reed left, however, Quentin had one more thing to say. "I forgot to say it before, but... thanks."

"For what?" Reed raised an eyebrow.

Quentin was glad someone had his back. "Covering my ass."

"What else's family for?" Reed offered his brother one last smile and received one in turn. 

[i]Old man would've proud.[/i]


[hr][i][h1][color=aqua]Jennifer Marissa Caspin[/color].[/h1][/i][hr][hider=Massive Attack - Come Near Me][hr][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcFDkHg7VEU[/youtube][/hider]
[i][u]???[/u][/i]


"...[i]W-where am I?[/i]" 

Jennifer asked out loud as consciousness hit her like a wave. An utter assault of bright lights. It was like she was lying on her back. She tried to move her arm, but the digit was bound. Her head rolled over on this metal surface, and noticed that she was strapped down. Yeah... she was starting to realize that her feet were also bound. She turned her neck upwards and felt the metal object wrapped around it. Okay, where the hell is she? Is she dreaming? No... this didn't feel like no dream. It felt real. [i]Okay, Jennifer, try to remember what happened... you were in Starrybanks going to meet Cindy, and now you're here. Connect the dots...[/i]

Footsteps pierced through the air, and Jennifer looked up.

"Hello, [i]Lazarus[/i]," A red haired woman said surrounded by properly dressed men (and some women), who stared Jennifer in the face. "I just decided to bring you in for a... check-up." 

"W-who are you?" Jennifer asked.

The woman was presented a tray full of surgical tools by her well-dressed posse, and she grabbed a latex glove and pulled it on. Before she grabbed onto a syringe, and slowly injected a chemical into it. "Well, given that you won't remember this... I'm Julia O'Sullivan. Nice to meet you, Jennifer." The senior member of the Blessed Three smiled at her.

"Where am I?" Jennifer asked as she began shaking.

"Don't worry too much about that, sweetheart," Julia said as she finally filled the syringe with the mysterious chemical. She injected it into Jennifer's neck, and the girl started feeling calm. "Doesn't that feel great? It's tranquilizer. You don't have to worry about anything... just relax." The woman said as she pulled out a scalpel from the tray. She made a cut across Jen's upper arm, cutting out a perfect square of her slightly pale white flesh. "I just want to take a few samples from my prized [i]creation[/i] that's all."

"...Creation?" Jennifer said, high off tranquilizer.

Julia paused for a moment. "...Well, you'll find out eventually."

After placing the skin on a petri dish, Julia laughed as she began the [i]fun[/i] part of her little check up. The secretary carried the petri dish away after sealing it before it got contaminated. Her hands went for a Stethoscope, and she grabbed it. Before she grazed her hands over Jennifer's chest, placed the device in her ears, and the other end against Jennifer's heart. 

"Heart rate normal..." Julia mused, and her secretaries wrote it down.

She grabbed a flashlight, before she shined it inside of her ears, nose, and opened the girl's mouth and shined it inside.

"Everything up here seems nominal." Julia said.

She got really close and stared Jennifer square into the eye, shining the light into her eyes.

"You know," Julia said. "You have such beautiful eyes."

She was quick to swap out her latex gloves, and walked over to the opposite end of Jennifer and spread her legs open, and looked inside.

[i]Oh my God, this is such a violation.[/i] Jennifer was mortified right now. Her eyes shot open wide... but, this tranquilizer stopped her from freaking out like she wanted to. She could feel the woman [i]touching[/i] her. Spreading her open. It was horrifying.

"No recent activity... which is a shame, because I wanted to test if your reproductive organs were in working order," Julia teased as she dug a little deeper inside of Jennifer. "Could you do that just for me?"

Afterwards, Julia put the gloves away and replaced them with new ones, and finished her examination.

"Let's see... no abnormalities detected, joints seem okay, no cancer detected, breasts seem perfectly fine, and your nerves are still... sensitive, but everything else seems perfectly fine..."  Julia casually said. "So, that means you are in perfect working order! I honestly want to keep studying you to see how long you'll last. Hopefully, my treatment gave you a normal lifespan... taking in account your regeneration, of course."

"What..." Jennifer groggily said. 

"Now, now... I want to also test your regeneration, and getting the sample that the Foundation Woman wanted," Julia snapped her fingers, and she was handed a bonesaw. She hovered it over Jennifer's wrist. "I really wish I could turn on your regeneration for this, but it'll just get in the way sweetie."

"...What are you-"

Jennifer then let out a shriek of pain, even in her tranquilized state, as Julia brought he bonesaw back and fourth. Cutting through Jennifer's wrist with the saw. Coating it with blood and gore as the girl desperately tried to resist, but couldn't muster the strength to.

"Stop it, [i]Jenny[/i]," Julia said remorselessly. "More you resist - the more this will hurt!"

The muscles and tendons that connected her hand to the rest of her body were the first to be severed, and then the bones were sawed through. All to the agony of Jennifer who could feel the sharp tool digging into her flesh and cutting through her. Oozing blood... and even without it regenerating. Tears began to well down Jennifer's face. This tranquilizer wasn't helping.

And before long, the hand simply fell off. Julia was sure to cut off the remaining flesh attached to it. She unbinded the hand, and gently dropped it on a tray.

"...Get that sterilized at once before it gets contaminated." Julia said, before she faced Jennifer, pointing in her face. "And drop her back in the alley we got her."

Her operating table was getting pushed away - before Julia stopped them by raising her head.

"Wait! Almost forgot," Julia leaned in really close to Jennifer's ear, and smiled deviously.

"...[i]Mechanized Memories.[/i]"

...And that's when everything went dark for Jennifer.

[hr][i][u]Starrybanks, White Coast.[/u][/i]

Her eyes opened like she had awoken from a vivid dream.

It was shocking, to say the least... when the only thing she was facing was a brick wall. "... Uh?" Jennifer thought to herself. Last thing she remembered was tripping... and now she's face down in an alleyway. Maybe she hit her head too hard, it sure as hell hurts. She put her hand-

"What the fuck?!" Jennifer shouted as she immediately realized that her left hand was missing. Her thoughts were frantic, as she tried to recall when she last lost her God damn hand. She sure as hell had it before she tripped. She quickly examined her wrist, and saw that nothing was out of the ordinary. She was wearing her favorite white hoodie, and there wasn't even the slightest drop of blood on it. And she would know.

It was her head... her head hasn't been working right late-

A sudden and extremely intense headache overcame Jennifer as being on an operating table appeared in Jennifer's mind's eye, and there was a woman that was obscured by shadows going in between her legs. She grabbed each side of her head (Well, tried to) and started thrashing around as she just wanted the pain to stop. Her vision distorted and faded into static... before it was all better, and Jennifer regained control of herself.

Okay, something very wrong is going on here... But, Jennifer knew that it was best if she ignored it like nothing happened.

The last thing the girl wants to do is drive herself insane... so, she just slid her missing hand in her pocket, and scrolled along towards the Bull Tavern.

[hr][i][h1][color=skyblue]Wendy Emily Lucker[/color][/h1][/i][hr][hider=Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia - Sapphire's Elegy][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNmLb2ThxPY[/youtube][/hider][hr]
[i][u]Academy 61, Roseview.[/u][/i]


Wendy was certainly making the most of her "suspension." It sucked being trapped in the Academy for a week-straight, but during that time, Wendy was training. Training for the next encounter with the Black Hound, the next encounter with Ezekiel, and whoever the hell else may follow them. What time she wasn't spending in a class-room was spent practicing, her grades took a hit, but Wendy honestly couldn't care less. If she has to repeat a year to get Diana back, then so be it. She's been training in the halls, and spent spare time fighting in the arena against opponents that are of similar caliber to the Hound, and Ezekiel. Bruisers, and high-level elemental types. She won against every single one of them.

They were different from the real thing, but Wendy was going to better herself at any cost. Which is why she did something different today. Wendy carried herself into the training hall, wearing her usual training attire which consists of a T-shirt, and some gym shorts. She had something new to bring to the fight against the Black Hound.

You see, a few days ago, she visited her "mentor" Lihua Zhao. While the woman found Wendy rather annoying, Wendy had one simple request before Ms. Zhao went home...

[hr][u]Five days ago...[/u]

Lihua had crossed her arms as she gave Wendy a narrow glare. They were in the Academy parking lot, far as Wendy could go before she was stopped by Academy staff. Lihua was leaned up against her vehicle as she stared at the girl. She had given Lihua a request. A request that Lihua found... difficult.

She looked at the girl standing strong with her fists balled, and trying to show some form of fearlessness? That's what Lihua gleaned. She was an intimidating woman and that was never going to change. She was kinder, but she was still hardened, and didn't show the teens any weakness. None that they could exploit for their own gains (Which mostly consists of stupid stuff). While still being humane.

"...So you want my ability?" Lihua asked as she put a finger on the side of her face, looking at the girl.

Wendy's fist shook as she showed a brief moment of weakness. "...Yes, Ms. Zhao. I need your ability."

That made Lihua narrow her eyes. Her ability was definitely a powerful one... one that could be used for nonstop destruction. But, at the same time, it could be used for great thing, Lihua could see it in her eyes. Her ability was a heavy burden that required years of training to perfect, and she wanted to give it a try? She shrugged with her arms crossed.

"...Why should I?" Lihua bluntly asked. "You are clearly fueled by anger... and revenge... you would only hurt yourself with that mindset, child." She leaned in forward a little bit until she was eye-level with Wendy.

"I... I want to get stronger... I want to get stronger so I won't ever lose anyone to the Black Hound again." Wendy clenched her fist as she spoke heartfelt.

"Strength only goes so far, child." LIhua put her hand on her hip. "You need experience, and most of all, [i]personal[/i] strength."

"I just don't want to lose anyone ever again!" Wendy shouted, letting her growing sorrow show. Clenching her fists tightly. "If you don't want to help me, then fine. I'll find another way."

"Child..." Lihua said.

"...And I'm through with your pseudo-philosophi-" That's when Wendy saw Lihua's hand extended, and the girl immediately felt much better. She grabbed Lihua's hands tightly, and their Metahuman energy began to glow brightly as they entered a similar wavelength. Lihua's nervous system in her arm glowed brightly, before it traveled up Wendy's arm. Then her arm turned into concrete for a brief second... and then it was all gone. After she had successfully copied Lihua's ability.

"...It requires a clear mind above all else." Lihua raised a finger up into the air. "If you have no self control, then you will not control it... good day, Ms. Lucker."

With that, Lihua walked off, leaving Wendy to stare at her hands in awe.

[hr]

After that encounter, Wendy made sure to train with the ability best she could. Like Ms. Zhao said... it was such a powerful ability. She felt like she was on par with the likes of the Black Hound and Ezekiel whenever she did even the slightest action. However, it came with a price... all power comes at a price. Something that Ms. Zhao didn't tell her about. She stepped into the training hall with small discs of concrete that were placed around the area, then were targets in the distance. She took in a deep breath as she put her hands out and raised four of the concrete discs... it was almost like manipulating powers. In theory, almost every ability works a similar fashion to each other - just like how they all run on a similar wavelength as each other. It wasn't that difficult figuring out the basics.

Wounds opened up on her arms, and began to ooze blood. Wendy could feel the pain [i]vividly[/i], but if it meant going toe-to-toe with her powerful enemies, then so be it. It stained her gym clothes, but Wendy was just going to swap it out. A few days of training and Wendy has most certainly made lots of progress. Her control is rough, and unrefined - unlike Lihua's elegant, [i]near-dancelike[/i], form (that she swore was some kind of martial art). It'll be years before she gets any affinity with this ability, but Wendy was going have to make due. Even now, she could seriously mess someone up. But, she was wondering if it would work on the nigh-invulnerable Hound.

She's going to find out, because soon enough, she's going to contact her benefactor, and she needs to be able to at least switch back.

Unlike her shaky time learning electrokinesis, she feels like she's getting to that point very fast. Wendy just needs more time. But, she couldn't afford to waste time. She looked at all of the concrete discs, and then focused on the targets. She balled her fists, and thrust them both forward hard as she could, in a rough manner. Like she was punching through stone. She launched the barrage of stone discs dead on with surprising accuracy. Wendy smiled because she couldn't do that before! She was making progress!

Though, despite the pain... Wendy felt tired. Stone is heavy, and it takes much more energy for her to move. Unlike paper that was easy to move. This just made Wendy more appreciative of Lihua's skill - like how the hell did she get that good?

Wendy pulled out a towel and wiped her head off - along with the blood that was seeping through her clothes. It was time that she takes a break... and tends to her wounds. She wished that she could switch to her paper powers just to regenerate, but she's locked into the power until otherwise.

Taking a break, Wendy had left the room.


[hr][i][h1][color=Springgreen]Rori Aherne[/color] && [color=Crimson]Maxine Diaz[/color][/h1][/i][hr]
[i][u]West Woodlake, Hedgemount[/u][/i]

Max turned off the TV with a sigh. She didn't need to watch the news - she knew what had happened, she'd been there (albeit, useless - at least she'd felt that way). Rori looked at their cousin sympathetically. RAVEN was in just a bit of shit at the moment - Rori had had to tread around the subject for the last week. In fact they'd been treading carefully around Max the past week and spent most of their time out, or in their room. They'd finally had to migrate downstairs for food, and Max had dragged them into watching TV.

"So, you met Conor, right?"

Oh, yeah. Rori had texted Max after that had happened. "Yes, I did."

"Not alone, right?"

"No, I went with Haruka - a friend. You work with his brother, he's a RAVEN too. I wouldn't go alone."

"That's good..." Max sighed, raking a hand through her short hair. "What was he like?"

"Nervous, but he seemed fine. He's matured a lot more. But I'm worried, Max. He's joined my parent's church and they've got a group in Baybridge now. My parent's church was terrible and I don't know why he'd join it."

Max narrowed her eyes. "What was his reason for meeting you?"

Rori hesitated, not responding as quickly as they normally did. "He said that he wanted to meet me, but also something about my parent's. And Saiorse."

"I never liked Saiorse." Max didn't look all that happy. It was true - she'd never really gotten on with any of Rori's other siblings, though she hadn't minded Conor. "Tell me if Conor texts you again. I don't think you should meet him again. Also, if I have time I'll look into this church."

Rori nodded. "That's fine. I don't want to get involved with whatever my family, and that church, is involved in anyway..."


[hr][i][h1]The Black Hound, The Foundation Woman, & The Phantasm.[/h1][/i][hr][hider=Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc (Acoustic Instrumental)][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3UU8V0H-nk[/youtube][/hider][hr]
[i][u]Somewhere in Prince-Edfield.[/u][/i]


"Oh, Black Hound...." The Foundation Woman said as she knocked over one a black chess piece with her pawn, and placed it on it's previous spot. "... You're supposed to be [i]cunning.[/i]"

Sitting opposite of the Foundation Woman was the Black Hound... surprisingly unarmored. This was one of the few rare occasions where the dark brute was seen without his armor on. Instead wearing a modest sea-green sweater, and some jeans. His hulking frame was placed in a rather cozy chair, as the only thing between him and the Foundation Woman was this short chess board. The man sat casually with his arms on his knees. He briefly looked around, and gazed around the room that people only [i]dream[/i] of being in. They were surrounded by windows, as they were in a skyscraper that gave them a perfect view of Baybridge. The room was well furnished with tan carpet, and some of the best furniture money could buy. There was a bar on the other side of the room, along with pool tables, and other casino games. They were the only people up in this room, as it was their "day off."

Ever since the mall, the Hound had been working in the shadows like he originally was. Only to give RAVEN and the BPD time to guess when he'll show up again 

"Maybe you should have wired that into my programming..." The Black Hound bitterly said, staring at the chess board.

"C'mon, Hound, don't be like that." The Foundation Woman said with a coy smile on her face. "Nobody's perfect, after all." She said in a teasing tone.

Though, that demeanor faded as she tilted her head and thought about something really hard. When it hit her, the woman raised her hand up into her head.

"We need to give you a [i]real[/i] name." The Foundation Woman said with a smile. "I know moments like this come... rarely, but calling you the Hound or some variation just gets awkward after the eightieth." She finished her statement with a shrug 

"Real..." The Hound muttered.

"Yes. [i]Real.[/i]" The Foundation Woman said in a condescending manner as if the Hound was a mere [i]child.[/i] "Hmmm...." She trailed off before she leaned in really close to the Hound's face, grabbed onto the side of his eye and adjusted it slightly. The Hound gave her a narrow look.

"...[i]Abel.[/i]" The Foundation Woman said. "Yes, that's what I'm going to call you from here on in, [i]Abel[/i]. We'll work on a last and middle name later."

"You know my true name is Sover-" The Hound - or Abel - said, before he was cut off by The Foundation Woman.

"As of now, your [i]true name[/i] is Abel, and there's no one around to question it," the Foundation Woman said. "Besides... there's going to be a point where you'll have to stop all this nonsense on the behalf of the Three... and start being a... as you'd say; [i]real[/i], person... [i]Abel.[/i]" The Foundation Woman said coyly.

Abel merely sighed.

"...Some day, yes." Abel somberly said.

"Soon enough, just go along with the plan and everything will work out for all of us." The Foundation Woman deviously said. "Now, are we going to finish this chess match, or what?"

A blue portal opened up in the room... and stepping out was the Hound's loyal assassin, the Phantasm. He stepped in, covered in armor as he held a strange metal container that looked like it was frozen. "I have retrieved the sample," the Phantasm said, holding up the metal container.

"It was good that Julia did as I requested..." the Foundation Woman said, turning her head towards Abel. "...Or more accurately, your request."

"Does [i]Codex[/i] still have her memories?" Abel asked.

"She should." The Foundation Woman said.

"Good..." Abel trailed.

"I'm still wondering what use we can make out of Caspin's hand?" The Foundation Woman said. "I don't think she'll do much good in the ZODIAC project..."

"It is merely an apology." Abel said.

"For what?"

Abel then stood up and looked between his comrades in the Family. "They are going to put Caspin to use soon..."

He trailed off dramatically.

"...[i]And I don't think she'll survive.[/i]"


[hr][i][h1][color=forestgreen]Veronica Emily Davis[/color].[/h1][/i][hr]
[i][u]Lower-South Royer Town, Prince-Edfield.[/u][/i]


Finally, Veronica got a day off from being the Blessed Three's personal lapdog!

Though, the Hound takes more of the role of a dog. Loud, intimidating, relentless, and worst of all, loyal. She had no idea where they got such a monster from, that was just so [i]perfect[/i], but the Family was so damn mysterious that they could have perfectly bred the bastard in a test tube. Where the Hound was a dog, Veronica was more of a... hawk. Yes. A magnificent beast that spies from afar, before swooping in and swooping up prey before they even have a chance to react. Which is a contrast to the Hound's brutality. However, the Dog's strength was so great that the hawk couldn't hope to fight it on even grounds.

Which will make her eventual betrayal of the Family all the more difficult. Her first problem is the Black Hound, and despite all of her telekinesis and skill, she knows that she'll get steamrolled in a fight against him - and he's god damn [i]resilient[/i]. The Blessed Three on the other hand... each of them are so powerful that she was unlikely to take them out in a direct fight. And that's not even taking in account their army of Metahumans.

The odds were against Veronica, but that just meant she needed an ace in her fight... and lots of equally powerful allies.

Ah. That was Veronica for you. Who has a day off and devotes way too much thought to the tyrants. She was going to enjoy this day... and the night's still young. The young raven-haired woman was merely lying down in her bathtub. With candles lit all around. The woman almost fell asleep because it was so cathartic. Her skin was absorbing the oils and nutrients that she had placed into the water. Maybe she'd be able to enjoy this bath without Makoto interrupting her.

However, the woman noticed that her skin was getting pruned, so maybe she spent too long in this bath. Besides, she wanted to do more than just laze around in this bathtub all day. The woman stepped out of the bath, and exposed her body to the oddly cool air - her body that people would kill for - and stepped into some bunny slippers as she stepped over to the towel and dried herself off. She stepped out of the bathroom, and into her bedroom as she put on her outfit for the night. It was more in line with her basic attire. A white dress shirt, and some jeans, with some tall black heels, and many bracelets and earrings.

With that out the way, the woman stepped out of her apartment and locked the door behind her. Roaming through the halls of her  apartment complex until she stepped out the front door into the street... any other woman would be terrified to roam at this hour, but the freaks and misfits of this city should be afraid of her. Because the woman was armed to the teeth with a concealed pistol, and a variety of throwing knives. Prepared to take on the world, yes.

...A National Guard truck sped on by, and Veronica could only chuckle.

They were only making this situation worse. They were spreading fear. Though, what could they do? The Hound's known for his rather... abrupt entrances. They could have soldiers all over the city, but still had little preparation for what the Hound would do next. But, that was the funny thing. The Hound. Veronica merely got on her motorcycle, and sped off into the distance.


[hr][i][h1]Makoto Koda.[/h1][/i][hr]
[i][u]Strong-Gold Community, Silver Hills.[/u][/i]


A day off for Makoto meant a day of rest. Literally.

The woman had delegated herself to her home that she had rented out for a period of time of course... in the Strong Gold Community. The one place built by that rather [i]attractive[/i] man, Jiao-Long. She chose to live here because why not? The man made homes for people to live in. This place would be perfect for Makoto during her time in Baybridge.

Makoto was sleeping in her bed in nothing but her black underwear. Her variety of tattoos - such as her tattoo of an eastern dragon that starts at her ankle and goes all the way to her upper chest with [i]PROSPERITY[/i] written above it - were shown quite well in the moonlight that was shining into the room.

However, Makoto wasn't the only one in the bed. She was sharing it with a friend - or more accurately, [i]friends[/i] that she would never go without.

An all black cat that had a matured layer of fur slept curled up in a ball right up against Makoto's sides. While another, younger calico had delegated to one of the corners of the bed sleeping on it's side. Two kittens that Makoto had taken off the street and personally domesticated were sleeping on her stomach, with their legs folded underneath their bodies. And those were the many pets a dangerous assassin had adopted.

Makoto was slowly awakening, noticing the balls of fur that were all pressed against her. The woman brushed off her eyes, and grabbed the kittens off her stomach and put them on the bed. [i]Oh God... what time is it?[/i] Makoto thought to herself, before she looked at the clock politely informing her that it was eight o'clock. Usually, the Hound had her go kill people, or something [i]devious[/i], at night time, so it just became habit to just sleep during the day. Today was one of the rare days she got a day off.

...And then she realized that she had nothing to do.

She could always go annoy Veronica... but, she had the feeling grumps would be even less receptive to her harassment on their day off. So, maybe Makoto would check up on a few things. Run a few errands, shall we say. The woman got up from her bed after brushing the rest of her cats away. They all had awakened in quick order and followed her all the way to her dresser as she merely put on some jeans, a T-shirt, and a black coat over it. However, the woman had omitted weapons for today. She's merely going out on the town, not murdering anyone - and if she did get into any trouble, she could simply teleport away.

As Makoto walked to her living room, she thought about all the things that happened in the last week. Specifically, who was at fault. The Family thought that it was a little [i]too[/i] suspicious that two different intruders come along while the Hound and a bulk of their forces would be busy. Almost like [i]somebody[/i] was feeding them information. Well, Makoto's ass was covered because she was recovering that one mark when all of this was going on... and getting her ass kicked by that storm-guy. They still had no idea who that guy was!

Well, the two of them better know what they're doing because they'd have hell to pay if the Hound gets their hands on them.

Eh. Maybe they realized they were in deep shit and found themselves a good rock to hide under - that's what Makoto would do if she had the Family on her ass. But, that was the least of her concerns right now. Makoto made it to the door, and saw that her cats were right there. "Alright, mama's heading out..." Makoto said right as she closed the door.