[center][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/217175409903534080/310907722625318914/cooltext243099446643387.png[/img][/center] [hr] [b]Time: [i]She’s Doing whAT-o’Clock[/i] Location: Croll Corner, North Eastern Lost Haven[/b] [i]Meanwhile. . .[/i] Slowly yet assuredly, Nathaniel Croll worked his small fine tools on an antique cash register. The man was in late 60’s, who should have rightly retired a decade ago. His long gray hair was in a ponytail, his beard trimmed and glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. An antique collector had been tiredly attempting to restore it on their own, specialists and collectors alike had written off the piece proclaiming it was too far gone to fix. As a last resort the collector happened upon Croll Corner, intrigued by it’s promise of miracles. Nathaniel took on the piece personally promising to do just that, work a miracle. His lower back, however, was protesting. He bent back up to stretch groaning at the pinch. Deciding to take a break. He pushed up from his workbench, neatly arranging his tools before reaching for his staff. Rough, callused working hands gripped the supple bamboo wood of the staff. A thumb smoothing over the glass of a terrarium bauble. All along the length of the staff these small glass terrariums gHe climbed the stairs back to the main floor, creaking as he went. Upstairs his granddaughter, Harriet - Harry was studying while his daughter Jules was in the shop probably closing up for the night. He wondered over into the kitchen grabbing a pear. He made his way to the shop and found Jules and Harry glued to the tv sitting way too close. “Do you two really need to sit that close to the screen, come on now-” He began, the pair of them shushed him perfect synchronicity turning back to the screen. He peeked over their shoulders to watch the news. It was devastating, the destruction carved through various cities. The damage was extensive, the lives lost. Followed by the hollowed out feeling of being small in the wake of the satellite attack. To be wiped out in a blink of an eye, a fear he did not assume to feel again in his lifetime. He licked his lips tapping on Jules shoulder. “Call Charlie home, where is she?” Snapped from her reverie she furrowed her brow, “I dropped her off at her friend’s shop today. They should still be there. The friend that had her shop ransacked.” She moved from the stool over to the landline, tucking some blonde hair behind her ear. She squinted at the writing on her hand, having scribbled down the phone number for [i]The Shadow of the Moon[/i] earlier that day. It began to ring. “What was her friend’s name? I thought she’d be spending the day with Carrie and her siren companion.” Jules answered while it rang, “No it’s a new one she met through Carrie, Maggie? Madeline? She’s a witch too.” Nathaniel nodded. He scritched at his beard, watching the tv as well. The breaking news anchors suddenly brought a new shot, this time not of a devastated city but that of a street in Lost Haven. A reporter was taking the audience with them into a helicopter, a small traffic helicopter. The reporter talked them through the developing story. Sherman Square was now the scene of a massive fight between the Hounds of Humanity and superheroes defending their city. Nathaniel shared a look with his granddaughter, Harry looked about as nervous as he did. They had been including Harry in their family meetings, while he thought she was taking things well she was still just a teenager. Scared to even walk the streets without being caught up in an attack. He wished he could provide more security for his family. The news crew circled seemingly a safe distance away, zooming in while having a near constant commentary naming the recognizable heroes, taking guesses at who else was among them. Jules watched the tv while the line rang on. She huffed hanging up and trying Charlie’s cell phone instead. For the briefest moment the camera panned the scene, glimpses through a manifested storm catching light and the blurry fast movements of metahumans. The three of them squinted at the screen, the phone rang through. “She’s not picking up-” The camera caught a glimpse of two young woman, one in vibrant red get up easy to spot on the screen while another hunched over a large piece of steel, even through the lens they saw the pile of steel glow and reshape itself. The figure standing up from it was recognizably Charlie with her unmistakable staff. “[i]That girl is dead meat![/i]!” Jules roared slamming the phone on it’s receiver. Harry and Nathaniel both jumped. Jules stormed away from the shop, stomping up the stairs. “How could she!” “Mom wait-” “Scaring us all half to death!” Jules stormed into her bedroom, into the closet. “With the [i]same[/i] goddamn metahumans she was with at the University.” Ripping off a sweater from the hanger, feeling about the top of her shelf for boots. “Ungrateful, after all the work me and grandpa put into this family, she just rushes in to get her head lobbed off by some goddamn witch hunting assholes. Those fuckers just fired off a city destroying laser and she’s- she’s! [i]Ugh![/i]” She angrily tied the laces punctuating her every word with a tug of a knot. Nathaniel stood in the doorway arms cross and in front of him was Harry arms crossed as well. “Julianne Karla Croll.” Harry added, “[i]Mom.[/i]” She stopped at the sight of them, “I’m going to get Charlene’s ass back here and I’m going to lock her in the Oven Mits.” Harry winced at the mention of the oven mits. A creation of Jule’s design, made of various unknown elements and incredibly heavy. Used initially for strength training and puzzles it became a very real punishment when either of them got into serious trouble. Harry and Charlie had brainstormed trying to list everything those mitts contained but Jules constantly changed it. Last time Harry was threatened with them was when she was caught not erasing alchemical symbols in her long form equations on a chemistry test. “Mom, how’re you gonna get Charlie out of there? Sherman Square is surrounded and she’s fighting them, they’re [i]winning[/i].” Jules slowed down stepping up to Harry. Sighing, brushing Harry’s hair away from her face affectionately. “That’s not the point, Harry. The University attack should have scared her straight, what she’s doing right now? It’s too dangerous” Jules said firmly, wondering how Charlie was moving as well as she was having been injured that morning. “She has no place among bulletproof capes. We’re alchemists not superheroes.” Jules said gently squeezing her shoulder. “Our fight is protecting what is important to [i]us[/i], metahumans and capes don’t give a flying fuck about us on the ground no matter what they say or what they fight for.” She held up her hand, interrupting Harry and Nathaniel before either of them started. “That’s why I’m going, it’s not that I don’t believe Charlie can protect herself but I am fighting for what is important to us. Protecting my family, even if it means protecting her from herself.” “Jules, think this through. I do not agree with Charlie’s actions but she is capable of making her own decisions. She sees value in being there, the Hounds of Humanity are in Lost Haven targeting [i]us[/i] the same as the capes. By your same logic Charlie is protecting what is important to her.” Nathaniel argued. “I have faith that she is not alone.” “What makes you so sure they won’t abandon her?” Jules fired back. “It is instinct. My guess she has a witch friend at her back right now, the lady in red we saw is sticking to Charlie. Please Jules, wait here with us. She’ll call when she needs help.” Nathaniel stepped around Harry to console his daughter. “Trust Charlie.” Jules was tense, her stomach wrapping in a tight coil. She fought her own instinct to run and protect. She squeezed her eyes shut, “If she [i]dies[/i]-” “She won’t.” Harry and Nathaniel said in unison. Jules took in a shuddering breath holding it for a few second before letting it out with resignation. “Just this once. When she comes back, I am stringing her up by her toes for making me worry.” They laughed letting the tension drain out of them. Together they huddled into the living room with the tv, not before locking all the doors, the shop, and shutting the blinds. There would be no distractions. Nothing could tear their eyes away from witnessing (what they desperately hoped) Charlie’s victory. --- [b]Time: Evening - Sherman Square Battle Royale Location: Sherman Square, Lost Haven[/b] “[color=honeydew]I feel like I’m going to fucking die.[/color]” She backed up against Lady Hex, in between short harried breaths, “[color=honeydew]You hanging in there, Hex?[/color]” Pantheon spoke directly to Blacklight, Charlie felt herself shrink when she fired off pinpointed lasers to their surroundings - expertly avoiding property damage. Blacklight illustrated her point, the injured chick with the bow confirmed as much, trying to refocus the meta’s efforts away from a moral debate. Charlie wholeheartedly agreed with Blacklight, she hoped to curb that with Pantheon when she empowered Hassan to control his powered ego. The little they knew - the better, Charlie figured their chances look better if they weren’t dogged after the dust was cleared. Give a hero with a bone to chew and it’s next to impossible to pull it out of their mouth. Iron Knight rendered Judicator disabled, while Icon swooped up with the huge mech in hand. One of the ones fighting the Hounds of Humanity. They were gone into the atmosphere, Charlie took only a second to realize where they were going. “[color=honeydew]Hey! Where the hell are they going?[/color]” She threw a hand at the disappearing sights of Terra Firma, Icon, Voyager and Equilibrium. Irritated, she knew they were heading for the satellite. Who disabled it’s defenses? The remaining Hounds were being scattered and quickly defeated. The air support was finished, the seemingly endless stream of operatives slowed. Charlie approached Pantheon, tugging him down to whisper - conscious of who might be listening. “[color=honeydew]Hey, when the dust clears be ready to get the fuck out of here alright? Blacklight looks like she might wanna turn you into a project and I wouldn’t put it past her to try something. It’d be easier to leave without picking more fights, got that?[/color]” She tapped the end of her staff on his head, emphasizing her point to the caped brick, “[color=honeydew]Conserve whatever you got to reign ‘em in, kid.[/color]”