[b][h3]Gunsmith[/h3]
Bangkok, Thailand. [/b]

[hr]

Screams and smoke. Fire and death. Old companions to Marcus, especially after E-Day. The chaos raged around him as he laid on the roof, searching for a target. He detested the chaos, truth be told. Not from a morals point, he was long past that. He had done all this and worse during E-day and beyond, killing and destroying in the name of the Legion. He detested it because it was almost impossible to predict. No amount of planning or intelligence could prepare you for chaos like this, and in Marcus' line of work being prepared was often the only thing that kept you from being another body in an unmarked grave in the second cold war. In this war, he could end up facing a god like being capable of destroying entire cities with little effort, whose strengths were as numerous as the stars and whose weaknesses were as few as the unaffiliated nations left in the world. Marcus would like to have one of those weaknesses in his back pocket if that time came. Preparation was, and always will be, key. 

His sniper rifle cracked, and a trained meta of the junta fell back, dead. Mostly, Marcus was bored here. There was no challenge. No real need for any preparation, regardless of the chaos. The League had no presence here, and Thailand had no true heroes or villains of its own. Just half trained soldiers, unprepared for an assault like this. There was nothing to really worry about or prepare [i]for[/i] unexpected or not. He resumed scanning the area for priority targets such as officers or more metas, a spot of calm in a sea of chaos. He still had a job to do, regardless of how he felt about it. 

Argonaut spoke over his comm piece, updating them on the status of the invasion and the location of the target. Vortex interjected before Marcus could acknowledge, the man's flippant remarks and voice drawing an annoyed sigh. Vortex was everything Marcus was not, and as such got on his nerves more than he did others. Still, his effectiveness and powers were undeniable and made up for his quirks. If only just. 

[b]"This is Gunsmith. My squad and I have received the information, heading towards the Parliament building now."[/b] He stood and attached his sniper rifle to his back, dropping from the top of the building to the ground below. He moved through the chaos, ignoring the rebels and the civilians, heading rapidly to the Parliament building. Switching his comms over to that of the squad under his command, organizing them. [b]"Colt, is that entrance into the parliament building secured?"[/b] "Yes it is. The squad of Juntas is ready to let us in, provided we hold up our end of the deal."

Before the attack on the city had begun, Gunsmith had entered Bangkok with his squad to prepare as best they could. One of those preparations involved convincing a squad of Junta soldiers, tasked with guarding the Parliament building in case of an event such as this, to let them into the building during the attack. In return, they would be spared from the wrath of the rebels by the Legion. 

[b]"Excellent. Smith, Wesson, Ruger, Remington, Browning, meet with Colt and I at the marked spot. Invisibility on, we don't want to attract attention."[/b] Marcus brought up his HUD, marking the position of entry into the Parliament on their maps, before heading there himself. His invisibility technology covering him as he moved carefully and quietly through the cordon around the Parliament, making his way towards the side entrance. In moments he and his team (made of other cyborg soldiers like him) were there, facing the surrendering Junta squad as they ended their cloaking. They were hidden by the walls that extended beyond the door, but anyone could walk through or around in moments. They needed this over quickly. 

[b]"You did good, and as promised you will be spared whatever cruel fate the rebels have in store for you."[/b] His blade deployed from his arm and he  moved forward with unnatural speed, sinking it into the throat of the junta in front of him. His squad followed suit almost instantly, and it was all over in a second. No sound, no alarms. 

[b]"Alright, orders are to clear the parliament building and get to the General. Get in, do it quietly, and then make our way to the elevator. Cloaks on, be careful. We want them to think that only Vortex has gotten through, and to focus their efforts on him. Go."[/b] With their cloaks all activated, Marcus and his squad slipped into the parliament. As expected, there were more guards and turrets. Most of them were distracted or moving towards the violence and carnage caused by Vortex, and none of them were expecting invisible cyborgs to slip through the door. 

In a few minutes, the turrets were disabled and the guards dead. Marcus cleaned the blood off of his blade, contacting Argonaut. [b]"This is Marcus. Eastern side of the Parliament building cleared. Making our way to the elevator to rendezvous with Vortex."[/b] He pulled his shotgun from his back, preparing for close quarters gun fights. [b]"Move out. Kill any threat. Don't waste your ammo on civilians."[/b]

[hr]

[color=palevioletred][h3]Therma[/h3]

Chihuanhuan Desert, Mexico[/color]

[hr]

Kayda was quiet most of the trip and build up to the lab, concentrating on gathering heat inside of her at a steady rate. Simple drug bust or no, this was still the Legion they were dealing with, and she needed to be as strong as she could be and as clear headed as she could be during it. Thus, those around her would begin to feel a steady chill as she drew in more and more heat from the area. She could only chuckle at the scientist that had appeared from a van. Maybelline was cute in her nervousness. Which, Kayda supposed, was natural given that she was surrounded by armed and armored super heroes. She was certain she didn't look all that friendly in her Therma armor. Or her Thermor, as she liked to call it (much to the groans of those around her).

[color=palevioletred][i]Right, drug ring. Nothing to serious, can't confirm if they've done anything worse yet. We'll go nonlethal and do as Perseus says.[/i][/color]

She was in the middle of the group as they entered the laboratory, continuing to draw in heat (now at over 600 degrees Celsius), an uneasy feeling washing over her as they moved in. This was going down too smoothly, and there weren't nearly enough guards for a Legion drug operation. Something wasn't right. 

She was proven right when they finally saw exactly what was going on in the labs. The scenes of torture and brutality brought back memories of E-day, and Kayda's breathing grew heavy as she struggled to gain control of both her writhing emotions and roiling stomach. Part of her wanted to burn this place to ash. Another part wanted to close her eyes and curl into a ball, pretending none of it existed. A third just wanted to throw up. She decided to put her trust in the first one, fury burning away the terror and the sickness. Her blades extended from her armor's forearms as Bloodsport made his get away. [color=palevioletred][i]Fuck nonlethal.[/i][/color] She dove behind cover with the rest, looking up at the six turrets as Perseus shouted orders. She could fry them from this distance, sure, but that'd require a lot of heat. Heat she wasn't willing to expend. 

[color=palevioletred]"Better idea!"[/color] she shouted back, taking a running leap up the wall. Bullets pinged off of her armor as the turrets focused on her, likely with many other enemies, but Kayda didn't care. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins and it was time to make these bastards pay. Her blades glowed white as she super heated them, jumping towards the first turret and forcing more heat out of her make shift jet pack. Flying, she sliced through the top of the turret, causing it to fall from the ceiling. Driving one of her blades into the ceiling above her, she threw herself at the next turret, slicing through it with her free hand. She repeated this process for the other four, throwing herself when she could and flying when she couldn't. 

With the six turrets destroyed, Therma paused in mid-air. Chuckling at Maybelline's information. A literal Achilles heel in her suit of armor. Interesting, but she didn't have the electricity to deal with them, nor were they close enough to be a threat yet. She looked down, seeing the enemies Venom monsters still advancing despite their losses. [color=palevioletred]"Can't have that, can we?"[/color] She ceased her flight and fell to the ground on top of one of the Venom goons, bending over to look him in the eyes. [color=palevioletred]"Hi there! Do you come to this place often?"[/color] As his hand reached up to grab her (and probably break her spine afterwards) she clenched her hand around his overly large bicep. Suddenly, every trace of heat left his body and he was flash frozen. Boiling with far more heat than she expected, Therma crowed in delight. She loved this feeling. This sense of [i]invincibility[/i]. [color=palevioletred]"[i]WHOOO[/i] That's a lot of body heat!"[/color] She extended her hands towards the Legion soldiers and Bloodsport firing at them, and let rip with wild abandon. Fire streaked from her hands and roasted a some of them, merely forcing others to stop firing to take cover. Therma laughed madly as she did so, the energy boiling inside of her. She was an angry volcano god, raging at those who dared oppose her, bringing justice to the those who dared-

A large meaty fist grabbed her, lifting her up like a toy doll. The angry volcano god squeaked. She felt her flames sputter out in surprise as she was lifted up. Instinctively her feet kicked out, catching on the Venom thug's chest as she tried to free herself. She had expended a lot of heat, now down to just 200 degrees Celsius, in her 'angry volcano god' fire and didn't have the passive strength to free herself. Her jetpack activated again as she put as much heat as she dared through it, dropping down to around 90 degrees Celsius, burning the Venom user as she tried to free herself. He bellowed in pain, and threw her with all his might. 

Therma crashed onto the floor and skidded to a stop next to Perseus, looking up as abashedly as she could through her armor. [color=palevioletred]"Okay. Maybe I got carried away."[/color] A speedster suddenly appeared, begrudgingly asking if she could help. [color=palevioletred]"Gee, person who just sprinted through bullets and laser fire with no problems what so ever, I don't think there's anything you could do. After all, what could we use with someone who can [i]run faster than bullets.[/i]"[/color] Sarcasm dripped from every word as she scrambled behind cover, next to the good doctor, concentrating on gathering more heat. [color=palevioletred]"Things are gonna get a little cold around here. Sorry if that mess with your cybernetics, but I need heat to do things other than sit around and mouth off."[/color]