[indent][u][b]January 18th 8:14 PM
Scar's Edge, NADF Command Center, near Hub City[/b][/u][/indent]

"He...he's still moving!" said Lieutenant Beckett, her voice trembling. "That's...we hit him with everything we had!"

Colonel Cooke balled his fists tightly as he watched the blip rapidly closing in on their front line. That was...unexpected. Yes, definitely unexpected - but not unprecedented. He had served in the NADF for the past ten years, and in the US Army for fifteen before that. He had fought terrorists, metahumans, demons, cultists, and everything in between during that time. In a sane world, something like this "Ogre" should not be able to exist.

But he had long since accepted that he was no longer living in a sane world. No, he lived in a world where abominations now roamed freely over the land where he was born and raised; creatures immune to all conventional weaponry. This Ogre...he wasn't the first of such creatures he had faced, and he wouldn't be the last.

In times like these, there was truly only one option.

"Keep firing!" he barked. "Target the terrain to delay him. Beckett - get me in contact with that fucking Station!"

[hr]

[b]Justice Station, Earth Orbit[/b]

If there was one thing in the world that Matthias truly hated about being a member of the Justice League, it was when it was his turn to keep watch. How very boring it was to sit alone by himself when he could be out bumping shoulders with his fellow socialites, or at least fighting against some unsavory villain in need of a good thrashing.

Oh well, at least he was able to indulge in as much of Alfred's splendid coffee as he desired.

Sipping from his cup, he leaned back in his seat at the main command console and idly flipped through the various news reports, ever in search of trouble. Nothing currently appeared to be worthy of the attention of a member of the League...although he was sorely attempted to respond to a few of them regardless, just to alleviate his crushing boredom.

But alas, he couldn't risk leaving the station over "trivial" matters that lesser heroes could easily manage. He was expected to be on standby in case there was a [i]real[/i] emergency. If there wasn't anyone here at the station when one occurred, it would just send a general distress signal to all members of the League - and everybody [i]hated[/i] when that happened.

Or at least he did - he was usually busy hobnobbing.

Satisfied that there was nothing worth his concern, he took a generous gulp of his coffee and smiled.

[color=gray]"Hmmm...Alfred, dear, would you be so kind as to play the latest episode of [i]Savior of my Dreams[/i] for me?"[/color] asked Matthias with a subconscious flourish of his hand. [color=gray]"I hear Celene breaks up with Crawford! Oh, the tragedy! They were doing so well.."[/color]

[b]"Sir, I am receiving a priority alert from the border NADF Commander Center at Hub City."[/b]

His brows raising, Matthias leaned forward in his chair, setting his coffee down on the nearby table. [color=gray]"Oh really, now? What might this be about?"[/color]

[b]"It's from Colonel Robert Cooke, sir. He is reporting that they are currently engaged with a TL-8 hostile. All of their weaponry has proven ineffective against it - a serious breach in their defensive line appears to be inevitable,"[/b] Alfred explained, the A.I. being omnipresent within the Justice Station.

Masquerade raised his head slightly, summoning his ebony dancing cane to his hand. [color=gray]"Threat Level Eight? On my. I dare say things will become quite perilous for them without my intervention. I will be departing, then, to deal with this - but just in case I require assistance, please contact Green Lantern for me. He needs more opportunities to prove himself useful."[/color]

[b]"Of course, sir."[/b]

Standing, Matthias - otherwise known as the Magnificent Gentleman, [color=gray][b]Masquerade[/b][/color], pointed his cane at the naked air in front of him. Skillfully drawing upon the ley lines to begin weaving a set of runes into the perfect circle that would become his portal to the front line, he simultaneously summoned his top hat with his free hand and placed it upon his head.

When the runes were complete, the portal appeared in front of him and with a quick skip and a hop, Masquerade leaped through it. [color=gray]"Tally-ho!"[/color]