[center][u][color=148613][h1]Chapter IV[/h1][/color][/u]
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[sub]12:30 PM
August 31st, 2033
Sunset Superhero Resort
St. Florian, U.S. Virgin Islands[/sub]

The island of St. Florian was one of the smaller islands of the USVI, located due east of Puerto Rico in the middle of the Caribbean. It was a stunning sight, the pinnacle of natural beauty, with a luscious landscape covered in palm trees galore, surrounded by a sparkling emerald bay. The sun was shining and the temperature was hot but not too overwhelming. It was, frankly, perfect. Despite its incredible beauty, St. Florian was a small island, and much of its resplendent natural glory was reserved to the Sunset Superhero Resort. The resort was the first and largest superhero-exclusive resort spa, and it makes a killing catering towards the needs of the world's superheroes. The resort is the premier hotspot for all superheroes seeking a relaxing vacation, and finding a reservation is difficult. Many of the world's hero agencies have the resort's limited spaces booked all around the year, leaving very limited spaces open at any given time. HERO had never before booked the resort for its own heroes, but after a disastrous summer that included a titanic coup and an endless multitude of certifiably insane supervillains seeking world domination or mass destruction, Director Hugo Powers had decided to take the initiative to book as many spots as the resort had available at the end of August. 

Unfortunately, there weren't enough spaces for everybody involved in the massive coup d'etat to go to the resort, so Powers had simply chosen a group of people at random and told them to get ready to head down to the Caribbean. He had, however, given the stragglers a week of paid vacation and reservations to a nice restaurant in Castleburg. It was the best he could do. Sometimes, life wasn't fair, after all. 

Those that had been lucky (or unlucky?) enough to go were flown down to the island in a large seaplane. The plane landed on the water, the rippling water splashing along the sides of the plane as it pulled up alongside the dock. The doors to the plane opened, a ramp out of the vehicle sliding out. Director Hugo Powers stepped out of the plane first, a large duffel bag in his hands. He was looking abnormally comfortable, wearing a Hawaiian t-shirt and board shorts, with flip-flops on his feet, a pair of sunglasses tucked into his shirt. Standing at the ready on the dock was a gorgeous Caribbean woman with dark skin and bleach-blonde hair tied into a ponytail. She was wearing a turquoise bikini and a wrap skirt, with a pair of sleek sunglasses perched on her nose. She smiled warmly at the group. [color=LightSeaGreen]"Hello, hello! Welcome to Sunset Superhero Resort. If I'm not mistaken, you guys are from HERO, which means you must be Director Powers."[/color] She extended a hand to Powers, who shook it. [color=LightSeaGreen]"My name is Naomi Lewis, and I am the coordinator here at Sunset. On behalf of all the staff here, I'd like to welcome you to our esteemed resort."[/color]

Powers nodded. Despite wearing casual vacation clothes, he looked as formal as ever. [color=lightslategray]”A pleasure to meet you as well, Mrs. Lewis. Thank you for your hospitable reception. If you could direct us to our lodgings as soon as possible, that would be excellent.”[/color] He held up his bag. [color=lightslategray]”We do have quite a bit of luggage to put down, and the sooner we can exit the preliminary unpacking phase and commence the enjoyment of the Caribbean air, the better.”[/color]

Naomi chuckled, gesturing towards her with her hand. [color=LightSeaGreen]"Of course. Follow me."[/color] The woman walked down the dock towards the gorgeous resort, which had done an excellent job of preserving nature. There was no giant tower or massive building present, but instead, the resort was composed of a line of small, separated villas that wrapped around the shoreline of the island. Several tropical-looking buildings stood inland, between the tropical bushes, palm trees, and sand dunes. Naomi guided them towards the lobby, a lovely building with glass walls and a bonnet roof, supported by wooden pillars. The interior of the reception area was decorated with all manner of ocean-related items, including old anchors, bottled ships, and most impressively, a number of taxidermized fishes. Naomi said something in some foreign language to the lady working at the desk, before smiling and turning back to the group. She had grabbed a tray from the desk, and on the tray were a collection of manila envelopes. [color=LightSeaGreen]"All of your villas are ready for you to go. Your keys are inside these here envelopes, along with our brochure that details the services we provide here at Sunset, along with our room service menu. Our staff has put you with the individuals you have requested to stay with, if any. I do hope you enjoy your stay. If you have any questions, concerns, or requests, please feel free to call me. I wrote my phone number on the back of each brochure. Have fun, and thank you for staying at Sunset."[/color]

[color=lightslategray]”Thank you again, Ms. Lewis.”[/color] Powers took his envelope. [color=lightslategray]"Before you all go, I have reserved a late dinner at the Solaris, which is the resort's five-star restaurant. If you could join me there at 8:00 PM, that would be excellent. Until then, make sure you enjoy yourselves.”[/color] Powers looked towards Pandora. [color=lightslategray]”Pandora, if you could join me for a quick outing of croquet. There are a couple of matters I would like to discuss with you individually, and croquet is a phenomenal activity to engage in during a discussion. I'll see you there at 1300 hours.”[/color] With that, Powers took his envelope and trudged off towards the boardwalk.

Grace, who was quietly observing the beauty of the island and her surroundings, stepped forwards and snatched the envelope with her name scribbled on it. She stepped back, ripping open the top of the envelope and reaching inside. [color=DarkOrchid]"Tom, we're in the Mahi-Mahi Hutt,"[/color] Grace said, dangling the keys in her hand, which was a thick wooden cutout of a mahi-mahi attached to a jingling set of golden keys. She was wearing a white linen shirt with her sleeves rolled up and shorts, a straw sun hat on her head, and pink-lense sunglasses perched on her nose. She held a purple carry-on luggage bag in her other hand. [color=DarkOrchid]"Let's go, hon."[/color] She walked off, rolling her bag behind her as she made her way out of the building, walking around the boardwalk slowly, until she found the building they were looking for. It was a decently-sized wooden bungalow with a thatched roof that was perched on wooden pillars, situating it right above the water. Grace rolled her bag up to the front door, inserting the key inside, before swinging it open. The inside of the villa was as impressive as one might expect, sea-green wallpaper covering the interiors of the building. There was a nice-sized den with a comfortable-looking couch and a giant, wall-mounted flat-screen TV, along with a comfortably spacious bedroom, bathroom, and a beautiful view of the water from the several sliding-glass doors. 

Grace rolled her bag to the wall, removing the glossy brochure from the envelope and skimming it quickly. [color=DarkOrchid]"So many spa treatments and massages...some of them I haven't even [i]heard[/i] of before. Woah."[/color] She leafed through a couple of pages. [color=DarkOrchid]"Ooh, they have a natural hot spring here. We should totally do that. Ooh, but I would like to do a deep-tissue massage...there's just so much [i]stuff[/i] to do here!"[/color] Grace exclaimed excitedly. [color=DarkOrchid]"What about a hot stone massage? I don't think I've ever had one before...does that sound alright?"[/color] Grace asked, scribbling down a rough itinerary on the resort notepad she had found on a desk. [color=DarkOrchid]"Then we can probably come back here, or get lunch together..."[/color] Grace made a few more notes on her pad. [color=DarkOrchid]"If we can get an appointment by 1, we can probably get a couple of treatments in, get lunch, and still have plenty of time to come back here...[sup]and maybe snuggle or something,[/sup]"[/color] Grace squeaked out, a small tinge of a blush coming onto her face as she laid her the notepad on the desk. [color=DarkOrchid]"What do you think, Tom?"[/color]

[hr][hr]
[sub]August 31st, 2033
HERO One
Savior's Island, Castleburg[/sub]

[color=CC5500]"Well, my day off didn't last very long at all, did it..."[/color] 

Blake reluctantly trudged into HERO One's 4th-floor conference room. He looked like he had just woken up, which was because that [i]was[/i] the case. Blake had been notified the week before that while had had [i]not[/i] won a free vacation to the Caribbean, he would at least get a week off from work to do whatever he wanted, and so Blake had planned to do a lot of extra sleeping. Unfortunately, on the first day of his day off, in the middle of his nice long nap, Blake had been rudely awakened by a loud beeping sound from his phone. Apparently, he had been summoned to an emergency meeting at HERO One that he had to get to, ASAP. 

Life is cruel.

Blake plopped down in an armchair, running a hand through his scarlet hair as he looked around the room to see who was there. It was composed mostly of the people that he thought would be there. Patato, Rumi, Eliza, Angiedoodles, the other usual suspects, but also a few other individuals that Blake had expected less, such as that cop guy that had hounded his July 4th party, and that new guy Max, along with a few other people that Blake didn't quite recognize, including a dark-skinned girl with curly black hair and a gangster-y looking one with short blonde hair. The last to enter the room was Christina, who was, contrary to her normal garb, wearing a black pantsuit and a golden necklace. She was holding a large pile of manila folders in her hand, which she distributed to those sitting at the round table. She also gave everybody a single peppermint. [color=salmon]"Sorry to interrupt your vacation, everybody, but we have an important emergency that [i]does[/i] require a briefing. Listen up. This is some serious stuff we're about to delve into."[/color]

Christina strode up to the head of the table, removing a clicker from her pocket and pressing down on it. An incredibly realistic, 3D, color holographic image of a mysterious person shimmered into existence on the middle of the oval conference table. The man was wearing a black uniform, like military attire, with golden highlights. He was wearing a German spiked [i]pickelhaube[/i] on his head, and a black-and-gold ornate mask, almost like an ancient funeral mask, covered his face. Christina spoke. [color=salmon]"This is an image of the Black Baron. He was a prolific superhero hunter in the 1990s in Castleburg, working for a group called the Castleburg North Club, a criminal organization and radical group that believes superhumans are poison. At his peak activity, he would hunt down and either abduct or kill multiple heroes per day. It is our belief that he has returned to Castleburg."[/color]

Christina clicked again, the hologram morphing into a graph. [color=salmon]"Here's a graph of yearly murders and abductions associated with the Black Baron. As you can say, in 1993 he started out with a minimal number, before increasing every year until his peak in 1997. Then, he only picks up a couple in early 1998 before vanishing off the face of the Earth, and he's been out of commission for nearly 35 years now. We had listed him in HERO archives as "MIA/Dead," and we were never able to uncover who he was."[/color] Christina pressed her button again, the hologram morphing into a piece of paper. [color=salmon]"All we know about the Black Baron was his general appearance and his modus operandi. He- or maybe she- loved poems. A lot. By the time he was reaching his height of terror, he would always leave a poem written in ink on an old piece of parchment somewhere near the scene of the abduction or murder, usually pinned to a wall or nearby object with a knife. In the early hours of this morning, we found Tree-Man and The Whistler murdered in their apartments, each with a poem pinned with a knife to the wall. One was John Keats' "Ode on a Grecian urn," and the other we believe to be written by the Baron himself. We've collected them both for evidence, but the Baron has never left any identifying evidence before, and we don't expect him to do so again."[/color]

The hologram changed once more into a cage, with a mini Black Baron inside of it. [color=salmon]"Even though the Black Baron is likely a senior now, he is still extremely dangerous and must be stopped at all costs, ASAP. I know Director Powers would've liked to have taken this case personally- considering that the Black Baron was one of his cases back when he was still a regular superhero- but we'll have to act quickly without him. I'll be calling him from the Caribbean frequently to ask for his advice. Still, if a bunch of sweaty old men couldn't capture the Black Baron, I think a lady's touch might be in order,"[/color] Christina said with a smirk, before pressing her button again to turn off the hologram. [color=salmon]"Anyway, I've managed to create a plan to take the Black Baron down. As it happens, one of our undercover moles, Falseman, has informed us of a major meeting of several criminal elements in Castleburg. A big gathering of the head honchos of Castleburg's crime syndicates. The Wah Ching, Koshiki Devils, Brookside Bruisers, Bratva, what's left of the Guglianos, they'll all be in attendance. In all likelihood, the North Club will show up too. They're elusive, but they are still stupid,"[/color] Christina said with a mischievous smile. [color=salmon]"So, pretty much, you guys are going undercover to infiltrate a top-secret criminal gathering to locate a master murderer and help bring about the downfall of a powerful criminal entity. Sound familiar?"[/color] Christina laughed. 

[color=salmon]"Anyways, you guys are going to need to think up some cover identities. I put a Dungeons and Dragons character-creation sheet in your briefing to help you get your creative juices flowing. You guys have access to the HERO armory, too, so take what you need. Also, the entire party is being hosted by the local Irish mob, the Mad Rabbits, who are throwing the whole fiesta on their restored river boat. So, you guys get to go on a cruise!"[/color] Christina smiled widely. [color=salmon]"See? You get a vacation after all!"[/color]

[color=CC5500]"A vacation surrounded by people that would kill me if they knew who I really was,"[/color] Blake said with a roll of the eyes. [color=CC5500]"Can I go back to bed yet?"[/color] 

[color=salmon]"If you fall asleep, you're fired. This is a sensitive operation."[/color]

Blake sighed, opening the folder. [color=CC5500]"And I thought Powers was the mean one..."[/color] Blake mumbled as he looked at the sheets. [color=CC5500]"I bet I could pull off a pretty good Irish, though. [i]Top of the morning to ya, laddies![/i] What do you think, guys? Irish mobster Blake O'Brandt?"[/color]

Christina smiled. [color=salmon]"See? This may be a matter of life or death for many people, but that doesn't mean it [i]can't[/i] be fun! Right, gang?"[/color]
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