Jinxer

The Guardian Angel Project {Revival}

@WeepingLiberty@redbaron1234

"That's true - if we can provide the ordinary people with hope and courage then that's half the battle already won." As long as no tragedies befall us.

She shrugged at Caden's explanation of their training routine. It made sense, to a degree. Still, aside from practicing she found it hard to see the benefit of using her power against her team mates for their experience; it wasn't particularly hard to grasp the fullness of her ability.

"My ability is to enhance my strength and I don't mean just so that I'm not disadvantaged against a muscle-head. I'm quite capable for shattering someone's ribcage and its contents so I'd really rather not use it during any melee training. At the moment I can't really moderate it to a lesser level than 'Hulk Smash!'" Her interest was piqued by the others' ability, not withstanding Kyle's which was the classic opposite of her own: super-strength vs super-speed. It would be a good idea to train with him normally, just to learn to combat those much faster than herself. She could also see why Caden had been chosen as a squad leader; his ability would be invaluable in the field when they were forced to make split-second decisions or to prevent ambushes. The others had yet to join them so it was more difficult to weight them up. Having an ability was one thing but its effectiveness could be reduced or increased as a result of their personality. At least, that was her theory.

"We have time for play, do we?" She asked with a raised eyebrow but didn't go too heavy on the sarcasm, or the innuendo, following the Angel into the relaxation area. Despite her tone, Rhiannon was very interested in how their hobbies and past times were to be satisfied in this safe house. "As long as they've got a games console, I'm set. I'm not great but I do love a good shooter. Y'know, as long as I'm winning anyway." She flashed a teeth-filled grin, beginning to feel at home with this place. And the people she'd be with.

The Unsung Heroes (Superhero,Always Open)

@Gurren1

No probs - it happens!

Did you want me to get a post up before you?

The Dust: Begin Again

I wanted something a little more exciting but putting a battle into the first post for a pacifist educator would be a tad out of character so I kept it short instead.

The Dust: Begin Again

"Never thought I'd be back here."

From where he stood, all Julius could see were the semi-collapsed ruins of Dresden's slums. There were a few sheets of cloth and mismatched pieces of studier material roughly attached to one another in some areas, making some of the ruined buildings habitable but only just. He was still far away enough that no one would be paying him much attention and he was a loan traveller; their lookouts would be more concerned with larger groups of people. Raiders often came here, taking what little these people had and then disappearing along with several of the populace destined to be slaves.

Julius knew that beyond the ruins stood the ordered, well maintained buildings of the upper-classes; the scientists and the other more respectable profession holders lived there under the protection of hired guards. He had always suspected that the guards were just as much to keep the poor out of that part of the town as well as to discourage raiders and slavers from coming too close. They weren't so concerned about what happened in the poorer districts, however, hence why the slums here were such a popular target for criminals. Once, he had belonged in those neatly rowed houses and had no idea about what went on in the workers' district and the slums beyond it. Even now, if he mentioned his father's name he was sure a position could be found for him and he could live in relative comfort.

But he was an Immortal. Now they would keep him out of scientific interest and that would be destined not to end well for him. That was why he had left. That, and for years the thought of returning here had resurfaced memories long buried of his father standing at the lip of a cave with his flesh flayed from his bones by a sand storm. Subconsciously the young man touched a hand to his leg, the one he still limped on even though it was fully healed; he knew that the limp was now caused by his psychosis but that knowledge had not helped cure him, it merely made it more frustrating.

Shaking his head to clear it of long-gone times, he pressed on towards the slums. They were not safe but at least the people here would not bother to report an Immortal to well-armed guards. The guards were more likely just to shoot them before they could get a word out so now the most dangerous part of his former home was the safest for him, the discrimination against the residents in the slums now his greatest protection.

"What's yer business here?" Someone called out as he neared the boundary that separated the town from the wasteland. Julius had to pull back the hood of his coat a little so that he could search for whoever had addressed him. The man in question was quite a stereotype: tall, muscled and heavily scarred with what looked like a club with a nail through it balanced casually across one shoulder. It seemed the people in the slums were too poor to afford even the most basic of weaponry.

"Just a traveller." Julius answered with a calm smile, not being afraid helped in these situations. His strength as Immortal meant he could slice this man into pieces so he had no fear of him, whether he had the intention to or not, and over time he had found the absence of fear and a degree of confidence gave him access to the less welcoming settlements of the world. "Actually, I'm a teacher but I'm not one for staying in one place for long, I get the itch to travel. I can offer my services in return for shelter and sustenance." He considered revealing the handgun holstered at his side, like a free pass for entry to some places, but decided it was best to appear less dangerous for now.

There was silence between them for a moment, the man chewing the inside of his cheek thoughtfully before stepping to the side a little to allow him passage. Julius nodded his thanks, plodding his way forwards but with a tight grip on his staff, just in case.

"Yer a teacher, y'said?" The burly guard asked, looking at Julius' bedraggled clothing with scepticism thick in his voice. The white-haired young man nodded, watching the guard thought. He was chewing his lip and was staring up at the sky, clearly on the cusp of saying something. In Julius' experience, no one wanted to admit to being uneducated, even in places like this, and so he said nothing so that the man could get to his point in his own time. "There's a few kids who could use yer help. You'll hear their place before you see it."

Julius nodded with a smile as he continued on, calling back to the guard without turning around before he was out of earshot. "Adults are welcome too."

The Last Subjects (High-Casual) (Full)

Subject 133

Alex awaiting Sony's answer but before she had a chance to reply the Amazon had hurtled over their heads with her usual, loud presence. The only expression of his irritation was his lips pressing thinly together; they had only been together for a bit so he was trying not to judge anyone's character just yet however this woman was beginning to get on his nerves. She was too loud, too active with no apparent filter; yelling out whatever came into her mind and then expressing the surprise she felt at her thoughts.

Instead, he forced a smile although it didn't reach his eyes. "Sorry, I haven't-" Then the target of the Amazon's search appeared, clearly as irritated as he was but forced to express it as she was the most affected by their overly active fellow subject. He admired the fact that Parkinson was upfront about her feelings, establishing what she would accept in terms of naming from the outset. While he had no qualms about what he was called, concerning himself more with what he called himself, he could see why the array of names being laid out before Parkinson would be a source of annoyance with everything else that was already going on.

Feeling like he should step in, even for a moment, Alex coughed to draw the attention of the two and then gestured to Parkinson before speaking in his mild-mannered way. "Andarta, is it? I think you should listen to Parkinson. She's clearly upset about your nicknames and we're under enough pressure and stress as it is without anyone adding to it - don't call someone by something they don't wish to be called by. I think we can all appreciate that, no?" He asked, his eyes narrowing as some of the anger he felt towards the apparently arbitrarily chosen name he had been given bled through but he quickly quashed the emotion and nodded to the two before turning back to Sony.

"I'm glad, it wasn't something you'd want to see at any time. Especially in one of our first moments." After she had made her decision he nodded, acknowledging it, and smiled softly. "Of course. It was this way, I believe." He gestured in the direction of the library, quickly informing the tall boy who had just greeted them of where the two were going, before heading towards the room. Once they arrived he stared hungrily at the books piled on shelf after shelf, trying to decide where the best place was to start.

There was just too much choice, too much to learn.

He turned to Sony and nodded towards the shelves. "What were you going to look for? I want to find a reason to use the name they gave me... so it's my choice. I'm sure I can find an answer somewhere in here." Then he noticed that they were not alone in the room and he remembered the boy's name as Virgil; he seemed to be the quiet type so Alex made no move to include him.

It didn't take him long to find an array of books in the history section which appealed to him.

Alexander the Great? Is that what they term ego? Well, let's see why they called him 'Great'. Maybe then I can use this name.

The Dust: Begin Again

I'm away today but I'll be polishing off my post tomorrow/Sunday depending on how long social commitments take.

Tl;dr I'm still here.

The Last Subjects (High-Casual) (Full)

@karamonnom Haha, can't let that happen then!

I've got two days off after I get home tonight so I'll have a post up tonight or tomorrow depending when whether my brain is still working.

The Last Subjects (High-Casual) (Full)

Of course!

The Last Subjects (High-Casual) (Full)

I was half asleep (and still am) writing that post so if it's... y'know... the quality of something by E L James then please forgive me.

The Last Subjects (High-Casual) (Full)

Subject 133

Alex nodded, stepping back. "Of course." He turned around and walked back to where Sony was now on the ground with an ashen face, her eyes wet and red. A brief pang of fury mushroomed in his chest but Alex quickly brought it under control, they had just seen what happened when they went up against the guards here. No, not guards. Wardens was the more appropriate term, he decided. He knelt down so that he was more at Sony's level and extended a hand, rather than presuming to take her in hand and guide her.

"Try not to think about it, Sony. Come, it'll be easier if we're away from here." Alex had no idea why he felt that way, it was not like he had any experience with death and violence in his tiny lifespan but the phrase 'out of sight, out of mind' had sprung into his thoughts. After helping her to her feet, Alex helped steady the girl as they all exited the room after Doc.

I'll have to tread carefully with these wardens and keep my head down.
Alex wondered whether that was why Doc and Red were here, as their mentors. Clearly there was at least one other left from when they were born or at least one who they knew. But so far they had only seen three from previous groups, Alex assumed that there weren't going to be many more so he thought it best to follow Doc and Red's example and keep their heads down, not antagonise the wardens like the others seemed intent on doing.

Thinking of survival led Alex on to question how many batches had come and gone before them and what their actual purpose was in the first place. Clearly it was something to do with their powers, the wardens didn't have them and they were afraid of the subjects so that meant their abilities weren't fully understood.

Too much to think about... I'll just follow and listen and figure it all out later. Doesn't look like we're leaving here any time soon.

They continued on, Red left behind to recover for a bit. Alex had thought it a good time to ask Doc some questions but he had a sense of danger hidden below the surface and so stayed with Sony, talking quietly about the facilities Doc was showing them. When they came to the library his eyes gleamed, masses of information and knowledge just sitting there for him to investigate, query and improve upon. He resolved to return to the room once they had finished their tour.

It didn't take long to go around all the rooms, they weren't exactly living in the lap of luxury after all. Doc headed off, clearly going to check on Red, leaving them to go about whatever they wanted to. The immediate draw for Alex was to return to the fountain of knowledge calling to him down the corridor but he didn't want to leave Sony by herself in case she was still troubled by the earlier events. Which would be fine; he himself found it hard to remove the noises of pain and death from his mind.

"How're you feeling, Sony? I'm thinking of heading to the library, what about you?"