webboysurf

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

_{Police Station, Rome, Italy - Present Day, 16:14}

Issue 1.02.3: Grave of the Fireflies

---

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Issue 1.02.2: Unbroken

Sharon and Natasha both silently followed a rather portly individual a white lab coat, entering into a rather sterile looking metal room. Lying on a metal table in the center of the room was a covered corpse. The coroner who lead them into the room gave a nod towards the body, as if asking them to examine for themselves. His thick Italian accent made it clear he was a native. ”I am sorry about your friend. You must have a very stressful job.”

Sharon tilted her head slightly as she approached the body, moving back the linens. It revealed a body that had been clearly autopsied, but more shockingly there appeared to be a gunshot wound from the bottom of the jaw through the top of the head. She sighed as Natasha too approached and gave a nod when she noticed the wounds. ”Are you saying the cause of death was suicide?”

The coroner gave a sad sigh and nod, before beckoning for the others to follow him. He approached a computer system along the back wall, and there was a table with a tray that had a single item on it: a small electronic chip. He motioned towards it. ”It is my opinion that this victim killed himself with a single bullet through his cranium. Located at the base of his neck when performing the autopsy, we were able to find this electronic chip.”

Natasha instinctively grabbed the chip and pulled out a military grade cell phone and was able to slide the chip into a specially designed reader. She quickly tapped through her phone, analyzing the data before giving a sigh. She passed the phone off to Sharon, who looked over the data herself. ”Must have tagged himself prior to the assignment in case anything went wrong. We should be able to find their last known location, and hopefully find our target.” She turned around the begin leaving, the coroner frozen with a shocked expression on his face. Sharon just gave a polite nod in his direction before following her fellow agent.

Once outside of the station and back in the SUV, Sharon gave a worried look to her partner. ”You saw it too, didn’t you? The Mausoleum of Hadrian? Located right on the Tiber, and not far from where they washed up.”

Natasha gave a curt nod. ”We should still rendezvous with the Captain and Masters and get official orders from Fury. We don’t know what we will be facing in there, and don’t want to end up like our agents here.”

---

Next Chapter: Ballad of a Soldier

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

But back to my discussion topic, where are you guys intending to land your characters?

@Lord Wraith

My plans for the end of Season 1

But in all seriousness, things are going to sort of end up turned on its head by the end of the season. Without giving away too much, there's going to be a changing of the guard at SHIELD that will put Cap in a position to do things the way he thinks they should be done, rather than just following the orders passed down to him from his superiors. He's also going to have some big questions to answer by the end of the season.

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

_{SHIELD Safehouse, Rome, Italy - Present Day, 15:50}

Issue 1.02.2: Unbroken

---

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Issue 1.02.1: The Search

The two SHIELD agents stood in front of the single door on the third floor of the apartment complex, waiting silently for a moment. Tony tried to knock again. It was perhaps the most simplistic form of communication, something that Steve even used when he was in the Army. As the two waited outside and heard no response, they both gave a nod. Tony lifted up the faded placard next to the door and gave three quick taps against the wall underneath. The metal panel slid back up into the wall to reveal two scanners. Tony placed his hand on the hand reader as it began to scan his fingerprints, while a sweeping light scanned over his face for facial recognition. After a few moments, the scanners lit up green and the whirs of locks and gears could be heard churning for a few seconds. Tony opened the door, reaching towards his belt to pull out a small metal capsule.

The safehouse wasn’t as clean as one would expect. There were some papers scattered about the place, and an overturned chair or two. Various computers and terminals littered the apartment, but they were all turned off. The weapon rack along the back wall was mostly intact, but there were a few guns that appeared to be missing from the clear empty spaces. Tony and Cap cautiously entered into the larger room, carefully watching things as they split up. Cap made his way to a door on the right side of the room, while Tony approached one on the left. They both gave a curt nod and violently opened the doors. Tony simply found an empty bedroom that was in near immaculate condition, with a single bag in the corner.

Cap opened the door and was immediately met with a wooden chair bashing into his chest. A man in casual clothes was left just holding two of the chair’s legs, and began engaging in close combat. He was able to deliver a few solid blows into Cap’s sides, but Steve was a tank of a man. He bid his time doing his best to block attacks until he found his opening. Cap was able to deliver one swift blow to the hostile’s chest, and the man went flying back into the back wall of the bedroom before falling onto the bed. The hostile was able to just get up when Cap delivered a left hook and knocked him unconscious.

In the meantime, Tony nodded as he saw that there were no lights on under the door on his left. He placed a hand on the computer on his right, and he came to a complete stop. It was warm, which meant they weren’t alone. He twisted his body slightly and delivered a sweeping kick to knock the gun out of the hand of the assailant who swung open the door. A single, silenced bullet impacted against the wall as the gun slid across the floor. The individual seemed surprised by the skill of Tony Masters, but he had no idea. Any attack the assailant made against the SHIELD agent were dodged and countered. Tony was able to fight with brutal efficiency, beating the assailant into a pulp until a final right hook knocked him unconscious.

Cap entered back in the main room just in time to see Tony slowly approaching the gun lying on the ground. Steve’s expression narrowed in on the unconscious body, then Tony’s face. His ally seemed almost entirely mechanical in his movements, seeming to operate out of instinct. It was a stare and loss of self that Steve himself had seen in some of his closest allies. So Steve began rushing forward, kicking the overturned stare with enough force to get in Tony’s way. He seemed caught off-guard by it, but was still able to sidestep it as Cap picked up the sidearm and removed it’s firing capabilities. Masters gave a slight nod to his superior and turned his gaze to the unconscious suited hostile, turning him over and reaching into his suit coat to pull out his wallet. Masters gave a slight sigh as he opened it and revealed it to Cap. ”They were on our side… shit I almost…”

Cap just gave a nod and patted him on the shoulder before lifting up the agent and took him to the bedroom to lie him down in the bed. He returned to shake his head at Tony. ”As long as we’re on this assignment, I want to make this clear. We don’t shoot someone unless they’re shooting us. Those are the rules of engagement. I don’t need to be fighting you and them.”

Tony gave a curt nod as he began to turn on one of the computers. He paused for a moment, before showing a small smile. ”I hate to break it to you, Cap, but I don’t think you could.”

The two began getting to work at that point in time. Tony worked on getting the computers online, while Cap made sure that the other agents were comfortable and got the place in order. After about a half hour, the other agents began to awake and Cap did his best to calm them down and ease them in to things. They didn’t speak much English, so Tony took over speaking to them while Cap waiting in the living room to watch over the front door. It took about fifteen minutes before Tony returned, his facial expression clearly troubled. ”What’s wrong?”

Tony took a deep breath as he leaned against the wall and folded his arms. ”They’re pretty shaken up. The last time the agents were here, they seemed to be in a trance. They downloaded files and took some things with them. They’re going to keep an eye on things here and support our investigation off the record.”

Cap gave a short nod. ”You think the agents were blackmailed?”

”No, the way they described it… their allies didn’t even notice anyone else was here. Wouldn’t respond to any questions and just went around their business.”

Cap rubbed his chin. ”We’ll need to see what Fury thinks when he gets back. I guess now we’re just going to have to wait for everyone to get back.”

---

Next Chapter: Grave of the Fireflies

The Uncanny X-men; The Next Evolution.

Diskman

| BIRTHNAME: |

Jackson Tyler Hurley

| NICKNAME(S): |

Jack, Jax, Ty

| ALIAS(ES): |

Diskman

| SEX: |

Male

| AGE: |

18

| APPEARANCE: |

The best description of Jackson's appearance is average. He stands at about 5'7" and weighs 130 lbs. He keeps his messy red hair cut short to avoid having to comb it. His dull green eyes and freckles also give hint to his Irish lineage.

| ABILITIES: |

Jackson has a single ability: He can summon one disk of energy and control its movements. The disk is a construct of ambient energy that can range in size from half a meter in diameter to five meters in diameter at the peak of Jackson's power. The disk is only about three centimeters thick, but is capable of withstanding tremendous amounts of force. The disk can also be used for mobility and is capable of supporting up to five tons of weight at Jackson's peak performance. The disk grows weaker in size and sustainability the farther it is from Jackson. The disk is translucent, but glows with a red hue. The disk can conform to the environment it exists in. For example, the disk can mold to fit the shape of a doorway if materialized there. The disk can only be flat in nature, and Jackson can only summon one at a time. The disk does not destroy anything it comes into contact with, but acts more as an incredibly durable and solid barrier capable of stopping/impeding most things.

| BIOGRAPHY: |

Jackson was the only child of Nora O'Rourke and James Hurley, two doctors working in Chicago, Illinois. Nora's family originated in Boston, but she ended up moving out to the Midwest for college. The two met and fell in love while working at the same hospital, and it wasn't long before Jackson was conceived. They got married, but neither wanted to give up their careers to raise Jax. For much of his early childhood, Jackson was left in the care of strangers during most days. His parents still gave him the love and care he needed when they had free time.

But as Jackson grew older, it was clear he was more isolated from his parents than most kids. He rode the bus to school, and his parents were never able to visit for school events. He retreated into himself during his years in elementary and middle school. He absorbed himself into his studies and in various modes of entertainment, often spending his afternoons and evenings reading, studying, and watching whatever was on. He learned how to cook basic meals when he was twelve so that he could make his own dinner when his parents had a long day at the hospital, and managed to find his father's vast collection of movies. Jackson made his way through the most popular films from the 70s onward by the time he was fourteen.

Being an introverted nerd with red hair, pale skin, and freckles put a target on his back when Jackson was in eighth grade. Kids were never particularly nice to him, but a particularly nasty bully set his sights on Jax that year. Despite all the pain he endured, Jackson remained silent and took the beatings and torture for the full year. He hoped that by next year, the two would be in different schools and he could start over. Unfortunately, Jackson was wrong. On the first day of classes, he watched in horror as his classmate stood on the steps of the school building. For two months, the punishment continued on.

One morning, Jackson woke up and determined that he was done. He had a small wooden baseball bat from the only baseball game his father had taken him to when he was seven, and the bat was only about two feet in length. He kept it hidden in his backpack as he made his way to school. Once in the school's courtyard, Jackson set down his backpack and unzipped it as he noticed the bully approaching. The thought in Jackson's head would be that he would swing the bat at the bully's head to hurt him, and everything would be over. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. When Jackson swung the bat at the bully, he simply caught it in the air. The bully ripped the weapon from Jax's hands and used it to began beating the boy to a bloody pulp. The pain was far greater than any beating before, and a circle of students watched. For the first time in all the beatings that Jackson had suffered, he feared for his life. And as the bully raised the bat high into the air to deliver one final blow, Jax too raised his hand and closed his eyes. The bat was lowered down and shattered against... something. When Jackson opened his eyes, he noticed the disk that had materialized. It was small, floating disk that seemed to glow with a slight red hue.

Shortly following the incident, Jackson was expelled following an investigation. After all, he had brought a weapon to school with the intent to harm another student. It was no secret, though, that the parents of his fellow students were also concerned that Jackson was a mutant and that he could hurt or kill their precious children. Shortly following his expulsion and the news reports on the incident, Jackson was approached about enrolling at the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. Hoping for a place where he could fit in, Jackson jumped at the opportunity and has been studying there for a few years.

| MISC. NOTES: |

Jackson was not a fan of the nickname "Diskman," but has grown to appreciate the alias.

Tito's, Straight and Chilled

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

I have updated Wonder Woman's supporting characters which added in the Senators that will be partaking in the Committee of Wonder Woman and Enhanced Humans (still working on the name, any suggestions?).

@Star Lord

Probably something along the lines of the senate special committee on metahuman security would make more sense, as the senate would be more likely to make a committee regarding the overarching issue and then hold hearings regarding Wonder Woman herself to set precedent.

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

_{Quinnjet - Present Day, 15:47}

Issue 1.02.1: The Search

---

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Issue 1.01.4: War of the Dead

Rogers adjusted the straps of his seat in the back of the quinnjet as Fury turned around in his co-pilot seat. Masters and Romanoff turned their gazes towards the Colonel as he gave a nod when all eyes were on him. ”CCTV footage was able to pick up an image of The Gauntlet near the site of the ancient Roman forum about six hours ago. Local SHIELD agents attempted to apprehend him, but the bodies of two agents were found in the Tiber River two hours ago. We haven’t heard from the other two.”

Masters gave a quizzical look as he raised a hand as if he were in a classroom. ”Permission to speak, Colonel?” Fury simply shot him a look and a raised eyebrow, forcing the agent to slowly lower his hand and simply ask the question. ”Why not mobilize the Hercules and the rest of the Commandos? Wouldn’t there be strength in numbers?”

”If there is a leak in SHIELD, that leak could be on our helicarriers and even among our commandos.” Natasha’s thick accent seemed to overpower Masters’ former question, and he simply gave a nod in response.

Fury gave a small smile as Natasha seemed to be on the same wavelength. ”This mission is strictly off the books. We’ll be breaking off into teams. Romanoff and Carter will report to local authorities and see what information they can provide regarding the incident. See what the coroner’s report states the cause of death was and see if that can give us a lead. Rogers and Masters, you should report in to the local SHIELD safehouse and make sure it is secure. I have an old contact operating in the region that I’m going to check in with.”

The agents all gave a short nod to their commanding officer. Carter began to flip switches at her station, and called out to the others. ”Going dark. We’re sixty seconds from touchdown at the airfield.”

_{Rome, Italy - Present Day, 15:49}

---

As soon as they touched ground, there were three black SUVs awaiting the SHIELD agents. Steve and Tony approached the one in the back with large suitcases in hand. They loaded into their vehicle and rolled out of the airport rather quickly, peeling away from the others as soon as they got on the open road. The new commando took one brief look at the GPS before turning it off and leisurely driving through the outskirts of Rome. There was silence for nearly fifteen minutes as Tony Masters seemed to seamlessly blend in to the hectic Italian traffic. After a while, Steve decided to pipe up. ”Have you ever been to Rome before, Tony?”

”No, I haven’t, Captain Rogers.” Tony’s response was short and formal, which seemed to be a pattern.

Steve just gave a small smile in response. This response was what he expected, but Rogers was determined to get to know his co-worker. ”Before the attack, I served in Europe during the Second World War. Got the chance to visit. Everything looked so different then.” For but a moment, Steve seemed to get lost in his thoughts as he looked out the window from the passenger’s seat. He snapped back to reality and turned his gaze back to Tony. ”Where’s the best place you’ve been assigned?”

Tony kept his eyes on the road for a moment, almost as if he was ignoring his superior. He gave a quick look to Rogers seconds later, flashed a small smile, and looked back to the road. ”When I was recruited by SHIELD, I was stationed in Tokyo. Kept an eye on things there. Enjoyed spending my nights out on the streets.” His face seemed to scrunch slightly as he realized he had shared a little too much, before simply sighing and continuing. ”I took my time off to chase some rumors I had picked up. Some group of international assassins. Superiors said that they couldn’t be brought in for arrest because that was up to local authorities.”

”So you just followed orders? Let them be?”

Tony shook his head. ”No. I couldn’t sit by and watch innocents get killed. So I hunted one down, used his disguise, and took out the rest at their hideout. Fury was waiting for me back at base the next day. Recruited me on the spot and gave me a promotion. Tony took a quick glance to try and get a read on Steve, before finishing it with a simple, ”Now I’m here, Captain Rogers.”

”You can call me Steve.”

The SUV pulled over to the side of the road in front of a rather average apartment complex about a ten minute drive from the heart of the city. ”Right… Well, it looks like we’re here… Steve.”

---

Next Chapter: Unbroken

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

<Snipped quote by Lord Wraith>

I think Season 2 should be the first consideration at the earliest, personally. People like to amass characters and then burn themselves out.

I know I have a second character concept I'd try, but I'm more than content to wait until Season 2 for that.

@HenryJonesJr

I'm in a similar boat. If I do the secondary character, it'll probably be limited to a season or half a season and would end up tying into the Cap storyline that I've only briefly thought about. That story would probably only work next season though, so I don't mind a decent wait until I get to work on that.

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

_{Hinterlands, Brazil - Present Day, 22:37 Hrs}

Issue 1.01.4: War of the Dead

---

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Issue 1.01.3: Fury

The only sound in the bunker nearly half a mile under ground in the mountainous region of Brazil’s Hinterlands was that of boiling water. The only light came from candles, and incense gave the musty bunker a more homely smell. Three capsules rested against the back wall, though the capsule on the far left was open. Men in cloth masks were moving about, solemnly going about their various tasks. All around the bunker were sensors and machines from the 1940s, but seemed to have been upgraded recently with far more advanced technology. LCD screens and holographic projectors turned the old bunker into a gearhead’s wet dream. Overseeing it all was a rather short man with a hunched back, wearing a white lab coat and big coke-bottle glasses. Phineas Mason snarled slightly as two of the soldiers were carrying a gurney that sported the corpse of a man with red skin and a shaved head. While this would be the Tinkerer’s greatest accomplishment, he was never a fan of working with carbon-based organisms.

The henchmen rested the gurney onto a pulley system, and another set began to hoist the corpse into the air. Phineas oversaw a retrofitted terminal, monitoring the various calculations necessary for such a complex procedure. With the help of documents from a certain group of assassins, Phineas may have just cracked the secrets of life itself. Not that the machinist much cared for living beings. He made an exception when he was offered freedom and a rather long-term contract to develop weapons. A much better offer than the indentured servitude of SHIELD.

A figure entered into the bunker, wearing a simple suit and tie but wearing a similar cloth mask to the henchmen. Upon entering, all the henchmen not immediately occupied raised both fists into the air at an angle. ”Hail Hydra!” The figure raised a hand to silence them, and attention returned to the procedure.

The new figure saddled up next to the Tinkerer, watching things carefully. The corpse was lowered into the bubbling pit in the corner, and everyone in the room was silent. For nearly a minute, the only sound that persisted was the sound of the bubbling pit. That was, until a single beep came from the terminal in front of Phineas. Then another. Before anyone could react, what was once a corpse was very much alive as it splashed its way out of the pit in the corner. Baron Zemo patted the Tinkerer on the shoulder at the sight, whispering to him so none of the henchmen could hear. ”Once the others are reborn, kill the grunts. We can’t afford any leaks until everything is in place.”

---

Next Chapter: The Search

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

_{20,000 ft. above the Atlantic Ocean - Present Day, 1200 Hrs}

Issue 1.01.3: Fury

---

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Issue 1.01.2: The Cruel Sea

As per usual, Fury seemed to be the last one at the meeting. Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, Sharon Carter, and Tony Masters were sitting in anticipation. This was the first time in months that the officers in Fury’s Howling Commandos regiment had gathered together for a meeting. To be fair, this was also Lt. Tony Masters’ first time having a direct meeting with the other SHIELD legends. Just as the time hit noon, Fury strolled into the small room and took his position at the holotable. He muttered under his breath something about a meeting with Director Mace on the Trasnia incident as a few taps brought to life various security camera and cell phone recordings of the Vatican incident. Civilians were trapped under hunks of burning debris, there were swarms of panicked crowds, and the isolated attacks by disguised terrorists. Fury seemed to hesitate before his gaze rose towards the others. ”I do not believe I need to remind you all that what is said in this room does not leave this room.” There was a small moment of silence which Fury seemed to take as a sign of acknowledgement before continuing. ”SHIELD has a leak.”

Everyone seemed to tense up in that moment. Sharon gave an instinctive look towards Romanoff as she sat up in her chair, and Natasha responded in kind with an eye roll and slinking back a little. Steve’s expression was one of concern, and Masters took a deep breath as he continued staring at Fury. After a moment, Fury’s speech continued as relevant footage was highlighted and shown for the others when necessary. ”The Italian Government and AISE have been extremely cooperative in recovering what was left of the Aeneid. From what our forensics and tech crews have been able to establish, the helicarrier was destroyed via a network of explosive devices that were simultaneously detonated.”

Natasha was the first to speak up. ”So your presumption is that some outside organization planted operatives within that helicarrier just to destroy it? That seems a little wasteful, Fury.”

Fury gave a small smile. ”It seems to be too big of a move for this to be a simple attack. From preliminary analysis, it appears that the attack was being used as a way to bury evidence.” With a flick of his hand, headshots of three individuals appeared. ”A few assets of Director Mace’s Initiative Project were on board, and their bodies have not been recovered. Terrance Ward, codename Trauma, was a shapeshifting mutant. Sgt. Joseph Green, codename Gauntlet, came in contact with some sort of alien armor that has permanently bonded to his flesh. Rina Patel, codename Timeslip, is perhaps the most dangerous of the bunch as her temporal powers have not been entirely defined.”

Fury lowered the headshots and then threw one more up, one that the Howling Commandos recognized on sight. He gave a small sigh. ”Phineas Mason, codenamed the Tinkerer, was not on board at the time but was instead assisting on a job to upgrade the AISE’s communications network. The attack on the helicarrier took place when he was leaving for the assignment, and the convoy was lost in the commotion." Fury seemed to linger on the image as he continued speaking, eventually sliding up a single drawn image. ”There was a single survivor, but he has been placed into a medically-induced coma. I managed to call in a favor to a telepath friend of mine, and a single clear image was able to be pieced together from his memory. It appears he had discovered one of the bombs just seconds before detonation, and… well, that symbol was on the package.”

Steve, Natasha, and Sharon began to grind their teeth at the sight of the familiar emblem. While usually the most level headed, Rogers shot out of his chair in the process and stepped away from his seat to pace momentarily. Tony tilted his head slightly as he looked at the image, and was the only one who dared speak. ”Sorry, Colonel, but I don’t believe I’m familiar with the design.”

Steve was the one to respond, and his voice oozed with anguish as he spoke. ”HYDRA… they’re back.”

---

Next Chapter: War of the Dead

Absolute Comics - Season Two: The Monster Within

ANNOUNCEMENT:

Moving forward, if a character was not in your sheet when accepted, is not represented in the IC by one of your posts and doesn't fall under your character's jurisdiction, it needs to be publicly stated that you are intending to use them. If a player applies with a completed sheet before one of these criteria are met, then you lose claim to that character.

Thank you for your time.

@Lord Wraith

I jumped on this a day or so ago. I have a running list of NPCs and villains I intend to use (or at least reference) within this first "season" within the character notes section, either in modern day or in flashbacks. Three of these "villains" are modified, obscure heroes within the Marvel canon that shouldn't conflict much with anything anyone could plan up.