Zombiedude101

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

Pageking, motherfuckers.

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

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Quentin & Reed Taylor

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Strong Gold Community, Silver Hills

These days, reunions were never a bad thing for the Taylor brothers.

"... You sure you don't need a ride back?" Quentin asked one last time as he finished locking up the cab. His gear was all in place now; his RAVEN vest worn over the standard uniform he'd hastily slipped on just under an hour before, trusty old Remington 870 dangling by his side from its sling. Strange as it might've seemed for some, it felt natural wearing it all - something he'd become accustomed to over the years.

On the other hand, Reed was formally dressed for the occasion, though he had a holster concealed at his side with a CZ75 compact slipped inside. Just in case. "I'll call a cab, thanks." He waved Quentin off, before taking a step back towards him. "Look, I know you'll probably get something sorted with RAVEN, but if you still can't get some living arrangements - you're welcome anytime."

"What, with you and all of Cass' old junk? Never knew you had the room to spare." Quentin snorted, a wry grin forming across his face. And like that, he pulled Reed into a fraternal embrace. "Enjoy yourself, baby brother. And stay safe."

"You too, Quent." Reed smiled warmly as he was relinquished from Quentin's embrace. "See you later." Nodding, Quentin gave him the thumbs up before heading off. Knowing that the speech would be starting soon and aware that the traffic had left the both of them running late, he set off at a steady pace, brushing past over spectators and staff present for the event. One perk about wearing the RAVEN uniform was that nobody would bat an eyelid if he ever needed to take charge of things. Sometimes, he'd missed the inconspicuous look afforded by plain clothes, yet in the current climate of fear and insecurity, a uniform made people listen. Having a shotgun helped a little, too.

His gaze scanned the crowd, vigilant for anything that looked suspicious in the slightest. Pure, Alleigance, or something else, it felt like another threat was always lurking quietly from behind the corner. It didn't help with all the Saviors around - not all of them were assholes, yet something didn't feel right about them. Maybe it was just a side effect of being in his line of work.

Unsurprisingly, his theory about being late was confirmed when he found himself arriving just in time for Meifeng's uncle to start his speech. She'd spoken a little about him, but Quentin had never deigned to ask about him too much. Why? Well, maybe it was just never something that interested him. He seemed a nice enough guy, wealthy and benevolent, a man who'd paid a large contribution towards rehousing the thousands displaced by the destruction of Verthaven and was now here to open a sparkling new community with the same kind of interests in mind. A rare combination in the good ol' USA. Thoughts drifted to his daughter, Mika and Quentin remembered her too. She'd once helped save Cass and Reed alongside Meifeng. Feels like a lifetime ago.

Scanning the crowd once more, Quentin was eager to catch wind of either one of the Zhaos - he hadn't seen Meifeng since the aftermath of Prague whilst Lihua was a face he'd not seen in years. He wondered just how the Concrete Dragon was handling herself these days, now a teacher in Baybridge's local Academy. But there was one face that Quentin soon recognised, after a moment of disbelief. Cindy? Yeah, it was Cindy. It'd been a long time, but Quentin had never forgotten any of the faces he'd fought alongside back in Verthaven. Reed had mentioned her in high praises too. Glad to see her doing well.

But by this point, Quentin realised he'd kept quiet for too long. Clearing his throat, Quentin brought a hand to his comms piece, switched it on and finally spoke up. "Counterpoint in place. Sorry I'm late."

---

Reed, by this point, had already worked his way into the crowd. Being here made a nice difference from the hustle and bustle of work in the city, yet he couldn't help but keep thinking back to that particular case. His thoughts wandered to the victims, how their killer was still out there somewhere - waiting for another opportunity to strike.

But tonight, Reed had another duty - keeping an eye on things from a place nobody would expect. On the stage, he'd spotted Cindy in all the appropriate gear and a few other familiar faces he'd made out among the masses attending, yet Reed had also pushed for planting several plain clothes agents within the crowd to keep an eye on things from within. Extra eyes never hurt, particularly when nobody knew they were watching.

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

Also, shoot me a link to the next big collab that involves RAVEN/DOVE.

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

Got my first IC post up. @Mr Allen J, just need you to add my characters to the OP in the character section.

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

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Quentin Taylor

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Hello My Name Is MR.9/06

---

Somewhere in Brookacres, White Coast.

The Ferryman's Tavern was nothing special to behold, yet another watering hole in Brookacres, typically frequented its disgruntled and impoverished denizens. Dotted around the counter were a cluster of stools in various states of repair whilst a TV crudely mounted to the wall gave people a hazy picture of whatever sports rerun was going on at the time. Tables and chairs were planted across the walls, surrounding a pool table with the classic emerald lampshades overhead. Right now, it was occupied by a small group of patrons - regulars by the looks of it, spectated by a stranger in the corner of the room.

"Shit, so you didn't hear 'bout Jim Campbell?" One of the scrawnier patrons had remarked as they took their shot. "What? Haven't seen that guy since Christmas." His opponent, a squat man in a lumberjack shirt, gave him a quizical gaze. "Yeah... 'bout that, he's dead."

"What?!" The squat man exclaimed, eyes widening in shock. "Shit, what the fuck happened?"

"Murdered by a freak." Scrawny leaned towards his companion, his voice taking on a low tone, but the stranger in the corner could still just about pick it up. "And you'll never believe who - that boy of his. Yeah, that's what I said - Jim Campbell's boy turned out to be a freak who murdered him. His own blood."

"Jesus, fuckin' freaks everywhere. Dunno who to trust these days."

"Gotta watch out wherever you go."

"Say, weren't he married?"

"Hell with that bitch, Jim said it best himself - she's always been a fuckin' skank."

"And what happened to that little shit?"

"Beats me, fuckin' whitey birds came in and walked him off. Probably let him off with a warnin'... god-damned animals. It's bad enough those freaks are out there, nevermind being left in charge."

"Whatever," another patron butted in, "I see that little fuck, I'm gonna cave his little head in. Jim weren't no saint but he was one of ours and I'll spit on my old man's grave before I let pricks like him walk free."

The stranger decided that he'd heard enough, driving a palm into his knee to stand up, leaving behind a half-emptied beer bottle on the table. He'd no doubt that the Pure wouldn't have taken kindly to having him drinking in their midst.

Stepping out, he quickly took a left turn and then a left turn again, where a chainlink fence covered the relatively compact space that had been set aside for parking. As he'd expected, the pickup was still there - and intact, windows, wheels and all. It was a funny thing, really - Max had only intended to loan it to him for a few months, but he'd had gained a certain fondness for the former service pickup and when NEST's assets were finally sold off or transferred to the new DOVE/RAVEN initiative, he'd managed to strong-arm the new director into letting him keep it as an unmarked service vehicle. Instead of the official markings it held before, the pickup had been given a new coat a couple of years before, leaving it with a naval blue tone.

So it happened, Quentin was back in town for the first time in a while. It'd been a long time since he'd had a full assignment here, probably not since the first few months after the shitshow in Verthaven. After losing Cass. But that wasn't exactly his concern right now - RAVEN could wait a couple of hours longer. No, that honour went to a certain someone whom he'd not seen in a good while.

Climbing into the pickup, Quentin whipped out his phone and brought up a familiar name on the contact list.

---

Reed Taylor

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Guided Meditation

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DOVE Central Office

"Walter Price, aged twenty-seven," Reed spoke aloud from the file once more, before sighing as he uttered the next two words. "Registered Metahuman." As far as he was concerned, it had effectively confirmed any suspicions that the initial report had raised.

It was no coincidence, Reed had mused. Two other deaths within the same number of months, each with a similar MO. Both the victims had been found in the Starrybank district, each having last been seen enjoying the nightlife before their respective disappearances and autopsies had confirmed that both of them had been spiked, incidentally with the same drug that displayed a level of toxicity towards a very specific group within Baybridge's population. Metahumans

"Can I see the autopsy report, please?" He shot a look at one of the other agents searching through the folder, before they retrieved a freshly photocopied sheet of paper. Setting it on the table before him, Reed's inquisitive gaze quickly scanned across the report, before his eyes locked on the toxicity note.

Traces of 551 toxin found in system in addition to moderate alcohol levels.

That confirmed that Walter Price had been spiked, which probably explained why he hadn't put up much of a fight. Being able to manipulate air could've worked in his favour, yet somehow his killer had managed to garrote him to death and hide the body in an unlocked drainage opening, to be discovered two days later by a maintenance crew. The MO was too much of a coincidence to be anything else.

Serial killer.

Reed's lip curled at the thought. Time had taught him not to jump straight to the finish on matters like this, but his gut told him that something was off. And whoever the killer was, they were still out there - CCTV footage had only captured the late Mr. Price stumbling out of the Northern Star whilst any witnesses who had been near the scene of the crime were equally useless.

Running a palm down his face, Reed sighed and decided to get down to typing up his own report - along with his consensus on the matter. Three people had died in as many months because of this twisted bastard and with Anti and Pro-Metahuman sentiments stirring up left and right in the wake of the Beast's emergence in Prague, the timing couldn't have been worse. Reed wondered just how easy it could've been for his brother over in RAVEN - no worrying about the social or legal aspects of things, just getting things done. But then, that's where they'd differed - that's why he'd joined DOVE.

He worried about his older brother sometimes. Ever since Verthaven, well... sometimes it felt like only one of them had buried their uncle. He missed Cass, even now, and wished he could see just how his nephews had turned out - one going on to join a successful agency whilst the other had practically turned his life around. But Cass was gone, and all the retribution in the world wouldn't bring him back. Cindy had spoken a few times how she felt on that matter, how Meifeng had embraced and even gone beyond Quentin's zero-tolerance approach towards what was left of people like the Hands, but there was only so much that Reed could do beyond speaking up about it occasionally.

Soon enough the report was finished and Reed was just about ready to finish his day at the office when he felt his phone buzz. Bringing it up to eye-level, a smile quickly formed across his face as he saw the Caller ID.

Mass Effect: Borealis

<Snipped quote by Zombiedude101>

Yeah we do :) if you're going to work on it tonight I'll pop in when I get home from work.

@DearTrickster

We can focus on that once the mission is finished, no rush.

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

@Mr Allen J Thanks, Reed's in the character section too, now. Just need them listed on the OP.

Mass Effect: Borealis

@Sundered Echo @Hellis @DJAtomika

Morty and I are working on a collab to take down one of the snipers. We originally were going to finish off the last two but we'll focus on the third one which will leave one sniper left to take care of. Along with opening up the opportunity for anyone to rush to help Tanya and Iosif further down the shaft.

@DearTrickster

That reminds me, we've still got our collab saved for the post-op shopping setup.

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

And here's Reed!

Reed Taylor

Basic Information

Name:

Reed Taylor

Nickname/Alias/Etc:

Lazarus (Callsign), Nosferatu

Gender:

Male

Age:

33

Height:

5'10ft

Weight:

180lbs

Home District:

Greencrest Heights

Appearance

Hair Color:

Black

Eye Color:

Brown

Ethnicity:

African-American

Physical Appearance:

Standing at 5’10 and still in good health and fitness as a result of his career choice, Reed is still a man in his prime and arguably not too hard on the eyes. His eyes are a lighter shade of brown whilst his face is relatively smooth and clean-shaven, kept free from stubble whilst his head is cropped fairly short. Along his left forearm is a twisted scar from where it was bitten by one of the Devil's creatures and never fully healed.

Attire:

Whilst Reed is known to wear the standard DOVE uniform when the occasion necessitates it, often he'll go for the less conspicuous plain-clothes approach, wearing a shirt with jeans or cargo pants along with a jacket on occasion and keeping his sidearm in a concealed holster.

Personality

Innate & Outward Personality:

Strong-willed and brimming with determination, Reed was the kind of man with a motivated drive for seeing things through, almost to a fault given how stubborn he could be. However, several years on the force, his experiences and losses in Verthaven and his time with DOVE have only served to dispel the naiveté and replace it with a realistic sense of how the world actually works, along with giving him some good instincts. That doesn't mean he lacks the same drive, rather he just understands there's a way about doing it and whilst he still maintains a relatively calm, professional exterior there's a sense of passion and drive just beneath the surface.

One of the main reasons he first joined up with the force was to follow in the footsteps of his uncle and losing him has only cemented his idea of doing the right thing, hence why he carried on with DOVE to honour his name. Unlike his brother, Reed's probably more the pacifist of the two and is generally inclined towards talking his way through a situation and using those good instincts of his to avoid causing trouble. It helps being a DOVE, but it's also something that comes naturally to him.

Having spent his early childhood and lost a mother to alcohol abuse, he's also sympathetic to the plight of the poorer lower classes and metahumans subjected to abuse and is disgusted at the prospect of the local gangs taking advantage of either, to the point he's willing to go out of his way to put an end to it. Likewise he doesn't take kindly to signs of corruption or misconduct in either DOVE, RAVEN or the BPD, having worked his own ass off to get where he is and still wanting to help dispel the public mistrust of law enforcement and metahuman regulation agencies.

The other thing that's liable to piss him off is bringing up his family or friends and badmouthing any of them - particularly his brother or late uncle.

Hobbies/Interests:

Like his brother and uncle before him, Reed doesn't mind heading out onto the range every once in a while. When he's not busy, good TV and classic films such as The Terminator or Predator are something he can quite gladly appreciate. On another note, he's also kept a lot of his uncle's film memorabilia and, in some ways, has gained a fondness for collecting it albeit not to the same degree as the old man did.

Skills/Talents:

Time on the VPD and with DOVE have done more than their fair share of good for Reed. He's picked up a fair amount of skills in his time both through training and personal experience. For one, he’s quite analytical and decisive when push comes to shove and has been given a degree of wisdom from his time on the beat and with DOVE and he's not a half-bad shot either, and knows his way around most firearms. Practice on the range outside of work has only served to cultivate this. He’s also pretty damned athletic and knows how to take care of himself in a fight- a necessary skill for a man who’s job requires him to be able to apprehend fleeing and potentially dangerous suspects whilst staying by the book, so to speak. He still speaks a little Spanish though, again, his pronunciation is a little off and he's probably rustier than ever by now.

Goals/Motivation

Reed has a vested interest in doing some good for both the Metahuman and Non-Meta communities, it's one of the reasons why he first joined DOVE to begin with (that, and his being out of a job).

History/Bio:

Verthaven

Born towards the end of the ‘80s on Eagle-Rock Row, Reed was the youngest child of two kids born into crime and poverty to a single parent, surrounded by drugs, violence and the social tensions of the time. From early childhood, their mother quickly relied on a string of deadbeat boyfriends, minimum wage jobs and alcohol to pull the three of them through life and it took its toll on her from an early stage, often forcing her elder brother to step in to assist.

Whilst his older brother, Quentin got caught up with the local street gangs working the corners, Reed was left at home with an alcoholic mother who only seemed to be aware of his existence half of the time. Quentin did as best as a kid his age could yet all the same Reed’s early childhood was one devoid of any real parental figures. It was only after his mother’s death from alcohol poisoning that the closest thing to a parental figure he’d ever had showed up: his Uncle Cassius, his mother’s elder brother.

Having been aware of their situation for some time and having already made preparations to step in, Cassius took both of the Taylor brothers in as his own children and ensured that they’d never have to face the lifestyle he’d pulled them out of ever again. Years passed by and Reed grew closer to his uncle, having never had a stable parental figure to follow whilst Quentin, being older, continued to do his own thing in order to, in his own words, “be his own man”. It would, for some time, drive a wedge between the two.

Reed wanted to follow in the footsteps of the only father-figure he’d ever had and eventually wound up in the police academy, wanting to be a cop. Persistent as anyone and hoping he might make a difference in addition to doing right by his uncle, he pushed on through his training and joined up with the VPD.

Wedging his foot in the door for the beginning of a successful career, Reed flourished on the beat and worked his way through things until finally, hoping to follow in his uncle’s footsteps, he earned a promotion to a position in the VPD's detective bureau as an Investigator, which was going well up until a surge in Metahuman activity sweeped across the city.

Things escalated as NEST began its war against the Hands of Science, yet through this there was something good that transpired - a reconciliation between Reed and his elder brother, now a NEST agent. But things would still get worse, culminating in the emergence of the Devil of Verthaven. Reed himself was injured during this occurrence, his arm suffering a nasty bite wound from one of her creatures that would only be mitigated by the efforts of the late Trevor Obott.

A threat greater than anything Reed could have expected as a cop, both he and his uncle were among the remaining VPD cops who joined up with NEST when the city was isolated and fought boldly in the effort to destroy her. It paid off, but that was not the end of the Verthaven Disaster. Not quite yet.

In a surprise attack, the Changelings (whom had previously formed a temporary truce with NEST to fight the Devil) quickly turned on NEST, killing an agent - and then Cass. Reed was not present at the time, but soon learned over the comms - and promptly responded by ramming an armoured VPD truck into one of the Changelings and finishing them off with a shot to the head.

The battle between NEST and the Changelings came to its climax - and the remaining forces of NEST emerged, bloodied and bruised, the city a ruin to be abandoned, but still victorious, for whatever it was worth. Having lost his uncle, who had been more like a father to him than anything else and now out of a job, Reed contemplated his future until Quentin revealed that he'd pulled a few strings and found him a place in the agency that would go on to succeed NEST.

Skeptical, Reed cited his lack of powers - to which Quentin pointed out that he'd already held his own before, then offered him the chance to become a Metahuman if he felt he couldn't keep up. Hesitant, Reed made his decision - taking on and safeguarding the abilities that once belonged to Luis, leader of the Changelings.

Finally they buried their uncle together - before Reed looked towards the future with optimism.

Post-Verthaven

In the immediate aftermath of NEST's dissolution, Reed was one of the first agents to join up with DOVE - one of its two successor agencies that would deal with the social and legal aspects of the metahuman community. Transferred to Baybridge, Reed pushed on through his training and within a few years was an agent out on the streets, carrying out field work.

In many ways, it had been a lot like his days on the beat and as an investigator - except now he was dealing with metahumans and situations which could often be just as complex, if not moreso than those that he'd seen back in Verthaven. But he stuck with it, gained a knack for it and before long came to love and take pride in his work just as much, if not even more than he had during his days as a cop.

Things would always stir up, however, and the emergence of another destructive metahuman in Prague would serve only to kick the hornet's nest that was the malcontents of the Pure, the Allegiance and countless others who'd serve only to cause trouble in Baybridge, which now held the highest concentration of metahumans on the West Coast in the wake of the Verthaven Disaster. Most alarming, Reed found, was the presence of what seemed to be a serial killer in their midst.

Yet there wasn't all bad in this. Word travelled quick that his brother was being reassigned to Baybridge and Reed was more than happy to accomodate a reunion.

Relationships

Family:

Hider

Helena Taylor (Deceased) - Mother

Still a teenager when she gave birth to her firstborn, Helena Taylor was a sad tale to speak of. Years of poverty and deadbeat boyfriends (one of which fathered another child with her) led to the alcoholism which would go on to kill her, leaving behind two sons. Whilst his brother regards her fondly, Reed barely remembers her.

Quentin Taylor - Half-brother

One of RAVEN's founding agents, and Reed's elder brother. The history between them is a long and storied one, not entirely pleasant either, but since the loss of their uncle they've been on closer terms than ever before.

Cassius Taylor (Deceased) - Maternal Uncle

A father figure to his nephews, Cass was a detective with the VPD who wound up taking in both of his sister's sons when she died and raising them like his own. Of the two, Reed followed in his uncle's footsteps whilst Quentin went on his own troubled path in life and it was through Cass' example that Reed went on to become a detective himself. Sadly, Cass was murdered in the final hours of the Verthaven disaster by Heartbreaker, one of the Changeling Unit. However, unlike his brother, Reed has found himself able to mourn his death and move on in life.

Dynamics:

Hider

| Quentin Taylor |

| Good | Half-brother | "I know he's got his issues, but he's my brother - only family I've got. Just wish he'd let go." |

Reed's older brother and one who helped raise him with their mother was incapable of doing so, the two grew somewhat distant as they became older - particularly when Reed joined up with the VPD whilst Quentin went down his own troubled path and got hooked up with the wrong kind of crowd. It was only as a consequence of the events leading up to and during the Verthaven Disaster that the two reconciled, a close relationship reformed and cemented by the death of their uncle. They still keep in touch as often as one might expect, though casework between them sometimes acts as a barrier to that.

| Lihua Zhao |

| Respected | Associate | "Sharp woman." |

Whilst they first met in Verthaven and didn't exactly speak much about it at the time, Lihua has since become an oft-visited acquaintance of Reed due to her place as a teacher in Academy 61. More often than not, it's usually about some casework, but more recently they've been speaking about Lihua's young daughter, Lijuan, who's started undergoing development of her metahuman abilities.

| Cindy Keagan |

| Good | Colleague | "She's a good agent, one of the only ones who knows what we went through in Verthaven." |

Like Reed, Cindy was one of the volunteers for for Task Force RAVEN back during the Verthaven Disaster and like Reed, she survived in one piece - if somewhat scarred by her experience. Since then, she's gone on to enlist in DOVE - and the two have had a decent working relationship as a consequence of their shared experience.

| Meifeng Zhao |

| Good | Friend | "Hope she's taking care of Quentin for me." |

Again, Meifeng is one of the few people that Reed personally knew during the Verthaven Disaster - and one who saved both his, his brother and his uncle's lives on quite a few occasions. This, combined with their shared sense of loss and survival, has left him with a degree of respect.

| Shizuka Takashiro |

| Good | Colleague | "We don't see each other much, but he's come a long way. " |

Both of them having saved one another at one point during the Verthaven Disaster, Reed regards Shizuka as a colleague who's come a long way from the abrasive kid he was back in Verthaven. They're on good terms, it's just they haven't seen each other in a while.

| Haruka Takashiro |

| Good | Associate | "Shizuka's mentioned him a couple times, but I haven't seen him in a while." |

Whilst they haven't seen each other in years since Verthaven, Reed shares a similar sentiment for this twin as he does the other.

Abilities

Power Class:

Super System

Powers:

Hemokinesis.

A power which once belonged to Luis of the Changeling Unit, Reed was given the ability by his brother as a means of safeguarding him, in addition to ensuring that it would remain in trusted hands. Like Luis, Reed is capable of manipulating blood when he comes into physical contact with it, able to move it around, clot it or otherwise absorb it into his body through his skin. In fact, Reed can be empowered by absorbing blood, which bolsters his stamina and strength when he does so as well as speeding up his regenerative process.

Super-Regenerative System.

Much alike the man who once held them, Reed's regenerative abilities allow him to survive wounds that would kill any other man and even recover from them entirely. Broken bones knit back together at an advanced rate, gunshot wounds and lacerations quickly stop bleeding and seal up before any major damage can be done and toxins which would cause havok within a normal person's body are filtered out. Not just that, but it seems that this ability has effectively put the brakes on Reed's aging process as it did for Luis, leaving him with the physical appearance and fitness of a man in his late twenties.

Limits:

Luis possessed the single, strongest regenerative factor among all Metahumans, Reed, unfortunately, only has a fraction of that strength as a consequence of it being transferred to him by his brother. Where the Spaniard could have survived and even functioned when most of his body was subjected to severe trauma, Reed does not have this liberty. Destructive injuries can and will render him unconscious and unlike Luis, who had over two centuries' worth of experience and pain tolerance built up, Reed has had at most under a decade of holding this ability. Expecting him to perform the same feats as the man would be a fool's errand.

Weaknesses/Drawbacks:

Ashing out is one big weakness of this ability, as demonstrated by its original holder. Being subjected to incredible physiological strain and numerous mortal injuries at the same time will put Reed at serious risk of ashing out, especially if he doesn't give himself an opportunity to rest or otherwise replenish himself. Reed is also extra susceptible to poisons, diseases, and chemicals that are transmitted by blood. Taking in a little bit of this toxic blood can definitely stun Reed.

Other:

Baybridge: Old Ghosts [COMPLETED]

Used that placeholder post.