Zone C -- Megacity One

[MADBULL34]

Sergeant John Estes laid panting, his chest heaving from the exhaustion of travel through the agony of his broken limbs. The insides of the safehouse was a sanctuary from the death and violence outside amongst the hellish, artificial and empty world of Dante's Abyss. The burly, battered and beaten cop sat propped against the metal bulwarks of the safehouse. In the hours since arrival the determined lawman had fashioned a splint for his shattered leg, but had nothing to treat the overpowering pain.

He held his Smith & Wesson revolver in the palm of his good hand, drawing comfort from the weapon like a child and it's Teddy Bear. His reddened eyelids, heavy with fatigue, closed - thinking back to times long past.

The syncopated clip of helicopter blades sounded overhead and dispersed the harsh rays of sunlight that burned through the jungle foliage. The day was humid, so humid and sweltering hot that steam rose from the marshland, further obscuring young John Estes’ vision. “Charlie” was out there ahead; no one in the platoon could say for sure which direction the unseen freedom fighters hid, but like stalking panthers in the underbrush, every GI could sense their malevolent presence.

Before he was the Mad Bull of the 34th Precinct, he was just another Puerto Rican kid, plucked out of the slums of the Bronx and shipped off to ‘Nam to fight a meaningless war for a cause hard to understand amidst the poverty of the city streets. While other rich teenagers had fled the horror of war through college or a one way ticket to Canada, John Estes had embraced the draft as an opportunity to rise above a fate hustling drugs and dames in some barrio gang.

Deep within the ancient and almost forgotten memory, the broken cop could once again smell the gunpowder of the Viet Cong as they approached in ambush… and could see, could feel himself clutch his M-16 rifle, finding comfort in the violent, RETRIBUTIVE power at his finger tip. Unspeakable images of violence and death passed through his mind, and he could recall how the true nature of mankind was laid bare through the inhuman acts of cruelty he bathed in during the Summer of 1969. Within the jungles of Vietnam that hot July day, he had seen the edges of Hell.

MAD BULL opened his eyes and looked at those hunkering in the safehouse with him. His opponents thought they knew violence, but it was time for the old cop to give a lesson. He would show everyone that real carnage didn't come from pompous victors, but from the cornered and injured… the inhuman demons that walked like corpses among Mankind with nothing left to lose.

Mad Bull is hanging around the safehouse for roleplay.

[Dust]

There was a defined pause to Erika's step when she stomped through the fog of the city and found in her way none other than Hokori Hoshi, the man who she had made arrangments to ally within the game prior to their teleportation onto the godforsaken island! He had been but a shadow in the fog, just as he'd been just a shadow in his memory until this moment. She had all but forgotten him, and yet he smiled at her with that same grin that reminded her of a dog whose master has returned home from work. "Fuck off Pecs, I'm busy." She growled as she started to pass him, barely registering the ghost-like girl behind him.

Dust groaned loudly to cut her walking away short, getting a glare from it as she whipped around fast enough for her gorgeous blonde hair flew up like a cape, giving him a glance at the back of her neck. He remembered at that point the gruesome twisting of the burned flesh on her back that he'd glimpsed only by chance. Instead, he smiled brightly and knowingly at her. "Going to blow up another mountain?" He teased. There was a deep hatred in her eyes that wasn't yet directed towards him, but even if it bled into his frame it would not dampen his mood at all. Surely there was no explanation as to why she continued to put up with this man.

A glance at him would show her he has also been busy. There were bloody bandages around his arm, expertly placed by a practiced hand. She could hardly see this incompetent fool being able to sit still long enough to painstakingly unravel the rolls of gauze it took to cover the muscular mutt. "What if I am?" She spat, deciding it would be easier to confront him, or else he might follow her like a lost puppy. Not that she might unopposed to help. They did agree to stay grounded while they weren't pitted up against each other. He had plenty of time to swing, and instead, he stood. Her eyes move down to the ugly bruise on his cheek, where she'd hit him. A smirk crossed her face as she realized how true her earlier thoughts were, everything looked better after a knuckle sandwich.

"Could you use a hand?" He asked, almost eager to offer his services. At his side, he felt tender hands grab his forearm. Tamsin looked up at him as if to ask what he was doing, and he felt dazed all over again. His bruise got a fifth color to sport as his cheeks warmed. He restrained himself, as hard as it was not to just kiss her. Already the impulse has passed urge, and soon it would be a reaction that had a 50-50 chance at being countered by his will. He looked away from them both to compose himself, then turned back to Erika. "I could use a favor. I got into a fight and didn't pay the cost upfront of afterward. I'd like to save face if I could." He said, trying to convince her to come make out with him, so he didn't end up doing the same thing to Tamsin. "In return, I mean I'd help you even if you didn't. I'll just be more useful to you if you did."

Funny how he can't hit on a girl, but can easily ask someone that knew his situation if he could kiss her. To be sure, though, it was the same as asking a co-worker if he could use her pen for a moment. Instead of a pointless office supply, he was borrowing her lips.

...This was his life...

Idle chat with Erika, still in C21.

[Karl Jak]

Face to Face
Isaac Clarke

“EVERYWHERE!”

The madman called Isaac Clarke, beset by brain trauma and heartbreak, screamed out in the safehouse as the ‘Necromorphs’ closed in on him from all sides.  Since the place was empty save a few other contestants, no one paid attention to his rants.

Swinging at one of the nearby monsters, Isaac tore apart its face with his bare hands and discarded the bloody chunks.  “DIE!”  He raved as he punched down another one and stomped its face into the steel floor.  Turning his head, though, he caught site of Nicole walking through the oncoming wave of monsters.  The woman’s features remained calm as the crowd moved for her, but when she got within an arm’s length, the façade fell away, revealing a face covered in blood.  Her eyes and mouth were lost beneath the glare of bright lights as she closed her hands around Isaac’s throat and shoved him against the wall.

Isaac tried to find words as his windpipe collapsed.  He clutched at her hands.  Her grip was strong—horribly and unnaturally strong—but he managed to pry away her fingers.  The light emanating from Nicole’s eyes and mouth faded to reveal a sinister smirk.  A beat later, Nicole and the rest of the Necromorphs simply blinked out of existence.

In that moment, Isaac had perfect clarity of the world around him.

Enough to hear the beeping.

Enough to see that he’d broken the collar around his neck.

With a boom, the inside of the Safehouse was painted in his blood and viscera.

After the haze settled, a confused Deadpool turned to his partner.  “And they say I’m crazy?”

[spoiler]

#31 Isaac Clarke DEAD

(Isaac requested this)

Isaac will respawn in the Nexus in 7 OOC days[/spoiler]

[Karl Jak]

Face to Face
Strazio Rockwell vs Clownpiece

Word Limit: 800
Posts Per Player: 2
Time Limit: 20 hours
Random Elements: On

Clownpiece has first post.

Timer starts now.

[Gildarts]

Within a blitz of a second Tearen was gone, vanished as he had, likely, the only place he could’ve gone on this island was where Gildarts had just returned from. The arena. Who else… Could he have been fighting?

Tearen had gone. Strazio, the white haired rage mage was not going to back down. He wasn’t the type. Still, Gildarts had better things to do. The God mind had implanted Gildarts with a new purpose. Whisperings of a single sentence drove Gildarts to leave this fight, so that he could fight another more important one. Strazio was strong. Had any one of those punches hit Gildarts instead of been parried, Gil was sure he would’ve felt it through the numb swollenness he’d felt through his entire body.

Below all that magic, beneath the title of warmage and king of destruction, Gildarts was but a man. He felt the pain of every hit he’d received this competition slam into him full force.

And Tearen was gone, meaning…. Guess who’s back? Ha, weren’t expecting me, oh great and mighty Gildarts, were you?

UGH. There was no peace for this mage. Not from the pain, not with pleasure, never from the burden he carried on his back.

He mumbled, “Get-t out-ta here Mal.”

That is all you have to say to me? That god-mind guy tried to pull me out of you like I was some sort of pest to be exterminated! The audacity, he’s simply outlandish, you must kill him for me, next time you get the chance. Can’t believe you teamed up with him.

“Well, he’s-s gone now,” Gildarts stammered.

You can’t tell me you actually miss him? What is he, some kind of nemesis for you or something?

“He’s-s been the only o-one who could take the beat-ting I gave him f-full force, and l-lived t-to t-tell the t-tale,” Gildarts said.

Uh, yeah duh because he like, beat you to a pulp. Remember? It’s all there inside your crumpled up little noggin…. Uh you’re bleeding even more than usual. Look down at your shoulder. she warned.

Gildarts was startled by the sudden onslaught of blood. Something must have ripped when he wasn’t looking.

“S-shoot.”

Gildarts flees from C2 to C20

[Gildarts]

Gildarts looked down at his bloodied shoulder again and his mind must have had a high-voltage glitch, because there was no blood there. Just some scrapes from prior and some thick mud. This was super trippy, the prime put his palms to his eyes and felt the sting of pain for his left eye. The agony had come wrenching back to him. It startled him the amount of pain that drenched into his being. He’d barely gotten a rest, only on Lulu had he gotten off his feet, other than his near-coma experience.

Ugh, you’re seeing things again, what kind of man does that make you? Maybe one of your competitors will have a straight jacket for you to borrow while everyone else goes after items and you just watch them be snatched up right in front of you!

“T-that wasn’t my f-fault, Lulu was j-just hungry I t-think, she didn’t-t mean anyt-t-thing by itt,” Gildarts stammered.

Ick you sound worse than a hose with holes in it, maybe your stutter is in your head too, ever think of that? Brain trauma tch, you don’t have any brain left. It’s a hollow void in here, no wonder I fill it so easily. Lulu should’ve been taken to town, you should’ve eaten her up and cooked her bits for later. Instead you’ve patted her on the back for being a good opponent. Doesn’t it get so fucking tiring being a good guy? Haven’t you ever in your entire pathetic life wanted to go bad? Don’t you know… How great you truly could become?

Gildarts remained silent. “When great-tness equals deat-th f-for the innocent I will never want-t it-t.”

The Malefactor scoffed and smirked, he could hear it in her smug voice, Hah, are any of these murderers here innocent? Even yourself? You slayed that red coated guy, but didn’t opt to kill him. Do you think yourself a hero?

“N-no. That-t fightt was over. He would’ve d-died,” Gildarts surmised.

Who the HELL cares? He’s a prime, he’d respawn. You did. How many times now? I should be keeping track of this… she trailed off, yet held dominance in the silence.

“It-t is not myself I am worried f-for, t-there still may be a F-fairy T-tail member around here…” Gildarts continued his groggy words.

Ugh, didn’t I already tell you? Your memory is utter SHIT. The entire list of contestants is ON the tablet in your hand. Take a look. You’ll see you’re the only one. Funny thing about fortune tellers they are never one hundred percent right. You’re here. You’re a Fairy Tail mage. Now you’re going to either live like one, or die like one. You’ve made allegiances to these buffoons. It is time to fight them and give it one last hoo-rah.

Gildarts from C20 to C21

[Gildarts]

“Ha! I knew it was him!” Dust exclaimed and watched Gildarts pass into the clearing. He was muttering to himself, which wasn’t necessarily alarming, but Dust’s keen ears could hear he still had a stutter. That was new.

Erika followed freely, her blonde hair dragging in the mild wind, she walked on, following Dust’s lead but only because she wanted to. Her head tilted as she sized the mud-covered muscle monster up.

Surrounding the prime was the empty, hollow walls of the city once again. The man’s unstable mind was getting boggled and mashed. Things were coming together and still ripping apart at the seams. Colors were still colors, and square-like industrial buildings remained the same. He felt like he knew his way around. Gildarts thought even, through his haze, that he might have had a plan. Nealaphh was the key. He had always been. And likely always would be.

After Dante’s Abyss, hopefully he could exorcise the Malefactor for good.

“Gildarts,” Dust said with a smile. He repressed the thought that ushered him to say that Hokori had thought Gil had died.

“Dust,” seeing she had taken up a new crowd, he assumed Illidan was dead. Killed from the battle he’d been snatched up from. Thanks Karl.

“Who’s t-this?” Gildarts asked to the blonde. She was cute, but a little under age for Gildarts to hit on. Like some of the Fairy Tail guild members he’d watched grow up, that would be too gross even for his womanizing tastes. Twenty five was as young as he’d go.

“Daw- Erika,” Dust explained catching himself, “I knew her from before.”

Gildarts nodded not caring about just how far before, “List-ten, t-things have got-ten worse. Nealaphh is gone. I need your aid. D-do you th-think she wants to come t-too?”

“Yeah, let’s do this,” Dust nodded, determined to follow a man and leader he idolized. “What do you say Erika?”

The girl rolled her eyes, staying quiet for now but thinking Gildarts looked like one big hunk of shit walking.

Careful with that one Gildarts. She reminds me of you. Miss Malefactor warned him.

What-t’s that-t sup-posed t-to mean? Gildarts thought back.

Oh.. Nothing. Nothing at all..

Gil, dawn, tamsin, and dust all move from C21 to the safehouse C. Dawn gave me special permission to move her.

[Deadpool]

This scene takes place before Madbull is culled into the Colosseum.

The mercenary burst into laughter.

“What's so funny?” Jak asked, hanging his hands on his hips.

The eco warrior looked sharp in his black Tom Ford blazer, and matching colored Ferragamo dress shoes (in fact, dare Deadpool say, Jak looked like he needed to be renamed Karl Jak); they gleaned under the dim fluorescent lighting. The humor that Deadpool found was in his deep-blue skinny jeans—the bulge he prophesied was on full display, nestled against his inner-thigh.

“It's my shoes, isn't it?” Jak worried. “I KNEW they would look like banana boats!”

Nah, you're shoes look fine,” Deadpool dismissed, and then pointed towards the eco warrior's crotch. “I feel sorry for whoever you decide to sling sausage at; with some Omnilium creativity, you could probably develop some techniques for it—bone-breaking constrictions, devastating climactical explosions, endless possibilities.”

Jak was scowling, but it dissolved when a groan interjected them.

Deadpool turned around, and looked at the leather couch; laying on his back, a familiar face stared indistinctly at the ceiling fan swirling above him—the mercenary's favorite stereotypical policeman, Pimp-C.

The officer's clothing had been torn and charred, exposing his raw flesh, which bubbled with blisters. One of his legs was broken badly; a makeshift stint kept it straight, but Deadpool could clearly see the awkward indentations zig-zagging through his calf.

”What the fuck happened to you?” the mercenary asked with raised eyes.

Whatever trance the officer put himself in snapped. He looked at the mercenary, took a long and hard blink, then smiled faintly. “Hey, it's the crazy guy,” he muttered. His voice was cracked and weak.

Deadpool walked over to him and dropped to one knee. ”I'm not gonna lie to you man, you look worse than I do underneath this outfit. What happened?”

Pimp-C struggled to muster the energy to speak. “Werewolf guy . . .” he winced as he cleared his throat, “hit me with some sort of compressed sun, then ran off with everything.”

Deadpool growled. ”So he's got the shit I left you too, huh?”

The officer slowly nodded.

”I'll get our shit back,” he said, standing to his feet. The heat of anger burned into him. ”No one takes my shit. Not without taking if from me personally.”

“Wait,” the officer said; he reached out to tug at Deadpool's utility belt. “Be careful.” A sudden rush of blood exited his mouth like a waterfall.  “Groups of people out there—bug people, and blue-skinned aliens.”

The mercenary smirked. ”I'll be a lot more careful than you, that's for sure.”

And before the officer could respond, his body dematerialized into radiant dust that flashed, then vanished.

[Deadpool]

Just as Pimp-C transformed into pixie dust, the door to the safehouse swung open—the knob slammed into the wall with a dull thud. Four Primes staggered into the office space. Some of them were panting heavily, others just seemed thankful to return to shelter; one prime appeared especially thankful, for his collar stopped blinking green.

Jak immediately pulled out his blast, and took aim at the group.

”Chill, Jakkie,” the mercenary called. ”Pimp-C said we have bigger fish to fry.”

The mercenary was already examining the pack of primes as they huddled towards the corner. Two of them were females—one fiery brunette, and one sandy-blond, dressed a peculiar maid costume; two of them were men, masculine men.

Deadpool noticed one of them instantly. ”Long time no see,” he said as his sight narrowed onto the man with the five o'clock shadow (more like no o'clock peach-fuzz). ”How long as it been, Gildarts, two years?”

Gildarts's visage pulled forward while he tried to remember who the mercenary was; when it hit him, his eyes popped. “Yeah, about that,” he replied, then smirked. “And after all your effort, you lost just like I did.”

The mercenary sucked his teeth. ”I don't really have time for my usual 'roast the living fuck out of you hour', but you'll get one sooner or later. He glanced towards Jak, who still had his weapon raised. ”Put it down, Jak.” he ordered. ”If Pimp-C's asskicking is any indication of what some of these competitors are capable of, then we may need these people.”

The eco warrior snarled. “But they got items!”

All the items on this island ain't gonna mean shit if someone rampages through the ones with quest items.”

Jak gradually retracted his blasted until he only held it with one hand, letting it linger by his side.

Gildarts&company + Jakpool are moving out together from Safehouse C to C21.

[Gildarts]

There was some mingling between faces in the cramped storage space. Idle mingling, mixed with the smell of dank mold. Gildarts wasn’t quite wandering, but he was looking at his tablet and over his shoulder Dust and Tamsin were close behind him. Tamsin, the pretty maid, probably took one look at the disheveled Gildarts and was outraged. She as the kind of girl who liked things tidy and clean, prioritizing upkeep and a clean appearance for whatever reason. For that, it likely wouldn’t work out between them, but Gildarts could still think Tamsin was without a doubt, cute.

There wasn’t much time to think about the girls, or even his teammate Dust. Deadpool and the little eco warrior creature were ready to brawl. Gil’s nose was right between the crosshairs! Yet Deadpool waved the gun away and Jak’s eye zoomed away from his bushy nose hairs. It didn’t change the fact that this was personal between the two men. This was… Deadpool.

Deadpool… Gildarts gave him one look, it was kind of blank and unforgiving, the man knew how to trash talk. The red-clad man had killed him in his last Dante’s Abyss. Gildarts had mostly forgotten, but Mal decided to bring it up. Did you forget what he did to you last time?

T-that is the name of-f t-this game. You told me th-that, it isn’t a permanent death. Plus, he’s r-right. He’s been looking at the tablet too, just like Nealaph-phhhhhh. Gildarts thought back at her. Also, if I at-tack him, I can’tt protectt these p-people.

Oh Gildarts, you’re such a simpleton. she cooked between the layers of his mind.

“S-so what-t do you p-propose?” Gildarts asked Deadpool who smiled through his slimy, red, condom of a mask.

“Based on what he said, I think we should take them out,” Dust interjected. Tamsin behind him added a demure nod while Erika smiled sinisterly. She could only guess who she’d be up against. She had a score to settle.

“B-but where sp-specifically?” Gildarts stammered, his words tieing on his knotted tongue.

Jak and Deadpool were silent for a moment, then Deadpool spoke with a laugh, Please tell me that’s permanent.

All them people wanna keep moving from C21 to c16

[Deadpool]

The temporary squadron of primes were on their way. Each of them had circled the island enough times  for the landscape to be permanently programmed into their heads. The route they elected on happened to be similar to a path the mercenary perviously ventured, so he and Gildarts led the group like the head of a snake; they walked beside each other, but their subtle tension allowed for a whole person to fit between them.

As the group entered the shopping district, the mercenary looked over his shoulder to steal a glance of Jak. The eco warrior sauntered like he was carrying a stick, wobbling every step; his phallus contorted whenever one of his legs moved forward.

“Deadp-pool,” Gildarts stammered, “how strong do you think these people are?”

The mercenary refocused his attention on his temporary ally. ”Strong enough that us traveling together is necessary,” he replied; his voice was filled with a grave magnitude.

Gildarts merely nodded. Just Deadpool's seriousness alone answered the paladin's query.

”Despite all my craziness, I'm fully aware of how much of a threat you are—I know firsthand, the mercenary said. ”So if I didn't think this partnership was necessary to survive, I wouldn't have thought of it.”

“Wuh-well, just-t know t-that after we get t-to our com-m—“

”Yeah yeah,” Deadpool interupted, Once we get to our common place of destination, we split. I g-g-got you, Bub-ba,”

Gilart's furrowed a brow.

Bubba . . . you know, from Forrest Gump—dark-skin, kinda thick but still strong, huge lower lip . . . friends with a retard named Forrest who's played by Tom Hanks?”

The paladin's face was as blank as a canvas. “Nope.”

Deadpool turned to the group. “Anyone?” he projected. “Anyone see Forrest Gump?”

The rest of them looked as clueless as Gildarts.

He sighed.

The group continued their route, cutting through a portion of the metropolis foreign to Deadpool—a working class area, lined with row-homes. He imagined the area corrupt with crime; with underground organizations that, around the clock, plotted to take Karl's murder island for theirselves; they got into gang clashes, spilling fake secondary blood all over the parkways of Karl.  

Gildarts&Company moving from C16 to C2

[Clownpiece]

Clownpiece’s challenge echoed across the desolate city, falling upon the still forms of her opposition. The impudent child kept her pose up, torch hanging down to her right and left hand pointing at the trio. Her excited grin fell into disappointed frown as one of the figures simply disappeared, dissolving in a flash of light. Her purple, partially-blind eyes flicked over to where he had been. Something about this seemed off.

“Did he get-” she started with a whisper, turning her head slightly to the side. Right where Dane had been standing not a moment ago, there was now only air. With a displeased hum, she dropped her hand back down and began to channel a familiar, hellish heat through it. No big deal, she’d do it without him. Her gaze turned back over to the trio turned duo, just in time to watch as the brown-ish figure simply turned and walked away. “Fine! It’s just me and-” she shouted as she flashed her hand up, palm turned towards the pale figure. “-You!” An infernal conflagration erupted forth from her arm, brilliant red flames spilling towards the last opponent. Strazio burst out from blaze and was face-to-face with the fae in an instant.

“Cheap shots like that-” the man growled, thin tendrils of smoke rising off of the fringes of his clothing, “-Won’t work on me!” His knee slammed into the girl’s gut, throwing her clear off her feet and evicting the wind from her chest. A bone-rattling cough escaped with what was left of her breath as she crashed into asphalt and rolled to a halt, the hard, uneven pavement tearing at her skin and clothing.  She took in a burning breath, raising her head up and eyes flicking over to where her white-haired assailant had been, only to find that he was already charging forward.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she forced her good foot under her with as much haste as she could manage, the road scraping at her leg even beneath her star-spangled tights. The rampaging man was almost upon Clownpiece when she pushed up with all her might, muscles straining with force. With surprising strength, she hurled herself up and over the man in an awkward parabola, drawing closer to alley she’d come from. Infernal flames sprung to life in her palm, streaming down towards her enemy. Strazio skidded to a halt and spun on his heel, head turning up towards the fairy.

In an instant, he was off to the side, narrowly avoiding the gout of flames. He kicked forward, clearing the last stretch in a moment and was once again right in Clownpiece’s face as she touched down. Agony exploded through the child’s broken leg as heavy shock from the landing coursed through it. Strazio’s hand shot out before she could even think about crying out, the pain in her foot was drowned out by a pure, searing torment spread across her face.

Clownpiece desperately threw herself backwards, skull throbbing with a whole new agony. Every injury she’d accumulated up to this point screamed out with pain, but the hell fairy clenched her teeth, suppressing every urge to yell. Her haphazard jump carried her clear from the man for but a moment, but she knew that he would be on her again the moment she touched the ground. She furiously searched around in the desperate few moments she had before then. Grey buildings blurred together, smooth, grey stone broken up evenly by windows, and suddenly her legs buckled beneath her as she hit the ground. Her knees slammed against the pavement, and the charging man, expecting a taller target, slammed into her, throwing them both to the ground.

The spirit rolled onto her chest and pushed back to her feet before her adversary could get his bearings. Without sparing so much as a glance towards him, she pushed off the ground, throwing herself at a second story window and crashing hard against the sill. Her hands desperately clung to the edge, and she hauled herself carefully onto it. If he was gonna be there every time she touched the ground, she’s just need to avoid touching the ground.

696 Words
Clownpiece used Hellfire
Strazio used Shatter

[Gildarts]

Gil sauntered on, fixed in his own mind. Each of the participants behind him had reason and purpose that seemed to grow with every purposeful step. On the same note, the climate had changed again, what was once a soggy zone full of sinking soil and stinking water had grown into lush forests and... Hm. Mountains and caves. Gildarts didn’t like caves for… Obvious reasons.

There were rocks and boulders galore, each which made Gildarts a little queasy. There was only so much he could move before fatigue took the best of his rusting old joints. Erika stood behind him, looking at the view they had ascended to before they rolled once more with the waves of travel.

The girl to his side seemed familiar to him for some reason, looked like someone else. Oh! recognition sparked in his eyes for an instant before it fell away again. Maybe he hadn't seen her before, but overall she didn't seem like the type to shy away from a fight. What Gildarts didn't know was that she had two sides to the same quarter, Dawn and Erika were the same person. And yet, also not.

Deadpool said he heard voices too. But could it have possibly been one as tangible as the Malefactor and the hallucinations she'd caused?

Erika was playing with Dust's feelings, or flirting in her own way, it was hard for the middle aged mage to tell, they game had changed a lot since he was the boy's age.

Jak was walking along side Tamsin, the group's other cute blonde, and they were both somewhat silent until Deadpool awkwardly pushed their shoulders together, "Are you guys gonna kiss too?"

Tamsin's eyes widened and she took an awkward step away, Deadpool released her grip on the girl. A blush had flooded Jak's cheeks too, "Don't worry, I won't tell... But the viewers might."

"Why would you say that!" The eco warrior hissed out of pure embarrassment.

"Aww come on you're a celebrity, girls love that. I'm sure you'd have a shot." Deadpool bantered.

Gil and company E5 to C3

[Gildarts]

“Hey, why are we heading back? I know the tunnels are confusing and everything but this looks an awful lot like the city we just left,” Erika asked, she was angry, not stupid.

“Fight’s over. But it isn’t game over.” Deadpool said vaguely as his gloves tapped across the screen, sliding over posts upon unraveling posts of dataverse messages. Cheering on the underdog for winning the fight, booing Harlan for letting the old man destroy him even though he was a were-beast.

“All this walking is killing my feet,” Dust said, gesturing down to his barefoot toes. They were covered in caked on slime from Zone D, and likely the caves had roughed up the bottom of his feet in scratches. Not many people other than Tamsin (who cringed), had noticed he wasn’t wearing shoes.

“Did you want to search for some shoes for your feet?” she asked him, pointing down to all the terrible filth.

“Good luck trying to find my size,” Dust said and then Erika shot him a hilarious look of Nice innuendo.

Tamsin noticed Gildarts also was missing a shoe, but it was less of a hindrance for the prime who’s silver leg shown through all the caked on dirt, he likely didn’t even realize. He’d sustained more injuries since she’d last treated him and her glistening eyes dusted over the entire group. Three of them were missing shirts, one guy never had a shirt and instead wore a blood colored (or covered?) onesie that covered his face, the other blonde girl Erika seemed not to mind that her hair was untidy.

The maid’s inner discourse was something she’d attempted to contain, because didn’t these people want to look respectable? If not for the audience than for their opponents? Patching things up was a good hobby for her, it kept her busy and gave her mind somewhere to go when she didn’t want to think about… The past.

Suicide squad (Gil and co) C3 to C16

[Sterling Archer]

The sixpack of blinking green dots continued to weave eastward, seemingly managing to outpace me despite me feverish sprint-hobbling. I should really do more cardio.

“Gotta keep bearing east,” I muttered aloud, leaping sloppily over the occasional boulder or downed tree. The one saving grace of having to divert course was that I was no long having to deal with the mountains and the impediments they brought. Barreling downhill toward the marshland was substantially less difficult than scaling Mt. Bullshit.

I fought back the urge to cry out as I sprinted on my fucked knee, using the Z-staff’s head as a sort of crutch to ease a bit of the pain. Unfortunately for me, the skinless warlord seemed to have kept the angles sharpened and my bare armpits were not thanking me for the lacerations I had self-inflicted. Then again, I couldn’t afford to stop.

“Cell, you’d better be beating feet. I don’t know how long I can stall these losers even if I reach them in time.” My blood alcohol content was high enough to lend me a bit more energy than I would normally have, if only because it assuaged a bit of my pain. “How far did you ge-” My mouth gaped as I looked down at my map. “Are you two following me?”

I stole a quick glance over my shoulder as I ran, the sparse land behind me revealing no sightings of an enormous cockroach lugging a blue alien. Unless he had decided to use those giant wings of his and take flight, they had surely gone underground. With no sight of that monstrosity hovering overhead, it was clear where they had gone. Cursing to myself, I sped up my pace.

“You insect son of a bitch, if you don’t get her to a safe place I’m sodomizing you with this stick.”

D1 → C1

[Dust]

While Tamsin was busy considering her options - there were thousands of stores to pick from and surely they had a pair of shoes to fit a 6'9" buff man, perhaps she'd even find a shirt for him - Dust caught wind of something in the air. It smelt like salt and blood. It tasted like a wounded animal. It felt like a challenge. It called to the inner part of his soul that resonated with his inner wolf. He needed to go.

He needed to go badly. Almost as badly as he needed to kiss someone. In fact.. He needed to kiss someone even more.

They were just slightly behind everyone by now, and he side glanced at Tamsin once more. Between wanting to kiss her and the need to kiss her, 'it' had finally won. He grabbed her by the hand with strength that seemed almost impossible for this fun loving man despite the bulging muscles underneath him. He yanked her so suddenly that she spun into his arms. A gasp slipped though her lip before she would feel herself being dipped in a very romantic gesture. Before he could stop himself, before the shock of his own actions broke through his flimsy mental wall, he leaned in and kissed her.

It was his first actual kiss.. His eyes were closed and everything. His lips pressed firmly and passionately to her's without a second thought, and he held her there for three, four, five, six seconds. His dark shaggy hair curtained them from the outside while gravity tugged at her silver braids. He held her off the ground with the most gentle touch he had ever had, as if she was glass, but his strong arms wouldn't allow her to fall. He felt the madness fade away instantly, and the power he was going to use later consume the nightmarish shadows his curse had left. His whole face was hot, his throat, his chest, his ears. He had red in his cheeks and butterflies in his stomach.

He drew out another three seconds for good measure, and a fourth because he wanted to, before pulling away and standing her back up in one fell swoop.

Then he just stood there. Stunned by his own actions, freaking out about what to do next. What do you do after that?  Instead of stuttering some lame line, he let his heart finally talk. "You're enchanting." He said, then felt the embarrassment crash over him ten times over. 'WHAT AM I DOING!!?' He screamed at himself as a bead of sweat pulled down his temple. Then he decided the best option was to run. Without another word, he fled.

Dust breaks away from the group. And getting ready to leave.

[Todd Ingram]

Up ahead he saw the city which he had been so many times before. The scene started to get old. Preferably he would just want to find a way out, back to Alfred and Sarah. Back to where he belongs. If it wasn't for the comrades he found during his travels on this hellish island he would've been long gone. But he wouldn't leave them stranded here. He was off to find the two women he and Enel met with several times. Both innocent women who didn't belong on a murderous place like this. Once he found them, it was a one way trip back to the omniverse, the hell with Karl and his shows.


It's been a while since batman was travelling solo. The silence was getting to him. Before he had Enel keeping his mind occupied. Now, it was just the vigilante's memories that were keeping him busy. His mind started to drift back to where this madness all began. His fight against the fairies together with Tony. After that meeting with Enel. The delusional god that believes he is the almighty one himself. Gathering the items at all possible weird locations. So far it has been a hell of a ride. But the end of the road was In sight. Somewhere deep within he was happy it was getting to an end. But however he was going out, he wasn't going to do so without a fight. As a warrior he had his pride and honor, something that bound him. It was his honor that was forcing him to search for his teammates and his pride that wouldn't want to go out with a simple explosion of Karl's toy. No he wanted to go out in combat, protecting and fighting what he believed in. It was time to move on. Batman continued walking into the city.

Batman moves E5 to C3

[Sterling Archer]

Warm blood mixed with cool rain as I continued my suicidal march toward Ganksquad Incorporated, LLC. Thankfully, the Map application on my SynPad assured me that Cell and little Blue had gone wide, putting some distance between them and Team Gangbang. Now if they’d only stop for a piss break I could catch up and make my heroic stand. God, I’m so awesome sometimes. I’d be significantly less awesome if I didn’t make it to them in time.

“You two had better love me for this,” I said, pulling a Karli GoLean bar from my pocket and swallowing it whole. No time for chewing when there were idiotic heroics to pursue. “I mean I’ll probably just respawn in Whiteville if I die here, but still. Sacrifices have to be worth something.”

I heaved heavy breaths as my feet squished through boggy mud, my boots now thoroughly slathered in thick muck. Normally I’d have complained, but the rest of my wardrobe was more blood than cloth, so it hardly mattered. Besides, I probably looked so badass. Like a more handsome and less incomprehensible Arnold Schwarzenegger.

“Not a lot of ammo left,” I muttered, tripping over a rotted log and scrambling to my feet. “And I sure as hell don’t have it in me to summon another rocket launcher. Maybe blowing my load on Mister Sinister wasn’t the best idea.” I broke into laughter as the words left my lips. “Hah, phrasing. Man, I wish someone was around to hear that.”

A smile spread across my face as I crested what would be the final hill on my trek. In the distance I could see the familiar silhouette of the city skyline, less-traveled dirt roads beginning to reach toward the mountains at my back. Hopefully I could grab a car pretty soon; sprinting on a barely functioning knee was getting pretty old.

As the dirt gave way to pavement I paused, a rank smell reaching my nostrils. “What smells like wet dog?”

“Not me,” came the reply, a husky growl from damn near on top of me.

C1 → C3
Allying with Batsy.

[Dust]

It was hard to tell what was pounding harder, his heart or his bare feet on the payment as he raced away from everyone. Behind him the girl he'd kissed so boldly, he dared not look back at her face. He wondered if she'd remember him, hopefully in a good way. That or his words would put him in another grave. 'Enchanting!?!' He groaned internally, deciding to duck behind a building so he didn't have to feel as much shame. 'What the hell? She's going to think I'm mentally ill.' He thought to himself.

'Crap! Yuki's back there..' He gives himself a slap on the non-bruised cheek.

He raced through alley after street, above him light posts flickered in and out of life, the traffic lights flashed as if to warn someone like him a car would be coming. He ignored them, mostly because he hasn't seen one moving car in this entire city. He also didn't feel anything dangerous around him, he just saw the faces of building blur together as he made his way towards the water again. It was destiny, it had to be. His love for water and his inner need for battle, all lumped into one spot. He hoped whoever was calling to his inner-most animal instincts was worth the fight.. Part of him hoped it was Takezo, bleeding himself out to call for one last battle. He came off as a guy who would die fighting in this competition. Dust wouldn't mind that at all.

He jumped from the concrete to the large mailbox, as soon as his foot hit the cold metal he put all he got into another jump. The metal crumpled under his weight and force as he was flung into the air. He left foot prints in car hoods as he jumped from abandoned sedan to abandoned mini-van, to a truck that has needed a rest for a long time, and then into the seat of a convertible. Which he used the spongy surface to rev up another jump. He grabbed a flag pole, and swung off with all the grace of a gorilla.

And he was already in another block of the city. 

Dust from C16 to C2

[Gildarts]

Gildarts sighed, “T-they are closing in on all sides,” he said to the other alpha male, Deadpool.

“I’m gonna… Not get dirty with that one” Deadpool decided with a wink to where he presumed the nearest camera was.

“Th-there is no other choice, I must do th-this,” Gildarts felt his chin straighten and his sunken shoulders rise.

“While it isn’t a surprise you’d want to sacrifice yourself, that’s not an option anymore agemage, listen if you really wanna do something for the team you stay here and fight with them and maybe I’ll go and do this. Eh?” Deadpool volunteered, maybe he was fixing for some violence, as it may as well have been his drug. Or maybe that superhero was more noble than Gildarts initially had assumed.

“O-oh?” Gildarts looked up at him, questioningly. Then out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Dust had vanished from the group. “You would d-do that?”

“Weeeeell, maybe, but first we gotta go this way to do that, make sense?” Deadpool pointed to the far side of the street.

“N-not really…” Gildarts said squinting with a perplexed expression.

“Exactly! But that’s me for you, and I’m the one with the billion dollar patent. So shut up. We’re doing things my way.” Deadpool marched along and they passed the buildings and city streets for what might be the final time.

It was getting taxing, and annoying. “Ha, looks like Dust really bit the dust, am I right?”

“She’s not dead yet…” Erika growled as she contemplated going off with Dust, the only real familiar face she had in the party. “Is Groawr that way?” She trailed off, her eyes longing but not quite willfully enough to make her take the step.

Tamsin remained quiet, silently analyzing the situation. Deadpool and Gildarts were kind of… Off. And there wasn’t likely a sane one of them left. She turned to Jak who was beside her, hoping that the awkwardness forged between them by Deadpool had dissipated, “Hey, what do you say we make a plan of our own?”

Suicide Squad minus one prime member C16 to C21