Collateral ( A Super Hero RP with Consequences) IC

[Astroblaze]

JohnR

John Reidenbach/Spectre
April 2, 2018 | night | NYC—the Nook

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Ana (@Huntress)
Emerald Dream (@Gands), Carter (@vantas), Mike (@LuckycoolHawk9)

Why was Dream acting so clueless? Oh wait, of course, she was trying to keep her alias a secret. Well shoot, he probably just completely and thoughtlessly blew her cover. He cringed internally at his blunder, deciding to apologize to the heroine later when he got the chance. He took note of her willingness to share information about the crime with the waitress—perhaps that meant that the case was not as classified as he had assumed.

While he was grateful for the heroine and the other civilian standing up for him, the waitress was right: he had no paperwork. Nonetheless, this man was dangerous, and as a hero he had an inherent responsibility to take charge of the situation in order to prevent further civilian injury. He could not just leave the matter to the police as that would only put them under unnecessary threat. He could only hope that she would understand that and concede the point despite the fact that she was technically legally in the right so far as he knew.

Inhumanly smooth, he rose to his feet, unflinchingly meeting her furious glare with his own glowing green eyes calm but adamant. He made sure, however, to keep the shifter in his periphery just in case one of the more hostile minds resurfaced. The waitress was a few inches taller than him but that hardly bothered him, nor did the cracks spreading threateningly from her foot. He had dealt with powerhouses in the past, and while he did not want to fight her—meta or not, he still viewed her as a civilian whose safety remained firmly his responsibility—if she attacked him, he would defend himself without hesitation.

"No, ma'am, I have no legal authority. I will openly admit that right off the bat. However, what I do have is formidable powers, and as such I have a civil responsibility to use those powers for the protection of other people, even in the absence of any legal responsibility. That responsibility extends to the police force—something tells me you know what I mean when I say that it takes a meta to properly deal with a meta. I would gladly transfer him to somewhere that I would not be trespassing, but that would endanger too many people, just as if I left him to the police, so my hands are pretty much tied here. As for your insistence on remaining and overseeing the goings-on, I don't disagree that you have a right to be here given that this is your basement, but sticking around would only endanger you further, so please—" now he allowed his urgent concern to take over the calm he had mostly retained until that point—"you both need to leave before he turns into someone more dangerous!"

 

[Huntress]

April 2nd, 2018- 9:44 PM - The Nook, NYC

Ana watched the white haired, glowing green eyed man. Her jaw growing tighter with each passing moment. Breaths heavy but steady, nostrils flared. Patience grew thin as the brunette held back the irritable growl that was growing in her chest. Glancing towards the man on the floor she ignored the words coming from the other man in the room as well. No one had the right to tell her what to do, not in her bar. No one had control of her life, not anymore, not ever. She didn't have to listen to anyone or obey anything. This was her place and if she had to throw everyone out herself she would. Exhaling heavily through her nose she whipped her head over her shoulder to glare at the man telling her that she was on the wrong side of all this.

Slowly turning her head around to look at the man who had officially become a trigger to her anger, Anastasia swallowed back. "I don't care what you're capable of. You haven't the slightest of what I'm capable of so don't test the waters." She almost spat at him. Turning back to the other man she motioned to the stairs. "Up, let's go." She ordered. As she took a few steps up she turned to look back at the white-haired man. "Don't think you got off that easy. I'm coming back. No disappearing acts." She called out as she continued walking up the stairs.

Had she given up on being right and arguing this situation? No, Ana's stubbornness didn't allow her to give up that easy. She still wanted to throw everyone out by hand. Had this place actually been her own she would have. Her respect and feelings towards Meghan are what stopped her from acting in her typical brash behaviour. Stepping out of the basement she looked around at all the patrons with pure annoyance in her eyes. Walking to the front door in a tense manner she locked it. "No one goes anywhere. You're all involved in this now and you're all witnesses to whatever might happen, should this turn into anything involving legalities." She looked at Meghan with an apologetic gaze. "I've been made aware that there is a detective here. Whoever you are" eyes scanned the faces "follow me, now. You're needed in the basement. Everyone else, enjoy your time up here, get to know eachother. Listen to some music." She pointed towards Damian who looked terrified on the small stage.

Making her way to the basement door, she assumed that whoever the detective was would follow. She would let them in ahead of her and proceed to lock the basement door and join them in the under-dwelling.

9:48 PM​

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INTERACTIONS:

ANASTASIA
- Astroblaze - Spectre
- vantas - Carter Quimora


MENTIONS:
Meghan
Gands - Vanessa O'Toole
LuckycoolHawk9 - Michael Chambers, Angelo Rose, John Clark, Layla Jones and Dean Chambers
Michale CS - Aimee Maria Reed and Cyndee Climbon

 

[LuckycoolHawk9]

Angelo Rose, John Clark, Layla Jones, Dean Chambers, Michael Chambers/Warren Tanner/ Logan Campbell and Colton Blake- 9:30-10 PM

Angelo looked over at her and then back around the room. " I wouldn't mind getting close to more stories, but sometimes I think stories find me. I got a tip from an old pal about the crime scene and bar. PW is how he signs his emails and stuff, not sure what it stands for. Phantom Writer, Passionate Woman, Persistent Worker are some guesses though. It seems that if I just sit here things are going to be happen and that will be helpful. It seems that your taste in music is very good, even if do say so myself," he replied.

Mike was so confused. This mutant wasn't trying to murder him and was.... comforting him. It seemed he was trying to calm him down but the chilled hand simply make Michael shiver even more than the already forming ice mess that was forming on his feet. He didn't remember what had happened- but he knew that things weren't going to get better before they got much worse.

Michael wasn't deaf and heard them talk. Don't trust him. He doesn't know you and he is a meta-human who wants to see you get hurt. He doesn't know what you can do. That ice is yours, don't be afraid Mike. " I don't want to be here. I don't want to be here. Please let me go."

"Yes, my name is Michael. What do you mean I changed into someone else? I can't have changed it that time... I was..." he paused, as he tried to reason his alias when he slowly realized something. He had no clue where he had been. He remember being at the crime scene and not wanting to be there. He remembered walking into an alleyway, but then it was a blank. But then the next thing he knew he was being watched by the man in the basement. There were things that he didn't know. Time that he couldn't find. But if the man wasn't lying... " I would never, that was my sister. I could never hurt her. I loved her. I would never want to see her hurt and if those people were me, neither would they. I DIDN'T KILL HER. I DIDN'T KILL HER. I DIDN'T KILL HER. Each time he uttered the same phrase, but it was said differently, almost in the exact tone as Warren and Logan. As impossible as that sounded.

A thumping was heard as someone else interrupted the very loud argument between the people downstairs. A man walked down.

" I'm sorry to interrupt, but judging from that spectacle I just heard from downstairs, it was hard to ignore that. I have heard that before in myself. One body, three souls or minds, each with their own form. Oh, I'm terribly sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Colton Blake, traveling warlock. My particular skill is actually detangling souls trapped this way. I was like this before, terrible mass. One of my forms also accidently murdered two people. Problem was that it wasn't any of our doing."

Upstairs....in the bathroom

Dean waited as the secretary finished processing the file. She had already hung up. " Case 100. The case of Colton Blake, Cole Blake and Connor Blake. On a New York Street, a meta-human and an anti-meta seemingly in love had their life drained out of them by Connor Blake. After this, Cole got into a fight at a bar known as the Nook and Connor showed how he killed the person. After being dragged into the alleyway, Cole turn backed into Colton who knew nothing. When later interrogated in court, Connor was convicted, but however couldn't be jailed as attached to Colton and Cole, both innocents. Thankfully evidence came to life that the man was mind-controlled by a villain who has only been known as ......" Dean stopped as the file corrupted on his phone. He came out to see the bar on lockdown by Anna.

Layla looked over at John. " Do you still have the footage from that one camera..."

" Yes, but I don't know how this is going to help now," he replied. Before he could pull it open, the TV started to crackle as did anything else electronic that could access internet.

" Well, hello, my dear friends. It seems that all of you have gathered here at the bar as I guessed. Who am I to interrupt your murder case? Well, I'll tell you. I'm called Mystification. Seeing as you heroes prefer shorter names, you may call me Mystery or Myst. As you noticed with the crime scene and case #100, they are practically identical. Some things I couldn't predict was such a turn out. A little fly on the wall, a demigoddess, a detective, a judge,his brother and his forms, a photographer, a reporter, a Medic, a bimbo, a ghost two waitresses, and the very man who case 100 was about. Quite a ragtag bunch of heroes and vigilantes. So, I'm going to tell you a little secret. This was an experiment and the real fun is starting now. I'll be recreating the FIVE worst cases in the files down to a tea. What cases are those you ask? Why, the ones that created the laws. I'll do one nice. I'll tell you what five they are, but you aren't getting the order. Case #0, Case #13, Case #215, Case #300 and last but not least Case REDACTED. Happy hunting!"

Downstairs....

" So I got good news for you and bad news, Mr. Chambers. Good news, I can distangle them, but the bad news is that this is going to hurt a lot," Colton replied, practicing his magic. Michael screamed in agony and through magic, Logan and Warren were forced out, unconscious on the floor... unluckily naked. Colton groaned and snapped some clothes on them. Michael nearly collapsed. " We should go see what the hub upstairs is about. I would suggest someone carry the bodies up. Also, Mr. Chambers, just a fair warning, there is no way to tell how the powers were separate, but it seemed they were done okay. Only time will tell."

@Gands @vantas @Michale CS @Astroblaze @Huntress-Nook

 

[Gands]

Vanessa O'Toole aka Emerald Dream

Vanessa had just managed to sit down by the door when the latest twisted mind managed to cut into the TV signal. Suppressing her already rampant irritation, she got back up and now went to the booth furthest from the door and gently disabled the light, like simply twisting the bulb. Now sitting in the dark with the two purses and two drinks, she summons her mystical hero costume after making sure no one is looking. After that she simply sits and watches. She pulls a set of fancy tinted goggles out of her purse that increase her ability to see in less light. This was going to be a long night. There was some small level of amusement to see how meta cranky waitress woman was going to handle this !

@Michale CS @vantas @Huntress @Astroblaze @LuckycoolHawk9

 

[Huntress]

April 2nd, 2018- 9:45 PM - The Nook, NYC

Meghan had waited for a response from the woman she had spoken to, she seemed busy with whatever she had been doing and patience was something Meg had plenty of. After a few minutes of nothing she chose to let her inquiry fade away as she clenched her jaw and continued to watch the others in the bar. She carried on doing her job of serving everyone and providing whatever they may have asked for. The tension of the fight seemed to have fizzed out a little, but the blonde's worry still lingered. She had no way of knowing what was happening in that basement and as badly as she wanted to go down and check to see, she also didn't want to raise any red flags and bring forth any more worry from the current patrons.

Continuing with her job, Meghan forced herself to keep a fake smile and seem casual and calm. Drinks were going out and so was food, that was good for business and hopefully enough to keep people distracted. She had attempted several times to calm Damian down and get him to try to start playing again but the man was obviously shook.

9:46 PM​

The patron that had gone down to the basement came back up. Ana following after a minute or so. The blonde rushed over to the brunette and stopped her in her tracks. "Ana, what is going on down there?" She asked with concern in her voice and gaze. Cloudy greens never leaving the amber irises.

"Nothing, just people testing my patience and an attempted interrogation of a potential murderer. By non-police." Amber eyes flicked away as Ana studied the crowd. "Everything is fine, don't worry. Just some ice to clean up, nothing more, nothing less." She partially lied. "I'm going to try and handle this so that it can be over with quickly, while also having everything covered should something go wrong. Which" she clenched her jaw "it shouldn't."

Meghan wasn't entirely convinced with the idea of nothing going wrong but she trusted Anastasia and simply nodded in response to her words. "Okay." She spoke. "I hope this all ends soon and safely." Stepping closer to her Meg took hold of Ana's wrist and held the woman's face towards her. "I know what you can do and I know how easily you get lost in your frustration and anger. Don't push anyone too far, that way they can't push back. Try to stay level headed, please." Her words were genuine, as was the plea in her voice.

Anastasia's response was a sigh and nod as she carried on into the bar. Meghan watched her walk to the front, lock the door and then tell everyone about the situation, somewhat. Walking back towards the service window the blonde got the attention of Charles. She told him to lock the back door while catching a glimpse out of the corner of her eye as figures moved to the basement. Exhaling sharply Meghan approached the bar again. Taking empty glasses and placing them in the glass washer she kept her eyes on the people. Who was interrogating the man that disappeared? And why were they doing so? Who had they murdered? How dangerous were they really? Was everyone here in danger? Could this person be dealt with should they go on a rampage? Meghan worried but she also had to find an answer, or attempt to. She had to stay calm and make sure everyone else was calm until this was all over with.

9:49 PM
​

As Ana walked back down the stairs to the basement she caught the sound of a new voice. A brow came up as she rushed down the stairs to see a new man within the room. "Who the hell is this guy? Where did he come from?" She questioned as she approached the white haired man and folded her arms across her chest. Listening and watching the other man she took in a deep breath as she managed to catch a little bit of the end of his spiel. Great, a murderer talking to a murderer. That's exactly what they needed in here right now. "I take it you don't know him then?" Another question towards the man she stood next to. Shutting her mouth she continued to watch and listen.

9:53 PM
​

Anastasia stepped up towards the new arrival and looked at him in confusion. "Disentangle them? Whoa, what does that mean? What are you about to do? Is that no more dangerous?" She stepped around to look at Colton. "Stop hold on. If one of them is a killer this might not be a good idea. We already know that one of them is aggressive, he almost started a fight in the bar for just being looked at the wrong way and some stupid words being thrown at him. I really think—" Ana's words were cut off as the man on the floor started to scream. Stepping back she watched as two unconscious forms appeared on the ground stark naked. She was evidently shocked and confused as she clenched her jaw in an unimpressed matter and looked at the man who had done this. "I really don't think this was a smart idea." She stated simply and took hold of the two unconscious men by their waist bands. Lifting them up she moved towards the stairs and looked back towards the others. Tossing the aggressive dark haired man over her shoulder she began to walk up the stairs.
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INTERACTIONS:

ANASTASIA
- Astroblaze - Spectre
LuckycoolHawk9 (Michael Chambers, Logan Campbell, Warren Tanner, Colton Blake)


MENTIONS:
@ands - Vanessa O'Toole
LuckycoolHawk9 - Angelo Rose, John Clark, Layla Jones and Dean Chambers
Michale CS - Aimee Maria Reed and Cyndee Climbon
vantas - Carter Quimora

 

[Michale CS]

Firefly had already bailed on the scene in the basement when the waitress got cranky, so she didn't see the whole soul unentangling thing. She zipped over to Emerald and whispered to her (since she was in her smallest size, going into the bathroom and coming out as Amiee would be super obvious who she was) "Can you hold onto my stuff and I can get it from you once we leave? Honestly, I'm almost ready to."

Then, cranky waitress came up the stairs with... at least one person who didn't go down those stairs. Firefly just looked really confused, so she took a seat on the metal napkin holder on the table of the booth Emerald was at. She could keep it from melting and it wouldn't scorch like the table was likely to - or at least the lacquer would melt.

She looked between Emerald and the people now progressing up the stairs into the room, having really no clue how to proceed. Firefly wasn't an investigator.

Cyndee took the compliment with a smile and dropping in another selection on the jukebox. "Here's my number. Don't be a stranger, huh?"
She was watching him, but also was still keeping an eye on where Amiee was. It seemed the girl in green had Amiee's stuff, so she didn't have to pretend to lose her purse again to recover her friend's.

"Huh, how many people were down there? What's goin on you think? Fight Club?"

@Astroblaze @Gands @Huntress @LuckycoolHawk9 @vantas

 

[erudere]

CARTER​

"Up, let's go." the bartender said walking up the stairs.
It took Carter a few seconds to realize she was referring to him before climbing up the stairs, disregarding any person walking down or any person up the stairs as blood still pounded in his ears hard enough to ring. It was one thing to be experienced on talking out of situations, and quite another to talk one out in the middle of what could've been a fest and a half over two metas and one murderer.

Carter blankly took up the stairs, feeling his adrenaline ebb down as his hearing dulled but his eyes sharpen once more. At least it didn't escalate into a full fight, even though his dialogue didn't necessarily affect any tides. He'd have to thank the other bartender for that feat, but he'll take this is as a minor victory. He steadied his breath and took up his usual persona; keeping his lip loosely pursed. Despite going against every fiber of his being to stay until his curiosity is fully kept in check, he continuously went upstairs until the basement door was behind him, even though Carter could hear the bartender downstairs retort and a disheveled scream emanate.

The night was winding late and he needed to decompress his thoughts; but he didn't allow his nonchalance slip.

But his only exit to Nirvana i.e his bed and his cat is essentially locked. Leaving him to "socialize" with what could be a hodgepodge mix of mutants and investigators that he knows there's a realistic chance of him never even seeing again after this whole night blows over. He could feel the rum and coke slightly fuzzing his mind into a warm pit and that was gonna be a detriment to his actions. He was about to pull out his wallet again before he could hear static coming out from his iPod, and a voice coming out.

Before he could pull it out he saw the bar's TV suddenly turning static again before the same voice boomed out from its speakers.

"Well, hello, my dear friends. It seems that all of you have gathered here at the bar as I guessed. Who am I to interrupt your murder case? Well, I'll tell you. I'm called Mystification. Seeing as you heroes prefer shorter names, you may call me Mystery or Myst."

He inwardly gritted his teeth, immediately scribbling out mental notes.

"As you noticed with the crime scene and case #100, they are practically identical. Some things I couldn't predict was such a turn out. A little fly on the wall, a demigoddess, a detective, a judge,his brother and his forms, a photographer, a reporter, a Medic, a bimbo, a ghost two waitresses, and the very man who case 100 was about. Quite a ragtag bunch of heroes and vigilantes." it said condescendingly; Carter could already visualize a smirk.

Was this all orchestrated? How the fuck did they not only know the exact occupations and people in the Nook, but also synchronize different cases with unnerving precision. He took out his phone, which was thankfully still working despite the same damn voice slithering out of the speakers, and hit the recorder, regretting ever even getting into this bar in the first place. Immediately, as if by habit, he listed off any powers that made this possible.

"Couldn't be organized. The variable for the number of electronic devices here are too big of a question mark to orchestrate without direct influence to internet satellites." he mused out loud, letting the voice continue. "Possibly radio-magnetic manipulation or technomancy." Carter concluded. "That or they're just the CEO for Apple and SONY." he cracked.

"I'll tell you what five they are, but you aren't getting the order. Case #0, Case #13, Case #215, Case #300 and last but not least Case REDACTED. Happy hunting!" the voice listed off, not only recording the voice from his phone, but also counting it off in his head.

An implacable sense of dread filled him as he realized that he held on and got entrenched into this entire mad showcase when he was supposed to be letting go. He balled his fists, and refused his urge to scream and laugh nervously. His face betrayed no emotion as the static stopped and the TV came back to showing the cable news channel. He exhaled as he surveyed the scene again, trying his hardest to rack up his brain for any activities that will not jeopardize any remaining sense of sanity he have left.

Despite his judgement, he could already feel his sobriety losing as he felt the need to drink another rum and coke.


@Huntress @LuckycoolHawk9

 

[Astroblaze]

JohnR

Ana

John Reidenbach/Spectre | Ana Kestner
April 2, 2018 | night | NYC—the Nook

---

collab with @Huntress, Mike (@LuckycoolHawk9), Valerie (mine), Warren (@LuckycoolHawk9), Logan (@LuckycoolHawk9)
Carter (@vantas), Emerald Dream (@Gands), Colton (@LuckycoolHawk9), Mystification (@LuckycoolHawk9)

Spectre frowned disapprovingly at her words—goodness sakes, she was bossy. Sure he was technically trespassing on her property, but that didn't give her any right to order him around. He refrained from protesting about this, however, instead simply watching her leave with the other civilian, arms folded and mouth drawn. After all, it wasn't like he had any other options besides guarding the shifter, given that he had taken on that responsibility when he pulled the metahuman into the basement.

Turning back to the shifter, the ghostly mutant took note of his words with interest. He was certainly vehement about not being the girl's murderer, as were the other two it seemed, somehow. As much as he hated to admit it, Dream's mind-control theory was starting to sound increasingly likely.

"Hey hey hey, don't panic, it's okay," he assured the agitated man. "I believe you."

At a new voice, he turned to observe the new stranger who had just walked into the basement. The striking similarity between his situation and Mike's intrigued the mutant, although in what way he could not quite tell. It smelled of a plot. When the waitress, who had returned to the basement in the loud and demanding fashion that seemed to be her custom, asked him if he knew the newcomer, Spectre simply shook his head, not taking his eyes off of the two men.

When this "Colton Blake" explained that he could separate the three, Spectre stepped back, watching as the shifter suddenly divided into all three forms with an agonized scream that made him flinch sympathetically. Noticing that Mike seemed utterly drained by the experience, the mutant hastened to catch him before he fell. "Easy there. You okay?"

As he helped the first regain his balance, he looked up to spot the waitress grabbing the other two and hauling them toward the stairs.

"Whoa whoa whoa, what are you doing?!" he shouted after her in alarm. "Don't take them upstairs! Leave them here, I can watch them." Recalling the apparent offense she had taken at him treating her like a regular civilian before, he quickly amended, "Or you can watch them, I don't care, but for God's sake, don't bring them within striking distance of everyone in this building!"

Clenching her jaw, Anastasia turned to look at the white haired man.

"They're knocked out and if they get up I'll make sure to knock them out again," she stated simply and started stepping up. "I've locked everyone in. If they want to break out, they'll have to get past me. Might as well bring them all up and have everyone in one room. It'll make it easier to get everyone out when all this is over." She looked back at him. "You can keep an eye on them with me upstairs if you'd like. If shit gets outta hand we'll get mister detangler over here to put them back in one so they'll be easier to contain." She shrugged.

"You locked-" Spectre couldn't believe this lady. "What if we need to get people out of the building in a hurry and you're not available to unlock the doors?! And as for just re-fusing them, I doubt that it works that way."

Sighing with a shake of her head and a roll of her eyes, she turned back around to face him fully.

"There are two other employees who can open the doors if that's needed," she explained, attempting reassurance. "If they want to break out, my bar isn't going to stop them." Moving on to give her thoughts on the three men, she continued, "The ice one seems to be reasonable, he's also acting like a terrified child. If this one is the one that almost started the fight—" she pointed to the dark haired one—"we'll keep him unconscious. The blonde... well, he was just weird."

Spectre still felt that this was not the best way to handle the scenario, but before he could voice his misgivings, the basement light flickered overhead as his phone crackled in its pouch on his belt. Shifting Mike's weight onto one shoulder, Spectre pulled out the device in time to listen to the sinister spiel of some new and unfamiliar villain. He wasn't familiar with the case numbers that this "Mystification" mentioned—then again, he wasn't really familiar with any cases besides his own, given that he usually left the legalities to his lawyer friend—but if they inspired the collateral laws themselves, they had to have been serious. Besides, any time that a baddie called something ominous "fun," it was never a good sign. His brow drew together in an expression of acute discomfort and worry as he looked from his phone back to the waitress.

"That doesn't sound good," he muttered.

Looking up towards the flickering light, Ana returned her attention to the man before listening to the voice coming from his phone. Swallowing back as her heart began to race, she clenched her jaw tightly and looked at the glowing green eyes opposite her. Redacted? she questioned internally. That wasn't good, not good at all.

"No... that doesn't sound good. Is there anybody here that might have an idea about these cases? Any way that we could get more information?"

Her worry grew at the words she had heard. This would not end well.

Spectre pursed his lips, glancing back to the phone still in his hand.

"We could ask the police, but I doubt they'll tell either of us anything. However, I think I know someone who could."

Making sure that Mike was alright to walk mostly unaided but still keeping an arm under the man's shoulders, he hit the speed-dial for the one person he knew who might also know what was going on as he followed the waitress up the basement stairs.

Admirably, despite the somewhat ungodly hour, Valerie answered the phone within two rings.
"Newmann residence, this is Valerie."

"Hey, Val," Spectre greeted the young lady, "it's Spectre. I need you to tell me what you know about collateral cases zero, thirteen, two-fifteen, three hundred, and, uh, 'redacted'? Not sure what that means, but it's really important."

Although she had sounded a bit tired when she answered the phone, Valerie seemed to perk up the moment Spectre introduced himself. "Sure thing. Hold on, I'll look into it."

"Thanks a million."

Keeping the phone to his ear as he waited for Valerie to return with the requested information, he explained to the waitress, "Valerie's a good friend of mine and an even better lawyer in the field of collateral law. She's helped me out on numerous occasions and it's a huge passion of hers, so she's definitely going to be well-read on cases as major as these."

 

[Gands]

Vanessa O'Toole aka Emerald Dream

While she was sitting at one table in her civilian identity, the waitress, who moved with way too much authority to be a simply waitress and too much confidence to be sane and non powered walked over and locked the door to the bar, threatening that anyone who broke out, would have to deal with her. This was taped on the phone.

Then this mysterious hacking of all the electronic devices. Vanessa immediately started an application of her own design on her phone that would analyze the hacking and protect certain files. She slipped her civilian purse into an pocket in her enchanted armor, along with Firefly's bag.

( to Firefly ) " I'm going to go talk to the detective, I'll be back in a moment. "

She then walked slowly over to detective John Clark.

" Good evening Detective Clark, Crime Scene investigator Jones. Might I suggest a more active presence on your part ? Far be it for me to insinuate a misuse of your time. The waitress is getting out of hand. Holding anyone or in this case, everyone here against their will is unlawful, and I for one object. From what I witnessed of her attitude and willingness to threaten, I believe the waitress is more than she appears. "

She pulls something out of her pocket, handing it to CSI Jones.

" Using a gadget of my own design, I made a copy of the data on the damaged camera at the liquor store."

She hands it to them.

" This is one copy, I have another. Should I complain to the other woman here at the bar, or is my complaint to you sufficient ? "

@LuckycoolHawk9 @Michale CS @vantas

 

[slifer]

Icarus Valaith AKA Shielder or Plant Overlord

Unbelievably, a man who had been in the bathroom this whole time stumbled out of the men's room kind of dazed and wondering what the heck was going on. He had heard all of the weird mystery stuff, but had soon focused again on throwing up, thanks to the spicy chicken wings that he hadn't known were spicy. Eating those earlier in the day had made him sick, and right now, he was paying for it. Thankfully, it had passed quickly time, having only ate one spicy boneless chicken wing. Dammit, it seemed like he had ran into the bar only a little while ago, going to the bathroom to vomit, come back out to order some coffee, and go back inside again for round two. Well, either way, he had to get back home to his little brother. He could thank his lucky stars that he decided to go out in civilian clothes rather than his more visible antihero outfit.

Looking around at the chaos around him, Icarus concluded sadly that he wasn't about to get that coffee or the ginger ale that he had so desperately wanted. Surprisingly, using his powers helped with the nausea a little bit, so with a wave of his hand the tree outside grew a little bit more. Not enough to do any damage to mar his perfect record, but enough to make him feel better. Oh, and just for the added effect, he changed the tree into a cherry blossom tree, really because he felt like it. At least now his stomach didn't feel like it was leading a revolution against him. What was the use of having enhanced endurance if he couldn't eat anything spicier than halal food?

Either way, once he felt better he had to return to work. The murder that happened earlier that day was the top priority. He had to run damage control, before everything spiraled out of control. Frankly, it was his opinion that someone murdered both the meta and the meta hater and then made it look like a suicide so that tensions would run higher than before. Not that he really knew anything about it. He could always gain more information through...more nefarious means later. Well, he was mostly a hero, with a few villain and antihero like tendencies.

 

[Huntress]

April 2nd, 2018- 10:04 PM - The Nook, NYC

Ana had been lost in her mind momentarily. Memories she wished she couldn't remember coming back to her. Most of the man's phone conversation went by unnoticed amber eyes eventually coming up to glowing greens as words were directed towards her. Nodding with a small saddened smile the woman let a short exhale escape her nose. "Lucky you." She spoke simply and clenched her jaw before turning around and making her way up the stairs. Stepping out of the basement the brunette made her way towards the subtle whispers being muttered all around in the main section of the bar. Looking around in disinterest, ignoring the words being spoken among the patrons she had locked in, her gaze eventually landing upon Meghan.

Utter confusion, fear and worry returned to the blonde, she couldn't help it. Electronic systems and devices had malfunctioned and been hacked, eerie words had been spoken and things had been revealed that she thought were buried deep. Anastasia emerged from the basement, two bodies in hand, their eyes met and she was quick to approach the brunette. "What happened down there? Who are these guys?" Her words were fast whispers as she looked at the two men in Ana's arms.

"I'm sure it'll all be explained shortly. What happened up here? You look terrified." She commented, amber eyes studying the blonde.

"Someone named Myst hacked through phones, TV's and the radio and dropped a whole lot of information about this and what might come next." Meg clenched her jaw. "Remember the fight from when we first opened?" Ana nodded in response. "It's linked to this whole situation in a very weird way."

"I heard Myst loud and clear in the basement. The one guy down there had his phone go all staticky. This isn't gonna be good and I forced all these people to unwillingly become part of this." Ana clenched her jaw even tighter and exhaled sharply with a small shake of her head. Looking at Meghan with a small frown she went to move past her but was stopped by the blonde.

"You'll be fine Ana. We'll be fine. There's a whole bunch of smart and strong people here. Everything's going to be okay. We'll figure this out." Meghan spoke in an attempt to help her friend feel better. Green's met amber's with hope as Anastasia sighed heavily. "What are you gonna do with these guys?" Meg looked between the two men and back up to the brunette.

"Me? I'm going to do nothing with them, I just have to make sure they stay knocked out." She looked at the blonde. "I'm just gonna lay them down in a booth and stay close. Can you unlock the doors? People are going to be a part of this now no matter what, but that doesn't mean they have to stay here." Her feelings towards the situation grew obvious across her expression. Worry, sadness, fear. It had been a long time since she had let down a large group of people. It wasn't a feeling that she missed in all honesty.

Meghan nodded slowly. Her eyes flicking up towards the taller woman for just a moment before she turned to walk away and unlock the doors. It seemed that there was something going on beneath the surface. Meg wasn't sure exactly what but she had this nagging feeling that Ana was keeping something from her. Perhaps she knew more about the case that involved the bar than Meg did. Perhaps it was something else? Meghan knew how to respect people's privacy but she also didn't like the idea of Anastasia keeping something to herself that might help whatever situation they had just been tossed into.

10:08 PM​

Meghan cleared her throat after stepping back into the main area, the door was now open. "Uh...excuse me everyone. I just need a moment." She swallowed back and looked around at everyone before her gaze lingered on Ana. "I would like to apologize for the brash behaviour of my employee. But as you all must've heard, we had a terrifyingly similar situation to this take place when we first opened, that being the main reason things happened the way they did. The door is unlocked now and you are free to go as you please. I am glad no one was hurt and once again, I would like to apologize for this whole...conundrum." Meghan cleared her throat and swallowed back before dropping her gaze and moving back towards Ana.

Damian was the first to leave. Quickly packing up his belongings and shooting a glance at Meg before rushing out the door.

Meghan met Ana's eyes, she seemed upset and possibly a little irritated. "I know that you did what you did to prevent anything like that from happening again and I understand that you probably could've dealt with the situation should any issues have risen. But you need to understand that not everyone is as calm and cool with high tension situations as you are. Most people aren't trained like that, and instinct usually says 'run' when something bad feels like it's going to happen." Meg sighed as she stood next to Anastasia, watching the patrons, pressing her palms against the table and leaning back slightly. Leaning her head to the the left to press against Ana's shoulder she looked up at the woman who held a stern expression, her eyes slightly narrowed, jaw tightly clenched, lips pressed together in a thin line. "What's running through your head Ana? You know you can talk to me. No secrets right?" She asked about the promise they had made to one another.

Ana's eyes flicked down to the woman leaning against her. "No secrets, you're right, we did say that. As for what's running through my head" she took a deep breath and looked at everyone in the bar again "I'll tell you when I can, promise. Right now there's more things here that it seems we need to worry about." Ana lied and hoped it was convincing enough for the blonde. She had always found it difficult to lie to her, despite having done it infinite times in her past. Swallowing back again she did a once over of Meghan and folded her arms across her chest as she rested against the edge of the table. Looking left then right at the unconscious men she took a deep breath through flared nostrils and exhaled heavily. Her heart still raced at the thought of her past coming back to haunt her.

Who was this Myst character? What did they want? Who did they want and why were they doing this? Was it for pleasure? Revenge? Were they just looking to cause chaos? Or did they want to cause pain? Pain to many or a specific single entity? This situation had just gotten a whole lot worse and certainly more dangerous. What these cases involved was dangerous enough that laws were put in place to prevent things like this from happening again and to give humans the right to do as they pleased with meta's. Surely the humans in control had also hoped that these laws would cause the metas to retreat, slink back or just go into hiding and attempt normal lives, as most probably did. Anastasia hadn't been a team player for years, but it seemed that she would have to be now. One thing was certain, they all had to get to the bottom of this before any more people died. A fact that was assured, just by knowing the results of a single aforementioned case.

10:13 PM​

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
INTERACTIONS:

ANASTASIA
- Astroblaze - Spectre
- LuckycoolHawk9 (Logan Campbell, Warren Tanner)

MENTIONS:
Gands - Vanessa O'Toole
LuckycoolHawk9 - Angelo Rose, John Clark, Layla Jones and Dean Chambers
Michale CS - Aimee Maria Reed and Cyndee Climbon
vantas - Carter Quimora
slifer - Icarus Valaith

 

[erudere]

​

Date: April 2, 2018
Time: 10:04 p.m.
Status: Manic ● Cautious​

​

Staying on a second floor of a rundown motel had its benefits.

Even more beneficial was the fact that while the view was something to be scoffed at, there are a lot of trees among the horizon long enough to be able to reach the window.

Conscious of any possible witnesses, passerby, or official, Eloise skirted around alleyways, sifting from shadow to shadow as best she could despite her sprain, the adrenaline and the immense joy of feeling absolutely alive urging her on. She could feel the tendons of her ankle whining in stress but she didn't mind it, only wishing she could retreat to her home as fast and as silently as she could.

Could being the operative word.

Small chuckles and giggles escape Eloise's lips as gracefully and as uncontrollably as rain; something in her psyche snapping so familiarly as the thrill of both deed and chase was regained after so long. It was glorious, it felt wondrous, and she most certainly wanted, craved, and needed more. Different thoughts circumnavigated her head as she explored the possibilities as quickly as she traversed through the crevices of Manhattan, and she yearned for the chance to exploit it to the best of her capabilities.

It elicited laughs. And no matter what she may do to stifle it, it was there. Eloise flicked a finger and a metal staircase in an alley right next to her immediately broke from the wall and contorted; a bar from the stairs removed and immediately thrown into a building wall. She twisted another, and a pipe from underground ruptured and water shot out of a storm drain. She whisked both her hands, and a parked Nissan flew from the street and onto the night sky. A nigh orchestral destruction Eloise reveled in.

"WHO CARES ANYMORE" Eloise bellowed, laughing without a care in the world. Her path of constant obliteration and wreckage, a self-made environment that she and she alone will thrive in. As the pique of her mania ceased, she immediately began detouring from her path, wreaking havoc across a different direction to throw off others.

Eloise exhaled, walking slower and more quieter deliberately as her Shadestep draped her into the night's background as she neared her apartment.

Sneak to the back of the building, eviscerate the guard's neck, unlock the window, murder everyone in the complex, climb the tree and get in.

There, she would hide her things and gauze her wound then make the story. An article explaining the evil, the unknown motives, and the facts of the very crime that she committed.

Eloise grinned at the irony of it all as she crept to her destination; a soft chuckle echoing amidst the walls.​

--------------------
​

​

Date: April 2, 2018
Time: 10:13 p.m.
Status: Confused ● Determined
​

The door was opened.

Oh sweet hallelujah, the gates of Nirvana have opened at last.

"Uh...excuse me everyone. I just need a moment." Carter heard the bartender that served him say, as she stepped back to reveal what was certainly would be quite literally the door to heaven. Carter saw her gulp before turning towards the other bartender as she apologized in her place. If the young photographer wasn't off his rocking horse due to alcohol, he would've almost mistaken the voice for an angel choir.

"We had a terrifyingly similar situation to this take place when we first opened, that being the main reason things happened the way they did." she announced, and as if by cue his entire mental memorandum replayed through his mind, as well as that conniving anonymous voice.

Five different cases; each worse than the last. Orchestrated by a mastermind of obscure history and of obscurer intent that has no intention of giving mercy to anything they want to trample for the sake of uprooting the very principle that holds this world, no, humanity in balance.

Carter imagined the possibilities at a rapid pace, of a world where Myst is successful, of a world corrupt and chaotic. Millions of lives, hopes, dreams, irrevocably tarnished for the sake of the enjoyment of one.

"The door is unlocked now and you are free to go as you please. I am glad no one was hurt and once again, I would like to apologize for this whole...conundrum." she finished.

Carter is free to go, back to his bed and his cat. A place where he is no longer at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Back in his pajamas popping a bottle of iced tea and off to a world that he calls his own.

But the moment he walks out of that door will be the moment where he walks out on the chance to stop what will essentially be the spawn of the cause that will be the end of peace, and no amount of collateral will ever repay that.

He couldn't live with himself if he ever walked out.

Concreting his mental notes to memory, Carter cracked his knuckles as he sat down the corner of the bar, tapping the counter as he fished out his wallet. Sobriety is a hefty price to pay, but then again; not everyone has to be good to be a hero. "Miss," Carter called out to the bartender that first served him, voice mellowed with alcohol yet firm with reaffirmation. "Another rum and coke."

The door was opened, but for him it was closed.
He's not getting out until he gets to the bottom of this.​

CARTER QUIMORA
@Huntress

ELOISE CHANDLER*
*eventual interaction due to circumstances
@LuckycoolHawk9
@Astroblaze
@Michale CS
@Gands
@slifer

 

[Huntress]

April 2nd, 2018- 10:13 PM - The Nook, NYC

Meghan was slightly disappointed with the response she was given from Ana. No secrets meant no secrets, yet here was she was saying later. Sighing she looked at the brunette then turned her attention to the patrons in the bar. Nobody was leaving after Damian, even through they had the freedom to do so. Perhaps they were surrounded by better human beings than expected. Was she wrong in assuming that everyone in a bar didn't care for anyone but themselves? Swallowing back she scoffed at herself and shook her head. Meg had learned not to assume things about others over time, but old habits were hard to break sometimes. Pushing off the table the blonde looked at Ana with her arms folded across her chest. "I'm holding you to that promise and I will annoy the hell out of you for those answers Ana. Don't think I won't." She pointed at her and chuckled in an attempt to make light of the mood that was taking over the bar. Anastasia's expression remained unimpressed as she glanced at Meghan.

Leaning over to look towards one of the unconscious men Meg frowned with an exhale. "This one's the one that apparently killed those people up the street?" She asked about the dirty blond man and looked at her friend.

A nod was Ana's response. "He's also the one that walked in before all this started." She explained.

Accepting the answer that she was given Meghan moved over to the other one. "And this one is—" Her words halted as her mouth fell slightly agape. "He's—"

Anastasia pushed off the table and dropped her arms to her sides before leaning in towards Meg, both brows coming up. "He's what?" She asked quickly as her eyes flicked to the tan skinned man.

"He was here when it happened. He threw the killer outside into the alley." She explained as she looked from the man to Ana then back to him.

Leaning in closer Ana looked at the man and clenched her jaw. This man was also the one that started the fight here. Thankfully that was extinguished quickly. Looking back into pale green eyes she exhaled through her nose. Glancing at everyone else in the bar Anastasia raised a brow. Was everyone in here involved in past cases? Was there a common link? Is that what this Myst character was doing? To get to this specific person that he or she was looking for? Who was said person? Grunting as she stood straight she leaned against the table again and chewed the inside of her bottom lip. Which one was the detective again? They would have access to these files, they would be their best bet at cross referencing any files.

Catching movement at the corner of the bar Ana motioned to the young man she had briefly traded words with in the basement. Carter watched them through his peripherals, catching her nod. Meg noticed Ana's motion and glanced over her shoulder towards the young man. Smiling softly towards him she turned to look at the brunette before making her way to the bar. Stepping around and in she approached the man and leaned against the bar with a smile. Nodding at the sound of his order she poured the drink and placed it in front of him. "You can put your wallet away. On the house. It's the least I can offer after this whole ordeal." The warm smile remained on the blonde's face.

10:15 PM
​

After he started to unzip his wallet, a familiar voice responded as Carter looked up, seeing the employee that he called after, a smile that matched the one the bartender wore spread through his face as nevertheless he took a few dollar bills and slid it to her part of the counter as he took his drink in return. "I insist." Carter said, "It's the least I can do after violating establishment privacy laws."

Meghan chuckled as she looked from the bills on the bar up to the young man. "How about this? Whenever you are done, you can tip me for my free service to you." She lowered her head slightly to come to his level. "When people's lives are in danger they act on instinct. Walking down to my basement to help during a potentially life threatening situation warrants a free drink or two and a look the other way from me. You've done nothing wrong here so don't feel any sort of obligation to make-up for" she shrugged "well...nothing." Meghan smirked with a chuckle.

Carter grinned after the bartender's remark, swirling the drink in his hands before taking a small sip; the bills laying still on the counter untouched. "Alright, I'll take your word for it." he conceded, "Though I'll admit I went down there mostly because I was curious more than anything else." Carter admitted as he concealed another chuckle by sipping on his drink. "I'm nothing special." Carter stole a glance at the rest of the bar before leaning towards the counter, a small plan formulating in his head. "Say," he asked, "what's your name?"

"Curiosity killed the cat good sir." Meghan joked rather crudely. "You don't have to be special to be a good person. A hero is not defined by what they are capable of, they are defined by how they choose to act." The smile remained on Meg's face. "You may have unknowingly saved lives by going down there." She shrugged again. "My name?" The blonde grinned and looked away for a moment. "I'm Meg." She nodded towards him, her smile softening. "Pleasure to meet you Mister?" The woman decided to ask about his name in her own way, it was only fair right?

Ana's grip on her arms grew tighter as she clenched her jaw and looked towards Meghan and the customer she was speaking to. Eavesdropping wasn't something she often did, but her attention was fully on them and thus she had began unwillingly listening in on their conversation.

"Heh." Carter thoughtfully swirled his glass once more, using the opportunity to look at the swirling fluids and use his peripherals to look at the other bartender, deducing that the bartender was agitated over something though he didn't know what. He closed his eyes to relax them for a bit, and taking a small swig. This wasn't the time to branch out into things that doesn't concern him. Carter looked back onto Meg after she had spoken, green eyes bore on the bartender's face as the name Meg clicked into place; his eyes grew warm. "Carter." he said, a small smile addling him. "The feeling's mutual, Meg."

"Carter? Suiting." She stood up straight and folded her arms across her chest as she smiled towards him. "Well, I'm glad that you're not in a seemingly foul mood, especially with the recent events." Turning around slightly Meghan studied the bar before returning her attention to Carter. "If you need anything let me know." She explained before she started gathering empty glasses and placing them in the wash cycle.

The photographer put the glass of rum and coke down the counter as he tried to fight the warm fuzz that was threatening to impair his legibility. Damn, who knew years of going cold turkey would affect his psyche this much. "As surprised as you." he said. "Speaking of which, I do need something as of now, and I think it won't need money to get it out from you." Carter mused, eyeing Meg for any reaction.

Placing a glass down in the washer Meghan smiled, an amused chuckle escaping her as she looked back towards Carter. "The confident, silver tongued lad has my attention." Meg responded and began to approach him again. Glancing over his shoulder towards a tense, unimpressed Ana, Meg clenched her jaw and brought her attention back to the man. Customers come first. Meghan was sure she could handle a situation, should it arise. If she couldn't she knew Anastasia was capable of dealing with it, as unnecessary as her reactions typically were towards these sorts of things.

Leaning against the bar to look at him, the blonde smirked, cloudy green eyes studying the man's face. "What can I help you with Carter?" She raised a brow. "Now, before you answer that— not that I'm worried about what you want, you seem like a proper, respectful gentleman— I would like to warn you that my dear employee over there," she pointed towards Ana "if you haven't noticed, doesn't take well to certain situations so, please, don't do anything stupid. I don't want anymore nonsense in here tonight, there's certainly been enough of that." She grinned. "So...What's up?" She asked in a surprisingly perky voice.

Carter raised his eyebrows at the exchange and the warning but whatever surprise or dread he may have felt, he didn't let it past his face. The reason why the employee was terse, the reason why Meg subtly clenched her jaw. He had a hypothesis, but that wasn't the time to entertain it. "Alright, I'll keep that in mind." he said, a small flashback of what occurred in the basement solidifying the warning as something serious, his thoughtful smile seeming half-in and half-slipping off. "Your company's enough." he looked away and onto the glass, making sure he's treading the right path. "I just need some answers to ensure that no certain situations arise at any night."

"I'm glad you enjoy my company." Meghan stated happily as she watched the man. "Answers? I mean, I could try. I'm not sure what the questions will be about but if I can help I'll help." She narrowed her eyes as she pondered for a moment. "Are you a cop or a reporter? Cause I don't want anything to go public or on some file if it might come back to bite me." She stated in a rather straightforward manner. "What might you want to know about? And what are you trying to prevent? How might you prevent it?" She asked her own questions before anything started rolling. She was curious as to what Carter wanted and she would wait and see what sort of information he was seeking, she was hopeful he would tell her exactly why.

Carter rolled his eyes, knowing the caution that comes with answering questions from strangers and acknowledging it as a wise move yet still slightly annoyed all the same. He kept his temper though, knowing his place as a customer, and refused to let his frustration seep out his poker face. "I'm not a cop nor a reporter. To be frank, I could give less of a shit about what underground business those jackals have to do just to make a quick buck." he stated plainly as if it was a practiced response. "I just want to find out if you know any history about this bar that might've led to this Myst character to target it."

He closed his eyes and slightly shrugged, fully finishing his glass of rum and coke. "If there's a reason why they instigated it here, there must be something that's going to lead us to where we need to be." Carter looked at Meg in the eye, as if reflecting all his doubts and worries on the matter that he left unspoken. "And if this douche really is legitimate, then it means they're already three steps ahead of us, and we need all the steps we could get to make it even."

"Boo to the corrupt cops!" Meghan jested with a small laugh before returning her full attention to Carter. Swallowing back at his question and lightly cleared her throat with an exhale. "I don't know much about this place prior to owning it." She explained. "But when I first opened we did have an incident here, just like Myst said. Collateral Case #100" She sighed. "It almost happened the way it did today. Except, the culprit was actually arrested after he was thrown out by a customer who was a meta. As far as I know he was charged, my damages were paid in full but I don't know what actually happened to the person who committed the crime." She swallowed back again and glanced towards Ana who was watching and listening intently. Cloudy greens returned to Carter. "I'm not sure how that might help. It's already done and over with. I think if anyone is going to figure this out, they'll have to get access to the cases and see what might match up."

Clearing her throat and looking off to the side at the sound of Meghan's words, Ana took a deep breath and exhaled sharply before she looked down to the floor, biting her bottom lip, amber eyes flicked up towards the other two, listening to see what else they might have to say.

Carter laughed despite the heavy atmosphere, feeling light-headed not necessarily due to alcohol, his soft grin downplaying the mechanisms of his head as he took her answer to memory. "Collateral Case #100." he took note, among other details. "Don't worry, I have a small hunch. You did helpful enough." the photographer assured, "This'll help." he said cryptically, not revealing what he may have in store as he slowly inched the glass towards Meghan's direction. "Thank you. Another one if possible."

He'll have to consult a friend concerning this, along with a few other questions before he can dismiss himself off of The Nook. "Also," he added after a small thought, a telltale smirk he's trying to resist breaking off once more. "Do you have anything sweeter?"

Might as well live the night to the fullest.

10:21 PM
​

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
INTERACTIONS:

ANASTASIA
- LuckycoolHawk9 (Logan Campbell, Warren Tanner)

MEGHAN
- vantas - Carter Quimora

MENTIONS:
Gands - Vanessa O'Toole
LuckycoolHawk9 - Angelo Rose, John Clark, Layla Jones, Colton Blake, Michael Chambers and Dean Chambers
Michale CS - Aimee Maria Reed and Cyndee Climbon
slifer - Icarus Valaith

 

[LuckycoolHawk9]

Angelo Rose, John Clark, Layla Jones, Dean Chambers, Michael Chambers, Warren Tanner, Logan Campbell and Colton Blake- 10:00- 12:00

Colton looked over at the woman. " Hi, I'm Colton. I came from upstairs," he dryly replied, looking at the others and not even blinking. Sometimes he was grateful that he could go unnoticed in most people, now was not one of those times to say the least. Colton hadn't exactly heard her protests and had separated the two and noticed that she was taking them upstairs. His work was done, but it also seemed that it never was as he couldn't exactly leave. He adjusted the white rose on his suit and headed upstairs with the others.

Angelo couldn't help but enjoy the woman's selection in music and looked around the room. It seemed that a lot of people had emerged from the basement. " Thank you for your phone number. As for what could have been going on, it could have been an interrogation, a misunderstanding or just a bunch of drunks. All of them are very viable options, though I do wonder where the other men had come from, but perhaps I just haven't been paying attention to all the going ons at the bar. I feel like everything is happening both too fast and too slow for my liking."

Mike looked over at him for a brief moment. " I feel like I was just hit by a bus and a train, so no, okay is not a feeling that I feel right now. I don't understand anything that is going on around here," he said. He didn't know what to say about anything else and looked around the room, trying to see where his brother was.

When Valerie would try to look up any of the cases, the system would crash and reboot. If she tried to click on any of the other cases, those files were okay. It seemed the specific cases that needed to be looked up had their files corrupt. Of course, there were physical copies located at the courthouse, but the courts weren't open until the morning. It seemed for now, there was a proverbial dead end.

John looked over at her. " It is not that hard to realize that it is getting out of hand. I need to perhaps curb everyone before half of the city is put out of-," John's phone rang and he looked at the two. " I have to take this call." He took it a safe distance away from others, listening to the others and muttering to himself.

" Thank you for the file and I will review it when I get back for the night, perhaps while I am going back to try to relax. I am happy that you gave this to me," she said.

" As much as I would like to stay, we have to head to the morgue. Something happened there...." Layla understood the implication was that the morgue had somehow lost the most recent bodies from the crime scene. That was never a good thing because it meant more paperwork. She already had enough paperwork between her notes and the homework she had to sign for her son that there was an audible sigh as she left.

Dean looked over at everyone else in the room and decided that he was done for the night. " We're going home, Mike." Before anyone could argue, he grabbed his kid brother by the arm and dragged him back home. He would send him to school in the morning and go to the court house to find some of those files to help him get to the bottom of this whole Myst debacle.

Do you know what the hardest part of keeping your eye on a shapeshifter while you are having multiple conversations? The fact that he could turn into a small bug and crawl out into the night and Logan did just that, not sticking around to be interrogated by Ana or anyone else. You would think that they would know that a shape-shifter had more than one way to get out- this is going to hurt in the morning when I become human again though.

Luckily, he didn't know about a small little firefly who could follow him and did just that. She lost him somewhere around the courthouse.

Warren woke up, uncertain of where he was, but decided that it was his best to just remain there until the day. He eventually left the bar at 11PM as did Angelo and Colton.

April 3rd, 2018- Second Day of Spring Break After Easter,

111 Centre Street: Dean Chambers, Logan Campbell and Colton Blake



Dean stared at the Civil Court building. Despite having built an entire court for Collateral cases, for some godforsaken reason, all of the physical copies were stored in the Civil Court at 111 Centre Street. That meant a trip to Chinatown to figure out what the fuck was going on. He had luckily had send Mike nearby to go buy whatever he wanted from the nearby Chinatown botiques. He would probably get some Pokemon toys. " Well, time to see what I can find out for the cases," he said, taking a ticket and waiting in the line. He noticed the warlock from last night and eyed around the room. He knew from Mike that a shifter had lived in his body and he was eyeing to see if anyone looked out of place. There was an older woman with red hair and too much make-up.


He wasn't sure who else he could be, but he would keep a note on the woman. Hopefully, this would go well... it did not.

Location: ChinaTown- Michael Chambers, Colton Blake, Warren Tanner.

Michael was looking around at the little knacks and noticed the warlock and one of his other forms approach. He hide in a shop, not wanting to deal with the metas, pretending to browse the wares and making a quick note to buy something nice. It didn't seem like they had followed him. Maybe someone had stopped them.

Location: Morgue- John Clark and Layla Jones

John was beyond pissed that they still hadn't found the bodies. That meant he was going to have to tell the family. He dialed the numbers the CSI had given him to get some extra. If she answered, he simply kept his message brief. " We need your help. Please come to the morgue as alone as you can," he said.

Layla was checking the footage and couldn't seem to find anything other than what they already knew. Maybe something would spark or give them a clue to who took the bodies. Maybe it was the Mystification woman, but Layla needed something that was solid proof and not conjecture.

Angelo Ryan Rose

Angelo awoke in his apartment and looked over to see if he had brought the blonde home. Last night was a blue, but he couldn't remember. Maybe he knew if he looked.

It looked like that with a new day starting, there were still ways to help figure out Mystifcation's end game. You could head over to the courthouse to get those files, check the morgue to see if the situation had resolved itself or go to Chinatown to see if Warren or Michael remembered anything about what Mystification had done.

Journal of the Phantom Writer, Entry 1
Yesterday was an eventful day. Two corpses were found and a new villain emerged. I don't know much, but I do know this.. Whoever wants this done is smart and resourceful. I hope that we catch the villain before something goes wrong. I fear that they work for the company and I'm afraid that the company has had something to do with those things.Only time will tell if I am right
@Michale CS @Gands @slifer @vantas @Huntress @Draku69
Sincerely Phantom Writer

 

[Michale CS]

Luckily, he didn't know about a small little firefly who could follow him and did just that. She lost him somewhere around the courthouse.

Not long after Firefly lost the shapeshifter, even though she got a good bead on his heat pattern - stupid hot dog cart - she went home - she'd left her damned purse at the Nook and Cyndee had her hooks into someone so it wasn't going to be a sure thing that she'd remember to get her things. Once in her apartment, - through a convenient window she left cracked a bit all the time - she called the number that she had for Emerald giving her a place to meet up to get her purse and things back. Once there she let the other woman know that she'd followed the shifter and the area where she lost him.

The next morning she had to work early, but promised to meet up with Emerald later to discuss further options. There were plenty of other people she could talk to, as well, but honestly she wanted little to do with that angry waitress lady. Amiee wasn't a strategist. Emerald would know who to talk to who had been at the Nook yesterday and who to leave out of the loop, if anyone.

@Gands

Angelo Ryan Rose

Angelo awoke in his apartment and looked over to see if he had brought the blonde home. Last night was a blur, but he couldn't remember. Maybe he knew if he looked.

When he looked over, there was no blonde there but evidence that she had been by a scrunched up pillow and a sort of wet spot on the bed at about waist level. Then suddenly he had further confirmation...

...the song came over his radio in the living room, along with the smell of bacon cooking. "Hope you're hungry. Making breakfast." she called over the music.

Presuming Angelo eventually came out to see what was up, Cyndee was in a tank top and short-shorts, cooking bacon, eggs, and pancakes. There were a couple glasses on the kitchen table, presumably of tomato juice. "Wasn't sure if you were a morning coffee person so I didn't put any on, but I see you got one of those K-Cup machines so that's an easy fix, Angelo."

@LuckycoolHawk9

 

[Gands]

Victoria Murphy



Legal expert Victoria Murphy was an excellent lawyer. She had her own firm, primarily dealing with

collateral cases, chief among those were those of her half syster, Vanessa, also known as Emerald Dream. Just this afternoon heading back to their office in Manhattan when a traffic accident diverted them to a different neighborhood.



Lucky for Vanessa to stumble into a mystery.



Not so lucky for Victoria for a fresh load of legwork. Given information first on a single case, then on a set of cases that someone had determined to have an agenda. So... first thing in the morning down to that old musty courthouse in China town.

Just as Victoria was heading into the courthouse, she nearly ran into Judge Dean Chambers.



"Good Morning Judge Chambers, would you mind if I walked with you ? I believe we are after the same information! I wonder if any of the information will even be there ! Just the same, the whole affair as reported to me seemed very creepy. I hope you don't mind if walk with you, for simply safety of course !

@LuckycoolHawk9

 

[Gands]

Vanessa O'Toole aka Emerald Dream"



Vanessa in her hero outfit watched Detective John defuse the case, curiously seeming not to care about what happened to the three men, or the fourth * Colton * She discretely takes pictures of all four before some are even conscious. Michael Chambers, Warren Tanner, Logan Campbell and Colton Blake. After that, she makes sure Specter has one of her Superhero cards with that separate phone number.



At the end of everything, the detective leaves, and everyone else leaves. Simply amazing. She notes Firefly zip off after something, then noticing one of the three men had left. Sharp eye there partner.



She goes outside just before the last of them leave setting up a drone to follow Warren Tanner who left last. Logan Campbell escaped and Michale would leave with his brother and a second drone to follow Colton.



Home to her personal lab, first thing she worked on was the hacking of the electronics and trying to glean as much info as she could. At the same time, a couple of local all night news radio stations blurting out things. Lastly, she started to run every name of every person at that crime scene through a cross program... had any of them been noted together in any way. At that point she remembered the copy of the camera data she made after giving the other piece to the detective. She put one of her computers to unravelling that. She always felt best in her lab, just the right amount of distraction to keep her mind occupied.



The next morning, early, she descended on China Town with a dozen long term surveillance drones She would have to leave them at around 1030 to meet with Aimee. She intended to make the other woman one hell of an offer.

@LuckycoolHawk9 @Astroblaze @Michale CS

 

[Michale CS]

The next morning, early, she descended on China Town with a dozen long term surveillance drones She would have to leave them at around 1030 to meet with Aimee. She intended to make the other woman one hell of an offer.

Amiee got up that morning, intending on going in to work at 10 am, as scheduled. Her mind was preoccupied with the events of the previous day - the strange shapeshifting guy. A ghost guy, the angry meta waitress, Vanessa... all of it. She'd just be too damned distracted if she didn't follow up on all of that stuff as soon as possible, not after working eight more hours in her dead-end job.

When Vanessa wanted to get together at 10:30am, that was the final straw.

She did what she thought might be the catalyst to her having to apply for unemployment - she called in sick. After leaving early the previous day and promising to come in early to wrap silverware before the restaurant opened at 11. She had sick time left, but she was already skating on thin ice with the management.

Amiee had picked a nearby Starbucks to meet Vanessa at. Face it, most people who stayed more than a few moments at Starbucks were so immersed in their own worlds - digital or otherwise - to pay any attention to conversations around them at all. And this one had a couple of booths in the back near the restrooms; mainly for those who sat their with their laptops and banged out their novels or treatises or research papers or trash fanfic, really. I mean, not that Amiee spied on people there - okay she totally did.

This was the most vacuous and self-absorbed coffee house in a ten mile radius of her house, which is why she chose to meet Vanessa there.

She was there early, and was about a third of a way through a Triple Mocha Frappucino®​ when Vanessa arrived.

@Gands @LuckycoolHawk9

 

[slifer]

(Collab w/ Huntress)
Icarus Valaith AKA Plant Overlord/Shielder, Felix Valaith, Anastasia​

For what felt like the millionth time, Felix checked his watch again, then his phone, finishing that off with a look out the window. He couldn't help it on days when Icarus promised to come home on time and broke that promise. If Icarus didn't come home one day, he wasn't even close to sure of what he would do without his big brother. Sure, he had independence and could take care of himself, but he couldn't help but compare himself to a 1950's housewife waiting for her husband to arrive home after work. Icarus wasn't answering his texts, and it was getting late.

IT was almost like something snapped inside of him. He had to go find his older brother, because the worry was killing him. Even though there were villains outside, and it was generally unsafe at night, he had to try. On that note, he put on his jacket, grabbed his charged phone, keys and wallet, and headed outside, locking the door behind him and stuffing the keys in his pocket before heading outside into the night. The GPS on his phone app told him where Icarus was, and he would most certainly find his brother and give him an earful for worrying him.
____________________________________


The rumbling of his stomach made Icarus groan with annoyance at how poor his life choices were. IT was looking more and more like he was going to have to nix the coffee idea and get some ginger ale. At least now he could think somewhat more lucidly than before, because his brain had finally realized that his stomach wasn't allowed to take the center stage. Icarus looked around, spying one of the two women who seemed to work at the bar in a conversation with another person. The other woman seemed to be at a booth by herself, watching over two unconscious men. What had happened while he was in the bathroom? Either way, she looked like she was his only hope at the moment. Walking up to the table, he stopped a few feet away from her, trying to be polite as he could. "Excuse me." Icarus asked her, trying to catch her attention. "How much ginger ale will ten dollars give me? My stomach feels like it's forming a rebellion against me." OF course, he had the money on him, and would pay for said ginger-infused drink, and just maybe find out what the heck was going on first, before heading home to his little brother. Felix would be pissed at him for doing this, but that could be smoothed over quite easily if need be. Besides that, he needed to arm himself with information. An uninformed hero made mistakes, and he was not about to ruin his beautiful and spotless record because he had no idea who this Myst person was. Thankfully, the bathroom walls were thin, and the...questionable meta (he assumed said person was a meta) was loud and frankly, was kind of an asshole. With that going on, not to mention all of the deaths that were happening, he wanted some real information, not all of the secondhand bullshit the news was trying to feed him. Something had definitely gone down while he was in the bathroom, because he had entered into a mostly empty bar and came out again with people who did have a worried air to them.


Ana's attention had been on Meghan and the man she was speaking to at the bar. Her eavesdropping had helped her learn his name, Carter. Swallowing back as she adjusted herself on the table she clenched her jaw as her visuals were slightly interrupted by an unknown form. Keeping her head down, her gaze flicked towards the man speaking to her. Taking in a deep breath through her nose she tilted her head back and visibly exhaled, shoulders and chest relaxing upon the release of the air in her lungs. Looking off to her left as if to avoid the question tossed her way she pursed her lips and let out another, much smaller, sigh.


Standing up straight and remaining silent, Anastasia dropped her arms as she came to meet the man's height. "No need to explain why you need the drink." She muttered. Looking back towards the two men that were still unconscious she walked around the dark haired man and stepped behind the bar. Since Meghan was too busy chatting up Carter, Ana herself poured the drink. Placing ice and a straw in the glass she handed the ginger ale to the man. "On the house." She told him before returning to the same position she was in before. Not that she didn't want to work, it was mostly to make sure that the two guys stayed knocked out. They were apparently the dangerous part of the trio that had resided in the single body that had entered the bar not long ago.



Icarus blinked as she gave him the free drink. Whatever the hell had happened, it must have been wild for sure. Without hesitation, he took out the straw, slowly but steadily sipping the ale until it was all gone. "I hate to ask, but what happened in here? There was fighting or something going on in here, and someone was talking about Case 100 in the bathroom. I'm not sure how I wasn't heard in the bathroom. Which cases are cases 0, 13, 215, 300, and Redacted, because I'm sure that Mystification's words were meant for everyone occupying the bar." The numbers were scrawled onto his hand, written hastily in pen as the as the asshole said them out loud. Unfortunately for him, he wasn't affiliated with any lawyers, being relatively new to the whole hero business. HE had a year under his belt, meaning he had seen stuff, but ultimately knew very little about the cases themselves. Besides that, Mystification had called everyone out who was in the bar, no doubt knowing that he was in said bar.



Taking a deep breath through her nose and exhaling as she closed her eyes Ana took a moment before looking at the man that was still talking to her. "You're right, there almost was a fight. It was stopped before damage could be dealt, thankfully." Looking away Anastasia remained silent for a moment. Is this what was going to be happening for the rest of the night? People were going to be asking about cases? Ana had no answers to any of it, plain and simple. Leaning further back against the table Ana folded her arms against her chest, Amber eyes gazing up towards the man. "I'm not the right person to be asking about other cases. I don't even know all the details involving my cases so, sorry bud, I can't really help you there." She shrugged. "Case 100 was almost identical to what happened here today, which you missed while in the bathroom." Glancing towards the bar at Meg, Ana returned her attention back to the man after a moment. "Some guy— shapeshifter, whatever you wanna call it— killed some people, then showed up here caused a scene and was eventually arrested. That's all I know about the case." She clenched her jaw. "I don't know if that's helpful, but unfortunately it's all I can give you, sorry." Ana explained to him.



Icarus sighed, seeing that she was probably annoyed by the questioning but he had to press her just a little harder for information. She was unusually focused on the waitress talking to the man...oh. "Usually I hate doing this sort of direct questioning, but I have to. I don't want whatever happening here to hurt my family. I would assume that she was on the line, you would want to know everything you could so you could protect her. Please, could you think of something else, anything else that could help out." IT was kind of obvious that this woman cared about the other waitress, now that he thought about it, as if he didn't notice that she was glancing over at the woman while they were conversing.
It was almost a shock when said teen that he gave a shit about burst into the Nook, heading straight for Icarus, looking especially upset. Dammit, why the hell was Felix here, and not at home? The GPS apps were going to get Felix killed, and where would he be then? "Icarus! Why are you at a bar? You didn't tell me where you were!" Felix said, walking up to Icarus angrily, ignoring Anastasia by accident, as he was so focused on Icarus. "I was worried! You promised you would be home hours ago!" Finally he noticed Anastasia, and the fact that he had basically rushed into a bar, practically hollering at his older brother. "Sorry about that." Felix said, still angry, but the anger slowly transforming into sheepishness around the waitress that was with the two unconscious guys...wait a second, what was Icarus involved with? Shit, now it was obvious who he had mentioned on the sly. Trusting people was somewhat difficult to do when anyone could be a meta who toyed with people's lives.



Raising a brow in an unimpressed manner Ana clenched her jaw and watched the man with flared nostrils as he persisted with his questions. Standing up straight after a moment and moving a bit closer she took in a deep breath and glared at the man. "I know that I am capable of protecting whoever I need to protect." She spoke behind clenched teeth and in a low tone. "I told you that I don't—" Before she could finish her sentence she was interrupted by a yelling voice of a young man and soon, said young man stepped in between her and the man questioning him. Huffing as she listened she looked away and dropped her hands to the side. "You don't need to apologize." She stated as she looked towards the teen. "We were done here." Her gaze shifted to the man with the ginger-ale. "If you're not old enough to be in here, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." Anastasia looked between the two before turning around to return her attention to the two men, one of which was now gone and the second just coming to. She growled in frustration. Great. There was a potential murderer on the loose because of distractions and her own hard headedness. Wasn't there supposed to be a cop in here? What the hell was he doing?



Yup, generally when people lied they went on the offensive, and she was cutting him off quite quickly. "I'm not trying to threaten you! I'm genuinely asking for help!" His voice was low, aimed directly at this woman before he breathed in, needing to calm down a little. "Just be careful then. Even a meta can only be so powerful. No matter how powerful you think you are, there's someone who's always better. That's beside the point. I'm old enough to be in here. He's not. Thank you for the ginger ale." Icarus stiffly took Icarus away from the area before he was tempted to grow black mold in the building and then call 311 with complaints. Not that he had done so before, but there was a first time for everything. At first, he wasn't sure if she didn't know anything, but now he was sure that she was lying. He could have tried to fight her, but Felix came into the bar and changed everything. Screw this. She lost a potentially valuable ally and now he was stuck with basically no information. It was starting to get late, and they had to get home. If she didn't have anything left to say, he would take Felix and leave this place.


One job was all she had to do and she managed to fuck it up, as if she needed more nonsense on her shoulders, more stress. The man was still talking to her and it was enough to garner her attention as she turned to look at him over her shoulder. Rough, aggressive and abrasive wasn't always the way Ana had been. It was a fairly recent development in life that had caused her to become this way. Her trust had been severely betrayed and it had forced her to shut herself off. Later events in life only made her crawl deeper and deeper into herself. The layers surrounding who she truly was were many and thick but not impenetrable, not yet at least. "I'm not threatened by your questions." She stated simply. "It takes more than words to put me on edge. Irritated? Annoyed? Those are more likely outcomes from me when spoken to." She explained. "I'll make sure not be careful, I've made it through life so far so I think I'm okay." She finally turned to face the man. "I know how dangerous this is, how dangerous it is going to get, especially with lives on the line. I've lived through no man's land and worse. I just don't have any more information on the current subject, I don't know about the cases, I was not involved in any of them except for the one that got us all here." She said and clenched her jaw tightly, eyes faltering for a moment from the man.


"Like I told you, Case #100 involved a double murder, said murderer came to this bar, started a fight, damaged most of my interior and knocked my back door off its hinges. He was eventually arrested and put on trial. Three men intertwined in one body. They couldn't be tried as a single entity because they weren't. They plead innocent due to being 'mind-controlled' by someone." She sighed. "My damages were paid for in full by someone and that was it." Clenching and unclenching her jaw she looked at the man. "I'm not sure how you can help but if this helps you somehow, great. Solved and finished cases are usually public knowledge so giving you information that you'd be able to find on your own regardless isn't hurting anyone." Ana stated simply. "There's a whole bunch of people here and now we've all been unwillingly involved in this shitshow. So If I have to tell people about the shitty case I was involved in almost three years ago so be it...if it'll get people off my back." She finished. "That's all I know. If you want more information about the case I'd suggest reading the files yourself." A short sigh escaped her, eyes never leaving the man.



Now Icarus didn't know how to feel anymore after her words. She didn't quite know everything, but she did try to help him. He let out a soft sigh that would be barely audible, one that was more telling how he was feeling at the moment. "Sorry for snapping at you. Thank you for all that you've told me. I do appreciate it." Somehow, he was being entirely sincere as the anger left him at the realization that she was trying to help him. "I'm sure you're tired now, and I'm sure that guy would have left, no matter what you had done, if he split this easily without either of us hearing. Thank you again. Goodbye." He thanked her once more, giving her a soft smile before taking Felix and hustling the younger man outside.

_________________________
Chinatown- In the morning
After making up with Felix after promises of takeout in the future, Icarus lead Felix into Chinatown to buy him something nice. The trip wasn't only just for his little brother though. He had a contact in the area who could possibly give him the details about the five (technically 6 cases but he wasn't going to go crazy trying to find out about case 100) cases he had recorded onto his phone. Currently, they were in a random store with some other kid, browsing the shoulder bags they had inside. Some of them were pretty cheap, and were of decent quality. Felix had needed a bag of his own, and one of these would be useful to him. For all intents and purposes, they looked like two regular people. Why dress up when you could look comfortable and be able to change into your uniform on the fly. Right now the decision was between a black bag, a brown bag, and a greyish one with black designs, and it was difficult to decide which one would best suit his little brother. Even now he was thinking of buying one for himself. His plan was to buy the bag and then visit the Civil Court case building and get some info, and some allies.


(Interactions- @Huntress
Mentions- @LuckycoolHawk9
@Huntress (Again)
@vantas
Probs other people too but in so little passing that I don't think it matters. Just @everyone I think.)

 

[erudere]

​

Date: April 3, 2018
Time: 8:47 a.m.​

​

It was about two hours before her usual time being awake when Eloise's phone rang; a small tune she got from a cartoon show pinging steadily as the villain splayed about her bed like roadkill, not even looking like a villain at all.

Dust cascaded through the blinds of her windows as the morning sun bled through the room, neat and barren of any evidence that she committed a crime not so long ago. Her brunette tresses were involuntarily curled and haphazardly layered all over her hair as she groaned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She almost fell asleep again right then and there if it weren't for the fact that she slightly stretched her sprain, jolting her awake.

"Oh goddamn it," Eloise muttered, rubbing her ankle. This was gonna be a pain in the half to worry about.

She grabbed her phone, the bunny keychain that hung from the case tinkling slightly, half-cracked eyes dodging about the screen about to give this ungrateful, selfish little brat that interrupted her sleep a piece of her mi--

Oh wait it's just Carter.
Eloise grabbed a stray throw pillow and groaned into it before finally accepting the call.

"Hey Lois." the familiar voice filled her ear, a small tint of satisfaction digging into the fact that Carter knew that Eloise was definitely not a morning person. "I need your help on something."

"Hello. You have reached the phone of Eloise Chandler." Eloise tried to childishly say monotonously, half-expecting Carter to actually believe her act. "Please leave your message after the beep."

Eloise did an o shape with her fingers and slowly drawled out the word beep into the speaker. She could almost see Carter groaning at the fact that she's doing this.

"Yeah, you're not fooling anyone." Carter said, half-jokingly.​

"Fine, you win." Eloise grumped, tucking stray hair strands from her forehead to her ear. "Would it have been better if it were turkey sounds instead?", the lady commented, intentionally enunciating turkey as Carter's old nickname.

The journalist couldn't help but giggle slightly as Carter heavily breathed into the phone. "Jesus; Lois, that pun is three years old. Can you finally stop?" he pleaded, trying to get rid of the long-worn TerQui name pun that Eloise firstly stuck to him.

"Never." Eloise refuted, setting her phone on speaker and setting it down her dresser as she tied her hair into a bun she was usually identified for. "So, since you've made me rise from my mortal coil at this ungodly hour, the least I can do's try to help you out on whatever it is you want."

"Har har," Carter mocked before turning serious, "alright so I want you to collect some info concerning a few cases."

Cases? Eloise thoughtfully nibbled on her hair clip before adding it to her hair, not becoming less messy but at least presentable. Her trademark style. "What for?" she inquired.

"Long story. I'll tell you more about it once I get the chance to." Carter answered, "but I just need some information about Collateral Case #100 along with #0, #13, #215, #300, and REDACTED."

"Damn, these are very specific cases." Eloise whistled, already listing off the work she has to do.

"Don't worry, they're all linked to the long story I promised to tell." Carter affirmed, "in the meantime since I know you have the time, the sources, and the actual right to snoop, I figured you can dig some dirt involving it. The bigger the pile the better."

Eloise pondered over it before tossing in a chip she knew she couldn't resist throwing. "So what's in it for me?"

There's a long sigh at the phone and Eloise almost felt bad for asking and was going to take it back before Carter responded. "Once you get the info, compile them on a document and send it to me. Then I'll tell you about the long story."

Eloise was confused on what were the advantages of accepting the offer before she realized that Carter said story thrice. Carter never uses the same words more than twice, which means he was hinting on something.

Something... oh wow.

Eloise paused before turning off the speaker and pulling the phone close to her ear. "How big is it?"

"Fucking magnanimous." Carter told.

A smile almost as big as the article opportunity Carter presented her almost broke through her face but of course, she couldn't let Carter have the satisfaction of immediately selling her the deal.

"I'm in." Eloise said as seriously as she could muster.

There was another pause as Eloise thought Carter forgot to hang up before his voice popped in again, condescending yet playful. "Admit it, you're happier than you're letting on."

Eloise grinned. "You got me."

She took out her formal uniform and prepared her shower cold. She's going to court and there will be lots of files to be had.

"What will you be doing?" Eloise asked as she undid her bun absentmindedly again.

"Getting a coffee." Carter simply finished.

--------------------
​

​

Date: April 3, 2018
Time: 10:13 p.m.​

Carter was glad he did cardio because there was no way he would've made it to Chinatown via bike only after the sayonara for his sobriety.

Of course, he wouldn't have made it in proper time if he didn't break a few rules but it was of minuscule consequence.
Skirting through alleyways, silently riding down pedestrian lanes, and skirting through police as he finally reached his destination.

It was a wonder how he fully spoke well with Eloise without slipping tongue but now, his visual prowess will be tested. As he chained his bike and booted up his iPod, he desperately sought out a stall for him to puke in so his mind is clearer when he finds Warren.

It is folly for a person to solely rely on one person for the responsibilities of the many. Hangover or not, he's gonna have to do is his share of work.​

​

​

CARTER QUIMORA
@LuckycoolHawk9​