Create-A-Hero RPG Season IV IC Thread

[Johnny Blaze]

"Yeah...was hoping it was just coincidence", Hellfire sighed.
"Even on vacation...you know I believe the universe has it out for us."


"Too many civilians to have a confrontation here...let's go find ourselves an off-the-path spot", Hellfire said as he discreetly looked around the bustling market, searching for an alleyway to duck down.
"Then we can 'ask' them real nicely what they want..."

 

[Byrd Man]

"Too many civilians to have a confrontation here...let's go find ourselves an off-the-path spot", Hellfire said as he discreetly looked around the bustling market, searching for an alleyway to duck down.
"Then we can 'ask' them real nicely what they want..."

"Roger that," Barb said with a nod. He followed Hollway's lead down a side alley that their pursuers followed behind.

Barb and Hellfire were halfway down the alley when they turned and pulled. Barb's spring-loaded plasma scattergun popped from its hidden compartment in his armor and into the Sterk's hands. By his side, the captain had his blaster pistol out and trained on the white cloaked followers.

"Move," Barb said, racking a shell of super-heated plasma into the shattergun's chamber. "It'll be the last thing you do."

"Who are you?"

"Please," the person at the lead said, his hands out and up. "We come in peace."

He removed the cloak over his face, revealing his long, pointy head and beady eyes. "We are envoys of the Holy and Loving Church of Holiness and Love."

Both Barb and Hellfire exchanged looks of skepticism before turning back to the D'well.

"What's a bunch of cultist want with us?"

He blinked and smiled, avoiding the insult to his religion. Instead, he pointed a long, thin finger at Barb.

"We are here for the Priapo. So it has been written, so it will come to pass."

 

[Johnny Blaze]

"The what", Holloway was visibly confused.
"You got any idea just what the **** this loony tune's talking about?"

 

[Byrd Man]

"The what", Holloway was visibly confused.
"You got any idea just what the **** this loony tune's talking about?"

"The Priapo," the D'well said, walking closer to Barb and Hellfire. "The reincarnation of the prophet Eelrun Hu Bard. All praises to Hu Bard."

"All praises to Hu Bard," the other church members replied in unison.

"You think that's me?" Barb asked with a scoff. "You sure as hell don't know me. You freaks go back to swindling holonet actors out their money and leave me the hell alone."

"No," the D'well said sternly. On cue, the rest of the church members pulled large blaster rifles from their robes. "It was not a request. You will come with us. So it was written..."

"So it will come to pass," the rest of the followers said in unison.

 

[Johnny Blaze]

Hellfire could see the look in the devotees' eyes, and he knew there was going to be no reasoning with them.

"Boring conversation anyway..."

Captain Hellfire opened fire, shooting the D'well right in his hand that was holding the trigger of the rifle, blowing apart the acolyte's appendage and causing him to drop the gun.
As the group's leader cried out in pain and clutched his bleeding stump, Hellfire grabbed Barb and dove behind the nearest available cover, a small dumpster, as the rest of the congregation opened fire.

 

[Eddie Brock]

Neutali Arthaa closed his eyes and craned his neck, allowing his skin some much needed moisture and refreshment. As a Telly, Newt was not in possession of lungs nor gills. Instead, his amphibious species "breathed" through the mucous membrane on their skin, and lately Newt had felt like he was choking. The offworlder bodysuit kept Newt's body hydrated and stemmed the discomfort considerably, but nothing quite beat the sensation of fresh water against Telly skin. Newt felt like a new man already, and he had only been on the planet for fifteen seconds.

His euphoria was promptly interrupted by the low-toned 'whirrr' of automated treads. Newt turned to see PAL - the Polytronic Anthropomorphic Lifesystem - wheeling down the landing ramp. Newt had built PAL because he felt lonely. He had spent every subsequent moment since PAL's creation trying to get a moment alone from the little droid. It was only when Newt went on missions with the Captain and crew that he could be free of his robotic appendage.

"Where do you think you're going?" Newt asked, annoyed. "Feel that humidity? Your circuits would be drowning in minutes out here."

PAL responded with a series of fast clicks - akin to what Captain Hellfire called "Morse code." It was a shorthand that Newt had invented and programmed himself. Others had tried to learn it and been utterly frustrated. Newt tried to assure them that they weren't missing much: PAL wasn't a great conversationalist, anyway.

"What use does a droid have for a pleasure spring?" Newt replied, ignoring the stunted little 'bot's protest. More clicks. "Oh, come off it! Someone needs to stay with the ship, anyway."

Defeated, PAL rotated one-hundred-and-eighty degrees at his base and began rolling up the landing ramp towards the ship proper. As usual, he did it exaggeratedly - like a dog who had been scolded. People often wondered why Newt treated PAL so poorly, and he always explained that he hadn't programmed the little diva with emotions. PAL could be no more disappointed than a calculator; he just liked the attention.

Newt turned to Alek, the Gray alien who had been Captain Hellfire's longest companion, and Siv, the soft-spoken scientist and pilot of the Icarus. "Well, hows about it, crew? Last one to the springs is a rotten Bryndak seed, eh?"

 

[Byrd Man]

Hellfire could see the look in the devotees' eyes, and he knew there was going to be no reasoning with them.

"Boring conversation anyway..."

Captain Hellfire opened fire, shooting the D'well right in his hand that was holding the trigger of the rifle, blowing apart the acolyte's appendage and causing him to drop the gun.
As the group's leader cried out in pain and clutched his bleeding stump, Hellfire grabbed Barb and dove behind the nearest available cover, a small dumpster, as the rest of the congregation opened fire.

"Fiu de căţea," Barb cursed in his native tongue. He leaned over the dumpster and shot a round of plasma buckshot at one of the Acolaytes. The super-heated plasma blew through the alien's chest and dropped her to the ground in a heap.

Barb ducked behind the dumpster and racked another round into his gun. "Count three more left. They're moving in."

Hellfire stood up and shot at the cult members to stop their progress. He ducked back behind the dumpster and began to reload when a orb landed between him and Barb.

"Son of a--"

Barb was cut off as the stun grenade exploded. Both he and Holloway were knocked forward by the blast. Barb smacked his head on the ground, blacking out on the spot.

 

[Johnny Blaze]

The force of the blast sent Hellfire tumbling forward. He was able to get a hand up to somewhat brace the impact, but his head still smacked against the stone ground.

Holloway groaned as he tried to lift his head. He felt his reality start to close in around him. Hellfire tried to will himself to stay conscious. He had to get up, but his body seemingly wouldn't listen.
Before Hellfire passes out, his last image if of the cultists, completely ignoring him, and calmly walking up to the unconscious form of Barb...

 

[Byrd Man]

Holloway groaned as he tried to lift his head. He felt his reality start to close in around him. Hellfire tried to will himself to stay conscious. He had to get up, but his body seemingly wouldn't listen.
Before Hellfire passes out, his last image if of the cultists, completely ignoring him, and calmly walking up to the unconscious form of Barb...

Barb's eyes slowly opened. As his sight began to return, his other senses were also waking up. He felt movement, heard sound, and could smell the sweet aroma of spices. He was still dazed and concussed, but he could tell he was in the heart of the Fons spice market. He was being drug by the church acolytes through the market on some kind of hovering gurney. Barb tried to move, but his body acted sluggish to every response. The cult nutjobs had sedated him. Considering his size, about 6'5 to use a human measurement, and the fact that Strek were built like brick ****houses, a wonderful phrase Barb had learned from Holloway, the dose the cultist used on him had to have been a big one.

Even though there was no way in hell he could fight back, he struggled to reach the tiny box on his belt. Alek had jokingly called the captain overbearing when he had Newt rig up the bleeper boxes for each crew member. But in hindsight it had saved a few of the Argonauts' skins more than once. Straining, Barb activated the box. A homing beacon kicked on and broadcasted his mobile location to the captain's personal box, as well as the cockpit of the Icarus. With a low sigh, Barb succumbed to the sedative that was in his veins and blacked out.

 

[Nicodemus]

Noah Walker, the AWESOME ACROBAT
Interlude: Sorcery
My enemy's enemy is my...enemy​

The texts from GATES directed me to a small gas station just outside the city limits. The place was blocked off with police tape but no officers seemed to be around, and as I drew closer I could see that an entire wall was missing. Rubble littered the ground up to almost twenty feet away.

"Oh great," I muttered, touching down near the wall. "Detective time."

The wall had obviously been blown off from the inside, any idiot could see that by the placement of the rubble. Since I didn't see any other holes in the building I could only assume that Rose - it had to be Rose, or GATES wouldn't have brought me here - had come in the normal way, gotten in a scuffle, and run.

As I walked inside the gas station I began to feel uneasy - it was like the very air around me was wrong somehow, that I had entered a place I wasn't supposed to enter and now I was paying the price. With some difficulty I shoved the feeling aside and tried to focus on the investigation.

The store was a mess. Rose had pulled out some pretty destructive spells and there was no small amount of clutter - and blood. I didn't see any bodies, which was a good sign, but the police could've easily cleared them out before I got here.

I took a deep breath and sighed. I was getting nowhere here. Rose could've gone anywhere after this little scuffle, and I had no way to track her. Maybe...maybe I could call the some of my tougher friends from the attempted STRIKE takeover a few months back. Maybe they could help. Because it had barely been twenty minutes and it looked like I was already going to let hundreds of people die.

 

[twylight]

Neutali Arthaa closed his eyes and craned his neck, allowing his skin some much needed moisture and refreshment. As a Telly, Newt was not in possession of lungs nor gills. Instead, his amphibious species "breathed" through the mucous membrane on their skin, and lately Newt had felt like he was choking. The offworlder bodysuit kept Newt's body hydrated and stemmed the discomfort considerably, but nothing quite beat the sensation of fresh water against Telly skin. Newt felt like a new man already, and he had only been on the planet for fifteen seconds.

His euphoria was promptly interrupted by the low-toned 'whirrr' of automated treads. Newt turned to see PAL - the Polytronic Anthropomorphic Lifesystem - wheeling down the landing ramp. Newt had built PAL because he felt lonely. He had spent every subsequent moment since PAL's creation trying to get a moment alone from the little droid. It was only when Newt went on missions with the Captain and crew that he could be free of his robotic appendage.

"Where do you think you're going?" Newt asked, annoyed. "Feel that humidity? Your circuits would be drowning in minutes out here."

PAL responded with a series of fast clicks - akin to what Captain Hellfire called "Morse code." It was a shorthand that Newt had invented and programmed himself. Others had tried to learn it and been utterly frustrated. Newt tried to assure them that they weren't missing much: PAL wasn't a great conversationalist, anyway.

"What use does a droid have for a pleasure spring?" Newt replied, ignoring the stunted little 'bot's protest. More clicks. "Oh, come off it! Someone needs to stay with the ship, anyway."

Defeated, PAL rotated one-hundred-and-eighty degrees at his base and began rolling up the landing ramp towards the ship proper. As usual, he did it exaggeratedly - like a dog who had been scolded. People often wondered why Newt treated PAL so poorly, and he always explained that he hadn't programmed the little diva with emotions. PAL could be no more disappointed than a calculator; he just liked the attention.

Newt turned to Alek, the Gray alien who had been Captain Hellfire's longest companion, and Siv, the soft-spoken scientist and pilot of the Icarus. "Well, hows about it, crew? Last one to the springs is a rotten Bryndak seed, eh?"

Siv watched the interaction between Newt and PAL. Hmm... maybe no pets.

"Well, hows about it, crew? Last one to the springs is a rotten Bryndak seed, eh?"

Siv thought for a moment. She hadn't planned on visiting the springs. Her planet had many natural springs, and the ones on Fons seemed to have no special properties on a molecular level. She was actually very interested in searching the markets. However, perhaps the springs would be a good time to bond with her crewmates.

She bowed her head to Newt.
"Bet made." Racing back into the ship she reached her quarters and grabbed her survival bag, before racing out of the ship, following the direction markers to the springs.

 

[MST3K 4ever]

Eve throttles forward to Phoenix's mansion and the stops just short of the main gate.

She waits for the security camera to whirr and stop right in front of her.

Eve gets off of The Serpent and glares at the camera.

Colter says into the intercom system, "Sir she has arrived."

Phoenix approaches the monitor and glares back.

He says, "To the control room right now."

Colter leaves and Phoenix opens the gate.

She is taking a much more measured and cerebral approach this time. Very brave of her, and that will make her defeat that much sweeter.

Eve activates her scanners and sees no known threat. She then climbs on The Serpent and motors to the front of the house.

She gets off of The Serpent and looks at the front door. Eve then with one swift kick turns the double doors into a pile of splinters.

Phoenix says into the Intercom system, "I would say you'll pay for that, but when I'm through with you this time. Your life will be more worthless than Internet Stock."

Eve shows no emotions as she locks in on Phoenix's signal and moves forward.

She reaches the end of a hallway and a door opens.

Eve walks in and sees Phoenix standing there.

He says, "Well come back for yet another beating Little Evie, or are you filled with righteous anger wanting to avenge your friend. By the way how is he?"

Eve says, "He's recovering. He will survive, and I assure when we're done here you will remember one thing Phoenix just one thing."

Phoenix asks, "and what is that?"

Eve replies, "That hurting Brother Paul was your greatest mistake, and your last."

Eve super-speeds and flips over Phoenix. He grabs her ankle and she says, "Paulify one!"

Suddenly her body becomes charged with several volts of electricity that sends Phoenix hurling back across the room.

Eve stands up and brushes herself off and says, "For such a supposed genius you really are an idiot."

Eve assumes a fight stance and says, "Get-up!"

He is very shaken and smoking as Colter says into Phoenix's ear-peice, "Her defenses are significantly upgraded the pattern is changing at such a rapid rate I can't lock-in on any signal of any kind."

Phoenix growls, "Find something!"

He charges to Eve who deftly side-steps him as he stumbles into a wall leaving a sizable impression upon it and Phoenix in a lot of pain.

Eve engages her elctro-spectrum sensor and sees a flow of electricity converging on one location along with a radio signal.

Eve super-speeds to the wall and tears through it with two punches. She sees Colter sitting there and grabs him by his collar.

Eve says, "Come on out and play with the big kids!"

Colter says, "Oh no!"

She hurls a screaming Colter across the room and he slams into a wall next to Phoenix. He is unconcious and bleeding from the mouth.

Eve enters the control room and begins destroying it.

Phoenix yells, "NOOOOOO!!!!"

He begins to charge towards the shattered room, but Eve picks up a large section of control panel and nails him with it sending him back out. Phoenix is now laying on the ground in obvious pain.

She steps out and says again, "GET UP! YOUR BEATING HASN'T EVEN BEGUN!"

 

[Hound55]

[BLACKOUT]“Situations changed. Try me again in 15, I’ll either be in the hut or the walking dead’s favourite meal on the go…”[/BLACKOUT]

FWIP! FWIP! Clik. Clik. Clik. [BLACKOUT]“Sonuva..!”[/BLACKOUT] Kkt, Tsh. Clik. FWIP! FWIP! FWIP! FWIP!

FWIP!

“What was that?!?” a rotund male asked of the others from the cramped safety of the boarded up hut.

“Maybe it’s the National Guard, Aukai” uttered a teenage boy, “or the Marines.”

FWIP! FWIP! FWIP! FWIP!

“Maybe they’re looking for survivors, Kapali.” a soft feminine voice offered.

“Whoever it is, they’re coming this way.” The stout Aukai observed.

“And it sounds like they’re bringing the ghouls this way” the girl noted, a clear tremble in her voice “I’m scared Uleki.”

“It’s alright Kanani. They will never touch you. Even those familiar with death will fear it if they so much as look at you when I am near.” * (Rough translation from native Hawaiian)

The 5 of them jumped, at the unexpected noise of a large mass crashing onto the roof. A muffled obscenity was followed by two more silenced gun-shots. But the worst was yet to come. The hearts of the hut’s inhabitants all simultaneously skipped a beat as a creaking, not unlike someone peeling back the lid of a half opened can of beans, could be heard as the security of the corrugated iron roof was shattered. With tensions already high a loud stomping could be heard, battering through the roof. Kanani and Aukai both screamed. It was hard to tell whose scream was more effeminate. Before a dark figure crashed through the ceiling and landed with a thud on the floor with handguns in each hand.

Only Uleki and Haliaka, who had been silent and thoughtful until the figure had landed on their roof, stood firm. Uleki’s stern face looked menacingly at the stranger, who seemed to dissolve into the darkness with the exception of his pale sharp eyes. He was clearly not a native to Moloka’I, and probably not even Hawaii.

He spoke with an unsettling robotic-sounding voice, and with a tone that seemed to mock the severity of the mood.

[BLACKOUT]“Sorry to let myself in, but generally it’s polite to answer when somebody knocks...”[/BLACKOUT]

The figure turned and sized up the room, clearly disappointed that the hut had so few people.

[BLACKOUT]“…under the circumstances, I guess it’s somewhat understandable though.”[/BLACKOUT]

Haliaka watched as he awkwardly holstered his guns, and watched with horror as Uleki seemed to respond with a threateningly contemplative expression. Before he could move, she stepped forward and addressed the man.

“Are you here to help us?”

[BLACKOUT]“Hopefully and then some… are you 5 all there is?”[/BLACKOUT]

“I think so.” Kapali answered.

[BLACKOUT]“No ‘I think so.’”[/BLACKOUT] The man answered firmly. Almost forcefully. No, not almost Haliaka thought. Definitely forcefully. [BLACKOUT]“…ARE THERE ANY OTHER SURVIVORS OUT THERE?”[/BLACKOUT]

“We haven’t seen any.” Haliaka responded, as she could see the man’s response had been too heavy handed for the young Kapali. “But this is the safest building on the island. For generations we’ve had tidal waves do various amounts of damage and we’ve always re-built. But according to the elders this is the one building within miles which is still standing after the real big tidal wave of 1957… some say it even withstood the great one of 1946.”

The man took this news poorly, muttering an obscenity and then probing at his ear he seemed to begin talking to himself before Haliaka realised he was likely communicating over some kind of radio frequency with the other soldiers he must be here with.

[BLACKOUT]“…yeah, I’m in the hut. No bites or scratches. At this point I count a total of 5 survivors… Yes, they seem to be mobile…”[/BLACKOUT] the dark man turned away and continued at a barely audible volume [BLACKOUT]“…although one seems to be large enough to raise a question of his mobility…”[/BLACKOUT]

[BLACKOUT]“uh-huh.”[/BLACKOUT]

[BLACKOUT]“Yeah…”[/BLACKOUT] Behind the robotic tone his voice seemed to crack. [BLACKOUT]“Yes… at this point I’m unable to confirm whether there are any other survivors on this island, but… Yes, I understand that. No, I agree, at this point it doesn’t seem practical to… Two hours? Well that doesn’t give me a hell of a lot of time to… Hello? Hello? F***!”[/BLACKOUT]

The man ended his call with a sharp explosion of a profanity before turning his full attention back to the others.

“I… I think I saw you once. On the television. You’re one of them, aren’t you? The Guardians?” Kapali alleged.

Uleki barked at the younger boy in their native tongue. The man likely didn’t speak the language or at least couldn’t understand it when used so sharp and fast. It was a good thing, too, considering the nature of his comments.

“No, he’s not just a stupid Haole, Uleki!” cried the boy.

Well, so much for not understanding.

“… he’s one of them. The people who saved the world during the invasion. You are, aren’t you? They call you… the Vindicator… the Vigulator.”

[BLACKOUT]“The Vigilante.”[/BLACKOUT]

“Yes, you were at that school on the TV!”

[BLACKOUT]“…”[/BLACKOUT]

“So when are the others getting here? The `ânela?”

[BLACKOUT]“…”[/BLACKOUT]

The man turned away and began to survey the room, paying particular attention to the barricaded door.

“The Pahi… Swordsman..? Lele kâne…? The Flying Man..?” the boy Kapali urged, with growing desperation coating each name.

Over by the door, the man in black dropped his head whilst facing away from them, as if a dark cloud loomed over his head.

“Lele kâne died, Kapali… I think I saw that on the news.” Kanani said softly.

A second later the man turned, no sign of the dark clouds could be seen, and had she not known better Haliaka would have questioned whether they were ever there in the first place. The laughter was back in his voice once more.

[BLACKOUT]“That’s not how it works, kid. One situation, one Guardian. Unless you’ve got more of those aliens on hand it’s all we’ve needed. So we won’t have to wait around here any longer for anyone else. Good news, huh?”[/BLACKOUT]

Haliaka remained silent, pondering this new man. Uleki clearly didn’t trust him, but he had tried his best to lift the spirits of the boy, and what other choice do we have?

“So what’s the plan, Haole?” Uleki queried in his native tongue with a sneer of contempt. The man in black just stared blankly.

[BLACKOUT]“What did he just say?”[/BLACKOUT] he asked, gesturing to Uleki with his thumb.

“He asked how we’re getting out of here.” Translated Haliaka, carefully omitting the ethnic slur.

A white toothy grin penetrated through the balaklava. The “hut” was a sizeable building, it was used for communal eating, with the layout featuring a large front room on entry where people would eat, separated by a serving bar which would bottleneck leading out to a food-prep kitchen with a small back door.

[BLACKOUT]“I take this gun, draw them all to the front entrance, throw open the front door and hold them off while you lot sneak out back with this one.”[/BLACKOUT] Isaac held out his second fully loaded piece. Haliaka reached out for it, but it was quickly snatched up by Uleki.

[BLACKOUT]“I hold them off for as long as I can, meanwhile you cut out towards the cliffs, then I peel off and meet up with you. Together we cut a path through to the shore where there’s a boat waiting to take us off of this hellhole.”[/BLACKOUT]

Uleki felt the weight of the piece in his hands. He smiled.

[BLACKOUT]“Perfect in its simplicity. What could go wrong..?”[/BLACKOUT]

 

[Eddie Brock]

Siv watched the interaction between Newt and PAL. Hmm... maybe no pets.

"Well, hows about it, crew? Last one to the springs is a rotten Bryndak seed, eh?"

Siv thought for a moment. She hadn't planned on visiting the springs. Her planet had many natural springs, and the ones on Fons seemed to have no special properties on a molecular level. She was actually very interested in searching the markets. However, perhaps the springs would be a good time to bond with her crewmates.

She bowed her head to Newt.
"Bet made." Racing back into the ship she reached her quarters and grabbed her survival bag, before racing out of the ship, following the direction markers to the springs.

I'm frozen, momentarily, by Siv's unexpected sportiveness. She's nice enough gal and all, but she's always struck me as the loner type. 'Course, maybe that's because she spends all her time in her quarters or the cockpit. Not like I got any room to talk, mind you. I'm glued to the engine room like a fungus.

As Siv races past, I turn to Alek. He looks at me and shrugs. "I'm not running," he says simply enough.

"See you at the springs," I reply with a nod before taking off. Siv took the obvious path by the markers, but I'm betting I can find a more direct route if I go off the beaten path a bit. Maybe shave a few seconds off the trip. With the merchant market in front of me, I get to running.

The merchants and tourists look at me strangely, no doubt wondering why the little lizard man is sprinting through the cramped, winding pathways which divide the marketplace. I pay them no mind. I'm used to getting strange looks - though, it's usually for what I've said rather than what I've done.

I'm almost out of breath when I reach the springs, but Siv doesn't even look like she broke a sweat. Guess I was wrong about that shortcut. She looks at me with a satisfied smile, and I catch my breath. "Well, I beat Alek, anyway," I say in my own defense.

 

[twylight]

I'm frozen, momentarily, by Siv's unexpected sportiveness. She's nice enough gal and all, but she's always struck me as the loner type. 'Course, maybe that's because she spends all her time in her quarters or the cockpit. Not like I got any room to talk, mind you. I'm glued to the engine room like a fungus.

As Siv races past, I turn to Alek. He looks at me and shrugs. "I'm not running," he says simply enough.

"See you at the springs," I reply with a nod before taking off. Siv took the obvious path by the markers, but I'm betting I can find a more direct route if I go off the beaten path a bit. Maybe shave a few seconds off the trip. With the merchant market in front of me, I get to running.

The merchants and tourists look at me strangely, no doubt wondering why the little lizard man is sprinting through the cramped, winding pathways which divide the marketplace. I pay them no mind. I'm used to getting strange looks - though, it's usually for what I've said rather than what I've done.

I'm almost out of breath when I reach the springs, but Siv doesn't even look like she broke a sweat. Guess I was wrong about that shortcut. She looks at me with a satisfied smile, and I catch my breath. "Well, I beat Alek, anyway," I say in my own defense.

A smile crept to her narrow lips at the sight of Newt. He was, no fault of his own, a member of one of the more unusual looking alien races. Of course she knew that her species wasn't exactly 'familiar' to most, especially humans. Delicate creatures.

She looked around and hesitated not knowing what to do next. She made sure to watch Newt out of the side of her eye. A trick she'd learned on how to blend in, watch and do as others do. On Frysti she'd always thought of herself as a 'do-er', but outside of it, she found herself keeping silent and watching. Despite her years off her homeworld, she loved to observe.

She briefly wondered what Hellfire and Barb were doing.

 

[Johnny Blaze]

"Ungh...Jesus Christ...", Holloway winced and shook his head, trying to get the cobwebs out of his mind as he came too and slowly picked himself off of the cold stone street.

Hellfire rose to his feet and noticed the small crowd of curious onlookers that had gathered around him.

<"Are you okay, sentient">, asked a small Rigellian as he cautiously approached the Captain.

<" I'm fine, thanks">, Holloway replied back in the Rigellian's native tongue.
<"Those men...which way did they go?">

<"Towards the East docking platforms">, the alien answered as he pointed in the direction with his short stubby fingers.

"Thanks."

The Captain activated his comm link as he began sprinting through the market place after Barb and his abductors.

"This is Hellfire! Barb's been kidnapped! Cultists are taking him to the East docking platforms! I'm in pursuit, but they have nearly a minute's lead on me! Hostiles are well armed, so use caution, but don't let them reach their ship!"

 

[twylight]

Newt had taken out his towel and Siv followed suit. Glancing around she noticed many strange species, as well as more than a few dozen signs along the outskirts of the springs. They were almost all in languages she had a tough time understanding but one was in Standard. No spitting, dunking, defecating... excetera. Many members of species were already lounging around in the large springs, there must have been hundreds of small, natural pools, packed with a sundry of species. They all seemed to be wearing bathing apparel of some sort. She didn't need Newt's help for that. She draped her towel over her tail and then dug into her pack, two hands holding it, two hands searching through it for her own --


"This is Hellfire! Barb's been kidnapped! Cultists are taking him to the East docking platforms! I'm in pursuit, but they have nearly a minute's lead on me! Hostiles are well armed, so use caution, but don't let them reach their ship!"

Before the message was even done Siv had shoved her towel back into her pack and slid on what looked like a spiral bracelet/armlet. Made of thin, flat, silver metal it cling to her perfectly, ending on top of her hand. Appearances aside, it was a very capable weapon, akin to a gun. She looked at Alex and Newt, as she slung her pack onto her back and ran from the springs.

Gracefully gliding in between people she worked her way though the crowd. She was far from the East docking platforms

 

[MST3K 4ever]

Phoenix gets to his feet and says, "I will not be beaten by some Pinocchio reject!"

Eve says, "Reject? That's the best you've got? Witty Comebacks and Trash Talking not exactly your strong suit are they?"

Phoenix charges and Eve charges as well. When she gets close enough she slides on the ground between the gap between his legs. Once behind him she springs and pivots up in one motion and then hits him behind his knees.

The sound of tendons exploding is almost deafening.

Phoenix doubles over in tremendous pain on the ground yowling like a wounded beast.

Eve walks over and rolls him on his back. Phoenix grabs her by the throat and says, "I'm gonna squeeze so hard your head will pop like a zit!"

Eve begins to struggle for air.

Her Neural Net display states:
Oxygen Level at .001% Fatal Event in 30 seconds.

Eve Draws her arms in close to her side and then throws them outward against Phoenix's elbows causing them to spring outward.

Eve then strikes Phoenix in the face twice and jumps on his massive chest and springs upward through the floor. She sees what looks to be a massive MRI chamber.

She says, "Brother Cecil what do you make of this?"

Cecil replies, "According to the quick-scan it appears to be some kind of treatement unit used to slow his muscle growth. Without it his muscles would grow out of control."

Eve smiles

Phoenix in obvious pain struggles to his feet and tries to walk when suddenly there is massive crashing noise from above.

He turns to see parts of the Treatment Chamber come crashing through the floor!

He yells, "NOOOOO!!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

Eve comes back through the hole in the floor and she says, "You wanna be the Big Man in Lost Haven? I'm just making it happen!"

He tries lumbering towards Eve and she rolls her eyes under her visor and says, "Really? Give it up it's over! You've lost!"

Phoenix says, "I will see you beg for your life today!"

Eve super speeds towards Phoenix and proceeds to pummell him without thought or mercy. One punch after another followed by another and another.

Deacon Hawk says, "Eve he's had enough! A Society Squad is on it's way. Let them handle it from here! It's over!"

Eve says, "You saw what he did to me, and to Brother Paul! He has to suffer! I am carrying out justice for all those he has hurt!"

Hawk says, "You're confusing justice with revenge Eve! Please stop!" He pauses and then says, "If I have to I will take you off-line and have you brought back in a crate and de-programmed!"

Eve doesn't stop and Hawk says, "Fine you leave me no choice but to..." Hawk's tone of voice turns from anger to shock and pain as he says, "Eve get to Central 1 right away! We'll take the express line and meet you there."

She stops and suddenly Eve's focus shifts as she says, "Deacon...is he..."

He replies, "You better hurry."

Eve super-speeds out to The Serpent as The Society Squad arrives and speeds off to Central 1. The gates are already opened and Eve powers through.

She jumps off The Serpent and sprints to Brother Paul's room where Deacon Hawk and Brother Cecil are standing there over Brother Paul's bed.

Eve looks at Hawk and he says, "They've done all they can. He's stable but...."

Eve slowly shakes her head and she says, "No please Deacon. No not this..."

Hawk says, "I'm sorry Eve. There are somethings I can't control and this is one of them. They say he's got maybe 5 to 10 minutes at most and then his body will start to shut down."

Eve pulls back her visor and her blue eyes are now filled with tears as she approaches the bed.

Brother Paul opens his eyes and looks as though he is trying to focus on each person.

He says to Deacon, "I know what is happening sir.....it was an honor to serve with you."

Deacon takes Brother Paul's hand and says with his voice cracking, "The honor was mine young man. You are valued and loved member of our Society and of the Faith."

Deacon as the tears stream down his face says, "I love you Brother Paul. God Bless you."

Brother Cecil approaches who is already weeping and Brother Paul says, "Do not weep for me dear friend. Soon my suffering...will be at an end. I have no doubt...you...you...will be a valued member of our family....Promise...me...you'll continue the work..I...I began and..do it the best you can...Brother Cecil."

Brother Cecil bows his head and says, "I promise. I won't let you down."

The two men step away and Eve steps forward. She takes his hand and she says, "When I first met you I had no clue how I would live with you. Now I have no idea how I'm gonna live without you."

Eve shakes her head and says, "It's not fair. It's not fair."

Brother Paul replies, "It's not about fair or unfair....Eve. It's about service in his name and trying to leave this world a little better than when....w...w...we came into it. You may have...cybernetics in you...but..."

Brother Paul reaches up and touches the center of Eve's chest and says, "But your heart is still human, and that is your greatest power of all. Your heart...is what makes you who you are...and you are something very special Eve. Not because of...what...I..I gave you...but...what you have been blessed with... Use your gifts in service to others and always keep the Faith.....Please...."

Eve says in a very choked voice, "I will"

Brother Paul smiles and Eve moves in closer and puts her arms around him. She whispers in his ear, "I love you and I'll never forget you."

Brother Paul says, "I love you too....Eve" he takes a breath and as he exhales he smiles and says, "Oh my...the beauty of it all...."

Suddenly the equipment alarms begin to sound and Eve grips a little harder. Deacon Hawk places his hand on her shoulder and she looks at him. Hawk nods and Eve lets him go.

The three gather in a darkened corner with their arms around one another and Hawk leads them in a prayer as the technicans begin to unhook the machines.

 

[Eddie Brock]

As Captain Hellfire's urgent message reaches us, we all react a little differently. Siv takes off running, arming herself with that armlet of hers. She's fast, so she has a good chance of catching up to Barb's kidnappers. Alek and I came unarmed, however, so we stare at each other unsurely for a moment. I dig through my pack desperately, finding the bleeper box of my own design. With a push of a button, the device blinks to life and begins transmitting a signal. Barb's signal.

"Captain's right," I report to Alek. "They're headed for the East Docking Platform alright, but there's still time to get there."

I hook the bleeper box to my belt and take off running, knowing that Alek will follow. Once again, Siv took the direct route. That's fine for her, but my legs are short and stunted, so I need a different way. Shortest distance between two points is a straight line, eh? Without so much as a second thought, I begin climbing up the wall of a nearby building. I watch as Alek races around the corner, following Siv.

I don't know what I'm going to do when I get to the East Docking Platform - what with being unarmed and all - but all I can think about is running. I get a good lead and leap over the precarious gap between buildings. The bleeper box at my hip continues to feed me information, allowing me to maintain a straight trajectory towards Barb.

 

[MST3K 4ever]

Eve and Deacon Hawk begin to exit Central 1 as Brother Cecil trails behind them.

Eve says to Hawk, "I'm sorry I lost control at Phoenix's. It was wrong of me to disobey you. I'm sorry."

Hawk nods and says, "Don't think about it. I have to admit there was a small part of me that took some pleasure in watching you beat on Phoenix."

Eve cocks an eye-brow and Hawk says, "I'm not proud of it as you shouldn't be either, but it's over now. Time to move on."

Eve asks, "So what happens to Phoenix's company? If it goes under a lot of people in this town are going to be out of work."

Hawk Replies, "We have a couple of society auxilary members within his company on the board. In about three days it'll be reported that Phoenix was on his yacht and it sank. Those members will move that the comapny be taken public, and we have a buyer lined up ready to buy the shares and he'll take over."

Eve asks, "So what if he fails to get the company?"

Hawk raises one eye-brow at her and Eve says, "Oh yeah right. My mistake."

They arrive at the edge of the hanger and Brother Cecil stands off at a distance. Eve climbs on The Serpent and says, "I think I'm just gonna take a ride around kind of clear my head. That kind of thing."

Hawk nods and says, "Yeah we've had a pretty long day. I'm gonna hit the gym and make sure Brother Cecil is settled in since he is going to be with us full-time now."

Eve sees Brother Cecil standing off by himself.

Eve says, "Brother Cecil come here."

Brother Cecil replies, "I don't think I should I..."

Eve says, "Get over please."

He approaches and Eve embraces him and then she breaks their embrace.

Eve says, "You're a member of this family. Understood. You don't stand off to the side ever again. You are one of us now. We need you to be with us."

Brother Cecil replies, "Thank you Eve. I'll remember that. I think I'm gonna review some more of Brother Paul's notes and see what I can do to get more up to speed and get used to being here."

Eve nods and says, "See you all back at The Church."

Eve activates The Serpent and speeds off. She rides until she arrives on top of Clifton Mountain the highest point in Lost Haven as she watches the sunset she takes a look around and begins to try and make sense of the day's events until the stars begin shining down on her.

There is nothing else to do now, but to just go on with life and live it.

She activates her visual sensors and focuses in on Central 1's location. She sees a stretcher taking out a body bag with Brother Paul's body in it.

Eve bows her head and says, "Goodbye."

Eve then speeds off back to Lost Haven

 

[Johnny Blaze]

Hellfire dashed through the city streets, winding through the civilian maze as he chased after the cultist and their captive, Barb.

Luckily for him his soldier of fortune lifestyle apparently kept him in much better shape then the cultists, as he was quickly gaining on them.

They were entering their docking bay when the one in command say Hellfire approach. With a glance to two of the zealots, he and the precession with Barb continued on as they stayed behind, took cover and opened fire.

The Captain dove behind a cargo crate and returned fire.

"Dammit!"

"This is the Captain", Hellfire shouted into his comm over the din of blaster fire.
"I'm at the platform but I'm pinned down, and they're about to escape! I need assistance, now!"

 

[NiteMare Shape]

As Kyle and his friends ran with the crowd away from the gang of meta humans, Kyle kept a constant eye out for a safe place to change into his costume. It only took a few minutes for him to spot the perfect place, the front stairway to the Allen Science Building, the underside of the stairway was hollow, with a small space at the back of it just large enough for an adult to squeeze through, but once through the space there was more than enough room to move around freely. In fact, some of the school&#8217;s more creative students had sometimes used the spot to engage in some &#8220;herbal therapy&#8221; between classes. As long as there was nobody using it for cover, it would be the ideal place for a quick change.

The only trouble was getting away from his friends and getting inside without being seen. The second part shouldn&#8217;t be too difficult, with all the commotion going on, the chances of anyone noticing him going behind the stairway was minimal, but getting away from Erin and the others was a bit more difficult.

As they ran toward the exit, Kyle shot Ronnie a glance, and Ronnie responded with a knowing nod. Just then, another group of students ran into them, nearly knocking Sam and Ronnie off their feet. Kyle used the distraction to get free of Erin&#8217;s grip, and was able to disappear into the crowd before she knew what was happening. As Ronnie and Sam recovered from their near fall, Erin looked around in a panic unable to find Kyle.

&#8220;Kyle? Kyle?&#8221; She cried out desperately.

&#8220;Come on!&#8221; Ronnie said gripping her arm and pulling her away toward the exit.

&#8220;Where&#8217;s Kyle? We can&#8217;t leave him!&#8221; She pleaded as she pulled away from him.

&#8220;He&#8217;s okay, we&#8217;ve got to move!&#8221; He said, continuing to pull her away from the fairground.

Once away from Erin and the others, Kyle was able to quietly slip in through the space at the back of the stairway, and much to his relief found it empty. Once inside, he took several steps inside, and found himself inside the small cavern. Once he took a second look around to be sure that the coast was clear, he began removing his civilian clothes, revealing the black and orange tiger striped costume beneath them. He took his clothes and put them in a pile underneath the stairs, but not before going into the inside pocket of his coat and pulling out his mask. Once his mask was secured over his head, he emerged from his hiding place, ready to take down the thugs that had decided to use the school carnival as their own personal shooting gallery.

Once Lyger was clear from the back of the stairway, he instantly reached to his belt, grabbing his grappling gun and fired a grapple line to the roof of the science building, hoping to get a better look at exactly what it was he was facing. Within seconds, he was atop the roof looking out at the chaotic scene that was unfolding. What he found left him standing there in a stunned silence.

Carnival goers were scattering in all directions trying to escape the onslaught. From the sound of the chaos, he had expected to fine half a dozen or so attackers, but was relieved that he had only counted four.

Four guys did all this? He thought to himself as he surveyed the damage done to the campus, most notably the ferris wheel, which had been knocked over and had crashed into the side of one of the dorms. As he looked at the mangled amusement ride, he saw that there was very little that he could do for anyone who was on it at the time of the collapse, and all he could do was pray that there hadn't been anyone inside the dormitory when it was struck.

Then something else caught his eye, near the entrance of the Library, one of the goons had a student cornered. He recognized the terrified girl as Mandy from his anatomy class. He didn't know exactly what the goon had in mind for her, but he knew that whatever it was, it wasn't good.

Lyger backed away from the ledge of the science building, and getting a running start he dove off the roof, quickly firing his grappling gun in the direction of the downed ferris wheel, swinging toward the mangled ride, then firing another grappling line at the library, and continuing his arc toward the girl's assailant. Releasing the grapple line, he landed softly behind the thug.

"I don't think she's interested." He said from behind the startled goon. He turned to face the new arrival, but Lyger laid out the attacker with a massive roundhouse right before the goon could see who hit him.

"It's alright, now go!" Lyger said to the frightened co-ed, and without saying a word, she did as he had instructed.

As she sprinted away from the chaos, Lyger was hit by some kind of energy beam that sent him crashing into the outer brick wall of the library.

"Ouch." he groaned as he sat slumped in a heap, using the wall as support as he tried to gain his bearings. He struggled to get to his feet, and as he did so he found that he was having trouble breathing...each breath felt as if someone was jabbing him in the ribs with a red hot knife. And as he tried to clear the cobwebs from his mind, he saw the other three gang members bearing down on him.

 

[Hound55]

Torrential rain fired in the darkness against a small but sturdy structure on a lesser known Hawaiian island. Scores of mindless beings ambled around the former leprosy compound, like bees in a field of dandelions.

WHUMP!

A chorus of moans went up from outside, incited by an oddity. A loud banging noise coming from within a building. Followed by some scraping, and then another…

WHUMP!

Unseen by the doddering decomposers a dark figure emerged from the roof of the hut and gave the crowd another exciting noise:

P-TAFF!

The side of one of the ghoul’s heads erupted into a pulpy mess, as if it’s ear literally exploded from the sound of the unsilenced beretta.

MOooooooooooh! The chorus arose louder, at the sight of potential food. The black figure carefully made his way across the roof towards the main door and fired off three more shots.

P-TAFF! P-TAFF! P-TAFF!

Two more zombies heads could not take the bullet to their heads and dropped, never to rise again. A third merely took his bullet in his shoulder and continued making his way towards the door, unphased by dinner’s attempts to persuade him to look for easier pickings elsewhere.

The dark figure scowled and muttered an obscenity at himself, raising the handgun again for the same zombie in frustration before lowering it. The Vigilante had done what he intended to do, and ultimately it wasn’t worth wasting the bullet as the zombies followed the sound and massed at the main entrance. Turning to go back through the hole in the roof he slipped on the wet slick metal and panicked, dropping to one knee and grabbing the roof for safety. The relatively flat roof of the hut meant his safety was never in any real question, but the loss of balance in the situation was enough to make his hands tremble heavily. Looking to find a way to comfort himself he reasoned he’d need that adrenaline for what would come next anyway, and crept back along to the hole in the roof.

WHUMP!

The banging continued beneath him, he surveyed the area once more and dropped back through the hole in the roof.

“So?” a young native girl named Haliaka enquired.

[BLACKOUT]“Back exits all clear, but we’re going to have to go now. Is the door cl--..?”[/BLACKOUT]

The heavy main door was buckling on its hinges from a great unseen weight on the other side. The answer to the question immediately obvious.

[BLACKOUT]“Go! Go now!”[/BLACKOUT] He yelled, the Hawaiian survivors scurried to the back door and fled.

[BLACKOUT]“Keep formation!”[/BLACKOUT] the dark figure yelled behind him, as he re-assembled the silencer on his handgun and checked the clip. The front door warped beneath the weight of dead flesh. First an arm came through, the Vigilante took aim and waited, a second later it completely gave way. It was Colonel William Prescott who once said “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes.”, and if he hadn’t been too busy filling his pants at the sight of the white-eyed walkers, he would have been proud of the Vigilante’s patience.

PFFT! PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!

The black garbed Guardian took careful aim, while backpedalling to the bar and towards the kitchen. Noticing that the zombies were coming faster than he could comfortably take aim and fire he holstered the Beretta, brushed a hand across his face to check the seal on his combination mask/air purifier and reached behind his shoulder for his sticks.

"You might feel better, but if I give them to you, you may want to use them... You don't want to get in close with zombies."

[BLACKOUT]“Fair enough, old man. But at least it’s something I’m comfortable with.”[/BLACKOUT]

The first zombie mindlessly trudged into a heavy right cross, the solid carbonite tore through his decaying forehead as if it were wet cardboard. He pulled back and stuck a jab to the temple of a second. It was no kind of fight at all, he thought, his opponents didn’t have the foresight to protect themselves… but they did have a terrifying weight of numbers. He pulled back further into the passageway to the prep-kitchen, it was narrow and was stem the flow, holding them back to no more than 3 at a time. Isaac knew he had the speed, but couldn’t afford to get cocky. “Stick and move, stick and move… if you ever listened to your old boxing coach you’d damn well better do it now…”

Two minutes which felt like hours later and he’d largely bottled up the aisle with motionless cadavers. There was now only really room for one ghoul at a time to climb over the lifeless corpses, returned to their unanimated final rest by the Vigilante’s flying nightsticks. He was easily stopping the flow with a heavy shot as each zombie took a number and waited their turn to climb through the small gap and have their decomposing skull caved in. Then he heard a sound behind him.

[BLACKOUT]“Hup… time to bail.”[/BLACKOUT]

He ran to the back exit, driving a heavy running right through the nasal cavity of the zombie who’d given him the tell-tale warning moan. Busting through the door he dropped a stick and pulled steel. He plugged two zombies while he ran. Pushing hard and panting, as he sprinted past others, running uphill towards the cliffs.

 

[MST3K 4ever]

An armored car rolls through the back roads of Lost Haven transporting Colter & Phoenix to a private dock. They will be transported to a secret holding area out of the country where The Society will be able to keep track of them for the rest of their lives. They sit shackled to the floor battered and bruised.

Colter is barely conscious and in great pain as he says, "Not exactly the way we were hoping it would end is it sir?"

Phoenix is stone-faced as he replays his last battle with Eve in his mind. How she made him look like an amateur in combat and basically destroyed his beloved empire. He also knew that his actions cost the life of Brother Paul. A small price to pay for striking such a tremendous blow against The Society, but there would be someone else who would come along and replace him.

Phoenix says, "My friend there is no other way this can end. I'm sorry forgive me."


Colter says, "There is nothing to forgive sir I....."

Before he can finish Phoenix reaches over and crushes Colter's chest. Colter begins gasping and trying to scream barely making any sounds.

Phoenix yells, "HELP! HELP MY FRIEND! HELP HIM HE CAN'T BREATHE!"

The truck stops and one of the guards gets out while the other radios in for medical services. The guard enters the back of the unit and just then Phoenix grabs the guard's throat and crushes it then grabs his keys.

The other guard comes to investigate and Phoenix kills him as well.

Once they are disposed of Phoenix begins to make his way back to the city.

 

[Hound55]

Adrenaline flows. A leg pumps. A black boot falls. What was once considered “green”, but is obscured in the darkness of shadow, is stamped into mud’s black darkness for evermore.

Adrenaline flows. A trigger’s pulled. The hammer falls. What was once considered living, but is obscured in the darkness of ghoulish shadow, is stamped into death’s black darkness for evermore.

Isaac Fontaine’s heart still pumps blood. His legs still pump, numb to lactic acid’s burn. His hands still pump hot lead into Molokai’s recently deceased inhabitants. He’s been running up hill for two and a half minutes, which have felt like hours, and the survivors are now in sight not 300 metres from the cliff.

“Surprising how well they can move, even with that big fat one.” Isaac thought, noting how well they’d kept a tight formation with the gun man easily picking off individual stray zombies. He heard undistinguishable shouting from the group, they had seen him coming.

“Don’t wait for me… Don’t wait for me… Please tell me you’re not stupid enough to wait there for me…” Isaac thought to himself, knowing his voice would not carry the distance and could only attract attention of the undesirable kind.

The group stopped their ascent up the hill, pointing and gesturing wildly for him to catch up and join them.

[BLACKOUT]“Dammit…”[/BLACKOUT] Isaac’s legs kept pumping, and with a dark scowl he fired off three more running shots with limited success on zombies approaching the group. With two shots striking ghoulish torso, and hip he didn’t manage to put them down, but he slowed two of the three down enough and drew attention to the third so that the lean native with the gun could easily finish all three off.

[BLACKOUT]“MOVE DAMMIT! Keep going up the hill!”[/BLACKOUT] He shouted, once within earshot.

“But where?” Aukai asked. “It’s the cliff’s edge. A dead end.”

Isaac ignored. [BLACKOUT]“I said ‘Move’, Tubbsy! Get up the damn hill. I’m getting us out of here.”[/BLACKOUT]

“Bu—“ Aukai started, before realising he was only wasting his own breath and time.

The group pushed on once again at a steady pace, picking off individual threats in front of them and looking only to out-distance the horde of marauding flesh-eaters as they streamed from downhill in the village.

They came to the cliff-face, crab grass grew from dirt and a large overhanging tree would otherwise provide shade in the daylight, but the tree overhanging the precipice didn’t appear to be much use as shelter from the darkness.

“We’re here. Where’s your plan now, you pale fool?”* Uleki spoke.

“What do we do now?!” Kapali cried.

[BLACKOUT]“Give me the gun!”[/BLACKOUT] He yelled to Uleki [BLACKOUT]“And get up the tree!”[/BLACKOUT]

“You’re going to try to hold them off while we hide up a tree? That’s your plan?!?” Haliaka shouted.

[BLACKOUT]“Something like that!”[/BLACKOUT] The Vigilante’s modulated voice conveyed, with minor static from yelling, as he shunted the light Kanani into the tree. Uleki scowled and smouldered at the gall of the stranger to place his hands on the girl. Next went the young boy, Kapali. Followed by Haliaka. Aukai bent over with his hands on his knees ready to lift Uleki, before Isaac stopped him.

[BLACKOUT]“The hell you don’t! I’m not pushing your fat arse into that tree by myself! You first!”[/BLACKOUT]

Uleki and the Vigilante strained under the weight as they gingerly heaved Aukai into the tree.

[BLACKOUT]“Now you!”[/BLACKOUT] Isaac said, looking down the hill at the rapidly approaching zombies. [BLACKOUT]“What?!?”[/BLACKOUT] He asked, noticing the anger in Uleki’s eyes, but he stalled no longer – allowing the dark stranger to lift him into the tree.

“Come on!” they cried, “There’s not much time!”

[BLACKOUT]“Not the plan.”[/BLACKOUT] He muttered, checking the clip on the gun he received back from Uleki. He reached behind him and pulled out his grapple gun and pulled the hook and cable out. Pulling out a decent length of cable, he slung the hook into the undergrowth of a branch overhanging the long drop. With irregular luck the cable stuck on the first time and he clipped himself onto the cable, swinging out over the cliff face.

With both hands free, he pulled steel. Detached the silencer and let the sound of finality echo across the island, aiming carefully at any zombie which looked like it might go near the tree. There weren’t many. Most couldn’t resist the temptation of hanging meat, and met the end they’d been promised but previously denied. The front row went over the edge, and the others followed them, more and more tumbling like lemmings. Realising it would be even easier than he’d hoped, he holstered the first gun and retrieved a flare from his pack, firing it off, and attaching it to his pack.

Off in the distance, the glowing red stick was seen. “We’ve got candlelight!” was the call from the crew, as the rescue boat spotted the flare and began to make for the coast of the infested island.

Isaac unscrewed the silencer on the second gun and once again fired on those nearest to the tree. The shots rang out across the island, drawing even more attention than the flare’s red glow and more still bodies for the jagged rocks on the beach below the cliff-face.

Minutes of falling. Spent ammunition casings falling, discarded empty clips falling and empty bodies that had previously kept upright by unnatural malformity falling. Everything falling. Everything but a tree full of survivors and a man in black, held up as if by threads of gossamer. Everything falling, until there was nothing left to fall.

Spent casings, impartial to the fray, fell. But the man in black, panting from the tiring ordeal, spent in his own fashion, remained hanging in the air. In the aftermath of the people in the tree having seen almost everyone they knew; family, friends and neighbours, mindlessly plummet to their final ends it was the child who broke the silence.

“What now?” asked Kapali. Kanani started sobbing.

The man in black hung in uncharacteristic silence. Silent in equal parts exhaustion and relief from his plan’s success. It was the young woman, Haliaka, who gave the response.

“Now we get to the boat.”