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Tree branch: check. Assorted lightweight seed-bearing fruits and nuts: check. Other seeds: check. Water bottle, for when she has to veer away from the river: check.
Better not linger in her starting place too much longer. Yellow's faster than her and may have already come home to a wreck. Thorn might have a habit of checking up on the place, even, just in case. She's invisible, inaudible, unsmellable - that won't help if he sends someone thorough. Or comes in person.
She sets out.
She's been flying for about thirty minutes after her shopping trip when she falls through a tear and squeaks inaudibly and lands in the middle of -
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imeanforever
wormcan
"Armsmaster has narrowed down the location to a general area. It's—" The ground shakes.
There is very little exposed glass in the building, There's a lot in the city. All of it snaps and bursts, sequentially, south to north. This is one of the safest buildings to be in, but in the places the warnings haven't reached yet shards of glass fly in essentially random directions. The sound hits immediately after, sounding more like a solid impact than a crash. Then it's followed by a city's worth of glass falling.
There is very little exposed glass in the building, There's a lot in the city. All of it snaps and bursts, sequentially, south to north. This is one of the safest buildings to be in, but in the places the warnings haven't reached yet shards of glass fly in essentially random directions. The sound hits immediately after, sounding more like a solid impact than a crash. Then it's followed by a city's worth of glass falling.
imeanforever
Crap.
Any immediately visible injured if Promise sticks her head out the gap where a window used to be?
Any immediately visible injured if Promise sticks her head out the gap where a window used to be?
wormcan
Lots. Anyone in a car when it happened, anyone who happened to be wearing glasses, anyone standing too close to an underprepared building. Some are dead, many are injured.
While Promise's head is out the window, another sound spreads across the city. A high-pitched whining noise, stretched out, painful to listen to. A siren.
"Endbringer."
While Promise's head is out the window, another sound spreads across the city. A high-pitched whining noise, stretched out, painful to listen to. A siren.
"Endbringer."
imeanforever
"...What, now? Here? Which one? Where's Velocity, is the big flattener set up yet -"
wormcan
"No, but it will be by the time he arrives. It'll be Leviathan.
Meet the other defenders at the rendezvous point—north and east, follow the capes—I need to direct the evacuation."
Meet the other defenders at the rendezvous point—north and east, follow the capes—I need to direct the evacuation."
imeanforever
Promise dives out the window and goes north and east, following the capes.
wormcan
It's loud. The air raid siren is still going, and of course people are shouting and honking at one another as they crowd their way toward shelters that can hopefully protect them. A few costumed people are pressing against the tide, and more start exiting the PRT building. The rendezvous point is a fairly ordinary-looking building at the top of a hill. Six stories, dark brick, and broken windows. Looking out into the bay, there's a thick curtain of rain, impossible to see through. It gradually gets closer.
Once Promise lands, a cape in a red striped costume appears next to her. "I'm Velocity. The machine you need is set up, it's in one of the shelters out of the line of fire."
Once Promise lands, a cape in a red striped costume appears next to her. "I'm Velocity. The machine you need is set up, it's in one of the shelters out of the line of fire."
imeanforever
"Okay. I need to be somewhere I'll be able to see him as soon as he's seeable. High up, probably. And as fast as you can get me. I don't have to be able to do anything but see and think but I need to be fast."
wormcan
"Won't be able to see him until he wants to be seen. Top of this building is as good a guess as we're going to get." He zips off and reappears with some random Ward. "This is Allegro. Should speed us up more."
She zaps a lightning bolt at them, and everyone else slows down. "It's temporary, so I'll be on the roof with you two. At least until you get a shot; if it doesn't work I'm helping with search and rescue."
She zaps a lightning bolt at them, and everyone else slows down. "It's temporary, so I'll be on the roof with you two. At least until you get a shot; if it doesn't work I'm helping with search and rescue."
wormcan
From here, they can see more capes arriving. Some are coming from the portal in the PRT building, others get teleported in. It's going to be uncomfortable when the rain arrives; it's coming in completely unnatural (for Earth) quantities.
Velocity hands each of them an armband, frowns, and switches who has which. He presses a button on his own, and a voice presumably belonging to an important cape comes through.
"...that this could be one of the good days. But you should know your chances going in. Given the statistics from our previous encounters with this beast, a ‘good day’ still means that one in four of the people in this room will probably be dead before this day is done.”
Velocity hands each of them an armband, frowns, and switches who has which. He presses a button on his own, and a voice presumably belonging to an important cape comes through.
"...that this could be one of the good days. But you should know your chances going in. Given the statistics from our previous encounters with this beast, a ‘good day’ still means that one in four of the people in this room will probably be dead before this day is done.”
imeanforever
Promise slides her armband on. She is a determined and bedraggled fairy, squinting very very fast into the rainy distance.
wormcan
No thirty-foot tall monster is in evidence. It's not the sort of thing she'd miss.
The cape giving the exposition continues. Smarter than he looks, don't underestimate him, dangers of macro-scale hydrokinesis plus water creation, et cetera and so forth, and also "far faster than any speedster we have on record."
He goes into strategy: the goal is to hurt him enough that he leaves. Capes are to hit him hard and hit him fast; time is on Leviathan's side before the tidal waves destroy the city or worse.
The cape giving the exposition continues. Smarter than he looks, don't underestimate him, dangers of macro-scale hydrokinesis plus water creation, et cetera and so forth, and also "far faster than any speedster we have on record."
He goes into strategy: the goal is to hurt him enough that he leaves. Capes are to hit him hard and hit him fast; time is on Leviathan's side before the tidal waves destroy the city or worse.
imeanforever
Promise, presumably, is to drop him into a black hole. Was the exposition cape not briefed of this? "...Everyone knows not to go into the gates, when there are gates, right?"
wormcan
The voice on the other end continues not mentioning that. He's giving this speech under the assumption that the non-Promise capes will have to fight.
"We'll warn everyone when there are some. Dangerous powers fired off near an Endbringer aren't unusual enough for special mention from Legend."
"We'll warn everyone when there are some. Dangerous powers fired off near an Endbringer aren't unusual enough for special mention from Legend."
imeanforever
"Fair." Gates have potential to be unusually effective but they are not actually unusually fatal.
wormcan
While armbands like theirs get distributed to the capes downstairs, someone wearing mouse ears and a sword comes up to the roof. "I was told you had a way to slay the monster?" She reaches out and taps Promise's shoulder. "You are now under the protection of Mouse Protector, Hero of Justice!" And she disappears.
imeanforever
"It would have been nice if she told me what her protection was particularly good for. It doesn't seem to serve as an umbrella."
wormcan
"More rescue than protection. It means she can teleport to you. In case you need to be pointed to Leviathan later, probably," Velocity cuts himself off. He slams the button on the left of his armband, and shouts "Hard override! Wave incoming!"
He grabs Promise and speeds her up, and Allegro renews her effect on both of them. The wave comes toward them in slow motion. Differently colored force fields appear around the building, shielding them.
He grabs Promise and speeds her up, and Allegro renews her effect on both of them. The wave comes toward them in slow motion. Differently colored force fields appear around the building, shielding them.
imeanforever
Why can't this water be transparent like any self-respecting water ought to be, where is the fucker -
wormcan
The wave crashes against the force fields, breaking through one after the other while some are formed again. While there are only a few between them and the wall of water, there is a loud crash. Everyone, including the three on the roof, appears on a street elsewhere in the city. They're knee-deep in water, and capes scatter around them in the groups called for by the parts of the plan that don't involve black holes.
As they move and shout, Promise can catch a glimpse of the monster's silhouette. A tall figure, with disproportionately long limbs making it appear longer, surrounded by water pouring from nowhere. And, of course, the water pouring from the clouds. He wades closer, his merely human speed appearing all but stopped to Promise.
As they move and shout, Promise can catch a glimpse of the monster's silhouette. A tall figure, with disproportionately long limbs making it appear longer, surrounded by water pouring from nowhere. And, of course, the water pouring from the clouds. He wades closer, his merely human speed appearing all but stopped to Promise.
imeanforever
Excellent. Then she can probably catch him.
Gategategategate.
She outlines the gates in fairy lights, then adds grids across them; there are edges past the cage for the monster, a safety hazard necessitated to get the speed up.
Gategategategate.
She outlines the gates in fairy lights, then adds grids across them; there are edges past the cage for the monster, a safety hazard necessitated to get the speed up.
wormcan
The moment the first gate goes up between him and the defenders, the Endbringer moves. Looking fast even to the speedsters, he starts dodging around the edge, only to stop when the next goes up. He gets trapped in Promise's tetrahedron, Earth's gravity pulling him in apparent slow motion downward toward one of the gates.
Velocity, another of the few to be able to see what's happening at this speed, uses the armband to shout that Leviathan is surrounded by gates to nowhere and about to go through one.
Velocity, another of the few to be able to see what's happening at this speed, uses the armband to shout that Leviathan is surrounded by gates to nowhere and about to go through one.
imeanforever
Come on come on somebody hit him hard enough to get just the tip of his tail pointed down at the hole -