TILT-Log 10: Wasn't It Fun?
Apr. 5th, 2024 12:39 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xp_dominion posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
xp_logsAs they escape Murderworld, they find it disappears behind them.
"Oh, that might be a problem." Red lights were flashing all over Arcade's monitors as it kept showing the captives escaping their specially designed rooms. More worrisome was the fact that the mutant suppression technology was limited to the rooms and not the complex as a whole. He tapped a couple of buttons and shook his head. "Well, like my Uncle used to say, when the trap fails, the fun is over. Data is being downloaded and... while no real points today, there's a lot of information. Miss Coriander, we most certainly will see these mutants again. For now, deploy security and... I can't believe I'm saying this, especially in this white suit, but... activate the self destruct. Discretion is the better part of valor." The man said, standing just as the first sounds of violent engagement started to reach them through the monitors. In a few moments, he was gone through the back of the control room suite, with Miss Coriander close behind.
***
"We need reinforcements in... shit, all main stations! Now!" The man pleaded into his comms as his fellow security utterly failed to be able to hit the giant cat that appeared out of nowhere to attack them.
It was possible the man would have said something further had the communication not been terminated by over 100lbs of big cat hitting the speaker at top speed. The man's head bounced off the wall, and Sharon bounced off his chest to land neatly on the floor.
"I'll shoot!" the other guard screamed, but whatever training he may have received had not included strategies on facing down big game. Apex predators were famously unresponsive to threats, and the man was streaming with sweat. Even as Sharon watched he tried to readjust his grip on his gun, fumbled, and dropped it.
For an instant man and cat only stared at each other, and then Sharon moved. In the chaos a taser had fallen from an unsecured holster. The cat scooped it up her jaws, stared the guard directly in the eyes, and slowly crushed it between her teeth.
The man's remaining dignity, if not the dryness of his trousers, was saved by a sudden movement behind her. Sharon had just enough time to shift into her smallest form before an ergonomically-crafted office chair came hurtling in her direction, narrowly missing her before it crashed into a nearby terminal. Despite the stereotype, one of the operators had clearly never skipped an arm day. Well, that was all right. What few employees remained in the same room as a shape-changing dervish of fangs and anger were no longer concerned with their work, and while Sharon was no expert in technology the noises emanating from many of the work stations indicated nothing good. She felt she could call this operation a success.
The reinforcements that arrived never thought to look at ankle height. The instant the door slid open Sharon was gone.
Time to find her friends.
***
Shatterstar slammed his elbow into the face of a guard who might get to Jessie, not thinking and just reacting to the security forces around them. It was only when bone met bone that he realized he could feel it again.
His power was back. The hum inside of him was deep in his chest again. And he could feel his control of it too.
But for this? When he had a rage building for what was done to him- to Jessie- to possibly all of them? He let his power flow even though he had nothing to taper it with, using the solid vibrations to send the rest of the security officers around them back, leaving the one he elbowed to cradle her broken nose.
***
Emily watched as Rogue’s fist went straight through the head of one of the grey zombie like creatures and noticed that small embers had begun to float from her hair to the ground as she tried to regulate her emotions.
She’d just had to watch Rogue seemingly sacrifice herself and she was feeling just a tad bit shaken right now.
“I think our powers are back.”
"You bet your boots they are," Rogue growled, shaking off brain matter from her fist. "Now duck down, Emily girl -- this southerner has some rampagin' t' do now." No one but them was going to be standing when she was through with them.
***
"Voy a matar estos pinche pendejos." Rictor had no clue where these armed guards were all streaming in from, but they could send a hundred and it would make no difference. Even confined in this building of steel, concrete, and copper, he could feel the heart of the world call to him, offering itself to save him and Hope if he only but asked. Rictor fell to one knee and pounded the floor with his fist while he quickly recited a little prayer of thanksgiving. The floor creaked and buckled, cracks ran through the walls and ceiling as the whole facility around them began to shake.
He looked over his shoulder at his compatriot behind him. "Want to share?"
Relieved, fierce joy lit Hope's eyes; the rumbling underneath intensified as figures fell to the floor around them. "Please."
***
About ten armed guards greeted Madin and Mel in the next room, looking like they were about to deploy. Mel gripped her newfound weapon. This wasn’t a game anymore.
Madin hurled two plasma blades at them, like spears, one into the floor and the other the ceiling. Tile and sparks fell from the drop ceiling and the industrial carpet began to burn as they ran toward the guards under the cover of the the chaos they'd caused.
Mel dodged a tile as she took to the air, thwacking a guard on the head with the end of the broom. He went down and she used the momentum to kick at another. Gravity had its advantages
Madin attacked two of the others, plasma blades extended from each fist like knives, ducking under one guard's swing only to slice into another, cutting the tendons at the back of his knees and scoring long cuts into his arms. They didn't want to kill anyone but feel down, knew that if the fight continued, it was going to happen. Madin sliced through a gun and kicked at someone before being knocked to the ground from behind.
“Madin!” With an MLB-worthy swing, Mel took out the guard who had snuck up on them and wheeled around, looking to fend off any others. It seemed all those remaining had the good sense to retreat out into another part of the building.
Offering a hand, Mel asked “Wanna give chase or let ‘em be?”
Madin grunted and climbed back to their feet. "Fucking owww." They took a few steps, limping but their leg was weight bearing. "Let them go. We have to find everyone else.
***
Jono nearly collapsed as soon as he realized they were back where things were right and the fire didn't hurt. But that felt too much like giving up and not enough like revenge. He motioned for Ashley to stand behind him and tugged at his scarf, hoping she'd get the hint and move where she wasn't in blast radius as the guards approached.
He'd never used his powers like this before, but he'd also never been abducted before- he guessed there had to be a first time for everything.
"Are you still full of fire flower?" When they were avoiding the bitey plants, Ashley had taken the ruined sleeves of her shirt and wrapped them around her hands, and now she made fists. Jono had almost fed himself to a pirahna plant bigger than anything, bigger than Aubrey II, and she wasn't about to let him fight some body armor stormtrooper joke by himself. "Because I'm almost fireproof." She might burn some hair off, but whatever. Hair grew back. She'd borrow some of Dazzler's super cool wigs. "You light them up, I'm going to knock them down." No matter she didn't know how to fight, she could bench press a car. What were they going to do if she just started throwing people into people.
***
As soon as Paige realized they were no longer in the game and there were guards everywhere, she ripped off her skin, turning into titanium, and started swinging for the nearest guard. “Powers are finally back!” she called to Clea. “And I’m guessing these are the assholes who trapped us in there.”
Taking off the headset and Clea's hand started to swirl with purple energy as she let loose a mystic bolt at the other one who went flying against the wall leaving small cracks. She came up to stand beside Paige, "Let's get out of here." She let another one lose at the door that blocked the way.
There wasn't much Jessie could do as she ran to keep up with Shatterstar. She could hear the others yelling back and forth, and allowed herself a moment of relief. They were safe. Everyone was safe.
One of the guards had dropped a baton. She stooped down to grab it and swung it at the first guard she saw.
***
“Murderworld will self destruct in 2 minutes.” The pre-recorded voice ended with an obscene little giggle, and everyone headed for the exits at a run. Just as the last of the students crossed the barrier into the parking garage, a muffled ‘whump’ hit them, and concrete dust enveloped them as the charges inside turned Murderworld into nothing but a vast underground pit of rubble. Smoke leaked from dozens of local manholes and emergency services started to appear without any idea what the emergency was or where it happened. It was in this chaos that the mansion collected their people, did a head count, and quietly slipped away.
"Oh, that might be a problem." Red lights were flashing all over Arcade's monitors as it kept showing the captives escaping their specially designed rooms. More worrisome was the fact that the mutant suppression technology was limited to the rooms and not the complex as a whole. He tapped a couple of buttons and shook his head. "Well, like my Uncle used to say, when the trap fails, the fun is over. Data is being downloaded and... while no real points today, there's a lot of information. Miss Coriander, we most certainly will see these mutants again. For now, deploy security and... I can't believe I'm saying this, especially in this white suit, but... activate the self destruct. Discretion is the better part of valor." The man said, standing just as the first sounds of violent engagement started to reach them through the monitors. In a few moments, he was gone through the back of the control room suite, with Miss Coriander close behind.
***
"We need reinforcements in... shit, all main stations! Now!" The man pleaded into his comms as his fellow security utterly failed to be able to hit the giant cat that appeared out of nowhere to attack them.
It was possible the man would have said something further had the communication not been terminated by over 100lbs of big cat hitting the speaker at top speed. The man's head bounced off the wall, and Sharon bounced off his chest to land neatly on the floor.
"I'll shoot!" the other guard screamed, but whatever training he may have received had not included strategies on facing down big game. Apex predators were famously unresponsive to threats, and the man was streaming with sweat. Even as Sharon watched he tried to readjust his grip on his gun, fumbled, and dropped it.
For an instant man and cat only stared at each other, and then Sharon moved. In the chaos a taser had fallen from an unsecured holster. The cat scooped it up her jaws, stared the guard directly in the eyes, and slowly crushed it between her teeth.
The man's remaining dignity, if not the dryness of his trousers, was saved by a sudden movement behind her. Sharon had just enough time to shift into her smallest form before an ergonomically-crafted office chair came hurtling in her direction, narrowly missing her before it crashed into a nearby terminal. Despite the stereotype, one of the operators had clearly never skipped an arm day. Well, that was all right. What few employees remained in the same room as a shape-changing dervish of fangs and anger were no longer concerned with their work, and while Sharon was no expert in technology the noises emanating from many of the work stations indicated nothing good. She felt she could call this operation a success.
The reinforcements that arrived never thought to look at ankle height. The instant the door slid open Sharon was gone.
Time to find her friends.
***
Shatterstar slammed his elbow into the face of a guard who might get to Jessie, not thinking and just reacting to the security forces around them. It was only when bone met bone that he realized he could feel it again.
His power was back. The hum inside of him was deep in his chest again. And he could feel his control of it too.
But for this? When he had a rage building for what was done to him- to Jessie- to possibly all of them? He let his power flow even though he had nothing to taper it with, using the solid vibrations to send the rest of the security officers around them back, leaving the one he elbowed to cradle her broken nose.
***
Emily watched as Rogue’s fist went straight through the head of one of the grey zombie like creatures and noticed that small embers had begun to float from her hair to the ground as she tried to regulate her emotions.
She’d just had to watch Rogue seemingly sacrifice herself and she was feeling just a tad bit shaken right now.
“I think our powers are back.”
"You bet your boots they are," Rogue growled, shaking off brain matter from her fist. "Now duck down, Emily girl -- this southerner has some rampagin' t' do now." No one but them was going to be standing when she was through with them.
***
"Voy a matar estos pinche pendejos." Rictor had no clue where these armed guards were all streaming in from, but they could send a hundred and it would make no difference. Even confined in this building of steel, concrete, and copper, he could feel the heart of the world call to him, offering itself to save him and Hope if he only but asked. Rictor fell to one knee and pounded the floor with his fist while he quickly recited a little prayer of thanksgiving. The floor creaked and buckled, cracks ran through the walls and ceiling as the whole facility around them began to shake.
He looked over his shoulder at his compatriot behind him. "Want to share?"
Relieved, fierce joy lit Hope's eyes; the rumbling underneath intensified as figures fell to the floor around them. "Please."
***
About ten armed guards greeted Madin and Mel in the next room, looking like they were about to deploy. Mel gripped her newfound weapon. This wasn’t a game anymore.
Madin hurled two plasma blades at them, like spears, one into the floor and the other the ceiling. Tile and sparks fell from the drop ceiling and the industrial carpet began to burn as they ran toward the guards under the cover of the the chaos they'd caused.
Mel dodged a tile as she took to the air, thwacking a guard on the head with the end of the broom. He went down and she used the momentum to kick at another. Gravity had its advantages
Madin attacked two of the others, plasma blades extended from each fist like knives, ducking under one guard's swing only to slice into another, cutting the tendons at the back of his knees and scoring long cuts into his arms. They didn't want to kill anyone but feel down, knew that if the fight continued, it was going to happen. Madin sliced through a gun and kicked at someone before being knocked to the ground from behind.
“Madin!” With an MLB-worthy swing, Mel took out the guard who had snuck up on them and wheeled around, looking to fend off any others. It seemed all those remaining had the good sense to retreat out into another part of the building.
Offering a hand, Mel asked “Wanna give chase or let ‘em be?”
Madin grunted and climbed back to their feet. "Fucking owww." They took a few steps, limping but their leg was weight bearing. "Let them go. We have to find everyone else.
***
Jono nearly collapsed as soon as he realized they were back where things were right and the fire didn't hurt. But that felt too much like giving up and not enough like revenge. He motioned for Ashley to stand behind him and tugged at his scarf, hoping she'd get the hint and move where she wasn't in blast radius as the guards approached.
He'd never used his powers like this before, but he'd also never been abducted before- he guessed there had to be a first time for everything.
"Are you still full of fire flower?" When they were avoiding the bitey plants, Ashley had taken the ruined sleeves of her shirt and wrapped them around her hands, and now she made fists. Jono had almost fed himself to a pirahna plant bigger than anything, bigger than Aubrey II, and she wasn't about to let him fight some body armor stormtrooper joke by himself. "Because I'm almost fireproof." She might burn some hair off, but whatever. Hair grew back. She'd borrow some of Dazzler's super cool wigs. "You light them up, I'm going to knock them down." No matter she didn't know how to fight, she could bench press a car. What were they going to do if she just started throwing people into people.
***
As soon as Paige realized they were no longer in the game and there were guards everywhere, she ripped off her skin, turning into titanium, and started swinging for the nearest guard. “Powers are finally back!” she called to Clea. “And I’m guessing these are the assholes who trapped us in there.”
Taking off the headset and Clea's hand started to swirl with purple energy as she let loose a mystic bolt at the other one who went flying against the wall leaving small cracks. She came up to stand beside Paige, "Let's get out of here." She let another one lose at the door that blocked the way.
There wasn't much Jessie could do as she ran to keep up with Shatterstar. She could hear the others yelling back and forth, and allowed herself a moment of relief. They were safe. Everyone was safe.
One of the guards had dropped a baton. She stooped down to grab it and swung it at the first guard she saw.
***
“Murderworld will self destruct in 2 minutes.” The pre-recorded voice ended with an obscene little giggle, and everyone headed for the exits at a run. Just as the last of the students crossed the barrier into the parking garage, a muffled ‘whump’ hit them, and concrete dust enveloped them as the charges inside turned Murderworld into nothing but a vast underground pit of rubble. Smoke leaked from dozens of local manholes and emergency services started to appear without any idea what the emergency was or where it happened. It was in this chaos that the mansion collected their people, did a head count, and quietly slipped away.
