The Keepers
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Post by Azoth on May 8, 2016 17:36:14 GMT -7
Five in the afternoon was a strange time to meet an informant. Normally she would’ve insisted on a different time - and a different place, because they’d chosen the back area of a mall, of all locations - but Azoth had been waiting for this information for a while now. This particular informant was at last returning a favor they’d owed her for a month, and had for her the location and current owner of an old anatomy text book she’d been searching ages for. The reasoning behind the time and location quickly became clear as she met the person just hanging out in the back janitor's area of the mall, a half-eaten hamburger in each hand. The meeting was brief. They gave her a stack of papers. She confirmed everything was there and they no longer owed her. As the informant took their leave, Azoth took her own. She pulled off her spectacles and rubbed her eyes. She’d been up fairly early today, and while not exhausted, was certainly ready to head home. If all went well, she could still make the evening ferry back to Malachite Isle, and wouldn’t have to sleep in her small home on the mainland. Opening the small bag on her chest, she replaced the small glasses and sheets of paper with her goggles and slipped them on. She’d be needing them now that it was getting dark out. She wandered back in the direction she thought she’d come from, but pretty quickly found she’d taken a wrong turn somewhere or another… It didn’t really matter; the mall was closing and fairly empty at this point. It’d be easy to find a quiet exit. Before long, she her way to a locked white door with an “exit” sign glowing above it. Yawning, Azoth opened the door before her without bothering to check where exactly it lead. The lock may as well have not been there (as, people would discover in the morning, it wasn’t). However, luck seemed to have disagreed with this particular choice of door. Rather than revealing a dark and lonely alleyway by which she could take her leave without being seen, the door instead revealed her to parking lot bustling with mall workers on their way home. Azoth froze as her eyes locked with that of a young college student, evidently off her shift at a pretzel place. A moment of startled silence passed between them before: “ Villain!” The girl shrieked. Azoth’s shoulders and arms tensed. Everyone in the parking lot was looking at her. “ It’s Azoth!” Another person yelled. She had to get out of here. Azoth glanced left then right - right had less people. The keeper booked it down the right sidewalk as fast as an unfit teenager could. Several people raised their phones to call the police or take pictures. Several people would be needing new phones as they shorted out in their hands, screens going black or glitched without explanation. Why, of all places, did this have to happen at a place as central and populated as the mall? Azoth took as deep a breath as she could while running and prepared herself for a long sprint. Timezone
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Post by Timezone on May 8, 2016 18:26:18 GMT -7
Timezone wandered through the mall, no one was calling the police on him yet, so he felt like pushing his luck. Right now, pushing his luck involved going to a food stand and trying to order some food. "Hey, hey! Can I have order number 5? Come on, I'm a superhero, I'll pay!" Nope, he was ignored like he was invisible. Sure, he sorta disappeared when he used his power but come on, seriously!? However, out of the corner of his eye he saw someone he knew, and not in a good way. The Keeper girl with black clothes exiting from the back of the mall. He begin following her though not before yelling behind himself "We'll continue this later!" Villains always were trying something evil or destructive so who's to say this Keeper wasn't trying something?
Timezone prepared to fast forward as the girl pushed open an Exit door, he didn't want to lose her. A scream erupting from behind the door froze him for a second. "Azoth? What kind of name is Azoth?" He couldn't help but laugh, it sounded so made up! He couldn't laugh for long though, as Azoth broke into a dead run. If she was running she must have been doing something wrong! He begin to fast forward after her, he was certain he could catch her normally but it'll be kind of cool if he caught her like a superhero!
He caught up quickly and grabbed her arm, digging his feet into the ground to try and stop her. "Stop, stop! I already got you!"
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The Keepers
Posts 234
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Post by Azoth on May 8, 2016 20:53:43 GMT -7
And of course, at the place of all places to be seen, it was a hero who had to have seen her. The super came out of nowhere - one moment she was running, attempting to ignore the fatigue she was already feeling, the next she had a young and familiar super clinging to her arm. Timezone didn’t have to try very hard to get her to stop as he was a good bit stronger - and bigger - than her.
Panic crossed Azoth’s face, though it’d be hard to see with her eyes and mouth completely covered. She couldn’t afford to be stopped here; not with all these people around. The police would come. Pictures would be posted online. If she thought she’d caused a scene, the arrival the Bulwark had turned this into an event. “There’s another super!” Someone shouted. “Run! There’s going to be a fight!” Someone else chorused in.
The people around them looked torn between taking person #2’s advice and running, alerting someone, or just staying to watch. Expressions ranged from “why did I pick today to go to the mall” to “this is the most interesting thing that’s happened to me all day”.
She had to do something. “C-caught me?” Azoth said loudly but unsurely. “Don’t think I can be stopped by just… your grab!”
Powers. She’d have to use her powers. Suddenly, the ground beneath Timezone’s feet vanished - not much, just a small hole an inch deep under each foot. In her free hand appeared a steel dagger, crude but sharp. She waved it threateningly in his general direction.
“Let go! L-let me go!” she gasped, attempting to shake her arm free, hoping the new holes in the pavement would be enough to trip up the super and loosen his grip. If she did manage to get away, she’d run for the nearby mall doors in the hopes she might lose him within the more-complicated-than-a-parking-lot mall. If not, well, she’d have to come up with another plan.
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Post by Timezone on May 9, 2016 7:00:35 GMT -7
Timezone smiled at the crowd around them yelling about a fight. "It's not even a fight, she can't do anything to me-" His words almost got literally cut off as Azoth took out a knife. He let go and begin a rewind, he did not feel like being stabbed by this girl. His rewind only lasted a few seconds though, before he realized his feet have caught on the pavement, sending him crashing to the ground. He lifted his head, looking for what tripped him, was it really those holes in the sidewalk? "Your...pitfalls won't stop me!" He had to say something to the villain and "pitfalls" sounded much better then "tiny barely noticeable holes in the ground".
He jumped to his feet, or at least tried, he was sorta seeing stars but that'll go away soon enough. He heard some laughter behind him, they won't be laughing when he catches this now armed villain! He jumped into a fast forward...and promptly forgot about the pitfalls, tripping again. "Not again! Quit laughing!" He yelled at the crowd, but that probably won't happen when he had literally face planted in the exact same place he tripped on a minute ago. He looked towards Azoth, she was making him mess up! Two crashes less then a minute apart? That almost never happened! Now he had to catch her, to prove this wouldn't stop him, and make the crowd stop laughing.
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The Keepers
Posts 234
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Post by Azoth on May 10, 2016 9:05:21 GMT -7
Azoth practically dove into the mall. She slipped through the sliding door as soon as it had opened wide enough to let her through. Thank goodness that had worked, maybe if she could just get a head start… And ignore all of the laughing people. More people were staring at them, hiding snickers and pulling out their phones, than there were trying to get out of coming crossfire. Azoth was sensing a bias here; had Aurora Disicio shown up, these people would be running for their lives.
Already fairly tried (conquered by the prior 100 meter dash), Azoth jogged farther into the mall. As soon as the sliding door was near shut, the electrical mechanism responsible for opening and closing it malfunctioned, leaving an inch open to the outside and enough room for only a soft breeze to squeeze through. She doubted that would stop the Bulwark for long; he was fast and she very much was not, but she’d take every extra second she could get.
Now what, now what, ran through her mind on constant repeat as she made for the escalators at the far end of the mall’s wide hallway. How far was Timezone going to follow her? Heck, why was he even bothering her? She hadn’t even been doing anything illegal. What, was walking home from the mall a crime now?
She feared she wouldn’t be getting out of here without a fight - those stupid Bulwarks and their gung-ho beat up everything that moves attitude - nor could she have a fight without alerting everyone in the building and surrounding block to what was happening.
Fine, if it was a fight he wanted, a fight he would get. Timezone had better be ready to face the wrath of Azoth.
Her jog slowed to a long stride. As she strode down the center of the walkway, the lights above her cut out suddenly, their electrical wire severed. This happened twice - one row flicked out and then the next. When she reached the third row, it wasn’t just the lights that broke; the cables suspending the bars of lights from the ceiling snapped. People had to jump out of the way as they came crashing to the ground.
“D-don’t take out your phones!” Azoth shouted. She was done with people trying to videotape them. The devices in people’s hands, rather than just breaking, suddenly exploded, one after another. They weren’t large blasts, just enough to render the phone useless and possibly burn the user’s hand if they were unlucky or didn’t drop it fast enough. Those nearby the phones would smell gunpowder. “Unless you want burns on your hands.”
Looking around, she surveyed how many people were in the area. There were perhaps thirty within her line of vision, including those outside and those at the far end of the hall. “How unlucky for all of you! For I, Azoth, have come to claim this mall and all of its wealth as my own, or something like that...” She trailed off. She had no such intention - she could care less about anything in the mall - but she couldn’t just say ‘I’ve got to run from this Bulwark who just attacked me out of nowhere’, could she? Reaffirming her stance and the force of her meek voice, she yelled, “The police won’t be coming, or any other help for that matter. Surrender now, or else I’ll have to… break more… stuff.” She paused, wishing desperately for a thesaurus. Pointing at the sky because she felt like she had to point at something and had nothing else she could point at, she shouted, “And don’t think that Bulwark can stop me!”
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Post by Timezone on May 10, 2016 19:48:03 GMT -7
Of course she messed with the door! Timezone shrugged, "Alright, new door." He sped in a fast forward past the walls of the mall, malls had a bunch of doors, right? Yeah he was right! Just about a hundred feet later, a door slid right open and he swerved into the mall, speeding back in the direction he came from. Ok he's in!... now he just needs to figure out where Azoth even went. He ran up to a girl holding a cellphone who snickered as he neared."Hey you see a villain pass through? You know, girl in goggles and black clothes?" The girl pointed towards the escalators, but not before openly bursting into laughter, that was kinda disrespectful. "She is a villain! And I'm the superhero that's gonna stop her!" He completely meant that, even if these people were laughing right now.
He left the laughing people behind, jumping up the escalators in a fast forward, spotting Azoth stop in the middle of a walkway, finally he could catch her for good! "Time to give up Azoth!" He pointed dramatically at the slowing villain, wow she might actually be listening! Two rows of lights flickered off, then a third begin to fall! He rushed towards the people under the lights, what, was she trying to kill them!? He stopped next to someone trembling next to the fallen lights they just barely dodged. "You're ok, nothing landed on y-whoa!" And the person's cellphone just exploded. Ok Azoth was definitely doing all this. How? No idea but she just had to. He stood and faced Azoth, listening to the monologue all villains did at some point in the battle. He felt the smile he didn't remember losing return, he was finally going to get to be a real superhero!
"Well I, Timezone, will be stopping you, even with your doubts!" He was trying to imitate older superheroes, they always answered with the coolest one-liners! As much as he wanted to wait for any more banter from Azoth, he had to keep the civilians his top priority, she might hurt them again. So he should finish this quickly! He ran into a fast forward, throwing a punch at the side of Azoth's head, maybe he might knock her out right here and now!
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The Keepers
Posts 234
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Post by Azoth on May 12, 2016 20:14:08 GMT -7
In their last meeting, Azoth had worried Timezone was going to punch her in the face. Her fears were not unfounded, it turned out, as, after shouting his own name and victory cry, he appeared suddenly before her and decked her. Projectiles she could deal with. Weapons, energy; she could stop or at least lessen a lot of that directed at her. Punches, however, were another matter entirely.
A fist to the face wasn’t enough to knock her out, but it was more than enough to knock her off her balance. Azoth staggered back, falling to one knee. His punch had been surprisingly hard (not that she was very tough), and it left her blinking, her hands unconsciously raised to her face.
The two super’s remarks and her apparent inability to take a single punch (they wouldn’t be laughing if they’d been hit, she could tell you that) seemed to have the people around them more amused than anything else. “Stop laughing!” Azoth yelled, pulling herself to her feet, her hand still on her tender gaw. This did little to convey the seriousness of the battle.
How long would it be before the police showed up? She’d gotten most of the phones, but she couldn’t have gotten all of them. She either needed to defeat this guy or run away before they arrived, or she’d be stuck having to deal with them on top of the hero.
Running was going to be hard for the simple reason that he was much faster than her. She could try to hide, but when the point was to get away, that wouldn’t do much but allow for time to stack the odds further against her. No, it was clear what she’d have to do: fight.
Besides, she couldn’t just turn down a challenge from a hero, right? True super villains didn’t do that.
Azoth focused her gaze on her enemy, her hands dropping to her sides. “You think you can make a fool of me?” She yelled, at Timezone but not entirely directed at him. Her next statement, however, was. “You, you’re just some kid with some fancy powers and too much time on his hands!”
“And you!” She spread her arms, motioning to all the people around them. “You probably think this is some…some school yard scrabble, some entertainment for your way home! If you - all of you - thought you could get away with it, you’ll come to see I will be the one getting away with my own goals!”
And with that, Azoth set her goggles to shield against light, and beside the two supers was a flash. It was tall, bright, and much like the kind of sudden and blinding flashes magicians used in their shows. This one was particularly large. Even before the light had a chance to die down, Azoth turned tail and ran for the stairs up to the second floor. She began scanning the ceiling of the mall, searching for the structural beams, until at last she found what she was looking for; the large beam down the center and the main support of the ceiling’s weight. It was thick and made with concrete and probably some steel, but if she had some time… As Azoth ran, a trail of water formed behind her, spreading out on the tiled floor. This was yet another attempt to slow down the hero, because slippery floor was harder to run on, right? Still, she remained tense, not wanting to underestimate her opponent and knowing she couldn’t dodge his swift attacks.
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Post by Timezone on May 14, 2016 13:23:35 GMT -7
Timezone had to admit, Azoth was tougher than he gave her credit for, she did just not get knocked out! Still he really didn't get why all the civilians around them were laughing, he thought the attack was pretty cool not funny. Azoth finally pulled herself to her feet, he was getting a little impatient, and he backed up in a rewind as she let her arms drop to her sides. After all, she didn't fight physically, which was a little disappointing, but her power didn't need her to do much physically, which was kinda cool, who wanted an easy to fight villain? He definitely didn't!
Her next remark, was just the smallest bit insulting. Kid with too much time on his hands!? "You're my age, you can't even use insults like that! I'm a real superhero and you're a real supervillian!" He was guessing about the age thing but seriously she couldn't be older than him! She then seemed to turn on the civilians and he prepared to fast forward, but not before she was done talking, that would be rude, sorta like her banter towards him. Suddenly she reached up to her goggles and he leapt forward as a light sprang up between them. The light did a pretty good job at blinding him apparently as his next sight of Azoth was her fleeing up the second floor stairs, when was she gonna fight for real!? Blinking away dots flying through his vision, he followed, hoping to catch her soon, most people got tired at this point in running.
He reached the top... and slipped on what was probably the slickest floor he have ever tried to fast forward on. He caught himself on the railing of the floor feeling pretty proud of himself, he didn't hit his head like last time! "Is this some sort of thing for you, tripping me up?" He followed the railing to nearby wall and tested the floor, it wasn't slick! He started a fast forward along the wall, pretty sure he could intercept Azoth before this room ended.
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The Keepers
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Post by Azoth on May 19, 2016 21:07:12 GMT -7
Timezone was indeed able to cut Azoth off, long before the end of the room. She’d been running up stairs and on pavement enough now that her sprint was looking more akin to a slow jog. This was ignoring the fact that, on hearing something Timezone said, Azoth stopped in her tracks. A real supervillain? A wide smile came to her face. Of course she was a real super villain, and he was a real superhero. And this was a real fight between hero and villain, a clash of ideals and morals! (She chose to ignore the fact that they weren’t actually fighting over anything.)
“Yes, I am a supervillain, just as you are a superhero.” She said slyly (between tiered gasps). “It’s my job to trip you up.” But tripping wasn’t all she was good for. Azoth widened her stance and spread her arms. The dagger previously in her right hand vanished, and was replaced by several long silver daggers, their blades resembling thin butcher knives. She balanced three between her fingers in each hand.
Now, rather than liquid water, fog began to fill the mall. Small droplets would condense on store display windows and the air would become more humid, but, more importantly, the visibility would go down considerably.
It was unlikely she’d have time to do anything more before Timezone made his next move.
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Post by Timezone on May 21, 2016 15:00:55 GMT -7
Yes, she understood what the he and her were! A superhero and supervillian in a battle! Timezone dashed forward and kicked towards one of her hands sending the daggers flying as fog filled the air. He smiled, he performed that move perfectly! Then he realized something, he couldn't find any of the daggers in the fog. He reallyshould thought that move through!
He dropped to the floor, picking up one knife near his feet, should he use it? He didn't wanna kill Azoth or anything. Still he held onto it, Azoth did not need anymore weapons! "Didn't anyone tell you not to bring a knife to a fist fight?" He started up his banter again, he had to admit she was real good at keeping banter going. Unfortunately sirens cut through the air, steadily coming closer, he had to finish the fight quickly if he didn't want to get arrested just for being a superhero!
He leapt into a fast forward, holding the knife close to his body so he doesn't accidentally stab himself or Azoth and threw a kick at her ribs. He once broke a fellow Bulwark hero's ribs by doing the same move and a broken rib won't kill her and will make it real easy for the police to arrest her!
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The Keepers
Posts 234
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Post by Azoth on May 21, 2016 22:34:47 GMT -7
As had already been proven the case, Azoth was not at all able to dodge Timezone’s various kicks. She’d even sort of seen the kick to her hand coming, but she could do nothing to prevent the knives from flying from her hand. They landed on the ground with a clatter. Before she could so much as retaliate, Timezone had backed up - and moved in for another attack. A broken rib would indeed not kill her, but it did really hurt. Azoth collapsed inward where Timezone’s foot made contact with her side, dropping her remaining daggers as she fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around her burning side and stomach. There was a reason Azoth brought knives and guns to “fist fights”; fighting without them was asking for, well, this to happen.
But if he thought he had her beat, he was sorely mistaken. A pained laugh escaped her lips. Phase two of her plan was ready.
“You’d better hurry and help those people down there.” Azoth gasped. “Because they’re about to become a lot more acquainted with concrete.”
And then the last bit of concrete holding in place a wedge, almost a foot tall, in the ceiling’s main support pillar vanished. The freed cylinder slid down its angled base, coming free of the pillar and landing on the mall’s floor with a heavy thud and the sound of broken floor tiles. The roof creaked and groaned under its own shifting weight and, starting from the domed center, the structure began to give way. Support pillars, weakened with notches of their own removed, failed at their one job. Chunks of concrete, glass, and other heavy materials began to fall down into the hallway. Before long this wing would be an outdoors mall.
From where they stood, neither Timezone nor Azoth was in danger of being caught in the collapse. For the half dozen or so people on the floor below, however, this was not the case. Any of the police gathering outside stupid enough to rush in would find themselves in the same predicament.
A shame she couldn’t stay for the aftermath. It wasn’t so much the people she was interested in, but Timezone’s reaction to the situation and his success in whatever plan he tried to implement. But little made for a better opening to escape from a hero than putting unpowereds’ lives in danger and she wasn’t about to miss her only means of exit.
A long plastic walking stick appeared before her and granted her means of getting to her feet. The fog grew thick enough that, if not for her goggles reading for heat, she wouldn’t be able to see her hand in front of her.
“Farewell, Timezone. Though I doubt this is the last time we’ll meet.” She said slowly. The kick to her ribs made it hurt to breathe, and likewise talk. Though this was a goodbye, her injury made it so she couldn’t take her leave with any kind of hurry; she doubted she’d be able to handle anything faster than walking pace. If he could find her, he’d have no trouble catching up with her, but, perhaps with some luck, Timezone would be too occupied with the civilians and she could vanish quietly into the fog and, at last, be on her way.
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Post by Timezone on May 23, 2016 15:43:50 GMT -7
Timezone froze as Azoth dropped to the floor after the kick to the ribs, the Bulwark member didn't react like this! "Wait, are you ok-" He didn't get to finish as she seemed to start up her banter again. Except it was not banter, not at all.
He didn't even wait to see what she meant, he just dashed down the stairs, stopped and yelled out, "Get out! Everyone get out now!" Why wasn't anyone moving!? He jumped back into a fast forward and begin pulling some civilians towards the doors, quit complaining while he's saving you! He never thought he'd be glad to hear the roof rumble, but he was 'cause every single civilians made a mad dash for the doors. All except one, the girl who laughed at him when he arrived, was now running towards the doors as the roof collapsed above her. He grabbed her and made his own mad dash to the doors with her in tow. Unfortunately one piece of the roof must have some sort of vengeance towards him 'cause it hit him squarely on the back, out of all the chances of anything hitting him why did a roof have to win that lottery!?
Still he and the girl made to the outside, where sirens rang out right in front of the mall. Timezone took a look around, everyone was here, you did it, no one got killed, you're a good superhero... A good superhero who couldn't rewind to heal at the moment. Well it looks like he's just gonna need to heal naturally this time. He begin a slower than usual fast forward back to the Bulwark HQ, thankfully the police were so busy with the civilians they probably won't even remember seeing him.
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