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Xanatos
03-24-2006, 12:53 AM
((This is a role-play event that anyone who knows Xanatos (heroes or villains) is invited to participate in. Either by getting involved in game, or by posting here on the forums. He was kidnapped two days ago by the Dark Dominion villain group, and has sent of a warning signal that his allies in Paragon should be able to hear. Unfortunately they cannot trace him any more specifically than the Rogue Isles themselves.
This isn't a particularly pre-planned scripted role-play, if you guys can find a way to rescue the X-man then go for it. This is impulsive role-play all the way! :) ))

He collapsed in a heap on the floor next to his bed. His body was in agony. With one bruised blue hand he felt his abdomen, at least two ribs were broken. With the strength of a desperate man, Xanatos hauled himself up onto the bed that had become something of an enemy to him these last few days, and felt his eyes close. He didn't sleep, sleep refused to come easily to him, but his eyes were heavy. He thought about what had happened over the last few days.

He had met up with who he had assumed was the leader of the Justice Guard - a striking blonde heroine by the name of Star of America. She had told Xanatos that the Justice Guard had mobilised a base of operations in the Rogue Isles, and that he should check it out next time he was in the area. Always being one to trust his fellow heroes, Xanatos travelled to the Rogue Isles, like a fool, and fell straight into the proverbial spiders web.

He had never met Star of America, it was her diabolical praetorian double, Karnal Sin that enticed him only days before. The Justice Guard had no Rogue Isles headquarters; he had walked into the base of one of the Isles' most dangerous villain groups...The Dark Dominion. The Justice Guard were not in hiding, they were scattered across the globe thanks to the very organisation that now held the leader of The Defenders of Paragon hostage.

Having been there only two days, Xanatos was pleased with himself. He had discovered a lot of information on the Dark Dominion, and had almost managed to escape. Were it not for the intervention of Machina Shard, Xanatos would have managed to overpower his captors and fled to freedom. As it was, he now lay stock still, cradling his head in his hands, as he tried desperately to find the sweet release of sleep...a release that was not coming anytime soon.

The door to his "cell" opened and heavy footsteps were heard. As the footsteps moved closer to his bed, Xanatos realised there were multiple people in the room. Possibly four or more.

"Wake up Xanatos," said a voice, it's tone a monotonous gnarly tone Xanatos had hoped never to hear again. It was his double, Emperor Xanatos. "We have much to discuss you and I."

Xanatos opened his eyes to find himself face-to-face with his sworn enemy. The man before him had killed so many of his allies, Veikira, Dione, Lorock, Doctor Ion, The Phantom Visage, the list went on and on. Every one was a blow to The Defenders, both in terms of morale and manpower. Xanatos, a man renown for his civility, couldn't help but glare at his hated double. The Emperor responded merely by snapping his fingers, causing the Arachnos soldiers around the Emperor to spring into action, hoisting Xanatos off-of his bed and moving him into the centre of the room. They held him upright, and attached his hands to a hanging chain, leaving the hero to almost hover in the air, only the tips of his toes were touching the ground. In the shadows of the room, Overseer*, the leader of the Dark Dominion, looked on and smiled.

"I have questions that you will answer." said The Emperor in a cold manner, "If you do not answer them you will be hurt."

Xanatos made no response; he knew how these games were played.

"Rebecca Kate Morrissey, Superhero Girl, leader of The Teen Defenders of Paragon, where can I find her?"

Xanatos made no response, looking the Emperor dead in the eye. The response was instantaneous, an fist surrounded by vicious red energy ploughed into Xanatos's right hand side, another into his left, a slow string of punches decimated the heroes torso, causing him to hang heavier on the chains.

"I will ask again...where can I find her?"

Xanatos strained forward, trying to pull himself free. His strength, while not superhuman, was considerable, but the chains held fast and his wounds kept him still and silent. His gaze was still burning into the eyes of his Praetorian double. His lack of answers caused another tirade of blows to rain down upon him. He felt more ribs snap with a sickening "crack", and knew that his insides were hurting...badly. The blows extended to his head, knocking the iceman around with forces so powerful he felt himself drift in and out of consciousness. Each blow like a sledgehammer to the temple. The attacks stopped suddenly as one of the Arachnos troopers spoke up.

"Sir we have found her!"

The Emperor looked over the decimated hero in front of him and shook his head. He muttered something along the lines of "weak", before dropping into conversation with the soldiers. It was apparent that the target they were after had been spotted in Siren's Call, and The Emperor wanted her taken hostage. The soldiers dispersed, eager to carry out their newfound orders, eager to please the man they called Emperor.

"Now where were we?" said Emperor Xanatos as he began to rain blows on the now limp hero. Each one creating a dull "thwack", Sire looked on, slightly grimacing at the scene before him. No sooner had the doors closed behind the Arachnos troopers before they slammed open again, and angry blonde woman throwing herself through them. Clad from head to toe in red Leather, a ruptured cape swinging seductively behind her. Even when she was angry, Karnal Sin still knew how to walk.

"What are you doing?" she shouted as she confronted the vicious emperor, "I gave specific orders that he was not to be harmed!"

The response she received came in the form of a backhand slap so powerful it threw her to the floor.

"Do NOT speak directly to me, woman!" roared the Emperor, enraged that he had been interrupted, "Know your place woman!"

As Karnal Sin pushed herself to her knees, she looked over at Overseer. Desperate for a nod of approval to attack the man, a smile that would imply she need not worry, or possibly even a gaze that acknowledged her presence. She received nothing.

"You have my apologies Emperor," said Overseer as he ushered the behemoth of a man towards the exit, "I will have him cleaned up, perhaps you can continue this another time..."

The two villains exited the room. Leaving Karnal dishevelled and embarrassed, kneeling on the floor and nursing her face. Leaving Xanatos as close as he had ever come to death, now hanging on by a thread, dangling in the middle of the room. They were going to kill the hero; of that there was no doubt. It was not a matter of how, but was a matter of when. Never before had Xanatos been in more need of allies.

((* - also known by the moniker “Sire))

Heather
03-24-2006, 09:42 AM
As they moved down the hall sounds of brutal punishment met their ears. Karnal stopped, it took only a second for her to realize what she was hearing. Instantly Karnal determinedly pushed past Renee and hurried to a door disappearing inside. Renee stood taken back for a moment, not all that sure of what was going on. She had been asked by Karnal to accompany her to where they were holding a rather powerful hero, and that she wanted him to see who would be stealing into his home to shake the very foundation of an elite super group.

Hesitating no longer she quickly moved to the door only to be pushed out of the way by a procession of fully armed Arachnos soldiers followed by a tall, dark, important looking man and Overseer himself. Her sire paid her no heed as he turned and continued on after the group. Her curious gaze followed their backs while she silently wondered what was transpiring till they turned a corner. A scrapping sound drew her attention inside. She looked to find Karnal on her knees picking herself up from ground. Without a thought she stepped through the door to Karnal's side and stooped to help her up.

"Are you ok?” She asked quickly, her eyes searching over Karnal as her hands moved to sides of the woman's body ready to lift her. Karnal grunted and shrugged off Renee's offer. She backed out of her way as Karnal slowly regained her feet, her hand on her face sliding down her cheek. Karnal spoke not a word, her eyes on the back of the room. Instinctually Renee's eyes moved to where the woman was looking. She had not even realized it but there was a man chaotically chained to dark back wall. His body slumped forward being held only by his restraints. He was broken and bleeding, his body covered by the dirty rags of what was probably a shirt. He looked dead until his body shuddered pulling in a breath. She had never seen a man look so defeated, a sense of destroyed pride hung low subconsciously moving her to pity.

She could no longer bear the site and looked again at Karnal who was now slowly moving to the man’s side inspecting his wounds, assessing his ability to continue to live. She could tell Karnal was beside herself with rage, her eyes glowed furiously bathing the already horrible scene in a gruesome red light. Renee couldn't bring herself to speak.

The Lightningale
03-24-2006, 02:52 PM
((is this complementary to the thread on the official boards, or to replace it?))

Xanatos
03-24-2006, 04:41 PM
((Just to get the word out, feel free to post what you want wherever. I'll end up compiling them at the end of the event. Most people seem to be posting up on the official boards so stick with that))

Druid
03-24-2006, 05:45 PM
Jade and Doughlas walked down the street together. It was the first time they'd been out with each other since Doughlas had finally found out the truth about his family, M.Y.T.H., and one of his newest villains: Dementia. That had been almost two months ago. The strain on his tormented mind had been too much and Doughlas had retired from the heroing buisness. For all purposes Steel Heart was no more. He had mourned for weeks, mourned for his dead wife, shed tears of happiness at finding his daughter alive, but he knew he could not mourn forever and with Jade's help, he had finally started to make his way back into the world.


They had been walking for several hours when Jade received a page from Blue Bolt requesting some assistance. She looked up at Doughlas and he nodded at her. She took off at a sprint heading for the meet up place. Doughlas made his way to a condemned Subway entrance. Slipping in he made his way to the Underground's Headquarters deep in the abandoned subway lines of Paragon.


The others were out, which made him happy. It was hard to get some peace and quiet down here at times, especially with DemiDark making a racket. He climbed into his subway car, intent on lying down. On the wall hung his sword, his armor was standing nearby. He looked at it wistfully for a moment, then settled onto his bunk.

He didn't know how much time passed, but he was suddenly awoken by a loud ringing. After some intensive searching he found the source. It was an emergency pager from his days with Xanatos in the Defenders of Paragon. He had forgotten he had one of these things still. He held the device in his hands as it continued to ring. His mind started into high gear. The signal was Xanatos's. Xanatos would never activate one of these unless he had no other choice. Doughlas plugged the device into his GPS and found the general area that the signal was coming from. The Rogue Islands. If Xanatos was there, he was going to need all the help he could get.

Doughlas looked at the signal and then at his wall. The sword seemed to shimmer in the dim light of his subway car. Xanatos was an old friend, and friends were one thing Doughlas was not willing to lose. He started to plan. The rest of the Underground came back to find his subway car empty, and his sword gone. His armor and detective suit remained, as well as most of his personal items, but the sword and a few other gadgets that he had aquired over his heroing career were gone. DemiDark smiled, "He's back."

Steel Heart, the name felt good to Doughlas. He couldn't keep his back on the hero community forever and what better way to rejoin it then to find one of it's premier heroes. He had his disguise ready and his plan laid. It was time to test his detective skills in the heart of the Rogue Islands.

His first stop was Pocket D. He needed some information to narrow his search area, afterall the Rogue Isles were a large area to cover on one's own. ((to be continued when I figure out how to add in that in game discussion with Misaki))

Fed
03-24-2006, 07:51 PM
((Just to get the word out, feel free to post what you want wherever. I'll end up compiling them at the end of the event. Most people seem to be posting up on the official boards so stick with that))

((We are all posting on the DD forums and the official forums - I have told everyone on our end to post on both))

((P.S. Druid, are you going to post yours on the official forums what you wrote here?))

Druid
03-24-2006, 08:15 PM
((I guess.. if I have to =P EDIT: All done and posted, oh and for the convenience of those that do not frequent the main boards. http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=5095326&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1#5095326))

Sebastian Kain
03-24-2006, 09:39 PM
((So this is open to outsiders as well? I don't know how I would make an impact 'directly', other than be that who stirs the pot, since my character that connects to Xanatos is a Grey Matter guy.

But it is a good read thus far!))

Stan Walker
03-24-2006, 11:53 PM
good so far ill work on something later tonight maybe...i also havent forgotten the other RP im supposed to get going on DD. And also the ones for Gaia..god i am so far behind...))

Druid
03-25-2006, 05:31 AM
((Already posted on the main boards as well))

The docks were quiet when Steel Heart arrived. The flickering street lamps illuminated small circles of the docks. Making his way carefully through the spotty lighting, Steel headed for dock 8. As he got closer he could hear the sounds of men moving heavy crates. They were moving slowly, cautiously, obviously not wanting to draw attention. Steel smiled to himself. He knew that Vinnie would never stay out of buisness for long, he had been counting on it.

THe men stumbled under the weight of a heavy crate, nearly dropping it. A man holding a small clipboard practically dove to grab the side of the container.

"Careful guys, you want to alert the feds to what we're up to down here?" The muttered apologizes and got back to work. Vinnie turned around, right into the large form of Steel Heart.

"Long time no see Vinnie." Steel said nonchalantly.

"SSSteel Heart! W-w-w-what are you doing here? I th-thought you retired." Vinnie swallowed, unnerved by the appearance of a hero thought dead by most, or retired by those who knew him better.

"You know how it goes Vinnie, a hero's work..." He stopped midthought. 'But that isn't important, I'm here to call in a favor."

"W-w-what would that be?" He clutched his clipboard close to his chest, as if holding it tighter would protect him from anything Steel heart could do.

"It's a simple favor, I doubt it will interrupt your plan with this shipment at all." He looked Vinnie directly in the eyes. "I want you to give me a ride to the Rogue Islands on your boat."

"Th-the Rogue Islands? W-w-what w-w-would a hero like y-y-you w-w-want there?" Vinnie stuttered more as he became more and more unnerved by Steel Heart's presence.

"That isn't of any concern to you. And don't bother to feed me any lines about your destination, I already know where you're heading with this shipment of drugs and low grade weaponry."

Vinnie's eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of his head as Steel finished his sentence. He started o say something, but choked on his own words.

"Good then there are no arguements. I'll go make myself comfortable on board. Good to see you again Vinnie."

Vinnie looked about to protest, but another near drop of one of his crate's distracted him completely. By the time he had turned to look for Steel Heart, he was gone. The ship set sail within the hour. In the ship's hold Steel settled in for the long ride. With no delays he would be in the Rogue Islands by morning. Then the real challenge began.

Heather
03-25-2006, 07:31 AM
Like three too many places to post :)

Exodus
03-25-2006, 05:05 PM
Oooo This looks FUN!!!! Nice writing so far to all who contributed.

What a bad time to take a hiatus :grr:

Xanatos
03-25-2006, 06:45 PM
[url=http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=5095326&page=1&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1#5095326]The ongoing story[url]

Stan Walker
03-26-2006, 11:15 PM
Time: 5 minutes before Steel Heart reaches the Dock


Darkness permeated the chamber. I leaned against the cool metal of the ships inner hull motionless, letting my senses take it all in. Six rapid heartbeats, each of them distinct. Three of them to my left, two against the far wall and one roughly a foot and a half in front of me. They were all stowaways like myself to the Rogue Isles, however I didn't think Vinnie was nearly as nervous about having rats aboard the ship than myself.

I focused internally even more intently expanding my consciousness even further tracing the thread of that supernatural link that I share with life's most precious fluids. Upstairs there were two more, human I could tell from the deep "lubdub" that beat in my mind a rhythm all their own. Now one of the pulses was beginning to race even faster. Hmm... Vinnie was getting nervous, but why? Who in the hell could be up there? I could feel the other heartbeat begin to draw near, so help me god if Vinnie ratted me out the The Arachnos or anyone else I would rip out his dam spleen and feed it to him. A loud creak echoed in the chamber as the large port door swayed open. Metal on metal grated as one armored boot after another clomped down the catwalk.


Now I can see a hell of a lot better than your average "Joe" in the dark. That's just a part of what I am, however I sure as hell didn't recognize this guy. The man hunkered down in silence appearing collected, but there was just something I couldn't put my finger on that screamed perplexed at the very least. I felt the anchor's drop as the boat began to lurch forward, departing from the docks beginning its destination to the Rogue Isles. I continued to remain stone still for near an hour until my dam curiosity had gotten the better of me, it always did.


I fished the Zippo out of my trench coat pocket along with a fresh Marlboro, gave it a quick flick and neared the amber flame to pursed lips, briefly lighting my facial features. After a long deep drag I billowed out a puff of blue/gray smoke, poising my body for a possible attack. If this guy didn't catch a glimpse at my face, the lit cherry should let him know he's not alone.

Heather
03-27-2006, 03:19 AM
Oooo This looks FUN!!!! Nice writing so far to all who contributed.

What a bad time to take a hiatus :grr:


You obiviously did not clear this hiatus with me *em/ burned*

Druid
03-27-2006, 05:11 AM
((Stan you need to add your post to the main forums rp as well. Grim task, I know))

Steel's Mind was still playing back the events of his first stop of the night. Using his alias, Marco Capone, he had gone clue hunting in Pocket D. While waiting for some lead he had walked over to the bar, one of the ones closer to the villains entrance. What he found was far greater then any drink. Misaki, the Pale Wind. The hook shaped tattoo under her eye was unmistakable. He had thought she had been killed some time ago, but he of all people should have known how little that meant these days.

He had to maintain his cover, however, so he approached the bar and took a seat at one of the stools. "Is there something I can get you?" she had asked. Steel began to play his part.

"Anything foreign back there? I'm sick of this American swill. They call this beer?" she had smiled at that comment. Good, smiles are a good sign he thought.

"I'm sure there are a few, anything in particular? Guiness do?" she pulled out a mug and held in, awaiting his answer.

"Aye, that it will." she handed him the beer. Taking a siphe had smiled. "That's much better. Thank you... uhh" He needed her to confirm his thought.

"Misaki. And you might be?" She looked at him with her pupil less eyes, eyes that he might have found distrurbing were his not frighteningly similar.

"Marco.. Marco Capone." She had offered him her hand, which he took and kissed. "Ahh but it is good to relax."

"Relax..relax.. there was a time when I knew what that word meant." She had said. He looked up at her, his eyes hidden behind his sunglasses.

"Ahh, busy yourself? Perhaps I can empathize. You see I work for the Family, in charge of all their port operations even." Boasting, as any good criminal would.

"Talos or Independence Port?

"Independence for the most, though I have my hand in all port affairs. Currently Frost has me working triple shifts to expand the Family's interests in the Rogue Islands." She had seemed amused at the prospect. A young hero flew in. This could be trouble, last thing I need is some other hero interrupting me and causing me to lose my lead.

"Have you ever been to the Rogue Islands?" he asked as Misaki asked for his drink preferences. Steel mentioned that he had, several times, as did Misaki, who confessed to living over there. "What's it like? I heard that it was rather dirty over there."

"Not at all, depends really on which island you head to. Mercy is a nasty place, but the other's aren't really that bad. I work mostly in Port Oakes, but I travel amongst them a bit."

"I live in St. Martial, it is very nice there." Misaki said. What do you know, this hero has proved useful after all. The conversation drifted for a bit there, the younger hero content to try and impress Misaki with his talents. He turned invisible at one point and stated how proud he was about it. Steel felt a pang of sympathy run through his chest as he remembered all those young heroes before who had relied so heavily on such simple talents.

"I wouldn't rely too much on such things, other's may have talents you are unaware of." He removed his sunglasses, risking blowing his cover to drive his point home. His eyes were a pristine sky blue, no hint of a pupil or white could be found in them. Misaki looked at him with particular interest. The younger hero exclaimed his amazement.

"My, now my own eyes don't seem so impressive. However shall I impress you now?" Misaki had mused aloud, playfully.

"I can think of a few other ways...." Like explaining what that thing is that seems to hover around you, but no one else notices. They had flirted back and forth for awhile, he was trying to find out some info that might be important. He had discovered her interests so far, theatre, dance. He'd even gone so far as to suggest the next time he was in the Rogue Isles that they hook up to go to a movie, earning him a number to the dismay of the younger hero who flew off. Finally he dropped it. "So, you live in St. Martial? Maybe you can lend some creedence to this rumor I heard from some of my workers today. Seems that a hero.. Xanatos I think, has disappeared in the Rogue Isles." She looked at him intensely. "Hear anything about that?"

"I'm afraid I haven't heard too much about anything of that nature." She had said cautiously.

"Funny, I always figured a man with an ego like Xanatos's wouldn't have gone out with anything less then an earth shattering battle. Something I'm sure would have been seen and felt for miles round."

"From what I did hear, he just disappeared. Simple as that." Steel's head almost snapped up at that comment. Disappeared? So this was planned well in advance. Hmm I can think of a few villains that have the capability to make such a thing happen, but none of their profiles suggest keeping it such a secret.

"Can't say I'm terribly upset about the whole deal too be honest. Good for buisness not to have a hero like Xanatos pressuring us to ge legit." The rest of the conversation trailed off the subject of Xanatos. They talked about many different things, the whole time Steel's mind was running through the names of villains, trying to match a face to the crime. He got so distracted he almost lost character when she mentioned something about the dangers of working inbetween the US government and the Rogue Islands. Missing her sarcastic tone he had replied. "You work in the buisness long enough, danger ceases to be a worry."

"Numbness to danger and fear is the first step towards becoming cruel, are you a cruel man Marco?" She watched him intently, her tongue peeking through her teeth.

He had hastened to get back in character. "Cruel? hmm, never found cruelty necessary really. Most of my men fear me through reputation alone."

"But I wasn't asking about your buisness practices, I was asking about YOU." She put a slight inflection on that last word, making him realize just how pointed of a question this was. She was testing him.

He paused a moment, debating just how to answer, then he decided honesty was the policy. "Hah! You caught me. Fraid I'm not a cruel man when you get down to it." She had smiled at his answer, perhaps having gotten more out of that one answer then he had thought she could. From there on the conversation was winding down. He made sure to mention using that number once he got to the Rogue Isles, but then had admitted he had an appointment at the docks with one of his underlings. He wished her well and hurried to the docks. Misaki, the name rolled around in his head. She definitely knew more then she was letting on, but how much more?


He'd only been in the ship's hold for a couple minutes when he heard the sound of a lighter being used. His head turned towards the sound. Sure enough, the cherry colored glow of a cigarette. Whoever was holding the cigarette was calm, slowly raising it to his mouth, and lowering it again, accompanied by a cloud of smoke. It would have been too dark to see the man, too dark if you had normal eyes. Steel could see the mans form as clear as daylight, now that he was aware that he was not alone.

He was bald, and dressed in a long trenchcoat. His entire body seemed tensed for an attack, but he was waiting. Waiting to see what Steel would do.

"This is going to be a long trip, mind keeping the smoking to a minimum?" Steel said. He waited to see how the man would respo nd.

Stan Walker
03-27-2006, 07:52 AM
Done Druid))

Exodus
03-27-2006, 08:01 AM
You obiviously did not clear this hiatus with me *em/ burned*

I'm sorry babe. Things didnt go as planned this week as I thought it would. This week was just :crazy:

I'll make it up to you as much as I can.....if I can... :warm:

I can see you now... :baseball: