Oot and Aboot [Phoenix/Open]

[Mekiel Echigo]

[OoC: Takes place before the stronghold event, for Mekky's timeline.]

I had spent a long day trying to get back into the swing of things, putting up the best workout I could. If I was going to be fighting with Kazzy, I needed to get back in shape. Now, I realize I'm a giant hunk, but still, guys like me need to work on cardio every now and again.

In the midst of my workout, I'd taken myself into Midgard territory, and at first I thought nothing of it. I was simply jogging by, and minding my own business. However, further along, deeper in the territory, I would see things that deeply concerned me.

Midgard volunteers had rounded up a large number of people suspected of participating in gang activity, and this, to them, was terrorism. Now, while I had to admit that gangs weren't comprised of the nicest people or anything, this was a little over the top. A unit of about six men seemed to be rounding up, and punishing, what looked to be about fifteen people I assumed to be innocent.

That's how it works - when the bad guys round people up to punish 'em, you just assume they're innocent.

"Hey, assholes!" I shouted, before considering my plan of attack. "How 'bout you pick on somebody your own size?!" And before I knew it, those six Midgard volunteers were headed my way.

[Phoenix]

(OoC: Sorry for delayed response, had to get some sleep!)


Hunched over, eyes down, expressionless. Phoenix shuffled along with the crowd, not wanting to stand out. Amongst a group of suspected gang members, he grew frustrated - the last vestiges of his and Jack’s organisation had dissipated. He was, with the exception of a few loyal agents, alone in his endeavours. These comrades had already brought him up to speed with the events which had transpired in his absence, however, the reports were largely conjecture and rumour. In order to figure out what was really happening, he had to find out for himself.



Slowing glancing up, he observed a member of the unit shepherding the group of fifteen along. So these were volunteers of Midgard? Phoenix had a lot of questions about their organisation. After appearing from out of nowhere, they offered the services required to repair the damage caused by Barker and his men over the last two years. A convenient improvement, perhaps, but at what price?

For the moment, Phoenix was content to skulk in the shadows. Fly under the radar. Not draw any unwanted attention to himself at all. Completely unnoti…





“Hey, assholes! How ‘bout you pick on somebody your own size?!”


So much for going unnoticed. Phoenix’s head snapped round to locate the source of sound. He didn’t have to search to hard. A tall, blonde man stood not too far away, the obvious cause of disruption. The Midgard agents seemed to think so as well and charged the stranger. Quickly, Phoenix gathered himself and followed a short distance behind. There was next to no chance that his original information gathering plan would work, he’d have to improvise.

[Mekiel Echigo]

"You're free to go, my fellow "terrorists"!"

I charged the Midgard volunteers, a thick layer of iron forming around both my arms, extending just enough so I could clothesline all of them in a single charge. The iron collided with each of their chests, instantly flooring them, and I quickly added more mass to the iron "gauntlets," before the men could get up.

Two of the men I took by the head, slamming them into the ground and rendering them unconscious. By then, the other four got to their feet and charged me. The gauntlets around my arms reformed into giant ores in my palms, and I lobbed them at two of the guys, slamming into them and knocking them out, too. The third man I took out quickly with a powerful right hook to the jaw, and the fourth I pointed my palm at. He halted, confused, and a light began to form around my hand, a single beam of energy shooting out and striking him in the chest, sending him flying back.

"Well, now you're free to go. If you haven't already gone. Y'all okay?"

[Phoenix]

“You’re free to go, my fellow ‘terrorists’!”





The man’s voice carried easily. Shooting a quick glance towards the crowd that had, until recently, hidden him, he saw that most of them had already taken off in various directions. Not surprised at the lack of curiosity or bravery, Phoenix returned his gaze to the inevitable fight at hand. The stranger charged forward, into the fray of the oncoming volunteers.



All six of the volunteers were dropped in one blow.

Phoenix decided to take a couple steps back and observe the quick dispatching of foes. Flashes of sunlight reflected off metal, the source of which Phoenix wasn’t able to ascertain. The last of the flashes evidently beamed straight into one of the volunteers, sending him flying backwards. Curiosity piqued, Phoenix took a few tentative steps towards this man. It wasn’t the first time that Phoenix had witnessed odd displays of power, yet he was still unable to gather enough data on what or how these were linked.

“Well, now you’re free to go. If you haven’t already gone. Y’all okay?”





Phoenix assertively weighed his options. The people he wanted information from seemed to be unconscious, so that objective was fairly unlikely to succeed. The man in front of him was friendly enough, in one way or another, and was unlikely to harm the people that he had just saved. There seemed to be little danger, however, the ferocity and strength that Phoenix had seen made him wary. Who was he? Why was he here? What did he know? A torrent of of questions flooded through his mind, making the decision an easy one. Scientia potestia est, after all. 



“I’m okay, yes. That was quite a display. Everyone else disappeared pretty quickly though. Do you know anything about these volunteers?”

[Mekiel Echigo]

My eye fell upon one of the men who didn't run. In fact, he seemed to approach me, instead. I cocked my brow, slightly confused. Most people would have considered what they just saw frightening - I was covered in iron and shot beams of pure energy out from my hand. The fact this guy didn't run off meant he had to be a main character in the story.

"These guys?" I looked down at the Midgard volunteers, scratching the back of my head. "They're not all bad, no. But they're not all good, either. From what I gather, they're genetically altered soldiers - basically instilled with some sort of superpowers - and they're rebuilding the place. That's nice, of course, but they're branding basically everyone who's not a part of their force terrorists." A shrug. "Once they got you lot in a secluded place," I held my fingers up, emulating a gun. "Bang." A small burst of energy shot forth, quickly dissipating. "You'd have been killed. If you couldn't fight back, anyway."

[Phoenix]

Phoenix felt the stranger’s strong eyes bear down on him. A gaze that, he assumed, would usually be intimidating, however, it betrayed confusion at that moment. Taking another few steps closer, Phoenix realised that the man was partially covered in a seemingly thin and tight layer of iron. Curiosity burst forth within Phoenix’s chest, scraping its way up his throat, begging for answers. Answers that he might hopefully receive soon.



"These guys?” “They're not all bad, no. But they're not all good, either. From what I gather, they're genetically altered soldiers - basically instilled with some sort of superpowers - and they're rebuilding the place. That's nice, of course, but they're branding basically everyone who's not a part of their force terrorists.”



Not bad, but not good? He’d been hoping for a little more concrete information. The possible genetic modification of the volunteers was interesting, something that he’d have to follow up on when the opportunity arose. One of Phoenix’s few remaining agents had explained that they sought to rebuild the world amidst the destruction of anyone they thought a foe. The data was a start, but much more needed to be done before Phoenix could decide where he fit into the whole mess.

"Once they got you lot in a secluded place," I held my fingers up, emulating a gun. "Bang." A small burst of energy shot forth, quickly dissipating. "You'd have been killed. If you couldn't fight back, anyway.”



 Surprise openly flittered across his face as the beam of energy caught Phoenix off guard before he regained his composure. This stranger had fiercely captured his attention and his curiosity could not be restrained any further.

“Why are you covered in metal? Oh, I’m Phoenix by the way.”



The name wouldn’t mean anything, almost no one knew him. It was simply courtesy.