ic [IC] Fantastic Bloggers and Where to Find Them

[olopi]

GM

 

As soon as he began to talk, the person’s head turned towards Leviathan. The mask concealed any facial expression, but just from the general expression, it was clear that whoever this was was mustering the reptilian powerhouse. A short pause, then there was a reply. Still, he held the phone in his hand, ready to hit the button at any point.

 

“You. You’re a mystery. Who are you? What are you? There is more to “The Leviathan” than the public knows. The question of course is, how much do I know?”

 

He continued to stand there. His stance suggested that he was ready for a frontal attack at any point, ready to both hit the button on his phone, but also unload his rifle into the two heroes. And, judging by the wide coat he was wearing, he probably had more weapons at his disposal.

 

“Troublemakers? Troublemakers you are. Going after all my little projects. And then bragging about it. All the while, not even seeing the bigger picture, just thinking it’s isolated incidents. Idiot.  No, it’s enough. If my goons can’t deal with it, it’s time for myself to take care of you. “

 

He moved his hand forwards just a bit, right next to his face, in such a way the other two would clearly see it. “And look here, I can do so. One wrong move, and that’s it. “

[Blarghy]

So many good questions today, Solemn.  How much do you know?  Leviathan desperately hoped that their enemy was just bluffing, but either way, he wasn't in a hurry to give away more information about himself.  He felt increasingly self-conscious, doubting his next move.  Something had to be done, though, and like a lot of people with more power than good sense, Leviathan continued to fall back on intimidation, a thin mirror of his own fears. 

 

"Somebody's getting taken care of," he promised cruelly.  "You know, the thing about blackmail is, it kind of works both ways.  If we cross you, you hurt us.  But if you cross us...then what's to keep you safe?" 

 

Both of his big, meaty hands came up, and Leviathan repeated part of Solemn's speech back to him.  "Going after heroes, and then bragging about it.  All the while, not even seeing the bigger picture, just thinking you're somehow different from the other villains we've taken down before.  Idiot.  No, it's enough.  If the cops can't deal with you, then it's time for us to do it ourselves."

 

His hands closed into monstrous fists.  "And look here, I can do so.  One wrong move, and that's it."

[olopi]

GM

 

Some sort of noise came through the speakers on Solemn’s armor. It took a second, but then Leviathan realized just what it was. Chuckling. Solemn was indeed having fun. Probably even mocking the two heroes. He took a step forward, and adjusted the grip on his rifle, now pointing it properly forward instead of having it just point towards the side.  He nudged his head towards the rifle, before speaking, his tone suggesting that he felt more powerful.

 

“Oh please. Everything that happened today should show you I am more than capable of handling you. And this little baby’s just asking me to use it, isn’t it? Customized to the highest degree, just what I need to deal with some smoke-punk.”

 

Speaking of smoke, Leviathan took a quick glance at Bonfire. The fairly talkative hero had stayed conspicuously quiet during this entire thing. Ever since taking that first step he’d not said anything, and now that he Leviathan thought about it, he’d also not seen any part of Bonfire’s still fairly human body move. He just stood there, waiting for something.

 

And then, all the sudden, something happened. “Screw that!” An arm appearing behind Solemn, grabbing onto his phone. An arm, followed by the rest of Bonfire, appearing in a cloud of nearly translucent smoke. Bonfire, almost naked. And before Solemn’s reflexes had time to click, the phone had already left his hand for that of his opponent, where a variety of high-pitched sounds suggested it probably wouldn’t work afterwards.

 

A quick glance over to Leviathan as the phone was ...melting, with Bonfire yelling. “Let’s g-“ And then, he caught an elbow to his chest, apparently not having turned into smoke just yet.

[Blarghy]

...What?  How?  Bonfire can make illusions?  What's going on here?

 

In his confusion--and more than a little fear of Solemn's threat to his secret identity--Leviathan moved far, far too slow.  Fortunately, Bonfire appeared to have saved them both from whatever plan the hacker had--Seriously, how did he just do that?--and without that phone, there was nothing standing between Solemn and Leviathan but some empty air. 

 

He crossed it in a blink, his reptilian face twisting into a furious snarl born of anxiety.  Leviathan fought gang members and a few colorful villains with joy in his heart, but this was personal.  They just couldn't let Solemn get away.  If the best way to stop him was with gratuitous violence, then all the better--Leviathan was pretty good at that.  Whether he was better than their enemy, however, was another question entirely. 

[olopi]

PC

 

At this point in time, Cass’ mind was filled with all sorts of concerns. Everything about this whole situation showed that he needed to be more careful. But then again, the beginning of a huge fight was hardly the right time to be concerned, especially when you just go struck with a rifle-butt because of your inability to focus.

 

So, focus he did. Leviathan was approaching fast, and Solemn looked like he had some sort of plan. First things first, smoke mode. Perhaps it would be of some help, even if Cass doubted it. It felt more natural. Next step on the routine was an attack of some sorts. It was rather cramped up on the rooftop, and for a wide variety of reasons, it was probably best to not attract any more attention than this fight would already cause, so no big explosions this time around.

 

He still had all the heat he’d produced to melt the phone. It had melted quite quickly, which was a bit of a surprise, so the excess heat had to go somewhere. He’d thought about using an attack like this a few times, but he’d never had time to test it.

 

Here goes nothing.

 

Channelling the remaining heat he’d already produced in his hand, he shot it forwards, trying to strike Solemn’s current location. It was surprisingly difficult; he’d never really used an attack like this.

 

Edited January 27, 2017 by olopi

[olopi]

GM

 

Leviathan charging across the rooftop was quite the sight to behold. He didn’t move as quickly as he had some other times, but he still crossed it in an amazingly short timeframe. But, as he took a swing downwards, his opponent reacted, with similar speed. A dive roll to the side was all it took for Solemn to get enough distance between him and Leviathan.

 

At around that time, Bonfire’s blast of heated air flew past him. It hadn’t even come close to hitting him, there was no need to dodge. As his empty hand wandered towards the grip of his rifle, it changed it’s look. The magazine seemed to fold out, and parts of the stock switched their position, a scope on the top folding away.

 

“Who’s dealing with whom now?”

 

As he pulled the trigger, the sound of rather loud gunshots filled the air, probably audible around most of Riverside. He continued to take a few steps backwards, while also crouching a bit, probably to fight the seemingly heavy recoil each shot produced. The bullets shot through the air, straight towards Leviathan, who, especially at this distance, didn’t have much of a chance of dodging.

 

And then, it sounded similar to before, when the phone was melting, as the blazing hot bullets made impact with Leviathan’s scales.

[Blarghy]

This was hardly Leviathan's first time being shot.  Over the past year, he had grown familiar with the concept, and come to take his sturdy scales for granted--thus, his surprise when multiple bullets drove right through his armor.  Leviathan tried to brace himself when the pain started, but by that point, the volley had already done its damage. 

 

Fortunately, his rapid healing performed as well as always.  The fragments of metal pushed back out of his chest and stomach in thin streams of blood, clattering to the ground even as his scales reforged themselves too.  Leviathan nonetheless stood there in shocked motionlessness.  He assumed that Solemn was a smart but ultimately weak hacker with some fancy toys, but this man just managed to hurt him.  It put a new spin on Leviathan's existing fears; maybe he had more to worry about than his privacy, after all. 

[olopi]

PC

 

Whoa. Bonfire had expected some resistance, this guy had (in)directly confronted the two of them after all. But this showing of power was quite something. He was fairly agile, and that gun, whoa. Not something Bonfire wanted to deal with anytime soon. Whatever those bullets were, they were putting out serious heat. Not too bad, but it felt like Solemn had planned something to deal with Bonfire too, and it probably wasn’t heat…

 

As Cass noticed the bullets putting out as much as heat as they did, even if he had no idea how it happened, he was quick to act.

 

“Ha, look at’cha. Thought those bullets would do something, right? Well, this guy here’s essentially invulnerable, do you really think a few measly bullets are gonna do anything but tickle him? Look at him, his body’s already dealt with your little peashooters.”

 

A moment of distraction was enough. The heat put out by the bullets had remained in the air, as Leviathan was probably able to feel. And then, suddenly, it was gone, as a wave of incredibly hot air punched into Solemn and washed over him, now slightly visible thanks to heat distortion.

[olopi]

GM

 

Solemn staggered backwards. He’d not seen that attack coming, and it had caught him off-guard. Yes, Bonfire constantly distracting people he fought wasn’t a particularly well-kept secret, but when he’d mentioned Leviathan’s body and the bullets clattered to the ground, it still caught Solemn’s attention. He’d not expected the scaly monster to be able to do that.

 

As Solemn did his best to regain his footing, he sent a few glances around the area. The roof-top was almost completely empty, the only thing on it an AC unit. It was large enough that dodge rolls of any kind were not an issue, and there always were a few ways of getting away if absolutely necessary. But not before he’d finished this.

 

He did not feel like talking. No, this was starting to get serious. Much like his gun before, his visor changed around, becoming smaller as the ends shifted away, but also starting to glow around the edges.

[Blarghy]

After his moment of confused fear passed, Leviathan struggled to interpret all the things happening around him.  What was in those bullets?  Where did Solemn get them?  Where did he get these skills? 

 

Questions for later.  The only one that matters now is where he's going to get his health insurance.

 

Bonfire managed to set their enemy back on his heels, and this time Leviathan was ready to take advantage of it.  He lowered his heavy shoulders and rushed Solemn once again; now he threw himself into the punch, sacrificing what little agility he had in the process.  What did it matter, when he clearly couldn't evade that rifle at such close range?

 

"You said there was more to me," Leviathan reminded Solemn.  "Well you were RIGHT!"

[olopi]

GM

 

Leviathan charged forward at a reckless pace, covering the distance between him and his opponent in the blink of an eye. Yet, even with that, Solemn had side-stepped already, the large powerhouse’s body missing him by just a hair’s breadth.

 

Or so the hacker thought, when Leviathan’s arms smacked into him. He tumbled backwards, the force of the impact making him hit the ground, but almost immediately got back onto his knees. He did his best to cover the distance between him and his opponent, something that wasn’t easy thanks to the size of said opponent. Perhaps the smoke controlling hero’s comments were starting to get to him? His movements weren’t quite as smooth as before, as he dodged between attacks, taking a glancing hit occasionally, his armour starting to look more and more battered.

 

If this continued, he’d have to shift gears even further. Before he’d attacked, he’d felt going up against the two of them wouldn’t be too difficult. He was starting to second guess himself on that.

[olopi]

PC

 

People continued to fall for it. This stuff was Bonfire’s MO. Officially. He even had a short series of blog entries detailing how he did it. And yet, people, no matter how prepared, fell for it. Of course, the fact he changed around some things on said entries helped. But still, Cass continued to be surprised by himself.

 

Either way, it had worked. Solemn was starting to look worse for wear, and he didn’t have time to actually attack thanks to the constant stream of attacks by the two heroes. Which, considering the heat those bullets had put out, probably was a very, very good thing. As Leviathan charged forward, Bonfire began to gather heat for another attack.

 

The air around Solemn himself had gotten hotter. His armour was putting out more heat. That explained the sudden change of look. It played into Bonfire’s hand, and that was good. The heat became visible, as it once more distorted the air, and then grew to include some amount of smoke. And then, it would shoot forwards, towards Solemn. Would was the keyword there, as instead, it simply rose up into the sky, probably due to Cass screwing up the input of his own heat into the already existing one.

 

Still, he could use that. Solemn had followed the heat form, and once it had disappeared, turned his attention towards Bonfire, all the while doing his best to dodge the blows coming his way. Great, exactly what Cass needed. He created two pillars of smoke around himself, making them raise into the air a fair way. His smoke-y body suddenly took the form of an overgrown grin, all the while following Solemn.

 

“Too late now, buddy.”

 

Cass didn’t actually have any plans whatsoever. But still, with some luck, he could fool Solemn twice. And where he was currently standing, it would be easy for Leviathan to get a good hit in.

[Blarghy]

Bonfire's bizarre techniques almost distracted Leviathan from the matter at hand (matter at fist?), but he did his best to limit his own curiosity.  Solemn earned plenty of that himself, when his armor also gave off more warmth.  Leviathan assumed that the hacker's bullets were merely augmented, but now he began to wonder if perhaps Solemn had powers of his own--or was at least even more technologically advanced than they thought. 

 

If that armor's so special, then maybe I'll just peel it off you like a soup can.  Come here, my little bowl of chicken noodles!

 

With greater confidence than before, Leviathan once again lunged ahead.  He outright jumped for his next attack, continuing to leave himself open, but this time put his focus not just on accuracy, but raw force.  Both fists came down hard toward Solemn's head, and behind them was the lizard's toothy smile. 

[olopi]

GM

 

 

 

 

 

Leviathan smacked right into Solemn, this time not just hitting him, but hitting him with his full force, head on. This probably was enough stopping power to smash a car to pieces. And Solemn got smashed. Smashed hard, as his body flew through the air, landing by the edge of the roof, just close enough to not fall off.

 

 

Still, something seemed to have changed. He, almost immediately, got up to one knee, clearly not beaten yet. Which, by itself, was just frustrating, not too dangerous. The fact his armour continued to change, on the other hand, was perhaps more dangerous. New plates of metal seemed to appear at a rapid speed, almost mirroring those of Leviathan, as the armour got bulkier by the second. Whereas before, it had been sleek, it now resembled something more like a futuristic riot armour.

 

 

And alongside that all, it also began to light up, much like Solemn’s helmet. Just the edges, lit in a red. On the back, some sort of holes, probably not just cosmetic in their effect. They didn’t lead downwards to the flesh, but inwards, into another part of the armour. The voice amplifiers seemed to be less strong, as his voice just about came through. Beneath that visor, he probably had a huge grin on his face, judging by his tone.

 

 

“Time to get serious, then. “

Edited February 5, 2017 by olopi

[olopi]

PC

 

His tactics continued to work. That was good, because whatever this Solemn was planning, this clearly wasn’t his full combat capability just yet. Bonfire carefully moved around, as Leviathan once more struck into their opponent. How could he take all of this? Bonfire had fought some tough people before, but they usually didn’t wear anything but armour. And they usually didn’t get pummelled by a 10 ft. tall lizard monster.

 

One time it was a slightly less tall lizard monster, but that didn’t matter now. Either way, Solemn clearly had some sort of plan, when even getting knocked around the roof didn’t make him even considering fleeing. So, he’d have to continue doing what he’d been doing so far. It was metal armour alright, it transferred heat. And there was only so much heat anybody could take before collapsing.

 

As he gathered more heat, this time almost all of it coming from himself, he realized it. He was running out. All this combat, plus everything that had happened the entire day, was starting to be a problem. He only had so much fuel left, and the longer this fight took, the more dangerous it all became. There was no stopping now. It was starting to become even more serious. Which, considering this guy had almost killed him once before, said quite a bit.

 

The gathered heat shot forwards in the form of a sphere, maybe 3 ft. wide, striking right into Solemn. And there was some effect, as the metal visibly heated up. Good, good.

 

And then, it happened. Suddenly, all the heat disappeared. It wasn’t visible, no, but Bonfire could feel it. It had been there one moment, suddenly it was gone. And Solemn’s armour was warmer instead. Oh no.

 

Immediately, he recognized something was wrong. Maybe it would work a third time? “Well, that’s nice. A little toy you-“

[olopi]

GM

 

“Shut up, idiot.”

 

The hacker got up, moving almost as swiftly as at the beginning of the fight, his wounds seemingly not affecting him anymore. Before Leviathan even had the chance to get close, Solemn had already regained his footing. And, with his newly changed armour, was a bit taller than before.

 

“I told you I was serious now, didn’t I? Time to finish this. “

 

He slung forward his rifle. In the meantime, it too had changed slightly. The barrel had gotten bigger. Not just an inch or so. It had grown to the size of what probably was a grenade launcher. A suspicion which confirmed itself as one shot forwards, directly towards the two heroes, exploding while still in mid-air. Worst of all, the explosion not only affected the two heroes, it also affected the house below them. Parts of the roof collapsed, revealing a simple office room, full of cubicles, below. Fortunately, it looked like it had already been abandoned.

 

 

[Blarghy]

Where did you get this technology?!

 

So focused was he on watching Solemn's gear mutate right before their eyes, Leviathan hardly bothered to dodge the grenade at all.  He only moved his feet when he felt the roof shifting underneath them; a quick leap brought him to sturdier ground, and by that point, if he'd suffered any harm from the blast, it was long-healed.  Leviathan leaned to one side to look through the gaping hole he previously stood on.  He felt a flutter of anxiety again; the more damage they caused, and the longer Solemn eluded them, the harder it would be to slip away from this mess unnoticed.  Were the police, and worse, the press, on their way even now?

 

The beast turned back to Solemn and charged him again, this time trying to catch him with a kick to the center of his chest.  "Somebody's serious!" Leviathan shouted.  "But somebody else is finished!"

[olopi]

GM

 

The new gear seemed to also have its drawbacks. The kick hit similarly to the ones Leviathan had used before, the ones Solemn had managed to dodge. Only that this time, he couldn’t. Or didn’t. He tried to move to the side, but wasn’t fast enough, the kick catching him, not quite in the centre, but at his kidneys. As the kick connected, he managed to stand his ground however, and did not get knocked back.

 

And, then Leviathan felt it. Electricity, rushing up his leg and into his body. Solemn’s armor had changed further, with some dark smoke now emerging from his back, and the smell of burnt metal in the air.

 

“I agree, somebody’s finished. “

 

Judging by his stance, and the appearance of his armour, he could only keep this up for so much longer. The damage was starting to add up, and even the additional plating didn’t hide the various effects Leviathan’s continued attacks had had.

[olopi]

PC

 

And then, for the first time in … quite a while, actually, it happened. The force of the grenade going off was the last thing that he could counteract. As the main explosion was over, his protective layer of heat disappeared, leaving a few stray bits of shrapnel to hit him.

 

Something that usually wouldn’t be a problem, considering they’d just pass right through him. Usually, as right now, the amount of heat he’d used recently meant that he wasn’t even able to maintain his smoke form anymore. The metal shards hit his (almost naked) body, as he realized something much worse was about to come. He was right above the initial explosion, and as he lost his powers, he plummeted downwards, straight through the hole in the roof, and further.

 

He got lucky in that he landed right on a couch. It still hurt, but much less than it probably would have otherwise. He rolled off the couch immediately. He didn’t have the fire in him anymore, and was feeling quite weak, but adrenaline still was one hell of a drug. And as he looked out of the window, he had an idea. Without hesitating, he ran off, away from the hole in the ceiling.

[olopi]

GM

 

The electrical discharge was triggered, this usually was enough to deal with most attackers. But, it had seemed that something broke during the onslaught, as it’s area of effect was a lot smaller than intended. Then Solemn realized that there wasn’t nearly as much effect to it as he’d hoped, his opponent was still standing.

 

And then he saw Bonfire lose his powers and slip away. Perfect. He began closing the distance between himself and Leviathan once more, only to slip into a baseball slide, and directly through the gap between the much larger combatant’s legs. As he was behind Leviathan, he once more unloaded his rifle. And once more, fragments of very hot metal struck Leviathan.

 

By the time leviathan had turned around, Solemn had already gotten up again, continuing to hold down the trigger and pointing the rifle behind him, right before arriving at the hole in the roof he’d made and slipping downwards, into the house.

[Blarghy]

"No you DON'T!  Get back here!"

 

Leviathan hardly registered the latest gunfire, but he clearly wasn't happy at Solemn's relocation.  Although part of the lizard felt pride and the intoxicating rush of victory, he also really didn't want to lose this hacker.

 

He knows too much!  ...I mean, probably.  Unless it's all a bluff, but I can't take that chance.  We've got to catch him, and with Bonfire down, it's up to me!

 

In a calmer moment, Leviathan might've also wondered if Solemn actually wanted to flee to the rooms below so that he could chase Bonfire, given the other hero's now-vulnerable state.  Instead, Leviathan just ran after their enemy and dove fists-first through the ruptured ceiling, flailing madly on his way down, hoping to punch something by the time he landed.

[olopi]

GM

 

Getting through the hole was fortunately easy enough, the grenade had blown open a fair bit of the ceiling. Falling through was pretty easy too, the drop wasn’t nearly enough to even faze Leviathan, and landing on a couch only helped with that. Even if the couch probably had to be replaced afterwards.

 

His flailing arms managed to just catch Solemn, who was slipping away towards an open door. He stumbled forwards a bit, managing to catch himself on the frame, before running through, and further. As Leviathan gave chase, he got a quick look at the room. A living room of some sort, with a man, dressed in his pyjamas currently cowering behind the kitchen table.

 

The door Solemn had went through seemed to be the apartment’s entrance, judging by the wall hook and shoe stand.  Outside, Leviathan could just barely see the stairs leading further downwards, which Solemn now took, rushing downwards recklessly. Which wasn’t a problem, Leviathan could easily catch up, except for the fact that the doorway was too narrow for Leviathan to just walk through it…

 

 

[Blarghy]

Fortunate, then, that Leviathan wasn't in a walking mood.

 

He charged so quickly through the apartment that he didn't even notice its horrified occupant, and barely registered the doorway as he tore it to pieces on his way to the stairs.  Those, he probably crunched beneath his heavy feet, but hopefully the structure wouldn't give way entirely.  In this tight hallway, Leviathan turned partially sideways and began to more hop than run, almost skipping after his enemy.

 

"What's the matter, Solemn?  What happened to that confidence?  Just afraid to go back on your word, are you?  I mean, you said I was finished, but I don't think we're done yet!  Don't worry--I don't hold it against you.  We all make MISTAKES!"

 

The beast emphasized his point by nearly diving down the stairs, leading with his outstretched fist, which he hoped to introduce to the back of Solemn's helmet. 

[olopi]

GM

 

Running along the stairs was something that was a lot easier for Solemn, even if his bulky armour, than it was for Leviathan. Leviathan, on the other hand, was a lot faster. So, while Solemn had a lead and managed to keep it at first, the reptilian caught up sooner rather than later. Two floors down, the stairs had just ended. Solemn was running along a hallway leading towards an open door, when Leviathan managed to properly gain on him.

 

And a fist to the back later, Solemn flew right through said doorway, accelerated both by his own movement, Leviathan’s, and the latter’s fist. It was not graceful flying, or even intentional. He hit the ground a few feet further, and didn’t move at all. By now the armour wasn’t just dented, but properly beat up, and it looked like he wouldn’t be getting back up for now.

 

By now, Leviathan managed to get a better look at the room itself. It seemed to be a car repair shop of some sorts, even if there currently were no cars in it. It all looked rather organized, save for Bonfire, who was standing in a corner, next to a few jerrycans, currently holding his arm into one.

[olopi]

PC

 

It had all gone fast. As he’d gone back up form he sofa, Cass had managed to spot the reflection on the windows of the building on the opposite side of the street. There was a car repair shop just below them. Great, they’d have everything he needed. But he had to hurry. So, with every last bit of strength he could still muster, he had made his way there, taking multiple stairs at a time, almost stumbling at a few points, and actually sliding down the railing.

 

Once he’d found the workshop, it was easy to find their fuel storage. It was enough for him to get back to some power, so long as he could avoid Solemn for long enough. Easier said than done, considering he was hot on his trail.

 

As he looked around the room, he’d managed to come up with a plan. A plan to stop Solemn, without having to directly use his heat. One that would blow people’s minds when they’d hear of it. But first he had to get back some fire.

 

And then Solemn appeared, far too early. S***. Right as Cass was about to take cover, a loud *clunk*. Phew. Leviathan had saved him once again. But it meant Bonfire couldn’t show off his fancy plan.

 

With a bit of frustration, but also a whole lot of relief in his voice, he cocked his head and looked at Leviathan. And then, with an exaggerated expression and emphasis. “Man, now I can’t show off with my fancy plan. “