[Event] Genessia City

[genpcs]

Who: Open!
Where: Genessia City
When: Midnight, Friday, 13th.
What: Monsters!
Warnings: Also monsters.


As soon as midnight strikes, a mist rolls into the city. A misty night might not be all too strange, but what is strange is the inhuman growls that seem to kick start as soon as the mist is in. It doesn't take long before monsters start appearing within the city. They lumber about looking to attack anyone that they can.

However, anyone that is able to reach the safety of some type of building will find that the creatures can't get inside. While they can jump on it, snarl and hit at the structure, they can't seem to do any damage to it. It appears they can't breach any sort or safe haven that people have. However, anyone out and about seems to be fair game.

Comments

[lunarlegionnaire]

[Moon Knight had heard the tire screech from somewhere up the street and made haste, using the grappling line in his truncheon and his glider cape to cover more ground. By the time he drifts in from above, the armored woman is already engaging the werewolf alpha solo. She moves and fights like one who's bested many of their kind with nary a sweat, and she proves it when she eventually crushes its skull beneath her heel.]

[Then her face mask retracts. And the man behind his own now truly understands what Ayame Sasaki had told him at her party.]

For 13 years, I've been part of an effort to defend the Earth and her allies against otherworldy supernatural threats.

[It looks like Ayame's seen fit to re-embrace that time of her life. But tonight, no matter how she feels about it... maybe it's just what they all need. He nods at her, fighting the urge to pull back his own hood in a bid to gain her trust. His voice is deep, spectral, and unfamiliar as he unslings the Shaolin crescent staff he'd brought with him.]

Seven and counting. Let's dig in and keep them busy for five times that.

[With any luck, their friends in the van will be long gone. The vehicle's free of the ditch but the coughing noises from the engine tell him it may have had startup problems even before now. Armored gauntlets tighten around his staff, his cloak parting ever so slightly as he assumes a backstance. ]

Here they come.

[It's the faster werewolves who close in on the two defenders first, fangs and claws outstretched to rend and tear. Moon Knight meets the charge with a thrust, impaling the lead werewolf upon his staff's blade. The beast is still writhing and howling when the Fist of Khonshu slams the staff into the ground and vaults off it, silver-spiked boots hitting two more in a drop kick. All three of them crumble to dust as the impact of the kick lets the silver avenger tumble back, allowing him to retrieve his staff in a single sweeping motion and scan for more targets.]

[zenoh]

[ Ayame eyes the staff for a moment, curious of the choice. Most people here seem to be swordsmen who wield either a katana or a longsword. She didn't expect to see a yueyachan. But her curiosity can be sated later, she senses the seven incoming, plus the zombies rushing in from the side streets. The family did as what Ayame told earlier and got into the nearest building, so Ayame focuses on the fight ahead and standing near Marc without any stances or forms of her own.

When the invaders come, Ayame flicks her arm to pull that translucent sword from a small portal near her hip. Quick on the draw, she cleaves one wolf in half before she turns around, seeing three werewolves attempting to surprise her from the side. She easily catches a swipe from the foe to her right with her hand, then cuts at the wolf's gut. Her cut continues along to decapitate the other two to the charging on left, killing three werewolves in one fluid movement.

By that time, she catches a glimpse of Marc's acrobatic feat when he tumbles back to retrieve his weapon. Zombies, once droning, become invigorated at the sight of two potential sources of food. Lead by more werewolves, another wave charges at the two. But this time it looks more like a flood with the addition of rabid zombies. While the creatures can't get inside buildings, a lot of them take advantage of the rooftops to strike from above. Especially the werewolves ]

Contact. Above you.

[ Ayame points out, just as livid zombies charge at her from her blindspot. Ayame moves to engage the wolves that dropped from the building to attack Marc, leaving the zombies within good reach of his weapon. ]

[lunarlegionnaire]

Weapons free.

[Those words are a natural unbidden response to hers. Touchstones to a life he'd long left behind. It seems the man behind that black and silver mantle had been a soldier too. As Ayame engages the werewolves up high, Moon Knight closes in on the zombies with a slide, using a wide upward cut to bisect two of them from the hip of the first to the shoulder of the second. A third one on his blindside shambles right into the path of the yueyachan's blunt end, which brutally slams its rotting visage facefirst into the asphalt. Then the masked man falls to one knee, driving his blade into the ground with both hands and beheading his quarry.]

[For a split second, the lunar avenger will seem to be kneeling in supplication to some deity only he can see. Then one hand lashes out like a cobra, sending three crescent-shaped throwing darts whirling past Ayame and deep into three more zombie foreheads. The unholy light in their eyes flares a bright orange as the darts suddenly detonate, making them implode from top to bottom into harmless piles of dust.]

Tangos down.

[zenoh]

[ Ayame jumps and pulls her invisible sword again from it's pocket dimensional scabbard, immediately cutting one target from the draw, and another from the returning swing. All before they even hit the ground. A third wolf was weary of engaging Ayame after witnessing it's two kin get disposed off so quickly, yet it tried anyway. Attempting to strike from the side, the wolf used the wall of a nearby building to bounce off of, launching itself at Ayame who lowers her sword. Instead she grabs the wolf by the neck with her free hand, wrapping her armored fingers around it's neck to crush it within her strong grasp.

Sensing the darts from behind her, Ayame casually dodges and watches them hit incoming zombies accurately in their foreheads, putting them down with just as much ease as she did the werewolves. She turns her attention to Marc just as the darts exploded, not breaking her calm and unexpressive facade even a little bit. The way the hooded warrior speaks brings her back, and it's something she can appreciate. She twirls her sword as she brings it back to it's invisible scabbard by her right hip. Ayame acknowledges Marc's words with a smallest of nods, that it was somewhat hard to see unless he was paying much attention to her. She thinks they can make a good team ]

Well done.

[ Ayame stole a small police transceiver earlier so she could listen in on the police who are all stretched thin from this sudden invasion. Clipped on her obi, the radio blared a sound followed by a distress call:

"This is-- We have injured people. Surrounded by bad guys here-- locked inside the mall at Willow and 9th, there's too many of them!"

Ayame frowns, especially what the dispatcher said after about the police being so busy that the possibility of a rescue is next to impossible. Ambulances are down as streets are too flooded with zombies. A person from the background, possibly a civilian, exclaimed that "Some of them are flying!". Ayame looks at Marc, now sure if he heard that part. She responds to the distress call: ]

This is Ayame Sasaki, a friend of Guardian Haller. We're on station, ready to assist.

[ But all she got was blurry static, and noises of people in a panic inside an empty mall. Ayame's face mask reforms under her eyes, briefly returning her gaze back to Marc. She takes a couple of steps away, fixing her hair into a ponytail. She clenches her fists to let sharp blades protrude from the side of her armored bracers ]

Taking to the rooftops should speed up our travel time to the mall. I don't doubt your fighting ability, but do you have anything against airborne targets?

[ If only she can teleport or use her advanced powers right now... ]

[lunarlegionnaire]

[He'd drawn closer, listening to the distress call for every little detail. He doesn't miss the part about the flyers; ghostly blue eyes meet Ayame's, conveying that they're going to need a different approach. Before tonight, he would have had to say no to her question. But now, with his yearlong project completed and the children of the Abyss out in full force, there's no better time to take vengeance to the skies.]

I'm glad you asked.

[A corner of his mask curls ever so slightly. Is that a smile? Hard to tell; it's obscured when he lifts his wrist.]

Angelwing: home in on this location.

[Looking skyward, the two warriors will see a shadow soaring across the moon. It stops at a point above them and begins to descend, revealing a crescent-shaped hybrid of drone and glider. It gleams sleek and silver in the moonlight, hovering down to their level on quiet yet powerful turbines. The boot-sized grooves on top show that it's not just meant to be stood on; it can also take a passenger.]

We'll be going in hot, so be ready.

[Once they're secure, they're rising to Genessia's skyline and weaving a serpentine path through its buildings. Moon Knight will point as their destination nears.]

Over there.

[In the closing distance, they can see monstrous bats congregating around the mall turned fort. They swoop and swoop again, unable to break so much as a single window yet seemingly unable to realize it. Good; it means he and Ayame have the element of surprise. He pulls up the Angelwing's targeting systems from his wrist computer. The display goes a nightvision green, highlighting the monster bats in red and assigning each of them a square-shaped reticle. Below them, the machine's underslung cannons whirr and click in anticipation.]

What's our play? I can keep the skies clear for you while you secure the civilians.

[zenoh]

[ Ayame notes the confidence exuded from that slight smirk from this hooded stranger. When he calls to his drone, Ayame looks up, feeling the gentle gust of air generated by the drone-glider as it descends. Ayame makes no unnecessary comment, instead she follows Marc and hops on the glider after him. Ayame holds on, maintaining a stance where her center of gravity is lowered with slightly bent knees, ready to make a jump at any time. She let's Marc operate the craft and take them to their next location, seeing a slightly better picture of the chaos from above. She sees bat-like creatures in the distance, accompanied by noises of horror and carnage that brought goosebumps to her skin. These bats are much larger than they should be. Many are almost the size of people.

The sight of the fortified strip mall made Ayame's frown deepen, seeing the horde of zombies just outside. She doubts even a small animal can get through there with how tightly packed they are, taking up the entire street. While bats hover around the mall like vultures. The same time the cannons activate, Ayame notices the biggest building at the strip mall - a hypermarket with zombies flocking outside, with abandoned police cruisers with lights still on. They seem more agitated than the ones by the main mall, suggesting they are the most recent ones to smell flesh ]

No. I'll clear us a path while you get inside. If you hear my voice in your head, that's me. Maintain contact and rendezvous in ten.

[ With that, Ayame forms a rippling aura around herself. Her irises turned into a glowing violet just as she jumps off from the glider, landing on the ground with a great impact like a meteor and briefly shaking the ground and shutting down the electricity in the block before they flicker back into existence. Ayame's action lured the creatures towards her, thinning out the amount of them around the hypermart. She'll have to see where exactly they're going to meet. That would depend on the monsters and the amount of hostages.

Once Marc is in, he'll see the hypermart is blanketed in complete darkness and silence. Was Ayame wrong? Indistinct voices echoing in the silent halls of the store would soon tell Marc that there are people inside. Two men carrying boxes are walking down the back of the store, with only a flashlight as their light.

"You gotta work on your acting chops more, bud. That cop impression was te-rri-ble! Hahaha!" one man laughed.

"Hey hey, someone actually responded to it. Give me some credit, will ya? And an award" the second man replied, clearly enjoying their little victory.

"Yeah, a friend of the Guardian. So hurry your asses and get that money out of here before any of those freaks find out" a voice of a third man joins in, carrying a brighter flashlight that briefly illuminated the other two men, revealing that they are armed with rifles. ]

[lunarlegionnaire]

[True to her play, Moon Knight had made for the hypermart while Ayame cleared a path, the Angelwing's cannons tearing into the bat horde with crescent rounds. But inside, the silence and distinct lack of police or civilians had stopped him from calling out. Where were they? Had they escaped after all? Unlikely; the zombies he'd cut down out front would've given up.]

[The voices and the flashlight stop him from asking the Angelwing for a thermal scan. Observing the men from around a grocery rack and listening to their chatter, it's clear they're looters taking advantage of the chaos to line their pockets. It angers and amuses him in equal measure. Angers because they'd be better off helping out on the streets... and amuses because they actually believe they're mice at play while the cats are away. His muscles tense as the third man leads the way out... and straight towards his vantage point. ]

Oh sh---!

[A black and silver ghost drifts right into the beam of his flashlight, reflecting baleful blue eyes burning into his. That's the last thing he sees before an armored fist collides with the bridge of his nose. Behind him, his men drop their boxes and begin to unsling their rifles. But they'd hesitated for a full second; after a year, Moon Knight's reputation had finally begun to precede him. And that second is all he needs to leap upon them, using a fallen rack for leverage. The first one goes down with a flying kick to the face. The second tries to swing his rifle like a bludgeon and smash him on the shoulder. Moon Knight catches him by the wrists and throws him head first into a rack of canned soup, dropping him cold.]

"What the hell?!"

[Three more armed men emerge from the back room. Unlike their friends, these ones have their weapons at the ready. That, and distance has given them a little courage.]

"It's Moon Knight!"

"Die, freak, die!"

[He's already melted back into the aisles by the time their weapons go hot, ravaging the surrounding racks with automatic weapons fire. As the three start searching for him between the aisles, the lunar avenger opens his thoughts. He's very experienced with voices in his head, so he has no trouble broadcasting his thoughts to another.]

Six hostiles. Three down, three on the hunt. Looters with automatic weaponry. No sign yet of actual hostages. Exercise caution inbound.

[zenoh]

[ While Ayame was on the ground and Angelwing takes care of the airborne threats, she hears the sound of gunshots amidst her battle against the horde, cutting them down from atop a car. ]

Affirmative. Be careful in there.

[ Inside, even more of the looters apart from the current three heard the gunshots from the other side of the large store, along with the injured hostages, a few of them being unconscious police officers.

"How the hell they get here so fast?" asked one man.

"Maybe the zombies outside got distracted by something else, and the roads cleared. I mean, isn't that what we want so we can scoot on outta here with the cash?"

"Yeah, but there aren't any cops in the area to respond that fast to our call. Stay here. Whatever or whoever just showed up ain't getting us if we have these people"

Four of them guard the hostage, and close ranks and waits for Moon Knight with their guns pointed at the hostages. It seems their plan was to use the police to clear the streets of the zombies, and escape in the confusion with the money, leaving the injured hostages for the ambulances to pick up.

Meanwhile, the three on the hunt of Moon Knight are hesitating to continue. After seeing three of their friends get knocked out so easily, they don't want to test their chances. Their hesitation showed in how they perform their search. Untrained and clumsy, they turn too fast and walk too slow. Their breathes hitch as the fear of the Moon Knight begins to consume them.

"Hey let's get back to the hostages, man. I don't like this" a tattooed man whispered to his comrades.

"Shh! Don't chicken out now. He's just one guy"

"One guy who kicked our buddies' asses, yeah!" the tattooed man retorts, becoming clearer that he's not entirely into this plan of stealing from the hypermart. ]

[lunarlegionnaire]

[The three looters move together, two aiming up front and one checking their six. It's not long before they're jumping at every shadow, training their guns on anywhere they so much as think they see a flicker of white. But they refuse to split up; they're far too afraid of being picked off one by one and hope the lunar avenger tries another head-on approach. The problem is that it gives him more freedom to move through the aisles. Which is exactly what he needs to get rid of those guns.]

[Staying low but always keeping their beams in sight, Moon Knight steals his way towards the kids section. Halloween is just days away, and the area is lively decorated with all manner of the season's toys, accessories, and costumes. Moving swiftly but deftly, he gathers a coat rack, a roll of tape, and packets of a thick liquid substance. He regards the rows of bedsheet ghost costumes for a moment or two before reaching for the neck of his own silver cloak.]

[Seconds later, a loud crash and the cackling sinister laughs of several witches fill the air. In the deli section, the three looters whirl with grips on their rifles knuckle-white.]

What was that?!

Came from the toy section! Move, move!

[They barrel their way in the direction of the noise, leaping over fallen cans and cartons to cover more ground. Rounding the corner and past an upright coffin, their beams fall on the Moon Knight's familiar silver cloaked back. He's standing there stock-still amid a pile of spilled Halloween toys, as if knowing he's made a serious blunder and is letting it sink in. As one, the looters lift their rifles to their hips.]

Gotcha now, Moon Freak!

[Their war cries are almost as deafening as the 7.62 mm rounds that spit full auto from their rifles. They roar and howl as gibbets of blood erupt from that white mantle they'd long dreaded seeing, all their terror finding sweet release. It's not long before they burn through every last round, gunsmoke curling up through the flashlit haze.]

Did we get 'im?

Fuck yeah we did. Wha'd I tell ya? He's just one g---

Uh, guys?

[Their tattooed leader had stepped in closer to Moon Knight, bewildered that he'd taken every single round in their clips and had never colla[sed despite losing that much blood. Fingers shaking, he prods the masked man in the back. Only then does 'he' finally fall over. There's no man beneath that ruined cloak drenched in crimson. Just a coat rack and burst packets of fake blood all trussed around it on strips of tape.]

Oh, we're fucked...

[That's when they hear the creak of the coffin opening up behind them. Hear armored boots touch the floor and the whistle of chained steel gathering momentum. And as the cloakless black figure falls upon them and they pull their triggers on empty chambers, they feel their terror rushing back before their worlds go black.]

[zenoh]

[ The tattooed man turns around only to see the blurry image of the chain in the fraction of a second before it struck his comrades, turning their lights out and causing their bodies and their weapon to hit the floor with a dull thud. He raises his arms, lowering his weapon and shaking his head in surrender. His body trembles from head to toe as he stares at the cloakless Moon Knight.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa, hey, I-I surrender! I don't even like these guys man" The remaining man pleads.

Meanwhile, Ayame remains engaged in battle outside as more monsters piled on for the feast. Now with giant and portly ogres in the midst of zombies and werewolves, with even more bats in the sky, Ayame is left with little choice but to use her powers. Gathering her energy into her fist, a rippling aura of bright white light covers her hand, soon enveloping her entire body. A rising sound matches the growing light, blinding the monsters that surrounded her from every direction.

Striking her fist into the ground, a powerful shockwave erupts from the point of impact, launching each and every creature off of the ground and on the air as if they weighted none, yet sparing the vehicles and Angelwing from the blast. The earth shook even inside the hypermart like a powerful earthquake had passed, adding into the fear of the remaining four thieves holding the hostages at gunpoint and even toppling the shelves and those who remain standing. ]

Soldier, do you have the injured civilians? Slight change of plans. The police and some ambulances are arriving in an estimate of 5 minutes should the roads remain clear. I'll make sure it stays that way.

[lunarlegionnaire]

Affirmative. Will divert air support in about twenty seconds, so make the most of it.

[Five minutes to wrap things up. Moon Knight hauls the tattooed man up by the neck and slams his back into a shelf. The nunchucks he'd used on the others retract into their truncheon form, then he holds this up to his pale sweating face as it lights up against a flash of electricity. The looter wheezes and struggles in that steel grip as the masked man leans in closer.]

You won't like me either. Not if you don't tell me everything.

F-four! Four of us waitin' to make a break for it. We got six with us too. Family a-and two managers. D-don't kill me!

Sure. You've earned it.

[A quick jab sends the electrified truncheon into the looter's neck. He's still writhing and gurgling on the floor when Moon Knight dons his now-crimson cloak and strides purposefully toward the manager's office.]

[Meanwhile, the remaining four looters have grown increasingly jittery. Unable to take the growing pressure, one of them grabs a young mother by the arm and jams his rifle against the side of her head. She wails and screams, forcing the looter to shout above her voice.]

We know you're out there, Moon Knight! Ya got ten seconds 'fore we blow her brains out! Ten! Nine! Eight...!

[A collective gasp rises from hostages and looters alike. What had seemed to be a red phantom drifting toward the darkened doorway steps into the moonlight. The Fist of Khonshu stands covered in blood from hood to hem. And though he only has two glowing eyes, each looter feels as if they're looking straight at them and them alone. As if to protect themselves, the other three looters step back and train their guns on the hostages. Their leader's voice quavers ever so slightly as his words tumble out a little too fast.]

Want these people to live, freak? You're gonna let us walk out that door. You're gonna call off any cops and you're gonna go about your business while we go about ours.

[Their collective breaths hitch as Moon Knight takes a step forward. The hostages' faces, on the other hand, light up.]

You attacked these people on their way home through the night. Threatened them with death if they didn't play ball. I'm afraid this is my business.

[Shivering, the leader shifts his weapon's aim to Moon Knight and hears his friends do the same.]

Then we're gonna shoot you! You ain't bulletproof, hero!

[Another confident step forward and their faces go completely white. But they don't want to step back and lose their leverage, and even that seems to be losing its value as the seconds go by. Worse, it's his words that send frozen needles into their guts.]

Here's a secret: I can't die. As long as the moon rises over this city, as long as people like you hurt those who travel by night, I'll always come back. And I'm very, very particular about vengeance.

[They swallow. Is it a chance they're willing to take? One of the other three speaks up in a rather squeaky voice.]

J-just shoot him already!

[Moon Knight eyes him for a second, then drops his truncheon to the utter confusion of the looters, holding his armored hands to the side.]

Then do it. If you'd rather spend your lives out of the moon's light afraid of vengeance finding you, do it. Lock on and open fire.

[For a moment, it seems as if his confidence has backfired and the looters will do just that. But the leader blinks. What had the masked man just babbled about?]

What did you say?

I said: open fire.

[The glass on the office window behind them suddenly shatters. Two discs whirl into the room, sprouting ropes and weighted balls in mid-flight. The first one wraps around the leader and the second one entangles the remaining three all at once. Then electrical currents run through the bolas and shock all four into unconsciousness, sending them harmlessly to the floor. There's a second of lingering confusion, then the hostages bolt up and run for Moon Knight, shouting their gratitude and weeping utter relief. But he can barely hear them. He's already broadcasting his thoughts to his comrade this night.]

Hostages secure. Meet you outside for evac.

[zenoh]

[ Ayame confirmed Moon Knight's response, and goes to intercept the incoming GCPD caravan with armored personnel carriers and SWAT teams, all armed and trained to deal with supernatural enemies. She watches Angelwing from above and made sure it was unobstructed by more bats. Holding the handle of her invisible sword while she runs, Ayame flicks her weapon with the speed faster than a blink of an eye, cutting down all the bats in the sky despite the great distance. Sliced into small pieces, they fall into the hypermart's rooftop as dust.

Luring the GCPD caravan into the hypermart, the SWAT moves in to rescue the hostages and clear the area, securing the two abandoned police cruisers outside as well. The bright lights of the emergency bars and the flood lights brought along the armored cars lit up the empty street, and sirens wailed so loud it echoed a few block over ]

Confirmed. Rescue has just arrived. Good work, soldier.

[ Ayame didn't let herself be seen, but made sure to clear an obvious path for the convoy to get into their location. By that point, she stands at the roof of the tallest adjacent building, watching the rescue unfold under the brightness of the moon. She swings her invisible sword, returning it to it's interdimensional scabbard and watches it fade away. The movement still feels so natural even when she hasn't practiced her techniques in a long time. ]

[lunarlegionnaire]

[By the time the SWAT team breaches the hypermart's interior, they'll find no one but ten unconscious looters and six injured yet jubilant civilians, as well as incapacitated patrolmen who'd answered the fake call. Nothing out of the ordinary either... except a crescent-shaped throwing blade pinned to the wall of the manager's office. The team's commander takes one look at it and chuckles inwardly. It's been more than a year since they started finding these at crime scenes and they'd lost count of them a long time ago.]

Couldn't wait for us, could you, Moon Guy?

*

[There's a faint clang from behind Ayame followed by the swish of cloth on concrete. Moon Knight joins her at the roof's edge, looking out over both a battlefield and a job well done. And though Ayame has met quite a few people over her time in Genessia, maybe, just maybe... she'll feel as if she's stood with someone like him before. Looking out over a different gathering of people under very different circumstances.]

You really did keep the roads clear. Nicely done. [His eyes lose some of their hardness when the hostages emerge with the police. They're going to be alright now.] Soldiers of your skill are few and far between on these streets.

[zenoh]

[ Ayame's facemask retracts like it's made of advanced technology, only it can fade into nothing once Ayame's face is revealed to Moon Knight's ghostly eyes. She turns her attention back to the street after his congratulatory words, not paying any particular attention to him it would seem. But she does notice some familiar things, ones she quickly put in the back of her mind. ]

Soldiers like me are retired.

[ Ayame spoke with crossed arms, sighing under her breath. She's a woman of even smaller words when she's serious. But her eyes were drawn towards that damaged cape, humming in thought ]

[lunarlegionnaire]

Not all of them stay that way.

[It's as much for him as it his for her. Whatever had happened to Ayame to make her revisit her past, he's glad and relieved she'd put it to good use.]

[He too stands there in silence, watching the lawmen wrap things up at ground level. Then he tilts his head towards her ever so slightly. He knows she's in thought, and the gesture invites her to speak her mind.]

[zenoh]

[ Ayame sees his gesture, but seems to ignore it as she turns the opposite way, taking a few steps as she prepares to leave. But at the last second, she casually tosses a couple of business cards over her shoulder: a simple and boring white card with the contact information and address of a dry cleaning service, and a fancy matte black and gold card with her business on it - Atelier Iris in Genessia. ]

Should you want a new cape.

[ Ayame comments, following with a small wave goodbye while she remains walking away with her back facing Moon Knight ]

It's good to see you again, Moon Knight... Enjoy the stars.

[ Ayame leaves that as her parting comment before jumping off the edge of the building. Should Moon Knight bother to look, she will be gone. Her comment about the stars and using the word "again", it seems like she does have figured out who he is. Maybe ]