The Empyrean [CVU Headquarters - NYC]

A Crack of Thunder - the Universal Man's Watchtower Appears!

Time: Following Nemo's battle with Reynard.

Place: The Morrison building, New York City.

Without warning, the spectacularly powerful Supra-Man demonstrated his awesome extra-human origins by erecting in an instant a new headquarters atop the historic Morrison building in the heart of New York City. Secretly another extension of his hidden Quantum Vault, the twenty-story high watchtower now adorning the media broadcasting tower is an enormous beacon of Nemo's protective nature, a defensive ward visible from anywhere in the city. The metallic black exterior hums with a vibrant energy, resting gently atop the Morrison skyscraper and even extending a powerful force-field to amplify its own structural integrity. The skyscraper it rests upon is now one of the most stable in the nation, exempt utterly from threat of earthquake, tsunami, or explosive malevolence. The intricate architecture of the tower itself is a sight to behold, with futuristic runes decorating every surface of the expansive structure.

Public reaction to the structure's appearance was one of tacit consent; whether one felt concern due to his appearance or relief from future threats depended on one's view of superhumans. An enormous beacon of power, it seemed subtly understood that the watchtower's appearance meant that the Supra-Man had informally declared New York City, and perhaps the rest of the world, to be under his protection. Vigilantes had operated in public before, and though it was clear that the Universal Man was something more, there has yet to be a formal response from the United States Government regarding the tower's appearance. The owners of the Morrison building were not only unconcerned with the Supra-Man's choice of location, but thrilled; they now had public attention towards a historic site as well as the implicit protection of one of humanity's strongest apparent allies.

Entrance to the Empyrean is restricted, an over-human security system barring all entry to the mysterious structure. The Supra-Man himself has been spotted entering and leaving the structure many a time, and the "S" symbol atop the core structure leaves little doubt as to its owner; however, there are no visible doors on the unit, and a small force field extending but a millimeter from every inch of its surface leaves it immune to x-ray scans, sonic mapping, or thermal radar to discern its interior. There are theorized to be three primary entrances to the Empyrean, the first being within the glowing orb at the top of the spires; there are other door-like spaces as well, one within the Morrison building's top floor and the other near a helipad on the roof.

Structural Composition - Exotic Living Metal

The shielded exterior is nevertheless highly responsive to external stimuli, a "living metal" nanomachine-like structure constantly measuring and evaluating the surrounding world. This automated system can mold itself to emit sounds and receive information so as to communicate with others, or serve as a security system in the event that the Empyrean is threatened. The entire structure is surrounded by a similar bio-positioning field as Nemo himself, making it highly durable as well as capable of molding its form. A "living metal" tree of sorts, the alien-like headquarters reaches high into the sky, as much a work of art as a place of living.

These unique properties are what render the Empyrean immune to penetrating scans or other similar forms of intrusive observation. The field emitted by the structure is comparable to Nemo's bio-field in that it also prevents great mystical harm from coming to the base; attempts to detonate it through magic or teleport it to another location without permission are ultimately futile. The glowing orb which rests atop the tower is the power source, taking in radiation from the sun and amplifying it for the headquarters to use. The living metal composing the structure constantly observes the environment, informing Nemo of intruders or otherwise handling them itself should they appear.

The living metal itself is cool to the touch, a heat-absorbing fluid-like consistency commonly reported by those who have come into contact with it. A low hum can be heard when it changes shape, a nervous-system-like web extending through every cell of the watchtower. It could easily be likened to an enormous alien plant, self-sustaining in its power system and highly durable. The "brain" of the system is located within the tower's core, and can presumably be adjusted by Nemo himself.

Interior

Representative of the grand concept of the super-hero itself, the watchtower's fantastic interior is both elegant and functional in nature. A single advanced AI monitors information feeds from around the globe, tapping in to human systems in order to better understand new threats. A monolithic power structure emblematic of the Supra-Man's own penetrating super-senses, the Empyrean itself is a living entity devoted to following its master's will. If that means monitoring and communicating with the population of Earth, that is what it shall do.

The meeting room, though traditionally empty given the Supra-Man's characteristic solitude, is nonetheless a peak of both design and functionality. Should he ever collect particularly trusted allies, this is the place where they would meet to discuss their agenda - whatever it may be.

In addition to the meeting rooms and observation deck, there are fully stocked residential areas throughout the watchtower. Other locales include:

• A warp door to the armory of the Quantum Vault
• A warp door to the Quantum Vault's historical records room
• A warp door to the crafting room

The Incarceration Matrix

Developed as a last resort for isolating existence-level threats, the Empyrean also contains a rarely-opened warp portal to a plane existing at a different vibrational attunement. A timeless asylum to which he'd relegate only the most violent monsters, where tar-black waters lap at gray beaches...it is a dark place that this portal leads to, one of emptiness and despair. To venture there is to court hopelessness, which is why the entrance remains closed at all times.

The Sorrow is emptiness; pray that one might never see it.

Status Quo Information

• The general public is aware that this tower belongs to the Supra-Man.
• The general public is a mixture of concerned and thankful for its appearance (consulted the COE).
• The legality of the tower's appearance is not in great dispute; the owners of the Morrison building consent to its establishment atop their skyscraper.
• The tower is monitored 24/7 by government agencies from a distance. As such, it could be considered to have double security - both that from within, and that from the government passively watching it.

Characters with Free Access to the Empyrean

• Nemo
• The Black Bat
• Arabella Stover
• Maxwell Hastings

Rules

• Standard CVU Rules apply
• Attacks will be answered with extreme prejudice. >:)
• One can only use this as a base for their character if they're in the "free access" list.
• Please put OOC comments in spoiler blocks as shown below:

"What the **** is this ugly piece of shit."

Julius said, his voice rhetorical and simply stating a fact as he looked up at the Empyrean.

"It's ruining the skyline and I've had to impose airspace restrictions above this nonsense."

The Sectary of Defence turned and faced Moya, gazing at her sternly with his one good eye. If there was one man aside from Bold who commanded enough authority over Maverick to use them however he pleased, it would only ever be Julius. Today they were going to walk up and speak to this Supra-Man character - somebody whom Julius had no dealings with thus far.

And in truth, that was a completely positive experience.

Julius only ever met strangers for two reasons.

• To threaten them.
• To work with them.

There was no in between or workarounds.

The CIA, FBI and NSA were surveying the structure second-by-second but Julius had ordered a complete and utter shutdown of any military action towards the unknown threat. If it was a threat at all. The Shadow of D.C didn't want a fiasco on his hands in the centre of the United States of America for no reason.

Hell, Supra-Man may even end up being a force for good.

But if not... Well, that's why Maverick had been given special permission to accompany the Equalizer on this trip to Disney Land.

They'd have to figure out this fools real name though. Supra-Man? What the **** was that all about.

"By the way," he said, glancing at Moya, "don't get ahead of yourself and go starting World War Three in New York, I'm not filing that shitty paperwork." Julius knew she was beyond professional but was a no-nonsense kind of man. He would tell his own father to shut the **** up if he deemed it necessary.

Within a few minutes Julius and Moya had reached the Morrison building's top floor, standing what looked to be at the theorised entrance to the area.

Rolling his shoulders, the Secretary of Defence spoke aloud knowing Nemo would hear him easily.

"Hey Supra-Bitch, this is some Man in the High Castle tier shit but I ain't got all God damn day kid. Hurry the **** up and let Uncle and Aunt Sam inside."

He folded his arms.

"I some sugar for my new neighbour."

He took out a little sachet of sugar, smirking to himself as he held it within his palm.

@supra-man: @quietus:

"I'm not sure if I'm the one who will be starting World War III here, Mr. Jones. Was calling him a "bitch" really necessary? Can we at least hear his side, and then call him names?"

Moya smiled.

She wore a pencil skirt down to her knees, a blouse, pearl neckless, earings, heels and leggings. None of this had any armor. No weapons if she was to be scanned on her person. And yet, she held an air of coolness, of invincibility despite her own frailty, at least at the scale in dealing with beings like this. But, to be successful, there are risks that must be taken. This much she knew.

She looked up the tower, looking over it's structure with unaugmented but highly observant eyes. Patiently, with a hand on her hip she waited for the Supra-Man to in some way, react. Preferably in one where they were allowed inside.

@supra-man: @quietus: @maverick_6

They had evacuated the entire block, every building including the one currently holding the “Empyrean” were empty. It took them an hour and a half to get the buses packed with civilians. Subject Supra-Man had the ability to hear threats through walls according to their intelligence, if not then he would certainly hear threats of the ever so coy Julius Jones . Not that it mattered to him according to their psychological file on him.

It was all in the name according to them.

"Supra-"

1. A prefix meaning “above, over” ( supraorbital) or “beyond the limits of, outside of” ( supramolecular; suprasegmental)

"-man"

1. A suffix indicating a person who has a role, works in a place, or operates equipment as specified: salesman, barman, cameraman

He believed that his role in society was to be above them. That they didn’t pose a threat, that his power granted him impunity to human laws. Not bound by them, but operating under them according to his will and only to his will. After all, only a man who doesn’t have any regard for the law believes that he can place a new structure in New York instantly, and that no one would dare to do anything about it. However, psychological analysis from an outside source based on a subject that rarely made outspoken statements were only so accurate.

Supra-man was more complicated than that.

“You’re going to give yourself a heart attack.” A brass voice spoke from the top the corner of the air ducts. From the shadows he emerged. The Black Bat himself, presumed to be missing or possibly even dead.

Without further introduction, he returned to his familiar business only attitude and walked past them as he looked at the wall directly.

“The reason why you don’t see any doors is because the building shapeshifts itself and adapts instantly to when he enters and leaves. Think about it. People barely see him going in or going out because he moves at speeds that are beyond what the human eye can perceive. Even my drones have a hard time keeping track sometimes. No door can open or close so quickly without making any sound. The walls are probably a form of liquid metal controlled by an artificial intelligence or by thought.”

“If you take the fact that he hasn’t attacked us yet into account, it can either mean that this is a trap or as a mean to simply tell us to...” The Black Bat took a step forward, phasing through the seemingly normal wall, and entering a white hall with a statue of Supra-man at the center of it.

“....Walk in.” The statue made him reconsider his stance on the previous assessments made by the psychologists.

@hound_of_war: @maverick_6: @quietus:

The Empyrean; ten minutes earlier

Watching the Black Bat crawl through the vents of the Morrison building was about as interesting as ever. Nemo just leaned back in a rotating chair, elbow resting on the long marble table in the atrium; his eyes tracked Donn's form through the crawlspace, vaguely interested in where he'd be heading to. Standing from where he sat, he floated over to a wall, the metal structure shifting and warping to resemble a conventional kitchen. Snatching a mug from the wall, he poured some coffee grounds into the bottom, running water over the top. The Bat knew there was no way into the Empyrean through an air duct, so what he was doing can't have been for his benefit. The military perimeter had shown up as expected, meaning Donn was expecting friends.

Right on time, Julius Jones and a company stepped up to the front of the structure, standing on the helipad that had previously belonged solely to the owners of the Morrison building. They'd tacitly agreed to share it with one of the world's premier super-heroes, a thought which made him smile. He'd chosen the building not only for its aesthetic, but because its owners were likable. Jones acted with his normal bravado, his insult eliciting a small smile from Nemo, who noted through his atomic sight that Jones was holding a packet of sugar. He turned back to the counter, replacing the spoon and cup of sugar he'd picked up. Lifting the cup of water, he glanced back at the entrance, watching Donn make his dramatic entrance. It was cooler when you didn't see him take the time to prepare for it, he supposed, but it still brought a smile to his face.

As they entered, he subtly scanned the trio to see if they were packing any modified genetics. Moya was a stranger to him, and his eyes lingered on her a little longer. Her ID designated her as belonging to Maverick Inc., which conjured memories of Nemo's talk with Bold. If strongarming him then hadn't worked, did they think seducing him would? He chided himself for the thought, for she certainly had more to offer than just her looks. They only happened to be the first thing he noticed.

As they stepped in, the caped statue at the end of the table was joined by three other towering simulacra, faceless yet clearly inspired by the guests. Built from the ground up by a liquid-like metal, they would remain there so long as the three were in the room. A sign of respect that the original AI had graced him with, and extended too to his guests. He didn't bother telling it not to.

Walking towards them, he stopped, raising the mug slightly as if to wave. His cape hung behind him, but for his posture, it seemed less majestic and more matter-of-fact. It was just what he wore.

"Secretary Jones. Miss...Hawkins. Alexander," he said, nonchalantly heating the coffee with a short glance into the cup. "How can I help you?"

@maverick_6: @hound_of_war: @supra-man:

Julius glanced at Moya, raising an eyebrow and scowling. "I call everybody bitch, sweetheart. What the **** do they teach in Maverick school these days?" The Secretary of Defence then heard the Black Bat appear, not even turning as his familiar tone of voice chastised the Shadow of D.C's grumpy demeanour.

"Do you have to monologue every time you creep up on somebody?"

He huffed, clearly not wanting to be here today. "You could have just said it was a god damn door."

But before the Bat had a chance to enter the room, Julius softly grabbed his padded shoulder, "it's good to see your enigmatic ass again son, it hasn't been the same without you."

And just like that Julius, Moya and the Black Bat entered the cave of an egomaniac, the statue making Julius queasy. What was this nonsense? Without actually conveying his lack-of-appreciation for the statues, he swaggered over towards Nemo and tore open the sugar, pouring it into Supra-Man's cup of coffee. "Drop the bullshit kid."

Turning around and taking a nice, long, hard look around the complex, his arms quickly fell into deep pockets. In truth he was buying time, wanting to test the Self-Made Man's atomic vision, or lack of.

The sugar particles had been microscopically altered and in addition of their usual structure, each sugar granule had the words carved into them.

Dear Supra-Bitch,

I paid your rent for this month and I will continue to do so, as long as you don't piss me off.

Kiss my ass,

Julius Jones

Julius hoped that the Quintessential Hero would understand the implications of that. Airspace above New York had been grounded and that cost money; Julius had the Pentagon pay for that out of the Equalizer budget but it didn't have to last forever.

Spinning back around, he folded his arms. "You work for me now, capeesh? That's not a request, by the way."

He took out a cheap mobile phone, placing it onto the counter. "I have those I see as helpful on quick dial. The Equalizers on 1, Maverick on 2, the UNKD on 3. There's some bureaucratic pussies in the Pentagon who view your actions as hostile." He shrugged, "I work on a case-by-case basis and you've not wronged this country yet."

The one functional eye of Julius Jones gazed into Supra-Man's.

"Apart from being ugly as **** I don't see this little incursion of yours as particularly dangerous, costly; god damn son. But far from dangerous. Now that sugar I poured into your coffee is your contract of employment with me. Break it and I'm shutting this place down."

His finger pointed to everything, spinning around in a helicopter movement.

"Now I'll let the kids do the talking."

Julius backed of a little to the side and watched Moya and the Black Bat, his eye darting between them curiously.

@maverick_6: @supra-man: @quietus:

“I disagree.” The Black Bat looked at Julius in the eye.

“It is dangerous. New York City is one of the world’s capitals for superhuman activity. Keeping your base here is a beacon to rogue metahumans.” He turned to Supra-man and folded his arms like he never lost a war. “Someone attacking you at any time might not seem dangerous to you, Supra-Man...”

“But the people below? The people in this entire block? Paying planes to go around this area might be cheap for the U.S, but how much is an innocent life worth to any of you?.” Spoke the man with a pragmatic view of the world.

“A high profile base like this being attacked isn’t hypothetical anymore, it’s a statistical inevitability. If you don’t believe me, then you can ask the Secretary of Defense and the Maverick representative if they know anything about impenetrable buildings being penetrable. Or better yet, ask Former President Brutus when he gets out of the hospital. ” He paused for a moment.

“You put it here, you can easily put it somewhere more remote.”

@supra-man: @hound_of_war: @supra-man:

Moya merely rolled her eyes in response to Julius, following in the Black bat's suite, to a degree. She walked into the wall, building seemingly all but swallowing her, as she winds up in the amorphous structure itself.

(COEUS)He's got nice digs, wouldn't you say?

The voice rung in her head. A body of blackfire burned over it's core, it's eyes like stars shing so bright that every color combined to form a pure white. It was rather devoid of other facial features.

The manifestation appeared to her own eyes only, for it was merely an image that would appear on her contact lenses. Only she would hear it, for the way COEUS "spoke" was through a fully transparent tattoo that minutely vibrated the skull, allowing no sound to transmit into their surroundings. His perception, was based on her own. Or more appropriately where her lenses were looking.

(COEUS) This could be dangerous. He's acting out of character. Something's off. Not enough to say he would kill you. But something.

(Moya) I don't think there's no rhyme or reason to this. We did just speak to him previously. He is fallible from a mental standpoint, and even if he is not human, he is driven by emotions like a human. He restrains himself, but clearly he can be angry. Perhaps irrational. Impulsive. But, he has motivations I would say are human.

(COEUS) Every meeting is an opportunity. But at a bit of risk. However small

(Moya) Great things never came from comfort zones.

*Clack*

*Clack*

*Clack*

The sound her heels made with every step echoing through the seemingly empty and vast hallways of the metal sanctum. While everyone was talking, her ears were locked onto the conversation, her eyes went all about the room. She and COEUS, took in each and every detail of the metals composition for some time, before their gaze falls upon the metal likenesses of the company. Particularly, she looked at the one of herself.

“A high profile base like this being attacked isn’t hypothetical anymore, it’s a statistical inevitability. If you don’t believe me, then you can ask the Secretary of Defense and the Maverick representative if they know anything about impenetrable buildings being penetrable. Or better yet, ask Former President Brutus when he gets out of the hospital. ” He paused for a moment.

"However, there is a key difference between them and our friend here. For all intents and purposes, he might as well be seen as something of a god-like figure. I'm not really concerned with his safety and he likely is not either. He lives in a world of cardboard and is powerful by even metahuman standards."

Slowly she slides onto the table, sitting atop it, one legged crossed atop the other. The man irritated her with his existence, and yet, she tried to maintain a neutral tone. An overall, still yet maintained poker face.

"But, the main issue here is the previous one. The safety of everyone around here. Simply put, strength is a challenge. Metahumans are born with a random assortment of superpowers every other day at least, and it's only a matter of time before one comes along powerful enough to challenge you. Some exist already, and it's only through sheer luck of circumstance that most haven't pursued you. But this place, with it's grandoise appearance and placement in a trademarked city, it is bound to attract someone eventually. Even your power can only deter for so long."

Her arms cross in front of her chest, and she is sure to silently garner his reaction. Or his suspected lack of reaction.

"So simply put, we're here to find out why. Why have you built this place here, and without any sort of consent or coordination with forces outside of yourself and the morrison's. Do you not care for the health of the public? This place could be made of a polymorphic Adamantium for all I care. But once some Methodius wannabe punches it, the shockwaves are gonna shatter every building for blocks. Do you actually care?"

Moya raised her brow out of genuine interest. Either answer would be interesting and she hoped for nothing in particular. If he didn't care, it would be just another marketing oppertunity to show superhumans tramping over the wills of men and acting of their own accord once again. If he did care, contrary to what he may think, he actually could be useful to an extent. Her hands rest in her lap and COEUS recorded through her retinas for future study this very moment.

She looked patiently towards him, deeply interested in what exactly he would say and do.

@maverick_6: @hound_of_war: @quietus:

Nemo had seen his share of government strongmen asserting that he now worked for them. He had to admit, Julius was entertaining. There was a certain cold mix of theatricality and gravity to his movements which made his presence all the more imposing, and the Universal Man had no doubt that anyone with less assertiveness would be shaking in their boots when faced with the Shadow of Washington. The sugar was just the cherry on top, and as expected, Jones took the opportunity to put it in the coffee cup. Out of habit, Nemo's eyes tracked it as the particles entered his drink, probing for any oddities: nanomachines, bioweapons, anything that would escape the normal eye. Instead, he found writing on the sugar granules, and suppressed a laugh. All in the span of time it took for the sugar to fall into the cup.

Is this the fifties again? It's positively silver-age. Fantastic.

"Naturally," he said, sipping from the cup. The contract meant nothing to him in a binding sense; it was more a charter of what he could expect from Jones if things started to go South. That was fine - he could respect that.

As usual, Alexander was the voice of pragmatism. There was no way he thought that Nemo hadn't considered the probability that the Empyrean would attract conflict to the city, but that was an inevitability anyhow. Though he didn't feel any need to explain himself, to offer a justification for his actions, it was better to get the institutions off his back so he could focus on where he really wanted to make change. Moya had offered her own observation, one that was equally valid. Their concerns weren't out of place, but was it really his job to calm them down?

Why not.

"If someone is flying on a collision course with this building, I'll spot them coming a thousand miles out. I can evacuate the surrounding twenty blocks in the time it'd take for a terrorist to put his thumb on a detonator. If someone feels so inclined as to strike New York City with a railgun, aiming for my tower? My hand would be closed around the muzzle before the bullet leaves the barrel. I respect that you're concerned about collateral...from this point on, you won't have to be. I'll be taking action faster."

He placed the cup on the table, turning back to the group.

"So. Why New York? Simple."

He crossed his arms, leaning against the table.

"The status quo is no longer acceptable. The culture has come to accept violence as a means of solving social problems. Media and human interaction in general has begun to revolve around an unspoken consent to letting certain powerful members of society dress up and gallivant about, leaving destruction in their wake, selectively beating disadvantaged members of society to near-death."

He shrugged.

"I don't like it, so I'm going to do something about it. I've spent the last long while just wondering what to do with myself, and this is as good a project as any. Part of that is breaking the conventions we've come to accept surrounding superhuman vigilantism. Ergo, no secret lair."

He met each of their eyes, using his superior senses to try and evaluate their moods. Heartbeats, eye contact, all valuable information. There was no hostility in his tone, though; no pretense that he was doing this for some "greater good." It was a project, one that he felt would make him feel better about the way things were. Something he could devote himself to, and should luck have it, others would be responsive to it as well.

"Fear and deterrence have failed; as you said, strength invites challenge. We're going to try understanding instead, and that means openness."

The Black Bat squinted his eyes at Supra-Man’s statements about the caped community. “Spare me the morality speech. The world has worked like that since the first superpower appeared in the thirties, and we have advanced more in the last century than we have in thousands of years. We are currently going through a technological renaissance. Constant conflict is expected when progress happens so quickly and vice versa. ”

“So tell me.” His voice growled in a deeper tone.

“What happens when you’re not here? Even you can’t be at two places at once. What happens when a crisis that requires your attention for more than two minutes arises across the world? ” Alexander questioned rhetorically, then he retorted before anyone could get a chance to challenge his statements.

“You think no one will plan for that? Maverick would have to deploy troops around this area to make sure no one attacks when you’re not home. That’s extra money being paid by the U.S so you can have what you want. ”

“The benefits of this building staying here are outweighed by the cons. So what can you offer that justifies you being here? Surely you know that guaranteeing everyone’s safety isn’t enough to convince me.”

@quietus: @maverick_6: @hound_of_war:

Nemo looked to the Bat, touching his fingers to his chin and holding his elbow in the crook of his other hand. Even he could not be sure if Donn's growl was put on for the benefit of the others there, or just his natural tone now. He furrowed his brow, sitting up from the table.

Hm. I wasn't aware that "convincing" Alexander was now part of it.

Another pause in his thoughts, between the microseconds.

Be nice. He's a friend.

"Look, we're not doing '86 over again," he said, spreading his arms with the palms facing the ceiling. An open posture. He wished they were having this conversation more privately, or he'd bring up the Donn Administration to help make his point.

"The Equalizer building is a few blocks down. From where we're standing I can count seven secret lairs buried either underground or nestled into abandoned warehouses, and as far as I can tell, they each belong to a different cape."

He let his hands fall back to his sides, his body loose, devoid of tension.

"Plus, the general public can't even tell whether I'm here or not. I come and go so quickly that even your drones have a hard time keeping track, as you said. I'm not like a jet you can trace leaving a hangar."

He smiled.

"You of all people know I'm not like the others, the ones who cause you problems. They're the people I'm concerned about too, and this takes us a step closer to handling that situation."

@quietus: @supra-man: @hound_of_war:

"You of all people know I'm not like the others, the ones who cause you problems. They're the people I'm concerned about too, and this takes us a step closer to handling that situation."

"You have a point about vigilantism."

He leans back on the table, resting her arm behind her support herself.

"It isn't right to let people go around, doing whatever they want of their own accord. The problem here is that in some ways, you are nothing like the others. I like to think you're more savvy. Reasonable. Logical. Hence why we are here. Using our words."

If he would peer into her, he would see that she had no animosity. Before? He would have seen some irritation in her, from seemingly nothing more than his presence. Being her. But, after a point in the conversation, she'd resumed her typical aura of apathy.

"You act on your own, without consenting with others. You do what you believe is right. You say **** the rules. You will not stand to have bureaucratic inefficiency weigh you down in your endeavor to do what you believe is most effective." Subtly she smiled. Because she knew that she and Maverick did functionally the same thing. Although, not as overtly and often (they liked to think), without need. "Maybe you do think a million times faster than everyone in this room does. But that only means you will go down the tracks that you set for yourself faster. You are taking the law utterly into your own hands. There is a balance, Supra-Man."As there was a balance in most things.

"To be the most effective, one has to be willing to work with those around. Then maybe you would better be able to foresee problems that would arise. After all, one's mind likes to often think it is right, does it not. The problem of your argument is that this hinges on the fundamental fact that you are stronger than all threats. Or more capable. Superior in every aspect. A drone can't see you easily. But a superhuman with reflexes within the realm of nanoseconds?"

Her hand motions all around the area.

"The problem with this place to me isn't even that it's public. More so, it's the fact that you didn't consult anyone really. And the fact that it's so tall. It can be easily seen a challenge, by some. And there is the whole "airspace" matter too." Not that she seemed to care about how much the government would have to spend to make the area around the tower. "It's a nice place. Art, really. And like any piece of art, it sends a message."

Her legs swing back and forth.

"My biggest concerns? The message you send with simply how this place is built and if you will make a preventable mistake in the future."

The Black Bat ignored the reference to their past, his body didn’t even flinch when he mentioned 1986. It was inhuman almost, considering that year everything changed in his world.

Before he could respond, Moya Hawkins stepped in between. She seemed to prefer a more passive solution, rather than an effective one. Julius believed that that he could simply use him in exchange for keeping this place intact. The Black Bat knew Supra-Man better than to assume that he had agreed to Jones’s terms, his failure to say anything besides “naturally” was a clear deflection tactic. “Naturally” didn’t mean anything, which is why it wasn’t enough.

Supra-Man didn’t like to lie. He felt it was below him. Simply stating a meaningless response had given him probable deniability.

“Sometimes.” He corrected.

“They have a hard time keeping track sometimes. If I can do it then we have to assume that someone else can like Ms. Hawkins said.”

“It doesn’t matter if you won’t cause problems on purpose, because the problems will inevitably come to you.”

“So I ask again, Supra-man. What makes this worth my time? Give me a straight answer this time.” He looked at him straight in his optical eyes.

@hound_of_war: @maverick_6: @quietus:

Nemo turned his head back towards Moya when he heard her speak, more interested in listening to what she had to say than Alexander. Maybe it was her voice, which was certainly more pleasant than Donn's gravelly tones. He smiled as their eyes met, the compliments she paid to him presented more like observations of fact than statements imbued with any sort of warmth. There was a distance to Moya, the exact same kind he himself typically carried into a conversation. Was she playing with his ego, probing to see if he'd respond to praise? All he gave in return was a smile and nod at her evaluation of him as "above the rules;" there was no real point denying that, even if he wouldn't necessarily go around proclaiming it as so many did.

"Thank you, I'm glad you appreciate it," he interjected before Donn spoke his piece, pleased that someone else enjoyed the architecture.

“So I ask again, Supra-man. What makes this worth my time? Give me a straight answer this time.”

He thought for a moment.

"What Miss Hawkins said is true. I'm not perfect. You balance me out. You have the resources and know-how to deal with the collateral I create. Today's a great example," he said, snapping his fingers and pointing one at Donn's chest for a second to punctuate his statement.

"To be effective, I need you," he said, shaking the finger up and down with a smile. "You and I are a team."

"Hm." The room fell silent for a second.

"That's...an acceptable answer." He concluded. The Black Bat then turned around and begun walking back to where he came from. Before stepping out, he stopped and slightly shifted his head to the side.

"I just hope you know what it means." Then he left.

@quietus: @hound_of_war: @supra-man:

She offered the self made man a small, brief smile as a silent acknowledge of his gratitude. It continued, Moya almost chuckling as the man waves his finger up and down, declaring Donn and himself a team. He was far more whimsical than she expected.

Moya's eyes went towards don, as he exited the room almost...anti-climactic. She almost expected him to oppose him simply for the sake of opposing him, and yet she was glad that this wasn't the case. Clearly, this one was more than just some vigilante nutcase. Much more.

Moya looked towards Julius.

"I have nothing else. For now, at least. I suspect you won't need me to walk you home." Hawk like eyes move about the room, once more. This time, falling back towards the Supra-Man.

@quietus: @hound_of_war: @maverick_6:

Though Donn left brusquely, his answer brought the traces of a smile to Nemo's face. Working with the Black Bat had its ups and downs, but if anyone could stomach the man's abrasiveness, it was the Supra-Man. They'd had their clashes in the past, but if they stood on common ground, there was little that could stand in their way. Though he was able to subtly observe Alexander's entire departure, stealthy as it was, Nemo turned his eyes back to Moya, who gave the most professional answer possible. It was one that implied cooperation, compromise. Some measure of control over him, a probe that he'd consent to sacrificing a degree of autonomy to comply with Maverick's directives.

In all honesty, in the meantime, their goals would align. Nothing had changed since his talk with Bold, though he was in a substantially more social mood. What was the right thing to say?

"Same," he said with a nod, taking another sip from the coffee.

@supra-man:

Julius had been listening but not speaking, idly looking outside to the distance as Donn departed. He then turned, catching a look from Moya as she shot her his own with a tough smile. "Tell Bold I said hi." Without asking, he relieved her of her duties and quite clearly wanted the room alone with Supra-Man.

Folding his arms, the Secretary of Defence gazed at this unknown oddity. He presented quite the challenge but simultaneously quite the opportunity. Nemo would not be the last metahuman Julius dealt with of this calibre and he had not been the first, but perhaps, he would be the most incomprehensible. “So this is all just a pet project huh?” Julius spoke, rhetorically. He did not move from his position on the wall, one eye surveying the gargantuan room. “I respect that.” In truth he did, Julius had done exactly the same when founding the Equalizers. He had taken street vigilantes and turned them into professional government agents on retainer, given them training and most importantly accountability – to who? To him.

“When I founded the Equalizers it was a mantle. Not a team. A name which signifies that one individual seeks to protect this world, a responsibility that passes from one person to another. Some may be an Equalizer for a single day, others a lifetime - It's not my choice to decide."

Jones continued. "But it is my job to keep this country and by extension, planet safe from harm." It was sometimes hard, but made easier with people like the Black Bat and once upon a time, Klaus on his side. "And I'm sure we share a common cause."

At least he presumed, a pet project to safeguard the world from careless vigilantism even if done out of morbid curiosity was still useful even if there was no altruistic intent. “Consider the Equalizers and by extension the US Government a sponsor of your little project, Supra-Man.” A smirk adorned his jaded features. “In a sense you’re my side project.”

He pushed off the wall, walking up towards Nemo. “I don’t believe unchecked vigilantism isas big a threat as made out, but it’s a threat nonetheless.” He squint. “This me keeping you in check, son.” Extending a palm, he looked into the heroes eyes. “Every hero at any moment is ‘one of those heroes’ you speak so fondly about. You can’t plan for everything, kid.”

He turned around, regardless of if Supra-Man took the handshake and began to leave.

“But I can.”

A thumb touched his chest as the Secretary of Defence winked and made his departure.

@quietus:

Nemo turned his attention to Jones, the sounds of the exterior world fading away as his gaze met Julius' cyclopean eye. He was a man of conviction, and from what Nemo could tell, belief in his country. It wasn't a blind devotion, though, and that warranted at least some degree of respect. Certainly, Jones had come to the Universal Man's new abode to metaphorically flex, to remind him of the system that would constantly try to ensnare him; but it was a system he'd approached to work on himself, and this was an acceptable consequence of that. It wouldn't be fair of him to expect solitude anymore. A government "sponsorship" meant about the same to him as any other, and while he would continue to operate only by his own directives, there was no need to panic Secretary Jones over it.

Jones reminded Nemo of himself, despite the differences in their mannerisms. He had a sense that the Secretary answered primarily to himself, not the taxpayer...even if he wouldn't admit it. They had both taken protective custody of their particular projects, and it was not for honor or obligation, but because they had chosen to. They could stand on common ground.

"I appreciate it, Secretary Jones," Nemo said neutrally, watching Jones and his company depart. Once again, the Supra-Man was left alone with his thoughts.

... A few hours prior to Return of the Time Keeper

The Time Keeper sped towards the New York skyline in a crimson streak. The people of most major metropolis' in the USA were used to such a sight. Indeed, it was as common an occasion as was seeing a plane overhead. Left and right heroes and men in metal suits sped around and gallivanted about adventure after adventure. The Keeper of Time was about to have his own adventure. If all went well it would be the last adventure in this old face; he hoped so.

As he powered towards the Big Apple, an unusual sight caught his eye. It was otherworldly, it was novel, it was quite the sight! Time Keepers had extrasensory perception far beyond the ability of a human, to them he concluded, it probably looked.... Black... A minute facial expression later in disgust was his response before he arrived upon the helipad an instant later, the Time Keeper went to drop his hammer onto the floor before clenching his fist and raising it a little in annoyance, sighing all the same.

It was impossible to describe how much he missed that hammer. His very essence belonging to it. Despite that flashback, one metal hand joined his other as he clasped his palms behind his back, surveying this megastructure. The pearlescent lighting emit bounced off of his silver armor and made him look funny, although it was invisible to the normal eye. He theorised that it looked different to everybody and every species. If one could see only ultraviolet calling it black would probably be as alien as what he was able to perceive it's nature.

He went to check his vortex manipulator, calculating how long the structure had been here. A few bleeps later, the sensors said it had barely been a few hours. This has been accomplished with a simple CCTV type mechanism. His device had shown him the building just appearing out of nowhere to New York's confusion.

"Fascinating."

He looked up, astounded.

"Absolutely... Fascinating..."

@pyrogram:

A man with two hearts had come to visit. Nemo heard him first, the Time Keeper's flight displacing the air and causing subtle ripples that could only signify the approach of a soaring person-sized man. Then the Universal Man's gaze had turned in that direction, analytical eyes passing over the elderly-looking being who had alighted on the edge of the Empyrean. Scanning him with his atomic sight, the Caped Colossus could see that he was dealing with a man of extraordinary durability; additionally, his left hand was entirely composed of some exotic metal. The being's silver armor appeared archaic at first glance, but the intricate design made it appear almost like a work of art.

When Nemo so chose, he could move without displacing the air surrounding him. An esoteric confluence of speed and silence matched his movements, invisible to the eye of even the most astute superhumans as he arrived next to the Time Keeper with his hands resting gently at the edges of his belt, red cape flowing behind him as he looked up at his tower.

"Afternoon," he said warmly, noting the man's remark. He'd called the tower fascinating - he seemed foreign to it all, to society, much as Nemo was. He was intrigued by the structure on a personal level, not concerned by it; that alone made him worthy of Nemo's interest. The device on his wrist was equally exotic, a technology that the Idea What Walks could not readily place.

@supra-man:

"I have no idea how it got there. Woke up one morning, and there it was."

"I figured it was just the owner of the Morrison Building showing off with some new renovations"

"Who cares? Old buildings get torn down and new ones get built every day, why worry about it?"

"I'm pretty sure I caught a glimpse of the Supraman flying in there once, but I don't know. Haven't seen him since"

"I don't care what anyone tells you, it's a government conspiracy. That's what it is! They were piling up around here like flies, all of this is just one of their damned social experiments."

.....

Initially, Kaija didn't care very much about the news regarding a strange new building that appeared in New York. This wasn't because she assumed that the building or its residents wouldn't cause trouble nor did she feel as though it wasn't important to someone out there, but it simply wasn't her problem until she received an order to deal with it. Well, at least not until she caught sight of it, anyway. As odd as the structure was, the majority it's form piqued no interest whatsoever from Kaija. No, it wasn't really an issue until she caught sight of a familiar trademark plastered onto the side of the building. Right there on the side of the building plain as day...

The symbolic Sthat Nemo wore everywhere he went.

And then she remembered his words from a previous encounter:

"I've decided what I value in this world. I like...improving things. Not really by any standard but my own. Until recently, I didn't know what the best way to go about doing that was. I do think it's time for me to be more involved again."

......

"So, this is what he ended up going with, huh?" Kaija spoke aloud to herself as she observed The Empyrean from the chilly street down below.

Before making the mistake of simply barging into what could easily be a supervillain's lair and getting herself into something she'd regret, Kaija had taken the time to ask the citizens who lived in the city what they felt about the building themselves. She wore her disguise so that the people would speak to her as though she were just another citizen without a clothing line robbing millions of dollars out of their pockets. Some liked it, some didn't and some couldn't care less, but ultimately nobody really seemed too bothered by it nor did anyone mention it having any significant effect on their lives. In this absurd world that everyone lived in, after people realized that The Empyrean wasn't an immediate threat, it seemed like the hustle and bustle of everyday life worked to drown out the excitement of the new building arriving rather quickly. Were it not for a few mentions of Supraman sightings in the area, Kaija would've simply shrugged and gone home.

Reluctantly, she entered the Morrison Building, climbed to the top floor, walked out onto the roof and hesitated for a moment in front of the structure. She walked up, knocked twice, and announced her presence.

"Uh, hey. It's me, I'm sure you can recognize my voice. Any chance I could come in and see your new place?"

The ambiguity of her words was intentional. If Nemo was there and had heard them, then he'd recognize her. If she was speaking to the lair of an evil witch, alien or... some government experiment, then anyone who could understand her would believe that she was completely insane and likely not open the door. She would wait a short while for a response, heading back home if there was none.

@kaija:

Half a World Away

Gently lowering a damaged ocean liner onto the ground in New Zealand, Nemo's astute ears picked out a familiar voice beyond the thankful cries of its passengers. He kept his eyes on theirs as they disembarked, checking to make sure each individual who had been trapped on the sinking ship had emerged safely and securely. When they spoke to him to give him thanks, he nodded his head and smiled, though his mind was elsewhere. The moment everyone's feet touched land, he sped away, body tearing through the atmosphere on a course towards his new home in New York.

He made sure to slow down far before entering her visible range, so as not to surprise her; instead, he descended gently, letting a warm smile fill his features. His heartbeat decelerated as his red boots touched down, cape coming to rest on his shoulders as he landed in front of Kaija.

"Kaija," he said, giving a small waist-level wave. "It's good to see you. How have you been?" he asked, the entrance to the Empyrean dissolving behind him. He indicated for her to come inside.

@supra-man:

Kaija wasn't even surprised by Nemo's instantaneous arrival. Every time they met it was as though he had appeared out of thin air; her voice able to travel the entire world without growing any louder, it seemed. She met his wave with a smile and wave of her own as the door to his new home opened behind her.

"Surprisingly good given... recent events," she answered honestly, entering the Empyrean, "I'm more curious about how you've been, honestly"

She walked in then waited for Nemo to follow behind before continuing.

"I knew you were going to get more involved, but I admit that I was a bit surprised... well, incredulous when I saw that you had built a home in New York. Is living here any different from your other place? The people living around here are still uncertain that this is even your home, let alone that this place is even a house to begin with," she explained, recalling the words of the civilians on the street, "Though I guess the first step to reintroducing oneself is to move into the neighborhood, right?"

@supra-man:

Indeed, his wrist device was from the fifty third century and in all likelihood was utterly magic to even the most apt scientific mind on this planet. It would be comparable to showing a Roman Centurion an Apple Watch. "One has to ponder the purpose of such a work of art. Certainly, it will generate quite the social upheaval."

Looking slowly towards Supra-Man as though his eye did not want to peel away from the Empyrean, the archaic alien smiled. "This is not technology from the 21st century. No, no, not from this planet in any timeline I suspect."

Raising a palm he closed his eye and used his senses to feel it's ripple against the atmosphere, or, if it had any at all. He felts it's soft humming of vibrant energy and could see the force-field to amplifying its already mighty structural integrity.

Palms returned to his body, they clasped behind his back. One palm holding his wrist somewhat aristocratically.

"What do you intend to do with this technology?"

His words were not accusatory or threatening, rather, genuinely curious in nature. His thoughtful gaze returning to the Empyrean.

@supra-man: @kaija:

“That’s one way to look at it.” The Black Bat spoke dryly from behind her, appearing from mere nothingness.

“As heartwarming as this reunion must be for you two..” Skipping all the formalities and niceties, he went straight to the point with his ever present no nonsense attitude. “...You can’t expect me to believe you traveled all the way here to see his new base.” Donn fought back the urge to use adjectives like "unnecessary" or "gaudy" to describe Supra-man's pet project.

“So tell me, why are you really here?” His voice remained cold and disinterested, almost antagonistic towards social rituals.

@supra-man: @hound_of_war:

Kaija turned with a start to find that the unfamiliar voice belonged to a man dressed in black. Had she met him on the street, she would've mistaken him for a thug relying on the shadows to make a buck and find his next meal.

She gazed over at Supraman, his lack of a response enough of a signal to assume that the man was friendly, then turned her attention back to the... somber old man in a bat suit?

"Well... for the most part, that is why I'm here. It's not really hard for me to get around, after all. I guess I also needed to vent to someone who I don't see every day; if you want me to be completely honest." she explained.

She removed her mask to reveal crimson eyes and a pair of horns, then walked over to the Black Bat and extended a hand to shake.

"They call me Kaija, Mr..." she gave him a moment to answer, "It's nothing personal but, if you don't mind, could I have a moment to speak to Supra alone?"

@kaija: @supra-man:

As soon she took off her mask Donn spoke in an noiseless tone “Facial rec go”. His lips moved with the stealth of a master puppetee,. She probably wouldn’t be able to notice it, but Supra-Man would be able to hear the very information being fed into his ear.

Match Found

File name: Uma Salayami aka Kaija

Age: 23 years

Affiliation: UNKD (United Nation Kaiju Defense)

Abilities: Mass Multiplication

Skills: Profficient hand to hand fighter, marksman, and infiltrator.

Subsections: Early life, Burtelov disaster, Previous Work, Assassin Career, and UNKD.

“ I do mind.” The Black Bat looked at her hand like it was contaminated, like the very gesture of shaking hands was a foreign concept to him.

“Whatever you need to say you can say it in front of me. I assure you, Ms Sayalami, if there’s anyone that can keep secrets in this room...." The Black Bat glanced at Supra-man "...It’s me.” He folded his arms, as a way of telling her he wasn’t going to leave.

“Continue.”

@kaija: @hound_of_war:

Lost in thought, Nemo sensed Alexander skulking into the room, but he didn't think to warn Kaija of his presence before it was too late. Alex sneaked up on everyone, though, and he supposed it was only fair that Kaija become used to it. There were times in the past when he could even slip by the Universal Man's supra-senses, using special tools to confound eyes more precise than an electron microscope. The key was to target focus; it was only when he was unaware, not actively searching for a foe, that someone could move through his blind spots. Even then, they'd need to do so very carefully. Donn was meticulous enough to accomplish even that, given the right resources.

Still up to his old tricks, Alexander didn't even bother giving Kaija an alias, focusing on analyzing her in silence instead. "Rude" was his default setting; at least, when he wore the mask. It was a different sort of disguise, one that put people on edge, made them easier to control. What sort of circumstances made a man like Alexander? Nemo had often wondered. He was, in some ways, perhaps even more remarkable than the Caped Colossus. Intelligent, driven, and when it came down to it, utterly obsessive.

"This is the Black Bat. The genuine one, not a pretender," he added, trusting that anyone who heard the name would be skeptical at first. After all, Alex had inspired countless bat-themed vigilantes to roam streets across the world...and he'd first made his debut in 1939. Anyone versed in metahuman lore would know the name, but most likely believe he was dead by now. It would also help excuse his behavior, if only slightly; the stories about him always seemed to emphasize his borderline paranoid nature, particularly as he got older.

Stepping in closer to Kaija than Donn, he raised a small hand to compel his friend to be silent for a second, feeling Uma's concern. Her voice, posture, heart-rate...and of course, the fact that she wanted to speak to him alone. Though it made his heart skip slightly, he kept his voice level as he spoke.

"Are you alright, Kaija?" he asked, tilting his head to the side in concern.

If she wanted to speak to him alone, he'd heed that wish. But, if there were a threat, it would be better for Donn to be present.

"And they say I had a mightier-than-thou mentality," Darkevius murmured in awe as his gaze flitted all about the Empyrean's immaculate exterior. He stood at the edge of a nearby building, admiring the tower's intricate runes, the beautifully obsidian color, its flawless balance atop the Morrison Building.

A grin stretched across the former posthuman king's visage. Dark had build his home in the far reaches of the sky, in another dimension. This genius had gone and dropped his base atop a distinguished building without a care in the world. Dark couldn't help but admire the nerve! The daring of this Supra-Man, to challenge the mortal populace with this clear act of superiority to them!

I'll give it a few months. Daring or not, however, this pioneering tower was in the middle of NYC. Dark's home and city had been hidden from mortal eyes, and yet some fool had gone and managed to tear it down. It was only a matter of time before Supra-Man's tower suffered the same fate.

@pyrogram:

"I live here," he responded with a small smile, extending his hand towards the Time Keeper. "My name is Nemo."

There was a warm magnetism of sorts to the stranger, the esoteric technology sitting on his wrist an enigma even to the Universal Man. It resembled the myriad devices lining the interior of his Quantum Vault, the ultimate functions of some eluding him. His mention of "timelines" suggested a familiarity with time-travel, which did put Nemo slightly on-guard; his past experiences with future-goers and offers to alter the past had always ended poorly. Still, there was a curiosity in the old man's posture that was endearing.

@hound_of_war: @supra-man:

For a moment, Kaija debated asking once more to speak with Nemo alone, but then she decided that she didn't need to. It was true that she knew very little about the Black Bat, and she believed the Supraman's words, but that wasn't what had calmed her. Never once had she spoken to the bat, yet he had her name. Her actual name. If he knew something like that, then he probably already knew about alot of the skeletons in her closet and the type of person that she could be under orders.

"Yeah, for the moment. It's the future that I'm concerned about." she explained, "I should be used to surveillance. Well, I am used to surveillance, but from that military that I've enlisted in and the people whose orders I follow. Recently, I've discovered that I'm being monitored by a group of 'heroes' who think I'm a threat. I didn't care when I first heard about it. After all, they aren't the only ones keeping an eye on me. But... I don't trust them, not completely."

She hesitated for a moment before continuing. The ambiguity in her words was intentional; she wanted to vent and little else. It would've been easier to speak without the presense of the Black Bat, but her purpose in visiting, ultimately, was to speak to someone not in her usual circle of acquaintances so that she might recieved an unbiased opinion on the events unfolding around her.

"I haven't actually gone to confront any of them... for multiple reasons," she tilted her head to the side, the hidden collar gripping the skin on her neck slightly, "Alot of them are friends of mine, so you can imagine that it's not a meeting that I look forward to on just that fact alone. But mostly, it's the fact that they aren't bound by the law. I know it sounds awful to say, but let's be honest. We all know how superheroes and vigilantes work. They act on a whim. They answer to no one. It's a hobby facilitated by supernatural talent, not skill nor merit. Quite frankly, I'm not entirely comfortable being monitored by civilians with uncontrolled power who are governed by nothing more than something as fragile as their morality and whims."

@andoran:

"Darkevius Hollwell. You're alive," came the authoritative tones of Nemo, whose approach would have been beyond instantaneous; his tower was indeed a lightning rod for the odd, and that meant that it was a place for him to keep his eye on in order to root out suspicious or unsavory metahumans. Moving with a haste which defied sight and sound, he would simply have, to an onlooker, popped from nonexistence into a dramatic pose behind the nGod Emperor. Arms crossed in disapproval, Nemo kept his powerful features serene, his atomic sight scanning the man up and down for any hints regarding his biology. From what he could discern without delving too deeply in the time he had.

When it came to dealing with murderers and manipulators, Nemo himself was aware of a subtle change which took over his posture. His eyes gleamed ever so menacingly with vermillion light, his face devoid of warmth and kindness; there was a harshness, instead, which laced his words, backed up by the implied efficacy which came with supernatural speed, nigh-unlimited strength, and a piercing red glow to each of his pupils.

In short, it was the difference between encountering Nemo, and the Supra-Man.

Hollwell had attacked the very city they stood in before, but he had been beaten back. That day was not without casualty, and now that Nemo was residing within the city, the message was clear that such an attack might never succeed to that extent again. What was curious, though, was that Hollwell had appeared to have been publicly slain by another super who went by the name of Trinity, one Nemo had never met. What had been the catalyst for his apparent return, if it even was him in the first place?

@supra-man:

A curious name for an even more curious fellow. As Nemo spoke the Time Keeper's translation technologies offered him two names, of course, Supra-May wouldn't be aware but his voice was translated to 'no one' due to it's Latin meaning as well as 'Nemo' in the aliens brain. The Time Keeper did not have a name, so commenting on strangers one and knowing the meaning of it often assisted in social interactions.

"I've met my fair share of Nemo's," he met Nemo's palm, shaking it before gazing back up to the wondrous Empyrean, "did you choose that name yourself? It is particularly antiquated if I do say. Combined with this structure," turning his head, his one eye fell upon the Ultra-Human.

"You have arrested my attention."

@kaija: @supra-man:

Related files: Ali….Orange Water...Gaige...Project Unity…

“You mean Project Unity.” The Black Bat stated, not showing a single sign of doubt in his tone. That would have been phrased as a question for someone less certain. Her face told him everything when he spoke those two words. So he turned to Supra-Man and further explained, unaware if he had any knowledge on them.

The Black Bat pressed a button in his gauntlet and a holographic display screen appeared. Footage of Orange Water and Gaige played. Their fights and struggles, or what had been captured. Complications of Youtube clips and recovered footage by the government

“Project Unity is a network of vigilantes with the purpose of sharing data and resources. They mostly take reactionary actions, but members of the network have been known to specifically target criminals.” He paused and heard the words echo inside Nemo's head. They gave each other a look. It was an unspoken conversation between the two, like the way friends looked at each other when they had an inside joke. With that look, they both understood that Nemo had just gotten what he wanted.

Then he turned back to Uma and said. “However, I wasn’t aware that they had moved into placing others under surveillance.”

@supra-man:

A sharp prickle of alarm tore Dark's gaze from the ebony tower to the towering suprahuman behind him. He recognized the man at once, though this realization offered little in terms of an agreeable outcome. Standing at an imposing 6'4" with striking features and an almost tangible air of assuredness to boot, first impressions of the Supra-Man were already sending off red flags in the mind of the former Divus King. The Caped Colossus might've been standing their the whole time, the way he seemed to have just...appeared from thin air. No telltale signs of motion, even though their must have been.

"If those startling red eyes are any indication, I take it you're disappointed by the news?" Darkevius offered a quip and an almost-confident smirk in the face of what could very well bring about the end of his freedom. His circumstances, however, required the utmost caution. Gone were the limitless quantum powers he held all that time ago. It wasn't a time for implicit threats nor overly sharp quips, not when he didn't yet have the means to back them up. "Yes, I'm alive. Well, I'm corporeal. Honestly, I really don't know, do you?"

In light of necessary safety precautions, Dark's frame began to exude a calm, subtle emanation; sky blue in its faint emission, the aura was hardly comparable to the spectacles of power he could produce in the past, but far more meaningful than any of those. It was an informational field, a unique arrangement based in quantum mechanics, among the few abilities Dark had managed to cultivate since his return. Under dire circumstances that saw survival and observation constantly at the forefront of his mind, this power was one of the few qualities he had left that gave him any sense of hope; hope that one day, he could have it all again.

The field enabled the replication of preternatural powers directed at him. And as the Supra-Man's atomic vision optically probed Darkevius without the latter's knowledge, it suddenly and inexplicable dawned on the once and future God King - he had a new power.

@supra-man:

"Welcome Home To New York City"

Maxwell looked longingly out the window of the yellow cab that had been responsible for shuttling him around the city that never slept. It had only been a few months but, for him it felt like eternity. Everything he had gone through had happened in this very city giving it a special place in his heart. It was the one place he really felt at home even if most of its residents had turned against him after his dad. That didn't stop people like Mr.Fazzina from giving him a job or Chloe from being one of his only real friends. Despite all the bad New York still found a way to have enough good to balance it out.

His trip home was something his newly discovered talking helmet was very adamant about. After giving him a massive info dump it pushed him to head home for a week to clear his mind and help heal his heart. Lewx-Mal thought it would be a decent enough idea to get some advice from someone who had taken up shop in the city while Maxwell was gone. He was a hero Max had looked up to for awhile even if he wasn't there fighting his dad SupraMan was one of the few who actually made a difference.

"Maxwell I think the angry man wants your attention"

The voice of his helmet broke through the sounds of his music blaring through his headphones. The cabbie was turned back with a palm extended and eyes that said 'Give me my money or I'm callin the cops'. With an apologetic "Sorry about that" Max handed the man his fare and left allowing him to look up at the massive Morrison buildings newest addition.

"Well then, lets get to it."

Outside the Empyrium

"I don't know what to say, what if he's not home, this was a bad idea lets just leave."

"Maxwell...we didn't come all this way, sit through that man yelling at every single passing object, and nearly kill us with his riddiculous driving just to have you back out at the last second."

"Yeah but..."

"No buts"

"What do I do knock. Say Hi my names Maxwell and I'm a big fan. I wanted to ask your advice on how to make sure I'm emotionally stable."

"Just knock, leave out the rest."

"No shot Sherlock, I was being sarcastic."

"You know my names not Sherlock"

"Oh my god I know you're made of gold but man you're dense"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Max exhaled in an effort to flush the nerves from his system. If he didn't do this he knew his helmet would keep nagging him about it and honestly having a voice psychically nag you was something he had recently bumped up on his list of things he didn't want to deal with. So with another deep breath he reached forward and tried to knock.

@andoran:

It was routine for Nemo to avoid banter with mass-murderers, particularly when they started to glow. Instead, he devoted his focus to observing Dark's more nuanced actions, the almost-confident smirk playing across his features a sign that he may have felt intimidated. Hollwell had been considered a being of great power, but his puzzling presence here suggested that some change had come over his biology. Was it possible his death and subsequent return had weakened him in some way? The luminous aura surrounding his body was concerning, typically a sign that one's metahuman quirk was manifesting in some way. Scanning Darkevius over entirely in the span between seconds, Nemo's eyes widened as he saw the nGod Emperor's pupils change. It was like looking in a mirror, and there was no way that anyone would have eyes of an identical structure to Nemo's own unless...

Powerstealer, he thought, wordlessly lifting off from the building's roof and keeping his eyes focused on Halliwell, cape flowing behind his back as he rose around twenty feet away from the skyscraper. Placing his finger up in his ear, he contacted the best man qualified for the job.

"We have a problem. Darkevius Hollwell is across the street, with an altered biology that doesn't match his original power output. He seems to be able to mimic my abilities. This could get out of hand very quickly," he said into the high-tech communicator provided by his only true ally, simultaneously making note of the position of every civilian in a ten-block radius. "I can have everyone in one of Jones' safe zones in seconds if it comes to it."

This message wasn't transmitted live, but instead, whispered in its totality in about a half-second. The comm in his ear picked up the super-fast words and began to slow them, sending them to none other than the Black Bat (@hound_of_war) in order to alert him to the developing crisis. After all, a man without superhuman abilities was the perfect candidate to take down a power-absorber. It was time for the Universal Man to start fighting smarter, not harder.

@hound_of_war: @kaija:

As Donn responded to Kaija, Nemo retained his signature reticence, raising an eyebrow when she spoke of her predicament but saying nothing. He had already made his stance against vigilantism eminently clear when talking to Jones and Donn the day before, and Alex had long known of Nemo's particular distaste for those who thought they could punch away social problems. Nemo liked to think that their many talks was what had compelled Alexander to step away from street-level crime and focus on institutional oppression. His work as President was often overlooked when it came to social improvements and the post-Grim economy.

Gaige is involved here, too. Of course.

Hearing about how vigilantes had been harassing someone he considered close to him irked the Universal Man terribly. His lips thinned for a second, and he knew that Donn caught the look, which he returned subtly. Taking a deep breath internally, he restricted himself from speaking out of turn, and controlled his tone. Kaija wasn't here to hear righteous indignation; that was Donn's specialty. Nemo wasn't going to loudly condemn them when he could offer support to his friend instead, even though to do so was his first inclination.

"I understand what you're going through - being watched, threatened, all of it. They can't touch you," he said, opening his eyes slowly and giving a small reassuring nod. "You've come to the right place. Everything is going to be fine with Unity. Why are they monitoring you specifically? Just routine?"

@maxwell_hastings:

It was not atypical, in this day and age, to hear passers-by speaking to themselves. The advent of the cellular phone had been a great leap forward for humanity, and Nemo had watched it happen. He adapted sooner than the rest, acclimating himself to listening to one-way conversations every second of the day. Straining a little harder, he could hear the person on the other end of the line, and play out the discussion with that knowledge; if he peered hard enough through the air, he could pick out radio-waves themselves, and even follow signals for days on end as casually as one might use a GPS.

It was natural for him to assume, then, that the young man who was presently talking alone outside the Empyrean was doing so into a recording device, or otherwise contacting someone on the end of a line. It was uncommon for visitors to venture up through the top floor of the building that close to his home, a mix of awe and respect for his privacy keeping away most ordinary beings. But this boy was alone utterly, no waves carrying away from his person, and no recording device online. The only object of curiosity was a gleaming helm stored in one of the lad's bags.

"Oh my god. I know you're made of gold, but man, you're dense."

It clicked then, for the Universal Man, who was watching from the other side of the wall. The boy was communicating with the golden helmet in his bag. A quick scan of his brain revealed no real abnormalities, and the speech patterns weren't matching anyone psychotic; on even closer examination, Nemo could detect incredibly faint traces of luminous green and purple light beyond the conventional spectrum dotting the headwear. Magic after all.

Nemo had also picked up on the boy's purpose for being here. It didn't seem to revolve around the mystic helmet at all, but rather, some desire for guidance. He could understand that immensely, and was, in a way, honored that Maxwell had made the trip to visit him specifically. It was gratifying to know that some thought positively of him, even though to the outside world, he may seem above it all. Emotional stability was something everyone needed a little help with sometimes.

He was about to answer the "door" - which was just a regular shiftable wall, the same as all the others - when he remembered the boy's nerves. There was little he could do to immediately assuage them; after all, he was meeting the Supra-Man, instead of Nemo. But there was always something he could do to help.

Zooming into his primary bedroom, he plucked the glasses of one of his "disguises" from a cabinet, sliding a pair of thick-framed black glasses onto his nose. Blinking once to adjust to the new prescription, he snatched a book from a wall. With the collected works of Jules Verne gripped firmly in his right hand, he flew back to the wall, landing and straightening his posture - all within about a quarter-second, give or take.

Sliding his hand across the door, it would fade away, evaporating into the sides slickly to reveal the monolithic presence of the Universal Man. Defying expectation, however, was the fact that he was holding a simple book, and he had a set of reading glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. He placed the book on a nightstand, removing the glasses and slipping them into a pocket. It was for show, yes, but one to put his guest's mind at ease before their talk. Human after all.

Usually, it was the knocker who spoke first, so Nemo waited - offering a reassuring smile as he did so.

@supra-man:

"See I told you he wouldn't answ...HOLY SHI....t"

Maxwell experienced a rather brief emotional roller coaster going from dissapointed to surprised and ending on confused. The door, to put it bluntly, scared the ever loving shot out of the 18 year old. In his lifetime he had seen alot of crazy things but liquid metal doors were an unexpected first. Than he saw the Universal Man sitting there reading a book and placing a pair of glasses into his pocket. Did the Supra Man need glasses and feel too embarrassed to wear them in public? What about when he was flying, did he have contacts? If Max had that much power and needed glasses he would probably feel a bit embarrassed too. Then again he was reading so they could have been reading glasses.

Once the questions stopped running through his mind his inner fanboy rose to the surface. Slowly waking through the doorway with his brain trying to process the fact that he was in the base of THE Supra Man. He pinched his arm to make sure he wasn't dreaming, the sensation of being pinched confirmed that, and than he lost it.

"OH MY GOD YOU'RE HIM!!!! YOU'RE REALLY HIM. You are him right??? Who am I kidding of course your him but, why the glasses? Are you blind? Do you crash into things when you fly or do you wear contacts? What was that door made out of it totally scared me when it was all like whoosh and you were all like 'Im just sittin hear readin' and I was all like 'Does he wear contacts when he flies?'. What boo.."

"Maxwell...focus." Helmet cut through his rushing mind; bringing the real reason why they had come back into focus.

"Oh, right, my bad. Uhh Hi I'm Maxwell Hastings and...well...I needed some help and you were here and I was on vacation here and it all just kinda worked ya know. See I'm really conflicted because for my whole life I've had to live as like this normal kid and then my dad did the things he did which came back to bite me and my mom where we sit. I've sort of fended for myself for awhile now just trying to stay normal but, something happened in my life and I have the chance to make a difference. I just...I don't know. You're really easy to talk to btw like...a community dad."

@hound_of_war: @supra-man:

Kaija hesitated for a moment. Her eyes widened at the mention of Unity and she was at a loss for words. She had come to check up on an old friend and vent, not to speak ill of others. Still, at this rate, it seemed as though a meeting between the Surpraman, The Bat, and Unity was likely to happen. She decided that she might as well be honest at this point, it's not like they weren't going to hear the very same information from them later.

She sighed, wondering if she'd end up regretting visiting the Empyrean in the first place.

"In Fukuoka, I was the key ingredient to the madness. I had my free will taken away from me, and I was weaponized by a criminal. Those events lead to the deaths of thousands. I'm aware of what happened, but I'm making up for it," she revealed a device that kept her from using her powers, a small collar around her neck that had been easily concealed under cloth. She turned to the Black Bat, "I appreciate the concern, really, but I didn't come here to start any trouble. I'm just a bit tired of everything going wrong lately."

She turned back to face Supraman.

"Can you promise me that this won't lead to any more trouble?"