Off the Rails

Mimic, who had got their start in superheroing by working as a body double within the government, phases right through the side of the train carriage. While she’d made her name in shapeshifting, she was just as accomplished at sneaking and sleuthing!

"We hear you, Heritage. Boarding as we speak." she says, as she slinks into cover just as soon as she finds her feet.

"Does G.L.O.B.A.L have a passenger manifesto we can access?" she ask. Knowing what kind freaks were on board would help them know what they might be up against.

At the top of an overlooking cliffside, Revenant peered along the long silver maglev line that ran through this dead and desolate part of the world. Dark smoke smoldered off of him, his body warding away the brilliant rays of the sun to protect the pale body underneath, drifting in the blustery winds that swirled grain and dirt in his path.

"Even for a supervillain prison transport, we're pretty far from civilization." he mused, arms hanging loosely to sway with is plodding steps "...Guess I can cut loose a little." he concluded, a sharp-toothed grin splitting the shadows clinging to his face. Sure enough, the echoing rattle of the train echoed along the cliffs as it raced towards its final destination, the M.A.R.T. was slick, black, a smooth as a coffin. Lightning arched around it like its own ominous storm, eager to deliver its cargo to the silent tomb of Tranquility.

And if Revenant didn't get moving, he was going to miss his window.

"Rrrrrggh~" the dark smoke swirled and crackled as the man reached to his chest and dragged his fingers across it like someone opening a door, white eyes opening as the ground underneath him heaved and convulsed. After a moment, the cliffside collapsed, starting a landslide. Crouching like an animal coiled to pounce, Revenant rode the front of that landslide, hurtling over the wasteland at nearly two hundred miles an hour, in defiance of physics as his long hair and the smokey shadows streaked behind him -- not nearly fast enough to outrace the supertech monorail, but roaring over the uneven ground on an intercept course. Cresting a low rise, the earth slide made a ramp that he leapt from with grace, hands forward, clawing for purchase.

Bare-chested, his fingers punched into the side of the train, forcing handholds where none existed, turning his head to shield his eyes from the rushing air. Looking back, he could see where the artificial landslide had fallen, sculpted by his power into a mournful angel, kneeling and gripping a sword, their hooded head bowed to hide their face. It looked like the entrance to a sepulcher, carved hundreds of meters high. After a moment, his pale blue flesh turned to milky white, and he leaned forward, stepping through the exterior of the M.A.R.T. and out of the baleful light of the sun. Ghost-like, his thick boots clattered on the floor plating of the eighth car before his color flooded vividly back.

"...Revenant reporting." he said, looking towards the shadowy Mimic, "Who else are we waiting for?" he asked, rolling his shoulder and looking at the sturdy double-doors sealing this car off from the next.

"We are boarding this train aren't we?" Malcolm sighed as he asked aloud, knowing the voice that would answer could only be heard by him. 'Absolutely' As if they'd done this dance a dozen times before, Malcolm put his milkshake in is cupholder, and gobbled up the last of his french fries ash he stepped out of his car. His dark skin, afro, t-shirt and jeans we all suddenly covered by the armored green exo-skeleton of the hero that has come to be know as Cicada. He literally leapt into action, heading to the nearest M.A.R.T. junction.

---

He arrived in plenty of time to catch the train. Perched on the rooftop of a building near the tracks, it was a simple matter (with the powers the Bug gave him, that is) to leap down to the train. "Oh good, I'm not the first one here."

Radiant Shield had been warned that this was going to happen and despite her best efforts no one still took her seriously. Many in fact thought she should be aboard this train as a prisoner for her work prior to becoming a hero. So here she was lying in wait for that moment when the call would come as expected.

As the nose of the train flew by she trusted her armor to absorb the impact and her own invulnerability to protect her; reaching out she used her natural speed and strength to lessen the margin for error. Grabbing onto the final car of the train she pulled herself aboard, "Sorry about this." she rips off the emergency exit door at the back of the car.

"Hello, I am here to shield, wait no errr. Protect. I am here to protect."

Radiant Shield is standing in full plate armor including a helm. "Thank you for the handholds. Made grabbing car much better."

Mimic slinks off into the shadows cast by the prison cells just as soon as the voice comes through the speakers. When the doors slide open and reveal Radioactivist, she tuts.

If only Heritage had gotten them that manifesto…

As he charges and is distracted by his target, she maneuvers around him. When she sees an opening, she bursts out of the shadows:

"Got your ticket right here. Just needs a punch!…" she quips, as she attacks.

The Bug instantly reacts, doing what it does best: protecting its host, and stopping the source of the attacks.

As Cicada's sonic chrip shrilly filled the inside of the train car, Revenant reached out and clutched the glowing monstrosity's arm, swinging him hard into the airlock door. With the metal bubbling and dripping on contact with the radioactive bruiser, Revanant pounced on him, pressing him into the door and raining forearm strikes into his twisted face as he tried to use him to melt through the door.

"We don't--" >THUD< "have time--" >WHUD< "for this!" >KRAKT<

Unable to breach the door Radiant Dawn is left slightly out of breath from colliding with the door and knocking the air from her own lungs.

"Can I use his face to break this door next?"

Cicada grumbles "This is going to take too long. Is there another way to the front of the train?"
the bug answers him, "Affirmative,traverse the top of the train, but . . ", Cicada cuts the voice off, "Great, that's gotta be easier than this."
"I would advise host not to interrupt . . "
but Cicada interrupts again to say to his team; "Guys, I'm going to cross topside" With that, he jumps out of the train.

"We’ll go faster if we drop some weight!" Mimic calls to Cicada! And with that:

"Hey, jerk! Time to go!" she says, as she tries to grab him around the waste and phase through the carriage wall again. If she can drag the villain out into the rushing air, she’ll drop him so that he hits dirt way, way back!

"What the-!" he says as Mimic phases out of a wall, grabs him, and pulls Radioactivist outside the train. Intending to throw him off, the villainous villain manages to hold on to the exterior of the train!

Revenant clutched the containment cell for stability as the train roared forward around him. His body smoldered from his contact with the Radioactivist. the hand he'd pushed the molten man with showing skeletal fingers, scalded pink skin on his bare chest where he'd first tackled the man, and one fang showing from where his lip had curled back on contact when he'd been pushed back. He looked more perturbed than in pain.

"...Hrmn...an embodiment of nuclear decay. Avatar of quantum forces, an elemental created on scientific principle..." he growled to himself, bony fingers pushing him forward. A leap brought him up to the top hatch of the car which he opened, the wind howling over the surface of the train blowing his long black hair back.

"You know nothing of decay, Radioactivist!" he shouted, roaring to be heard over the wind, black smoke boiling out of his body. Seeing an aerial drone detaching from the exterior of the train, he reached out towards it. The smoke swirled out in elongated, howling faces with long, grasping fingers, ritual markings glowing red across his body before one of those twisting shades moved to sweep the Radioactivist away, pouncing him as Mimic tried to throw him free.

With the loss of her door melting friend Radiant Shield is going to join Cicada on the outside.

"Is windy, let us move quickly. My hair will be a mess."

Radiant Shield allows herself to be buffeted by the wind as she pulls herself along the top of the train car. Facing forward and towards her target.

Mimic feels the wind whipping at her hair and cloak, and is glad that she has the black stillness covering her face.

Using the others to break some of the wind, the slight woman slinks up the train and slips down into the next car in seconds. Her powers to pass through walls had been a source of envy for other heroes, though she doubted any of those assembled here would have trouble gaining access.

"That was easy! Good work, team. Let’s keep things moving." she says, despite not being the first to move about the next car. Instead, she watches from the shadows… should there be any!

"This we can handle!" Mimic sneers, supposing that automated lasers were less fuss than a super villain. You didn’t feel as bad throwing them off a train, either!

She runs to the first turret she can reach, and tries to jam her fist inside the firing nozzle. She’d done this trick a thousand times; shapeshift her body to destroy something from within!

"Boom!" she quips, as she expands her hand into a massive rock!

Cicada followed Mimic along the top of the train, but he was more focused on avoiding any damage than on causing any himself. flipping to avoid any sort of tracking, and jumping to avoid any incoming fire. He wasn't sure if it would work, but he hoped it at least looked cool.

Mimic waves the others on, as she shakes loose her hand and returns it to its natural shape!

"Move, move!" she cried, over the whipping wind! She’s tempted to try the comms again, to relay their progress back to HQ.

No time!… her mind screams, and she dashes for car number 6!

"Thank you for clearing way."

Radiant Shield will run forward along the top of the train not bothering to try and dodge the turret fire after all these mere lasers can hardly scratch her. After all her instincts tell her that if she simply moves ahead she will find success. Success this case in making it to car 5 while taking a simple laser shot.

"See, just scratch. Not bother me."

Revenant put his head into the wind, his small mask serving to shield his eyes even as the wind cut through is cheeks and comically flapped his lips around. Black smoke still streamed off of his body, unable to properly shield him from the sun at the near-sonic speeds the maglev was traveling. Still, he pushed to catch up to the rest of the group, the punishment his body had taken from engaging the Radioactivist in hand-to-hand combat slowly clearing up, fading from raw pink back to its cool blue shades.