(no subject)

[ace_of_knaves]

Who: Joker + Open
When: Night of the 20th
Where: City-wide
Summary: The Joker is dead but not gone. He returns in the Darkness to destroy the island he feels has taken so much from him.
Warnings: Violence, possible character death, language



The war path started in sector five where a man had died, feeling alone and bitter. The massive creature bore the man's madness, anger, pain and despair and knew only one thing: Destruction. It thundered down the streets, its long tail lashing about behind it, its hideous, cackling cries echoing to the rooftops. Where it went it disturbed the other beasts and all over the island the Darkness was starting to act up and grow more violent.

The creature took no notice of the madness it produced. It had only one aim: The Core. It was making its way towards Sector Four to destroy the machine once and for all. For Batman's sake. Even in the Darkness, it was all still about Batman.

((OOC: OOC info on the event!. Threading format is "Tagger's Choice": Tag however you feel most comfortable. And feel free to NPC the monsters and civilians as you wish! People fighting Joker will be fighting him at the same time, so go ahead and tag each other. Also, if you'd like to play with one of the optional Core status ailments: Getting closer to the baseball diamond may make you feel queasy or uneasy as if the Pull has become a Push.))

Comments

Borders of Sector 5, 1, and 3 | Monster-slaying and evacuation | Open

[icy_heavens]

He didn't bother with kidou. He hardly even bothered with ice. Of course he used them when tactics called for it, but if he could help it? It was all about swordsmanship. The thickness of battle and split-second timing were what he needed right now. That required all his attention, and left no room for the cycle of depressing thoughts through his mind when there was nothing else to engage it.

He and Kuchiki had felt the Darkness stirring even worse than usual, and it hadn't taken genius intellect to realize that the monsters would be out in force tonight. They'd shared a brief look, set up a combination of barriers around the house -- with a kidou alarm that would be tripped should one of those barriers be breached -- and each headed out to a different area of the city.

Just in case, he stayed in the sectors closer to home, blade slicing through the night and Darkness beasts alike. Every so often, he would have to usher some foolish people back inside. Idiots, endangering themselves like that. Sometimes, he even had to use kidou to shove them back into proofed buildings and ice the doors shut when they just wouldn't listen. He was keeping them safe, but nothing said he had to be polite about it.

[cracked_container]

Teito hadn't intended to still be in Sector 5 when the Sirens went off - but after leaving the Zoo, he'd stopped by the Cat's Eye and ended up staying until after closing, to help. And then there was the customer and her kid that hadn't been quick enough to leave and had come rushing back when the sirens did go off...

He'd escorted them to their home, fighting off Darkness monsters when the occasion arose.

He still wasn't used to seeing such twisted creatures though.

Even so, he didn't hesitate - he just chased one of the strange things around a corner, then snapped out a sharp burst of Zaiphon. The beast shattered before him, and through the spot where it had been, he could see a surprisingly familiar figure.

He blinked, then canted his head to the side. "...Hitsugaya?"

HoA - WARNING: Eventual almost death - Open

[thelittlestbub]

Jubilee called Magneto. Called and told him to get his ass to the house, because she didn't know what was going on, but the Darkness wasn't right.

It hadn't been right for days - she'd come across more than one shadow that hadn't been empty - but this was different. This was... more. She couldn't explain it.

Luckily, she'd been scheduled for a late shift at the Gate. She would have gotten there an hour after sirens. If sirens hadn't brought hell on earth.

The first person she saved was the little cat-boy that Magneto was taking care of. He'd stopped by for some food - Jubilee had invited him - and had assured her that he could get home, even in the Darkness. However, the rope-faced dog at the door had stopped him. It'd gotten a face full of PAFs, and she'd shoved the kid back inside.

... This wasn't right.

"Hey! Ugly!" ... Wrong description as that fit just about everything here. "Pick on someone your own size!" Which, wasn't here, but whatever.

Sectors 3, 4, and 5 - open!

[awakenings]

Not good.

Re-l didn't do much at night most times. She'd stay in, work on some things, maybe read. But with that girl missing, she'd taken to the streets, even in the Darkness. She looked for clues and shook down anyone she could find in her war path. Not many lingered outside, not at night, but she'd deal with who she could. Tonight, though, she can feel the shift in the tides, like something was amiss. She couldn't figure out what it was, though, until she drew closer to the heart of Sector Four. There, she could see the monsters ripping into buildings, taking advantage of some sort of chaos. People were screaming and running.

From her vantage point - a building tall enough for her to take the most of the sector in stride - she couldn't see the cause...but it didn't matter. She had to move.

She leaped down from the building and entered into the fray, claws out and tearing through the monsters she could find. People fled past her and she drove forward, ready to take out anything that stood in her way. This is was Bruce would do if he were here. She was determined to stand in for him, to save as many people as possible. (Only for tonight, she tells herself in the middle of everything. Only for tonight.)

[cowboycop]

Jake Marshall had also been keeping true to his word when he said he'd keep looking for the girl, little Violet. He had been so caught up in finding this girl, in searching for any sign of her, that he didn't even notice the sun going down. In fact, he only was startled out of his one-track thoughts when the Sirens began to blare. "... shit-!"

He quickly began running toward the center of the island - his path around the city had just been spiraling outward, so he was nowhere near the apartment. Right through the middle was the fastest way to get home. But that was helping him run faster, especially as he started seeing things forming in the shadows. Mentally, he reminded himself to berate himself for his stupidity later. It was when he really started having to dodge creatures coming toward him that he tried ducking through the maze of alleyways in the middle of the island - the downside was less space for him, but that meant less space for the monsters, meaning less monsters to fight.

Jake continued through the alleys, dodging what he could, shooting what he couldn't, taking all the training from the police force here to do it. He was going directly by the book, which wasn't exactly the best idea, but for a man with no powers he could practically apply to fighting, and only about 50 bullets left on him? He didn't exactly have the opportunity to take chances.

Sector 4, 5, 6 - OPEN!

[wingedcrown]

The Darkness didn't stop Dani from having fun. Quite the contrary; it gave her an excuse to either be out all night or to stay in and actually sleep. Without Finch, without a purpose, she lacked the initiative she once had back in New Orleans. Now, she was a ruler without a throne, a lonely dancer without someone to be around. Going out and dancing under strobe lights, forgetting about the world and everyone in it was the perfect way to end an evening.

Tonight, she had half a mind to just teleport into the bathroom at the Twins so she can slip out and dance. But then the Darkness became rowdy. The Angelus responded.

"Great," she muttered, letting the light engulf her as she left her building. Perfect way to get an evening going.

But she still pulled the swords out of the light she had, set them ablaze with the power of the Angelus, and took off into the night. Her red armor gleamed in the dark, her entire form bathed in golden fire. She was ready to fight, regardless of the enemy. She torched them with fire and then began to help people evacuate the scene as quickly as possible. Many stared at her in alarm, at her crown and at her wings. She paid them no heed. There was work to be done.

Sector 4, near the Apartments!

[motioned]

It's been nearly an hour that she's been out in the Darkness, trying to stop anyone from being killed. Though she's determined to help and devoted to the cause, even a princess is capable of distraction. So when she turns, dodging a monster, and sees a girl racing by who seems to be aflame, there's a moment where she can only stare.

Then time starts to move again, and she moves away from the creature pursuing her, going towards the unfamiliar girl. Though it's obvious the fire isn't a danger to her, allies are always welcome, especially after the sun has fallen behind the horizon. She doesn't speak a word yet, trying to judge if the being wants her there.

Sector 6 - ALSO LATE WOW

[laurice]

"Whoaaaaaa!"

As Larry engaged a monster, desperately backing away and trying to hack at it with his halberd, he noticed a glow from the corner of his eye, and couldn't help but turn his head. There was the source - a woman approaching, helping people and blazing with fire. For a moment, he wondered if that was her power, since she didn't seem to be affected -

"Owwwww!"

That was when his opponent suddenly headbutted him. Larry cried out and stumbled, and before he could do anything else, he was picked up and thrown against the wall of the nearest building with a yell and a crash that was followed by the halberd clattering uselessly beside him.

He groaned from the ground, rubbing his head and wondering dazedly if he should have just gone home right away instead of...well, throwing himself into battle like this. Who was he kidding? He was no fighter, not even as a Puella Magi. Larry tried to sit up as the monster approached him, ready to finish him off...

Teen Titans at the Community Center and the Tower Apartments

[theshortestbird]

Not good not good not good. As the darkness began to act up, and the monsters in it started to go crazy, the map at the Titans' warehouse started lighting up. One attack on a building, two, and it wasn't going to be something that they could ignore.

So they went to work. The Titan's communicator went off, wherever the person was, and they were told to pick one of two places to defend and help people, at.

The first place they could go to was the Newcomer Community Center. The second place was the Tower Apartments. Everyone was told to forget about the main monster, and to stay near the community center or the apartments. If you could heal, so much the better.

[ooc: Avengers Teen Titans assemble! Monster slaying and protecting people at the community center and the starter apartments. Don't go near Titan Joker, but be prepared to be hurt anyway. You don't have to respond to this thread, but you should tag around!]

[madeinoblivion]

Another night of playing hero. Joe knew that one of these days his luck was going to run out, the landlord was going to drop by make a big deal over weakening darkness proofing from the number of times he'd cracked open a window and snuck out after darkness-

'Crazy, suicidal newcomer boys. Hasn't anyone told you that going out after siren is a death wish?'

Once you were out, there was no safe way back in the building till after dawn. But he was used to doing this. It could be a wild ride and a lot of close, close shaves when you tangled with monsters, but that's what he'd signed up for, when he'd joined the Titans.

So he donned the "Darkbeat" suit and tied on the blindfold, borrowing Roxas's hoverboard, because getting all the way to the diamond on foot was a disaster waiting to happen already. Hopefully, his best friend wouldn't notice a few more odd stains or toothmarks.

The monsters were rowdy along the whole way- he had to keep Soul Eater out and ready the whole time. Was the Big Mother out? Or...What was going on.

A pack of rope-faced dogs later, tearing burrowing cords off his arm, he perched on a fire escape to catch his breath, figuring he'd better at least touch base.

"Robin! D.B. - I'm still on the way. Streets are a mess! What's going on out there?! "

[motioned]

As soon as she was contacted through the communicator, she knew there had to be a problem; if the Titans were being called in, there must be trouble. So she doesn't waste time before getting to the Apartments, lithely dodging the monsters on the way. She makes a point not to hurt them, focusing on avoidance instead of violence. As always, it's easier to do in this form, the movements coming gracefully as she made her way around the creatures.

Of course, due to that caution, it takes longer than she'd like to reach the apartments, and her dress is torn in several places from a few encounters that nearly came too close. As soon as she arrives, she automatically begins to look around for anybody who's hurt, as well as anyone in danger.

[nyaruko]

Perhaps just a tad too cheerfully, Nyaruko made her way through Sector four via rooftops, having mapped out the place in the past month and getting rather good at this predicting where the monsters would appear thing as well! All in a day's work and yada yada yada... It was a really good exercise regime for her, actually, and now it felt like it was finally time to put that practice into good use.

And who knew? Maybe she'd encounter some stronger monsters here! She might have been a tad irritated when those people searched her living area and disturbed all her little projects in the freezer, especially since it was so rare that the Darkness monsters didn't disappear during the day. They left such a mess, too, and she spent hours the previous day getting all the critters back into the freezer again to keep for the next two days. Didn't want to use all that meat in a day, after all.

So when the call came in... well, she might have been a little ready for the stress relief. She wasn't a very good cleaning person; just didn't have the patience for it. It didn't take her long at all to arrive back at the Newcomer Apartments.

"Well now!" She pipped up cheerfully. "Is it playtime yet?"

The Joker-Abroad-Open!

[ace_of_knaves]

[In the streets of the city, the beast continuesits charge. It howls and cackles as it moves, tossing aside anything that gets in its way.

It is determined to reach its destination before the sun rises.]

Seras and Walter, Hellsing go!

[bloodthirsts]

[There's no way to miss this, even if it hadn't prompted an emergency police mobilisation, the chaos was unavoidable. Something was headed for the Core, something big and powerful.

It had to be stopped before it could blow them all sky high.

Seras had bolted from the manor and not been surprised when Walter came out with her.]

W-what the...? [She stops to look at the beast.] I've never seen a Darkness monster like that!

[awakenings]

[When she gets separated from Jake just briefly, she thinks she sees the cause of all the trouble, and she literally freezes in her tracks. Eyes wide, she watches the lumbering creature move, and she realizes just who it is.]

Joker.

[And then she takes off after it, trying to follow it without getting waylaid by the other monsters.]

[theshortestbird]

[The Titans had been placed in one of two important spots, and Tim wasn't going to let any of them get in the way of this thing. He didn't know what he was going to do, but he was already on the way to the diamond, when he saw the monster.

He almost stopped in disbelief. Joker. How did this happen?

Knowing that there were others also going after him, he took to the other side, hoping that they could surround and stop him.]

[returnsmagic]

[ Aurican lands to the ground with a heavy thud. Swinging his long neck, he spots a monster with a familiar face and a familiar grin.

The gold dragon bares his fangs, flames licking and dancing out of his maw. ]

Dante-Sector 1, 2, 3-open!

[in_a_dark_wood]

[Dante glides over the city in circles, sometimes swooping down to the street level to slay a creature in the Darkness.

Tonight the Darkness feels more stifling and angry than usual. Something in the distance is sending up whooping cackles but he is too busy trying to drive the monsters away from densely settled areas to fly off and investigate the source of the cries.]

[southernreaper]

[Kevin had been caught out. He hadn't meant to be out, but the habit to go grab a look at where the lab had been was so ingrained that he just couldn't Stop doing it. Even if there was nothing there except blackened earth.

... Though he did wonder if Archangel Smiting Ground made better gardening plots.

He'd tried running from the thing chasing him, but had finally gotten enough distance to rip off his shirt and stuff it into his bag. Without a shirt and without gloves, Kevin stepped into the light of a street lamp. Something shot out of the dark and he moved, watching the street lamp post dissolve. Ick. He stepped back into the shadows and grabbed something that screamed as it withered into ashes.

That same corrupted thrill shot through him, but he didn't care. Something was wrong. Then, he heard someone pound on a window and looked. A little girl had her face plastered to a window pane and was staring at a tortoise shell cat that was trying to hide from something slithering after it. Great. Just... great. He grabbed the slithering thing, watching it turn to dust and grabbed his shirt, wrapping up the cat. He whipped around hearing something. The cat yowled. His hand grabbed onto the arm reaching toward him.

It didn't dissolve.]

Aw shit.

Sector 3

[willprayforyou]

The Magdalena took up a defensive position in front of the largest cathedral in Siren’s Port. Her assistance here this night had been officially requested, lethal force sanctioned. The chaos had reached a fevered pitch, and the Church’s main building had to be protected at all costs.

In her leather armor, with her gun holstered for now, Sister Mariella wielded dual blades to fend off the darkness creatures. It was slow going; the hordes of monstrosities seemed never ending. Time and again, she would gain some ground only to be forced back once more. Nevertheless, these vile creatures would be given no quarter. She would slaughter them all if need be—or die in the effort.

As the Magdalena cut down yet another abomination, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted something swoop in and dispatch another. She turned, no sure what to expect. Was this a beast she’d yet to encounter, one who flew and preyed upon its kin? That last part was not surprising. Evil always turned on itself eventually.

Almost as one, the darkness monsters suddenly fell back and away from this newcomer, clearing Mariella’s path, as if sensing that a greater danger was now present amongst them, requiring that caution be taken.

Sister Mariella had not gone far before she sensed the corruption that was demon blood. So, the true enemy had finally decided to show its face!

In Latin, she called out to the hell spawn. ~"I know you for what you are, devil. You cannot hide from me!"~

Sector 3.

[mister_foppish]

Angry and foreboding this writhing mass of creatures had become, out for the blood of any one or any thing they might rip their jaws or talons into. Unsuspecting victims, as it were. He's never been outside this late before, but...Given that he can't exactly keep track of the time very easily without touching it it's a bit difficult to assess...Aside from having heard the sirens, but he knows...That even staying indoors wouldn't guarantee his safety.

For a time he's able to skirt through several groupings of monsters before his powers begin to flicker, the Core malfunction having weakened them considerably. His illusion of shadow only goes so far to bend the light around him before it fails completely, leaving him exposed. The bright golden light from his Millennium Eye spreads like a halo before causing a ripple to discharge like a flashing ring of light from a bomb, a circle of beasts and creatures screeching as they were consumed by it.

He's angry, and he's tired of hiding, but...that thing in the distance makes him give pause, distracting him from the beasts that start to close in from behind. He can sense some of them, but not all...

Community Centre (Both inside and out.) | Open

[calm_tempest]

It was a chaos not seen since the bombing of the Towers a few months ago. And she'd taken command of the community centre then as she did now. It was pure instinct, from so many centuries of being a military healer. The clinic itself was overfull, so she had to designate more areas for the wounded, keep both staff and patients calm despite the situation outside. All orders are given firmly and concisely, leaving no room for refusal.

The fact that she carried a five-foot long sword at her hip tonight might have added something to her influence.

While inside, she directed people as best as she could, tended to the worst of the cases. But once the Darkness-proofing was compromised, she could be found outside the building at times, as well. She might have been a healer fist, but she was a warrior still. Any creatures that dared try to take advantage of the injured would meet either her kidou or her blade.

[electricitytrick]

"Yes, because what we really needed around here was more horrible creatures trying to kill us all," Anders complained to no one in particular as he spun, lashing out with ice and then electricity at a group of the creatures closing in on him. "I was just thinking about how boring life was when I wasn't struggling not to get eaten every other moment."

Surprising no one at all, the frozen and likely dead twisted figures didn't have much to say to that, which suited Anders down to the ground; he was already moving, trying to get to where he thought he might be able to do the most good.

He reached the community centre not long afterwards, pausing nearby to engulf another of those things in a sheet of flames until it stopped moving, then headed towards the figure outside the clinic. She looked friendly and well-armed and that was enough in his book right now. Better than running around on his own at any rate.

"I came as soon as I could," he explained once he was close enough. "I thought I could help out, fight some creatures and help heal the injured if need be."

Sectors 8, 9, 10 - Open - on the ground and in the sky

[soul_scatter]

[The kidou shield had been set around the house, with an alarm to warn both of them should it fall. While Hitsugaya remained close to home and he could feel Unohana's reiatsu near the community center, Byakuya had gone further. The lower sectors would be more at risk for Proofing failing as the night grew worse.

His reiatsu blasted a couple of minor mutations and he grabbed the little boy up, shun-po'ing to where several people had taken refuge. He'd set up another kidou barrier around the building for extra protection. The boy ran inside and Byakuya turned, Senbonzakura out as one of the night monsters lunged.

His sword crashed against bone, not slicing through it. He was pushed back but he pressed forward, locked in a battle as more shadows crept out of the Darkness.]

Sector 8, in the sky

[returnsmagic]

[ In the sky there is a massive golden serpent, diving and gliding this way and that, doing his usual rounds at the Darkness. He let out a huge plume of flame from his jaws, burning a gaggle of flying beasts heading his way. Aurican turned around and sees an even larger group of monsters - Wyverns, they are called - straining toward him. He spits out another gush of flame but it doesn't even harm them.

Aurican turned and flew away from them, trying to gain enough distance so Aurican can form another plan. ]

Sector 4 and surrounding areas | OPEN

[laurice]

Larry was running with the rest of the people running away from the shadows, panicking and flailing along the way. When he glanced over his shoulder, he could see the dark mass of monsters still pressing onward. His hand flew to the pendant he wore at his neck, and he gulped. He was only supposed to be fighting Witches, not shadows.

But the screaming and the stampeding told him that he couldn't just run with everyone, not when he had a power that could keep everyone safe.

So he gripped the pendant tightly, and leaped high over everyone as his very personage began to glow. When he landed on the top of a nearby apartment building, Larry was no longer wearing his casual clothes - now he was in a bright orange tailcoat over a white shirt and a black waistcoat. An impeccable white cravat with an orange gem in the middle was tied around his neck, and golden epaulets adorned his shoulders. A gold chain ran from one epaulet into his pocket, and a small orange gem shone on his cravat. His breeches were cream-colored, tucked into calf-high black boots. In short, he looked like a ringmaster from the waist up, and an equestrian from the waist down.

A large orange halberd appeared in his right hand, and he took a deep breath and jumped off toward a mob of shadows, screaming all the way.

"Hiyaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"