Author's Note: All properties are the rights of their respective owners, Marvel, Respawn Entertainment, etc.

So this is when things get interesting, from now until chapter 54 is over we're taking a detour into an original story arc that I want to do for a couple reasons, develop some characters and character relations, a few set pieces that I couldn't make happen otherwise, and to satisfy several reviews I've gotten. There have been a few people wanting more 'Titanfall' elements, ranging from hostile Pilots and Titans to the famous "Standby for Titanfall" line to Cooper having to confront his experience on Typhon. Then there are other who want things from more pieces of the larger world playing a role to a more likeable and fleshed out Silver Sable to trying to make Mary Jane suck less. Yes, Guest reviewer who really seems to have it in for the redhead, I'm looking at you. I'm going to have a go at doing all of that in this story arc without completely derailing the events of the rest of the game that will come afterwards. Since this was inspired and motivated by y'alls reviews and feedback I would really appreciate it if you left a review to let me know if I got stuff right or wrong. I am equally excited and anxious about how this will go and so good or bad, let me know what you think so I can incorporate it into the next original story arc, even if that won't be until after the City That Never Sleeps DLC content.

Thanks goes out to both ravens18 and CarlosInferno for their help with getting this thing put together and not trying to send me to the looney bin when I pitched this idea to them, even is ravens really wanted to.

The overall arc is in my planning as '1648' which is indeed a Sabaton song if anyone was curious about that hint a few chapters back. If anyone actually listens to the chapter titles (or is like me and has them all in a playlist), then you will be hearing a lot of war themed Swedish Power Metal in the next couple months. '1648' is a song off of the album Carolus Rex about the defense of Prague at the end of the 30 Years War in the year 1648, I only mention that here because it is not a chapter title.

Darksblade: Your words are still appreciated. I will be the first to admit that the premise of the story is a bit off the walls, pun intended. As for the romance, it wasn't the original idea. The plan when I started was for Cooper to get around a bit but they work quite well together and I know some people really like it. There are no plans to break them up or anything though, so if you like then don't worry, it isn't going anywhere.

Blaze1992: While that is a bit of a contrivance, my answer is...Yes, it means they have to do less paperwork.

A fan: To each their own, the view counts of each chapters show that many people do like them, but I understand. As for the Black Tusk stuff, I'm sorry if I gave the wrong idea about how many 'Division' elements there'll be, but that won't happen. There are no plans for the Black Tusk to appear at any point. All I have planned is for a few more cameo appearances and to have a certain faction from the Spider-Man game appear and behave more like a faction from the Division with the exact same backstory. As for who Taskmaster was working for? You'll find out during this next arc, even if that plot thread won't be resolved for a long time.

For this chapter though, I've gone back to CCR. Not that I originally planned to have them feature twice in three chapters (which hasn't happened since the early, dark times when I used way too much AC/DC), but this chapter went unnamed until right before I posted last week's update and needed to find a title, and I just went with the most obvious. Off of their 1969 album Green River, this is a song about the oncoming apocalypse, and no, I don't mean the X-Men villain. You'll have a good idea of what exactly that 'nasty weather' entails by the end of this chapter.

Power Without Question – Chapter 43: Bad Moon Rising

I hope you got your things together

I hope you are quite prepared to die

Look's like we're in for nasty weather

One eye is taken for an eye

Oh don't go 'round tonight

It's bound to take your life

There's a bad moon on the rise

"For once, I think things are starting to look up" mused Peter as he literally pulled himself up through the chilly night air. Martin Li was in the raft, the insanity of the previous day had ended, he had managed to get through an entire meal with Mary Jane without having to be dragged away by a supervillain attack or Inner Demon plot. "And the city has been quiet all day too, maybe I should call it a night?"

But that wasn't really an option, even if Cooper had taken care of all of the Demon warehouses and Fisk construction sites, there was still a lot of smaller 'active' crimes going on throughout the city. Still, they hadn't been anything he couldn't easily handle, and he decided he would finish his usual patrol route and head back to the safehouse he was shacking up in. As he neared the end of the route, with nothing requiring the attention of Spider-Man as New York seemed to be chugging along. The massive metropolis shrugging off the events of the last few weeks and quickly returning to normal.

All of those thoughts were pushed aside as he caught sight of a woman on a rooftop waving at him and immediately changed course, swinging towards the setup and noting the lights set up and the giant QR code painted on the wall behind her. As he disconnected the webline and backflipped before coming down on the rooftop, he saw the odd S logo on the woman's shirt, and was certain he had seen it somewhere, but couldn't place it. "So, you're going to do it?" she asked excitedly as she pointed at the logo behind her, "the Screwball Challenge?"

Peter's eyes narrowed behind his Advanced Mask, the white lenses on the outside following suit as he scrutinized the woman, "I…don't know what that is" he admitted truthfully. But the name 'Screwball' sounded even more familiar, was it some internet thing? He felt like he had seen someone tag him on Twitter about it.

The enthusiastic young woman was entirely undeterred by his response however, her outlook undimmed in the slightest. "No one does!" she exclaimed, "that's the best part. Take a picture of the code on the wall and it starts" explained the woman before adding, almost as an afterthought, "Easy Peazy! It's to help the needy."

"Oh" replied Peter blankly, "well, in that case…" he supposed as he pulled out his phone from a pocket on the inside of the pants of his suit and opened up the camera. Snapping a picture of the code and posting it on his feed.

It didn't take very long for the post to yield results. A ring in his ear indicated he had a call incoming through Twitter, and he accepted only to be greeted by the most grating and annoying voice he had ever heard in his entire life. "Ess Em!" shrieked the woman happily. "You accepted the challenge! Welcome to my stream!" The webslinger couldn't help but roll his eyes, he couldn't imagine how JJJ could twist his appearance on a livestream, but he was sure the result would be entertaining. "B-T-Dubs, now that you're on board, the views are racking up like cuh-razy!"

Wonderful mused the Wallcrawler as he tried to think of a way to adequately describe the way Screwballs voice made him grind his teeth into dust. "Here's how it works" she explained, "The matrix barcode you scanned is sending you the GPS coordinates of another matrix barcode in the area."

"Um, this is starting to sound time consuming. Sorry, but people need my help" he answered, trying his best to sound apologetic, but he really just wanted to finish his patrol and head for bed. He had been putting in overtime the last few weeks, he deserved just one easy day, didn't he?

Sadly, the Parker luck said that he did not. "Ooooh, funny you should say that" squealed Screwball in a way that made Spidey wince not only because of the pain spiking in his ears, but also because of what that could mean. "'Cause this is to help the needy…one in particular" she said ominously. Now the Wallcrawler had his teeth on edge for an entirely different reason, "the final matrix barcode will give you the location of a – wait for it –" she teased before pausing dramatically and a darkened image was DMed to him and popped up on his HUD. "A kidnapping victim" revealed Screwball with dramatic exasperation as Peter squinted at the photo, almost making out what looked like someone tied to a chair in the middle of a darkened room.

"WHAT?!" exclaimed Spider-Man as he immediately loaded the GPS coordinates into his suit's system and sprinted in that direction, leaping from the rooftop and swinging through the night like a bat out of hell.

'Screwball' was turning out to more than live up to her moniker as her excruciatingly grating voice filled his ears with pain once again. "I know! Talk about raising the stakes!" she cooed back maniacally, he wondered if her voice was also the result of an Oscorp experience gone wrong, it was certainly a reasonable explanation. "Isn't she telegenic? Trapped…Helpless…will she starve? Suffocate? No time to lose. The internet is watching! Tata!"

With that, the line mercifully went dead, leaving Peter's thoughts as the only things he could hear. "This got dark fast. She's nuts…but I have to play along." There really was not other option, if he ignored the threat then this homicidal streamer could very well carry out her threats. Thankfully, he didn't have to go very far until he saw another black and white pattern plastered around the corner of a building. "There's the next matrix barcode" he said with relief, "but this one isn't going to be so simple" he realized as he latched onto an apartment building across the street and held out his phone with one hand, crawling around with his other three limbs until he finally stopped of the rooftop and lined up the shot perfectly. "Got it."

Unfortunately, that caused the origins of his suffering to call him again. "Oh SNAP! Shout out to my fans – some of who just joined my stream…and joined Spidey IRL!" said the psychopath just as he felt a hum at the base of his skull and turned around to see four men in hoodies on the rooftop with him.

"Has everyone lost their minds?" he muttered as he saw a pallet and snatched it up with a webline before swinging it over his head and hurling it at the closest thug, the wooden packing implement breaking on the guys head as he dropped to the roof like a sack of potatoes. The second and much larger goon charged, only to get a squirt of synthetic silk in the eyes as Spidey slid past and fired two lines to pull him to the one farthest back.

While the webslinger ripped the gun from the thugs hand, he heard that grating voice in his ear again, his teeth back on edge. "While we enjoy the action scene, let me read some messages from my squad" announced Screwball as Spidey took out his irritation on one member of her 'squad' by slamming his fist into his gut and backflipping, landing a bicycle kick on the mans chin that sent him sprawling backwards. "Thug4eva says 'Love you Screwball. Your stream kept me going while I was in jail.' Aw!" Spidey tried to block it out by diving out of the way of the big bullrusher again, leaping forwards into the third goon attaching a webline to his leg on the way past, ripping the limb out from under him as he slammed down, his rifle clattering along the concrete. "FanCDan says 'I ROFLED when you pranked J. Jonah Jameson with the pie.' So did I FanCDan, so did I."

Peter quirked an eyebrow at that, both at the name and comment as he finally turned his attention to the last man standing, the massive fridge of a man snarling at him with malicious intent. "May have to find the VOD of that one" he whispered to himself as he deftly adjusting the settings on his web shooters and charged forwards, one blob of impact webbing slammed into his chest, the synthetic silk staggering him and pinning his arms to the mans sides.

With the incredible agility he possessed, the red and blue clad vigilante leapt up and did a hand spring off of the guys frankly massive shoulders and launched himself into the air, twisting around and coming back down as he swung his right leg. The top of his foot slammed into the side of the man's head and sent him stumbling into a wall, knocking the wind out of him as a second shot of Impact Webbing pinned him to that spot, despite his struggles."SlimGatz is an old friend of the show who Spidey sent to Ryker's. He says 'can't wait to see you humiliate Spider-Freak.' The feeling is mutual, SlimGatz!"

With one last look at the dispatched thugs, Spider-Man sighed and spit out one last quip, for the road. "Too bad, guys, you'll have to go back to the cinnamon challenge" he suggested before leaping off the rooftop.

"Sorry about that Spidey" apologized Screwball, "I can't help it if my fans get personally invested. They're passionate. Hashtag: Blessed."

Peter reflexively let out a snort at the comment and couldn't help but ask "did you just say the word 'Hashtag' out loud?" incredulously. "That's honestly almost as bad as the kidnapping."

There was a tense moment of silence as Peter failed to contain a small smirk of satisfaction and managing to get a moment of reprieve from the auditory assault. "Snapping that code should have sent you the GPS to the next location" returned Screwball icily, "you'd better hurry" she snapped. "Our friend is all alone and oh, so sad."

The next code was split between two buildings, meaning it took him a bit longer to line it up just so, but he managed to get it all in frame just the same. "Never thought I'd be happy I spent so long taking pictures for the Bugle" he quipped to himself before the next call inevitably arrived.

It didn't take long. "Now this is totally unofficial…but I'm hearing some of my fans decided to bring you a little care package. I think they're saying 'You're the bomb.' Might want to grab those, fast. People could get hurt!" suggested Screwball 'helpfully.'

Activating the pulse feature in his suit, the distortions created by the bomb's circuits registered on his HUD as he leapt to the first one, heaving it into the air and blasting it with webs until the impacts knocked something loose, shorting out the detonator and causing the explosive to go off in mid air harmlessly. Making haste, Spider-Man repeated the process two more times, ignoring the commentary in his ear.

"Wooh!" whooped the streamer, "and my mentions are blowing up too!" she said somewhat tastelessly. "Nice job taking a simple photo, guy. Snapping that one should get you the GPS to our victim. You better save her before our fans get bored…'cause in entertainment, boredom is death" she informed seriously.

"Address isn't far from here" realized the Wallcralwer as he shot out a webline and began swinging as fast as his little webs could carry him, "better hurry." The seconds ticked by with agonizing slowness as he tried to squeeze every bit of speed he could out of his run knowing a life hung in the balance. Dropping down into an alley, he turned to be met with a door that looked exactly like the one in the picture he had been sent and what looked like someone sitting in a chair inside. "Camera's everywhere" he murmured, "this is it. Can you hear me? I'm going to rip the door down!"

With that, he fired a pair of weblines and shattered the glass to open the way to the workshop on the other side. The figure in the chair stood and a familiar voice pierced the darkness, "Oh my god, Spider-Man! I can't thank you enough…" called out the woman as she stepped forward into the light to reveal herself to be wearing a white jumpsuit with a magenta stripe on the visored helmet and down the sleeves, "…for the MILLIONS of clicks I just got!" she hollered excitedly as Spidey focused on the s shaped logo on her forehead as she pulled out her phone and began filming.

"Screwball?!" sputtered the Wallcrawler.

"I know, right! You should see the look on your…creepy moving eye hole thingies!" crowed the streamer excitedly as she continued to film him. A familiar and uncomfortable buzz began to manifest itself in the back of Peter's head when the 'hostage' kindly informed him of the source. "Oh look…more of my followers."

One attempt at the apocalypse and everyone thinks they're Mad Max groused Spider-Man as he turned to the gaggle of men behind him, some armed, some not, and all with ill intent. That said, their first words weren't what the Webhead had come to expect. "Screwball! Put us on your feed!" called out one, making Spider-Man question where that thug's priorities lay.

Pulling a trip mine from each of the pockets on top of his wrists, Peter surged forwards, dropping one disc on the ground as he charged straight at the biggest one, waiting for one of the man's arms, which were as big around as his legs, to start swinging before he slid between the thug's legs and sprung up behind him, planting both feet in the small of his back and sending him stumbling forwards. While he tried to regain his balance, he tripped the laser and activated the mine, which ensnared him in a thick blast of webs and yanked him to the ground. Pushing off of the man's back, Spider-Man threw his whole weight into the pistol wielding goon and knocked him back.

Before he could follow up that strike, his Spider Sense buzzed menacingly, causing the Hero to leap up and backflip over the top as he fired a blast of webbing into the knife wielding man's face as he came back to ground and fired two more lines, trapping one hand in each as he turned his foe around and launched himself forwards, slamming a blue covered knee into his face. "I don't officially condone this" chimed in Screwball from her position as Spidey extended a wrist to web her mouth shut, for his own sanity, but the fourth thug caught it with his face, Peter's shoulders sagging at his misfortune as he emptied the rest of the cartridges on the goon before launching him up into the air only to fire a webline and yank him back down to earth.

"Then tell them to stop!" he shouted back in exasperation as he gracefully dodged out of the way of the fifth and attached the second trip mine to his back before kicking him towards his buddy with the gun, smirking as the mine activated and trapped the two in one giant ball of white webbing. But more arrived, "can't I just have one easy night?" he pleaded to whatever deities might have been listening.

Priming a web grenade, he chunked the sphere and stuck it to the central figure, "get it off!" he cried as he flailed about uselessly until the device detonated and ensnared the entire group, making them easy pickings.

"Is that all?" he asked, "can I go home now?" Pausing, Peter let out an audible sigh of relief when only silence answered him, meaning his night had come to its merciful end. Jumping up and away, he saw a pair of police cruisers surge down the boulevard and come to a screeching halt outside the alley where Screwball and her 'fans' were waiting.

Getting out of the way to let the boys in blue do their jobs, Spider-Man watched as Screwball was cuffed and escorted to one of the cruisers. "LOL!" taunted the steamer, "what are you going to charge me with? I didn't actually doanything – it was all my fans."

"She has a point" conceded the cop as he guided her into the backseat, causing the Webhead to sigh in disbelief, "gonna be heard to make anything stick."

The Webslinger let out a sigh as his shoulders drooped. "For a Spider based hero, I'm really starting to hate the web."

Felicia Hardy was feeling better than she had in a long time, back in her element as she bagged a collection of antique European daggers and jewelry. The ornately decorated items belonged to a corrupt judge and the Black Cat was more than happy to remove them from his possession, even if it was only temporary. Slinging the set of saddlebags over her shoulder, the Thief strutted back towards the patio to make her clean getaway. But there was one more element to her good mood as she pressed a gloved finger to her earpiece, "how am I looking cowboy?" she asked, knowing that her lover was posted up on a rooftop acting as her spotter and lookout and it felt good to do what she loved together.

"Sexy as fuck, sweetheart. That suit somehow makes your ass look even better" he reported with only the smallest hint of mirth as Hardy exited the penthouse into the chill of the night air. Removing the scrambler she had used to disable the security system, she left a small cat for Spider to collect before her earpiece crackled back to life, "that doesn't mean I can't wait to get you out of it."

The insinuation instantly brought a smile to the Black Cat's uncovered mouth as she fired her grappling hook and flew through the moonlit night. 'Stud' had been an apt nickname for the Marauder, the man had a sexual appetite to rival her own and wasn't afraid to be a flirt when they were in action. And it wasn't as if Hardy had ever tried to dissuade the man from it either, it was nice to work with a man who didn't turn into a stuttering mess every time she bent over. "Good to see you've got your eyes on the prize Cowboy" she purred in response, "check my six, do I have a tail?" she asked before quickly adding, "any more tail than I should?"

There was a wry chuckle on the other end of the line, "lemme see…nah darlin', looks like you're clear" he drawled casually. "No sign of alarms and police patrols are normal. Negative on enhanced opposition as well" he reported more seriously, the last part of the transmission meaning no Sable response and no sight of a certain Webslinger. "Alright then, I'm going to pack up and meet you at the RV, be ready for me when I get there. Marauder out" he said.

Felicia bit her lip in anticipation, whenever Matthew was commanding like that it was always a fun night for her. Of course, she would have fun getting there too as she arrived at her transport. She gave the black Ducati a gentle caress before attaching the custom-made saddle bag and firing up the sports bike. Giving the throttle a rev, Felicia's smirk became a full-on grin, the burglar safe in the knowledge that this would only be the first powerful machine she had between her legs that night.

"Impressive Pilot, you made it all this way alive. Unfortunately for you, there is only one way out" announced a robotic voice over the PA system of the facility Matt found himself in. It was his second day on Typhon, and he had spent most of the last 24 hours scared out of his mind, even if he had BT backing him up. He had been doing his best to conceal his fright from the machine, but when they had been forcibly separated, he hadn't bothered nearly as much. "Step onto a moving platform" ordered the Apex Predator running this godforsaken factory.

Looking up, Cooper saw the ceiling drop out as panels reveled themselves to be the prefabricated tiles this factory was building, just what the hell was the IMC up to? From his right, he saw the assembly he had just parkoured up begin to move to replace the ones in the ceiling. "Why me for fucks sake?" he muttered as he watched the first one pass and got a feel for the timing as he bounced on the balls of his feet in anticipation. His jump kit flared in preparation as the next one approached, "no guts, no glory" mused the Texan as he leapt from the catwalk, arms flailing wildly as he came down, rolling to a stop and unslinging the G2 rifle.

"Well done Pilot, I will take it from here" intoned the PA system. Indeed, she did, in a moment Cooper found himself in a fully assembled area, grass and trees mixed with prefabricated structures in what almost reminded him of his home back in suburbia.

But those feelings were quickly pushed aside as a new, lifeless, voice sounded over the PA system. "Loading scenario one-two-seven in Dynamic Simulation Dome three-one-four" it announced as the Militia Pilot checked his ammo, three mags for the G2, and two for the Devotion on his back as well as four firestars. Hopefully it would be enough for 'scenario one-two-seven'.

Then he was plunged into total blackness as the simulation dome rebooted. "Now – we shall see how impressive you truly are" said the Apex Predator simulacrum coldly, a chill working its way down the former rifleman's spine. Once the dome had cycled, several features rose from the ground, platforms, staircases, hills, and undulations.

Cooper was suppressing his fear and already scanning the area with a Pilot's eye, looking for wallrunning and parkour routes he could use as well as chokepoints to avoid. But the CPU AI interrupted his thoughts, "delivering Militia test subjects" it announced. Matthew's eyes widened, wasn't he the subject? What other poor bastards were being subjected to this shit?

Hearing the sound of doors opening and footsteps on the platform behind him, the Pilot turned that way. "It's another test! Arm up!" barked a coarse and authoritative voice that screamed NCO to the rookie.

"We barely survived the last one!" shot back another as Cooper jumped up and tried to pull himself up onto the platform, only to find himself staring down the barrels of four guns with scared and weary looking faces behind them. "A pilot!?" shouted one as he extended a hand and helped pull the Texan up, "now the odds are in our favor!" Cooper didn't have the heart to tell him he was still new at this; he was far too busy being scared himself.

The NCO paid the Pilot's plight no heed, "nothing about this is in our favor. Aim sharp!" he ordered sternly as the four infantrymen took everything they could carry before the gruff looking Sergeant turned back to Matthew, who instinctively straightened. "You got a plan Pilot?"

"Figure I'd stretch my legs, move fast and harass them from the flanks. Keep them off balance and draw fire from you guys" suggested Cooper, trying to sound confident. "But I'm open to suggestions" he added dryly, survival was more important than his pride, "if you've got a better one."

The NCO shook his head, "nah, not really. You stay out of our way and we'll stay out of yours, can't really keep up with you anyhow" replied the soldier. "Jenkins! Ramirez! I want fields of fire on those buildings. Sweetwater! You got the field in between. Pilot, I suggest you stay out of those areas, don't want you getting shot" finished the Sergeant dryly.

"Can do" assured the Texan, "good luck" he called as he ran and jumped from the platform.

"Scenario one-two-seven load complete" announced the AI as Matthew landed against the wall of the dome and began running along what looked at first like thin air.

"Let us begin: Deploy Specters" ordered Ash, the Apex Predator seemingly keen on finding out what would happen. Right on cue, drop pods descended and the six-foot-tall robotic soldiers emerged, guns blazing. The Militia soldiers returned fire as Cooper posted up on a rooftop and picked a few off with the semi auto before the Specters prioritized him and he dropped down and changed positions.

"Pilot" intoned BT suddenly, Cooper slide hopping through a hail of bullets, "your heartrate has increased. Are you in destress?"

Ducking and rolling behind a structure, he popped out to fire a few shots, blasting the heads off two robots before the weapon clicked, empty. "Kinda busy right now BT" he remarked hurriedly as he fumbled around with the next magazine before finally seating it in the rifle.

"If in combat, utilize your cloak. It will temporarily make you invisible" reminded BT. Matthew just stared dumbly at the button on his glove, he had completely forgotten about that in his small panic attack. Smashing his thumb down on it to activate it, he jumped up as a group of machines rounded the corner, unaware they were being watched from above. Cooper dropped down on the trail machine, crushing it under his weight as he swiftly executed the remaining ones.

"Well" he mused as he took a brief moment to scan for anything useful, "that was easy."

Then things got a whole lot harder as the chatter of guns fell silent, the IMC robots having been wiped out by the Militia forces. "Initiating IMC Reaper test program" announced the CPU AI, the name 'Reaper' not inspiring warm and fuzzy feelings in the Pilot.

A mechanical noise caught Matt's attention as he jumped up to the top of the building, clambering onto a rooftop, he heard a fearsome mechanical roar, the warbling sound seemed to shake him to his core. "The fuck is that?" he said in shock as he laid eyes on the source. Standing ten feet tall in armored in white IMC plate was a massive bi-pedal machine. Its oversized torso had a huge arm with a three fingered hand coming out either side.

The Militia grunts opened fire, rounds bouncing harmlessly off the 'Reaper' as he crouched down and leapt into the air, jump jets carrying it with ease to the platform where the grunts were. With frightening efficiency, it engaged the infantry, picking up the first man with both hands and tearing him in half. The other three kept firing as Cooper watched in muted horror, the Reaper dashing to its right with the thrusters and grabbing the next grunt by his legs and slamming him into the floor like a rag doll. Another tried to rush the machine and get close but found himself thrown back as the Reaper hurled the dead rifleman into his comrade. The fourth threw a grenade that exploded between the machine's legs, but had no effect as it charged the NCO, picking him up and turning him to paste with an energy blast from the hand holding him. With cold calculation, it raised its now blue glowing hand and unleashed a salvo of blue plasma at the sole remining living grunt, turning him into a fine red mist as well.

And Cooper had just fucking watched.

The Machine then turned to him as he stared dumbly from the rooftop as the Pilot back peddled, but it was too late. Igniting its thrusters, the Reaper soared through the air and came down with a crash on the roof, mere feet from Cooper. Lashing out with one of its three fingered hands, Matthew jumped back instinctively and pulled out a firestar, sidearmming it into the singular red eye staring him down.

Getting a warbling snarl, Matthew turned and ran, jumping to the wall of the dome and running for dear life, not daring to look back. Shit! Shit! Shit! he screamed internally as he jumped to another rooftop and tried to come up with a plan, but the Reaper didn't give him time as it jumped up from the ground and smacked Cooper with a backhanded strike that sent him flailing halfway across the arena. His G2 flew from his hands as he lay flat on his back and saw the Reaper land in front of him and walk towards him as he unslung the Devotion and took aim.

Squeezing the trigger, the gun began to spool up with painful slowness while the Pilot walked the blue tracers onto the only unarmored part he could see, the midsection joint right as the gun began to hit its stride. Letting out a roar of his own, Matthew unloaded everything he had into the Reaper as it bore down on him, hands glowing with blue plasma and letting out that terrifying warbling roar.

Hearing that roar in his mind caused Matthew to sit bolt upright in bed, breathing heavily as he took in the darkened surroundings. "It was just a nightmare, I'm not on Typhon" he muttered to himself as he recognized Hardy's penthouse, specifically her bedroom, and that the heiress was sleeping soundly. "Haven't had one about that fucking rock in a while" he groaned as he settled back down and pulled the blanket up to cover both of them once more.

But sleep was a long time coming for the Marauder, despite the full day of helping Yuri, and Felicia's heist, and everything that happened in between, he couldn't shake the feeling of unease that permeated him. Come to think of it, the last time he had felt something like this was right before he and Spidey took down Fisk and he couldn't help remembering how that had gone. For a second he debated getting out of bed and trying to find something to calm his nerves, maybe a glass of whiskey, or a call to BT to confirm everything was quiet.

Those plans were dashed when he felt a soft form press into him and had a pale arm work its way over his chest. Turning his head, he saw Felecia had moved right up next to him, her elegant face inches away and still clearly asleep. Smirking, Cooper wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer, her head seating itself into the crook of his neck as he rested his head one hers and felt himself unwind, calming until he slowly began to drift back to sleep, content.

"And you are sure of this?" asked Silver Sablinova flatly, doing her best to keep her emotions in check and her mind rational. She hadn't judged the woman across from her to be one to mislead others, and nothing in her body language indicated that the Captain was lying as she nodded grimly. If what she was saying was true, then the Symkarian was going to have to have words with her employer. "Why would he do such a thing?" she asked seriously.

"Truth be told" replied Watanabe tiredly, "I have no idea" she admitted to the Soldier of Fortune. Sable rolled her eyes, but Yuri continued on undeterred. "But despite this deal, Osborn has never liked the Marauder. Why he decided now was the time to try and do something I don't know. But I do think it is him" she said as she beckoned Silver to follow her into the garage at the safehouse she was staying at.

Sablinova found a laptop shoved into her hands as she read through what was on it. The information was shocking, it was seemingly internal Oscorp memos about the development of 'GR-27' and what originated it. Subject M and the dates lining up with when the deal with the Marauder was made. "The Marauder told me he gave medical supplies to Osborn as part of their deal, but nothing ever came of it…or so we thought" explained Watanabe. "And no, I don't think he knows, he doesn't have those documents" she revealed. Sable nodded, knowing that if he did then Osborn would likely have been killed.

"So Osborn considers the Marauder a loose end" supposed Silver, "and he's been trying to take him out to keep the origins of Devil's Breath quiet and make sure he doesn't have to answer for its creation." It fit with how she viewed the man, to be sure, and the fact that she worked for him sent a spike of anger up her side, stopping right at her holstered energy pistol. "And now that you know he tried to do the same to you."

Yuri nodded, not needing to validate what Sable believed was true. "But if that wasn't enough, then there's this" she said as she pulled a blanket off the object sitting in the middle of the garage, revealing a silver flying wing. "Look there" she said, pointing to a circle on the wing as the mercenary crouched down and read the Oscorp logo. "I went through the records, Oscorp reported a theft just before you arrived. We didn't pay much attention, but I have the case file here" she said as she held up a file folder, "and it reeks of an inside job."

Sable wasn't going to argue that, she wasn't an expert in that field, but the Policewoman was, and if she said it was an inside job then the Symkarian was inclined to believe her. With all of that in mind it pointed towards a very disturbing picture, Norman Osborn was trying to kill anyone who knew about Devil's Breath that he felt he couldn't control. He had gone behind her back to use her people to do it, and now she too knew the secret. That left only one question in her mind as she kept up a straight face, "what do we do?" she asked simply.

Yuri shrugged, "not much we can do" she admitted. "All the evidence we have is circumstantial and Osborn is a slimy sonofabitch. We just need to be on the lookout and…" she was saying when her phone rang, and the Captain looked down at it with a frown. "Watanabe" she answered curtly, her face tightening as the call went on. "When did this happen?" she asked, pursing her lips at the answer she got. "I'll be right there, hang on" she said before hanging up. "We're leaving" she said in a way that even Sable felt it would be unwise to argue. "You have a car outside?"

"What's going on?" asked Sablinova as Yuri holstered her revolver and pulled her jacket on before storming out the front door to Sable's pursuit vehicle.

"That was DeWolff. Two hours ago, there was report of unusual activity at a sanitarium. We just found the bodies of the two officers who investigated…or what was left of them." Sable waited for her to finish as they locked the safehouse and settled down in the car, "we might need to call in the big guns."

Yuri Watanabe bull rushed her way into One Police Plaza, past the Sable Troopers posted outside and the hallways full of officers and detectives on her way to the office of acting commissioner Jean DeWolff. In tow was Silver Sablinova, the mercenary projecting her usual air of 'fuck off' to everyone else as the two women ascended the building. When they exited the elevator onto the floor where the 'situation room' as many had dubbed the revamped space that was used to monitor and track high priority events around the city and ensure an effective response. It was a lesson the NYPD had learned the hard way after the Cinderblock debacle. "What the hell's happening Jean?" asked Yuri bluntly as she came to a stop beside the blonde.

"Yuri?" asked a startled DeWolff as she turned around and gave the Captain a shocked look before her eyes widened at the presence of the Symkarian. "Whatever; follow me. You too, chances are I'm going to need to get your people to help with this" admitted the blonde begrudgingly as she pointed at the silver haired woman and the three moved off of the bustling floor and into the Commissioner's office. "We're keeping this quiet as we can, but there's more to this."

The oriental woman narrowed her eyes, she had seen little that concerned DeWolff like this and seeing the Blonde perturbed had her worried as well. "How much more?" she asked sternly, only to get the acting Commissioner to avert her eyes, only causing worry to spike further. "Jean, what the fuck is going on?" snapped Watanabe as she leaned over the desk to look at the sitting blonde.

"The two cops…we only found bits and pieces, neither are getting open casket funerals. They were mutilated" revealed DeWolff weakly, "I've never seen anything like it." She then sighed and tapped something out on her computer before spinning the monitor around, "and we found this, one of the bodycams survived somehow. And…it's best if I just show you." The Acting Commissioner's tone caused both women to take interest in the darkened screen. Yuri could make out an extensive underground facility that was strikingly clean, but very dark. In frame was the officer holding out their flashlight.

The frame shook suddenly as the wearer stopped and spun around, as if looking for the source of the shake until it seemed to pass and the pair continued forwards. However, the peace didn't last long as there was a faint red glow that caught the cops' attention and they both moved towards it. Once they got closer one of them called out, "NYPD! Is anyone there?" and the response was one of the most terrifying sounds the Captain had ever heard. A deep warbling mechanical sound that sounded feral and technological simultaneously. One of the concrete pillars seemed to explode and knocked the wearer over before he was seemingly picked up and slammed back down repeatedly before he was thrown into a post.

Though the angle no longer moved it showed the man's partner frantically trying to pull her gun and managing to get a few shots off before turning to flee. But a blight series of blue flashes lit up the recording as blue balls streaked in and melted chunks off the cop as she too dropped dead, body smoking from the attack. With that chilling image, Jean turned the monitor back around and closed the video with a grimace. "Can either of you tell me just what the hell did that?" she asked simply.

Yuri shook her head, "no idea Jean. Definitely wasn't Demons, they do black and white" she reasoned. Never had she heard of or seen anything like the blue energy attack that killed the second policeman from the masked criminals. But for some reason she couldn't shake the feeling she had seen something like it somewhere.

"I've received no reports of such attacks from my troopers Commissioner" reported Sable calmly. "This is something that I've never seen before, but it is clearly a threat. Leave this to me, I'll take a team of my best people in and handle it" said the Symkarian with all the weight of an order.

Jean raised an eyebrow, "even though you have no idea what's waiting for you?" asked DeWolff skeptically. Sable continued to look placid and undaunted by the prospect, the veteran Dog of War had probably gone into similar situations before. Watanabe bit her lip as the blonde turned towards her, "Yuri, what are your thoughts?"

"We might not know what that is, but I think I know someone who does."

When the Symkarian had realized who it was Watanabe had called in she had almost dismissed the exercise as a waste of time and stormed out to begin assembling her men for the task of finding whatever had killed the officers. It was only now, that the Marauder was standing in the office and had just finished watching the footage Sable herself had seen, that Sable was glad she hadn't left. Even in full gear, she found the Renegade Pilot's body language easy to read partially due to her own experience with her troopers.

The Marauder wasn't just nervous, he was scarred out of his mind.

No, he didn't react by fidgeting, like most would, but by tensing, bending his knees, and clenching his fists. To Sable he was ready to fight for his life, he didn't seem like the cocky Commando she had encountered before who casually dispatched everything he had encountered with seeming ease. "Where was this?" he asked simply, his voice void of his usual drawl and hard as steel.

"Why?" asked DeWolff, "do you know what is?"

He nodded in reply, "I do and as for why…I'm going to take BT there and obliterate everything that moves" he explained with deadly calm. Sable raised an eyebrow at the answer, she hadn't expected it to say the least, and was now fully invested in finding out just what could invoke such a strong response.

"That's uh…a little extreme, don't you think?" asked Yuri as the glowing visor turned to face her.

"No Captain" responded the Marauder with a shake of his helmet before he pointed at the screen. "If that's what I think it is…then it's really not."

The weight in the man's filtered words filled the room, it was telling to hear the man speak with such conviction. Soon the attention shifted back toward the Acting Commissioner, ultimately it was her word that carried the most weight, even if it didn't feel like it. After a few seconds, the blonde finally made her decision. "I can't agree to that, too high profile…" she began only to be cut off as the Marauder slammed his fist down on her desk.

"Let me make this real simple" he said lowly, "if you do anything else, then every man you send in there will die." The man seemed so convinced in his belief that nobody challenged him for some time. "That's…that was a Reaper, it's an IMC heavy mechanical assault unit" he revealed, "and it was made to go up against infantry and slaughter them. I've seen them do it" he added distantly.

"IMC?" said Sable, causing the others to turn to the Symkarian, "from your 'home dimension'?" she asked skeptically, getting a nod in reply. "Then how is it here? What is it you aren't telling us?" she demanded, "you kept your 'Titan' hidden from us for all this time. Who says you weren't hiding this 'Reaper' too?"

"Because only the IMC used Reapers" he shot back testily. "I don't know how the hell it got here but that doesn't matter. We need to kill that thing right now. Best way to do that is me and BT, we'll get it done and nobody else has to die" he argued, turning back to DeWolff who frowned.

"Damnit" she cursed as she ran her hand through her hair before looking the Titan Jockey right in the visor. "Straight up, it is possible to kill one of these things on foot, at all?" she asked.

"Yes" admitted the Marauder, "I've done it."

That seemed to seal it in the mind of the Acting Commissioner. "Then Sable, I want your people to go in if you're still willing to send them" said DeWolff as a faint smile came to the Symkarian's lips.

"I'm not just willing to send them" revealed the Mercenary, "I'm willing to lead them."

Internally, Silver took great satisfaction in the looks the two policewomen were giving her while the Marauder's expression was hidden behind his helmet. But DeWolff wasn't done yet as she turned to the armored Pilot, "Marauder, I want you to go with them. Help them if you can but leave your Titan out of it. I do not want any more collateral damage" she ordered sternly. "Am I clear?" The Marauder turned his helmet but didn't respond until after a long moment he nodded silently.

"I'll go with them too" interrupted Captain Watanabe suddenly, getting a nod of approval from DeWolff, much to the ire of Silver, who didn't want another loose cannon on what was shaping up to be a dangerous mission.

"Then I'll need you to come with me Captain" instructed the SRS Commando, "you're going to need to be properly outfitted. That six gun won't cut it on this trip" he said in a tone that brokered no argument.

Yuri nodded and the pair moved to leave when Sablinova called out, "I'll send you the rendezvous Marauder. 2 Hours; don't be late" she ordered sternly.

Confidence slowly returned to the Titan Jockey as he chuckled and turned back, "don't worry Sable" he assured, "I ain't missing this party."

Yuri would never admit it to anybody, but she enjoyed riding in Widowmaker, and it was a sad reminder of her father, or specifically the Plymouth 'Cuda that was sitting in a storage container he had bought. She had always been told that it would be hers, but just like the money he left to her when he died, it hadn't been touched, with Yuri content to simply let it rot. But as she was pressed into the seat and the howl of the V8 echoed through the streets as the Hypercar scythed through the dimming city, she reconsidered letting that old muscle car turn to rust.

She didn't have the opportunity to dwell on it for long, the Marauder guided the car into a warehouse and underground as it soon arrived at the Pilot's main hideout. The massive armory had enough firepower to outfit a full platoon and then some as the engine fell silent and the Titan Jockey threw his door open and climbed out. "Guns are over there" he said, pointing towards a selection of racks, "take whatever you want" he ordered flatly. "I'm going to go see about the rest of your kit" he said calmly before spinning on his heel and heading over towards the Titan.

Quirking an eyebrow at what he meant, Yuri set to work going through the dizzying array of armaments. Rifles, pistols, shotguns, and weapons she couldn't even describe were lined up as she perused them, overwhelmed at the sheer number and variety. "Get a grip Yuri" she chided as she forced herself to calm down and focus on finding a gun. She ignored the big machine guns as to heavy and bulky to carry for too long and did the same with the grenadier weapons. Next, she pulled a shotgun from the rack and looked it over before putting it back, she wanted something with a bit more precision. One medium length scoped rifle caught her eye as she picked it up and pulled it to her shoulder, it was old fashioned, long, and solidly build, but the scope on top gave it away as an accurate weapon. Turning it 45 degrees, she looked down the small red dot mounted at an angle to serve as a backup before deciding that she would be taking this one and looked for a sidearm.

The pistols were kept on a separate section of the wall rack and it didn't take long for the Captain to make her selection. Picking up the massive revolver and getting a feel for its weight, the wheelgun felt like it belonged in her hands as she raised it and looked down the small optic on top of the black finished weapon. Satisfied she was about to turn around when she heard a cocky voice behind her, "I knew you had good tastes Captain" said the Marauder. Yuri turned to see the Pilot holding a selection of gear that caused her to raise an eyebrow as he continued, "I'll grab the ammo for those" he said pointing to the guns, "and you go put these on" he finished, holding out what he was carrying.

She was about to argue, but his tone made it clear this wasn't up for discussion as she relinquished her newly acquired arms and took possession of the gear. She noted the grey top and pants with purple and yellow accents, relatively form fitting and flexible despite the sections that clearly had additional armor on them. But there were two items that stood out, the first was a ski mask type article, with a rigid component at the top of the head that mounted a suite of advanced goggles with no fewer than six lenses. The second was a pack with two canted nozzles that was about 12 inches by 6 inches by 4 inches and fitted the straps to wrap around the wearer's waist and legs. "Is this…" she began before trailing off.

The striped helmet nodded, "that's pilot gear" he confirmed. "I know its sudden, but if we're walking into what I think we are…you're going to need it." Yuri nodded slowly as she scrutinized the Marauder and came to realize something.

"You're scared" she realized as the man did nothing to deny the assertion. "And I'm not putting this on until you tell me why" stated the Captain firmly as she stepped back and held her ground. For a few seconds, there was a tense stand off between the pair as neither was willing to budge.

Finally, the Commando let out a deep sigh and muttered a curse. "Because I know that was a Reaper on that recording…you never forget that sound that they make" he admitted lowly. "And because I don't think it's just one reaper down there. They may have top end combat AI, but if one did somehow follow me when the Fold Weapon went critical there isn't a snowballs chance in hell it kept a low profile for over a year, they aren't that smart" he explained. "I think it just got here, and it couldn't have gotten here on its own…" he said before trailing off, the insinuation clear.

"Shit" cursed Watanabe eloquently as the Marauder merely nodded. "You think the IMC somehow managed to replicate what happened to you? And now they're here?" she asked, "what they hell could they want?"

The Militia Renegade shrugged haplessly, "I couldn't tell you" he admitted. "What I can say, is that if the IMC is here…then it's going to take a miracle to stop them."

Cooper's Logbook – Grenadier: Magnetic Grenade Launcher (MGL)

The Magnetic Grenade Launcher is an interesting weapon with a checkered past. It is an old weapon, dating back decades to the old Titan Wars and the urban warfare that came to epitomize that conflict. Using low velocity 40mm grenades from their heavy belt fed mounted grenade launchers in a handheld weapon to make them more portable, those early weapons still bear similarities to the current Mk XIVs. The short barrel and collapsible stock make it ideal as a backup weapon and that has always been a constant in the many variants. The new Mk XIVs use smaller 30x29mm grenades, but have more of them in the much welcomed box magazine to contain the belt so it doesn't get caught up or snagged on the many corners you'd find in the weapons preferred urban playgrounds.

The key attribute of these grenades is the magnetic coating applied to them that gives the weapon its name, while this was originally an improvised and 'in the field' modification, it has since become a built in feature, with specialized rounds meant expressly for these weapons. The big change is that the grenades are spherical to make them 'bounce' and allow the magnetic nature of them to work in all aspects, making them more adept at shooting around corners and over ledges.

Those qualities make it afeared by all Titan Pilots in cities, squads or platoons of troops with these things can quickly bring down even the hardiest of Titan with concentrated fire while being very hard to spot and hit. Even with the modern lighter rounds, the weight of fire the weapon can put down has increased with the two round burst. While this has contributed towards the Mag Launchers reputation as a Titan's bane, it also has seen expanded use with the rising number of Specters, Stalkers, and Reapers on the battlefield. While it lacks the precision of a Charge Rifle or the raw power of the Archer, and you would never want to take this thing into any sort of open terrain, but when the fight is in it's wheelhouse, the MGL can launch it out of the park.

Closing Notes: And there we go, this really is just the beginning, a tease in all honesty. There is a lot more coming but I still want your thoughts now if anyone would be so kind as to share them. What'd you think of the Screwball sidequest showing up? Please tell me you never want to see her again so I don't have to subject myself to her appearances in the DLCs. And yes, I'm well aware that the whole 'I should have some friendly pilots' plot thread escalated very quickly, but when I wrote that I still didn't know exactly when the IMC was going to show up, and that's the way it goes sometimes. Curious as to what you folks make of having Yuri being the one, and yes, she is the only one, who is getting the Pilot's kit. I shouldn't sound so final, it could change, but I'm not planning on it. As for reasoning, she was simply the one in the most need of a power increase and I felt it would still fit with some story events from the DLC down the line. If you want a more visual idea of what her set looks like, it's the Militia Female Sniper variant from Titanfall 1 with a recoloration to make it more fitting for Yuri considering where her arc goes.

Now, for all of that, I am curious if there are any amongst you who do not like this idea. Ravens18 was very adamantly against it and I would understand if I get some angry comments about this not being something they want. Ultimately, I made the decision that this arc is of a high enough quality to include and pushes the story forwards in ways I like while still allowing me to transition back into the main game's story. I just ask that, if you stuck around this long, you have a little bit of faith and give me a chance to make this work and not crash and burn.

But to crash and burn you have to take off first, and that will happen next week as some get baptized by fire, 40:1.

Stay Frosty, Misfit Delta out.