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Topic: Slaughter House No More!
In: Boards ► General ► News ► America ► General
TinselyFoil (Original Poster)
Holy shit!
Guys, you are not going to belive this! I just heard from a friend in the PRT. The slaughterhouse nine are dead!
(Showing page 1 of 48)
►Aloha
Bullshit. Mods, we got a troll!
Seriously, how many of these threads have been made now? just saying 'the nine are dead' isn't going to make it real.
►TinselyFoil (Original Poster)
No, im Serious! I've got a friend who works for the PRT on the east cost. He said whats left of the nine was just scrapped of the side of a mountain!
►sanctionbellow (mod)
Replied On Jan 1st 2011:
TinselyFoil
Please don't be ghoulish. There are rules about talking about the S9.
As this is a first offence, I'm letting you off with a warning this time.
►Miss Mercury (Protectorate Employee)
Well, there was supposed to be an official announcement later, but it looks like someone leaked. ( TinselyFoil you may wish to warn your friend that he might lose his job).
/sigh.
The full announcement is {here} but to recap, last night the Slaughterhouse Nine were identified in an undisclosed location. A PRT affiliated group quickly responded and engaged the Nine.
We can confirm that Jack Slash, the Siberian, Crawler, Hatchetface and Mannequin were all killed in the fight.
The two surviving members are in secure custody in a hidden location while we decide what to do with them.
Due to the risk of possible biological agents, all bodies were destroyed on site and we request people make no attempt to locate them.
We are not currently at liberty to divulge the identity of PRT affiliates, only that they are known heroes and they have chosen to donate the cash bounty to victim support charities.
►Bagrat (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know)
I... have no words
►TinselyFoil (Original Poster)
See! See, I tld you! I was right!
the nine are dead, take that you evil fuckers!
*User was banned for this post.*
►Brilliger (Moderator: Protectorate Main)
Jesus... it's really over?
TinselyFoil
Take some time to cool off.
►Saskatchew
~Ding Dong, the Witch is dead!~
They gave up the money? Wasn't it in the billions?
►Divide
No, PRT caps bountys on kill orders. They don't wanna encourage people to take the law into their own hands as innocent people could get caught in the crossfire.
Plus, y'know, they could end up having to give the money to a villain and that just looks bad.
End of Page. 1, 2, 3 ... 46, 47, 48
(Showing page 2 of 48)
►XxVoid_CowboyxX
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA
*User was banned for this post*
End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4 ... 46, 47, 48
##
Scrolling through the thread on her phone, Rune knew she was seeing something big, something important, but at the moment she couldn't bring herself to care. The Nine weren't the ones hunting her after all.
Putting her phone down, she checked her reflection in a nearby window and joined the back of the queue.
Her hair was still black, but the dye was starting to fade and she'd been forced to hack most of it off with a pair of scissors, leaving her with a rough, lopsided pixie-cut. It wasn't a bad look overall, though a salon could probably make it look better, but right now she was more focused on 'not being Rune'.
That's why she was dressed in a ratty old hoody and some loose fitting jeans she'd bought from a thrift store with what little cash she'd had on her at the time.
All together, she didn't look any different to the dozens of people that were currently gathered around her at one of the few bus terminals that were still running.
Rumors had been flying for weeks, ever since Leviathan attacked, that the city was going to be canned. She had even heard Kaiser complain that federal funds were being cut off. Then days after Autobot city was destroyed, the mayor confirmed it.
Brockton Bay was done. There would be no rebuilding; everyone should start making plans to leave.
Rune wasn't really sure how that would work. What would happen with all the businesses and landowners, or those that simply couldn't afford to leave? She was almost sure that Kaiser would be furious.
Sure, Medhall could relocate to another city, but it would be expensive as fuck. None of that was her problem, of course, but hopefully it would keep Kaiser distracted long enough that she could escape the city.
She'd really fucked up this time. This wasn't just dying her hair or mouthing off at Krieg. She'd attacked Wehrmacht, warned New Wave and even fought against the Empire. So long as she was in the city, she was dead.
That's why she was here, lined up with the hundreds of people trying to flee the ruined city while the National Guard patrolled the depot in an effort to keep things from spiralling out of control. All she needed to do was slip onto a bus, any bus and keep her head down until she was a safe distance away.
She knew, mostly, which cities to avoid, where Kaiser had allies or friends that would be looking for her. If she just stayed away from them, she'd be fine.
Which, of course, left one final loose end.
She pulled her phone from her pocket with a huff and stared at the dark screen. She had tossed the expensive smartphone Kaiser had given her almost as soon as the fighting with New Wave had stopped. She couldn't risk getting tracked after all.
This left her with the cheap burner phone she'd picked up yesterday. Getting one with internet had burned through most of her emergency cash, but to her it was worth it. She knew more than a few guys that were a little too 'open' about their affiliations and tended to give away a little too much information.
It had nothing to do with PHO being the only way she could contact Fido. If she told herself that enough, maybe she'd start to believe it.
For a minute, she stared at the dark screen. She hadn't spoken to Fido, Kid Win, since his face and name had ended up online, and hadn't that been a shock. There just hadn't been time and now she was going to call him to, what, say goodbye?
God, she was such a fucking bitch.
A shout made her jump and she looked over her shoulder to see some guardsmen arguing with a balding, overweight man who had somehow lashed half a dozen cases together and was trying to get them loaded onto a bus.
He had probably thought he was being clever, using the bus as an impromptu moving van or something, as what few shipping companies weren't currently tied up with relief efforts, were charging through the nose to take stuff out of the city.
Watching them argue, she noted more than a few people were also eyeing the scene discreetly. She couldn't deny that part of her wanted to know what was in the cases. What was so important he was willing to argue with a soldier who was clearly losing his patience? A greater part of her knew she was stalling and looking for a distraction.
Huffing in annoyance, mostly at herself, she opened up PHO and fired off a quick PM to Fido from a throw away account.
Almost immediately, her phone started to ring, the speed of it making her jump. Huffing, half in annoyance with herself and half with Fido, she accepted the call.
"Hello?" She hated how her heart leapt at the sound of his voice and she quickly crushed any 'warm and fuzzies' down with a reminder of why she was doing this.
"Hey, Fido-"
"Rune!" he gasped, cutting her off. "Are you okay? Where are you? New Wave said you ran off almost as soon the fighting stopped and-"
"Easy!" She laughed, unable to help herself. "Breathe, Fido, breathe… I'm okay, I just… I couldn't stick around, not with the heroes looking to arrest us all."
Glory Hole had made some very colourful threats that had left Rune wondering if the girl had been talking to Skidmark. She didn't take it too personally, though; their home had just exploded after all.
"You saved their lives…"
"I was a distraction while Kaiser attacked the Autobots." If she turned her head and glanced up, she could still see the Autobot symbol floating above the city. A final 'fuck you' that would make it impossible for the Empire to gloss over what they had done.
She wasn't sure if she was pissed or relieved to have been left out of that fight. In terms of sheer numbers, the Empire had taken the smallest number of losses and was probably the biggest cape force left in the city at this point. Menja had been their only major casualty and while Rune wasn't sad to see the bitch go, it was more than a little scary that Matrix had been sitting on that kind of firepower all this time.
'And now, no one knows where she is, or what she's building.'
She dismissed the thought with a shake of her head. The worst thing you could do with a Tinker was give them time to build, but that was Kaiser's problem.
"Nat…" he said quietly, bringing her attention back to the call. "After you left, New Wave found some pictures."
"Yeah, Wehrmacht had them. He was the guy leading the attack on New Wave. He works for Gesellschaft and they wanna take over the Empire..." And she was avoiding the point. "...Did you get into trouble?"
"A bit," he chuckled," but I told them I was trying to convince you to join the Wards… I don't think they bought it, but with everything else that happened, they let it slide."
"Aww," she purred, unwilling to stop herself. "Still trying to protect me?"
"It's my duty as a heroic character," his reply was so quick and earnest that it caught her off guard.
"You need to spend less time with Gallant," she muttered, her cheeks warm. Honestly, he was so sweet it almost made her wish she was a better person. But life was a bitch. 'And so am I…'
"Listen, I've got to go. What I did… The Empire does not tolerate treason. If they find me…" she hesitated, did he really need to know what they would do to her? Shaking her head, she decided against it. If he knew, he'd only insist on saving her.
"Nat-"
"I'm leaving the city. I'll probably ditch this phone in a few days, but… I'll call you when I'm safe… I'm," there was a lump in her throat, her vision blurring as she tried to wipe away the tears.
It was as she finally cleared her eyes that she saw him. Standing on the far side of the bus depot was a large man with blonde hair, his shirt straining against the muscles beneath it. She had seen Brad without a mask enough times that she could recognise him anywhere, and from the unblinking stare he was giving her, he had clearly recognised her.
"I'm sorry."
"Nat, wait!"
Shoving her phone in her pocket, she glanced around, desperately looking for a way out, only to spot others watching her. They weren't even trying to be subtle about it, with all of them either wearing red and black or some form of stylised wolf on their clothes.
'Fuck!' How long had they been there? How had she not noticed them? 'Too much time feeling sorry for myself…'
Brad hadn't moved. Arrogant fucker probably wanted to make her sweat.
"Let me guess," she said loud enough that people stopped to stare at her and Brad's shoulders tensed. "Fight you, or kill myself? That's what you want, right, Hookwolf!?"
People were really looking now, the nearest guardsman had raised his gun slightly. Big blonde man in a red shirt? He was hard to miss. He started to move forward, but a man in a national guard uniform was already making his way over.
Not planning to stick around, Rune spun on the ball of her foot and sprinted in the opposite direction. People shouted at her, but she ignored them and when those shouts turned to screams, she sped up.
Behind her, there was the sound of gunfire and tearing metal. A better person might have cared about all the people who were now in the crossfire, but she was more focused on running.
A bullet struck the ground by her foot and a man with close cropped hair grabbed her arm, pulling her close with a snarl. Without stopping to think, not caring which 'side' he was on, she just acted. Twisting in his grip, she brought her knee up with all the force she could muster. The man gasped, stumbling from the blow. Not giving him a chance to recover, she slammed her head into his, hissing as she felt his nose break and his grip losen.
Pulling herself free, she caught a brief glimpse of Hookwolf, now a whirling mess of blades and metal that was quickly growing into his preferred shape. The bullets from the national guard were doing little to slow him down.
The moment of hesitation cost her; a bloom of burning pain filled her side as a shot clipped her side. Gasping, she clutched at the wound, adrenaline keeping her on her feet as she spun around and forced her legs to move.
Small calibre, she told herself, pushing past people in an effort to get away. The National Guard are using rifles. She swallowed a curse at the implications.
Turning a corner, she ducked down a small, narrow, alley between buildings. She could already hear the tell tale sound of Hookwolf's clawed feet digging into the ground as he ran.
Dragging a blood covered hand across the walls, Rune forced her power into the brickwork, feeling them 'hum' into life. The more she tried to control, the less precise her power was - but that wasn't going to be an issue for long.
With a crash of metal, Hookwolf rounded the corner, his large body slamming into the buildings. He growled like a demonic chainsaw, opening his mouth to expose countless hooks and blades.
She snapped, pulling on her power. Bricks exploded out of the wall, the old and crumbling building lurching to one side as half of it came down on top of Hookwolf.
There were plenty of jokes she could have made, but she was more focused on getting the fuck away. Hookwolf was already pulling himself free in a cloud of dirt and brick dust. He was stupidly hard to hurt after all.
##
"You need to spend less time with Gallant," he heard her mutter, a goofy smile on his face. He could almost hear the blush on her face.
It was rare he managed to fluster her. She was always so confident, so full of attitude, that it was a delight to see her speechless and if he had to sound like Gallant to do it? That was fine with him.
"Listen," she said, the seriousness in her voice made his stomach drop. He knew what she was going to say, he'd been expecting it even since that first kiss. It still felt like someone had pulled his guts out.
"I've got to go. What I did… The Empire does not tolerate treason. If they find me…"
"Nat-"
"I'm sorry."
"Nat, wait!"
The pounding of his heart in his ears was almost deafening, but he could still hear her faintly, in the distance. "Fight you, or kill myself? That's what you want, right, Hookwolf!?"
His blood turned to ice. They had sent Hookwolf after her. The PRT knew what he did to traitors or spies and, while they tried to hide it from the Wards, he'd seen the pictures.
There was rarely enough to bury.
Over the sounds of gunfire and screams, he looked around the room. It was a small storage space in the New York Protectorate that was stuffed with shipping crates. Most of them contained his creations, each one carefully boxed and packaged to keep them safe in transit.
Technically, this was supposed to be his new workshop, but he hadn't bothered to unpack anything yet.
Throwing his phone on top of one, Chris dug his nails into the nearest crate and pulled it open. Buried amongst the packaging materials were his tools.
Cursing, he shoved the box aside with a crash and tore open another one, heedless of his bleeding fingers. Spare parts, nothing of use.
"What are you doing?"
Glancing up from the third box, he saw Fletchette standing in the doorway. Her mask was hanging from her belt, letting him see the look of confusion on her face.
"I - I need to find something!" he said breathlessly, moving to another box.
"And that involves trashing your lab?"
"Tinker Fugue!" he shouted, ignoring her protests. His fingers closed around a small red and gold cube. With a cheer, he pulled it free, hitting a sequence of buttons and panels that caused small lights to start blinking.
"Beginning start up sequence… Error hardware not found. Switching to local backup… Electronic Video Assistant; online."
Plans and ideas were racing through his mind. If anything was missing, then it was still in Brockton Bay, which was well outside his range. He could fix that, but he didn't have the time.
"Kid?" Fletchette said again, stepping into the room.
"Eva, track this call!" He snapped, grabbing his phone. The call was still connected but the noises were muffled. He slammed the phone on to the drone's head with a little more force than necessary, letting the drone float in the air while he pulled open another box.
"Chris?"
"Target located, current position" as EVA began to list GPS coordinates, Chris pulled more parts from a box. He clipped them to the side of the drone and it started to project a map of Brockton Bay on the wall. A small red dot was moving across it.
"Can you access any traffic cameras or CCTV in the area?" he asked, and the map was replaced with a live video feed.
##
Rune had barely made it fifty yards before something snagged the back of her hoody, lifting her off her feet and shaking her like a broken toy. The hoody gave way with a rip and she was tossed through the air.
She spun wildly, her power flooding her clothes as she tried to control her fall. It slowed her just enough that her collision with a parked car only cracked her ribs instead of her spine.
Gasping for air, she pushed her power into the car.
##
Chris' stomach was in his mouth as Nat slammed into a car with enough force to dent the thin metal door. Next to him, Fletchette stared open mouthed. He barely heard her curse as Nat fell to her knees, the car raising up behind her.
The car shot forward like a missile, slamming into Hookwolf headfirst, knocking him off his feet and pushing him backwards into a wall.
Pulling back, the car slammed forward again and again even as Hookwolf tore it apart, fragments wrapping and tangling around him.
"Isn't she that Nazi?"
"She's a friend!" Chris snapped, turning to pull open another crate. "And he's going to kill her! Now help me or get the fuck out of my way!"
Fletchette stepped back in surprise, her dark eyes wide. She glanced between the video feed and Chris as he frantically pulled one crate open after another.
The car had been reduced to scrap metal and the girl had taken control of a nearby truck that she was now using to keep Hookwolf at bay. Most of her left side was covered in blood, a large dark stain in the low quality image that was slowly spreading. Around them, more people were gathering in a loose ring.
It was looking more and more like an execution.
"I must be out of my mind..." Fletchette muttered before stepping forward and grabbing a crate. What am I looking for?"
##
Hookwolf jumped over the truck as it ploughed into the ground, rolling end over end to flatten a man in red and black.
Panting, Rune tried to lift the truck once more, fighting against the darkness on the edge of her vision, but it felt like she was trying to lift a mountain.
Hookwolf was on her in a heartbeat, the mess of razors that was his claw knocking her to the ground. She screamed as blades extended, cutting deep into her body.
"Traitor," he growled, the metal of his body vibrating with the sound, each movement sending fresh waves of pain through her body. "All this, for some boy…"
"No," she hissed, anger pushing the pain away. Reaching out, she grabbed the truck and pulled with all her might. It shot towards them, heedless of anyone in its way, and slammed into Hookwolf with the force of a freight train, lifting him off her and crushing him into a wall.
"I'm just sick of being the Empire's little bitch!" The pain of her injuries was fading, her vision almost black as she staggered to her feet. 'Kill yourself, or fight me'. She understood the difference now.
"Well?" Natalie glared at the gathered Nazis who were staring at Hookwolf, tangled with the remains of the truck. "Who's next?"
With a roar, Hookwolf tore himself free, shaking the last of the truck from his body and charging forwards. Too exhausted to move, Natalie forced herself to keep her eyes open as he bared down on her.
Small dark shapes blurred past her head and a glowing red wall snapped into life infront of her. Hookwolf crashed headlong into it with the sound of crumpled metal, his body folding in on itself from the force. Before he could recover, more drones circled him, trapping him inside a glowing box as a figure dropped from the sky, landing with enough force to crack the ground.
It was a man in a suit of gold and red power armour. Unlike the sleeker, curved armours favoured by Armsmaster, this one was bulky, with a shoulder mounted gun and weapons built into its forearms.
"Leave!" the suit rumbled. Even through the distortion, she could recognise Kid Win's voice.
Most of them were already running, but one or two pulled their guns, ready to shoot. Kid Win was quicker. Raising his arms, his weapons lit up, peppering anyone who wasn't running with little red bolts that she knew from experience felt like a punch to the gut. The blasts from the shoulder mounted cannon had enough force to knock people off their feet.
The remaining Empire forces broke quickly, scattering as Hookwolf thrashed and roared inside his cage, throwing himself against the walls in an effort to break free. The impacts made the glowing walls flicker and smoke was rising from two of the drones.
Kid Win cursed, parts of his armour disconnecting and flying to the cage, clamping themselves to it to strengthen the walls.
"EVA! Get him out of here!" he snapped, scooping Natalie up, more parts of his armour detaching and flying towards her. Unfolding, they twisted and connected together, building a helmet around her head. For a moment, she was deaf and blind with only the lurch of her stomach letting her know that they were moving before the visor activated, letting her see the city below them. Behind them, heading out over the bay, was the glowing cube holding Hookwolf.
"What-?" The cube exploded in a ball of light and sound that echoed across the city.
"Prototype!" Kid Win said by way of an explanation, his voice distant and tinny on the helmet's speakers.
"W-where are we going?" The streets below them were a blur as they shot across the city. Now that fighting was over the adrenaline was fading; cold was spreading through her body and she just wanted to close her eyes for-
"Hey! Stay with me!" He jerked his arms, giving her a little shake. Her stomach rolled again as they dropped suddenly, and her eyes snapped open as they landed on a roof with the grinding crunch of gravel under foot.
"You need to-" He was cut off by a wet, hacking, cough that shook his body. She'd heard coughs like that before, usually from heavy smokers. "-Fuck"
"Fido?"
"You need to stay awake," he repeated, his helmet opening up to expose his face. His skin was paler than usual, with angry red patches running down his neck. "You can't go to sleep!" he pleaded, pulling her closer.
"Please..." His arms tensed, gripping her tightly as an electronic voice came from his armour.
"Warning, user life signs fluctuating. Activating emergency recall."
"No, wait," he gasped as behind them, there was a crash and a swirling green vortex appeared. Glory Girl, dressed in jeans and a leather jacket stepped out, behind her was a small tank, towing a floating platform.
"Alright, let's get you both out of here," Glory Girl barked, lifting Natalie from his arms with surprising gentleness.
"You're lucky I owe you," she hissed, lowering Natalie onto the platform. Turning back to Kid Win, she eyed his armour. "Can you stand, or should I carry you?"
The platform shook slightly as Glory Girl helped Kid Win into place next to Natalie, then braced her arms on a handle to shove them through the still open portal. There was a flash of light as they passed through it, and the last thing Natalie saw before she passed out was a metal room full of Autobots and Panacea glaring down at her.
It was almost enough to make her regret escaping Hookwolf.
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