Coreline: Invasion of Portland
Disclaimer: All characters belong to their respective owners. This is just for fun.
The Core Timeline is an amalgamation of chaos. The so-called real world has been overlapped with the realms of movies, comic books, anime, and more. Portland, Oregon is not immune to this. The City of Roses in the Core Timeline has its own heroes. Mainly the Aegis Organization, a local branch of The Foundation, originally from an alternate version of the Marvel Universe, destroyed in a cataclysm, but reborn here. And when a massive demonic invasion hits the world, Aegis must live up to its mythological namesake and be Portland's defense, for they are the City of Roses' only hope.
Author's Note: This is set during OrionPax09's "Shikigami Ranger and the Monster Mashers".
Chapter 1: Set the Stage! Meet Aegis!
Portland, Oregon
The sky over the City of Roses was, rather usual for the time of year, overcast. Falls tended to be cool and rainy this time of year. Still, the gray sky did little to harm the beauty of the city. In the world known as Coreline, much of civilization could be described as "cyberpunk"...except for Portland. Before the rampage of the CLULESS virus and the Vanishing, Portland was regarded as one of the world's most environmentally conscious cities. Afterwards...that was taken to a new level. Thanks to the technology of various fictions now being reality, the City of Roses could be described as rather..."Solar Punk". Hanging gardens were everywhere, the buildings were powered by sun and wind. Roses were everywhere, making the city truly live up to its nickname.
A woman stood in her office in a tall building, looking over the city. A small smile was on her face, a cup of hot chocolate in her hands. Amusingly, the mug was purple with "World's Best Boss" on it in gold lettering. The woman herself was a tall beauty with brownish-black hair in a bob. She was dressed in a black business suit with a white blouse, and comfortable shoes.
On one of the lapels were a couple of pins. One was of an American flag, and the other was of the logo of The Foundation offshoot she headed: A golden Corinthian helmet in a black circle, bordered by a golden ring.
Rosalind Price was feeling serene right now, even though the Aegis Organization had plenty to do. Since Halloween signaled a spike of supernatural activity, she worked with Portland's police to help evacuate civilians, as these kind of battles tended to get...destructive. The city had special bunkers underground provided by Stingray Industries as a place citizens could flee to and be protected in so superhuman champions could concentrate on taking care of any potential threats without worrying about endangering or injuring civilians. So, why was she serene? Well, Aegis was ahead of schedule. Hopefully, Halloween would not be completely insane this year, but if it did...Aegis was ready. The German/Welsh-American woman sipped her hot chocolate. *1
"Bring it on, Halloween." The former Marine chuckled. "We're ready to party in the living world." She quickly shook her head. Careful, Rosalind. She chided herself. Some cosmic crazy may hear that and take it as a challenge.
"Miss Price?" A woman's voice asked. Price turned around and saw two people walk into her office. One was a slim Asian woman with her black hair in a high ponytail and wearing a green business suit with a blue tie. The other was a bald man wearing sleek futuristic dark blue armor with gold and silver highlights. The armor had a chest emblem of the Aegis logo with a number 1 incorporated into it. They were both smiling.
"Taryn. Luther." Price noted. "Is the evac still going ahead of schedule?"
"Yes, ma'am." Taryn Fujioka, Aegis's public relations expert, nodded, looking at her tablet. "We're just getting the last of the civilians in the shelters." Luther Banks, aka Paladin One and Price's loyal right hand, checked his watch.
"It's about three hours until sunset." He looked at Taryn, then gave the Japanese-American woman a light nudge. "Tell her."
"...tell me what?" An amused Price cocked her head.
"Well, I know we did this yesterday, but..." Taryn smiled. "Maybe we could hold another little party." Price chuckled.
"Taryn, you know why we had the party yesterday." Price reminded. "So we could concentrate on preparing the city today. Saotome warned us that Halloween in the Coreline can get...a bit wild, so I want to be ready."
"Ah, nuts." Taryn mock pouted, making Banks and Price chuckle.
"If it makes you feel any better, Taryn, there is Christmas."
"Knowing this place, I would not be surprised if Christmas is just as crazy." Banks retorted. "We still have some time, but I suggest we get the kids and get them ready." The ex-Marine sniper warned. Price nodded.
"Agreed." She concurred. "We had better get them here."
"Most of them are already here. Rosalind, do we really need to do this?" Taryn asked. "I mean, Portland isn't really known for the kind of supernatural insanity that places like New York City or New Orleans get."
"This is Coreline, Miss Fujioka." Price reminded. "Just because Portland isn't known for that does not mean that we still won't get some giant demon deciding to wreck the city simply because it's bored or having a bad day or sexually frustrated or God knows what else." Banks and Fuijoka fought to suppress a snicker, and Price rolled her eyes. "Times like this, I get reminded I work with children."
"You mean besides the kids?" Banks snarked.
"You know what I mean, Banks." Price rolled her eyes.
"You know you love us." Taryn grinned. "I'd better get my nunchucks, then." Not to mention my little...secret weapon...
"Good. I really would feel comfortable knowing where they are right now."
Taryn smirked. "You really have grown to love them, huh?" Price smiled.
"They reminded me that for all the craziness that superhumans bring, they're still very human." Price explained. She then heard a beeping. Price went over to a monitor on the wall of her office, and turned it on. The monitor showed a slim pale woman with a blonde ponytail that was shaved at the sides. She was dressed in a blue Ghostbuster jumpsuit, the black name patch on it having the name "Unglighter" on it in red letters.
"Miss Unglighter." Price greeted. Rachel Unglighter was a human-demon hybrid, her father being a powerful Sumerian god named Koza'Rai and her mother, a Norwegian immigrant. This heritage made the woman a powerful sorceress, and an invaluable member of Portland's Ghostbuster team. "I take it that the PKE readings are starting to spike?"
"Not as much as in certain other cities, but yeah." Rachel answered. "There's definitely a spike. We're keeping an eye on it, and we're getting mobilized here, just in case."
"Good." Price nodded.
"If it get really big, you guys are going to have to get your super-agents out there." Rachel warned. "I have been sensing something big coming. It's been getting my half-demon blood going, so it's not likely to be anything good." She sighed. "I hope it's not my aunt Tiamat. I hate aunt Tiamat."
"Tiamat? Like...the Babylonian goddess of the sea Tiamat?" Taryn yelped.
"Yeah, her." Rachel nodded. "She loves to raise hell when she shows up. She's also the personification of chaos, so you can bet things will get really screwy when she's around."
"Well, Aegis isn't really meant to handle supernatural events like this, but we'll help how we can." Price told the half-demon Ghostbuster. "The city's been evacuated, so we shouldn't have to worry about civilians getting harmed." The woman looked at her phone. "Still, I had better call all of our allies. We're going to need everyone we can get out here..."
The Aegis Organization building's gymnasium
The Aegis Organization's building was more than just your standard law-enforcement offices. Because it had its fair share of superhumans in its employ, the building had some special things for them, like quarters for some of the super-agents in its employ (a couple of the Agents had nowhere else to live, so the quarters provided them a place to stay), and this gymnasium. The gym had specially-modified equipment for Agents, as well as a training area that was reminiscent of the X-Men's Danger Room.
WHAM!
A fist, wrapped up with tape and covered in a red fighting glove, hit the heavy bag.
WHAM!
Another blow to the bag.
WHAM!
A third blow to the bag. The fist belonged to one of the Agents of Aegis, firing another combination of blows to the bag. He was a muscular Caucasian teenager, wearing a blue sleeveless t-shirt, red gym shorts, and white sneakers. His fists and wrists were wrapped with tape, and his hair, which unusually for someone of his age, was a snowy white. He grunted and hit the bag with a big punch.
WHAM!
The punch broke the chain that held the bag up, and the bag itself was sent flying. He blinked in shock. "Oops." He mumbled.
All-American. Real Name: Giovanni "Jack" Magniconte. Birthplace: Utica, NY, USA. Affiliation: Aegis. Physiology: Inhuman. Powers and Abilities: Superhuman strength, speed, reflexes, reaction time, stamina.
Born into an Italian-American family from Utica in upstate New York, Jack Magniconte grew up admiring Steve Rogers, the original Captain America. As he grew up, Jack would eventually become a sort of "big man on campus". His handsome face made him the object of desire to many girls, and his good-hearted nature made him friends from various cliques. He was practically the modern All-American Boy, he even was the quarterback of his high school's football team.
His life changed forever when he and four other teenagers from around the country were kidnapped to a lab run by (unknown to them at the time) the mad sociopathic scientist Dr. Henry Clerk. Clerk had kidnapped them to use as test subjects for various experiments involving the Terrigen Mists. Jack would end up exposed to the Mists, giving him his powers and turning his hair from blond to white. Jack and the other four teenagers would be rescued by Aegis, and they would join the group to bring Clerk to justice. Jack had become the leader of the group, much to his surprise.
"Ah, crud." Jack muttered, rubbing the back of his head. His cheeks reddened in embarrassment. "I really have to watch my own strength sometimes."
"Good thing for us you never have that problem on the job." A female voice teased. Jack turned and saw the woman chuckling, her hands on her hips. The woman herself appeared to be an anthropomorphic cat with jet black fur, her equally dark-colored hair seemingly resembling a lion's mane. Her dark brown feline eyes twinkled and her tail twitched in amusement. Her fingers and bare feet had nails that were more like cat's claws. She was wearing a gray t-shirt with the Aegis logo on it and blue bike shorts.
Nightcat. Real Name: Jacqueline Tavarez. Birthplace: New York City, New York. Affiliation: Aegis. Powers and Abilities: Superhuman senses, agility, reflexes, healing factor, strength. Can see in low light conditions. Skilled musician/singer and criminologist.
Jacqueline Tavarez was once an aspiring singer, until witnessing a drug deal caused her to become a test subject for an experimental serum developed by a woman named Amanda Gideon and Dr. Edwin Stacy, aka "Dr. Ecstasy". The serum was meant to imbue people with the powers of animals. Her father, a police officer, managed to save her at the cost of his life, and she developed cat-like abilities. *2
Over the years, she would become a highly regarded singer and occasional crimefighter. However, the serum would have a delayed side effect. The mixture of human and feline DNA was causing her genetic structure to destabilize, slowly driving her mad and eventually would kill her. That was when she crossed paths with Aegis, who were investigating a case of attacks by animal/human hybrids.
Tavarez's old enemy Amanda Gideon had seemingly returned from the dead, and she had refined the Nightcat serum, creating monsters. After Gideon was stopped, Aegis used the modified serum as a basis for a compound to stabilize Tavarez's DNA, at the cost of transforming her into her current feline form. She grew to accept her new lot in life, and became a full-on Agent of Aegis, their sixth super-agent.
"Thanks, Jackie." Jack sighed. He walked over to a pile of heavy bags and grabbed another one. "Having fun on that fancy jungle gym?"
"Hell yeah!" Jacqueline grinned, revealing her fangs. "I've been having a blast. It's a great way to test my flexibility and reflexes. You oughta try it."
"Not my thing." Jack chuckled. "But I am glad you're enjoying it." He then cocked his head. "How are you doing? I know it's been rough for you with your transformation and all."
"Yeah, but I've been getting used to it." Jacqueline said with a shrug. "Being in this crazy world helps. Hell, compared to some of the things here, I'm actually normal!"
"Oh yeah." Jack nodded. "Fair share of crazy stuff in the old timeline, too." The white-haired teenager snapped his fingers as he remembered something. "Miss Price said we should be on alert tonight. It's Halloween, so she's expecting something big."
"I'm not surprised." Jacqueline frowned. "Something's got me on edge all day today. I'm...sensing something in the air. I was helping with the evacuation a bit this afternoon, and I noticed some local stray cats going crazy."
"They were probably sick."
The singer shook her head. "No...they sensed something coming. I felt the same thing. It's got me on edge." Jack frowned and put his finger on his chin in thought.
That is interesting... The young Inhuman mused. Recently, we had discovered she developed an odd rapport with cats. Probably a side effect of her transformation into her current form. If they are going crazy..."Have you told this to Miss Price?"
Jacqueline nodded. "Yeah, of course I did. She told me that she anticipated that. Being genre savvy is only helpful here in this crazy ol' world."
"Indeed." Jack looked at his watch. "Well, it's still a couple hours until sunset. So, what you want to do?"
"I dunno." Jacqueline shrugged. "We shouldn't really go out..."
"True..." Jack admitted. God, Keiko should get her butt here already. I know she wanted to help out at the shelters, but we need her here... "...you know, Jen and Andy finally got that Super Street Fighter II Turbo arcade cabinet working. Want to break it in?"
"I'd love to, but I'm more in the moment to go spend a little cuddle time with Ramon." The catwoman grinned. Ramon Rodriguez was a former police officer and currently a Paladin, the rank-and-file grunts of the Aegis Organization. The feline singer had taken a shine to the man, and the two of them had become close. Jack chuckled.
"Okay, but try not to get too frisky. Price wants us to be ready at sunset."
"Heh heh, don't ya worry, when that sun goes down, I'll be here. If any nasty ol' ghouls or ghosts or goblins or demons come by..." Nightcat held up her hand, an evil grin on her face as her claws lengthened. "I'll give them a...proper welcome." Jack watched the cat-woman leave, then shook his head.
Better Ramon than me... He then sighed. Which is good. I don't deserve a girl in my life, anyway. A little while later, Jack had showered and gotten dressed. He was now wearing a blue t-shirt depicting the shield of Captain America on it and a pair of red jeans. He put on his favorite jacket: A blue-and-white letterman jacket with a pair of red "A"s on it. As he walked, he allowed himself to think.
Halloween wasn't this crazy in our old timeline. Jack mused. But as Miss Price said, "We have a saying in the Marines: Adapt and Overcome." He looked around at the plain gray walls. Taryn has been meaning to redecorate this place... He glanced at himself in the mirror and frowned. You've been awful lucky so far, Jack. He said to himself. But you're going to screw up at some point. And when you do...people will die. And it will be all your fault. Jack growled and turned away.
"I'll have to schedule another talk with the therapist." The white-haired ex-football player grumbled. The young Inhuman walked into Aegis's Common Room. It was a rather homey-looking area with an entertainment center, a pool table, and some couches to lie around and relax in. In the corner, he saw the arcade cabinet he mentioned earlier, but it was already being used.
"Whooooo, yeah!" A teenage boy whooped, pumping his fist into the air. He wore a yellow plaid shirt with a black Back to the Future t-shirt underneath it, blue jeans, and black sneakers. His wrists were covered by a yellow wristband and a yellow smartwatch. His hair was in an 80s-style mullet that would make any anime protagonist from the era proud, held out of his face by a yellow headband.
Gyral. Real Name: Amir Khosrow. Birthplace: Chicago, IL. Affiliation: Aegis. Physiology: Mutant Human. Powers and Abilities: Flight, can fire golden energy beams from hands, knowledge of film history and filmmaking.
The son of Iranian Muslim immigrants, Amir Khosrow was known as a bit of an 80s pop culture-loving flirty quipster with a big dream: To be the next Steven Spielberg. As a kid, he and his father, a local entrepreneur/philanthropist, bonded by watching movies (American films were a big help to his parents in learning English). As a result, Amir developed a desire and love of filmmaking.
At the age of six, his parents would get him a camera for his birthday. He would use it to film everything he saw, as well as make his own movies. As he grew older, he started writing movie reviews for his school paper, and got a job at a movie theater.
Like Jack Magniconte, Amir was one of the five youths captured by Henry Clerk to perform experiments on with the Terrigen Mist. His mutant powers helped the kids escape, and he became one of the original five Agents of Aegis.
"Yeah! Yeah! That's how it's done, baby! Whoo!" Amir crowed. He started doing a funny victory dance, making the man he was playing with roll his eyes. The young Iranian-American mutant pulled a yellow smartphone out of his pocket and started filming himself bragging, making the man throw his hands up and then pinch the bridge of his nose.
"Sore winner..." The man muttered under his breath.
"You can't touch me! You can't touch me! I am the KING of Street Fighter II!" Amir pulled the man to him and pointed the phone's camera at him. "Everybody knows it! Everybody knows it! Especially this man right here, Aegis's resident master of the mad wires, Haywire!"
"Oh, for God's sake..." The man groaned, facepalming incredibly hard. He was a handsome young man, with strawberry blond hair and brown eyes, wearing a green t-shirt and a pair of khaki shorts. Around his neck was a small golden chain that had a small pendant of a Star of David.
Haywire. Real Name: Harold "Hal" Danforth. Birthplace: Rose City, Willamette (Portland, Oregon), Earth-712. Affiliation: (Formerly) America Redeemers, Squadron Supreme. (Currently) Aegis. Physiology: Enhanced human. Powers and Abilities: Can create endless amounts of steel-like filament from his fingertips. Skilled martial artist, lockpicker, and guitarist.
Haywire was Aegis's seventh super-agent, and one with a rather complicated origin. He came from an alternate Earth whose greatest heroes were a JLA-esque group called the Squadron Supreme. When the Squadron initiated the "Utopia Program" to take over the United States, Squadron member Nighthawk quit the group and formed a resistance force called the "America Redeemers".
Hal Danforth was one of them, a young man who gained metahuman powers thanks to being exposed to gases from a strange meteorite. Nighthawk found him during his studies in college in his native Rose City, his Earth's Portland, Oregon. Nighthawk convinced him to use his powers to help him stop the Squadron. After a destructive battle that resulted in the deaths of several members of the Squadron and the Redeemers, the Utopia Program was shut down and the Squadron disbanded. During that time, Haywire found romance in another Redeemer: Edith Freiberg, aka Inertia.
This would end in tragedy. When an energy being tried to consume the Squadron-Earth's sun, Freiberg would die heroically trying to stop it. This devastated the young man, who also found himself transported to the Earth of the Avengers. When other members of the Squadron found a way back to their world, Haywire wanted to stay, as he wanted to explore the Pacific Northwest.
That time alone allowed him to wallow in his then-hidden despair over the loss of Edith. He would join a group of Avengers in an adventure where they tried to stop Thanos from killing the child of the Avenger Mantis, a child destined to bring peace to the universe. When he encountered the cosmic embodiment of Death, he pleaded with the being to bring Inertia back. Death, however, refused his pleas. Enraged, he leapt into Death's form, and died. 3
Or so it seemed. In actuality, Haywire was brought forward in time to the lair of a supervillain known as Chronobreaker. The time-twisting madman wanted a special device that would allow him to create a timeline that he would rule for all eternity. Haywire was one of a group of other people brought forward from various points in time. He convinced Haywire to help by promising that he would use his temporal powers to save Inertia.
This brought him to battle with Aegis. During the battle, Jack Magniconte was able to convince the former hero that his actions were a betrayal of Edith's memory, and Chronobreaker had no intention of keeping his promise. Haywire would discover Jack's prediction was accurate, and surrendered to them in remorse. Seeing him as a good man who got lost (which he was), Jack and Rosalind convinced him to join Aegis as a way of redeeming himself and doing some good to honor Edith.
"You are a sore winner, kid." Haywire grumbled.
"Hey, not my fault that I'm so badass at this game." Amir laughed.
"I feel your pain, Hal." Jack told the extradimensional metahuman sympathetically. "Amir gets like that when he beats me at Street Fighter."
"Do you get to smack him?" Hal grumbled. "Because I want to smack him."
"Jack-ay!" Amir grinned as he ran up to his friend and the two of them fistbumped. "My Christian brother from another mother! How ya been, man?" Jack shrugged.
"Living." He looked at Hal. "Don't worry, Hal. Just keep practicing. You'll get him one day."
"Oh, you bet I will." Hal smirked, crossing his arms. "I'll get you yet, Khosrow. You'll see."
"You want another rematch, I'll give ya one, pal." Amir and Hal hi-fived. "I gotta get to work, anyway. I still have to finish editing my video review of the first Jack Slater film. Hard to believe those are a thing nowadays."
"Welcome to Coreline, kid." Hal teased. "Now you know how I felt when I got sent to your reality."
"Is it really a good time to do that, Amir?" Jack frowned. "Halloween is here. We should get ready for something big to go down. Saotome did warn us that Halloween tends to go crazy around here, and we should be on guard."
"Meh." Amir shrugged. "Jack, we're Aegis. Whatever happens, we'll kick their butts. We always have before."
"Even the greatest streaks end at some point, Amir." Jack warned sagely.
"Yeah." Hal nodded. "If the Nighthawk from my reality were here, he'd say the same thing." He winced slightly, but not beyond Jack's ability to spot.
"Hey, you okay?" The young ex-football player asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just reminded myself of Tallahassee here." Last week, Haywire investigated a super-crime in Tallahassee, Florida. There, he ran into an alternate version of his lost love, Edith Freiberg. The encounter visibly shook up the extradimensional hero, but luckily he had Quartz and Nightcat to back him up that mission. He was able to get through the mission fine enough, but Rosalind Price had Hal report in for counseling. Wisely, Haywire did what he was told. "God, I hate Coreline sometimes."
"Yeah, tell me about it." Jack nodded in agreement. "Meeting alternate versions of yourself or loved ones can be...weird. Makes you wonder how people are able to tell each other apart."
"Whatcha mean, Jack?" Amir sat down in a chair.
"Well, we live in a world where everything from fiction has become real." Jack explained. "But not just the 'mainline' or 'canon' versions. We're seeing alternate versions run around here, too. Hell, there's an alt of Qui-Gon Jinn running that Jedi Temple in town."
"Oh great, that'll totally not add to the confusion." Hal groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"And it gets even more crazy when you realize there are amalgams popping up." Amir added. "Like there's a Captain America running around that's also an anime character." He then snickered. "Quite a few of them would look better in Cap's suit than he ever could."
"Goes the other way around, too." Jack said. "Western superheroes having anime elements. Like that version of Black Widow we met who had that weird schoolgirl uniform, what was it called again?"
"Senketsu, from Kill la Kill." Amir told him. "And oh yeah, I will never forget meeting that Natasha..." The Iranian-American mutant smiled dreamily. Jack blushed, and Hal snickered.
"Kids." He grinned. Amir got himself out of his trance.
"And there's that Spider-Man with the giant robot." He added. "That was pretty bad-ass."
"You mean the one that had the Kamen Rider-esque suit, right?" Jack blinked.
"I think so." Amir sighed, then shook his head. "Or maybe not. Yeah, you got a point about the whole 'telling each other apart' thing."
Civilian Shelter #6, Portland, Oregon.
"Bless you, young lady." The elderly woman smiled as some soup was poured into a bowl by a ladle.
"You're welcome." The teenage girl smiled from behind the counter. She was Eurasian, her dark hair in a shoulder-length bob. She wore a blue shirt with khaki shorts and white running shoes. Around her neck was a bandanna colored blue, purple, and pink. She had on a white apron, hat, and rubber gloves.
Silver Sabre. Real Name: Keiko "Kay" Miyamoto. Birthplace: Los Angeles, CA. Affiliation: Aegis. Physiology: Mutant/Inhuman hybrid. Powers and abilities: Superhuman speed (mutant), telepathic "radar" that can sense people around her (gained from Terrigenesis).
Heroism was in Keiko's blood. Her father Hideo Miyamoto was a Kamen Rider-esque superhero called Captain Silver in his native Japan in his younger years. Her mother Yvette was the child of Martin Fletcher, aka the former wartime superhero and X-Men villain Super Sabre. She had taken up the mantle for a while, and been a superheroine in Los Angeles. The two had retired from superheroism and raised Keiko and her younger sister Amiko...while working to reform the police department of the now Mega City of Los Angeles. Kay grew up in a loving family, but ran into friction when her own mutant powers of superspeed manifested at the age of 13.
Her mother and father, knowing full well how mutants were seen, encouraged her to keep her speed powers hidden (during her superhero days, Yvette kept her identity hidden, and claimed that she was an enhanced human), and it caused some friction between them. Things were made further rough when she came out to her family about her bisexuality. Happily, her family accepted this, but it angered Kay. Why was it okay that she could be open about her orientation, but not about her mutantcy?
In a subtle bit of rebellion, Kay would secretly practice with her super-speed, and this led her to being one of the original five Agents of Aegis, the five youths kidnapped by Henry Clerk. Clerk developed a special interest in her when he discovered something rather special about her: Not only was she a mutant, she also had Inhuman genetic markers. She was a hybrid. Something incredibly rare, if not completely unique. She used her mutant power of superspeed to help the other four youths escape, but was exposed to the Terrigen Mists, granting her a second superpower: The ability to telepathically detect people around her, like radar.
She would join up with the other four kids in Aegis, because she could be open about her powers. Reuniting with her family, Kay and her parents were able to smooth things over. She took up the codename "Silver Sabre" as a way of honoring her parents' heroism.
A beeping could be heard, and Kay looked down at her watch. The blue, silver, and white futuristic-looking watch's face was beeping, and an insignia of a slashing sword could be seen blinking. The Japanese-American girl pressed a button on the side, and a holographic image of Rosalind Price's face emanated from the watch face. "Miss Price!"
"Hello, Kay." The image smiled. "We need you at Aegis HQ. I know you like to help out with feeding people at the shelter..."
"I like to help people. Nothing wrong with that."
"Indeed. But it is Halloween, and you know what can erupt on Halloween here on the Coreline..."
"Right." Keiko nodded. "I'll be there, lickety-split!" Price chuckled.
"And knowing you, that'll be true. Get over here and get ready for tonight."
"Yes, ma'am!" Kay grinned and ended the transmission. She took off her apron and hung it on a rack, then threw out her hat and gloves. "T'Laine!" She yelled out at a Vulcan woman who was watching over some cooks. "I'm sorry, but I gotta go! Aegis needs me! It's Halloween, and..."
"Very well, Keiko." The woman nodded. Her face was impassive, but her tone showed she understood. "Good luck to you and the rest of Aegis. May the Great Bird of the Galaxy watch over you." She put up the Vulcan salute. "Live long and prosper." Keiko smiled and returned the gesture.
"You too, T'Laine." She then went outside of the shelter. She found some members of Portland's Finest and several Aegis Paladins guarding the door. The Paladins' helmets left their faces uncovered, and Kay recognized one in particular.
"Eric!" She waved up at the Paladin. Said armored man was talking to a cop when he saw Keiko wave at him as she walked up to him. The man waved back.
"Hey there, Kay." Eric answered, a smile on his face.
"Congrats to you on becoming a Paladin, man!" She grinned, giving him a hug. Eric was a former supercriminal henchman who Kay had befriended and convinced to reform. "I knew you'd crush the entry trials."
"Thanks, kid." Eric smiled. "It was a lot of hard work, but it was worth it. Get better pay, and actual benefits."
"Yup. And better coffee, I bet." Kay joked.
Eric chuckled. "Yeah, yeah. I do have to admit, I am a bit nervous about something."
"What's that?"
"Well..." The Paladin rubbed the back of his head nervously. "It's just..."
"It's his first Halloween as a Paladin." A cop explained.
"Yeah." Eric nodded nervously. "I've been hearing from some of the others about how crazy Halloween can get around here, and...it's got me a bit nervous. I mean, I know we got our own Ghostbusters here to deal with the ghosts and demons and the rest of the supernatural set, but there's a lot of crazy stuff out there, and..."
"Ahhh, I see." Keiko nodded. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a bit nervous, too. It's perfectly normal."
"Yeah, but I worry if I screw up, and if something bad happens..."
"Don't let it get to you, Eric." Kay reassured the Paladin. "You're better than you think. Banks trained you, and he said you got potential. You can do this." She smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. "You're tougher and smarter than you think. If something does happen, I think you can handle it."
"Thanks, kid." Eric said. "I appreciate it. Good luck, and be careful."
"I will!" Kay raced off in a blue blur. She zipped down the streets of Portland, heading towards Aegis HQ. On the way, the mutant/Inhuman hybrid couldn't help but notice the streets of the normally bustling city. Man, it's weird to see Portland like this. She thought as she looked around. I know that Portland likes to be kept weird, but I doubt this is what those coiners of the phrase had in mind. Still... she smiled as she took in the buildings. Due to the Solarpunk aesthetic of the city, the buildings looked a bit more like advanced treehouse/skycraper hybrids. At least here, you feel you can breathe. I hope my parents and Ami are okay, being in Los Angeles. Reforming the LAPD can be dangerous work, and I hope nothing bad happens to them...
Aegis's Garage
The ratchet turned, and its holder grunted. The holder was a tall girl, and could be described as an Amazon, curvaceous and muscular. She had dark skin and dark red hair, pulled back in a ponytail. Around her neck and wrists were jewelry done in the style of the Choctaw tribe. She wore a red polo shirt and blue jeans, with brown cowboy boots.
Chrome. Real Name: Jennifer "Jen" Swann. Birthplace: Amarillo, TX. Affiliation: Aegis. Physiology: Inhuman. Powers and abilities: Can transform skin into organic metal. In metal form, Chrome has superhuman strength and near-invulnerability.
Jennifer Swann was born to an African-American father and a Native American mother. Her mother, Norma Amerman-Swann, was a prominent artist and member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Her father, Carl Swann, was an engineer. Growing up, the tomboyish Jennifer was shown to have quite the brain, and loved fixing vehicles. In high school, she got herself a job working as a mechanic at a local garage in her native Amarillo, wanting to help save money for college.
Those plans would be derailed as she would be one of the original five teenagers that Henry Clerk kidnapped. During their escape, she was exposed to the Terrigen Mists, causing her to undergo Terrigenesis. She discovered that she could turn her flesh into metal, terrifying her and leaving her with the fear that she would lose her humanity. She had joined up with Aegis in the hopes of being cured of her powers, but eventually grew to accept them.
"Well, this armored tank of a truck is workin' fine." She closed the hood of the vehicle, a dark blue futuristic-looking pickup truck. She called up at the cab. "Yo, Cortez! You done in there?!"
"Just about!" Another voice added. This one belonged to a lanky teen Hispanic boy, with short black hair and brown eyes. He wore a purple t-shirt with the Fiends and Fjords logo on it in rainbow colors, and khaki shorts. He was typing into a laptop that was linked to the truck's onboard computer. "There we go!" He smiled proudly.
Quartz. Real Name: Andrew Cortez (born Andrea Cortez). Birthplace: Orlando, FL. Affiliation: Aegis. Physiology: Inhuman. Powers and Abilities: Can create constructs out of purple crystal.
The future Inhuman known as Quartz had a bit of a rough childhood. His mother Anitere wanted a daughter after having three sons. When Andy was born, she was overjoyed. However, something would happen to complicate that. From a young age, the future Quartz would insist on being referred to and dressed as a boy. At first, his family thought it was a phase, but as he grew older, it continued. His father Vincente and his three brothers got used to it, as they felt it was harmless. Anitere, though, was extremely unhappy with this. When Andy was taken to counseling, the family learned that Andy was transgender. Vincente and the boys accepted it, but Anitere did not take it as well.
The future Quartz was the first of the five youths captured by Clerk. He had already been exposed to the Terrigen Mist and was in a Terrigen cocoon when the others found him. He emerged from the cocoon with the power to create purple crystalline constructs, and much to his joy, a male body. Upon reuniting with his family, Vincente and Quartz's brothers were happy to see him back, but Anitere was horrified by his transformation. She stormed away, blaming Aegis and her husband for what she considered the death of her daughter. She would divorce Vincente, and marry another man, but still held a grudge against Andy.
Like in his family, Andy was the youngest of the original five Agents of Aegis, and s such, he was seen as the "little brother" of the group.
"So..." Jen asked as she walked up to the cabin. "What're you doin' up there?"
"Just checking the programming on this truck's computer." Andy explained. "It's been a while since that Ultron Virus invaded the tech here."
"I thought we purged all of it a couple of days ago."
"Never hurts to double check." Andy responded. "That Virus was some nasty business. I want to make absolutely sure that the Virus didn't wreck us completely." He looked over the screen some more.
"Andy, you're gonna go mad if ya keep doing that." Jen warned him.
"...yeah, I suppose you're right." The crystal-spinner sighed. "Maybe I'm just a bit paranoid. Halloween is coming, and it promises to bring some genuine frights."
"I hear you. All I wanted was to be an engineer. Do a real job. But then I get superpowers, and now I do this."
"I love it." Andy smiled. "Aegis is the first place where I could truly be myself."
"Shame about your mother, though."
Andy sighed. "...she chose her path. I have to accept she'll never see me for who I am. I'm just happy my dad and my brothers do."
"Yeah, they're a good bunch." Jenny smiled.
"You know..." A grin broke out on Andy's face. "I've been hearing some stories about some past Halloweens here on the Coreline, and I think they would make for some fantastic F&F campaigns."
"If ya say so." Jen shrugged. "I'm not really into that stuff."
"You should give it a try." Andy encouraged. "Tabletop Role-Playing is a ton of fun. Me and some other fans do a session every week. You should join us. It's a great way to stretch the imagination."
"Do I look like someone who plays F&F?"
"Anyone can do it." Andy said, shrugging. "Heck, I can help you with a character sheet. I made one for everybody, and I don't want you to be left out."
"Let me guess, you made me a bard or something goofy like that, right?"
"Nope, Fighter/Blacksmith." Andy smiled. "I'm a Wizard/Warmage, I made Kay a Bandit/Rogue, Jack a Knight/Marshal, and Amir a Noble/Wizard. I also made Jacqueline a Seeker/Druid with an affinity for felines. I'm working on sheets for Hal, Miss Price, Mr. Banks, and Miss Fujioka."
"Wow. Sounds like you spent a lot of time and thought on those."
"Jack was the easiest." Andy shrugged. "The rest of you required a lot more thought. I wanted classes that fit you guys and your abilities." The Cuban-American Inhuman then blinked. "And I just had a thought."
"What?"
"Well...considering we're in the Coreline and all..." Andy rubbed the back of his head. "I was reading through my monster guide, and I just realized something. The monsters in my F&F guide...we may have to face them. Karnors are easy, just devious and we have to be careful of traps. But if we face something like the Mindripper...Hoo boy..."
"...I have no idea what any of those things are."
"Ha ha, I have to get you a copy of the F&F Monster Guide." Andy smiled. "And I wouldn't worry. Miindrippers don't exist on this physical plane."
"Oh, good." Jen rolled her eyes.
"And if we do end up in a situation if we have to fight one, we can face it. They can create an anti-magic zone, but since none of us use magic, that won't be a problem for us."
"Greeeeeeeat." Jen sighed. "Well, we're all done down here. I dunno about you, but I could use a drink."
"Me, too." Andy nodded. "Fixing computers has got me parched."
"Andy, I have no idea how that can get you parched." Jen shook her head as the two walked out of the garage.
Andy smiled. "Jen girl, programming is harder work than you think." He said sagely.
"Ya just sit on yer butt and type!" Jen retorted as the two continued on their way. "You want to tire yourself out? Try turning wrenches. That'll tucker you out real good."
"Considering the physical stuff we do as Agents of Aegis, I think we manage to, as you say, 'tucker ourselves out real good'." He approached a drink machine. "Sodas? My treat."
"What a gentleman." Jen smiled, nodding. "Get me some of that Citrus Crush." A couple of hours later, Rosalind Price was in her office, looking out at the skyline of Portland. She was still amazed at the city. It reminded her of a giant forest, the city's buildings looking like a perfect union of tree and skyscraper. She looked up at the setting sun.
God, the sunsets here are so beautiful. She thought to herself as she sipped her coffee. And this coffee is pretty good, too. I'm going to have to find out where it comes from...probably locally grown considering all the greenhouses around here...
"Miss Price?" Price turned around and saw Taryn walk in. The public relations expert held her tablet nervously.
"You alright, Taryn?" Price asked in concern. Taryn nodded.
"It's just...I've been talking to one of the Ghostbusters here, because they've been here longer than we have, and well...I'm a bit nervous."
Price smiled. "You're not the only one."
"Really?"
"Yup." Price nodded. "We have no idea what we'll be facing in the Coreline. I've been talking to Unglighter myself, and she's warned us that there may be demons involved."
"Really?"
"Yeah. It's nothing we haven't handled before." Price nodded. "And we managed to reunite with a couple old friends, and make some new friends here, so we have some help. We'd better call them."
"Already on that."
"Good." Price nodded in satisfaction. "Then we had better...huh?"
"What's wrong?" Taryn asked in confusion as Price slowly approached the windows. She noticed the sky getting redder. "What's going on? What's with the sky?"
Price scowled. "I've been told when the sky is like this...when the sky is red...we got a Crisis on our hands."
Well, well, well! Looks like Coreline's Portland is going to have one heck of a Halloween party! What insanity will happen next? Can our heroes keep the City of Roses safe? What threats will they face on this night? Who are Aegis's friends Price are talking about? Find out in the next chapter!
*1 - Price having German heritage is a nod to Constance Zimmer, who played Price in Agents of SHIELD. Zimmer is of German ancestry.
*2 - This happened in Nightcat #1 (June 1992), her only appearance in comics.
*3 - Haywire first appeared in Squadron Supreme #10 (June, 1986), got exiled to Earth-616 in the Graphic Novel Squadron Supreme: Death of a Universe (1989), and died in Avengers: Celestial Quest #8 (June, 2002). His gaining his powers, return, and being Jewish are my additions to the character and his history.