Superpowers in Space Freeform IC

[drack]

"Crap." Spry Terry mutters, as his eyes slip from Julian to the ball of flaming death hurtling towards his charges. Without a second thought he drops his blaster and tries to shove Julien to the side with minimal real effect, nevertheless he slips past him shouting to everyone "Get back, clear a path!" before, still moving forward, his gaze locks on the new arrival. "Calm, calm, breath, it's ok, it's ok" his skin turns red and welted then black as his flesh dries and sizzles "Just breath." He tries to catch Saryu, to make her stop as his flesh melts off leaving only bones which crack and split under the intense waves of heat. The floor seems to groan like an oven warming up too fast, the water that was once a wall sizzles quickly into a light misting of steam.

[BelGareth]

Zack got to the hangar bay without having to go through too many of the 'people' that were still around, if you could call them that, he sure didn't, they were like something out of nightmare, not his, but some avant-garde artist who smoked too much peyote. No, that wasn't his scene at all, especially when it was directly in front of him, threatening to suck the marrow out of his bones because theirs melted through their pores not moments ago.

No no no no no.

Reaching the Hangar bay, he sighed, very few people down here, and none of the ethereal abominations to boot. He found himself leaning against a railing looking down at a gigantic hangar bay, it was one of the bays that housed the nexus for all the passenger liners to come and go, so it was rather immense.

Perfect he thought, thinking this would be a good place to practice his new found talents.

And so he began, trying his best to muster up the emotional anger to trigger his abilities, or trick them at least, if he could figure out how, then he could use that and refine it, like training a muscle, and he knew how to do that.

[Sønderjye]

Hearing the screaming and odd fizzling sounds Charles can't help but need to know what's happening up there. He attempts to jump up so he can drag himself up to watch. The first two tries have embarrasing results which we're not going to talk about but on the third try he manages to grap hold and drag himself up. He immediately lets go again and kneels over, his breakfast leaving his stomach. He closes his eyes but the horrible image of a man literally being melted refuses to leave his minds eye.

[NineOfSpades]

Saryu wasn't really sure what she expected to feel, watching a man disintegrate in front of her for the second time that day. She'd hoped it would come with some kind of relief. Or maybe at least satisfaction. But Saryu didn't feel much of anything. The anger was still there, still roaring, but having gotten a chance to wet its teeth on someone who deserved it, all she was left was feeling...nothing.

"Backup Fire Supression System: Online" Came the ships computer. Saryu didn't really have time to process what that meant before automated turrents emerged from the walls of the mess hall. They aimed their nozzles at her with computerized efficiency, and then blasted out a torrent of chemical foam.

For a second or two, the ship and Saryu seemed to be at a standstill. The foam was designed to repel normal fires, not a walking inferno, and the heat that the scientist gave off was vastly more powerful. The chemical agent couldn't even get within a few feet of her before it fizzled. However, what the system lacked in power, it was rapidly making up for with volume. More hoses switched on, doubling and doubling again the rate.

When the foam reached her skin, Saryu screamed. Unlike the previous ones, it was a shocked and pained gasp. A cold beyond measure, ice stabbing against her. The heat from her body plummetted, the light radiating dulled to a deep red. She flinched away from the hoses, but the therma system locked onto her moments and began tracking her. Another spray caught her across the back, causing her to stumble and fall.

Anger can drive you to a lot of things, but pain pushes your brain towards survival. And that meant thinking. The unwanted ice-bath she was experiencing had, for the moment at least, shocked Saryu back to her senses enough to change strategies. There was a torn hole in the floor a dozen or so feet away. She tried moving towards it, but her limbs didn't seem to be moving properly. She was numb all over. Saryu made it a few steps before stumbling. A few more, and she had fallen over. Unable to make much forward progress, the thermal-reacting foam began to accumulate, sapping her heat and energy. A few more seconds, and she was barely crawling towards the opening, and hopefully, out of range of the fire-system.

[drack]

Space seem s to ripple as Spry Terry emerges, seemingly surprised. He seems to think has his gaze wanders across the room, first to the hole in the ground, second to any stragglers backed against the corners of the room, then to the gun he'd left, and lastly to saryu herself. With a small sigh he says "Don't be too hard on yourself. This is a stressful time for everyone, and it's practically suicidal to awaken people, you never know what powers they'll have, how it will effect you. I've naturally taken precautions, but already died fifty... I guess this makes it fifty eight times today. Naturally no death is free, I pay for them in age. It's a marvelous ability, one I wouldn't have believed could exist when I was a mortal, but now... You must remember, you are all now something more. Sometimes it's hard to control yourselves. Sometimes powers are controlled by thoughts, other times emotions, sometimes they come naturally like moving an arm, the key part is to remain in control. It's your mind, you're not just along for a ride, one way or another you can find control." Pausing he continues. "It's been a trying time and some adapt faster then others, some... have it harder then others. would you like to talk about it?" He leaves the question hanging, a tinge of remorse in his tone.

[xanxosttheslaad]

The body lying face-down at the bottom of the hole gradually stops twitching, and the bright glow coming from its bottom slowly fades. The energy absorbed from the flames shooting around the room empowers the fungus, causing it to undergo a spurt of growth. Since its awakening, it had acquired a mass of data from observations of locomotion and interaction. As it pieced itself back together, the body of Mike Dolezal become host to new masses of muscular, skeletal, and neural hyphae, placed deliberately to compensate for its initial failings.

Over the few minutes that passed, as humans moved about and reacted to stimuli, it lied motionless. Eventually, the commotion seemed to die down, as Saryu, the inferno, is doused in chemicals, and Spry Terry demonstrates his powerful ability. Mike Dolezal opens their eyes once more and jumps to their feet. While they had suffered severe burns, the fungus was able to patch up most of the damage, so the skin appears unharmed, although close inspection reveals slight discoloration and difference in texture.

They turn around to see Charles behind them, retching. They stare for a moment, processing their recent memory. He had . . . spoken earlier? Just a few moments ago, it seems. They should answer.

What is happening? Mike searches the memory of their deceased human host, matching up their knowledge with observations and what the humans have been saying.

They take a step toward the stranger kneeling on the ground, offering a hand to help him up, and speaking softly so as not to be heard by those above.
"The man with the mohawk, Spry Terry, is a terrorist; he killed everyone else on board with the gas. We recommend finding a way out of this dangerous place."

[Sønderjye]

Charles scrambles to his feet startled, completely ignoring the extended hand. As the speaker calmly explains the situation his momentary panic at being caught flatfooted is replaced with awkwardness.

"Eh, hi fellow human" he says, poorly attempting to use humour to distract from his fo paux.

"So he's responsible for all of this?" He responds to mike: "that doesn't make any sense! If they were so benevolent as he say they could have done so much to mitigate the damage." His tone was rising with indignation and he probably said the last part too loudly.

[xanxosttheslaad]

Mike stares blankly for a moment, unsure whether the comment on their humanity was genuine. They decide it is. Success! They are passing as a human. Now, to continue the act.

"It would seem that one would be better served observing the terrorist's actions than their words. Now, to leave."

The energy absorbed from the burst of flame had fueled a substantive spurt of growth in various areas. Exercising their new neural, muscular, and skeletal hyphae, Mike leaps out of the hole and looks around, at the potential allies and enemies. The flaming character had expressed anger against Terrence; perhaps that made them aligned. With newly found strength, they pick up the smoldering, weakened body, steam rising from their hand as its moisture boils off and it begins to crisp. They remember that the man who had left, who was also angry (and thus a potential ally), had taken a handful of crystalline power. With more power, perhaps Mike could grow even stronger and better survive the threat posed by the terrorist. Looking around for other potential allies, their gaze falls upon Penelope, standing in a hole in the wall, soaking wet. A good complement to the human currently blackening their hand, perhaps? "Come."

Mike then drops back into the hole, making sure not to injure the humans in the hole or the one they carry in one hand. They glance at Julian, Charles, Penelope, and Saryu, before beginning to walk swiftly through the holes and hallways in the direction Zack had seemed to go.

"This way; here isn't safe."