CONFLUENCE 03

[metamods]

THUNDERSTRUCK

This time there was warning. Any being with precognitive abilities finds themselves brought to their knees a few hours before the event, plagued with a hazy vision of chaos and fear. There's not enough detail to say what is to happen, but at least they have the where and when.

Excelsior, Washington.

The people seem annoyed when they are told to evacuate. After all, Excelsior was built to last. This is a city exempt from the unpredictability of nature. They have weather control systems set up to ensure nothing disrupts their research. This a city built upon scientific advancement, with every inch of infrastructure reliant upon it, and they are confident that they are safe within its borders.

And even without the stubborn minority, the Alliance knows there isn't enough time for a full evacuation. But still, they try. They call upon every available hero to race toward whatever chaos may be about to drop over the city. The Society has sent a few faces too, more quietly. Whether to help or hinder is anyone's guess, as there's whispered encouragement to do both.

The city isn't anywhere near empty when the air goes very still. Everyone and everything pauses and looks skyward as a few drops of rain begin to fall, and the artificial sky fades to reveal roiling clouds.

The Confluence begins.

ITS RAINING (SUPER) MEN

Rain slashes sideways as the skies darken, taking unnatural colors with every flash of lightning. It's beautiful and awe-striking, but knowing that somehow this bizarre phenomenon is the calm before the storm keeps anyone on the ground from enjoying it. Even the those who lack self preservation in the scientific community don't want to investigate the cause of this.

There's a flash of light and a boom. Those still caught in the streets waiting evacuation brace themselves.

And then people begin to fall.

If you are one of these people, you awaken to find yourself hurtling towards the ground at breakneck speed. You come into awareness just in time to register you're about to make impact with the ground, or a car, a building, whatever is underneath you. The impact pulverizes the surface strike, leaving a sizable crater, and as you pull yourself up you find yourself unharmed. Yet there's energy crackling in the air around you. If there are bystanders near you they whip out cellphones to capture the occurrence for their followers or for scientific posterities, crowding around the craters a buzz of excitement. Some of the more fearful ones simply turn and begin running in hopes they can beat the storm.

CRYPTO OR CRYPTID

Confluences give people powers. That's part of the deal. And while those of you who just fell from the sky are discovering your new gifts, others are also suddenly uncovering their own brand new talents.

Excelsior isn't exactly known for natural superpowers. Most of its heroes are self-made geniuses, armed with metasuits or other augments. Those that do have powers got them from scientific accidents, transforming due to experiments gone wrong or accidentally tumbling into toxic waste. They have emergency medical protocols ready for that - not for random people on the street suddenly gaining abilities.

Newly empowered townspeople may jump in to help deal with the evolving chaos, but their lack of control of their powers makes them a bigger threat than whatever threat they were trying to stop. Others will shamelessly take advantage of the chaos to live their villainous dreams, robbing stores and taking revenge on their shitty bosses, landlords, or exes.

The reserve members of the Guardian Alliance spring into action. The heavy hitters are elsewhere, trying to deal with the loss of power and getting the city back online, and so you're left with the rookies trying to keep pace. Many of them are inexperienced and unable to keep up with the raw power and ruthlessness of newly awakened metas. Fantastic, an aerokinetic and one of the newer recruits, seems to be the only one even remotely holding his own.

It's clear they need your help to contain this!

The storm doesn't peter out after the new arrivals have all landed, either. The panic and chaos below seems to fuel it to a second peak. Clouds roil, electricity snakes, and the thunder builds into a deafening crescendo. Then with one final, blinding burst of light, everything goes dark and quiet.

The power is out.

More than just the power — Excelsior is out. The powergrid has been downed, its internal networks corrupted, anything that makes the city function is completely fried, that last surge of the storm apparently having acted as an EMP blast. All of Excelsior's internal systems are now offline. The lights are all out.

Vehicles are stalled out in the streets. And then comes the first crashing boom of a falling hover car. There are more still in the air, but anyone who might be in a position to save them will have only moments to do so before they smash apart on whatever or whoever is unlucky enough to be stuck below them.

And it's not just that. Hospitals are now without power.

VLOG SQUAD STRIKES BACK

In every disaster, the best and worst of human nature can be found. The best shines in every outstretched hand and combined effort, in every life saved. The worst is a gaggle of young adults that live together in the city's least favorite content creator house, known with equal parts irritation and secondhand embarrassment as The Vlog Squad. It seems five of the eight streamer/vlogger/influencers have developed meta powers, including one with the power to record, edit, and broadcast with her mind. The entire group made an on-stream pact to become (non-guild affiliated) supervillains, and their views are skyrocketing.

One of them jumps off a building to demonstrate how he can put holes in everything below him.

Playlist, the ringleader with a sizable following on Youtube and TikTok, has the ability to Freeze, Rewind, Fast Forward reality. Be unlucky enough to be caught in her gaze and find yourself frozen in place, talking in reverse, or zipping around faster than you can control. Good luck getting someone to understand you when you sound like a chipmunk.

Then there's there's the second in command, Filter, an up and coming Instagram star. Filter's powers seem to be tied to their phone. If they get a picture of you in the air - welcome to anti-gravity, you're now stuck floating like a balloon until someone can get you back to Earth. If they slap a sepia filter on an unflattering photo of you, you're now encased in stone until someone drops a compliment. Each filter does something a little different and the unfortunate effects are yours to find out.

The rest of their squad is less notable, both in terms of power and in terms of following. There's a young man who can project his voice for miles around. A young woman who can compel people to dance to the beats dropped by her literal soundcloud. There's one unfortunate fellow whose only real power seems to be to turn people's heads into emojis for 30 seconds.

They're targeting known heroes, but will settle for property damage if it means getting attention. New metas may find themselves accosted by a unpleasant young adult with a camera, mockingly asking if they plan to become heroes. No matter the answer, the result is the same - they'll mock your choice and reasoning and try to get away with a cruel prank.

POWER RESTORED

The power is restored. With it, a belated message makes it to guild and society phones: the guild says restrain the Vlog Squad however you can and await authorities.

Meanwhile a very different message hits the airwaves. Mechanima's digitized voice comes across official channels, torn between amusement and annoyance. He says deal with them, don't care how you do it, but start with the broadcaster.

Once that's done, the guild places a call back to its headquarters to bring everyone back with a teleportation spell. The spell reaches out for whatever metahumans it can find in the area and pulls.

All the metahumans who were involved in the Confluence — new arrivals and old — to a white training space that has already transformed into a luxurious waiting room.

Atomight arrives quickly and makes the following announcement:

Thank you for your help out there. The casualties would be so much higher were it not for those of you who risked your lives to save strangers. To those of you grappling with your new abilities, please rest assured that this room will give you a much needed reprieve. We have staff on site who can work with you to gain control of you new abilities, and nullifiers if you find it's still too much.

You are the third set of newly powered individuals this confluence has brought. Though many of you are native to this world, others among you have come from far off universes. To those of you who have been flung far from home, we'll put you in connection with the others. Many of them are here today and can advise you of what your new reality is here.

We of the Guardian Alliance are committed to doing everything we can to get you home, and to give you some time to get your feet under you. And as this may be your home for a while longer, I wish to formally extend an invitation to those of you who wish to use your powers to defend the innocent to join us.

They hand out cellphones to all present. Once everyone gathered has been looked over and attended to they're directed to the Diadem in and handed a credit card.

Later into the night, another message comes across those phones. The Society of Villainous Reformation formally extends an invitation to all those villainously inclined. Reply for more info.

IN SUMMARY

• New arrivals are falling from the skies. They're unharmed despite what should be a lethal impact. People in the city also begin developing superpowers upon landing.


• Players are free to create their own powered NPCs for these encounters and can use them.


• A notable group of online content creators called the Vlog Squad have developed powers and are terrorizing the city and are livestreaming every minute thanks to their powers.


• The Vlog Squad has declared on camera that they do not intend to join any guild and are already showing signs of disrespecting the code. For those already committed to guilds, this means:

  Atomight will ask player characters in the Guardian Alliance to deal with them peacefully.
  
  Mechanima demands that members of the Society of Villainous Reformation deal with them — whether this means incapacitating them, forcing them to join, or killing them is their choice.

• If anyone wants to engage Mechanima or Atomight, HERE is a top level where we will summarize their responses to PC questions and comments. Please also reply to this comment with what your character plans to do with the Vlog Squad. We encourage you to make posts on the OOC comm plotting out conflict and responses. You may also use this top level to ask event-specific questions about the effects on this page! (Please refer general questions about the setting to the FAQ, and refer any player plots to the PLOTTING page.)

VLOG SQUAD ENCOUNTERS

For each event with a clear antagonistic NPC force — such as the Vlog Squad, in the February arrival — interested players can pitch their characters' encounters with those NPCs. Whether characters are heroic and suited to the role or not, the aim is the group effort of pitching in, so we highly encourage collaborating on these encounters. Once enough NPC encounters have been submitted, we'll determine if and how the trouble has been addressed, and select one of those encounters to be the final, conclusive one in the game. Everyone else's encounters will also have taken place, but may have been temporary stopgaps in addressing the conflict rather than a conclusive blow. For this Confluence, we are asking that submissions be finalized by 3/5.

How it works:

• Reply to the relevant top-level comment with an encounter and/or questions about the encounter. The mods are happy to go back and forth with before locking in exactly what a character or group of characters does. Any conversations between characters and NPCs will most likely be happening prior to combat unless specified by the players.


• The mods ask that players present two options. In one version, the character or group of characters kills, immobilizes, or otherwise apprehend the villain(s). In the other version, one way or another, the villain escapes or overcomes the character or group of characters. Players who wish to have a specific spot in the timeline (near to the beginning or near to the end) should make this request explicit, and the mods will make efforts to accommodate this.


• The mods will RNG the results for the final encounter. For all other submissions, the escape/overcome option is selected. Open calls for collaboration which result in multiple player characters contributing to an idea or solution (see: Kamala Khan's solution to the Cerberus fight) have a much higher chance of being the final encounter, as we want to reward player collaboration and innovation. Please be sure that after everyone has weighed in you return to the top-level comment to report exactly what is happening and who is doing what.


• The mods will reply to player submissions with a brief outline of how all of the run-ins go, whether it's a fight or a slapstick series of hilarious accidents that involves the character(s).

Request NPC encounters using the following form —
<B>Characters involved:</b> Name (username) <b>Details of the encounter:</b> What's the plan? <B>How might the villain escape or overcome the player character(s)?</b> <B>How would the player character(s) kill, immobilize, or apprehend the villain?</b>

EXAMPLE—

Character(s) involved: The Iron Giant and Hank Hill
Details of the encounter: Hank will ride in Iron Giant's hand as they search the city for the Vlog Squad, eventually spotting them in a public park. They land explosively in the middle, throwing all of the squad off of their feet while the Iron Giant sends out a signal to scramble their livestreams and begins trying to catch the offenders up in both hands. Hank will try to tackle at least one of them.

How might the villain escape or overcome the player character(s)? Playlist slow motions Iron Giant and they easily duck its grasp, and Filter leaves Hank floating upside down as they make their escape.

How would the player character(s) kill, immobilize, or apprehend the villain? Iron Giant grabs Playlist before she can slow it, then picks up and captures all but Emoji; Hank throws a branch and beans that guy right in the head. Iron Giant gathers him up too, and they turn them in to the first batch of emergency responders they find.

Comments

spider-man | marvel comics | one closed, the rest ota

[interloping]

●●● it’s raining (super) men — closed to tony stark ;

[ ‘Not this again,’ is Spider-Man’s first, second, third, and last thought before he finds himself grasping at the sky fruitlessly, legs and arms akimbo, eyes to the bright light and the gloomy skies, back feeling the sharp wind at his shoulder blades, his costume slowly getting soaked by the relentless rain.

This. Sucks.

At least he’s still masked and in full Spider-wear, and he’s pretty sure he’s still got all of his fingers and toes intact, but this plummeting through portals business is becoming old hat and not the appropriate-for-a-swanky-party kind either. More like a grubby, behind the dumpster —



And suddenly, his spider-sense warning him a little too late, there’s a wooshing sound and the hard clap of flesh meeting … metal? Spidey’s got his eyes shut and when he opens them slowly, one eye and then the other, he has a moment of further disorientation because he’d expected to see the ground. Or maybe a set of pearly gates. Instead, when he tilts his head upwards, he spots a familiar helmet and colourway that … well, okay, it comes with a lot of pretty confusing emotions, and he's gotta admit, not all of them are great.

Breathless, Spider-Man quickly recomposes his wits about him, enough to issue a casual: ]

Iron Man! — we’ve really gotta stop meeting like this.

●●● vlog squad strikes back — open to all ;

[ The arrival of the Vlog Squad is more or less the perfect distraction for a displaced superhero like Spider-Man, and boy he’s going to take a very real interest in doing his part. He has a history with wrangling hooligans, and he can’t imagine that this particular circumstance will differ too greatly.

Of course, youths can be so rude, and in the midst of said wrangling, he might come face to face with one of the squad getting up in his (masked) face with mockery and bad jokes. Not even Spider-Man’s brand of a bad joke either, but they're just jokes in bad taste.

So uncool. ]

Hey! Buddy! There is nothing wrong with being a hero, all right? Geez. Also I’ve totally got more followers than you!

[ He probably does not. Actually. Have as many followers as these guys probably do. Not so long as JJJ exists. ]

Can you believe that guy?

●●● power restored — open to all ;

[ Truth be told, Spider-Man isn’t exactly gearing up to go another round with whatever-the-fudge his new Confluence power allowed him to do, but hoo boy he’s still thinking about it. About what little he’d seen, wondering what more he might be able to do. First of all, he’s done with new powers — Really! He’d been through spider-puberty, and it was kind of the worst! The last thing he needs right now is some kind of approaching-mid-life-crisis with this new … whatever it is he can do! — but secondly: ... is this credit card seriously unlimited?

Because if so, he’s gonna need about fifty hot dogs … and maybe a few burritos for good measure. (And then he’ll have to figure out a place to buy some … supplies. Science stuff.)

He flicks the plastic card between the fingers of one hand, flipping it around and around, while his other hand scrolls blankly between the screens of his new cellphone. After his day with the Vloggers, using one feels a little bit like a sick joke, but. He needs some way of getting around, he supposes, so. Thanks, Guardians of the Confluence.

i. Still in his red-and-blues, Spider-Man can initially be found loitering in the Diadem hotel’s lobby for a moment as though he’s hesitating to check into his room. ]

You don’t think they’ve got like, a thousand thread count sheets up there, do you? I’m not sure my body’s made for that.

[ ii. Later, he might step out for a bite to eat though, seeking his usual comfort foods. If you’re within ear-shot, he might stop you with a wave of a hand. ]

Hey — if a guy’s got a real hankering for one of those really bad-for-you street vendor hot-dogs, where might he go? It's me; I'm the guy. But first dog’s on me if you let me in on the secret for best one in the city.

[ iii. And later in the night, he’ll be found hanging out on the rooftop, perched on the parapet like a gargoyle dressed in spandex. Totally normal. There are a couple of discarded wrappers on the ground below his feet, and to that Spider-Man waves a hand. ]

Don’t worry, I’m gonna take care of that. I’m a full believer in saving the planet, reducing waste and limiting humanity’s carbon footprint. You know, I’m still waiting for the day that David Suzuki takes my calls back.

●●● wildcard — ;

[ as always, if you aren't vibing with any of the above prompts, feel free to leave one of your own below! if you'd like to plot something or hash any details out, hit me up over on plurk (thwip) or PM! ]

( vlog - ms marvel )

[bestversion]

[ she squints at him for a moment. yeah, that's the spider-man she knows. that's good at least. maybe. ]

Do you even have a social media page? I feel like I would know that.

[interloping]

It's new!

[ Spider-Man lifts a hand to rub the back of his neck. ]

Come on, kid — don't call me out.

power ii.

[superhostage]

[ that someone is a stressed-looking, skinny guy in jeans and an alliance-branded hoodie. olly gets rescued so often that he mostly bought the hoodie as like, financial support for the alliance even though they don't really need his pathetic thirty dollars, but. you know. it's comfy and warm, too, and he frequently needs comfy and warm.

he blinks at the guy addressing him, looking from him to the building he's closest to, then raising a hand covered in bandaids to rub his cheek uncertainly. ]

Oh, are you, um, visiting? [ you know what, olly? it's none of your business. ] There's a place on Saw Creek Avenue called Bun Daddy's that has the best hot dogs I know. It's not street-vendor, but it's-- it's only maybe a half-step above that. They have, um, this little-- little window, basically, and you just order there, and they have a few cafe tables in the alley, but it's a clean alley with murals and stuff, not.. you know, rats. Or dumpsters. [ well, there might be a dumpster at the back, he doesn't know. he never sticks around to sit down and eat there.

right, he's rambling. he winces, shoulders hunching up. ] I guess I could show you if you want. But just, uh.. keep.. an eye out..

[interloping]

Not a vendor, okay, we can live with that. The rest of it is selling me. Lead the way, my man.

[ Spidey's stomach is already doing that thing where it anticipates junk food like it's a gift from the gods, growling its praises.

And then he pauses for a sec.

Wait. ]

Keep an eye out? [ Hm. ] Keep an eye out for what?

power restored i;

[fairhair]

[ Now there's a familiar face (mask, outfit, whatever) that actually strikes some relief in Fandral. Not that he's been feeling overwhelmed, but ending up somewhere that has two Lokis and no other Asgardians isn't his ideal situation. So Spider-Man is a welcome sight indeed. ]

Ah, my friend! You are truly a sight for sore eyes.

[ What's a thousand thread count? ]

[interloping]

[ Well, bud, if you like one Spider-Man well enough, you’re in luck because there are apparently two others here as well.

Yippee. ]

Good to see you too, man.

[ Spider-Man gives the bearded, blonde man a thumbs up, and then wonders whether that should have been one of those cool Asgardian back-claps instead. Ugh, once a nerd ... ]

Can’t believe they grabbed you too. From Asgard? Midgard? Some-other-gard this time?

vlog squad

[jimmies]

[ Jimmy is here to stop the Vlog Squad with responsible journalism, or something. He even brought his retro non-digital camera. ]

Really?

[ Because Jimmy has never met Spider-Man before, he thinks this might be true. ]

Because you can get a lot of followers really quickly by doing stupid things.

[ Ask him how he knows! Or don't. ]

[interloping]

Yeah, I’ve seen Jack Ass.

[ Spider-Man sighs, flapping a hand. It’s disheartening how true the other man’s statement is. ]

This ain’t my first rodeo with social media. Or the social. Media.

[ He gestures to the equipment. ]

Nice camera.

power restored - iii

[doctopoda]

[Now, Otto is just going up to the roof because he can't sleep and he doesn't want to bother Norman. He wasn't really looking for company. But when he gets up there - well, that's obviously not Young Peter, but it sure looks like the third one, the one from what Otto's mentally dubbed the "Lizard Curt" universe.

That Peter's one of the few people outside of Norman that Otto's already friendly with around here. They got lunch together earlier today! Naturally, he smiles, lifting his hand in a little wave.]

Still up and about? It's late, Peter, you should really get some sleep.

[He wouldn't use his name if there were anyone else around, but it's apparent that they're alone up here. Otto moves towards the ledge surrounding the edge of the roof, lower claws planting themselves on the ground alongside him as he walks, just a thousand percent too casual for what's actually happening here.]

i'm so sorry for all of this (cw: trauma)

[interloping]

[ It’s the familiarity with which the man uses his name that has the last bite of hot dog tasting like ash on Spidey’s tongue. With his mask still half-covering his eyes and nose, leaving only his mouth free for food consumption, only the fewest of the few might ever deign to know his identity. And of those few, even less would call him out as such, even given the level privacy up here. He takes his secrecy pretty seriously, especially given just how much worse his life gets every time the secret gets out.

When he lifts his head, a whole flood of emotions goes through him, seizing his heart, eyes settling on the slowly undulating, robotic arms before landing on those familiar features of his face, and the … okay, maybe the features aren't exactly how he remembers, and the hair’s different, but whatever, they're minor details.

Something squeezes cold and angry and deeply afraid (the kind of afraid that forces the fight or flight response, makes him want to fight), a sudden burning in his chest when the memories surface again. Of being trapped in his own body but watching everything happen from someone else’s eyes, someone else making every choice for you, someone calling themselves you and doing things in your name, choosing who to save and who will die, like it’s just that easy; using your body; calling themselves superior — no.

No. No, no. Peter Parker, you are Peter Parker.

He sets his wrapper down and gets to his feet, pulling his mask back down over his chin, but he makes no move (yet) to step forward. ]

Doc, I’m only gonna say this once. I don't know how you're here, I don't know how you came back, but if you know what’s good for you, you’re gonna leave me the hell alone right now.

power restored, iii.

[ikols]

[ Gods, he's tired. Emotional stress arriving on the heels of an Avenger shouldn't have been unforeseen but somehow it has been, largely because of the amiable(ish) way he was treated back home the last time he and Thor spoke with Tony. Ever since the Avenger came through the Confluence, however, Loki hasn't known how to talk to him; the events of Siege were not his doing, technically, even if he remembers every part of them. It's been an annoying worry in the back of his mind, having to prove himself all over again. Matthew stealing diamonds in broad daylight was also less than under the radar, but he could hardly refuse the lunatic's friendly overture. Getting set on fire on top of all of that was peanuts, compared.

It's been a real week.

So when he spots a familiar-shaped spider-person swinging higher up the buildings, Loki stops at a burger joint to buy a couple of meals before running vertically up the same skyscraper and hopping over the opposite edge, keen to brighten his night by surprising his heroic not-boyfriend with a mid-evening meal power-up. He strolls over, rubbing his eyes. ]

You could do with a stealth-suit, just a friendly observation.

[ He isn't creeping, there's certainly no ill-intent; Loki's smile is just world-weary and distracted when he eyes the crouched figure ahead. ]

[interloping]

[ Loki’s arrival is met with peaceful silence; no tingling at the base of his neck, no sign of danger. Spider-Man, still perched at the edge of the parapet on both feet, shifts to swing his legs over and settle on the roof. Truth be told, Spidey’s never really had any beef with the God of Mischief, even kinda likes him — truth be told; but that doesn’t exactly make it a reason for them to willingly hang out on rooftops either. ]

I had one once. [ It was simple and understated, all black and accented in white. It … also had a mind of its own and kind of a grim sense of fashion, and it tried to take over his mind in the end, so. ] It didn’t really work out for me.

[ He gestures now to the hefty paper bag, with its blotches of grease, in Loki’s hands. (Yeah, don’t think he hasn’t noticed that from the start. The smell alone calls it to attention.) ]

And you brought me dinner? Aw, you shouldn’t have.

power iii

[variantcover]

[ As far as heroes go, Gwen isn't traditionally thought of as the kind of gal who hangs out on rooftops. But she's feeling a little restless tonight, and decides to go see what the Central City skyline looks like.

She isn't expecting the roof to already be occupied, but somehow she's not surprised to see Spidey there. ]

Weird pull, but okay.

[ She doesn't really give a crap about Canadian environmentalists, not when compared to all the other shit she's been through today. She leans onto the ledge, looking out at the twinkling buildings. ]

...It's just not the same as New York, is it?

[interloping]

[ Well, maybe she should give a crap about Canadian environmentalists! But after today’s events — yeah, okay, he'll give her a pass on earth's sustainability status. It’s fair to be preoccupied (and relieved) at simply surviving the day.

Spider-Man turns from his newfound company back to the unfamiliar silhouettes of buildings and landmarks. Even after the little tour he’d taken himself on, it’s hard to feel anything but out of place.

But one thing’s for sure: ]

Well, you know what they say — there’s no place like home. [ He crosses his arms. ] So, you’re from New York too, huh?

hot dogs

[vexish]

[Did Harley hear mention of hot dogs? She definitely did. Stopping mid step, she cranes her head just in time to hear her pal say he'd treat someone to a hot dog if they could help him find a decent one. Or maybe there was something about the best hot dog in the city, she really can't be bothered to care about the details.

It's not like she needs him to pay for anything for her. She's got that credit card now. But old habits die hard, and Harley Quinn freaking loves free food. Especially free street vendor food.

So she walks right on over, smiling and extending her hand. Yes, she already knows this red and blue mask wearing little weirdo but it's more fun if she acts like she needs to re-introduce herself to him.]

Harley Quinn, professional hot dog connoisseur slash mercenary. You want the best damn dog in town? I'll find it for ya. You're gonna relish it, swear to god.

[interloping]

[ Uh … huh.

They do know each other, he knows they know each other; you don’t exactly spend a whole adventure being the size of ants and battling giant mechas in a not-fairytale without really getting acquainted. But he humours her.

He takes her hand and gives it a solid shake. ]

Relish! Hah. That's a good one. [ And it gets a solid spider-thumbs up, too. ] So, then. I mustard you a question: does that make the hunt officially on?

[ Assuming there are numerous vendors located across the city, there will be no hotdog-flavoured stone unturned, no cart they won’t give the ol’ taste test. ]

‘Cause it’s a good thing I’ve got the extra stretchy spandex on for what this is gonna do to my waistline.

mom's here 👉👉

[voicelog]

[ what a funny coincidence — iron man also had the same first, second, third and last thought. it was a good thing that he always has his armor on him now, so it took less than a millisecond to suit up and stop himself from causing property damage that he definitely cannot afford with his current income.

he can't believe that he has to include sudden temporal rifts to the equation now because the date sure has changed from where (or, rather, when) he last was. what other new surprises await, 3.0? keep 'em coming! just... maybe no more AUs, please?

first thing first, he should start catching people. they won't get hurt on impact, but unlike the large empty field he landed on during his first run on this earth, they're now smack dabbed in the middle of a city brimming with innocent civilians.

it seems he will be starting off with a spider-man. which one of the three could this be? ]

The weather report said that there was a small chance of it raining spiders in Excelsior today. Couldn't miss it.

[interloping]

Now is spider-shower a little more rare than a total solar eclipse or pigs in flight?

[ The cheeky quip loses a couple points in its delivery due to a slightly out-of-breath spandex-clad superhero, now twisting in Iron Man’s arms to have a quick peek at the distance between here and … the ground. And he’s gotta say, he doesn’t like how grim his odds had been prior to this bridal-carry rescue — even if his knight in literal shining armour is a man he still isn’t sure how he feels about. But that’s what happens when you have a lot of history … like, a lot of history … and then years go by and you’re doing your own thing, and the team-ups aren’t frequent because, you know, you decide that maybe it’s better, the less you see of the other Avenger.

And then … you fall right into his arms.

Because you have the best luck.

Jeez. ]

Guess this makes you my hero, huh?

wildcards;

[jikukan]

（ sasuke is holding a man by his ankle over the gaping maw of a impossibly large snake. the man looks like he's been beaten to hell, and sasuke, by contrast, is no more winded than if a marathon runner just came in from a light jog, though the exact nuance of his expression is hidden by a white mask.

he's got one leg propped up on the parapet of the building, holding the man effortlessly with his right hand. aoda is nestled in the alleyway, but he's immense enough that he comes to the edge of the warehouse roof, watching and listening to the discussion. sasuke'd chosen an area that's out of the public eye, dilapidated and disused — but for all intents and purposes, he isn't hiding what he's doing, either. ）

Answer me or get eaten. Your choice.

« My Lord, someone else is approaching. »

（ the snake's voice is deep, broadly rich and exceedingly polite, lacking sasuke's outright hostility. aoda flicks a tongue in the air, tasting the scent of the new stranger, and lifts his head up to look for the source. ）

I don't care — if they interfere, I'll just kill them, too.

[interloping]

[ Spider-Man isn't sure what he's webslinging into, but there's a look between the man dangling from an ankle to the truly terrifying giant snake, and then finally to the young man holding onto said ankle-dangler, before he casually sticks himself to the wall of a particularly dilapidated building with a good vantage point of the action.

Truth be told, he ... can't be sure which guy is the one he should be saving and which guy he should be webbing up.

But he clears his throat, letting his presence be known. That, and the hand he raises (like this is a school lecture and not a fight) should be obvious enough. ]

So, uh. Quick q: which one of you is the bad guy here?

power restored — i;

[magija]

[ wanda's hesitating herself with going to her room, still resisting the idea that she's meant to spend her time here, trapped from returning to her own world (not that it's been any better over there lately anyway). though there's freedom in the way they're permitted to go where they like, even gifted a high-tech phone and a card with the permission to spend, it doesn't feel much different than tony stark offering her a cozy room in the compound with the intention to keep a close watch on her every move.

she stares at the card in her hand with a sigh before she turns with the intention to at least go find out what her room has to offer —

and then she sees an all-too familiar costume, one that's unmistakable even if the design appears a bit different and he certainly looks ... taller? a different spider-man? she did meet a different tony stark, so it wouldn't be impossible. she supposes there's only one way to know.

she steps in close, her voice quiet enough to avoid it being heard by anyone else in the lobby. ]

... Peter?

[interloping]

[ Well, at least she's quiet about it when she says his name — if there was anything in this situation to be grateful for, it's that.

She looks ... different, though, that's for sure. They don't know each other too well, and admittedly the times they've come up against each other, things hadn't always been super chummy, but there are people he would pull a reflex-punch at, and Scarlet Witch isn't one of them.

If this ... is Scarlet Witch, anyway. ]

It's Spider-Man. [ And he notes that his spider-senses aren't going off either, so that's probably a good thing too. ] This thing got you too, huh? [ He means the Confluence, or maybe he means the glitz and glamour of these unlimited credit cards. (No, it's definitely the former.) ] Must really be powerful.

●●● power restored iii.

[howlett]

It's hard to tell when a man who's habitually standoffish is being more standoffish than usual, but Logan doesn't make any effort to step out of the shadows when he chuckles at Parker's very Parkerish remarks. Which help. His border babbling only validates that the human gargoyle Logan followed up here is exactly who he'd guessed him for.

"You don't even know if this place has a climate problem, Parker."

[interloping]

"I mean, it could, right? Seems to be the trend."

Spidey waves his half-eaten street-food like he's giving a lecture and the over-processed sausage has suddenly become his presentation pointer.

"And if this place doesn't have a problem, well, why start one? I'm taking preemptive measures here. Captain Planet would be proud."

Now that he's finished with his soliloquy, speaking to the shadows, he takes another bite of his hot-dog and grins. He would recognize that deep, gravelly voice anywhere. It helps too when you've been through multiple shenanigans (not limited to world-hopping like this place) with the guy.

"I was wondering when you'd get here." His ol' pal Wolvie. "Now I kinda wish I started with a dramatic, 'Ah, so we meet again.'"