Snow Serpent Showdown

SETTING: Downtown Jump City, USA
PLAYERS: Ryuu, Pikazard, Mega, Kyte, Hellbreaker
PLOT: There’s an icy foe terrorizing downtown jump! A giant basilisk made of ice and breathes fire has appeared without warning, making everyone’s winter blues go into full-throttle panic.


“As if a giant skeleton hadn’t been enough…”

It all began on a particularly cold Friday afternoon. The unseasonal snowfall had layered on thick, ignoring the fact that it was nearly April in the state of California. The forecast called for clearer skies, prompting a certain petite powerhouse to begrudgingly grab a snow shovel and get to work clearing the snow from her temple’s walkway; anyone could be coming by the sacred structure as she had learned well in the past few months, and she admittedly had nothing better to do. But just as she had finished, the sky darkened and clouds began to roll in. A handful of minutes had gone by before all her hard work had been undone, and she was left to curse rather loudly. Soon, her litany of choice words were drowned out by nearby screams and loud thumping noises. Throwing down the shovel, she placed her palms together in a series of hand actions. A plume of white flames danced around the girl, obscuring her from anyone’s view before dispersing and leaving behind an individual with white skin, hair, and wings.

Spoiler:

Taking to the air, Rapture by way of Ivory Crow didn’t have to fly far before she saw the cause of the ruckus, although she couldn’t believe her eyes at first. For before her writhed a giant basilisk, appearing to be made of snow and ice but with all the capabilities of a real serpent. As it roared, flames spewed forth from its belly, contradicting its very frigid nature. Fangs as large as a man jutted forth from its gaping maw, lending to its ferocity. What did one do in this situation? Collecting a small compact mirror with a crimson butterfly detailing upon its top, the Icelandic-Japanese vigilante spoke into the glass. “Simon Camden, Verdant Gale. I need your help! Giant snow serpent in downtown Jump. Hurry!”

Putting the compact back in its place, Rapture assessed the situation. No one seemed to be hurt as of yet, but the beast only appeared to be gearing up. Thankfully, not many people were in the streets, but the creature had already done quite a bit of damage to parked cars and one storefront to a closed-down business. Smacking its tail on the ground caused the concrete to crack under such enormous pressure. It wouldn’t be long before irreparable damage would be done. To test its power, Rapture flew above it and let loose a barrage of energy projectiles from her feathers. The weapons collided with the thick skin with little effect, attesting to its resilience. She’d have to do a lot more than that to make any headway. Hopefully, help was on its way.

Ever since he had gotten his ass kicked by an egomaniacal robot Simon Camden had been laying low while he recuperated from the wounds he had received in that fight. Between that and the alien attack that he had failed to stop his debut as a hero had not been a very impressive one, as painful as it was for him to admit. After that it had been hard for him to make a comeback even after his wounds had recovered, especially with DOMA about.

But that was the past, and this was now. DOMA is gone and the heroes of Jump were free to come out to play again. Verdant Gale had made a few appearances in public since DOMA left, building somewhat of a rapport with the citizens of Jump, although compared to the Titans he was a nobody. That being said, things were relatively peaceful following the fall of DOMA, perhaps all of the super-villains were inside wrapped up in blankets thanks to the snow.

That all changed one snowy day, amongst all the other snowy days that were occurring every day, while Simon was flying above the downtown area. As he scanned the Jump City skyline he could faintly see what looked like flames erupting in the distance, the orange blaze of the flames stood out compared to everything else, which was white from the snow.

If that wasn't already suspicious enough he got a message from Rapture, warning him of the presence of a giant snake and requesting his help. Simon grinned and flew over to her location at top speed "Don't worry Rapture, because..."

A moment later Rapture would see a blurry figure come in and crash against the giant snake, sending the creature sprawling but failing to knock it over, if he had it would have made the entrance a lot cooler "...I AM HERE!! Verdant Gale has made his arrival!"

He took a moment to give Rapture a wave, then spun in the air and struck a pose "Long time no see, Rapture. Looks like we'll be fighting together again, but we're not in your cramped temple anymore. Today I'm in my element! Today I'm at full po-"

He was cut off by a tail swipe from the snow snake, which he only narrowly avoided at the last second "W-woah!" After that he stopped showboating and looked more focused "Let's get this thing!"

A creature that was made of snow and ice, yet could breathe fire? That was scientifically impossible. Even magic obeyed SOME rules of the natural world. This disregard for the laws of physics could only mean one thing. A Fasilli did it. BUT that would remain to be seen as the chaotic ringmaster wasn't any where nearby currently. Instead there were a handful of Steves clad in warm colors and firefighter helmets- who could fling fire from their little nubs. They happily joined in the chaos and whether or not the serpent was inclined to harm them remained to be seen. The Snow Troupers and the Steves clad for winter however did NOT like fiery snow serpent and were all running for the hills.

In addition, unlike the last giant monster attack, the local MRO (Metahuman Response Officers) were arriving on the scene in record time- due in much part to the fact that the police station was Downtown. Trucks formed a defensive perimeter a distance away from where the Serpent actually was, blocking off the roads to the makeshift arena as MRO poured out of them and started taking up positions behind the trucks or on the nearby rooftops. Among the gathered MRO was Hans who still had plans to stick around in Jump due to the supernatural activity.


But more importantly, a green colored armored warrior launched himself over a pair of trucks and started speeding his way toward the scene. He found himself in a weird place. He had originally been stolen from Chessa and gradually repurposed to serve as a frontline war machine in DOMA's efforts to curb Metahuman Vigilantisim- a stupid and poorly planned endeavor from the start. He had only been looking forward to the thrill he felt during combat but had not managed to partake in any due to how quickly it all fell apart.

To make a boring lore dump short, The Mayor personally gave him a window of opportunity. It wasn't completely unlike the situation with his DOMA "masters" but he had the choice to make. And then this giant snake appeared at the perfect time. A quick survey would reveal that two other local vigilantes had already gathered. He didn't feel like they'd be much use to him being organic and all but he would see.

Somehow, Rapture had forgotten Verdant Gale’s campy personality, or perhaps it didn’t have quite the time to shine when they were busy facing personalized yokai. Either way, she was glad for his help and promptly ignored any further interaction, even as the snake nearly smacked the green good-doer. Already busy with a plan of attack, the petite powerhouse flew past the flames and onto the serpent’s giant head. She grabbed on for dear life by gripping its scales while simultaneously aiming more feather energy projectiles at its eyes. Letting loose a barrage of attacks, she jumped off the rearing head to a safer landing. Apparently, doing so only angered the creature, causing it to slap its tail and flatten another parked car. ’Man, I’m rusty,’ she internalized ruefully as she witnessed the arrival of the calvary.

For once, they were doing some good, setting up a perimeter and blocking off roads. They had yet to demonstrate what kind of firepower they were carrying, but Rapture shrugged off their efforts dismissively. They were humans. What could they do? In the meantime, Rapture took a slightly different method of attack, this time flying just behind and slightly above the serpent’s head. Then she dove, did a front flip, and burst into blue flames. Seconds later, the vigilante had transformed by the spirit of the Mother Tiger. Now with a different ensemble and glowing blue eyes, a new addition to her getup came in the form of giant gauntlets. Essentially a modification on her Nightmare Knuckles, the new weaponry carried the same effects but with better protection. Raising the weapons above her head, she aimed for the base of the creature’s skull, hopefully targeting a weak point.

When the gauntlets collided with scale, the great beast’s head was forced downward, its jaw snapping shut with the mighty impact and temporarily suspending its fire-breathing. “Now that’s more like it!” she exclaimed before landing on the ground not too far away.

Kawari had barely been in this city for a day or two, and already it was living up to its reputation, becoming lively. Kawari moved towards the commotion at a brisk pace. It seemed to be the right thing to do; most people were running away from it, and authority figures moving in. Soon, Kawari arrived on the scene as well, observing the large serpent. He saw that many were already working to detain it, so perhaps his help was not needed. He raised a brow, and kicked off his ratty shoes, clearly nothing more than covers for his feet at this point.

He ran in at an impressive speed, striking for the beast's body with an open palm strike. Seeing no movement, he scoffed, and transferred blows to it briefly, before flipping onto its body. "First Seal of Opening: Release!" He spoke in Japanese, and the air around him immediately displaced, his fists becoming enveloped in crimson chakra. With a roar, he ran along the beast's body as another person punched the head down, and he leaped, clasping his fists together and bringing them down on its head with a more impressive force of 5 tons in a haymaker. "It's not supposed to be too cold or hot yet! It's spring, you bastard!"

Taz walked through downtown. He'd taken the oppurtunity to visit a nearby arcade and hunt down some sweets (and a few replacement foods for the pantry) on his way home, and was currently walking back home, a backpack loaded with his loot. He had to admit, this weather seemed...odd. Granted, he definitely wasn't a expert in this realm, so maybe it was supposed to be this way, but he couldn't but feel that it was....unnatural to exist for so long. But, he reflected as he happily sipped on some hot cocoa, at least they were still serving wintry treats!

However, the sounds of mayhem a few blocks away abruptly interrupted his musing. Jumping in surprise, Taz glanced towards the direction the chaos was coming from before, with a rueful pout, depositing the styrofoam cup into a nearby trash bin. Rotating his shoulders to make sure his pack was well seated, he stowed his cotton cap in his jacket pocket and started running.

Soon enough, the other heroes would be joined by another ally. A small, blurred form blasted past the MRO's blockade. As Taz approached the Basilisk, he'd form large, crackling claws of lightning and plasma, raking them along the giant serpent's icy hide as he ran along it's side.

After receiving Simon's somewhat long-winded greeting Rapture didn't feel the need to respond to any of it, acknowledging the green-clad heroes presence and nothing more. Simon somewhat chuckled at his own expense, it looks like the giant snow snake wasn't the only one giving him the cold shoulder today.

Though Verdant Gale had been the first hero after Rapture to arrive at the scene of the snake's attack he was far from the only one. One after the other more fighters came to fend off this threat. First the MRO came in and formed a perimeter around the area, boxing the snake in. Shortly after a robot flew in from behind the trucks, for a moment Simon stared in awe at the sight of a real life flying robot "Woah."

Simon quickly refocused himself on the task at hand, just in time to see Rapture slam the snake's head down. Shortly after a Japanese teen rushed in and struck it, at first to no effect but then he seemed to activate some kind of ability and followed up with another more powerful attack. If that wasn't enough, a younger boy ran in and started attacking the snake with lightning powers.

Simon watched the scene escalate with his mask hiding a deadpan expression "Am... am I even really needed here?" All these other heroes who arrived seemed to be capable of dealing much greater damage to the serpent than he could. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted movement on the ground and noticed the fire-flinging Steve's causing chaos, even if their contribution was far less noticeable than the giant snake's "I... guess I should deal with that. Don't want them setting fire to something."

With a new mission in sight Simon flew down, landing amongst the Steve's in a classic superhero landing, it made for quite a photo-worthy moment. Then he straightened up and ruined the image by trying to get the group of cartoonish creatures to scatter "Shoo! Shoo!"

The Scorcing Steves were totally not already flinging little fireballs at random things. Ignore the fact everything was for the most part with snow and so only steam was made. At one point there was a puddle that they all tried to avoid like a C-named virus, failing miserably with one landing in it and making overly dramatic Steve Sounds of pain... only to remember that it's current form was unaffected by the perils of water. Then Simon appeared in an overly dramatic fashion, holding their attention as they waited with baited Steve-breath and... he tried to shoo them. They all blinked with a soft squeak as the eyeholes of their masks actualy blinked. And then they rubbed their "hands" together and created fire, which they they then flung at Simon.
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Back at the MRO line, Hans kept his Pulse Rifle trained in the direction of the snake. "Barlowe said you were some kind of specialist. Any suggestions?" One of the MRO by him asked.

Hans could see that there was definitely some kind of spiritual pressence to the serpent. But it was as far as he could visually tell, solid and completely tangible. Not to mention the fact it had a cold exterior but could breathe fire didn't leave him with any immediate conclusions. Fortunately it didn't look like that'd be a problem soon with so many of the local vigilantes coming out of the woodworks. And DOMA tried to outlaw this? He'd never understand what some people were thinking. "If it looks like one of the vigilantes are in a tight spot, pelt it with firepower. Otherwise I have a couple ideas if it looks our way," Hans replied as the MRO consulted with whoever was actually in charge and the order was given throughout each blockade to open fire when necessary. Hans wasn't real confident in his ability to do it any damage with his scythe if it took that many hits already.
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CAP wasn't paying the tactical chatter of the MRO any mind, he had a target and he was regardless of whatever happened bring it down. More and more of the meatbags seemed to be coming out of the woodwork which did make him not regret DOMA's disbanding. How many of these wannabe crimefighters had been hiding under their noses? He did however quickly recognize Rapture as being high on DOMA's wanted list. And even though she was not his current target, given that she ha openly attacked at the time agents of this government he had grounds to make an arrest. That would highly depend on how this encounter went in the end.

"Attention all meatbags in combat: don't get in my way," CAP declared as his shoulder mounted missle rack popped out and started to lock into the serpent's body. That was also his only warning, as he let loose a salvo of micro-missles. The Serpent shook off it's increasing migraine, fire snaking out of it's maw as it primed to unleash it's breath attack on the new arrival. The missles crashed along it's body with the final one smacking it in the side of the face and making it's aim veer only slightly. And like the trend going on, CAP flew through the fire and the flames with an upward double handed strike to it's jaw. Then he zipped away with a quick blast from his shoulder cannon aimed for the underside of it's jaw to send it toppling over backward.

It let out a hiss and thrashed it's body about into an upright position, still seemingly raring to go.
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Also there appeared to be a Fasilli casually sitting in a lawn chair on the roof, enjoying some hot coco.

Rapture wasn’t sure whether to be put off or pleased by the sudden appearances of two more heroes, but she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. This serpent was huge, about a football field in length and standing higher than most nearby buildings when it reared up. Add in flames and a frozen hide to boot, and you had the perfect opportunity for a multi-hero meetup. Not that she recognized anyone but Verdant Gale, although it seemed that the newcomers could also pack quite the punch. But what were they going to do, beat the thing to death? The presence of a heavily-armed robot always bode well, or did it? One of its missiles nearly hit the petite powerhouse, sending her in the opposite direction. “Watch it, you fucking tin can!” she roared over the commotion. It appeared that metal individuals and the spiky-headed girl did not go well. The thing stunk of a less fleshy version of Telsa, rubbing Rapture the wrong way. For now she would have to ignore the machine, instead turning her efforts to a new conundrum.

In its rage, the serpent had smacked its tail into an occupied building, sending brick flying and trapping a small family in their little store. Rapture rushed over and dislodged a piece of roof that had caved in, carefully lifting the structure while the family managed to escape unharmed. After having completed her objective, Rapture turned back to the main conundrum. There had to be some way of subduing the beast, but it seemed to lack intelligence. More like a huge, mindless lump of icy flesh and fire. The creature clearly had high resilience and wasn’t taking hits like a normal snake. What in the name of Davy Jones had brought it here?

Kawari landed on his feet, stepping forward as he looked at the creature. It was composed of ice, yet had the ability to breathe fire. Such a thing was clearly of the supernatural. If it was evil or unholy, his fists would do good for it. Still though, he briefly observed his new comrades in arms. They all seemed to be trying to beat the thing themselves, not wanting help from the others. Except for the one clad in the green suit. And the little... things... were just here to cause chaos. "Yare yare daze..."

He would help Simon if he needed it, but otherwise, would send a flying kick straight into the thing's nostrils. "Hoooooooooooooooooh!" He growled, summoning strength within him as he flipped back slightly. When facing the creature again, he started making a rapid series of punches and kicks to its face, not wanting to let it open its mouth again.

As he raced along the Basilisk's side, Taz examined the effects that his Lightning Claws had on the serpentine beast's hide. Hmm...though he _was_ managing to engrave it with some nice racing stripes, it didn't seem like he was managing to bite into it all that deep, or at least when comparing his attempt to it's size. But maybe if he kept it up.... Unfortunately, he'd soon be interrupted. A (admittedly cool looking) robot unleashed a bout of missiles that hammered their way along the serpent's hide. Giving a shocked yelp, Taz was forced to veer off and away from the icy foe. And just in time, too, for the great beast recovered with thrashing that would have surely left him regretting being so close to it.

As the mightier heroes let loose with their strength, Taz stared at the scene with wide eyes, feeling both impressed, and frustrated that he wasn't able to bring so much immediate power to bear. He had to help somehow! Maybe he could pester it with lightning bolts so it couldn't focus? Giving a shocked gasp as it trapped a family within rubble, he started forward, intent on helping them get out somehow, even if he had to carve the rubble apart to do so, but the winged girl managed to get them out safely. Sighing in relief, Taz would dash over and guide them to the barricade so that MRO could protect them. As he turned back, he noticed the green armored hero being pestered by flame chucking Steves. Brows furrowing in concern, he bent his knees slightly, ready to rush back over to help, and called out to Gale. "You well?!"

Simon's attempt to get the Steve's to stop throwing fire everywhere resulted in him having fire thrown at him, needless to say that was a failure on his part. Luckily the hero's wind aura was more than sufficient to blow the flames away. Simon put his hands on his hips, showcasing to the Steve's through body language that he was angry, since they couldn't see his face. He leaned forward and started to give the Steve's a piece of his mind, a heated edge could be heard in his voice as he did so "Now you listen here! You'd better all go home and stay out of trouble or I'll-"

His lecture was cut short when a series of explosions caused by Cap's missiles made the serpent thrash about, resulting in a large piece of rubble striking the hero in the back of the head. With a soft thud muffled by the snow below him Verdant Gale fell down and gave the snow covered concrete a deep kiss. For a few seconds, long enough to build anticipation towards the heroes fate, he lay still and unmoving.

Then with a sudden start the green-clad hero jumped to his feet and struck a pose "I'm okay!" He held the pose for a few seconds before suddenly remembering what he had come here for. Acting as if the last minute of tomfoolery had not occurred Simon would raise his fists and shift into a very battle-ready stance before addressing the Steve's "Let's dance!"

The Steves were losing interest rapidly- mostly due to the fact their fireballs did nothing. Time was wasting, there were things to burn! Then Simon fell down and went boom. One of The Steves which for some unknown reason had a stick that was only slightly singed, and proceeded to poke Simon with it to see if he was dead or out cold. It snickered Stevely at the joke that was never spoken before Simon suddenly came to and startled him. He immediately wooshed back to his friends. Was wassling commencing? The Steves immediately stacked themselves up like a totem pole- either to look more intimidating or believing there was some kind of tactical advantage to be had. Most of the Steves would just start spitting hot fireballs, while the one on top took a deep breath to the point of actually inflating, releasing a Steve-level flame breath attack at Simon.

Meanwhile...

Fasilli was really enjoying his hot coco. It'd be a shame if he were to do anything. Fasilli suddenly sneezed, and surprisingly the fabric of reality held together. He looked at his watch. It had been a full round of posts and no one had seemingly done anything to really break the ice with this snake. Maybe they should all hit it harder- in one spot, as opposed to every spot they could find. "Ra ra, what's his name? If he can't do it, that'd be lame," Fasilli pulled out a megaphone from nowhere and more or less gave away his existence.
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CAP touched down and briefly surveyed what just happened. While he had not really been counting on his missles being able to crack the creature's icy hide, it appeared as if no one had been able to. The creature would probably do more damage to it's surroundings before it'd go down unless something changed. And then someone shouted somthing stupid from one of the rooftops which... actually made him incredibly uncomfortable. Being a machine and all, the phrase 'a chill running down your spine' didn't quite work the same way here. A problem for later, if it was not actively making itself a nuisance, he would pay it as little mind as necessary.

Speaking of, the serpent would undoubtedly not be taking this prolonged abuse to it's poor face. And it was a snake. Those things were quick, even for this size. It'd immediately try to pull away from 'what's his name' and reer up, It was obvious what it was about to do and CAP had an idea as he shot up into the air again, cannon barrel narrowing and powering up. The snake was getting ready to let loose a fire breath straight down the road as CAP got high enough and in turn fired a shot laced with probes down it's throat. The snake was still readying it's fire breath, though.

Rapture was beginning to doubt the efficiency of having so many heroes fighting one monster. Sure it was huge and all, but none of their efforts seemed to be doing very much. At least with Gashadokuro, there were additional beasties to fight. The giant skeleton definitely warranted a huge entourage of supers. Thinking back to that fight helped the teen be reassured in their efforts. If they could take down a giant  fire-breathing skeleton, they could defeat a giant fire-breathing snake. But one thing they had going for them during that fight was an understanding of where the creature came from and what it wanted. The same could not be said for the basilisk.

Dodging a rogue piece of concrete that the snow serpent had dislodged, Ryuuzaki followed the large projectile as it was flung past a rooftop. But the debris didn’t have her attention as much as a new player did. Strange, she had never seen him before and thought she would have thanks to his unique appearance. A sharply-dressed lanky individual with a top hat and a red and white smiling mask stood not too far away, brandishing a megaphone. Not long after he spotted him, the individual appeared to do a cheer of sorts. ’What exactly is this guy’s deal?’ He certainly wasn’t helping, but he didn’t appear to be harming anyone. Still, it rubbed her the wrong way.

Flying to the masked one’s side, Rapture folded her arms and confronted him. “Look, you either help or beat it, punk. We’ve got enough chaos as is.”

Even though this form was the one he had mastered, he wasn't doing enough damage. The serpent pulled back from all the blows to its face, and began inhaling. Kawari dropped to the ground, and bent his knees, getting ready. It was clear the serpent was going to let loose another breath, and he looked behind him at the street. Too many risks. He build up chakra to break another seal, and the chakra emanating from his hands became a golden orange. "Second Seal of Healing: Release!" He dashed into the air again at an impressive speed, bringing a kick down onto the roof of its mouth, and continuing to pound down to try and get it to the street so that he could keep its jaw closed, after the metal entity had fired something into it. But he was building chakra to get another strength boost as he did. The chakra began to take on a golden hue. "Third Seal of Life: Release!"

With this, he would turn in the air from an enhanced punch, having gone from 10 ton strikes to 15, and kicked down with all the force he could muster to put the serpent into the street, before lashing a kick out at one of its eyes. "Shut your mouth!"