The First Act (Open)

(( Emblem gets the first reply, after this I think it might be open to some Titans, or whomever wants to give it a try. ))

This version of Jump City was far too 'perfect' for his liking. It's people weak minded and reliant on each other, it's society build around equality, while clearly that wasn't the case. What surprised him the most however, was that the famed Titans were still active here. They had found out just a few hours after their arrival. Emblem already hungered for a go at them and Krious could barely stop him from going on a rampage through the city to draw them out. Their first move shouldn't be a reckless one, but he couldn't keep Emblem unsatisfied for long or he'd have to face that problem.

Straight away he had begun forming a plan, one that would serve their needs and one that would satisfy his friend for a while. They needed funds, a small fortune, to fuel whatever it was they were planning to do in the long run. Money was always nice to have, it equalled power and power brought victory. Their plan right now was simple. Emblem would wreck havock inside and in front of the bank and whilst everyone was busy with him Krious would crack the safe and take the contents somewhere safe before joining in if it came to that. They didn't need the diversion at all, but in this manner they could at least say hello to the Titans. It didn't matter whether they got recognized or not, as all who did would be in for a nasty surprise.

The fire mage licked his lips in anticipation as he walked through the entrance of the bank. Nobody suspected a thing, but that would change in a matter of seconds. He snapped his fingers, creating a wall of fire at the doorway behind him. The fire quickly spread around the walls as he whipped up a fireball, preparing to throw it.

"So.. If all of you get on the ground and stay calm, those fires on the wall might not burn you or take all the air. Might.. Oh... And would someone please push the red button under the counter? There's no fun without the fuzz."

Once the first fireball went flying it was time for Krious to do his job. With his assets it wouldn't even take him long to break into the safe with brute force, but he'd choose the method on closer inspection. The screams coming out of the building didn't bother him as much as the deafening sound of the alarm going off. Quickly he proceeded to the back entrance, looking through to glass for his new position. He appeared there not even a second later and his quest for the vault continued

"So.. If all of you get on the ground and stay calm, those fires on the wall might not burn you or take all the air. Might.. Oh... And would someone please push the red button under the counter? There's no fun without the fuzz."

With those exact words, the fun had started. Emblem's flames spread, wall-hugging until they met at the back end. This plan was a simple one, but it wasn't one that would fail all too easily. Emblem looked at his flames, and one of the employees apparently opted in for police. Or the computer systems detected the heat and identified it as a break-in procedure. If so, it was right. Emblem looked at his flames with a maniacal grin. The fireball in his hand was equally pleasing to the pyromancer.

''So...who pushed the button? Rephrase...who wants to die for his foolish human needs of bravery?''

One employee stood up, panicked, tripped and tried to crawl for the door. His body would have to, some way, endure fires on his way out. The man thought he would try his luck, with Emblem's back turned towards him. His luck, if he had any at all, was drained like the air from his lungs, and peeled away from him like the skin was peeled off his bones. Emblem's fireball, who threw it like a baseball pitcher, seared to the unfortunate man.

''One would ask if he felt pain or not. Let me assure you...he did. If you pathetic human beings should understand something, it's that if someone is good at something, you don't challenge him on that. My flames are perfect in what I designed them for. You would heed well to be good little servants and stay here. The wall of flame is an even worse death.''

Emblem turned around as Krious had already proceeded to the next phase of their plan. The pyromancer brimmed with excitement as he walked towards the main entrance, still shrouded in flames. The were twisted and responded to his presence, reaching out to lick the master's body with their dry tongues. Emblem's clothes did not burn by any contact.

''Yes yes...playtime is soon. I'm sure worthy mortals show up.''

The demonic arsonist turned around, looking at the gathering of cowering humans, unknowing bank employees and hapless ill fated customers.

''If my comrade does not get what he is looking for...or something comes to pass that might harm me or him...then you might want to inform your offspring you love them. They might get lonely soon. Pray to your God that no arrogant individual tries something.''

Emblem's grin extended as far as a human face allowed it, showing his pearly white, almost menacing set of teeth. Something eerie was present in his facial appearance, blurred by the heat of the surrounding fires. He strode out of the building only to see police vans stacked in a line in front of him, blocking most escape routes that would include travelling over the ground.

''Do not move, and put your hands where we can see them!'' shouted one of the policeman with a microphone. The pyromancer chuckled. Were they in their right minds? Would they ever think such a line would work?

''There is no need to panic. Your electricity and internet billing will not be paid by you this month.''

Emblem might not have succeeded in impressing most officers with that peculiar comment, but he had a common conception about automobiles of this age; they were used by people who loved to explode. With the blink of an eye, one of the cars exploded, and chaos followed suit.

People fell to the ground, the smell of burning flesh and hairs polluted the air, and many police car followed suit. Emblem's hands changed into fireballs, before changing back; both were filled with a flaming axe. Another eruption ensued from below and the last car went up into flames.

''You can't hide from the fire you cannot see. Try if you can get this one right.''

Emblem threw his axes towards the remained for the police force. The axes seared, cutting air itself as they headed for their targets. In reaction, most policemen lay down on the same ground eruptions were summoned from frequently. Pillars of flame that claimed all who stood near. The axes however, granted that same wish. When they disappeared, after getting stuck in the concrete, there was no man who stood against the pyromancer, who divided and ruled in chaos.

''So much flesh..''

With that, about 4 black orbs appeared and warped, changing into canine entities, looking just like dogs...but they were flaming in their mouths and eyes and their skin was like stone.

''I reckon you mongrols need some fun and grub huh? Go do your worst.''

With that, the dogs leaped forward upon the devastation in front of their eyes. Holes inthe ground indicating eruptions of flame, a wall of fire, smoke and the smell of burned flesh everywhere. It truly was a work of art in the eyes of hell's battlemage. One minion however, wanted to jump through the flaming wall after smelling those still inside. Whilst Emblem could otherwise have appreciated the hunt for newer flesh, he grabbed the dog by it's neck and slammed it on the ground. With a yelp and a crack, the minion's neck was broken and he disappeared the same way he came on this world.

''Scroungy bastard. Those inside are mine.''

Emblem looked around, and in the distance, spotted more reinforcements. He waved at them and his fiery minions prepared to attack them as soon as they got close enough to threaten the operation. Emblem had no doubt they could not. Krious was best at what he did, and if anything, Emblem never worried about that man's success percentage. All he could argue is that Krious worked too fast for his liking, not leaving much time for Emblem to do what he did best...

(( Unfortunately my ISP has let me down and I'll be without an Internet connection for an unkown time period (Probably a couple of weeks). Therefore my replies might be a little slower since I'm forced to post and check on the site with my mobile or from work, which both are troublesome. Apologies.

If it wasn't clear already, anyone willing may join up now. ))

The noise coming from upstairs had increased the last couple minutes. He could just imagine the look on Emblem's face, enjoying the carnage and savoring every second of it. In his eyes violence and death were of great use, but shouldn't be used unnecessarily. Then again, he wasn't as great of a warrior as his friend and even blind rage had it's uses now and then. Krious was nearing the vault, he could feel it. The corridor he entered sloped down towards what was unmistakably a high security door. He could easily unlock it from out here, but that would take time, at least as much time it would take him to break it down. With the possibility of the Titans showing up -since that was Emblem's aim- he would opt for the latter. It might prove a good warm-up.

Krious felt the anticipation fill his body as he rubbed his hands together. A small grin appeared on his face and he took a deep breath. One of his blades jerked out of it's hiding near his right hand wrist. As he let the air out of his lungs he transformed the feeling of anticipation into raw energy to fuel his abilities. He started to move towards the door as his blade started to show a black outline. Once in reach he thrust the blade clean through the reinforced steel door and started to cut a hole big enough to move through. At every corner he adjusted the angle of his blade and within minutes he was nearing the spot he had started with. The outline on his blade disappeared and his cybernetic arm made a clicking sound as the blade popped back in. He was pleased at the speed at which he had created a path through the door. Darkforce energy once more gathered into his right arm -now without blade- and struck right in the middle of the door. The door didn't budge at first, but then the darkforce released and the sheer kinetic force that followed blew it straight into the vault.

Inside were multiple sections. One contained all sorts of documents and financial records, others housed multiple sorts of valuables, ranging from cash to jewelery and gems that the were left here for safe keeping by clients high up the social ladder. Krious grinned at the irony, no safe was ever safe enough. Quickly he began to gather the valuables and put them into several large bags he snagged near the entrance. Wrecking container after container with his bare hands and pouring the contents into one of the bags. He didn't really care what they got, as long as he could get some money out of it, although he preferred cash since it was less of a hassle. He stopped once he had about twice as much as he could carry in one go. It had only taken him about 10 to 15 minutes since their arrival to succeed and now he was curious to how things went upstairs.

He activated his communications implant and spoke up loud, since nobody was here he could afford to make some noise, even so he rarely used the implant subvocal.

"I'm done, going to spread our loot around the city so we can pick it up after we're done here. How are things up there?"

For now he would hide the bags at specific locations in town and pick them up once things cleared up and Emblem was sated.. Seperating and spreading them out would diminish the chances for anyone else to find them. Even if they lost one they would still have the others. A minutes and a couple of flashes later the bags at his feet had disappeared and left at places only he knew about. Now it was time to check up on his companion and see what their opposition consists of.

"I'm done, going to spread our loot around the city so we can pick it up after we're done here. How are things up there?"

Emblem sat there, on the steps of the Bank. The wall of flames burned behind him, warming his back. The part-man sat down in boredom.

''I was about to ask you the same thing. You're usually quicker. I reckon you've gone sightseeing or something?''

Emblem's fight ended almost as soon as it had started. Some reinforcements came, but if they got far enough to shoot his hellhounds (which happened only sporadically) then they were quickly reduced to ashes by a fireballs, firestorm, or cut up to size by Emblem's axes.

''So...I don't know if this is a mission success. Yeah it's all going perfect, you're probably done as we speak, but if this didn't get Titan attention...I know I'm not supposed to hit surrounding buildings due to them collapsing on us but...I don't get it. Do we wait for the 6' o'clock news to tell those idiots we've robbed a bank?''

Emblem kicked a small stone off the steps, looking around to see if someone was going to fight him or not. A sigh and a conjured bonfire later, he turned back to Krious.

''So boring..I say we move on to dinner. My fires would be useful for something..I'm feeling like Kung Pao Chicken, what'you want?

Three fireballs were created with the a finger snap, orbing in front of the pyromancer. He grabbed the orbs and started to juggle with them, having no other apparent reason to act on anything in his surrounding. An ambulance turned around the corner, sirens loud, but for obvious reasons, it came to a stop.

''Hey Krious...I'm thinking 'bout some special reconnaissance. Invest in some fancy suits, and we can go to the casino tonight. I'm bettin' we can find something nice there, be it more cash or people to extort. Even more fun if they find out we already have their money. Bet it'll be more fun then this...''

The ambulance was standing still, not more then 10 meters away from the juggling firemaster. It must have occurred to Krious by now that Emblem was getting rather bored with the 'mere' humankind that had tried to oppose him.

The EMT personnel however, did not know how to act upon seeing the one who caused all this to be sitting in front of the building they needed to get to to possibly save some lives.

''If we have enough cash I think I'm ready to go...''

The personnel slowly got out of their ambulance, carrying a stretcher and other breathing equipment. Someone inside must have called, or at least, the recipient was inside, coalmonoxide poison as the source was most probably. Whichever it was it seemed these men did not understand Emblem's intentions, and it was even less clear to them when he stood up with a sigh, cracked his muscles and moved to the wall of flame, moving it away with his hand, much like a curtain pushed away to allow people to move through unhindered.

''..''

Slowly but steadily, partially fearing what might happen next, these men entered the smoking hot room, looking for those they needed to treat and transport. They dared not look up at the pyromancer, but they recognised his features even while inside the car. Emblem walked away, and the wall of flames, the wall that surrounded most of the room, died out slowly. The EMT had all the room it needed, but even so, they would not be able to save all.

''Seems some true heroes arrived. Not to hinder us though. Not like those cowards that call themselves Titans...Let us proceed Krious, we have better places to be. At this rate the world is ours by the end of the week.''

No Titan had shown up to face their menace? So these Titans were of the self righteous type, something they would regret soon enough. Not that Krious complained really, they had what they came for. The only things he did mind were the waste of energy spreading the goods around town and dealing with a bored Pyromancer. He might have to take up on that offer of Kung Pao Chicken, food usually did Emblem good. Just as Emblem finished his bored rant and the flames had died out he walked out of the building, ignoring the humans around him. He stopped next to his companion, staring into the bonfire.

"No, this is no time for games. What we need to do is figure out how to deal with these Titans in one blow. Them not showing could mean two things, either they don't care or they think we're not worth their time. Both are signs of weakness so I say we take advantage of that and show them what being supernatural really means."

The Titans weren't their only concern right now. They still needed a hideout, not this temporary fix, and they needed to expand their influence in the city. If those two could be managed then handling with the Titans would prove a lot easier.

"But first, let's go treat ourselves to some of that chicken you mentioned."

(( Short post but there isn't much to go on... End of thread and a starting point for the first storyline? ))

The pyromancer calmed himself down a little. Perhaps he was frustrated with the current events. Perhaps he hoped a little too much for him to open some cans of whoop-ass on some Titans. In any case, he agreed with Krious. Even he should not go overboard, even if the distraction was meant to be more then this.

''Agreed. Food, shelter. I bet you'd like some fancy stuff in there too. Kings deserve this, and you work well with all kinds of electronics. However...in one blow...I have an idea for that.''

Emblem rubbed his hands together, and it started to smolder. Black ash grinded together in his palms, and slowly turned into some sort of dark-brown parchment, growing larger with the twist of his wrists. The pyromancer threw it into the bonfire, and the fire crackled happily, devouring the created parchment.

''Remember this tournament I always did in that other world? We pulled it off with our names as leverage. We were feared enough for them to participate against each other and through countless obstacles, only to face one of us in the end.''

Emblem saw his fire crackle as smoke came from it, forming a blurry picture, getting clearer as he spoke.

''...How's this for leverage?''

The picture got sharper and sharper, filled itself with dark red colors, before sinking back into the flames. However, Krious very well saw it in those few moments. It was one of Emblem's most intricate and gruesome rituals, but also one of his favorites as well. If he was allowed to get the ingredients and perform the lengthy incantations, then this entity would certainly create a buzz big enough for them to prey on.

Emblem did not look but he would think Krious would at least grin a little. Inside or outside. To Emblem, this beast was the Alpha and Omega of fire. They were revered, worshiped and feared all throughout the history of this earth, but only those who had a firm grasp on metahistory would know of their existence.

''Think about it mastermind...but yeah...Chicken.''

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Apparently this will be continued in this next thread:
https://ttrpg.forumotion.com/t1387-best-kung-pao-chicken-in-town-open#25409
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OOC: Oh? The thing in the fire? Yes I have the picture here....muhahahaha!