"Look at you all! Mere sheep, following through the motions of your lives, because you know nothing else!" It was a sadly familiar sight in Steel
Canyon. A Vortex Adjutant and a squad of Nebulas standing on a street corner, harassing those that passed by with the propaganda of the council, insults, and
even outright threats. The modern day version of a press gang. The fact that an organization born from the Nazis and the second world war could openly walk the
streets of Paragon City was depressing, yet all too common in a world still healing from the Rikti Invasion.
People didn't look at the Council soldiers as they walked past as fast as possible without drawing attention. While mere cannon fodder by the standards of
the Council, the Nebulas were still deadly to the everyday citizen. With so few police officers left in Paragon City, it was safer to keep your head down and
not get noticed. After all, what if they decided you'd make a good addition to the Council and there wasn't a hero nearby?
The Adjutant stepped off his box suddenly, marching towards a slightly overweight man in his late twenties. "You are exactly the kind of failure I speak
of," the Council solder said, voice nearly dripping with disgust. "You have wasted your life. Your body has been neglected, mistreated. Now it slowly
rots away, just like your mind," he said as the man backed up, visibly terrified by the Nazi, but at the same time, drawn in by the sheer force of his
words.
"It is not your fault. It is the fault of a society that teaches the lesson that 'close enough is good enough.' They tell you not to try, not to
find your limits. Just sit back, watch television, and buy things that make you feel better." The disgust seemed to fade as he placed a hand on the mans
shoulder. "I was the same way once, before the Council opened my eyes. They helped me to rediscover who I was meant to be. They could do it for you
also..."
"After the invasive surgery, mind-altering drugs and mental reprogramming," added a new voice. "Then you'll be all set for life as a Nazi
henchman, threatening people, shooting innocents, and generally being the scum of society."
The Adjutant scowled, turning, then paled at the sight of a trio of heroes standing there. Well, two heroes and what looked like a Lost Headman, mutated
features hidden in the hood of his jumper and a face mask. The voice had to belong to the man in green power armor, as it obviously didn't belong to the
fairy girl in rather decorative formal wear.
"Kill them!" the Adjutant ordered, grabbing his flamethrower and pulling it up. The trio scattered instantly as the Council squad moved to obey. As
he opened fire on the fairy, the squad leader identified two of them. Lady of the Peace and Sell-Sword, founding members of the new supergroup Riot Force 6.1.
Low ranking heroes, but against the 'children' he was leading...
Lady jumped into the air, wings lifting her even higher as flames appeared around her hands. Smirking, she threw the flames like a baseball into the Nebulas,
scattering them across the street. One didn't have a chance to get up before Sell-Sword nailed him in the chest with a short burst.
Ignoring the seeming death of one of his men (The death of a mere Nebula was the Councils 'survival of the fittest' at work' ethic after all), the
Adjutant unhooked a grenade from his belt and tossed it at Sword. He leapt clear, but was stunned for a moment as he caught the very edge of the blast. The
Nazi smirked coldly, stepping forward, only to find himself lifting into the air, feet danging a foot off the ground as his whole body felt like it was being
held in a vice. Forcing his head to the side, he saw the 'Lost' standing back, a hand held out in front of him.
Seconds later, Lady dropped, fists glowing with arcane energy as she slammed them down on his head. The world seemed to explode for a moment, then spun as he
tried to get his bearings. "He's a durable one," Lady mused.
"Boss, move please," the 'Lost' said in a surprisingly normal voice. Lady stepped clear, then the Vortex saw a trash can pick itself up and
fly towards him at high speed.
Lady of the Peace winced as the Nazis body made a rather nasty sounding crunch at the impact, bouncing along the ground. "He's not getting up
soon," she said, pulling a teleport tag from out of nowhere and walking over to him.
"This one is," Sword noted as a Nebula tried to get up. Raising his rifle, he took aim.
"Sword, alive."
"Why?" he asked curiously.
"He's easier to question then Vortex boy."
"Good point," he agreed, walking over and punching the Council goon in the face. He dropped back to the ground, out cold.
As Lady secured the Council goons and teleported all but the one Nebula away, the 'Lost' walked over to the man the Vortex had been harassing. "My
apologies for that sir," he said, nodding his head respectfully. "A few minutes sooner, and you wouldn't have had to deal with their abuse."
"That's quite alright," he managed. "I... I thought you were a Lost at first," he admitted, embarrassed.
The giant chuckled. "Understandable," he said. "Sadly, there are very few clothing options for a man of my size. It's made for some..
interesting encounters." The friendly tone in his voice made the man smile, despite the situation.
As Sword walked up, he paused, looking at the armored hero. "Invasive surgery?" he asked.
"Oh yes," Sell-Sword replied. "They pump you full of combat drugs, tweak your DNA and thought patterns, and suject you to brainwashing until all
you can think of is serving the Council and their quest for world conquest and Fourth Reich." The man looked slightly horrified. "Scary, isn't
it?"
"...yes," he said after a moment. "Very. He made it sound so... appealing..."
"He's a fanatic that knows the right thing to say," Lady of the Peace said. "Blame everything on things outside your control and tell you he
could make it all better. He had a lot more stuff to feed you," she added. "Not your fault. He's trained to mess with peoples heads." The
man looked thoughtful as he thanked them again and went on his way. Lady watched him for a moment, then turned to Sell-Sword. "You know a bit about the
Council."
The armored hero nodded. "They gave me a job offer back before I got this gear," he admitted. "Had potential, then it fell apart when I took a
closer look. I'm a mercenary, not a fanatic. Turns out they don't do contractors." He glanced over at the giants snicker. "What's so
funny Horizon?"
Iridium Horizon shrugged. "Just love the fact you dislike villain groups based off their hiring practices," he commented, drawing a giggle from Lady.
"Whatever," he said, going over and picking up the one Nebula they hadn't teleported. "Lets get started on questioning this guy
already."
Canyon. A Vortex Adjutant and a squad of Nebulas standing on a street corner, harassing those that passed by with the propaganda of the council, insults, and
even outright threats. The modern day version of a press gang. The fact that an organization born from the Nazis and the second world war could openly walk the
streets of Paragon City was depressing, yet all too common in a world still healing from the Rikti Invasion.
People didn't look at the Council soldiers as they walked past as fast as possible without drawing attention. While mere cannon fodder by the standards of
the Council, the Nebulas were still deadly to the everyday citizen. With so few police officers left in Paragon City, it was safer to keep your head down and
not get noticed. After all, what if they decided you'd make a good addition to the Council and there wasn't a hero nearby?
The Adjutant stepped off his box suddenly, marching towards a slightly overweight man in his late twenties. "You are exactly the kind of failure I speak
of," the Council solder said, voice nearly dripping with disgust. "You have wasted your life. Your body has been neglected, mistreated. Now it slowly
rots away, just like your mind," he said as the man backed up, visibly terrified by the Nazi, but at the same time, drawn in by the sheer force of his
words.
"It is not your fault. It is the fault of a society that teaches the lesson that 'close enough is good enough.' They tell you not to try, not to
find your limits. Just sit back, watch television, and buy things that make you feel better." The disgust seemed to fade as he placed a hand on the mans
shoulder. "I was the same way once, before the Council opened my eyes. They helped me to rediscover who I was meant to be. They could do it for you
also..."
"After the invasive surgery, mind-altering drugs and mental reprogramming," added a new voice. "Then you'll be all set for life as a Nazi
henchman, threatening people, shooting innocents, and generally being the scum of society."
The Adjutant scowled, turning, then paled at the sight of a trio of heroes standing there. Well, two heroes and what looked like a Lost Headman, mutated
features hidden in the hood of his jumper and a face mask. The voice had to belong to the man in green power armor, as it obviously didn't belong to the
fairy girl in rather decorative formal wear.
"Kill them!" the Adjutant ordered, grabbing his flamethrower and pulling it up. The trio scattered instantly as the Council squad moved to obey. As
he opened fire on the fairy, the squad leader identified two of them. Lady of the Peace and Sell-Sword, founding members of the new supergroup Riot Force 6.1.
Low ranking heroes, but against the 'children' he was leading...
Lady jumped into the air, wings lifting her even higher as flames appeared around her hands. Smirking, she threw the flames like a baseball into the Nebulas,
scattering them across the street. One didn't have a chance to get up before Sell-Sword nailed him in the chest with a short burst.
Ignoring the seeming death of one of his men (The death of a mere Nebula was the Councils 'survival of the fittest' at work' ethic after all), the
Adjutant unhooked a grenade from his belt and tossed it at Sword. He leapt clear, but was stunned for a moment as he caught the very edge of the blast. The
Nazi smirked coldly, stepping forward, only to find himself lifting into the air, feet danging a foot off the ground as his whole body felt like it was being
held in a vice. Forcing his head to the side, he saw the 'Lost' standing back, a hand held out in front of him.
Seconds later, Lady dropped, fists glowing with arcane energy as she slammed them down on his head. The world seemed to explode for a moment, then spun as he
tried to get his bearings. "He's a durable one," Lady mused.
"Boss, move please," the 'Lost' said in a surprisingly normal voice. Lady stepped clear, then the Vortex saw a trash can pick itself up and
fly towards him at high speed.
Lady of the Peace winced as the Nazis body made a rather nasty sounding crunch at the impact, bouncing along the ground. "He's not getting up
soon," she said, pulling a teleport tag from out of nowhere and walking over to him.
"This one is," Sword noted as a Nebula tried to get up. Raising his rifle, he took aim.
"Sword, alive."
"Why?" he asked curiously.
"He's easier to question then Vortex boy."
"Good point," he agreed, walking over and punching the Council goon in the face. He dropped back to the ground, out cold.
As Lady secured the Council goons and teleported all but the one Nebula away, the 'Lost' walked over to the man the Vortex had been harassing. "My
apologies for that sir," he said, nodding his head respectfully. "A few minutes sooner, and you wouldn't have had to deal with their abuse."
"That's quite alright," he managed. "I... I thought you were a Lost at first," he admitted, embarrassed.
The giant chuckled. "Understandable," he said. "Sadly, there are very few clothing options for a man of my size. It's made for some..
interesting encounters." The friendly tone in his voice made the man smile, despite the situation.
As Sword walked up, he paused, looking at the armored hero. "Invasive surgery?" he asked.
"Oh yes," Sell-Sword replied. "They pump you full of combat drugs, tweak your DNA and thought patterns, and suject you to brainwashing until all
you can think of is serving the Council and their quest for world conquest and Fourth Reich." The man looked slightly horrified. "Scary, isn't
it?"
"...yes," he said after a moment. "Very. He made it sound so... appealing..."
"He's a fanatic that knows the right thing to say," Lady of the Peace said. "Blame everything on things outside your control and tell you he
could make it all better. He had a lot more stuff to feed you," she added. "Not your fault. He's trained to mess with peoples heads." The
man looked thoughtful as he thanked them again and went on his way. Lady watched him for a moment, then turned to Sell-Sword. "You know a bit about the
Council."
The armored hero nodded. "They gave me a job offer back before I got this gear," he admitted. "Had potential, then it fell apart when I took a
closer look. I'm a mercenary, not a fanatic. Turns out they don't do contractors." He glanced over at the giants snicker. "What's so
funny Horizon?"
Iridium Horizon shrugged. "Just love the fact you dislike villain groups based off their hiring practices," he commented, drawing a giggle from Lady.
"Whatever," he said, going over and picking up the one Nebula they hadn't teleported. "Lets get started on questioning this guy
already."