12168/Homeward Bounds 3: All Dogs Go To Heven

From United Heroes MUSH
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Homeward Bounds 3: All Dogs Go To Heven
Date of Scene: 13 September 2020
Location: Heven. Then Earth.
Synopsis: Our Heroes follow Lockjaw to Heven. It's strange there. They don't like it. They come back.
Cast of Characters: Iron Man, Phantasm (Drago), Pixie, Mon-El, Winter Soldier, Hulk, Nightingale




Iron Man has posed:
"I guess I've had worse pants."

As Tony pulls the golden cord through the handsewn waist loops of his new baggy trousers, he looks down at them with... ambivalence. On the one hand, he's fully clothed again, but on the other hand, he looks kind of like he's dressing up for a Lawrence of Arabia convention.

But such is the clothing that the men of Heven wear. Monkish robes, all white, very roomy, good airflow.

"Everything sure is shiny here. Even the Angelic Boob Armor." Tony couldn't help but notice that all of the Angels in Heven seem to be very tall, almost Amazonian women, who all seem to be wearing metallic bikinis, and lots and lots of belts. Belts and pouches.

And bikinis.

Not very men here though, funnily enough.

So far, the Angels have been gruff, but have left Our Heroes mostly to their own devices, with minimal guarding, as they seem to not think of them as much of a threat. After all, they're Angels, and one of Our Heroes showed up in his briefs.

Looking up at the glittering Hevenly spires above him, Tony can't help but be dazzled. The rest of his wardrobe has come together, and he kind of looks like he's about to play the shepherd in a little kids Christmas play.

"Only one in a hundred of them are male. I mean, I'm a pretty committed atheist, but I'm kind of hoping that I come back here after I die. Shit, I might even buy a Bible if I have to."

One of the Angels overhears Tony's profanity, and suddenly gives him a Very Harsh Look.

"But where did that dog run off to? He just dropped us here, and off he goes... this is why I don't have pets."

The holding area that Our Heroes find themselves in isn't so much 'guarded' as just 'slightly sectioned off' from all the foot traffic. It almost has the vibe of an open-air lobby, in the middle of an open-air bazaar, but where everything is made of gold. If that helps.

"Did any of you see him?"

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Nick glances over to Tony listening to the commentary before shaking his head. "Just because you believe doesn't mean you'd end up going where you want to." He murmurs, glancing around, frowning. How in this world did they manage misplacing a dog of Lockjaw's side, again?

Pale eyes take in the surroundings. "It is nice to look at though." He admits.

Pixie has posed:
Megan Gwynn blinks slowly as she peers around. She'd been keeping a low key so far in the other place, but now she Kinda feels awkward, maybe even overly dressed in her black mini dress and clunky yellow gauntlets and boots. Compared to metallic bikinis any way.

Still she shivers and hugs her arms, "What kinda demented, chauvinistic world is this? All the women dressed in metal bikinis? Sorry but I refuse to change into *that* just to fit in.." she pouts a bit, looking around for that dog. Megs could probably port them all back home, assuming they're not super far away, which they probably are..

But they should probably find that troublesome doggo and bring him home too. "Sooo maybe we should split up..?"

Mon-El has posed:
    Lar had been about ready to head back to his ship when...zap! Lockjaw teleported -him- along with the rest of the group to goodness knows where. There's a lot gold and tall women, however. "What the--?"

    Then comes Tony's question. He rises into the air a bit to get a better vantage point. "If you're talking about the giant dog, it looks like he's in some kind of park about half a mile north of here." he tells them, then drops back down.

    "Now does anyone want to tell me what the -hell- is going on here?" he asks.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    From (war is) Hell to He(a)ven. This dog sure had a habit of ending up in surprising places. But being here, being among the angels, is proving to be a bit of an existential problem for Bucky, who is very much not an Atheist. Pragmatist, sure, but still a believer in a higher power, and the notion of eternal salvation and paradise after death. That is the key point here. /After/ death, not before. That's just wrong.

    He's sitting slightly by himself on a couch that's mostly cushions, just watching people... and angels, watching angels. Occasionally he glances over to Shannon, who he seems to think has been some kind of harbinger for this, and then goes back to looking around. It feels wrong to be armed in a place like this, to even be in a place like this while still alive. If he is alive, that is.

    "Aren't you just a little bit worried that we might have all died? Mind you, if this is actually where I think it is, someone got my name mixed up. Or not, and we're just waiting to be Judged." Lovely.

    "Still, at least I'm in good company. Maybe traveling with an actual angel gives me bonus points or something... wish I'd paid more attention to Father Flannagan's sermons now."

Hulk has posed:
The latter half of a victory roar from the Hulk is suddenly bellowing through the area, and it's cut short as the Hulk realizes he's been teleported *yet again*... and this time, with bikini clad something or others.

"Hulk is tired of teleporting." Hulk states, with a hint of finality, before he starts looking around in earnest.

Then, he spots Tony, and he gives a dismissive grunt.

Before long, the Hulk is heading off on his own for the nearest exit, walking. "Hulk is going to go explore."

Nightingale has posed:
     At least one of the party does not seem quite so out of place, if one does not count her Earthly garb. Shannon at least seemed to fit in, if only partially. Obviously, she was female. And then there were the wings. But beyond that, she looks just like many other teens from Earth. She's got her dark blue jeans on, her caramel suede boots, and her cream tunic sweater.

     Unfortunately, this also left her in the unique position of being overdressed for the occasion, an unnatural flush coming to her cheeks, and beads of sweat breaking out on her brow. This was no time to be shy, however, and thankfully she had the good sense to wear a white t-shirt beneath her sweater, which left her a layer of modesty as she removed the sweater.

     Heat and -this- angel did not necessarily mix very well at all.

     At least she was able to keep her little brown leather bag with her, tied to a belt loop on her jeans, within easy reach. So points for that, at least! However, the angels are not the only ones giving Tony a bit of a 'look' for the creative use of scatalogical metaphors, the winged teen just shaking her head slightly.

     While she's catching her breath and adjusting to the heat, she glances over at Bucky, shrugging. "No idea where this is. But the spires... reminds me of something I saw once." She pauses. "Something I've never spoken about since."

     Cracking a bit of a smile, she shakes her head. "We could always just -ask- where we are."

     And indeed, that is exactly what the youth is doing, seeking out one of their 'guardians'. "Hello! I hope it's not a bother, we're grateful for the hospitality. But we're all of us confused... where are we?"

Iron Man has posed:
"I hate to say it, but Pixie's right. This does seem... less like Heaven, and more like what a super pervy guy would hope that Heaven would be like. In fact, I'm pretty sure I had the Meat Loaf album that they got this idea from..."

Tony's expression looks a bit less admiring now, and a little more troubled. It's as if Pixie has completely ruined Heven for him.

Thanks Pixie.

"Man... I hate to say this even more, but Jimmy's also right. If we're not supposed to be here..." Tony lowers his voice to almost a whisper. "... and these busty warrior women figure out we snuck into Heven..."

He speaks a bit more clearly again, though he still doesn't seem to want to draw too much attention.

"I think we ought to go find Lockjaw. Maybe you wouldn't mind leading the way, Mon-El good buddy? If you're sure that you saw him?"

Tony pulls up his baggy Heven Pants, and begins walking roughly in the direction that Mon-El indicated. Since he's one of the only ones who can't fly (anymore) he'll probably be getting his steps in today.

Too bad he's not wearing his Stark Watch, he's not going to get credit for the calories he burned.

The Angel looks a bit taken aback to be addressed directly. Unlike Shannon, she has no wings, but she has way more pouches, so that makes up for it.

And also a shiny gold helmet. With wings on it. So there's that.

"You're in Salvation Square, child. You must be a new arrival? Salvation Square is just south of Believer Blvd, as your kind reckons geospatial relationships. You will soon get your bearings, little one, but even if you do not, you have all of Eternity to learn the lay of the land. Rejoice! And enjoy your afterlife!"

Mon-El has posed:
    Lar nods and starts heading north, in the direction of the park where he saw Lockjaw. However, no one has yet answered his question, so he repeats it again, this time more directly to Tony. "Any idea what's going on here? I was kind of expecting to get back to my ship, but uhm...suddenly I'm here. Where exactly is 'here'?" Yeah, he heard the 'Salvation Square' bit but he was hoping for what sector of space and what planet first.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
"The teleporting dog is taking us for walkies." Nick summarizes rather blandly to Mon-El before looking over to Megan, "I don't think they expect you to change. They just didn't want him walking around in his underwear."

He folds his arms, not opting to sit. Seemingly preferring to be standing when in unfamiliar surroundings. Bucky's question does register a bit, "If we died," He murmurs to the soldier, "I wouldn't be standing here, so not really concerned about the dying part yet." Oh hey! The unarmored guy who has a tendency to get beaten up by Hulks is moving. Maybe they should follow to avoid repeats.

Pixie has posed:
Megan Gwynn rolls her eyes, "Honestly, there is *no* way this place is heaven! Heaven could never be so...So sexist! They don't even look realistic! And why are there so few males?" Megan is not super religious but she's fairly spiritual and believes in God and a higher power. But she can't believe heaven would look like this - a man's twisted fantasy. But this place is pretty warm and she's glad she didn't overdress herself before she left!

Of course Shannon is given a curious arch of her brow when she sees something familiar, knowing she's been on many surprising and fantastic adventures...

As for Lockjaw, Megan glances to Mon-El and nods, "Right, lets go get him then!" and she follows him and the others in chase of doggo.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "That's what I figured as well. I'm pretty sure I'd end up somewhere even warmer." Bucky whispers back to Nick, and looks over to Tony, who does appear to be on the move again. "That dog seems to want him specifically, so let's try to keep up."

    The bit about the afterlife? Yeah, he heard that. And for someone like James Barnes, devout believer, frequent sinner, it wasn't comforting to hear. "C'mon, let's keep together." This seems to be for the benefit of Shannon and Megan both, the younger ones in this oddball traveling group. He's not going to be the SHIELD agent that lost two teenagers in heaven. How do you even begin to write that report?

    He was going to have so many questions of the nearest priest he could collar back home. Questions he's not even certain anyone with a theological mind has an answer to. "Honestly, kid, I'm not sure I want the answer to that."

Hulk has posed:
As the group continues to talk, the Hulk just... keeps on going, ignoring them. At least, he does until Nick explains where the teleporting is coming from, and he stops, turning back to the group, scratching his head in confusion.

"Hulk doesn't understand. Why is giant dog teleporting us around the galaxy?" Hulk asks, a bit of anger in his tone as he looks in the direction Mon-El was looking when he found the dog.

Instead of going off on his own, he turns back to the group and starts to head north with them. At this distance, the many, many, /MANY/ holes from berserkers and Kree weapon fire in his Hulk green uniform.

Nightingale has posed:
     "Ummm... okay. Afterlife." Pause. "So there really is a Heaven after all. Thank you." Shannon just smiles lightly, just pinching the bridge of her nose and shaking her head. "It's been an eventful day, please forgive us." With any luck, the angel might not ask too many questions. But in the meantime, she sketches a bit of a theatrical bow, wings outspread, before turning to follow along with the rest.

     Probably a good idea to stick together. But something bothered Shannon. Her brows furrow as she walks along with the group. "Mr. Stark? Just out of wild curiosity, how close would you say the buildings here are in style to oh, I don't know... Asgard? Because if there's a Hel..." The rest remains unspoken, for the moment. Hey, even she couldn't resist getting a good look around her. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to see a place like this--because the next time, she might very well -really- be dead!

     She tries to offer something of a reassuring smile to Bucky, reaching over to lightly pat his shoulder. "I'm pretty sure all of us have done things we're not proud of. But I can't think that'd automatically consign us to the Other Place. We'll be alright."

    

Iron Man has posed:
"Man... every time I go to Asgard Thor gets me just... stuuuuupid drunk. I doubt I'd be able to tell Valhalla from Van Halen."

Par for the course, at least on this particular adventure, Tony Stark is completely useless. But despite having no idea where he is, or what he's doing, and despite not having any of his usual tech to assist him, or a Captain America to provide much-needed emotional validation... He seems to be doing surprisingly okay.

He might not believe in an actual Heaven, but maybe he believes that this crazy detour was meant to happen?

Following along behind Mon-El, and trying valiantly to keep up despite his baggy, swooshy pants, he's mostly quiet for the rest of the walk, though he can't help but do the occasional doubletake when an especially-impressively built Angel crosses his path.

Occasionally, some of them take notice in the little party that's walking down their Golden Streets, but whatever their interest, they don't disclose it to the mere mortals.

Up ahead, the magnificent Rainbow Archways that soar above the Park can be seen, and it looks like Heven has exactly the kind of Central Park that you'd probably imagine.

Unless you're a big fan of Meat Loaf album covers, because this doesn't really look much like any of those.

And sure enough, right in the park, Lockjaw is laying on his back, a big Dog Grin on his face, tongue hanging out, getting his belly scratched by a couple of Angels.

When he sees the party arrive, he rolls over, and barks at them urgently.

Urgently, but also playfully.

And... then he starts running.



"Gah! Follow that dog!"

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
"I'm not even sure I'd end up there." Nick murmurs back to James at the mention of some place warmer. He opens his mouth like he's going to elaborate but pauses,shaking his head. "Megan, which is more sexist? Letting people wear what they want or telling them what to wear based off of your own opinion?"

At Hulk's query Nick looks to Hulk, "I'm not sure, Hulk. I'd try asking him but, not sure I'd understand the dialect." He gives a little half smile, looking back to Megan. A bit of wolf humor perhaps.

Hearing Tony's voice, he turns his head again, seeing Lockjaw start to run. "And so it begins."

Time to run!

Mon-El has posed:
    Lar stares at Nick. "'Walkies'?" he echoes, having no idea what that means. He grumbles, because that doesn't really answer the question at all. Then Lockjaw starts running, and Tony tells everyone to go after it. While he could easily catch up with the thing, he doesn't quite move. Instead he just stares at Tony. "Why? What are we trying to accomplish here? I mean, what would I do once I catch up to it?"

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "The mercy of an angel, huh?" Bucky glances over to Shannon and shakes his head. "I envy you the innocence, kid. Never lose it, hang onto that." But he does seem to smile after that, as if feeling a bit better. Because these are streets, even if they have names like Believer Boulevard. And somehow his idea of the afterlife never included a street grid, it's a touch of normality in surroundings which are, otherwise, almost quintessentially surreal.

    The presence of the Hulk is equally reassuring, like an anchor to a more solid reality. Well... /very/ solid reality. "My green friend, I don't know what's going on either. But I think that dog wants us to do something important, he's just getting distracted on the way. Dogs do that."

    Speaking of... this is a park. A dog, in a park. Running. And people are running after him, trying to catch him. Bucky shakes his head, taking a deep breath.

    "Don't run after him! If you chase, he'll think it's a game and keep running."

    Instead, he lets Lockjaw run for a minute or so, and then whistles sharply "Here boy!". And out of one of the cargo pockets of his pants comes a handful of doggy treats. Huh. Now would the Winter Soldier be carrying around a packet of those?

Pixie has posed:
Megan Gwynn sighs, shivering a bit as she notices Winter Soldier's anxiety. "Well, at least a part of your soul wasn't tainted and turned into an evil weapon..Maybe your past was tainted but at least you can make up for it now, right? Anyway, I don't think were judged by anyone but ourselves when we die. Or at least, I don't think we're judged as harshly as religion would have you believe as long as our intentions are good, even if we've made mistakes."

To Nick she smirks a bit, "Obviously telling em what to wear, but are these women dressed this way out of choice or...?" she shrugs, "Feels very Amazonian..Or Asgardian either way." she nods to Shannon in agreement.

But doggie is already running away again and she blinks, fluttering into the air and giving chase, "Heey come back here!"

Nightingale has posed:
     "Doesn't make you evil, Megan. You had no control over what happened, I can't think anybody Up There would condemn you for that." Shannon smiles a bit at the other member of the Trouble Twins (R), watching as she takes off into the air. At least there -was- air. And they were breathing. Plus there was a street grid layout, which was eerily familiar. It seemed less and less likely that they were actually dead by this point.

     Turning back to Bucky, she smiles, chuckling softly. "It's holding on to hope and dreams. Someone told me that if we don't find a way to keep going, how many others will die instead?" Shrugging, she turns and spreads her wings, stretching them out a bit. "Ask your friend about that one day."

     With that, she takes a few running steps, winging her way into the air and soaring over in Lockjaw's general direction. The doggo had communicated with them once before--could or would he do it again? "Hey... Lockjaw? Could you help us help you here? We've got no idea what's going on."

Hulk has posed:
"If giant dog wanted to tell us why it was teleporting us, it would have said so already. Hulk is tired of being teleported." Hulk states, gruffly, as Shannon speaks. Then, he's making small leaps as he goes after Lockjaw.

Lockjaw might be big dog fast... but the Hulk can just leap circles around him.

Or he can... if it doesn't teleport away.

Iron Man has posed:
Surprisingly, given that everyone had different approaches to solving the 'Running Dog' problem, all of the different methods seem to have been correct.

Lockjaw clearly enjoys the chase, as if it's all a big game, but it's less that he's running 'from' Our Heroes, and more as if he's trying to lead them somewhere.

Probably could have just teleported them there, but... you try arguing with a dog that's bigger than a rhino.

But suddenly, as he nears the top of a lonely hill overlooking a crystal clear lake, Lockjaw stops. As if in response to Bucky's command, and Shannon's question, he turns, and cocks his head as he waits for the rest of the group to catch up with him.

Huffing and puffing, Tony is waaaaay behind everyone else. He's holding up his skirt pants to keep from tripping as he runs, which is probably smart because there's no way to tell if there are grass stains in Heven, and he's wearing all white.

Up on the hill, sitting under a tree, a lone figure is looking out at the lake. A girl, from the look of it, probably about five years old. Though it's hard to tell an exact age because she's covered in scales and has a third eye in the middle of her forehead.

The eyes all blink independently as she turns to look at the dog who has approached her, and the motley group of non-Avengers who have assembled anyway.

She seems sad, almost despondent.

And she's gradually fading in and out of existence, disappearing every few seconds as if she's not 'quite' all the way here just yet.

"Lockjaw? What are YOU doing here? Did you bring my mom?"

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
As James shouts out not to run after him, Nick skids to a halt. Yeah, he's deferring to the dog owner on this. Instead he stays still, waiting to see what Lockjaw does. "By the way, how's Lily?"

When the dog doesn't come back but does stop, Nick sighs. "Guess it's more of a 'follow me' type situation."

Pixie has posed:
Megan Gwynn continues to fly effortlessly after the dog. Clearly he's leading them somewhere and so she follows rather than trying to catch him. "Hey, where are you leading us...?" she blinks as she sees the girl, frowning a bit as she lands and steps towards her. "Oh..Heey! Is this your doggo? Are you lost?" she frowns, "Oh, is your mom around here somewhere? What's she look like..?" maybe one of those bikini clad women?

Mon-El has posed:
    Lar eventually follows Lockjaw up to the hill with the scaly child. Or, is it a child? She seems to talk as if she is one. He keeps wondering what the point of all this is.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "Getting a huge treat for no reason when I get back home, she's doing great, thanks for asking." Bucky starts to follow Lockjaw, double-timing past Nick, that easy looking trot that lets soldiers eat up the miles without getting too tired on the way there. He makes it look easy.

    "You know, this is one smart dog. But he needs to work on his 'little timmy fell down the well' imitation..." Aaaand that's when he gets to the top of the hill, and sees the little girl. "... ah crap, no."

    The sight stops the Winter Soldier dead in his tracks, and all expression disappears from his face. Because if someone like that is sitting here, where words like 'afterlife' are being used, something horrible has happened to that child. And Bucky isn't capable of providing comfort, it's not in him, and that failing just... makes him angrier. Someone must have done something horrible, and that someone, if ever this someone is caught, is going to have a very, very angry Bucky Barnes happen to him. He's the bruiser, he's the protector, he's the angel of wrath. He can't help here.

    But he can avenge.

    So he comes to stand on the crest of that hill, a good distance away from the tree, from the girl, sharing a look with the Hulk. Anger. Sheer anger. He understands it.

Nightingale has posed:
     Despite the wildly different appearance, a child was a child. And this child needed comfort. With the young one seeming to fade in and out of existence, she approaches slowly, smiling in as reassuring a way as possible. She settles down to the ground right next to the young girl, her wings in a relaxed pose behind her. "Hi, sweetie," she says, keeping her voice soft, and her tone, gentle. "I'm Shannon. What's your name?

     Her heart clenched within her chest at just what the implications of all this might be. Death was no stranger to her, given her father's line of work. But very possibly being on this end of it--potentially being the angel to guide someone into the next life--was not something in a million years she could ever have anticipated, nor something she ever wanted.

     But healing came in many forms. Sadly, not all of them entailed repair of the physical.

Hulk has posed:
Hulk is almost in front of Lockjaw when he hears the girl talk, and he stops from making another leap to stand there and stare at her. "Hulk doesn't know your mother." Hulk states flatly, with a hint of anger.

His rage filled eyes go to Lockjaw, then to the girl, as if waiting for an explanation for why he's been forced on a rollercoaster ride of teleporting across the universe.

Iron Man has posed:
"My name's Dweeza..."

The inhuman-looking girl seems a bit suspicious of the newcomers, maybe even a bit shy, but for some reason she doesn't look as put off by Shannon.

"They said I have to live here forever. It's very pretty. Only..."

Of course there's an 'only.'

"I can't leave my mom. She'll be too sad."

Right about then, Tony finally huffs and puffs his way up the hill. He looks around, looks at Lockjaw, looks at the girl, looks at his companions, back at Lockjaw...

"Aww crap... there's a sad ghost kid. This is a real kick in the nards."

The little girl looks like she's about to start crying, and Tony is definitely not equipped with the emotional bandwidth to handle any of that. So, stifling his own impulse to do a bit of sniffling, he does what he does best.

He acts like he knows what's gone, and yells at the dog.

"Lockjaw! Go grab us the most important-looking Angel you can find. Hurry boy!"

About a second later, Lockjaw has reappeared, holding a very confused, and possibly homicidal, Angel in his mouth.

An Angel who has one really big sword, and another really big sword as a spare.

"Hey, uh... Miss. Tony Stark. You've probably heard of me. Uh... so anyway... we were wondering... what's up with this little girl here? Any way she can like... go back to her mom and stuff?"

The Angel quickly gets free of Lockjaw's mouth, and raises her sword as if she's about to decapitate someone. But something about the scene also seems to make her sad, and she gets over her flusteration long enough to explain.

"It is not our place to question whose time it is. There is one above us all who makes such decisions. Yet, this child is an anomaly. She has not yet fully crossed over, but I do not know what the reason may be. Perhaps she still clings to life too tightly on the other side. Sending her home may be possible, if one were able to cut the ties that are pulling her to Heven, but such would be folly, and greatly perilous to attem---"

There's a sound of slicing, as a pink knife cuts through the air above the girl.

Apparently Pixie had heard all that she needed to decide.

The girl vanishes instantly.

The Angel looks shocked, and then angry.

And suddenly, Lockjaw's antenna is glowing.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Heh. What Bucky doesn't know is... Nick's still phantasmed. His pace adjusts, matching pace with Bucky to be able to maintain conversation. His steps, unusually silent considering he's supposedly keeping pace with Bucky.

When Bucky stops, Nick skids to a stop to look back to the soldier. Monitoring his expression before looking back over to the child.

"Hmm." He gives a slight nod. Turning once more to continue walking towards the child.

He doesn't quite hear what's going on but when Pixie brings out her dagger and makes a slicing motion above the girl, causing for her to vanish. The musician stops, looking to the pissed off Angel. Well, if that's a sign not to die anytime soon, then he doesn't know what is.

Seeing the antenna start to glow, Nick brings up his arm again to block the light. "Here we go again..."

And hopefully, this jump would be the one that leads home.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    Fists clench, as slowly but surely, while the Angel confirms what he'd been afraid of, Bucky gets angrier and angrier. This is not his idea of mercy, of compassion. This is not his idea of what the afterlife should be like. And for someone who has believed strongly in hereditary sin, contrition and doing the right thing, what's going on is a travesty.

    The knife is in his left hand before he's even conscious of it, and about to lunge...

    When Megan of all people, beats him to it. There's a moment of disbelief, and then immense relief...

    ... followed by more seething anger when the Angel seems ready to do something Unwise.

    With two rapid steps, Bucky interposes himself between the Angel and Megan, knife raised with an expression of such utter cold fury that it would freeze the fires of Hell. Can he fight an Angel? He will if he has to.

    "Back off. The choice is made. You think of swinging that sword, I'll show you what the phrase 'fury like hellfire' means. Back. Off."

    He'd never have thought he'd ever have a knife to the throat of an angel... If he's going to Hell for this, at least he had the best of reasons. His soul for that of a little girl... it's a good trade, in his books.

Nightingale has posed:
     Just as Shannon is about to try and offer some measure of comfort and reassurance to the child, Pixie does her thing with the soul dagger, sending Dweeza back--hopefully to her mother. She takes a shuddering breath and pushes herself to her feet, flicking some grass off of her jeans.

     But the anger of an angel is something that needs must be dealt with. Moving as quick as she can, she interposes herself between Pixie and the angel, holding up her empty hands, wings outspread like a shield. "Please," she says. "She acted from love. It was Dweeza's love for her mother that held her to life. One of the purest sorts of love there is."

     Bucky, the group's Avenging angel, steps in, his own blade at the ready. She reaches up to touch his arm, shaking her head emphatically.

     Just then, Lockjaw's antennae start glowing. And in the immortal words from Quantum Leap....

     "Ohhhhh boy...."

Mon-El has posed:
    Lar is listening to what everyone is saying, but the more he hears, the more he's just incredibly confused. What exactly -is- this place? He had thought perhaps this kid is a projection or something. But now the female warrior lady is talking about connections and and time and anomalies. And then Pixie just teleports the kid away, presumably back home where she wanted to be. Well if she didn't want to stay here, then maybe it was for the best.

    He looks to the angry woman. "Look, I think that kid wanted to go home. It wouldn't be right to keep her here against her will."

Hulk has posed:
"Hulk is-"

His words are cut short by the girl disappearing, then Bucky is standing up to an Angel.

The whole thing, honestly, just makes the Hulk confused. And angry, because he didn't ask to be shunted to wherever here is...

Then, the light again, and this time the Hulk visually understands what's happening, connecting the dots.

Everyone around them as a split second to see seething fury come back into the Hulk's expression, along with the beginnings of a feral roar meant to be directed at Lockjaw, before they disappear.

Iron Man has posed:
The familiar nausea-inducing pull occurs, followed by the seizure-causing hallucinogenic electric joyride.

And just like that, they're all back right where they started, in front of the old Baxter Building location in Midtown, NYC.

Well, Mon-El isn't where he started, but he can get sorted out later.

Blinking, Tony looks around, as confused as everyone else. Equally confused, but less able to adjust because he's used to being sheltered.

"Huh. Here we are. That was... some weird shit."

Tony begins to glow, and he looks down at his Hevenly Robes in horror as they get brighter, brighter, brighter, and then begin to vanish entirely.

It's a good thing that he didn't discard of his silkweight Action Briefs, no matter how tempting it was in the moment. Sure, the robe had great airflow, but that was probably just because it was made of Imaginary Heven Fabric.

"Okay Lockjaw, this has been a real treat. Next time though, bother Reed with this garbage, he thinks adventures are fun."

Looking around at his new Very Best Friends, Tony shrugs his shoulders.

"Well... I'm not sure what just happened, but I know that I'm going to need two things right now:"

"An American Cheeseburger."

"And an Italian suit."

"Fortunately, I know a guy. You guys want to go with me? Cheeseburgers and tailored suits, on me."

People are already taking pictures, but Tony is already activating the emergency transponder that his old girlfriend had planted under his skin.

Their ride will be here in a few seconds.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Nick blinks at the offer of free food and suits. "Come again?" Well, if Tony's paying for it. Drago could use a new suit. Heck, it might be amusing to wear it to the next charity gig. He cracks a slight smirk. "Yeah sure. I'm game for that."

Now that they're home, he lowers his guard. Tilting his head down, the scar on his left forearm returns to its rightful place on the right before he glances back up.

Mon-El has posed:
    "..." Lar blinks as he now finds himself on Earth in New York City. What now? But nothing seems out of the ordinary, and this was home for a lot of people, including Tony.

    He shrugs at Tony's offer. "I would be happy to join you, but there is no need for you to buy me any Terran food or clothing. Thanks for the offer, though."

Winter Soldier has posed:
    By now, checking where they are after a teleportation is becoming almost instinctive. But the landmarks are familiar, the roads look normal, and... yup, there's his bike, just where he left it. Home sweet Manhattan. The knife is put away quickly, in case anyone gets the wrong idea.

    Keen eyes scan the area again, making mental notes about Nick that will need to be turned into questions soon, and keeping half an eye on the Hulk to make sure he's not going to have to call in the containment squad... well, containment platoon, to be more precise.

    At length, he glances down at his torn jacket, his sand and Kree-gore stained pants, and his boots scuffed halfway to heaven and back "I could go for a burger and a suit. Need some time to think about all this crap anyway."

    So he turns halfway to Shannon and Megan. "What do you say? In for a galactic war, in for a burger?"

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon's wings immediately furl around in front of her, shielding her face from the unusual view of one Tony Stark in his Iron Underwear, coughing noisily. Her face has gone red clear to her hairline, and even the tips of her ears seem touched by the flaming hue. "Ummm, okay. Cheeseburger sounds great. But maybe the suits first?" Because, you know, propriety!

     There was no way she could go straight home after this one. But man, oh man, was this going to make one helluva AAR when she got back!

     Peeking up over the edge of her wings, Shannon keeps her eyes on Bucky and not on the glaringly obvious spot of red and gold running about the street. "Sure, burger sounds good." She pauses, canting her head slightly as she looks up at the unshakable warrior out of his own time, smiling a bit. A few whispered words offered, and she steps back.

     Shaking her head, she mutters to herself.

     "Next time, Grubhub...."

Hulk has posed:
And then there was a roaring Hulk, back in New York, who looks towards Lockjaw. "Hulk is completely done with teleporters! HULK SMASH!"

In front of the various bystanders around, the Hulk leaps right at Lockjaw... and the dog teleports away with a flash of light mere seconds before the Hulks fists land, sending up a small craters worth of concrete.

The Hulk hasn't had time to calm down, after all... He's still very much a raging rage monster on a rampage as he angrily scans for Lockjaw. Then, when he doesn't see him, the Hulk growls out, "Hulk will FIND giant dog and SMASH it!" And promptly leaps away, northward.

Bucky might want to call in a division, instead.