13123/Now It's Dark

Now It's Dark
Date of Scene:	26 April 2021
Location:	Darkforce Dimension then the Holy Ghost Church.
Synopsis:	Blackout meets Cloak and Dagger. They talk powers and physics.
Cast of Characters:	Blackout, Dagger, Cloak

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Blackout has posed:
    "Where the fuck is this?", Blackout mutters to himself while traversing the realms of the Darkforce Dimension. "It's like I missed my left turn at Albuquerque. Shit, it's creepy over here." He continues to walk through the irregular planes and broken lands of the pocket dimension. Yet, he seems surprised at the layout as his eyes pierce the darkness as if light isn't really an issue - for he himself is connected to this plane of existence. Yet, he's still confused and seemingly lost.

    Just like the darkforce dimension, Blackout is wearing black made from the darkforce itself. A black body suit offering cover and padding. Yet, at present, he wears no mask. His dark eyes keep a watchful vigil for things that go bump in the night while he continues to walk through the landscape of darkforce rocks, floating chunks, rises and falls, and other aspects of this part of the plane. He spies something off in the distance, a floating island of sorts with an actual black castle built upon it. He questions aloud, "What in the heck is that doing here?"

Dagger has posed:
When traveling through the darkforce dimension, time isn't exactly tit-for-tat. One may spend a few hours in here, but only a couple of minutes would pass. Having discovered a new 'influence' deep within the darkness that fuels CLoak's hunger, Dadd has been traveling deeper and deeper into the darkforce to try and locate what else may be lurking in this mostly unknown world. For the most part when they travel together, she is in and out within a couple of seconds and there has been no point to linger or explore.

Within the distance, she may appear as a glowing star as she wards the shadows away with a swish of her hand. She's not alone of course, she can feel her partner all around her, monitoring and watching the angel of light. She is in her costume of a white leotard with a sword cut out through the middle, as well as a pair of running shoes. It's more comfortable than ballet flats.

Blackout has posed:
    It's hard, impossible even, not to notice the glow of actual light within the darkness. Tandy stands out like a ... well, she stands out as the only illumination in forever. That's what draws his attention from the floating island castle. Blackout narrows his eyes when he sees the white light off in the distance.

    But it's likely he's not the only thing that's noticing her.

    Instead of walking to cover the distance over the broken ground, Blackout forms darkforce disks beneath his feet and he lifts off the surface and begins flying her way (never exceeding 10 feet off the ground). He himself does not stand out, if anything, he's essentially black on black on black - his face and eyes will be the only thing to reflect her illumination - and that will happen as he gets within 20 feet. As he approaches, he calls out, "Hey lady, you might want to turn down that light... there's stuff in here."

Dagger has posed:
Slowing down her pace, Tandy looks towards the voice and the floating man. A pair of daggers slips into her hands that blaze brightly, her blue eyes narrowing at him as she gives an angry tone in her voice. "Are you the one who is driving Cloak mad with hunger? Are you that monster?" She asks as she spins one blade around and looks as if she may zip it across the distance to bury it in him if he makes so much as a wrong move.

"Who are you and why are you inside Cloak for?" It's clear she doesn't recognize him and her entire stance has become aggressive.

Blackout has posed:
    Touching down a mere 12 feet from Dagger, black covered hands raise as if offering surrender. "Hey whoa.." starts off Blackout, "Easy there, lady. Slow down with all the questions. I'm Blackout. I don't even know this Cloak.. I'm guessing it's a person, right?"

    He eyes over her body, glancing down at the daggers with a bit of concern. Then his gaze turns away as they are far too bright too look at after being in darkness for so long. He looks off to the side, blinks a few times. Trying to get the light burn off his retinas.

Dagger has posed:
"You are inside of him. This is Cloak. This is my partner." Tandy says as she makes a motion around her with one of the daggers of light burning in her palm. "How did you get inside of him? I only know of one way in and out and that's through .. him." That explains a lot, right? "There is a predator here inside of him, one that is driving him mad with hunger for more light and even though I can sustain him for now, I am afraid his addictions will get worse."

Her eyes squint at him, glowing a bit brighter as she throws her hands outwards, washing the dark away so that she can see him clearer. The world around her seems to come more 'alive' as she burns brighter, followed by a low satisfied 'rumble' in the background. Something is pleased.

Blackout has posed:
    There's a tone change in his voice; he sounds like a professor, as if he's now going into teaching mode, "Okay... you're not making much sense. This is the Darkforce Dimension. It's a pocket dimension that overlays the prime material plane - rather, our reality - also called the universe." He handwaves around, "I'm guessing that your Cloak is a portal to this dimension. Which is how I got here. But here..." he looks around again, somewhat skeptical in his gaze, "...here is actually another realm within the darkforce dimension itself. Like... a neighborhood. A very freaky neighborhood. Where I normally access is about 1000 klicks that way." He points in some direction, away from the floating island.

    He gives pause while looking around, "But lady... listen, there's something here. Something more than us. We should probably head out."

Dagger has posed:
"I have no clue what you're talking about. We are literally inside of Cloak. I walk inside of him and he transports me around the city. This is what happened to him when he was experimented on by synthetic drugs when we were both kidnapped. I gained these powers of light, he turned into this." Tandy says with a frown upon her face. "And he feeds on my light or else he will go insane with hunger and start rampage murdering people. I haven't gone out this far before, but I am hunting whatever it is that is pushing him harder. We can feel it deep inside of him, sometimes I can hear it."

She gives a glance arounnd as well, then flings out one of her daggers of light as she sends it zipping through the dark and cutting a swath of light along both sides before it disappears with a flicker. Her eyes squint for a moment before she summons another. "I plan on finding whatever it is and destroying it."

Blackout has posed:
    He listens and then watches her fling the dagger of light. Tracing the path of the dagger, Blackout sees it fade away into oblivion as the darkforce absorbs the illumination. He comments, "Yeah... okay, so you're on some sort of quest. I get it. And I totally understand how you can be confused about this. Here, let me show you."

    Blackout turns 90 degrees to the left, raises his hand, and a circular rip in time/space opens. It's an 8' diameter portal that can be seen through. Beyond the portal, the city of Brooklyn can be seen. It appears that the vantage is from atop the Brooklyn Bridge. He says, "That's a portal. An aperture from the Darkforce Dimension - where we are now. To the Brooklyn Bridge. Come on, before that thing you're hunting shows up." and he takes steps to exit through the portal onto the platform atop the bridge.

Dagger has posed:
".. I'm hunting it for a reason, so that when it shows up, I can destroy it." Tandy says with a wrinkle of her brow, then gives a look about once more as he steps through the portal. Great, so this guy can access her partner's stomach. That is going to be an uncomfortable conversation with Tyrone later. She lets out a sigh and follows him, stepping out on to the platform and upon the Brooklyn bridge.

"So, you can access the dark anytime you want?" She says with a frown on her face. "It's going to upset Cloak quite a bit if you are running around in his stomach. You also aren't affected by the madness that the dark causes?"

Blackout has posed:
    Once through, Blackout looked back to see Dagger following and exiting with him.

    Atop the Brooklyn Bridge, the wind races over the East River. Vehicles are heard below. And sunlight is quite wonderful to feel again. Warming, and life giving. The concrete they stand upon is weathered, but not crumbling and small/gentle tremors can be felt beneath their feet as heavier vehicles pass beneath.

    Once she's out, he closes the portal with a brief handwave. He says, "That and more. I mean, it's a pocket dimension. Not someone's stomach. Also... madness? I'm not at all sure what you're talking about there. Sure, that place is devoid of light, so I can see that it could drive someone insane. Hell, I've tossed a few people in there myself just to hold them for safe keeping. They weren't exactly happy with it when they came out. But seriously. It's a dimension. Not a stomach. And whatever is living in the area nearest your buddy... there's somethin in there. A lot more than I've ever seen. But yeah. I can access it, pull energy or matter from it, control it. Pretty good, too. I once covered a city block with the darkmatter."

Dagger has posed:
There is a visible frown from Tandy's face as she listens to him. This information is mind blowing for her. It's as if her life has been flipped upside down. "When Cloak swallows someone into his ... darkness, they are driven mad and insane. He feeds off their light and shows them their greatest sins amplified. Murderers may find themselves in the chair, drug runners may find themselves stabbed with a giant syringe. It's different each time based upon their deepest fears tied to those sins. Only my light protects those that enter."

Pulling her hair back behind her to settle against her shoulders, she glances down over the expanse of Brooklyn below her, then scrunches her face up. "I live in Hell's Kitchen. I'm not too far away from home and Cloak is going to freak out now that he can't feel me inside there anymore. I need to get home. Can you take me to the Holy Ghost Church?"

Blackout has posed:
    Listening to her citations of how and what Cloak does to people within that part of the dimension, Blackout's brow furrows in confusion. But he's trying to come up with a hypothesis to rectify the situation and confusing tale Dagger is telling.

    When she gets to the point of her home address, Blackout nods. "I can get you to Hell's Kitchen. I don't know the church."

    He turns slightly off to the left, opens another portal. It's solid black. Opaque appearing. He says, "We'll short cut it. Come on." and he steps through the portal.

    If/When Dagger passes through the portal, she'll only catch a glimpse of the darkforce dimension. Perhaps even one footfall into the dimension before she finds herself passing through another portal into an alleyway within Hell's Kitchen. It's behind one of the nicer restaurants, but still smells like an alleyway. Blackout is standing there, waiting for her to emerge, but glancing around the alleyway to see if anyone happens to be near. He will ask upon her arrival, "Did I miss your name? Or did you not tell me? Sorry, too busy trying to sort out all of your story that I probably missed it."

Dagger has posed:
"I am Dagger, of Cloak and Dagger." Tandy says once she steps in and out through the portal and into the alley. She recognizes the area and says, "My church is a few blocks away." She says as she starts out the alley, giving a rub at her eyes at the sunlight. "What are you talking about though, about things being inside of him? What kind of things? Have you seen them?"

As she heads down the sidewalk, she doesn't mind the stares of busy New Yorkers walking to work, or going about their business. She has grown used to it by now and she tunes most of them out. She isn't wearing a conventional costume and she is rarely out during the day dressed as such.

Blackout has posed:
    Blackout takes a moment while listening to her introduction and then questions. During this time, he's processing and forming his hypothesis for what she has experienced and what she perceives as to be true. He says, "Okay.." and he starts to take a few steps in a pacing manor while speaking, "This is what I posit. I believe that your partner can do what I do. Open a portal into the Darkforce Dimension. Into that specific region, or neighborhood, that I found you. I believe that there is one, or many things that live within the dimension. Things that I have never actually encountered. But, have seen evidence that suggests they exist. Now, you mentioned one creature that you know to exist that feeds off life, or light. I hypothesize that the creature is also what drives the people mad who are trapped in your darkforce neighborhood. Now, this is all subjective and wild guessing. So it's just a matter of testing and further observation to discern whether or not any of what I'm saying is actually true. I'd like to meet your partner, Cloak. I'm curious about his nature and means of access into the Darkforce Dimension."

Dagger has posed:
"Sure, you can meet him. He's aggressive, I warn you." Tandy says as she looks back to him. "So, what are you? You a hero or something?" She asks as she gives him a glance over as she continues to walk down the blocks towards the church. It's in the distance now, lonely and desolate. Forgotten about. She heads to the doors and pushes them open, stepping into the dark as she calls out.

"Cloak? I'm back. I brought someone here who may have answers."

Blackout has posed:
    Blackout replies while following her lead and walking with her, "Technically I'm an opportunist. But I don't hurt people in the process. So we're good and you don't have to stab me with those dagger things." He doesn't go into detail about his position in the hero/villain realms. Best not to talk too much about it. And while walking to cover the distance to her hideout, he looks at people looking at him. It's NYC, every 500 person wears a cape or a cowl.

Dagger has posed:
"I don't know if we're good yet." Dagger says to the new guy as she pushes through the doors and into the church. She holds a hand upwards as her fingers start to glow. "Cloak, are you still here?" She asks him. "I wasn't able to find whoever is .. buried within the dark causing you so much grief, but I did find someone else who says that he can .. use your .. darkness to travel within."

Blackout has posed:
    Keeping silent and following Dagger's lead into the church, Blackout lets her get a couple of feet in front of him and he pauses after entering the main area. He looks around the church for people, or the person in question who likely wears a cloak, of some sort. Blackout is expecting Darkforce and he's also 'feeling' for it.

Cloak has posed:
The man once called Tyrone and now called Cloak sits in front of the alter. At least it's the impression of sitting as the shrouded shadowman hunches there and then rises up like a specter as the doors open. In the glow of Dagger's light, his dark eyes seem to cast back the light like a predator.

"The darkness doesn't belong to me, it just owns me." He says in a rolling baritone like distant thunder.

He moves down the small step that sets the alter up on high and moves through the center aisle towards the pair, his eyes on Blackout. "Who're you?"

Dagger has posed:
"He calls himself Blackout. Kinda a hero but not really. Just like us." The walking light bright says as she makes her way towards Cloak. "But I got even deeper into the darkness than I did last night. I started seeing buildings inside. It's almost as if it's a whole new world inside. He claims that this is called the dark dimension and I guess you're a doorway to it. One of many. He also claims there are things inside that will hurt me if I'm in there too long."

Blackout has posed:
    Spotting the man on the dais and hearing his words, Blackout eyes and watches the inky blackness of Cloak's form. Especially when Cloak begins moving closer, Blackout is able to see the Darkforce aspects. He doesn't back down, instead, he takes steps to draw closer to the approaching visage.

    Blackout says, "Well, I didn't exactly say that there are things inside that will hurt you if you're there too long. I just know there's evidence of things in the Darkforce Dimension. Organized things; based on the structures I spotted. But, beyond that, Hello Cloak, I'm Blackout. I'm a physicist that was studying the Darkforce dimension for an unlimited energy source. that is before the accident that turned me into who I am today. And you appear to be a permanently opened aperture into the Darkforce dimension. That's incredible."

Cloak has posed:
"Yah you sound like a scientist a'ight." Cloak drawls with the faintest wrinkle present at the corner his lip. "Course there's monsters in there and smart ones too. Why wouldn't they be? Live in a place like that, you either learn to be smarter and meaner than the rest or you end up dinner. You don't need a degree to understand that."

The fabric around him shifts as shadowy arms cross in front of his chest. "What the hell do you mean by permanently opened? Is that why I'm... not much of me?" He says as he stretches out his arms. Beyond the cloak, there's nothing. Shadow and void, which matches the hands that show from under the fabric.

Dagger has posed:
"Told you his stomach is a door." Tandy says as she makes her way to her partner, stepping forward and into the dark for a moment before she comes back out. "And I can feel him all around me when I travel, even as deep as I was earlier. I can hear him speak to me also. Though the farther I got, the softer his voice became."

She lets some of her light out of her hands and into her partner to feed him and take the edge off for now. At least until they have to go back out tonight to hunt.

Blackout has posed:
    "Indeed." states Blackout as he gazes into the darkness and then the parameters of the portal where Cloak's cloak seems to make a border between the darkforce portal and the real world. "And it's moveable. Which is spectacular. I can't move mine. But I can create them in and out."

    Blackout raises his left hand. A circular disk of opaque black, 8' in diameter appears from a small spot. It's just as Cloak's portal, dark and seemingly into nothingness beyond the disk itself. Vantablack-esque. He then creates another one on the right hand side, mirroring the original one - also opaque black disk.

    He comments after watching Dagger go in, out, and then toss Cloak a few Scooby snacks of living light. "That's fascinating. So I'm going to guess that we're actually dealing with more than one power set. Or... there's something more that is linked to the two of you. Namely, that creature you mentioned before. What was it called? The thing you were hunting?"

Cloak has posed:
"All I know is that I need to take in light and she needs to use her's." Cloak says, with the impact of Dagger's light seeming to make him slightly more tangible. "Otherwise I'm just some hunger-starved ghost and she burns up. We're opposites, but without the other we're lost. I don't know why, other than we got our powers at the same time and from the same source."

He lowers his hands with a faint sidelong nod to Tandy as she steps away to get something to eat and drink. "I don't have much information for you. I was told there's something inside the dimension, something bigger and meaner than the rest and potentially the source of what makes me need light. We're just calling is a Hunter. Predator. Monster. It's all the same thing, a devil in the dark."

Blackout has posed:
    Blackout paces a bit, walking into one of his portals and walking out of the other side. It's made a darkforce portal loop. "Until today, I've not encountered anything that would indicate that anything lived in the Darkforce Dimension. I was just doing a bit of exploring and stumbled upon your region. What I'm calling a 'neighborhood'. There, I encountered a floating island with what appeared to be a darkforce castle erected upon it. I was about to enter it when I saw the glow of Dagger and she shared your story. None the less, she had some interesting thoughts on how I was in your stomach." He smiles a bit and then gets back on track. "Yet, I tried to explain that the darkness... in this case, the darkforce Dimension, is another physical plane or dimension that overlays the recognizable universe. You and I can access the darkforce through roughly the same means: I open a portal, you are the portal. Either way, it's another place that has different physical laws. I can pull from it, create objects out of the dark-matter, and even blast with the dark-energy. Even my battle suit is made from it. It protects me from various attacks. Except that of ... light. Which brings me back to Dagger's light. I posit that it is made of Lightforce energy. The opposite of Darkforce. Now, Lightforce is, as far as I know, hypothetical. But, if she is indeed a wielder of the energy, then we have proof of its existence."

Cloak has posed:
"She's standing there. Sounds like proof to me." Cloak says, seeming not the sort to be inclined to think hard on hypotheses and experimentations.

"Hrm." He utters in something akin to a growl without the effort. "Lot more you can do than me with it. I don't need to eat or drink or sleep. I can darken an area. I can teleport. Stuff that hits me doesn't seem to hurt me, it just goes into the dimension - like bullets, or the people I 'eat'. I can see their greatest fears, and when they end up in the dimension, they live their's. That fear and light keeps me together."

He gives the other man a critical stare as he remarks, "Sounds like you don't have that problem."

Blackout has posed:
    Blackout stops mid pace and holds up a finger. "She mentioned that... Greatest fears. See, that's not even within my wheelhouse nor can I even imagine that. I met a girl once, Black Mamba. She could tap into people's minds and show them things with Darkforce. It was completely jacked up. Which may be along the same thread you're capable of. But I'm also wondering what this Hunter/Predator thing has to do with it all. If it is linked to you and to your Darkforce Dimension neighborhood, then there's also a factor to consider. But I don't even know how to test that."

Cloak has posed:
"Got me." Cloak shakes his shrouded head with the whisper of moving fabric. "Doubt you going through my portal - shit sounds better than eating people - is gonna do much. Sounds like this Darkforce has a bunch of things it can do, but not everyone gets dealt the same hand. This chick, how'd she get it? You got it from an accident, right? Mine, drugs. Sounding like this is something folks ain't normally born to do. Or mebbe we are an it just takes somethin' to trigger it. I dunno, you're the scientist. I'm was just a kid from the projects."

Blackout has posed:
    Blackout thinks for a second, looks up and tries to recall, then answers, "I really don't know how Black Mamba got her powers." he then looks back to Cloak. "Mine was definitely an accident that landed me in a 10 year coma. Which was when I learned how to use my powers - through the coma induced dreams. But like any mutation or alteration, induced, evolutionary, or other; people tap into some very interesting energies and become super human. You and Dagger, I can't begin to speculate on the light and dark aspects of it all. Seems far too much of a coincidence that a drug would trigger such an inverse. Must be some cosmic writer's story hook idea. If there is such a thing. I'm also pretty sure Darkstar - another Darkforce user - is a Mutant. So she was born with the ability; yet it didn't show up till later in life, teen years."

Cloak has posed:
"Story. Opportunity. Penance." Cloak murmurs as he crosses his arms once more. "Don't really matter how, I guess, just what to do with it. I've made my peace with what I am. It lets me take care of the dirty shit that needs taking care of. I just--" He begins to say and there's a glance over towards Tandy sitting at the far end of the pews. "I just wish I didn't have to rely on her, and her powers didn't rely on having me. But, we don't get to pick shit like that, I guess."

"So. There's a bunch of us out there that use this Darkforce. Everyone a bit different, but their powers come from the same source. But no one knows much about this place?"

Blackout has posed:
    "I'm sure the big brains know more about it. Like Reed Richards. But he ain't got time to answer questions from people like us. So, i've just been doing a bit of my own empirical exploring and minor testing. Remember, the Darkforce experiment that made me the way I am was originally trying to tap into it for infinite, or Zero Point Energy. That didn't work out too well. So, it's down to one day at a time of observation and information gathering. Speaking of. I need to head out. I'll see about swinging by again, maybe we can do some tests."

Cloak has posed:
"Makes sense." Cloak remarks with the hint of a cold smile. "I'd get pissed if folks tried to put their own solar panels in my front lawn too. Wouldn't expect whatever is in there'd be happy to be exploited either."

At the man's statement that he needs to be going, Cloak dips his heavy head before calling over to Tandy so she can come say her goodbyes. Once she's got her chance, then man says, "Sounds like a plan. You got the brain, I got the angry curtain. Let's see what the hell is going on. Maybe the more I can learn about this, the closer I can get to controlling it. If it ain't leaving, then it and I gotta learn to live with one another. I'll catcha around."