3734/Awakening: The Gateway Opens

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Awakening: The Gateway Opens
Date of Scene: 27 January 2018
Location: Unknown
Synopsis: Summary needed
Cast of Characters: Redstar, Shadowlite, Gothic Lolita, Black Queen, Shadow, Juggernaut, Ares, Rachel Cole-Alves, Raven
Tinyplot: Awakening


Redstar has posed:
Despite the Earthquake that shook the city about an hour before, Times Square is as busy as ever on an early Saturday evening. Crowds of tourists taking pictures, the big buildings displays flashing ads and other random, but interesting, NYC highlights. Nothing is out of the ordinary.

Then the area of Times Square seems to...lurch? Like another earthquake, but it is like a truck hitting the entire area and making it jolt. There are a few shouts of fear and many people are knocked to their feet by it. 'Aftershock' starts on people's lips as they look around in confusion.

Above the Square, and the majority of the pedestrians, a black pinpoint of light flickers into being. In the span of a breath it explodes outwards into a gaping hole into Earth's dimension. Green fire licks at the edges of the gateways as it yawns open like a great maw on the crowd. For a moment there is shocked silence, even the cars have stopped in the street, and then the chaos erupts.

They pour from the opening in droves. So many black forms streaming into the world from this -other- place. A hellish landscape can be glimpsed between black bodies of various forms. Some are big, some are tiny, and they all dive onto the crowd below. The screaming and panic starts.

Shadowlite has posed:
Then the machinegun fire starts.

Shadowlite has been preparing the area with ammo caches, disguised on the rooftops, and scouting for good positions for firearms use. Yeah, he's been preparing it for war, and Times Square has just turned into a warzone.

This time, an M249 SAW is being fired from a rooftop, where a black suited and trenchcoated man just placed it... a full two magazines of ammo next to him -with more in the area- as Shadowlite aims right into the portal and fills the air in and around it with rounds.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Times Square isn't usually where a Livewire like Gothic Lolita might be found. They tend to prefer to be on mission, or at least scouring for information they can use to find their next targets. Lolita's never been as good at that as her sister, Social Butterfly, but she has a few places she checks.

    Today, however, she was more interested in wardrobe than secrets. Having acquired some recent capital in their last venture, it was past time, she felt, to replace the many, many outfits that had been shredded, burnt, or vaporized beyond repair. And of course, there are plenty of boutiques in the area that are perfect for materials, if not complete dresses themselves.

    The earthquake definitely put that on pause, other than the contents of a shopping bag she already had.

    The demon portal, on the other hand, definitely distracts Lolita as she looks up, then looks back at her bag of brand new dresses, then up...then just...sighs, stepping to the side and setting it down in a relatively sheltered area. Maybe she can come back for it later.

    The first demons swoops down, one coming straight at her as it lands and shrieks at her, raising its claws as it towers over the petite but curiously unafraid young woman. Whose eyes suddenly glow, the pupils turning black as an orange circle with a vertical bar through it replaces them as it swings...and she catches the blow with one hand, then almost casually rips the arm off as the demon shrieks in suprise and pain. "No." she says, almost politely, before using said arm to club the demon into the ground hard enough to crack the pavement.

Black Queen has posed:
There are plans in the works, and the Earthquake was the starting of those very plans. Not but 30 minutes prior, Selene went out of her way to get a big gun. She wants to be at this event, this world changing event... but she's also not dumb and got the best bodyguard in town. When her driver stops because of the breach and explosion, and well, other cars stopping... Selene gets out and snaps her fingers. The lunch clothing she had been wearing ripples and changes into, well, another set of very expensive looking clothes... a red leather jacket and pleated skirt. Not exactly combat clothes. She looks back to the person inside the car and says, "This looks like it will be fun, at least. Those demons, over there? Keep them off of me, and feel free to gratuitously kill them."

The machinegun fire starts penetrating the area from the rooftops and Selene sort of squints off in that direction as she starts walking towards the breach. She's definitely a ways away and she's not running toward it, and in those ridiculously heeled boots she's not a fast mover. So, naturally, it will be easy to keep up with here and she's laughing a bit, looking around as people pour past her, running from the scary scary demon portal. She isn't going to 'avoid' any demons, as she walks, hoping that her bodyguard that she hired is able to do his job well enough.

Shadow has posed:
    Natasha had forewarning, thanks to Starr's treachery, and when the sky tears open she is already in position. As expected, there are far too many for one person to shoot - but there are other ways the Shadow can help.

    Her grandfather described this, once - how one of his worst foes reached out and clouded the minds of every citizen to hide an entire skyscraper from view, just to have his own personal castle in the middle of the city. Of course, he'd also described the lasting damage, and the confusion when he'd dispelled the effect, and warned her never to twist the minds of so many on that scale for any length of time.

    On the other hand, she figures as she closes her eyes and reaches out with her Will, she isn't trying to harm or deceive. Merely to guide, as the Shadow wraps her Will around sparks of panic, damping them down before they ignite into terrified mobs, keeping people just calm enough to make them leave in an orderly fashion without trampling each other in the streets...

Juggernaut has posed:
The reason that the Juggernaut is there is simple. He's being paid. Sitting int he car that Selene emerged from, he lets out a low grunt in reply and emerges. Well, less emerges and more explodes out of the vehicles, tearing through the metal and plastic and raising up to his full ten feet of crimson-armored muscle. He glances around the area, frowning up at the portal in the sky and the demons emerging from it. "The hell is all all this?" Whatever. He was hired for a reason. He folows behind the mutant sorceress, keeping an eye on the attacking horde. Some of them might avoid him, going for easier targets. But a few don't seem to care at least. One of the bigger one comes swooping down at Selene with clawed hands extended, shrieking in excitement before he steps between the two, letting it impact his chest and bounce off before grabbing it by the face, then slamming it down into the ground with a grunt. Crushing said skull and leaving it in a small pothole like crater before continueing after Selene. Other demons that close in on the pair of them meet with similar treatment, an occasional dark form hurting into the sky, or into the side of a vehicle or building as he swats them away.

Ares has posed:
See, and here Ares thought it'd be a -good- day today....

The God of War is in low-key standard mode as John Aaron, you know, just walking around the market to gt something nice for his kid son Alexander (Phobos). But then? Demons pop out of a whole in the ground and Ares isn't shocked, panicked, or even intimidated, he just looks peskily annoyed. "Pestilence, the lot of you..." he turns around then, a sword appearing in his hand to casually throw it at a demon who flew at him, impaling it between the eyes.

"Tell Hades to get the hell out of here or I'll kick his ass again.." he says to the demon he just slaughtered, before he sees more of a hord coming at him. "...Fine." and with a simple thought, he changes into his armor, black and cold, intimidating..and the world around him reacts, a circle of flame enshrouding him as he puts on his helmet. "Now you face the God of War."

Rachel Cole-Alves has posed:
    There's a soft click as the bolt of a Mosin-Nagant clicks and a round is chambered. Rachel has been watching this area for hours following her last meeting with the mysterius Shadow. She's braced her rifle on a bipod and taken upoverwatch on a building that is overlooking the action, far beyond where the conflict is actually taking place. A bullet will be her calling card, the proof that she was here, and what she did mattered.

    This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine. My rifle is my best friend. it is my life....

    Rachel focuses on quick, precise shots. She lets her sights settle on each of hte heroes, as if deciding whether or not take them out of the running entirely. But then the shot drops a demon before it can get close, and she chambers another round. Black glvoed hands move mechanically, chambering another round, firing, in smooth motions that speak of years of practice.
    Beside Rachel lies other weapons. Grenades, an assault rifle... Rache brought her entire armoury today. Just in case. But for now she is only her rifle. A gun. THE gun. Hopefully it's enough.

Redstar has posed:
A wave of power flows from the ground below Time Square, up towards the gate. Like the two magics are drawn to one another. The spell latches onto the paniced crowds and soothes them. People stop running, their fear replaced with wonder, eyes turning to gaze upwards in awe at the gateway through which a never-ending stream of demonic forms come. Some fly up and away from the main group. But quickly it is evident that most of these demons are not seeking to rend and ravage, but to take.

As the demons reach the crowds they dive on them, turning to black or sickly-green mist as they impact each person. These people rise a second later and begin to slowly walk from the scene, avoiding those who have managed to hold on to their panic despite the spell. Then the Shadows will hits them, too, and the last paniced individuals slow their paces to jog away.

Traffic is stopped. No cars move and their occupants were part of the initially fleeing masses. Now people stand in the street, staring, their cars left running still in many cases but parked. So it is easy to see them coming down the four main thoroughfares that make up Times Square. People in red robes. Their heads shaved, some with intricate eye tattoos, chanting low and deep. As they advance they begin to drive those people who are resisting the spell back towards the demons. Behind them there is a flicker of magic, like a wall coming up in a circle around the epicenter.

Demons fall and as they do they disipate into black smoke and are blown apart. Bullets rip through many, tattering them before they smoke. Some seem to resist the bullets, paying them no mind as they focus on possessing the people below.

The demon Gothic is clubbing shrieks in confusion, leaping away and diving into a nearby human. The woman gasps as the demon enters her body and then almost immediately a cruel smile crawls onto her face, eyes going completely black. "I got one! You're too unfashionable for me anyway," And the woman begins to run for the red robed men, laughing. Soon the demons give a wide berth to Selene and her bodyguard, though a few float by with curiousity in their demonic eyes. Almost as if they were considering her for something, then they move on into other people.

Shadowlite has posed:
Some is better than none.

So Shadowlite continues to fire. his hand keeps on the top for stability as he places the scope on top of the SAW for sighting. He has a good idea of which demons to actually aim for now, and bursts start coming from the machinegun as Shadowlite adapts his firing pattern, instead of blanket suppression.

For now, he's leaving the street to the rest, tracer fire is making spotting the mercenary mutant easy.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Gothic Lolita cocks her head as the demon dives into the woman. Huh. That is...not physically possible. She sighs inwardly. Magic, then. There's nothing she can do to stop that from happening, and she has no way of knowing how to exorcise one....young priest, old priest, bell book and candle or something? Beyond her programming. It would not be rational to focus on what she cannot change, as philosophically interesting as it might be to help someone be saved of demonic possession.

    But there's certainly nothing stopping her from targeting the very obvious men in red robes chanting.

    She flexes her knees, then leaps in an arc, bringing the severed demon limb over her head as she uses it to try and swat down the nearest, wading in to lay about her with it and try to disrupt the chanting.

Raven has posed:
    The magical echoes of what's going on in Times Square are hard for Raven to ignore. Particularly so, are their source- something Raven recognizes from mere days before. Seeing as the source is especially dangerous, Raven finds herself flying across the planet from the lofty heights of Tibet, down into the... Comparative warmth of New York.

    The shape of a massive, black bird skates across the sky, before making its way down onto the rooftops. Seemingly two-dimensional, it slides across the surface of the roof before Raven herself slips free from its ebony embrace. For a short time, she floats there, spying the antics of the demons in the square. Her eyes narrow, and she lifts off of the roof itself, taking a scant few moments to take stock of the people present on both sides.

    Once she's properly abreast of the situation, she'll act.

Black Queen has posed:
A large demon goes to take out Selene when the Juggernaut shows it why that's a bad idea. And Selene just keeps walking. She is looking around and watching what is going on, getting closer to the main portal. She holds up her hand and lifts up her thumb, angling it up towards the giant breach. She hrms a bit and takes a few steps to the left, then sighs as there's a bus in her way. With a few words she turns to Juggernaut, "Could you, move this bus? I don't care where it goes, but it is in my way." Presuming that the Juggernaut takes quick care of the bus she walks to where she wanted to be. Grimacing a little bit at the fact that people are leaving, "What kind of invasion is this? Satannish really must work on the ideas he has."

Kneeling down onto the ground, she sits back onto her feet. "As a warning, there may very well be a swarming. Depends on how well this works." There, she closes her eyes, and begins to breathe, ancient words begin to flow from her mouth. As she chants she lifts up her hand and a jagged dagger made entirely of wisping shadows given physical form, slices across her wrist. She begins to spill her own blood onto the location beneath her, still chanting out ancient, dark magical words. The blade disappears, and she places her hands on the bloodied ground, before the blood begins to swarm outwards drawing some kind of magical symbols on the ground in a big circular pattern.

At that point magical energies from that very spot wash out people and demons alike being summoned back towards the center. It is a compulsion of dark magic, and it has to fight against whatever magic they possess, but off in the distance all over Times Square, and some beyond, there are shadowy dark beams that shoot skyward and then dissipate into the wind. Perhaps the border of the effects she's worked out? Selene remains on the ground for now, chanting, trying to get her spell as powerful as possible before she moves away from the circle of blood that is surrounding her and moving on its own in different shapes and designs.

Shadow has posed:
    In a convenient alleyway, Natasha staggers and leans against the wall, wiping a trickle of blood from her nose. That was... Definitely not something she should try again any time soon, but it seems to have worked - mostly. She takes a breath and looks around, assessing the situation. War gods and demon-blooded and at least one terminally angry ex-marine are wreaking havoc among the majority of demons, but more cultists have shown up and it seems they're planning something that had better not succeed.

    One more deep breath that turns into a chuckle that deepens into sinister laughter, shadows lapping at the edges of her coat like hounds eager for the hunt as she dons her hat and scarf, and the Shadow draws her guns as she strides out into the melee, firing at the cultists as soon as she has a clear line of fire...

Juggernaut has posed:
Juggernaut was enjoying himself there for a bit, punching and crushing and otherwise kiling any demons that attacked him or his employer. But then the demons have to start getting smart about things and avoiding them, and he's soon left just tromping along behind her. "So. What exactly is all this about? And how'd you do the costume change?" Not that he's one to talk there. He notices the arrival of the guys in red robes doing the chanting, the way some of the demons seem to be possessing people. He doesn't really try to do anything about it though, because...well. Thta's not what he's being paid to do. Then the black-haired woman requests a bus be moved, so he walks forward and bends down, gripping it and lifting it up without any real strain on his part. He glances around for somewhere to put it, and finally casually flips it through the air towards one of the groups of chanting men. He doesn't really care what they're doing, it just seems like it could be kind of amusing.

Returning to Selene he frowns, "Satannish? Thta sounds kinda... well. Satan-ish." Then he stops and watches her begin her ritual, frowning. Huh. So she's definetly some sort of magic person. Alright then. He focuses on keeping anybody from interrupting her, slowly turning in place to keep an eye on the area around them. If anything seems like it's going to attack Selene, he makes a move to intercept them.

Ares has posed:
Ares cuts down demons with tremendous ease and little difficulty. Then he sees the men in the red robes, cracking his neck as he lifts his hands, materials around him turning into swords of tremendous hardness....then with a simple hand gesture, they all fly at the hordes approaching him, impaling them all..though of course, there are -TONS- of demons here right now...he just took down one group. A look then to the men in those robes, Ares throws two more blades, attempting to kill at least two of them.

A large demon approaches him from behind and tries to crush him with it's fist...but he catches it insultingly easily, then proceeds to rip out it's spine. "Pest." he snidely says before tossing it's corpse aside, moving towards the demon hordes.

Doesn't look like he's too worried about the possessions going on right about now.

Rachel Cole-Alves has posed:
    A demon directly next to Natasha is torn to shreds, a bullet directly through the portion of anatomy which roughly corresponds to a skull. The next shot, a few seconds later, drops one that was lunging at Gothic Lolita. The sniper isn't slowing down either, at least not until she starts to run low on 7.62x54R rounds to fire out of her fancy Russian rifle. That might take a little bit of time.
    When Rachel encounters a demon that her Nagant can't injue she makes a hatch mark. She's noting features and ppossibly specific monsters. The larger ordnance is up there with her for a reason, if it comes to it.

Redstar has posed:
"Our turn now?" On the tallest roof, above everything, stands two figures. Their bodies were once human, but have been warped by the beings possessing them. This is Gluttony speaking, her eyes wide and hungry at the event going on down below. The gunfire sounding all around the square, demons possessing people, and then of course those too stupified to move. All that prey. But her yellow eyes turn to the purple enflamed figure beside her. Pride, defacto leader of the Sins, stands and watches.

"Go," Pride says in one word, maintaining her vantage from above. Then Gluttony dives off the building with a cackling glee. In both hands she carries huge cleavers that crackle with demonic fire. "Dinner time!" She says as she falls towards the masses. Then she passes past Shadowlite and pulls up to a stop. She rockets back up into the air, eyes locking on him, and she grins. "Oh goody! It's you!" She says and dives at him, cleavers raised and looking to make him into chop seue.

Ares has made a huge mark in the numbers of demons around him. So much so that they begin to actively avoid him in about a twenty foot area. They instead turn to possession and attempting to flee. The cultists seem to have no defenses except their own numbers, willingly dying even it seems. As they do there is a black and green flash of magic that sinks into the streets below and blood magic marks left by Selene.

Then behind the God of War appears, without sound or flash, a lazily floating figure with pale blue flames running through her hair and in her eyes. Small rams horns curl from her temples and her eyes are sleepy. She reaches out a hand to tap him on the shoulder, her very touch conveying the need to sleep, to dream, to just...not bother. This would be Sloth, then, one of the other Sins and a major demoness in her own right if the force of her compulsion is any indication.

People scream in the bus, pulled from their daze by the violence. And so too do the cultists scream as they are crushed by it. Several cultists pull out funs and take aim at the Juggernaut, firing uselessly. The bullets richotetting into the crowd. It seems those who are hurt in some way are freed from the thing holding them here. That is until Selene's own magic replaces it. Good timing.

Rachel Cole-Alves hears the crunch of gravel on the roof. A demon of great hulk landing behind her with a smile. "Here, let me help you with that," It purrs in a genderless voice, lunging at her as if intent to possess her. That can't be good.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Lolita nods as Ares also joins the attack against the cultists, her fine clothes looking a bit splattered by this point by a combination of blood and demonic ichor from the arm she's still using an an oversized club. It's about played out though, and she finally drops it, turning to say something to Ares...then blinking as Sloth appears behind him.

    She quickly slams her hand down into a nearby SUV, then with a shriek of ripping metal removes the engine block before she fastball hurls it straight at the hovering demon. "DUCK!" she yells to Ares at the same time! She's going to hope his reflexes are out to the task. Or he's about to crumple from whatever the demon just did to him. Either way, she's going to hope he reacts rapidly....

Shadowlite has posed:
The machinegun fire promptly stops as Gluttony is spotted.

"Now the fun starts..." Shadowlite growls to himself, a hardened Darkforce shell set to redirect force flowing over him as he shrugs out of his trenchcoat, and Darkforce titanium built escrima sticks form in his hands as he watches the demoness come to him. "This time, I'm fresh. Try me." Shadowlite growls, his predatory side coming out as he gets into a dance on the edge of the building.

Those below will finally see the man who was firing a machine-gun into the portal as he goes toe to toe with Gluttony. Initially, those fiery cleavers start to push the man back... before he takes to weaving around his opponent, black mist emitting from his form as he starts to casually toss around mini Darkforce constructs -a board here, a tripwire there- working to trip Gluttony up enough so that elastic Darkforce tentacles can shoot out from the tip of two fingers, wrap around her leg, and throw her down onto the ground, before Shadowlite starts to press his advantage, pummeling her down.

Black Queen has posed:
Standing up, Selene is staggered by the effort of the spell, but she takes in a deep breath and doesn't move just yet so as to compose herself. Any blood on her knees and hands begins to dry very quickly, becoming dust within seconds and falling off of her, leaving her clean. "Yes, Satannish, he is kind of like the trademark infringement free version of satan, mixed with the jabberwocky." She offers, as the closest thing to an answer about what is going on. "He likes to flay the skin off of people, chew on them with his stomach, and otherwise, is not such a nice other-dimensional entity." Looking back toward the Juggernaut she smiles a moment, "We can talk more later on this, for now though." She looks around to appraise what is happening and sees that her spell is at least working on the people, and even many of the demonically possessed who were running away. "Good. It seems to be working."

Selene didn't get a chance to see the bus flying through the air, but she does see it in the midst of the cultists and the amount of them that were squished by it. She nods her head in a bit of approval, "That was an excellent toss." She mentions and then turns back toward the breach. "Yesterday they had workers below the street level. I am assuming that is where we can close this breach from as well." And she begins to move again, this time a little less stable on her feet, at least for the first few steps. Haughtiness takes over after that and supplements for any endurance issues she's having. She is conserving all of her strength beyond this, not getting into any fights herself and allowing Juggernaut to handle any demons that get in the way or begin to realize where she is headed.

Juggernaut has posed:
Oh, wait. There were people in that thing? Ooops. Juggernaut actually looks regretful for a few moments as he peers at the bus he just threw, then shakes the thought off and returns to watching for attackers. The explanation from Selene makes him snort a little. "He's like the WHAT? Sounds like a strange critter." He flexes his hands as he follows behind the sorceress, nodding to her as they do. "Oh, so we're going to close the big hell portal thing then? That's good. Could get a little annoying if the city was overrun by demons. I live here, after all. Though I'm sure some of the latex and snark crowd will show up eventually." He keeps close behind her, ready to step in if she's attacked. He actually kind of hopes somebody does attack. It'll give him more to do. The way the demons are avoiding him is both satifying in that they recognize him as a threat, and annoying that it means he can't hit them anymore.

Ares has posed:
Ares was just marching forward when Sloth touches him, and somehow, she managed to sneak up on him at all is a mystery! Regardless, for the briefest of moments, it seems that Ares is actually falling under her spell, his eyes starting to get heavy and his body swaying a little bit...before those eyes turn a sharp, blood red and just side-glare at Sloth. Now, Sloth, as the entity she is, may feel something she hasn't felt in a long time.

Fear.

Thus, does she may think to herself how badly she just fucked up as Ares attempts to easily roll his wrist free from her...and promtply backhand her across New York. "Vermin." is all he says to that, his pride moreso wounded that she actually snuck up on him. Then, Gothic Lolita shouts at him to duck, and he does just a little bit so that it barely misses him. Not that he couldn't dodge faster, he was just showing off. A simple nod is given in quiet gratitude back to Lolita, a sword flying past her head to kill a demon who was trying to be sneaky.

Now they were even.

Rachel Cole-Alves has posed:
There's the voice Rachel's been waiting for. She whirls when the demon lunges at her, drops to the ground, tumblesout of the way just as it leaps at theedge of the roof. It's hard to tell if thee things are safe to touch at all so instead Rachel discharges the one round she has chambered. It fires with a crack like thunder. Held this close to her head the shot leaves Rachel reeling, her eyes ringing in response to the sudden gunfire. Rifles are... Loud. Really loud, especially guns like this one. Still, there's no time to be stunned or even slow down.

    Rachel is just barely on her feet when the monster lunges agian, narrowly twisting away from repeated swipes.She stumbles, falling backward onto the rooftop. The creature crows, exulting over its victory, and the redhead stares up as it is coming close. She glances at the assault rifle she's had primed sitting next to her. Demon and Marine lunge at the same time...

Raven has posed:
    Demon and Marine lunge at one another... It's something of a dangerous gesture, and the floating, behoodied woman recognizes that. Possession of a friendly target is not necessarily a pleasant thing, and that's why the lunge from Cole-Alves lands... A little short? The demon in front of her is roaring, its fury at not finding a host plainly evident. Over time, though, it seems to be pulling away from Rachel, though it's clearly still clawing at her, desperate to make contact.

    It only becomes evident what's happening as more tendrils appear. The first two had not been particularly visible, black as night and seemingly sucking the light out of the air around them. Raven, in near silence, is humming to herself. Manipulating souls, after a fashion, is basically her jam. This demon, without a body, is like raw material.

    The touch of her soul-self is like anathema, obliterating its very existence even as it struggles to pull away. When exactly Raven landed on the roof opposite Rachel is not particularly apparent. Whether she teleported, or flew, equally so. What is apparent is that this demon, despite its size, is no match for the Daughter of Trigon.

    There is no noise to it, and it is most assuredly painful, but it only lasts a few short moments before the demon simply ceases to be.

    "You should be more careful. If it doesn't look like a person, you probably shouldn't touch it."

    And then, she's off, flying through the air and seeking out demon after demon.

Redstar has posed:
Sloth has never been hit that hard before. But she has never gone up against a god before either. The look of surprise will probably be etched in Ares mind as something to savor to tend that bruised ego. But at least that is one major demon out of the fight. The engine block smashes into the building, making a crater in the cement facing, but otherwise not hitting anyone else. Cultists pull out guns and begins to fire at Gothic Lolita and Ares, their numbers significantly dwindling.

More cultists die and with that come flashes of energy that sink into the ground, occasionally arcing from a cultist to a manhole or building window. One of those arcs of energy sizzles through the air to Gluttony, as the demon is thrown to the ground with a grunt. The man pummels her and for a moment she is stunned, until the energy hits her. A yellow flame flares from around her body, hot and brutal hellfire, and she grins her gape-mouther grin at Shadowlite. "Almost had me!" She cackles, before reaching to shove him off of her with a mighty toss. "My turn!"

The demon that comes at Juggernaut is larger than the rest. That is probably why it thinks it can take him. Or maybe it is because a swarm of smaller demons are coming up on him from behind, all intent on trying to get through the mouth-hole of his armor and into the strong body within.

The stream of demons seems to become less. But more people are possessed and a goodly number of them are still fleeing the scene. At least a dozen had slipped through Selene's magic and out into greater New York.

Shadowlite has posed:
He's seen that 'transfer before' and it's all he can do for Shadowlite to scramble away from Gluttony, that armor shell he wears redirects the hellfires heart through his back as he back flips back... right off the rooftop.

People below will see the man falling from the sky... until a black disk forms around his feet, and he starts to fly in the air. He flies into the center of the Square, before he keys his wrist-comp, turning on his voice amplifier as he shouts, "DON'T KILL THE ASSHOLES IN RED, YOU JUST MAKE THEM STRONGER," the voice masked Shadowlite gives, probably only paid attention to by the non-panicked.

Then, Shadowlite is flying over to another roof, his head turning to Gluttony, to see if she's following.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Lolita doesn't seem the least bit bothered by the bullets, as they ricochet off her, punching holes through her outfit but failing entirely to do any damage to her body. She does, however, look up at Shadowlite's shout. "Ah. Well then." she murmurs thoughfully, turning her attention on the nearest cultist as she breaks into a run.

    This time, when she throws herself forward, she grabs hold of his throat, lifting him up off the ground as she pinches off the artery there, pinching off his blood flow until the man passes out. A precise squeeze to damage his larynx to keep him from chanting further, and she drops him, then moves onto the next one with all the grace and implacable nature of the Terminator she sometimes resembles as she begins disabling cultists. This may involve broken legs. As Arnie would say: "They will live."

Black Queen has posed:
There are more demons coming this way. Selene is looking back to the battle and then to The Juggernaut. "Well, it looks like there's going to be a fight up here. I will leave you to it." She offers, having gotten tto the manhole that had been worked on yesterday. A quick flick of her wrist and the manhole cover goes spinning off to the side. "Do not die. And keep them from coming down here." Selene offers as she just drops down into the hole. Once out of sight, Selene will disappear into the sewers.

Selene is going to be heading to the nodes down below. Avoiding any confrontation that she can, though it isn't like she's necessarily without offensive abilities she just knows she needs to save up for whatever this breach is actually doing. The first node is found by following the ebbs of magical energy, when she finds it she chooses brute force - reaching out her hand she starts to tear apart the actual material the node is connecting to, the physical presence, molecule by molecule, having it tear itself apart. Even when it is dust the breach is still present, and she feels a much darker presence looming. Heading back towards the manhole entrance instead of going further in, Selene needs backup... but it'll take her time to retrace her steps.

Juggernaut has posed:
When he sees the demon that's coming at him, even bigger than he, the Juggernaut grins and flexes his hands to the sound of knuckles popping. Then he speeds up, passing Selene and reaching out to grapple with the demonic beast. Hands locking together as they settle into a contest of strength. He tries to hold his ground rather than push forward after they've grappled, seeing how strong it is without using his unstoppability, muscles straining as he pushes back. Then the small demons are trying to get into him through his helmet, and he growls as he clamps his mouth shut. Not that doing that really helps with people trying to possess you. Eventually his mouth opens wide, and his head begins to jerk forward time and again as he bites at them, trying to crush them with his teeth. Who knows if that'll actually work. He does raise his knee towards the gut of the larger demon though, trying to slam it into him with all of his considerable force.

Shadow has posed:
    The Shadow takes a moment to survey the overall situation and doesn't like what she sees. The defenders mostly have the upper hand, but the invaders don't seem to care about casualties -- and the way black energy seeps into the ground with each dying demon bodes ill.
    Her arm snaps out to shoot a demon in the face as it gets slightly too close, then she reaches down with the other hand to yank the manhole cover out of the way.

    The energy is feeding into something down there; perhaps if she can find it and shut it off this will be over faster...

Ares has posed:
Ares brushes off the back of his hand after smacking Sloth to the next century...then? his eyes look up to see Pride as bullets just ping off of him. "Heh...you dishonor me by staying up there on your pathetic perch." he says as he walks forward, ignoring the cultists unless he passes them specifically, a wave of his hand to put them to sleep...just any he crosses immediately next to. He seems to ignore anything else...Pride is to be the strongest of the Sins right?

Perfect.

Rachel Cole-Alves has posed:
    "Trust me- the plan wasn't to touch it... Ah. thanks." Rachel calls after the sorceress of a like name as she is coming ot her feet with her rifle in hand. The demon's been obliterated and as for the marine...
    Rache moves to the edge of the rooftop and reaches into a pouch, producing a 40mm under-barrel grenade. She watches the chaos intently, adjusting her weapon. "Mark... Distance one hundred and forty yards. Adjusting..."
    Rachel fires a grenade directly into one of the demons who had been ignoring her gunfire and a few of his friends. "...Ignore that."

Raven has posed:
    Raven cannot say that she is especially bothered most of the demons are focused on other targets. After all, not being assaulted by demons, regardless of success, is more or less a good thing. Raven glides across the battlefield, engaging demons here and there and removing them as threats. These demons are not being sent back to hell- at worst, many no longer exist. Any that continue to exist now reside within her soul-self... A realm in which Raven is quite literally Omnipotent. A safe prison to keep them from being banished and then re-emerging from this... Portal.

    That the portal still remains is a problematic thing to her, and as a result, she begins following the same sort of arcane signatures that Selene has been following. Stemming the tide is the most important thing- closing the portal is priority one. Finding any escapees can be part of the mopping up procedures... For now, she'll begin making her way down, moving through walls and teleporting as necessarily, to delve further towards the source of these demonic entities.

Redstar has posed:
The portals size fluctuates for a moment, closing smaller, then widening again. Another earthquake-like jolt rocks the street here in Town Square, knocking some off their feet. Then as more nodes are shattered by Selene the portal closes a little more and stops recovering size.

That is when she steps in, glowing with purple hellfire, Pride. She glides down with amazing speed and grace, coming to land between Gothic, Ares, and the rest of her cultists. A smirk curls her perfect face, "I'll just kill them myself you know," She says, taking a step forward and snapping a man's neck with casual ease. Another flash sinks into the earth. "Sons of Satannish, time to die!" Her voice sings out across the crowd, rippling compulsion magic. Her aura of majesty strong, making few want to question her. Those not unconscious pull out hollowed out knifes, their bodies moving obviously against their will.

Another dozen possessed make their way out for every fifty that don't. So at least they are being contained and that will help with whatever cleanup the 'heroes' decide to do...if any. But finally things are changing as nodes begin to be fractured, their energies draining away into other magics until those can't hold any more. Each node is a chunk of pink salt crystal stained a bloody red. They pulse slightly with 'Don't See Me' magic, magic The Shadow and Selene can easily overcome. The portal shrinks more.

From nowhere a telekinetic force pushes at Selene as she nears another node. Orange hellfire springing to life around a demon with gold skin, decked in numerous riches. "Nu'uh, lady. Your fun stops here," She says, lashing out from the opposite direction with a similar wave, the two meant to send her flipping in the air and into the muck and grime.

Similarly the Shadow finds herself faced with a demon. Green flames flicker around her as she steps from the shadows of the sewers, somehow able to be undetected by Natasha's own. A frightening thought. "You have an interesting...something. Give it to me," And she reaches out a hand that extends into shadowy tendrils, hungrily trying to draw at Natasha's own power. Like shadow leeches.

And those capable of sensing the magic here that has been laid over years. It points down into tunnels below the sewers as the point of the portal. The nods simply batteries to capture and redirect power for it to stay big and stable.

Juggernaut finds himself on the winning end of the argument with the big demon, after a few seconds scuffle. But those little ones don't seek to enter his mouth, but his soul. Each one trying to dig in and take control on the body and mind within.

Redstar has posed:
Gluttony pulls herself from the pavement, shaking her head, then launches into the sky after Shadowlite. Unlike most of her fellow sins she is slow to get moving. But she pauses in her pursuit catching sight of the Raven going below. "Oh crap," She says, turning in midair to follow after her. Flaming cleavers forming out of hellfire in her hands.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    As Pride leaps down, it takes Lolita's attention away from the cultists...especially when Pride simply orders them to suicide. She's not really made for great speed, and there's no way she can get to a lot in time. Besides...a new target just presented itself. She glances to Ares. "All yours. I'll be with you in a moment." And she at least makes the attempt...Ares seems powerful, and she's fairly sure he can keep Pride's attention while she bursts into a superhuman burst of speed, charging through the remaining Sons of Satannish as she slaps away knives then backhands to knock out as many as she can. They'll have concussions. She doesn't particularly feel bad about that, as long as they're out for the moment.

Shadowlite has posed:
As Gluttony turns away from him, Shadowlite makes a beeline for the nearest cultists at his full 500mph, and brings up his arms towards them, forming fists aimed square in their mist.

Then, small portal apertures form at the end of those fists, and Darkforce 'bullets' start to fire on the group with the properties of rubber.

Shadowlite is effectively doing a strafing run on a group of cultists not being dealt with, using Darkforce rubber bullets.

"You demons are idiots." Shadowlite declares, his voice now subdued as the amplifier is off.... but probably heard by the cultists themselves.

Black Queen has posed:
Node after node after node. Selene is tearing them apart, finding it the least draining on her end to use that particular gift. It's like rock paper scissors. It is all going so smoothly when Selene is sent flying by a powerful telekinetic force. She finds herself thrown, twenty feet or so, straight into the wall of the sewer and then collapsing into the muck and grime of the sewer. Face first, how disgusting. Breathing hard, Selene starts to push herself back up when another hit of telekinetic force sends her flipping into yet another wall and crashing down into more icky sewage. Shaking, and seething with hatred, Selene pushes herself up from the ground with a bone jutting from one of her legs.

Poor woman, she has more broken bones at this point than are visible, her body is merely of human composition, and still shakily she presses upwards. She is angry, her eyes flare with flickering shadow, leaking down her face as her body starts to dissolve, "You... a mere peasant? Stop me?" That's when her hands also turn into inky blackness, and the woman known as Selene spills out of her clothing as nothing but a semi-cohesive darkness and fiery eyes. "Your body will serve me well." And she starts to wrap herself around the demon swarming it with the inky shadows, trying to absorb the demon's life energies, attempting to drain this demon to replenish her own strength, "Oh, you are powerful, full of energy... give it to me!" She cackles, and the sound echoes through the sewers as she's swirling around the demon like a snake, constricting with magical force since she lacks any tangible existence.

Juggernaut has posed:
After knocking the wind from the oversized demon and doubling it over, Cain slams his fists down into the back of its head, driving it into the ground long enough for him stomp on the skull, crushing it. Then he focues on the demons trying to possess him, attempting to crush the ones swarming around his helmet. The giant mercenary lets out a sudden grunt and stiffens, one of them managing to slip through his resistances through sheer persistance. He relaxes a few seconds later, glancing around the area before focusing on Ares. He bends partly forward and breaks into a run, barreling towards the God and attempting to slam into him with the force of a freight train.

Shadow has posed:
    And just for a moment, Natasha wavers. The demon's assault reaches through her defenses, and she is still winded from her earlier effort. She staggers under the onslaught, shadows rippling away from her. Alone, in the dark, trapped and outnumbered with demons all around her. Did she really think she could do anything? How foolish mortals are...

    But then her eyes snap open and sapphire blazes with a willpower beyond anything the demon has ever faced before. She straightens and seems to grow several inches until she towers over the demon, mocking laughter welling up from her throat almost unbidden.

"It is not yours to take, maggot," comes her response, her hands reaching for the second pair of pistols she carried. Money can buy a lot of things on short notice. As she pulls the triggers and her guns roar, a distant part of her mind hopes that these 'cold-forged iron sabot' rounds work as advertised, or there might not be an opportunity to demand a refund...

Ares has posed:
Ares steps right up to Pride with no hesitance or even concern, looking down at her as his eyes narrow. The way he stands suggests and demands his own superiority. "Hm...I would assume you're supposed to be pride? Go ahead and kill them." he says then. "Though this should be fun." He looks then to Juggernaut as he barrels towards him. "It seems I'll have to put you on a wait list."

He actually turns his back on Pride and he cracks his neck then, a smile coming on Ares's face as he is bomb rushed, only for Ares to just make a hand gesture...and Juggernaught will find that he might be telekinetically pushed back. Though if that doesn't work? Ares will stand there.

Been a while since he got hit and it actually did something. This could b fun!

Rachel Cole-Alves has posed:
Rachel is busy sniping fleeing cultists as they run in all directions, but most of her attention is on the brewing conflict between Ares and the Juggernaut. Rachel doesn't bother firing into that melee, instead quietlystaring as the conflict intensifies. Other than the soundof the bolt slamming home andanother round dropping another foe Rachel is silent. What is a girl to do in a situation like this?

Raven has posed:
    Raven is idly unaware that she is being followed by Gluttony. Admittedly, she's making it hard for her, what with literally flying through walls and obstacles. She isn't moving at the speed of sound, but she's moving quickly and... Well, nothing is getting in her way. This matter of avoidance is not necessarily an attempt to stop Gluttony from following her at all- more to... Infuriate and bother the demon while Raven does things that she considers more important.

    She weaves her way through, homing in on... Well, what seems like one woman fighting another. It is no comforting thing as the world around the pair grows darker and darker, shadows stretching from the hallway towards the aptly named Shadow. The fires of the other demon no longer provide particular light as the black seems to envelope the walls, turning them from stone, to some form of anti-light.

    "If I were you, Envy, I would run. It will not save you... But it would buy you a little time."

Redstar has posed:
Between Shadowlite and the fashionable android many of the cultists are spared their deaths. Knives knocked away, bullets knocking them down or unconscious, leave only a dozen whose life force flashes into the underbelly of the spellwork laid here. The possessed demons kept here begin to strain against the magic. Their numbers pushing against it, causing strain on the compulsion magic. But it seems, for the moment, the Cultists are down. Only the possessed and the unpossessed remain though a dozen stream through the portal every few seconds. It seems everything has slowed to waves of transport instead of a solid stream of demons.

Below the streets another battle wages. One a battle of consumption between two greedy mystic entities, and two forces of shadow. Both demons are winding up on the losing side, however, as they are surprised by attacks. Envy pulls her tendrils back and laughs mockingly as Natasha pulls her guns, "Food, bullets can't hu-" And then the rounds penetrate in smooth, quick succession. Pain and surprise show on the demons face before the fire extinguishes and the body falls to the ground, reverting to that of a teenage girl. Blood stains her green shirt slowly.

Greed has no defense against the cloud and gasps as her energy is slowly drained away. "Noooo!" She cries and an orange portal opens directly under her. She falls through it and it winks closed behind her. Selene, for the moment, is left alone and fully restored by what she stole.

Pride continues to smirk in a superior fashion as she faces the armored Greek god of War. She looks disappointed as so many of the remaining are put down, sighing as if merely agitated. She is far too proud to acknowledge how worried this makes her. Purple eyes turn to the gateway above, narrowing slightly as fewer come through, and even fewer are leaving. She grabs an unconscious man at her feet and with ease rips her long, and sharp, nails across his throat. As he dies power flows into her through his pact and her purple fire grows. As Ares deals with Juggernaut, she is powering up with soul energy.

Rachel shoots, she scores, demon bits fly apart as the grenade detonates in the middle of the newest wave from Hell. She manages to take out every one of the dozen that came through. But does she have enough grenades to keep this up till the Mystics find the source and stop it?

Gluttony howls in frustration as she loses Raven below. The sound echoes through the waterways eerily. The demon begins her hunt in the dark depths.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    With a little grunt, the last cultist near to Lolita drops, and the android turns, taking in the possessed Juggernaut facing off against the God of War. She turns and strides forward, pausing by an abandoned Dodge Challenger, before with a *SHRRRRRRRANK* her fist punches through the hood, then rips out the V8 engine inside, hefting it one-handed as she moves with purpose towards Pride.

    "I believe the phrase is...I'm your huckleberry." the weapon of mass destruction in lace says, her voice carrying, before she digs in. With a sharp *CRACK* the pavement under her shatters as she accelerates, winding up as she smashes the heavy engine block, spinning as she does as she starts raining blows down on the demon's possessed body.

Shadowlite has posed:
Then, Shadowlite is right back to that rooftop with his machinegun... the portal aperture closing as he goes right back to his perch, and once again begins to empty his SAW magazine into the demons coming into our realm. He has plenty of ammo, so only bursts when it's clear he can only hit a few in a wave.

Otherwise? He resumes his role as the dam against the tide.

Black Queen has posed:
The demon is gasping inside of the wispy cloud of shadow and then... it's gone. Selene is still in the form of her inky blackness and then re-coalesces into her normal human form. She whirls her clothing to her and gets dressed by pure telekinetic force. She takes in a big deep breathe of the air, and sighs, "Pity." She mentions as she looks around, "Everyone always leaves before dessert." And then she starts walking again. It is the lowest cost in energy, as she's headed toward the next node. She feels great right now, her eyes are wide, and she's grinning uncontrollably. Food, it makes some people tired, not Selene. It really wakes her up. And she will continue to destroy the nodes as she manages to find them. At some point she might even meet up with the others that are down in the sewers, but that is certainly not her goal. And, of course, she has cleaned her clothing in the process with some magic, it's worth it, there's no way she's going to put on dirty clothes.

Ares has posed:
When Ares realizes he won't stop Juggernaut easily, The God of war, draws a magic battle mace to his hand that seems to 'activate' at the club head to show off a more magic-based creation. in his other hand? simply his clenched fist as he charged at Juggernaut with a wicked smile on his face. He braces and takes the initial hit from Juggernaut, sliding backwards a good ways before he just grins. "Heh...I actually felt that. Come, filth!" he demands as he leaps at Juggernaut, attempting to smash that mace right into the man's chest. Though it wouldn't be anything lethal like a sword stab...it would hurt like a bitch.

He trades the hits with Juggernaut, taking a few, dishing out many...but Juggernaut was a monster. Good thing Ares was invulnerable...he could take the hits, unlike most.

But then? he starts to laugh. He wasn't taking this as seriously as he should... He was having fun.

Juggernaut has posed:
The God will find that he can't push back the approach of the Unstoppable Juggernaut. He's referred to that for a reason, a man who has traded blows with the Hulk and held his own slamming into Ares. It's enough force to knock him across the city if he wasn't ready and prepared himself. As is, it might actually hurt depending on how durable he is. The Juggernaut immedietly begins launching punches at him, putting devestating force behind them. Ares will find that he can't actually stop these either, some intangible force behind them other than the strength. And he seems pretty damn durable when accepting any return blows, unless they're attacks with a magic weapon or something similar.

Rachel Cole-Alves has posed:
    Another grenade. More demon bits in all directions. A third. Rachel had one box of 40mm grenades with her and it's quickly becoming clear that simply wasn't enough. Eventually she reaches for a grenade and finds it's the last one. The marine makes a judgment call- and doesn't use it. Who knows when it will be useful? She does fire off a burst of automatic weapons fire at the demons but at this range she's only going to hit three or four at the most.

Shadow has posed:
    Natasha curses inwardly. In her rage she'd forgotten that these demons were possessing victims, and an innocent woman is paying the price for her carelessness. Worse, if she delays now to stop the bleeding, she might be too late to stop whatever ritual is being enacted down here. For a moment she is almost paralyzed with indecision, but then she remembers her grandfather's advice -- when in doubt, act to save lives. She kneels by the fallen girl, pulling a set of pressure bandages out of a coat pocket, working quickly but carefully, movements drilled into her by long practice. The girl will still need to be extracted and spend quite some time in surgery, but she should survive to get there.

Shadow has posed:
    Once the bandages are applied, Natasha pulls out a phone with one hand, dialing a certain burner number, and speaking into it the moment it connects.
    "Sergeant. The demons are up to something in the sewers. Cold iron bullets work against them, and sufficient injury will expel them from their hosts. I have a victim to evacuate. Get someone down here, /quickly/." She hangs up before Rache can respond, then lifts the girl into a fireman's carry and sprints down the sewers to a safe point where Benny will be waiting to take the girl to a hospital...

Raven has posed:
    Raven is really just about powerless to watch Natasha shoot down the child. A few bulletholes will indeed stop the demon, and doubly so, near-murder the child that's possessed. Raven offers this mild sigh, exasperated. "Okay, if you can buy me a few moments, I can probably-" Her tone is so much less severe than it had been a few seconds before, and yet, despite this, Natasha pulls the child up, and begins charging off.

    "Yeah, okay, makes sense."

    The shouting, though, from Gluttony does get her attention. She looks around at the area that she has coated in the shadow of her soul-self, and then shrugs quietly, sinking down into the floor. She imagines that the pause has allowed Gluttony to catch up, to some degree, but the demon is hardly particularly stealthy.

    Like a fly trap, the darkness will snare the oncoming demon and, hopefully, consume the demonic essence tainting her host. Like the others, it will be a more... Permanent dismissal, than merely shooting. It also won't be pleasant for Gluttony- but it will leave the host behind. So that's good.

    Raven is not necessarily the type for traps. But this time, she will make an exception.

Redstar has posed:
The engine swings into Pride as Gothic Lolita comes at her with frightening speed. Its force flings her back, but her own flight abilities bring her to a quick stop. She glares at the android and then looks puzzled. "What are you? Never mind, die!" She says and launches herself at the android with shocking speeds of her own. Pride moves in to body check her, the flames flaring into magma heat levels and melting asphalt beneath their feet.

The portal wavers and then shrinks to the size of a large archway. The demons coming through now are tougher, attempting to absorb the blasts of their brethren. Then another demon lands on the roof by Rachel. This one is smaller, but also quicker, grinning at her with blazing yellow eyes. "MMMmMMm. Tasty treat. Tasty tasty," It says as it leaps at the sniper. Shadowlite, too, finds two demons land behind him. Probably from the earlier stream.

Node after node falls and soon all but one pulses. So it is probably no surprise the two below converge on it at once. This one is bigger than any of the rest with strange symbols that twist when you look at them. It is slowly draining the rest of it's power downwards. And below it is an opening leading into a tunnel. Big enough for one person at a time with a ladder leading down. From it come faint whimpers and cries of pain as well as girlish sobbing.

The chamber below is large and lined with big dog crates. And in these crates, of which there are over twenty occupied, are girls. Teenagers to be exact, faces at least Natasha would recognize from her investigation if she were there. It seems there is only one obvious entrance and exit, the ladder and hole. Fifty feet back from the ladder is a dais. Two stone pillars jut from the earth, carved mystic runes filled with old blood. Chains on either side keep captive a girl each and from them flows white life-energy directly into the being that stands between them.

Starr seems rooted in place, eyes wide and staring but unseeing, hands out at her sides where the energy flows in. A frown of concentration and strain is on her face. Looking closer mystic threads of force reach upwards through rock and asphalt. This is the exact center of the portal, and she is the anchor. But she is not alone. Satannish stands watching her, apparently oblivious to the entrance, a scowl on both his faces. There is no sign of Gluttony or Greed.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    The petite mecha drops the engine block, a large dent in it where it collided with the demoness, then digs into the asphalt as she's charged, her glowing eyes calm as she's slammed into, skidding back. Immediately, her dress bursts into flames, wreathing her in fire and smoke as it licks across her face and hair, but doesn't seem to burn either. The aphalt under her, however, almost immediately bubbles and melts as she tears long furrows into it as she's knocked backwards by the impact before she slams her back foot down, skidding to a halt.

    "I decline." the dark-haired gynoid says steadily, her hair falling free as her hair ribbons go up in flames, swirling behind her in the hot air currents as it swirls like a flag of black silk behind her.

    With a hard shove, she grabs for Pride, attemtping to slide her arms around her middle..then shifts, impossibly twisting as she attempts to slam her into the ground in a German suplex, facefirst into the bubbling asphalt.

Shadowlite has posed:
"No." Shadowlite growls as he opens a portal behind the two demons, releasing his machine-gun for the moment. The black lightning arcs into the sky visibly as he forces the hole in reality open /far/ faster than usual... then immediately both arms reach to the ground, emitting black mist as he pulls a tall, wide sheet of reinforced Darkforce that encloses in a bowl shape, before Shadowlite tosses it at them.

His intention is clear; to force the demons into the Darkforce Dimension... then close it, trapping them inside.

"Go tell daddy I'm not on the menu."

Black Queen has posed:
Taking a look at what is happening down below, Selene looks back to the last node. It is still draining energy. These batteries are immense. And she sees that Satannish is already present. There's going to need to be some work done here. She reaches out, telepathically, to the demon known as Starr. But deeper, heading to the other persona that was still present inside of her that she felt the other day, <<I will need your help, dear girl. To get Satannish back to whence he came.>> These batteries were somewhat foreign to her before she started destroying them, but with each passing one she started to realize how they were formed, what their mystical energies were doing and where they were headed. They work, almost like her own existence, and she has known that power for a long time.

Rachel Roth shows up, darkness coming with her, and Selene at first turns on her as if she is another demon. Though she stops a moment later, "Another... good." She looks around before eyeing this last node, "I suspect we have one option. To use this node pull Satannish back to his home plane. I doubt that I alone could push him into the energy field where... Starr, is now, and reverse this node. It will require additional help. Do you think you are up for it?" She begins to analyze the changing symbols some more, turning her back to the darkness bringer, so she can even see if changing these symbols about, and their order is even possible. Either way, if she can get someone to go down and fight Satannish, it is less likely he will come up to her and chew on her for an eternity.

Juggernaut has posed:
Normally the blows wouldn't hurt the Juggernaut in a real way, possessed or not. But the magic infusing the mace that Ares swings at him make it so he can actually feel some pain from it. Though he's not really in control of his actions, the demon that took over his body the one grunting when it takes the hits and then swinging back. It seems to be focused on just trying to beat the God rather than enjoying the fight. Pounding away at him like a man...well. Possessed.

Ares has posed:
Ares just keeps smiling, swinging that magic mace a little harder now, each impact creating shockwaves! Though eventually, he weavs around one of Juggernaut's hits, before he puts a hand on the helmet of his armor. "hsinab!" (Banish). He uses a powerful magic as if to attempt to force the spirit inside of Juggernaut to get itself exorcised from him.

God of War freeing Juggernaut? curious.

Either way, looks like he just wants to help right now.

Raven has posed:
    Raven follows the halls as best she can- which is, admittedly, very well. Eventually, though, she comes upon a ladder down into a hole that echoes with a presence that she absolutely, positively, does not like. Her expression is normally intensely neutral- that this feeling elicits a frown from her at all is a testament to how bad the situation has progressed.

    Her attention flits to Selene momentarily. "Yeah. Great." she states, looking for a moment at the nodes present. "An encounter with Satannish would be... Unpleasant." There's really no telling how much of a threat she considers the demon- but apparently it is enough of one to cause hesitation in someone like Raven... Though how relevant that is, is relative.

    "It can be done. If you work on the framework, I can see about... Harnessing the proper energies." Her attention is now on the twenty-odd victims- at best, a resource, but for someone like her... Almost two dozen lives to save.

Redstar has posed:
Pride screeches as the fire only destroys clothes and not her opponent. As they grapple Gothic gets the upper hand, throwing her into the bubbling asphalt with a grunt. "That one was free," She says as she wipes gooey asphalt from her, the flames ceasing their overbearing heat. As Pride moves to stand, her movements fast enough to match the android, she attempts an upper cut, hoping to knock her programming loose.

Two demons are startled as Darkforce essentially scoops them up. Then swallows them. On the other side something...is excited for a new playmate or two. Demonic voices and presence don't last long there. Another demon lands behind Shadowlite, however. This one of those able to be killed by bullets, but also fast and dexterous. It just needs to touch him...

Weak, weak, so very weak. But still a spark of fire is burning, fighting against the presence which constantly drains her. Here Selene can feel Satannish's touch, a very simple spell. It is, perhaps, surprising that it is working so well on the soul known as Victoria Jones. Here in the depths Selene can see and feel that their souls are fused and that Miss Jones' is one of those rare pure souls that show up from time to time. Probably why she was able to resist. << Stop him. >> Manages to get out like a weak whisper, coming from them both. Starr's mind almost completely encapcilated by being the anchor for the portal above her.

The runes and magic are old and powerful, but their opposite creates the opposite effect. A negative force to draw the closest demonic forces back through. It could actually work! But first Satannish needs to be on that Dais. Then there is the fact that Lust makes her appearance now, moving to pull a more than willing girl from her cage. The girls fawns at the demoness, stroking her arms, "I want you. Please, kiss me!" And other such disturbing things. So she is willing to kneel and be placed in manacles. For in a moment the girl that was on Starr's right calcifies and turns to ash. There is, notably now, a significant pile of ash about the dais. As the manacle clicks locked the girl's face changes from one of want to one of pain and horror, but she can only whimper and squeek and thrash weakly as her life-energy starts being drained by the pillar and sent into Starr.

Redstar has posed:
There is a shriek of dismay as the demon is evicted. Not just evicted by a normal exorcism, but by a freaking god. It's essence tatters as it is pulled from Juggernaught with ease. Leaving Cain very aware of what he did while possessed, and probably pissed it happened in the first place.

Shadowlite has posed:
"I SAID I'M NOT ON THE MENU." Shadowlite shouts as he leaps, then flies into the sky once more as his black flying disk is summoned. The portal into the Darkforce Dimension is closed as Shadowlite stops focusing on it... trapping the demons there.

Then, he pulls one of his backup Taurus Judges, and promptly aims for the newcomers skull.

This is why he brings guns, because you never know when you'll need to shoot demons in the head.

It's a thing.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Pride's uppercut connects with a sharp CRACK as Lolita shoots backwards, smashing into a parked taxi cab, the metal folding around her from the impact as the car skips a good six feet to the side before crashing into a display window for a shwarma shop. After a moment the car squeals as Lolita jerks free, a few burning scraps mixed with fortituously placed melted asphalt keeping her barely on the side of decency.

    "I am prepared to pay handsomely for the remainder of your beatdown." the android says, padding barefoot across the bubbling asphalt, her shoes long lost back where she was punched. "You are in need of a lesson. Fortunately, I am an excellent instructor." Her eyes narrow as she stops across from Pride. "Your tution payment is hereby waived, and you are granted a full scholarship to Pain University, on track to graduate magna cum laude with a major in getting your pert and prideful posterior punted." Her fists come up. "Allow me to welcome you to your dormitory of shame with your mandatory freshman beating."

    There's a sharp crunch as she kicks off, skipping from car to car in her path before she flies at Pride, feinting with a quick left right combo before her leg extends in a high kick aimed at Pride's chin.

Black Queen has posed:
With Raven somewhat agreeing to be the person to face Satannish, Selene smirks a bit, "Oh, I know. I would rather be burned alive..." Again? "Than face off against him alone. Good luck." Selene offers as almost a quip, "You may receive help, it somewhat depends on how well I can convince her to be her better half." Then there's the plea from the woman Victoria Jones, and Selene just rolls her eyes. Clearly this Jones doesn't know whom she is telepathically communicating with. <<Do not worry, I am sending someone to help.>> She musters as calming, motherly type of tone she can, via telepathy it's much harder to put on pretenses and it comes off shallow at best. Though witnessing the works down below, Selene takes some mental notes, a setup like this is not so bad, but certainly hers would be better and less... obvious.

"We must get Satannish on the dais. If you have only heard of him, let me explain. He's very powerful." And then she offers a 'shoo shoo' kind of hand motion, "Please go... your presence disturbs my concentration." Its said with a partially annoyed tone, not so much a 'fearful' tone. And with that Selene gets very close to the node, this magical apparatus that is changing its symbols about like a combination magical box and encrypted computer password. Instead of breaking the code, or altering the symbols, Selene is literally possessing the physical object. She's combining some of her life force with the material and beginning to alter its shape. If Satannish can be moved to the dais, that exact moment will be when Selene clicks the last piece of this bizarre rubics cube into place, to reverse the draining effect. And at the same moment disrupt the hold it has on Vicky, but - it can't happen till Satannish is in the right place.

Raven has posed:
    Raven's deadpan expression breaks for only a moment to raise a brow. Of all the people present, mocking Raven's knowledge of the occult is most certainly the most genuinely laughable. Now, however, is not time for an argument- and pettiness is one of the emotions that she can suppress rather easily. Instead, she just offers this eyerolling sigh, and slips down the tube to go and enter the room occupied by Satannish, Starr, and Lust.

    Being underestimated here is relatively key, to some extent. Her empathy reaches out, and all at once, the idea of lust within the remaining girls is eaten. Lust's ability to create it is going to have to wrestle with... Perhaps the strongest empath in existence, considering that her lineage traces directly to the extra-dimensional monstrosity known as Trigon.

    Consumption, however, is not the only thing that she's capable of: In addition to this, Raven is bolstering the girls, giving them the strength they need to fight. Valor, happiness, and a small dash of rage, the ingredients of a fighting spirit. Her hands slip into her pockets, as she strides through the room, less like a person aiming to fight, and more like a person who simply ought to be there.

    She expects to be leapt upon in some fashion, and is ready for that. If they play into talking, though, that's fine too.

Juggernaut has posed:
The Juggernaut blinks a few times after the demon is evicted from his mind, then scowls deeply. "Son of a bitch." He glares around the area, looking for something he can attack and let his rage out on. He spots Pride and Gothic fighting, and turns to start towards them, building into a run as he closes in on the seemingly highest-ranking demon present. "I'm going to kill you, you fiery asshole!" Coming up on the battling pair he attempts to launch a powerful roundhouse punch at the demon. She IS considerably faster than him. But he's a pretty experienced brawler, so there's a chance he'll manage to land a hit.

Ares has posed:
Ares just looks at Juggernaut as he watches the larger man turn and run at Pride in his rage. "Hm..that was easy." he mumbles to himself before he lets his mace disappear to where it came. Then he senses something...Lust...Satannish..he turns his head in their direction then before he just remains silent for a moment..unmoving.

Then, he would appear in that room that one would arrive in after that tube, black armor shimmering when shined on by light, red eyes looking around the room as he stands up straight, cloak around his shoulders with fur around them, helmet removed to show his authority. "Now then....how shall I end this?" he says with a small grin as the God of War makes his presence known to them.

Redstar has posed:
"I was wondering when someone would eventually get here," The dark and echoing rumble of Satannish's voice fills the cavern. It sets the girls shrinking away in their cages. The green-skinned demon lord turns his gaze on Raven. It seems her regards her as a simple nuisance. "What do you hope to achieve here, child? So many have already come through. More than you'll ever be able to track down," He grins wickedly. "My minions will spread through this city and others. It won't take them long to find others of great influence and power to transfer too, either," He chuckles in a pleased tone. "It is too bad Stephen is not here to have seen this. But being rid of him is a reward all in itself."

Lust is caught by surprise as her aura is stripped from the room, visibly gasping and staggering. She is the weakest of the seven and her eyes widen with fear. "Crap," She says and begins to edge around the room trying to keep the cages between her and Raven. So she is right by Ares when he appears. "Double crap..."

Satannish turns and looks to Ares as the god appears, a sneer pulling back his lips. "Ah. A godling. How quiant." But surprisingly he doesn't attack...yet. Starr's eyes blinks once, twice, then her head moves and turns to look at Raven. There is strain on her face and Raven can feel the pain she is resisting as soul energy rips through her directly into the gate overhead.

*Pop* *Pop* *Pop* The demon flies after Shadowlite, weaving and dodging, focused on taking the problem out of the game. So focused that the bullet from the sniper, Rachel, takes him through the head. A look of surprise before he bursts into evaporating black smoke.

Pride ducks away from the kick and right into Juggernaut. Focused and overconfidant she hadn't bothered to pay him or Ares any mind. Juggernaut was possessed after all. Was being the opperative word. He flings her into the side of a building with that bunch, cracking bricks, and then she slides down to the ground bonelessly. Or rather broken boneless-like.

Bits are sticking out of skin for a second, before things start pulling back together. She gets to her feet, swaying and disoriented from the blow, and sneers at the Juggernauts swimming in her vision. No one has ever hit her that hard, not even Satannish, and she isn't sure if she could take another. The energy she had drained used up to quicken her regeneration.

Shadowlite has posed:
"I need to buy seeking rounds from now on. This is ridiculous." Shadowlite grumbles as he dives right for his SAW again... putting his Judge away back into its' holster and putting the safety on, before he once more dams up the portal with bullets. He's got about a 1/3 of this magazine left. Time to use it.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    And while Pride is sneering at Juggernaut, she's not looking at Lolita. Which is why a shadow fall over her, giving her a moment to look up right before the fullly loaded semi full of Bud Light piledrives straight down towards her from above. Whether or not it hits directly, the cargo area promptly explodes from the impact, sending beer spraying in all directions with a tremendous *CRASHFsffffssssssshhhhhhhhhh* as kegs go spinning off as they explode from sudden cracks that allow the liquid within to escape.
    Lolita lands, denting the top of a Chevy Tahoe, thankfully abandoned as she looks at Juggernaut, then makes a graceful 'go for it gesture' towards Pride. "Please think of her as a very annoying nail and yourself as a very large, angry hammer..." she suggests.

Ares has posed:
Ares gives Lust a side glance, those crimson eyes looking right into her own. She should be afraid...but right now, she's fodder in comparison to him right about now. His eyes turn to Satannish as the demon calls him a 'godling'. "You would be a fool then, dark one. The word you are looking for is 'god' peasant." he says to the creature beneath him, his eyes giving a powerful iar of confidence.

the ground starts to break as items of various sorts start to float into the air, taking the form of swords and other weapons...all ready to launch at Satannish for the kill. "Any last words from one so bold as to challenge the God of War?" he says with a wicked grin.

Raven has posed:
    Raven's attention is on Satannish, and she offers this... Mild shrug. "I was hoping to accomplish a lot of things. Didn't really expect anything in particular, but you haven't really put up a great deal of fight, all in all. You really have no idea how many I can track down, nor how many I'm willing to track down."

    As Ares arrives, Raven is happy to let him take position as the largest threat. She holds up a finger, pressing it to the front of her lips. Her hands are small, slender, dainty and perfect. She is looking at Starr while she does it, as she takes a moment to center herself. From the slaves, she begins removing emotions, devouring them as fast as they are made. She consumes fear, pulling it out of the victims, and out of Starr, she pulls the pain.

    It's subversive, moreso than challenging Satannish to a fight, but that Raven maintains her composure with so much pain and anguish rolling through her speaks to her power as an empath. In this room, there is only serenity and the drive to fight, and all other emotions are, from the victims and starr, effectively -deleted.-

Black Queen has posed:
The battle begins down below, and Selene is up top doing the more intellectual work. She is a great study, and has been around a very very long time. More than that, she has consumed the lives of thousands of others. In that variety she has gained perspective, skills, and more. Viewing this magical node with the combined experience of all of those lives, of all of those unique skills, Selene gets it to the right moment. She waits though, she is holding the object in its current state. She grimaces a little bit, funneling her own life force against the highly disruptive forces of the node. It's stressful, and if those down below don't hurry it up, she will start to age and may be leaving this battle looking like an old hag instead of her beautiful self.

For now she is still consuming the treat of the demon that she absorbed. The empath's power can be felt even up here, but good thing it isn't being focused in on Selene. She really hates other people invading her mind, "Why is it, they never shut up? Villains talk to delay, and here they are... talking right back." Selene grumbles to herself, knowing full well about the whole 'talk to the heroes before attacking' thing. She's done it herself.

Juggernaut has posed:
     Juggernaut is about to move forward when the semi hits Pride, glancing to the side to see Gothic. Her suggestion makes him smirk slightly, then he refocuses on where the vehicle landed. No doubt the demon is going to emerge any moment. If she does, he'll move in to meet her, immedietly starting to launch blows at the demon. Aiming them downwards so he doesn't knock her too far away from him, hard enough to begin shattering the ground beneath her if they connect and continue to connect.

Redstar has posed:
*BOOM SQUISH* The truck lands and Pride seems to disappear beneath it. For a few seconds all is quiet. Those above with guns managing to keep any MORE demons from coming through the portal. Pride didn't even make a sound. Just...flattened. Just when Juggernaut and Gothic might begin to think they had her the truck groans and rolls to the side. Pride staggers to her feet and wipes blood from her lips. "Amatuers," She pants and then falls over. The purple flame flickers about her before fading out. Juggernaut has a scant moment to pull back before pulverizing the girl, As the fire fades the girls body shifts from demonic perfection to beautiful, but normal, teenage girl. Blood leaks slowly from the corner of her mouth.

The Demoness backs away from Ares before bolting for the ladder. She runs with a speed that is beyond human. A drive to survive stronger than her fear of Satannish in this moment. Especially when a God shows up.

Speaking of the demon lord her turns to Ares and narrows his eyes. "You would make me an enemy? So be it," He says with a sigh. He sends a wave of hellfire at the god, it's boundares flickering and changing as it sweeps down on him, burning hotter than any volcano. "Let's see if you burn." Raven isn't forgotten only dismissed for the moment as the entity known as Satannish focuses all his hellish might on Ares.

The girls don't scream and Starr smirks, closing her hands and dropping them to her side. When she does the girls that had been being slowly drain slump, but don't fall to ash, merely unconscious. The pain removed she begins to subvert her father as he and the god attack one another. Still, she is using her own personal energy now to maintain the portal, which is reflected up above.

The portal shrinks down to the size that only one demon may pass through at a time. And the color surrounding it is less black and more ethereal yellow and magma red as personal energy is used instead of death.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    The petite gynoid jumps down easily, padding across still sticky asphalt as it steams and cools slowly to the fallen teenager. "Congratulations. We have exorcised her through punching. I think that may be a first." she says as an aside to Juggernaut, kneeling to scan over the fallen girl now lying in a puddle of weak beer to see if she can be moved safely or is in immediate need of medical assistance, then turns her head, scanning over the area for sounds of combat. "The portal is shrinking....someone appears to have found its source. Or it has limited duration." She glances over at the ruined cab of the semi, still a large mass of metal. "...perhaps if we plugged it with that?" she suggests to the much larger scion of Cyttorak.

Ares has posed:
Ares grins then at the demon lord, with a push, he sends the blades right for Satannish, barreling straight through his hellish flame as if to knock him into the dais with a few blades stuck in him to possibly pin him there too. As the hellish flame comes for Ares, he uses his own divine flame in his offhand to ward it off. After all, what is a demon lord to a God in terms of dominion over an element?

"Now then...I believe you umped to conclusions too quickly...do you know who I am?" he says as he approaches then, a look around as if to see the state of the room..how many slaves were there...how he looked when Lust made her hasty exit (wise move). "I am Ares."

Juggernaut has posed:
Juggernaut does indeed stop before flattening the de-transformed human girl. He frowns down at her. "So she was possessed too or somethin?" He gives his head a shake, then moves over to the cab of the semi, bending to lift it up off the ground. "I don't see how it matters if the thing is closing, but sure." He squints up at the hole in the air, then hauls back with the cab and hurls it towards the portal. He has pretty good aim, and the mass of metal slams into the hole, jamming inside of it. He brushes off his hands, then glances around. "Any more of the ones that look like they've not mooks?"

Shadowlite has posed:
As the portal shrinks and is plugged, Shadowlite narrows his eyes behind his AR goggles, before he puts the SAW to the side, and pulls up his FN-SCAR from against the edge of the roof.

Then, he dives off the rooftop again, the rifle brought up behind his back and strapped there as he summons his black disk... and starts to float randomly around. His right hand reaching out ocassionally with black mist as he summons and throws elastic Darkforce nets over obviously possessed people... and bolts said nets into the ground, keeping them from escaping.

He's pretty visible as he does it, but way above street level, still.

Raven has posed:
    Raven is not necessarily trying to be front and center. That isn't to say that eating the pain and anguish in the room is a full time job, but that is to say that a direct confrontation with Satannish isn't the way that Raven wants this to go. As a result, givine Selene time to work, and allowing Ares and Satannish to outwit one another verbally is the plan of action.

    In regards to the former, Raven notes the attempted departure from Lust, and her first reaction is to just let the demon go. With Selene upstairs, though, disruption to her work could be... Problematic. She exhales quietly, closing her eyes for a moment as the shadow that is her soul-self spreads in the direction of the ladder, and as Lust approaches, springs upwards in a net of thin strands. Like passing cheese through a julienne, what remains of the possessing demon is likely not going to be much.

    Satannish is losing, perhaps permanently, demons of high station.

Black Queen has posed:
Lust is moving up the ladder and attempting to run away. Selene would normally try and stop her herself, after all she'd make for a great meal... but this magical node is incredibly hard to manipulate and the more blustering men down below are taking their sweet time getting her plan enacted. There really isn't anything Selene can do to stop Lust from getting away, or worse, disrupting her if she wants to, but Raven manages to stop that from being an option. She reaches out to Victoria Jones/Starr <<Pull out, now.>>

At the moment that Ares knocks Satannish onto the dais with a powerful attack, Selene alters the flow of the portal. Instead of sucking more and more life energies down here to fuel Satannish, it is now yanking back on the whole apparatus and the dais is the central point. A huge magical backlash draining instead of providiing, and with it, Starr is freed from the spell making the return force be that much stronger than it would have been had she been still part of the machine.

Hissing out, Selene grits her teeth as she holds the shape of the node, keeping it shaped so that the node is destructive to Satannish. Well, nothing really could destroy him that they have here on Earth, more send him back to where he came from. He is, after all, incredibly powerful even when talking on God scales.

Redstar has posed:
On the streets most everyone not possessed or fighting the invason has fainted from the outpouring of magic energies. The sidewalk and streets having many scattered forms. The possessed are at the edge of Selene's spell, pushing against it, trying to flee. A few slip through until Shadowlite puts a stop to them one by one.

The girl who bored Pride is unconscious certainly, but something is broken instide, and her pulse is weak. The demon having fled before the body could fully regenerate from the truck attack. Her breath is a little ragged as Gothic examines her. But she has time now as no more demons seem to be flying about, looking for a host. Those who have passed through have done so and taken the bodies they could. Some have escaped, but at least on top it is merely a case of containing the stragglers until something can be done.

And something is done. Satannish grunts in mild pain as he is picked up and thrown back onto the dais. Starr, focused, goes wide eyed but is unable to move in time. He flies into her and knocks her to the ground with her father's legs pinning her. The portal's hold flickers as Starr's concentration is broken. But Selene is still able to take the moment and twist the runes.

As Satannish begins to stand he grunts again with a snarl on his face. "I have face gods before, Ares. I am not afraid of y-" Then the pull begins. The anger drains into one of confusion and her turns to look at Starr, laying on the floor apparently unconscious. "No. NO!" As he stands the magic flashes brightly in the room, blinding, as it is reversed. A sound equivalent to a sonic boom rocks the underground chamber, causing dust to fall from the ceiling. As the light clears Satannish is gone and the girl possessed by Lust lies limp at the bottom of the ladder. So too is Starr just another limp form on the ground.

Up above the dull boom from below causes Times Square to shake one last time. The gateway suddenly makes a high pitched whine. Well, the truck wedged into it is anyway. Suddenly the truck is sucked into the hole. A shriek of unearthly anger rises as the demons still in the area are pulled from their hosts. Some cling tighter than others, but all are sucked back through the gate. As if it were a giant vaccuum, yet no breeze stirs a hair on Gothic's head.

In Selene's hands the node fractures, it's energy spent and job done, the runes where she had clenched it burning hot. Maybe hot enough to leave impressions of their shape against her palms. The silence that follows is eerie, not that there was much ruckus before. The girls murmer in their cages, excited and hopeful for real. No need for Raven to influence that anymore.

Gothic Lolita has posed:
    Lolita gives Juggernaut a thumbs up, then watches as the truck promptly crumples and is sucked into the closing portal along with the remaining demons in the area. "Hmmm...looks like that is not the case." she says to Juggernaught, carefully leaning down to scoop up the injured girl. She's not sure why exactly it -did- close, but she assumes one of the other more magically inclinded individuals involved in teh fight was responsible.

    "Are you feeling alright?" she says, a note of concern in her voice as she cranes her neck upwards towards the formerly possessed bruiser. "No lingering effects? We don't need to dunk your head in holy water or something, do we?" she says, thoughful as she flips her scanners on as she looks around for signs of an ambulance she can take the teen to, her pupils returning to their normal dark color as she flips back from combat mode.

Ares has posed:
With that done, Ares looks to the woman who -was- Lust, and then Starr, both ladies lie unconscious on the ground. Looking to the sky with a small breath, he moves over and picks up both ladies, and after a moment of silence, he teleports himself and them back to the surface..in the square, where all the fighitng had taken place. Setting them down gently before he rose back o his feet...his armor melted away to resume his former appearance.

Looked exactly the same in terms of facial features, but his armor was replaced by a trench coat with a black T-shirt and black jeans underneath it, necklace of the greek chain around his neck with a fedorah on his head and sunglasses over his eyes. His part in this was done.

His hands go into his pockets, and he turns heel to leave the sight.

Black Queen has posed:
Satannish is sent back. And Selene managed to keep her name out of it. Not that she wasn't seen by some of his higher level demonesses, but at least she didn't confront him directly. Her hands are burning though, flesh blistering from the heat. She has no supernatural durability like so many that were here today - other than being pretty much immortal. She will heal, but she has one more task that she has to complete.

Before the others get up to her level she teleports away. The first stop is atop the building that overlooks Times Square where she had met Starr the other day. On the ground is a blood red bead, the size of a prayer bead. "Perfect." She says smiling at it, and disappears to reappear at the tops of a dozen or more buildings. It all only takes a few minutes or so before she arrives again nearish to all the chaos.

Walking out, hands badly burned, her eyes a little sunken in like she hasn't gotten much sleep, the woman in the red jacket shows herself again and looks to the Juggernaut. "I am going to go. These people can handle anything else they find." She will walk with Juggernaut, but if he choose to stay she will not stop him. And with that she stuffs her hands into her pockets, where those beads are being stored for the time being, and she heads back the way they had come. Presumably to whatever coffin she calls home... *cough* er, mansion, she calls home.

Shadowlite has posed:
Then, the demons are literally pulled off Earth... and Shadowlite collapses onto his disk, sitting down as he releases all the Darkforce nets.

Those things /hurt/ to keep active, man.

Sitting down, he floats over to Gothic Lolita and Juggernaut, hovering above. His voice scrambler is still on as he grunts... raises his right hand, and opens a portal literally below the teenager, his hand emitting a black misty aura. Both watch as black lightning arcs around the new hole in reality, and she falls in. "She's at the nearest hospital I know, if you're interested. That's my version of smashing reality and throwing people across cities." Shadowlite keeps the portal open, his will guiding the girl through the tunnel for the five seconds it takes, before he closes it again, the black hole in reality winking out of existence much like the Hell portal.

Then, he looks over to Starr and the other girl, and floats his way over, repeating the process for both girls separately.

Juggernaut has posed:
     The Juggernaut grunts absently in response to Gothic, peering up at the now closed portal. "I'm fine. I should go find my employer." He begins to stomp over towards the manhole that Selen dropped down earlier. Then suddenly Selene is just there, and he blinks at her a few times before shrugging. "I've got no reason to stay here." He falls in alongside the darkhaired woman and heads back the way they came with her. Presumably not all the way to the coffin, but probably home at least.

Raven has posed:
    Raven offers this sigh of relief, her reaction to the portal's collapse muted. As are her reactions to... Well, literally everything, really. She brings her hands down, and for a moment, is getting ready to teleport ex-Lust and Starr back to the surface. However, Ares is quicker on the ball, and her response is a mild, "Yeah, alright."

    She heads back up the ladder and finds Selene gone, and after a short shrug, she disappears into the shadow of the wall, and is gone. She's not really the cleanup kind.

Redstar has posed:
As if sensing things have stopped the police and ambulance begin to move in. As well as emergency response teams once the police give the all clear. EMTs sweep in, checking bodies, and looking for seriously wounded. Thankfully most everyone is unconscious. The cutltists that are left are handcuffed and slowly taken away, unconscious as they are, in wagons. As they get closer to the center of things the police are looking more and more confused.

"What in the hell," Says one officer as she sees the masses unconscious on the ground, the torn up street where Gothic, Pride, and Juggernaut had played. Little does she know how close she was to the truth. The girls disappear as the officers finally get to the main square. Slowly they put their weapons away and begin to help the populace. The one cop glances up with a frown at Shadowlite, then nods her head and continues on. Maybe she didn't see his brief. Or maybe she is ignoring his past for the good he seems to be doing in the present. The magic in the area slowly dissipates and people begin to wake, groggy and incoherant.