#bemyhero.task002

Sara was just leaving the café when she heard the news, Cindy Chase’s voice coming loud and clear through the speakers of a patron’s computer.  Normally, she wouldn’t have tried to listen in, but a small group had gathered and she was curious about the fuss.

Her blood ran cold when she heard the details–four, including a hero, a villain, a vigilante, and, perhaps most terrifying, a civilian.  Her heart rate picked up, as she kept listening.  She knew there’d always been some animosity towards people with powers, but this was- this was horrific.

She turned to leave, trying to control her breathing.  But then she heard, “they left each corpse with a cat mask.”  Her breath caught.  She kept walking.  She made it out of the café, down the block, around the corner, pace increasing as she went until suddenly she was sprinting.  Her hands were white knuckled around the strap of her bag, and she could feel the tears prickling her eyes.

She didn’t make it past the door of her dormroom, slamming it behind her and sinking down, back against it, knees pulled in close, as the tears started to fall.  Even though she was no longer running, her breath remained ragged and her shoulders started to shake as the crying turned to sobbing.

Seven Years Ago

“Mommy?” Sara sat up in her bed, wiping the sleep from her eyes.  Her mother was rummaging through her drawers, and there was a suitcase open on the floor, although Sara couldn’t make out what was inside it in the darkness.  The pink digital clock on her dresser read 3:04.  “Mommy, what are you doing?”

Her mother paused, turned around and then rushed to sit on the edge of Sara’s bed.  She ran a shaking hand through her daughter’s hair and then sighed.  “I’m packing us for a- for a trip sweetheart.  You should go back to sleep.  I’ll get you up when we have to go.”

When her mother woke her up again, the clock read 3:42.  She pressed Ella, the pale blue elephant that Sara slept with, into her arms and helped the eleven-year-old put her sneakers on in the dark.  Before helping her put on her backpack and taking her by the hand and leading her down the stairs into a waiting taxi.  Sara caught a brief glimpse of a pile of suitcases in the back, before Linda pulled her close and she was drifting off again.

She woke again when they got to the airport.  The clock in the taxi read 4:38.  She was mostly half-asleep as her mother guided her through check-in and security, though she’d managed to thank the lady in the line who’d complemented her on how cute her sheep pajamas were.

By the time they reached the gate though, she was fully awake.  “Our flight doesn’t board for another thirty minutes, if you wanna go back to sleep sweetheart–”  Linda was cut off by the sound of the news coming from one of the television suspended above them.

“Early this morning, the powered vigilante Veritas, now known to have been local librarian, Jeremy “Jim” Miller, was found dead.  Veritas was known as a local hero and force for good  The warrants for his arrest were even suspended on multiple occasions for him to aid the Seattle PD with certain cases.  He is survived by a wife and daughter, and he will be missed...”

The television kept going, but Sara didn’t hear, instead she turned to her mother with wide eyes as what she’d heard fully solidified in her mind.  Linda only shook her head, lips tight, as if to say “not here.”  Before Sara could ask why, someone in one of the nearby rows of seats sneered, “Good riddance.”  Linda’s gaze sharpened, and she pulled Sara a bit closer.

They sat in silence until the flight boarded, Sarah clutching Ella to her chest and trying not to cry.  Just before it was their turn, the sound of the television, which had softened to the dull tones of infomercials increased to full volume again.

“This just in: an individual in some kind of white, cat mask–possibly a tiger–is reported to have been seen leaving the area of Veritas’ murder.  If you or anyone you know has seen someone-”

“Welcome aboard, Mrs. Linda Miller and...”  Sara’s attention was pulled back to the airport as the gate attendant leaned down to smile at her.  “Miss Sara Miller.  Where are you going so early?  Someplace fun, I hope.”

“Just to visit family.”  Linda responded, flashing a tight smile before pulling Sara gently toward the jet way.

When: 2015 Where: Livingston Labs Featuring: Renee Stefan and Evangeline Livingston

Renee’s eyes flashed open, the lights were bright and there was no feeling in her limbs, that was until pain then began to burn through her entire body, shocking her with feeling “What-” Renee stammered out in a hoarse voice, trying her best to twitch her fingers and then turn her head, but finding it a complete struggle. “Oh hey hey! Just, don’t panic, Renee, you have to take this slowly” Came a well known voice that made Renee widen her eyes when she saw the face of Evangeline Livingston, the red head in her lab coat and wearing her goggles “Eva....What have you done?” Renee asked lowly when she began to slowly realize just where she was.

'Run!' Signe thought to herself, her legs pumping under her as she looked around the camp for some sort of escape. Her breathe was heavy, her lungs burned and begged her to slow down. She had to escape. It was now or never. She slipped, falling down. 'Goddamnit get up Signe!' The young girl screamed at herself before getting up and dashing by the various buildings. The screeching alarms blared through her ears, the bright spotlights blinding her as she tried to avoid them. She focused, using her remote vision to look for anyone that might hurt her. She saw a man slightly up ahead, she quickly used the gun she stole to shoot him in the leg, hopefully it wasn't fatal. She couldn't use dark matter, she didn't want to wear herself out before she could get out. She saw a fence, this was her chance. Signe mentally high fived herself before making a small portal to the other side, escaping the compound. She ran into the woods, far enough so no one would catch her. Once she got out she practically screamed, jumping up and down, tears of joy came to her eyes. She sat down on the dewy grass, leaning back to look at the beautiful night sky. She closed her eyes, her mind slowly unraveling into deep thought.

It was a normal day. Signe smiled at her father, his lab coat brushing against her hand. It was normal for her father to let her be the test subject for his inventions. She loved to do it, it made her feel special. Her father saw it as a way to save money. He thought he had finished his project. A portal, something to help human travel between dimensions. She let go of his hand, stepping through the portal. She screamed, the things she saw scarring her. She couldn't breathe, her father pulled her back out but the damage was done. She screamed, her eyes turning pitch black and a blast of energy going off around her. She broke all of her father's inventions. He was furious, but intrigued at the possibilities with her. He called his contacts and before Signe could bat an eye, her things were packed and she was sent with strange men. They were known as the Black Leafs. They hated good and everything it stood for. Her father sold her to them. That's why Signe would forever hate him. She was very young at the time, she had just turned 14 when the incident occurred. The Black Leafs trained her to fight, to shoot, and to have their same beliefs. For a while she did. She believed that society was horrible, the world was broken, and the only way to stop good was with evil. She had a mentor to train her with her powers. In only a few years she had become a better fighter than most of the group excluding her mentor. She continued with their views until one day she just realized it was wrong. It hit her like a ton of bricks when she thought about it, perhaps she was too naive to understand the true way of the world. Signe planned, and then when she had the chance she ran. And now here she was. In the middle of the forest, while it was freezing cold, and no idea how the hell to get home.

Signe opened her eyes, her head repeating the past few years over and over through her head. She pursed her lips. "I have to make up for everything I've done." She said to herself with a smile. It was then she decided to be Jupiter, a hero. She made her way back home, to her mother who was told she had died. Her mother of course was overjoyed, she hadn't seen her child in years. She informed her that her father had went missing and that he told everyone Signe had died in a lab accident. Signe spoke out about what really happened, that she wasn't an imposter. Her mum of course was skeptical of her being a hero, but went along with it. Jupiter soon emerged, saving citizens and stopping crime. She was one of the few heroes hailing from Canada, and felt honored when American Liberty invited her to join the Heroes Union. So she left Canada and all the memories that haunted her and traveled to New York, excited for a new start and a new story.

Nothings gone forever, only out of place #Task 002 So we’ve been going for nearly a month now and I’m so happy that this group is so successful so far! I have a special task for you all (those who want to partake!) So that task is to delve in something significant that happened to your character in the past. This can be done as an interaction with another player, or it can be covered as a self paragraph, if not you can even do something creative with pictures if that suits you. THIS IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO BOND WITH OTHER PLAYERS AND CREATE CONNECTIONS! This isn’t a mandatory task, but it could be alot of fun and when you’re done make sure that you tag them on bemyhero.task002 Have fun!