Fire, fire.

[ceoqueen]

who. Anyone and everyone.
what. Fire. Varren. Pyjaks. Varren and pyjaks on fire. Everything on fire.
where. Zeta District.
when. Effective immediately.
warnings. Did we mention fire?

Needless to say, the station has been through some shit in the past week.

First, the water supplies went offline. Then, there was a pyjak infestation. Then, some well-meaning vorcha let loose a bunch of varren to take care of the pyjak problem.

Now, they're setting fire to the surrounding areas to take care of the varren.

The fire has started at one end of the living area and is very swiftly making its way through the district - but lo and behold, finally, the water comes back on! Now, this doesn't mean that everything is fine and dandy all of a sudden. Given the severe lack of engineers working on this problem, the fire can't be put out in its entirety, and will end up spreading far enough to render some of the buildings in the area uninhabitable. There will still be a scant few varren and space monkeys meandering about, but mostly, it's time to worry about not getting burned alive.

How your characters make it through is up to you.

Consider this post the end of the event - and use it as you like to to expand on any threads and CR you might have started. (Also, feel free to backtag as long as you want! We don't mind any of that 'round here.)

Comments

[bearerofhope]

This was Haruto's time to shine. Not that anyone could tell it was him.

Haruto had the fire brought to his attention by Garuda, the small red mechanical bird that had become his best source of information over the past few weeks. As soon as he had heard about it, he moved into action, thankful that he had a way he could finally help others, despite how horrible the situation was. The worst part about this was that it was in a residential district, which meant a high chance for casualties. People had to be evacuated, but it was more important to focus on putting the fire out and containing it. He wasn't sure anyone else would be capable of doing that, with the water out.

It almost upset him, how he'd been unfortunate enough to bring every form with him but Water or Water Dragon.

Anyone in the vicinity would hear a loud voice every now and then as Haruto transformed and then switched through forms and powers to work on containing the fire. He ran from one point to another as quickly as he could, doing his best to not let the pull of his Phantom bother him. This had to be done. He couldn't slow down. The same process took place at every hall he came to, the voice of his belt as the spells activated clearly audible.

"Land Dragon! Dan den don zu dogon! Dan den dogon!" The yellow and black suit covered his entire body once he transformed.

"Defend, Please!" Large walls of dirt and stone appeared to route the fire to different areas and to contain it from affecting others. As soon as he would contain the fire, he would change forms.

"Hurricane Dragon! Byuu, byuu! Byuu byuu byuu byuu!" This time, it was a green and black suit instead of yellow and black, followed by a barrage of wind cast in the direction of the fire, either through Wizard's motions or the long-range effects of his weapon.

Under normal circumstances, Wizard wouldn't have risked running out of mana so quickly, but people's lives were at stake. He couldn't think so much about himself now.

oh save me, kamen rider

[asteroidbelt]

At the end of the hall, Ryusei made a face as he noticed the commotion.

Wizard? What was that self-called meddling magic-user doing here? The shape of him was slightly different and he'd changed color, too, but it was indubitably the guy who called himself Wizard. If he was here to collect that debt— No, that couldn't be. For one, Ryusei had never owed the flashy gemstone-man anything to begin with.

More to the point, the last and only time Ryusei had encountered Wizard had been when the mage had been offering his services to Gentarou. Maybe he knew where Gentarou was—

Ryusei took a step forward, and failed to notice the flaming varren barreling straight toward him.

[bearerofhope]

Wizard had barely been paying attention to the rest of his surroundings, far too focused on putting up walls and putting out fires. The only time he focused on anything was to see where the next fire was, Garuda flying above and scoping ahead. One spell followed another, his movements never seeming to stop. This was Haruto's mission here -- his dream -- to protect people even when there were no Phantoms. He wouldn't let anything stop him.

It was only once Wizard had finished putting out another fire that he turned around, catching sight of the boy at the end of the hallway. Of course, he didn't recognize the other at all, having only met Meteor and Fourze in their transformed states.

There was an enemy approaching.

"Hey! Watch out!" Wizard raised his gun and fired a few shots in Ryusei's direction, curving the bullets to move around the other's body and hit the varren. As soon as the shots were fired and the animal recoiled, Wizard took advantage of the opening to change his magic ring, activating the spell.

"Very nice! Thunder! Fantastic!"

Thankfully, Dragon was still very much a presence within Wizard since his arrival on Omega. The green lightning took the form of a dragon, zooming down the hallway ahead of Wizard to knock the varren back, easily finishing it off. It didn't feel like there was much time to relax, unfortunately. Wizard made his way down to the part of the hallway Ryusei was at, letting out a breath and reaching for him.

"Come on. You have to get somewhere safe."

[asteroidbelt]

Ryusei stepped away, looking down at the floor to hide his expression. He'd been less wary than he should be. He should have known better; his senses should have been more alert—

He forced himself to take a deep breath. "Th-thank you," he said, a fake apologetic smile almost making its way onto his face. He let it drop naturally a scant moment later. "I'll be fine from here."

It was the smoke that had dulled his perceptions. No, that was a weak excuse. "Uh, wait," he said hastily. "Have you seen anyone else come through this hallway? This tall," he gestured. "Brown hair, holding a black case...?"

[bearerofhope]

With the way Ryusei was speaking, there really was no way he would ever think to connect the other to one of the Riders he'd met before. At least with Gentarou, the personality would have been a dead giveaway. Shouldering his swordgun, Wizard shook his head at the other.

"No. I haven't seen anyone since I've been here. I've been working through the worst parts of the fire, but I think everyone's already evacuated from there. Just make sure to keep people moving if you see anyone. Everything down here should be clear now."

Above him, Garuda let out a screech, before zipping down and trying to draw Wizard's attention. Wizard turned his head to look at him, then back to Ryusei. "If you need a guide, I can send him with you."

[asteroidbelt]

Ryusei was on the verge of saying there was no need, but the red bird drew his attention. He'd seen that bird before, and with it... Wizard's possible identity. Not that it mattered right this moment. "I can—I know the layout of..."

No, that wording was too suspicious. He no longer had to keep Meteor a secret, but he had another secret now.

"I know the way." With a last glance at Wizard and that bird, Ryusei turned to run down the next hall.

[bearerofhope]

Keeping his identity a secret had never been a focus of Wizard's. Any time he'd transformed, he'd done it because he had to without any concern of people seeing it. Why would it matter? What reason would he have to hide it? Keeping secrets like that would take too much effort and he couldn't afford any distractions.

"Be careful, okay?" Only then did Wizard seem to notice something off about the other. Maybe they had met before, because the harsh tone Ryusei was using sounded familiar. Unfortunately, Wizard couldn't quite place it just yet. He'd encountered too many people since arriving to remember someone or judge them just on their voice.

Fighting with himself internally, Wizard wondered if he should have been sending Garuda after Ryusei, but he settled for choosing against it. He couldn't afford any risks with anything happening to his recon device and there were still fires to put out.

Wizard turned his attention back to the bird, giving it a short wave. "Come on. Let's go. Lead the way."

hope this is okay?

[cosmosic]

Ino had never wanted to know water jutsu so much in her life.

Shintenshin had always worked fine for her; she was proud of the technique because it was unique to her clan and her clan only. Not many shinobi could say they could control another person's mind by their will. Besides, there had never been reason to use water jutsu while there were other ninja that could.

This week? There was nothing she wanted more than a mere droplet. At first she had wanted it because of the desire to take a shower, now it was for far more noble reasons. A fire raged out of control and there wasn't much she could do other than evacuate and save civilians.

But if she had a water jutsu...

She wished she could take back everything bad she said about the vogons, no matter how annoying they were. At least they didn't set fire to buildings. She would take all the paperwork they could throw at her, everything in the world if it meant these people could be safe and the station wasn't overrun with weird-looking beasts because of some vorcha.

Haruto's wind shot down Ino's hall and the people she was attempting to lead to safety shouted and cowered from the huge blast. Ino shielded her eyes and squinted in the direction it came from. Wind jutsu? She wondered -- the only people she knew that could perform wind was Naruto and...

Her sensei.

There was no time to think about what if's because Ino heard a cry behind her. She whipped around quickly as the others scrambled toward Haruto, and spotted a young boy that lagged behind. Although Haruto had a good idea, the wind he had sent in their direction had just caused the inferno to swirl behind them and scare a young boy to his knees.

Without another thought, she began to bolt down the hall toward the crying boy and the tornado of fire. She was at least thirty feet away and could just scoop up the boy and escape again.

Things never go as planned, do they?

A large piece of flaming debris was falling towards the frozen boy and he wasn't going to move. Ino pushed her body harder, to move faster, and then dove the rest of the distance. She clutched the boy to her chest and slid out of the way so the object could hit the ground with a bang. The place where the boy had just been a second ago. Ino cried out.

Instead of the boy, her leg was pinned underneath.

[bearerofhope]

The group of people Ino had been leading along was the first civilians Wizard had seen while running through the halls of Zeta District. As soon as he heard the cries in response to his attack, Wizard abruptly stopped. When the group of people ran past him, Haruto stepped aside. Everything behind him had already been put out, unless someone had started something new. The escape path was clear.

"Garu-chan!" Wizard yelled to the small, red mechanical bird, which promptly zoomed down the hallway and trailed after the group of people. It made sure to fly ahead of them, circling around in the air in front of them until they noticed him, before he led them through the path Wizard had cleared. Having a familiar really was a very useful ability, especially in a place like this.

When he turned his attention back down the hall to the area he'd been trying to clear, Wizard heard the rubble fall before he saw what had happened, his body moving before he consciously realized what was going on. He knew he should have been prepared for something like this. He should have been paying more attention to his surroundings. The worst thing for him was seeing people in danger, especially when it was something he could help prevent.

The belt's voice sounded again as Wizard switched back to Land Dragon, switching out his Magic Ring to recast a spell behind the pair. "Defend, Please!" A large dirt wall went up between them and the fire, sealing the flames behind it. When he reached them, Wizard had already switched his ring again, but he waited to cast the spell until he was at Ino's side.

He could only imagine how strange he looked to someone who wasn't from his world, though even people from his world rarely encountered a Wizard. He offered his free hand to her to let her clasp it. "Brace yourself. This might hurt a little bit, but it'll be over quick, okay?" No matter how he looked or how bad the situation was, Wizard always put helping others as his priority. Being comforting was something he liked to think he was good at.

[cosmosic]

The warmth in her arms was wriggling uncomfortably when Ino finally pried her eyes open. Thank goodness the boy was fine, save for some cuts and probably a bruise from how rough she had to be to get him out of the way. It was nothing compared to what could have happened.

What did happen to her leg. She winced and furrowed her brow, craned her neck down to see how badly it was.

Someone else was calling out though and she looked up in surprise at the wall that surrounded -- protected? -- them. Her leg sent a flash of pain through her body and she ground her teeth in pain, grunted to hold back the cry of pain. She hadn't been as lucky as the boy but she could she was still alive.

The new body made Ino weary but he only seemed to want to help and she wasn't in a situation where she could be picky about who was or wasn't around. Not to mention his strange outfit, even more strange than some of the things she saw the aliens wearing around the station. It took a moment before she placed her hands in his, cautiously and still holding the boy with her other arm, her arms her own protective and impenetrable wall.

His answer was a firm nod and she tightened her grip on his hand and the boy to prepare herself. "It can't hurt any more than it already does," her voice is strained with pain. "I can handle it." Though it was clear she was more focused on the young, innocent boy in her arms.

[bearerofhope]

Wizard smiled slightly behind his helmet. This girl was tough. She reminded him a bit of Rinko with how determined she was, still working to protect the boy that she had seemed to save. While giving her hand a comforting squeeze, Wizard switched out his ring and put it over the front of his belt, the same voice as before ringing out.

"Gravity, Please!" The debris was suddenly lifted up by a few feet by a yellow magic circle, Wizard moving his hand and the debris following the movement until he dropped it back down on the other side of the hallway. While he had been left with so few abilities upon arriving on Omega, it was good to know that he could still use what he had left to help out.

By now, Garuda had returned to his side, the red bird flapping his wings and circling around behind Wizard, waiting on its next orders.

"Do you think you can stand? I can carry you if you need it."

[cosmosic]

Her leg was throbbing but there were more important things to worry about. First, she had to get this boy back to his parent or guardian. He was still crying in her arms and the sound made her furrow her brow. His home was probably back there, now engulfed in flames and unable to be occupied until it died down. Whatever belongings they had would be turned to ash.

This place was horrible. Worse than Thor.

Second, was the power this stranger possessed. She wanted to say it was like her own world's but knew that probably wasn't the case. People here had all sorts of powers so it's not unusual he would be able to control certain elements.

Her stranger savior broke her out of her thoughts and she glanced up. Could she trust someone that wore a helmet like that? Even if he had helped them and was obviously doing what he could about the fire. "I'm...okay," she wasn't sure if her pride would allow her to be carried around. On the other hand--

"But he's not."

Pained eyes (for the damage done to homes and families as well as her own leg) looked down to traumatized boy. She couldn't carry him with her leg like this so she shot her gaze back to Haruto. There's an unsaid fierceness in her eyes. If he tried anything other than helping them...

"Could you carry him?"

[bearerofhope]

This girl definitely reminded him of Rinko -- especially with the look that she was giving him. Wizard reluctantly released his hold on her hand and moved back, switching out the ring on his other hand from yellow to red, then putting his hands to his belt and shifting it so the symbol tilted to the other side. With a quick pass of the ring, he was intent on shifting back to his base form for the time being. Mana conservation was only now something he had started to think about again. There was a lot more work to do, plus Flame Style had offensive powers he could use if they ran into any trouble.

With the quick pass of a red magic circle, Wizard's form had changed considerably from one to another. He reached for the boy even before his transformation was complete, shifting his position to scoop up the small boy and carry him in his arms. It was strange to be working with someone so young. It reminded him a bit of himself, really. That was an uncomfortable pain he didn't want to think about. Hopefully, this child's parents were still alive. No child deserved to go through something like that.

Standing back up, Wizard cradled the boy against his chest, propping him up with one arm, while holding his free hand out to the girl. "Everything will be fine. I'll take care of you."

[sucking]

Lydia is mostly wondering who the hell put these people in charge of getting rid of infestations? The methods that she's seen put into place seem barely workable as a permanent solution and each time someone introduces another creature into the environment there ends up with even more problems than before. Honestly, have they never heard of the old woman who swallowed a fly? If they aren't even aware of the important lesson that can be learned at age five she really has no clue what sort of survival these people can look forward to.

Then there were fires. Lydia is really starting to resent this place for bringing her. There are fires and a lack of water and somehow this is all meant to be fixed by -- who exactly?

She's trying to just get from point a to point b, except she stops to watch someone... okay so she has no idea how to classify what is going on, but there's definite breaking of the rules of physics as he seems to pull things from the middle of the air and the entire thing is reminiscent of those commercials for video games... maybe even those Power Ranger toys.

She tries to stay out of the way, but when she sees that the water is back she realizes that this could actually mean an end to this whole debacle. She does know to stay out of the way until things seem better to move through this area.

[bearerofhope]

By this point, Wizard had nearly made it from one end of Zeta District to another. He'd cleared out any creatures in his path, the varren serving as more and more of a problem as he went on. It was as though word had spread that he was thinning their numbers and their reinforcements had started trailing him. Having Garuda flying overhead was helpful, since the small mechanical bird could alert him whenever an enemy was near or there was more fire to be put out.

Despite looking like a superhero, it was clear that Wizard was faltering in his steps now. Running around so much was starting to cause him physical exhaustion and the pull in his chest was the sign that he was starting to run low on mana. Whenever he pushed himself too far, too fast, he could feel Dragon stirring. His magic powers came from keeping that creature buried inside of him, but every use of magic pushed him further and further, closer to Dragon being able to take advantage of his weakness.

Still, Wizard couldn't allow himself to stop. There were people who need to be saved and he doubted any of the other Riders were there. By now, he had slipped back to his default Flame Style, resting the tip of his sword against the floor as he tried to keep his balance. Almost there... Almost there...

There was another civilian in his line of sight, Wizard lifting the sword-gun once more to sling it over his shoulder as he approached her. His voice sounded as worn as he looked. "Come on, miss. You should get out of here."

[sucking]

Being stunned would be a simple way to explain how Lydia felt watching everything. It was definitely not what she had expected when she exited and tried to return to somewhere safe. Shaking her head, she didn't mean to instantly argue with the man in the color changing outfit, but she really wasn't sure what was going on.

Space was definitely not what she had assumed it might be. Not that she had ever envisioned herself going to space. Maybe working for NASA as a freelancer. Someone that they called in to solve some horrible problem that no one could figure out.

Pushing those pipe dreams from her head, she stared at the man.

"I should, but ... where exactly should I go?"

[bearerofhope]

"I can have someone escort you to safety." Wizard pointed up to draw her attention to Garuda flying overhead. He was small enough to fit in someone's hands, still circling above Wizard and keeping an eye on their surroundings. "If you don't feel safe, you can stay with me until I find another exit." Wizard doubted that staying with him was a wise choice, but he didn't doubt his abilities to keep other people safe.

The only real problem was the way he was feeling. His head was foggy and that pull in his chest from Dragon didn't seem to be going away any time soon. When he walked, his steps were still slow as he raised his hand to motion Garuda foward. "There shouldn't be much left..."

[sucking]

Lydia frowned, "Are you okay?"

Not that she was an expert on it, but he didn't look like he was doing as well as he was a few moments ago. She glanced up to the thing flying overhead, "What is that?"

water line repair kitaaaa

[mathemagician]

While Kengo was content to keep himself cut off from the rest of Omega when he wasn't working, he'd still agreed to help out with the water line repair when Dun had approached him. As much as he wanted to pretend that he didn't care about anyone else, he couldn't just leave the situation alone. It was the same thought process he'd had during the adjutant attack, when he'd made it his responsibility to broadcast emergency alert messages to anyone who would listen. This time, he wouldn't be available to perform that sort of role. The fire would burn on without his knowledge, with him otherwise occupied.

Keeping his face and identity hidden from everyone was one of Kengo's priorities. No one aside from Dun knew to connect him to his network-self. It was getting too dangerous to draw attention to himself, so he'd taken to hiding his identity on the network behind the layers of encryption he'd learned while working for Ariake Technologies.

This mild paranoia was also the reason that he was now in armor. He'd made a deal with Daisen, his boss, to get the armor at a slightly cheaper rate -- one used primarily by human engineers. Most of the money he'd saved for his research up to this point had been spent acquiring the suit, but it had made for a good investment. Thankfully, it was light enough to not put the strain on his body that he had expected, the helmet keeping his face from view. The gun he'd acquired during the adjutant attack was at his side, though he sincerely hoped he wouldn't have to resort to using it.

Because of his armor of choice, no one in the Talons would see what he looked like, his voice was muffled from his suit, and he'd insisted that no one would know his name. When thinking up a list of names to go by, he'd of course aimed towards space oriented ones -- Selene, Kaguya, Apollo, Soyuz -- but had settled on the one that meant the most to him. It represented the tie to his friends he'd lost and left behind. Hayabusa.

Following the water lines and keeping an eye out for any breaks, Kengo was thankful for the constant uplink he had to the person responsible for repairing the systems and running tech. During the adjutant attack, he'd had to rely on slower communications. It was strange to be on the physical end of things for once, as he had always been the one giving orders to Fourze. He just hoped that his body would hold up in the meantime.

[neverknocks]

York didn't know this Hayabusa guy, whoever he was, but she figured he must've had similar reasons for wanting to fix the damage -- the shortage was affecting everyone, and York, for one, was sick of going without showers. Her hair was getting awful greasy. Besides, now the station was on goddamn fire. They didn't have much of a choice.

With the Talons' help, getting into the central water control wasn't too difficult. Her instructions were pretty simple: figure out what went wrong and fix it. And if she couldn't fix it, well...Omega was probably going to get uncomfortably hot. She tapped into the system with her omni-tool and did a quick survey of the damage. Man, this didn't look good. It was gonna take a while to fix all by herself.

"This is York, checking in. Just got to water control. It's pretty bad in here. How's it lookin' out there?"

[anarrowtotheeye]

And standing next to Hayabusa is Dun, weapons at the ready and on alert. There might be Talon mercenaries around, but as Dun told the one on the network, he doesn't trust any of them to do the job well. The chaos of the adjutant attack with mercenaries blindly shooting at anything that moved had not left a good impression on him and he'd rather not leave Kengo alone with them for protection.

He didn't really get why Kengo wanted to maintain his anonymity by creating this Hayubusa identity, but with what he knew of the kid he could guess that it was for privacy and safety reasons, both of which were good reasons to have in Omega. For some. Dun never liked hiding in the shadows. He prefers a direct and honest approach and while he's had to pay for his callous approach to the mercenaries with broken ribs and a minor concussion in his first month in Omega, Dun can at least keep his head raised high and proud that he's stuck to what he believes in. As a soldier he's used to brute force and pain, but he can't say the same about Kengo. What works for Dun won't work for the skinnier and less fit teenager, so he passes no judging comment and simply accepts Kengo's decision as an odd, but wise one.

None of the other engineers wore helmets but Dun recognized none of them so he had assumed that it was just going to be him and Kengo. Thus it was a surprise, but a somewhat pleasant one, when he heard a familiar voice coming from his omni-tool. He enters the shared communication channel and replies with a slight smile on his face, "Nothing suspicious here just yet. It's good to hear from you again, Lady-I mean, York."

[mathemagician]

Kengo kept his eyes on the water pipes as he walked, a bag slung over his shoulder with the supplies he would need to patch them up. Some technology didn't change too much from his own time, though he'd never bothered to work with anything like this. Astro Switches and cosmic energy and the Fourze system were completely different from actual, physical repair work. Regardless, it was the job he had been given and one he was going to stick to. No one else was going to do it, or it would take twice as long to get around to it. The Talons had mentioned to him how short-handed they were.

The paranoia of keeping his identity a secret was something Kengo knew others might not understand, but he had been feeling like something of a target, ever since acquiring the research data from the scientists he'd run into after the adjutant attack. He'd been hanging on to it for a month now and the sudden rash of murders had reminded him how easily he could be killed for something simple -- let alone something valuable. Kengo also didn't like looking young and inexperienced around everyone in the mercenary group, plus if they ended up turning on him, he had an extra safety precaution in hiding his identity. This really was no place for him to be so open.

At hearing the two speaking to each other, Kengo kept himself quiet for the moment, making sure to check his surroundings every so many steps to make sure no one would sneak up on them. Having Dun around really was invaluable.

ahhh sorry this is late i didn't get the notif :T!!!

[neverknocks]

York finds it odd that the other guy doesn't chime in -- because she knows there is another guy -- but hearing Dun's voice is an actual surprise, and not an unpleasant one. She actually laughs, shaking her head as she navigates the water control system, surveying damage. Admittedly, she's only got half her attention on it at the moment, her other half focused on the conversation.

"Shit, Dun, is that you? I didn't know you volunteered for this too. How's it lookin' out there?"

[anarrowtotheeye]

There are some engineers around, but Dun doesn't consider them a threat. He and York are just having a casual, ordinary conversation; no need for any extra precaution.

"In the flesh. I am no tinkerer, so all these pipes and wires are lost on me. You will have to wait for my companion here to fill you on that."

Dun gives Kengo a friendly thump on the back; he's careful to make sure it's not too hard, but Dun's a strong man and he might've accidentally knocked Kengo a little. Nothing forceful enough to hurt him, but enough to push him a step forward. Dun's spirits just got a good lift though; York seems to be someone he might just get to like. Good skills and a seemingly good heart, she's looking more and more promising as a potential member of the guard.

"But in general, things are quiet on this end. I trust that all is well on your side too."

[calibrating]

The current disasters, regardless of whether or not they were winding down, weighed heavy on Garrus' abilities. Between surviving without water, taking down various vermin (ranging from pyjaks to varren, no less), and dealing with the occasional mercenary, times had been hard. Not even in a relative sense; the shit going down was bad even for Omega.

Now, with the fire, the concept of helplessness really took hold.

He did his best with what he had, directing civilians along safe routes away from the flames, along with coordinating volunteers to fight the fires safely.

If anyone is working in the area, they'll come across a fairly stressed looking turian barking orders to and fro, although he does look willing to speak with anyone who needs him.