Why you gotta be so rude?

[guardiandevil]

Who| Matt & Steve | Matt, Jet, & Albert
What| Exploring post-power outage | Matt's death thread
Where| Just off town square | The Lake
When| During the Hell Arena power outage | Week Four
Warnings/Notes| Character death & violence during the thread w/ Jet & Albert

I. Steve Rogers, Non-Hell Arena

Matt couldn't see the dark, but he could feel the crackle of electricity in the air and sense the tension building up all around him. The air felt so thick, he was sure he was going to be smothered by it. The whole world seemed to catch fire for the briefest of moments before the cresciendo of sound and senses swelled around him and then released. He felt like he should get inside, take cover before lightning struck him dead on the spot. Instead, however, he found himself in an eery place of calm and comfort. The world seemed peaceful, almost serene. He even heard what sounded like crickets chirping. The mist was gone from his lungs and he could almost breathe easy again. But something told him not to relax just yet. They were still deep in the heart of the war zone.

II. Jet & Albert, The Lake

He'd been right about that calm. It was beautiful and righteous, but it was over quickly and it left a strange sense of loss in its wake. Matt was mournful of that fleeting peace. Gone was the chance to start anew. It was back to the murder business now that the fog had rolled back in.

Somehow, he'd found the lake. He didn't dare drink the water, though he'd knelt before it just long enough to splash his face and clean himself up. Four weeks in a dead town and a man started to smell ripe. It got especially bad for him with his enhanced senses and all. His own smell was strong enough that he wasn't paying full attention to his own surroundings. He was a prime target for anyone who might happen along.

Comments

[aboveangrybees]

Steve hadn't seen what caused the power outage, but now it was pitch black and he no way of knowing which direction to go to find his way back to Bucky. No, the darkness left his eyes useless and his hearing his best chance of finding his way anywhere. The silence made it easier to hear if anything was coming his way, but it also made each of his foot falls sound loud to his own ears. Even moving stealthily, he was making a racket.

Well, at least the weather was nice, even if he was lost and pretty damn vulnerable.

"Great," it was deadpan and under his breath, but still seemed loud in the quiet.

[guardiandevil]

He could hear the sounds of footsteps echoing like drums in his ears, but it wasn't until Steve was close enough that he could smell him that Matt finally put two and two together. He could tell that Cap was alone, but he didn't want to catch him off guard. Either way, though, this turn of events was strange enough that he felt it was better to make his presence known than not.

"It isn't so bad, really." Matt answered from the shadows, following the sound of Steve's breathing until he was just about ten feet away from the other man. "In fact, I think I prefer it this way. It's almost peaceful now."

[aboveangrybees]

Steve tenses when the voice comes out of nowhere, he's usually better at noticing people than that, but he does recognize it fast enough. Matt isn't someone he feels the need to fear or be wary of, so he relaxes the tenseness that overcame him. Well, of all the people to find him in the darkness, he kind of feels like being found by Matt is oddly the most amusing.

"Got to give you that, it really is pleasant right now. Guess they can't make us miserable with the power out," Steve turns in the direction he thinks Matt is in, which is pretty accurate.

[guardiandevil]

Matt chuckled under his breath as he continued in his approach. He could tell that Steve was relaxing, and it encouraged him. He could use a few allies, and Captain America (even one from an alternate universe) would make one helluva good one.

"And thank God for that," he added, at last close enough for Steve to see him. "All they've managed to do is piss me off so far." His expression was pained, but tough to see in the dark. "How've you been fairing?"

[aboveangrybees]

The pained expression reminds him that this man said he was an old friend of Natasha's, that maybe despite the blindness, he was able to find out she had passed? Or maybe he didn't know yet and that expression was for something else. Maybe the darkness is making him misread it.

Either way, maybe he should tell him of Natasha's passing. He'll hold off for now though.

"I'm in one piece," that says enough for him. He's doing way better than he assumed he would, but he's also lost two people - it's not easy, it makes him feel like he's failed them. "Seems good enough for the situation."

[guardiandevil]

"It's about as much as we can hope for," he agreed, thinking of the people he'd encountered in the amusement park. Some of them had been much worse for wear, and Matt was counting his blessings that he'd managed to get out of that maze of broken down madness alive. "Any idea what caused the shortage?"

[aboveangrybees]

"No, didn't catch sight of it, but with how it was starting to get hot like that? Probably someone's powers came back and they shorted it out," Steve just hopes they're alive or at least not going to get into a world of trouble, but he has doubts about both. "Last time a guy crashed into the top of it, the dome, didn't do much other than mess him up."

He wonders if this was Jet's doing again.

[guardiandevil]

Matt wondered briefly if most everyone here had powers, then caught himself worrying about losing his radar. Did the Capitol even realize he had it? Would they have found a way to disable it if they had? He was already at a disadvantage from the fog. His stomach tightened when he realized just how lucky he really was.

"It'd almost be better for him if it'd killed him instead. I'd hate to be caught weak and bleeding in this place. If the other Tributes don't get you, then those dogs might." A grim thought, indeed.

[aboveangrybees]

"Well, lucky for that one, I got to him first, patched up and on his feet before dogs or unfriendlies arrived. Haven't seen his face in the sky, so," he leaves it there, plainly implying that the guy is doing fine even after he got so messed up. But he also doesn't seem to be taking credit for it by the tone of his voice.

"Can't say this one is as lucky though," Steve feels like maybe he should go out and find the person, protect them, help them, but he knows it's too far gone from him now. He'd never make it there in time and he has no idea where to go.

[guardiandevil]

"No, probably not." Matt shook his head, tilting his head again to listen to the night unfolding around them. "Those little sweeper robots will find him before we can. But at the very least, we can say a prayer." Whoever he was, he'd sacrificed himself and given them all this singular moment of peace. For that, Matt was grateful.

[aboveangrybees]

Steve's eyebrows go up when Matt offers the prayer, it's the first time someone has really said anything like that since he arrived and it's nice. His faith is always strong but personally his, so he rarely if ever talks about it. Still, it's a nice token.

"You're right," with that, he offers a silent prayer for the man, letting the moment settle. He hopes the man's bravery doesn't end poorly for him. He breaks the silence when he realizes he never asked Matt in return about his well being. "How have you been holding up?"

[guardiandevil]

"If I said this place was a cake walk, I'd be lying." His lips formed a thin line, like he was trying to keep his expression as neutral as he could, like he didn't want to quite give everything away. "Natasha died in my arms the other day. It was... not something I ever wanted to have happen."

It wasn't an unfamiliar event in his life, was the thing. He'd had a few women die in his arms, and it'd always been a truly devastating event. To have it be her, though... She was the strongest person he could think of. If anyone had fight in them enough to stave off death, it was Natasha.

"I don't think I've ever felt so helpless in my life."

[aboveangrybees]

That- Steve has never had anyone die in his arms. Die in front of him, slip from his fingers, yeah, but to have them die in your arms, that's a hell of a thing. He doesn't envy Matt for the experience at all.

"I'm real sorry to hear that," he means it. That hopeless feeling aches and spreads, it's one of the worst Steve's felt. "I'm sure having you there brought her some comfort."

She probably was going to hate it later, being that weak in front of someone, but in the moment, dying alone is- He doubts anyone wants to die alone.

[silberfuchs]

Despite the gnawing in the pit of his stomach, Albert similarly feels the need for some kind of ablution. He's caked with the dried blood of those dogs, dirt, mud, sweat, and his own blood too. The lake is a new destination though, and so caution is paramount. He sticks to what little tree-line there is before approaching, communicating to his partner in practiced hand gestures to circle around to the right, to flank.

They spotted the figure at the lake readily, as it turns out. What little light filters in is reflected back by the dark water, creating an eerie glow in the fog and a clear silhouette of the man kneeling by the shore.

If this were some other place or time, or even simply some other arena, the two former cyborgs may have been content to leave the man alone, but right then and there, with their brains buzzing with aggression from eating far too much of the native cuisine, the man is only a potential threat. A target.

Albert waits for Jet to get into position, hands clenched around his shovel with the sharpened edge.

[metalicarus]

The only sign Jet saw the direction Albert gave was to follow it and move in from the right, metal pipe raised and ready to fly. His knife was tucked into his sleeve, available if he needed, but out of sight so it couldn't be snatched from him.

They had to eliminate this threat if they were going to protect each other. He was probably waiting there for them, planning on gutting one or the other of them as soon as they got close. Jet wouldn't let him. One guy had been the cause of both of their deaths before and he wasn't going to let that happen again.

He crept closer, keeping pace and silence with his partner.

[guardiandevil]

Matt didn't hear them at first, distracted by the sound of the water splashing over his face. He was just beginning to calm down, just thinking that he might be safe when he caught a scent on the wind. Mud. Blood. Sweat. More blood. Startled, he rose to his feet, but by then it was too late. He couldn't quite pinpoint their locations, and with the fog moving around him, he couldn't tell which direction to listen to. In other words, Matt Murdock was about to get ambushed.

[silberfuchs]

Their target stands suddenly, alert to their presence, but they're already too close.

Albert darts forward, swinging his shovel like an axe with the sharpened edge toward the man's shoulder. It's not sharp enough to sever but if the blow lands, given Albert's strength and the angle, it will leave a nasty, jagged gash.