The X-men run missions and work together with the NYPD, striving to maintain a peaceful balance between humans and mutants. When it comes to a fight, they won't back down from protecting those who need their help.
Haven presents itself as a humanitarian organization for activists, leaders, and high society, yet mutants are the secret leaders working to protect and serve their kind. Behind the scenes they bring their goals into reality.
From the time when mutants became known to the world, SUPER was founded as a black-ops division of the CIA in an attempt to classify, observe, and learn more about this new and rising threat.
The Syndicate works to help bring mutantkind to the forefront of the world. They work from the shadows, a beacon of hope for mutants, but a bane to mankind. With their guiding hand, humanity will finally find extinction.
Since the existence of mutants was first revealed in the nineties, the world has become a changed place. Whether they're genetic misfits or the next stage in humanity's evolution, there's no denying their growing numbers, especially in hubs like New York City. The NYPD has a division devoted to mutant related crimes. Super-powered vigilantes help to maintain the peace. Those who style themselves as Homo Superior work to tear society apart for rebuilding in their own image.
MRO is an intermediate to advanced writing level original character, original plot X-Men RPG. We've been open and active since October of 2005. You can play as a mutant, human, or Adapted— one of the rare humans who nullify mutant powers by their very existence. Goodies, baddies, and neutrals are all welcome.
Short Term Plots:Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
The Fountain of Youth
A chemical serum has been released that's shaving a few years off of the population. In some cases, found to be temporary, and in others...?
MRO MOVES WITH CURRENT TIME: What month and year it is now in real life, it's the same for MRO, too.
Fuegogrande: "Fuegogrande" player of The Ranger, Ion, Rhia, and Null
Neopolitan: "Aly" player of Rebecca Grey, Stephanie Graves, Marisol Cervantes, Vanessa Bookman, Chrysanthemum Van Hart, Sabine Sang, Eupraxia
Ongoing Plots
Magic and Mystics
After the events of the 2020 Harvest Moon and the following Winter Solstice, magic has started manifesting in the MROvere! With the efforts of the Welldrinker Cult, people are being converted into Mystics, a species of people genetically disposed to be great conduits for magical energy.
The Welldrinker Cult
A shadowy group is gaining power, drawing in people who are curious, vulnerable, or malicious, and turning them into Mystics. They are recruiting people into their ranks to spread the influence of magic in the world, but for what end goal?
Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
Adapteds
What if the human race began to adapt to the mutant threat? What if the human race changed ever so subtly... without the x-gene.
Atlanteans
The lost city of Atlantis has been found! Refugees from this undersea mutant dystopia have started to filter in to New York as citizens and businessfolk. You may make one as a player character of run into one on the street.
Got a plot in mind?
MRO plots are player-created the Mods facilitate and organize the big ones, but we get the ideas from you. Do you have a plot in mind, and want to know whether it needs Mod approval? Check out our plot guidelines.
Posted by Hercules on Mar 21, 2022 14:35:49 GMT -6
Mystic
422
10
May 4, 2024 6:46:59 GMT -6
”The wrong information concerning magic is more dangerous than not knowing anything.” speaking truthfully as they continued on to the park. ”I shall teach you what I know, no more. No less. You are far too important to be misled with false information.”
It wasn’t his power that called the hound from hell but rather his master, the boy William. Hercules made sure to draw less power from William and more from Serena and the others. They could handle a little more channeling so William wouldn’t be too drained. Why else did he collect other masters if not for this purpose. ”If you wish it, William has instructed the beast to follow my command when he isn’t around. Besting it won’t be an issue however William might complain if the creature is injured in the event it becomes unruly.”
Once they crossed the street they were into the park and Hercules walked to a nearby tree, tall leaning away from the afternoon sun which caused more shade there than anywhere else in sight. Hercules closed his eyes as he approached and crouched (the hound typically was massive but the smaller it got the less power it pulled from WIlliam so he was expecting a smaller dog. ”Come beast!” Hercules commanded knowing unless William said otherwise the beast was contracted to obey Hercules in the event of his master missing.
There was silence at first under the canopy of shade before he felt the presence of the beast. His hairs rose on his neck, a feeling he got when there was danger. While there was no other dog other than Zorro nearby the sound of barking far off into the distance could be heard all around them. The ‘call of hound’ some would know it by, often in stories as impending doom to those who hear it. Hercules now knew the call well. Two glowing red spots in the shadow of the tree appeared dimly at first then got larger and brighter as a few seconds passed as if there was hidden room behind the tree.
”I must warn you he can be.... ‘overwhelming,’” Hercules didn’t move from his crouched position but rather held his other hand up to bar a path from both parties should anything trigger the other, ”Stand behind me till the beast is calm. This is the first time William has sent it to me.”
The eyes started to move out from the shadow with a steps from paws that could not be seen till the creature exited the shadow. It was the size of a mastiff now and twice as wide, muscles rippled from under the jet-black fur that almost absorbed all the surrounding light. The glowing eyes dimmed as the creature took shape and slowly approached the son of Zeus still not sure how to feel about him.
”Elizabeth, Zorro, meet Shadow...” it was a girl hell hound from what he could tell and far more docile than the mother that birthed it. If it was a ‘true’ hellhound that is. Hercules was still questioning it’s lineage.
”Shadow... these are the young master’s friends.” Hercules said calmly looking to the beast still unsure what it would do once it was so far from William.
Posted by Liz Sundance on Mar 22, 2022 19:26:42 GMT -6
X-Men
Metazoa
Chartreuse
Straight
949
9
Apr 12, 2024 15:17:35 GMT -6
Zek
The park wasn’t very full, fortunately. The cold air seemed to be doing an exquisite job of keeping people indoors or busy bustling along from one play to another. Nobody wanted to stop and smell the flowers because all the flowers had died off months beforehand. In other words, it wasn’t as difficult as usual to find a good spot without other people around. Elizabeth wasn’t precisely experienced in testing out powers in people, and so she didn’t have an intuitive understanding of what made a good practice ground, but she was good at running experiments. You always wanted a place you could control with as few variables (such as people) around to muck up the results.
“I just want to make sure that you’re not accidentally summoning an uncontrollable monster to the middle of a public park,” Liz said simply as she imbibed more of the delicious sweetness of her hot chocolate. She’d never hear the end of it from Sam. Or Carrick, if he ever found out. She absolutely did not need that in her life.
The woman and the dog came to a halt as Hercules did, but silently backpedaled on his suggestion. Elizabeth maneuvered so she was a bit out to the side, enabling her to see everything clearly…even if she had no idea what she was supposed to be seeing. That’s when she remembered she actually didn’t know what it entailed to summon a hellhound. And then she realized she was about to see magic.
Magic.
The mutant smiled and her mind linked with her faithful friend’s, sharing her joy with him and listening and smelling through him to pick up as much data as she could.
There wasn’t much to detect though. No ritual, no lengthy incantation, no waving of wands or contemporary dances. Magic was disappointing.
Or so it seemed at first.
The moment Zorro’s keen ears picked up the barking, his head narrowed on to its source. Liz looked in the same direction and soon she watched a massive dog appear from the shadows.
Elizabeth smiled wider and reached out with her mind to touch the dog and….nothing. She felt nothing. Her smile didn’t falter, although it got a bit sad. Well, she expected as much. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Shadow,” Liz said, slowly approaching with Zorro in tow. His mind, at least, she could sense and manipulate. She kept a careful monitor on him, just in case.
She stopped a couple of paces behind Hercules, just in case, and shifted her stance and gaze. This wasn’t the first time she’d encountered creatures she couldn’t detect, so she instead had to fall back on pure knowledge of behavior patterns, including threat displays and danger signaling. In this case, she wanted to avoid both. She was a friend.
“She’s gorgeous!” Liz said, holding out her hand slowly, allowing Shadow all the time in the world to catch her scent and learn about her. “She’s a construct, correct? And….is she a molosser?” Liz asked as she surveyed the beautiful beast. Zorro stayed at her side, infected by his owner’s curiosity but also maintaining an instinctual guard pose by her. He was used to a lot of strange situations and this creature was also strange. Those smells!
While the Prince of Power was not as adept at reading animals as well as Elizabeth could he had centuries of experience fighting and interacting with beasts such as this meaning he too was watching for any sign of aggression. Just because Hercules had met the creature before doesn’t mean they are on friendly terms. They just had the same goal in mind, the safety of their shared master.
Taking a chance and glancing back at Elizabeth to gauge her reaction he couldn’t help but smile himself, she seemed excited. She truly was an interesting mortal. Most mortals knew the black dog would spell death and doom upon them. She either wasn’t superstitious or she was unaware of all the things Shadow was capable of. Hopefully she’d never find out.
”Aye.” Hercules nodded in response, she was ascetically pleasing of that Hercules had no doubt but what lay behind her fur and form was a mind Hercules was unfamiliar with. ”The same way I am a construct, yes.” he said not sure if he liked that description of it. Shadow seemed indifferent, smelling the air. Elizabeth and Zorro should have been familiar scents the amount of time Hercules spent with the two. Hopefully that would make her less skittish.
Shadow responded in a way Hercules never thought she would and sat down tail wagging behind her kicking up any debris behind her. ”Well... that was... unexpected.” Hercules said frowning and then standing up. Maybe he over reacted? ”I saw her headbutt a car flipping it in the process.” he also had witnessed Shadow mauling several people who kidnapped William and Sveta. Maybe she was docile?
”I know not what breed she is, I just know what she is.” Hercules stood up and walked forward to place a massive hand on the hellhounds skull to pet it. ”Well...” Hercules cleared his throat, ”I might have over reacted.”
Posted by Liz Sundance on Mar 24, 2022 20:12:55 GMT -6
X-Men
Metazoa
Chartreuse
Straight
949
9
Apr 12, 2024 15:17:35 GMT -6
Zek
To say Liz was excited was to say the sky was blue. Accurate, but woefully simplistic. Meeting a new dog was a joyous occasion in and of itself. Meeting a dog from an ancient bloodline, one that was extinct, was a time to be celebrated. Encountering a dog straight from the pages of myth and folklore? Elizabeth’s face was starting to hurt from how big her smile was.
She dropped the leash and all pretense of needing it to control Zorro. He was better than that. He also wasn’t too impressed with the newcomer. Something about her smelled weird. Like the underside of Carrick’s bed. If darkness had a smell, that’s what he smelled. Although at least she didn’t also smell like mummified shoes and decayed pizza boxes and that persistent smell of sulfur.
“Hmmm,” Liz said a bit distractedly and she slowly moved closer to the huge dog. “Are you sure?” she asked Hercules. “Not saying you’re wrong, I’m just trying to figure some stuff out. I thought you were born the old fashioned way and then only later were cursed to be a summoned servant. But you started out real, yes?” She kept moving toward Shadow, slowly but surely, not out of fear but out of control.
She was close to Hercules now. “I don’t think Shadow did,” she said. “I could sense her if she was. Like I can’t detect shapeshifters or mutants who generate animals - they’re not…real. Artificial, I should say. Although even that sounds bad.” Liz frowned for just a fleeting moment then shrugged. “Ah well, maybe I just can’t detect hellhounds. Who knows?”
With all signs pointing to a very happy and peaceful dog, Liz crouched in front of the dog, her hand right in front of Shadow’s nose and the other reaching up to scratch her neck. Her hot chocolate was left on the ground. “She headbutted a car? Amazing!” Liz said in admiration as she ruffled the girl’s fur. “Think she could teach Zorro how to do that? Would make it easier to find parking in this city.” Zorro happened to sneeze at that moment.
”I did, and am. Just because I am a summon now does not mean that I am not real.” the god said calmly, all too familiar with this conversation topic. Not just from Elizabeth but others as well, from all the ages he had lived through. It was silly to get upset about it now. ”Can she not be the same? Just because she was not born on this plane does not mean she is just a construct.”
Hercules continued, ”She still feels, joy and pain. Just like I. We just have the ability to be called to other planes of existence, and serve those who call on us.” he stopped and recalled something that he thought was relevant to the topic, ”I feel therefore I am.” to him it seemed important. To Elizabeth? Well that could have been a different story.
”It almost sounds like you don’t think I’m real now.” Hercules chuckled feeling a little pain from the comment. ”Just because you can’t communicate with them doesn’t mean they are artificial.” Hercules said crouching down getting into the face of the large spawn of Cerberus (so he thought). ”I still can’t speak Chinese despite living there for a century. Doesn’t mean the people are any less real. There are other simpler ways to communicate.”
”You can sense animals, because you understand them. Does that make any interaction with those who you cannot sense any less real?” he questioned. Not that he was saying that Shadow was anything more than a summon but it was a subject that hit close to home. As if he was trying to justify he was real. Not just a summon who didn’t exist.
”William can detect and feel Shadow.” Hercules said standing up and stepping out of the way so Elizabeth could interact with Shadow more.
She was joking. Hercules chuckled, ”He might be able to learn however, Zorro’s neck probably couldn’t support the weight of a vehicle.” Hercules flexed, ”Why you have me right?” he flexed, ”While I might not be a Hell Hound I am more than capable of lifting a car out of the way for you.” Hercules chuckled more puffing out his chest.
Posted by Liz Sundance on Mar 29, 2022 21:03:23 GMT -6
X-Men
Metazoa
Chartreuse
Straight
949
9
Apr 12, 2024 15:17:35 GMT -6
Zek
Elizabeth shook her head, causing her wavy hair to cascade back and forth over her shoulders. “Like I said, it was a bad choice of words,” she acknowledged as she stared into Shadow’s eyes. “Artificial isn’t that great either, due to the connotations typically associated with it. But yes, you and Shadow are both real, that’s very obvious.” Otherwise, it would require a powerful illusion or hallucination to trick both her senses and Zorro’s.
She closed her eyes as Zorro came up beside her. “No, no, I think you’re misunderstanding what I’m trying to say,” she explained, scrabbling to find another way to word it. “Or I’m misspeaking. I will freely admit that I’m clearly not an expert on magic whatsoever. Especially since up until the last few weeks I’ve never encountered magic that couldn’t be explained away by trickery or mutant abilities. That said, even if I was, this isn’t a judgment, just an attempt at understanding the nature of this beautiful girl.” Liz added an extra ruffle to Shadow’s neck.
“I do not sense animals because I understand them,” she began. “If anything, it’s the other way around. I feel their thoughts and emotions as my own. I can place my mind in theirs and experience their lives and the world through their lens. I can know an animal as well as I know myself - through that exploration and contact, I can understand them and predict them.”
Liz shrugged. “I can do that with every animal except for humans, or that which is begotten by humans. Humans are still real, but I cannot interface with their minds. I have a student with the body of a cat, the instincts of a cat, but her form is the result of a quirk of her X-gene - she was born to mutants. Her mind is closed to me. I have another student who births spiders from her flesh. They are spiders, but they are not natural spiders, born of other spiders. They are the product of a mutant gift.”
“But again, this is not a judgment, but an observation,”Liz said with a wry smile. “Like I said, it could be that I simply cannot feel hellhounds. I do not know how my gift works on magical creatures. I like to believe that I am not arrogant enough to assume I know everything - I continuously learn new facets of myself as well. Up to this point in my life, the only animals I have ever encountered that I could not feel are ones that were not naturally born. Because I cannot feel them, I know they are not natural. As Shadow was not born on this plane, her origins are comparable - she is not natural. Rather, I’d say she’s supernatural. The fact that William can sense her would only support that. His magical ability is what enabled him to call her here, correct? It only stands to reason that his connection to her is why he is able to sense her. All I know is that I cannot sense her, and it is most likely because she wasn’t born of mundane animals.”
She elaborated which made the god smile all the more. He was never concerned that she didn’t think him real, nor the hell hound. He just wanted her to understand, not all Summons felt the way he or Shadow did about their situation. For someone to claim that they weren’t natural was an insult. Not all Summons adored mortals the way he did. It was important she understand if she ever ran into someone who didn’t hold them in such high regard. Something the Son of Zeus prayed never happened.
Nodding his head, ”I understand a bit more about you’re powers now, I was under the impression you talked with them. You are truly a gifted individual Elizabeth.” he said honestly. Hercules had met telepaths before, most of them were jaded. Privy to the worst feelings and thoughts mortals possessed, the god pitied them. Elizabeth on the other hand... animals were far more direct and didn’t have some of the ‘flaws’ mortals had.
”Supernatural.” the god said chuckling, ”You have a way with words.” Shadow’s tail slapped the ground a few times as Elizabeth approached. ”We accept the term.” getting louder in his laughter after seeing Shadow’s tail wag. ”If she is like the other hounds I have encounter she’d have been born in the underworld. Born from Cerberus herself!” he thought more, ”Or one of her offspring. Time passes differently there.” he didn’t bother elaborating. That was a long conversation topic.
”Have you ever had any animals close themself off to you?” he asked curiously looking around for a stubborn creature. Unfortunately all he could see other than birds were dogs who were also enjoying the park with their human counterparts. Walking over and sitting next to Zorro he felt that Shadow would not harm the mortal with the inquisitive nature he had grown so fond of.
His massive hand reached up and started to scratch behind the ears of Sheppard. ”It may not be my place to, but I never understood the way you mortals could adapt to your surroundings with your gifts. Spiders...” the slayer of titans shivered slightly revealing more than he wanted to. He had far too many bad experiences with spiders and those who had controlled them.
Green eyes lingered on the woman as she interacted with the ‘supernatural’ creature making sure she was safe.
Posted by Liz Sundance on Apr 5, 2022 19:38:12 GMT -6
X-Men
Metazoa
Chartreuse
Straight
949
9
Apr 12, 2024 15:17:35 GMT -6
Zek
Elizabeth flashed a smile at her musclebound suitor. “Oh no, you’re correct. I talk to animals all the time! The issue is that most of them don’t talk back!” she said easily enough. Nico, her parrot, was one of the few who did, in a couple of languages too. She still didn’t know how he’d learned that much German.
The blonde smoothed an errant lock of hair out of her face in an effort to focus on something other than Hercules’s praise. The intenseness with which he said everything was both flattering and sometimes embarrassing, especially when he was in a mood to heap compliments and praise upon someone. “You’re not so bad yourself, handsome,” she responded with a wink and a playful chuck on the shoulder.
There was a lot to digest in what Hercules said next, but Liz didn’t want to stop petting Shadow in order to break out her notebook. “Born in the underworld, huh girl?” Liz asked Shadow as she slowly maneuvered her hands to scratch new parts of the dog’s head and shoulders. She kept a close eye on the hellhound’s body as she did so, looking for any sign of abrupt mood changes. “It must’ve really been the pits if you decided to come hang out with us mere mortals!” She’d address the issue of time wonkiness another…time.
Meanwhile, Zorro was appreciating the attention he was receiving. He didn’t quite roll over to get his stomach scritched, but only because he wasn't totally confident of this new and bigger dog. She wasn’t giving off any signs of being a threat, but you could never really be too sure. He wasn’t willing to be caught belly-up in case Elizabeth needed him.
But he could still enjoy his own head scratches. He glanced up at the big human when he felt a slight quaking and urgently pressed his side against the man in a silent bid for more scratching, his own tail thumping the ground and possibly the man as well.
“I’m not aware of any animal closing themselves off to me,” Liz said as she started running her hands down Shadow’s glossy, light-eating back. “I’m not sure it’s possible, although I tend not to push. If anyone can do it, Nico would though. He can be shifty at times but I tend to not pry. It feels kinda weird, what with him being so smart and all. Sometimes more intelligent critters can…feel me, I guess.” She shrugged.
“So what kinds of playtime does Shadow enjoy?” she called back to Hercules, some ideas blossoming in her mind.
Knowing that it was usually a sign of insanity in mortals to converse with animals Hercules know it wasn’t the case with Elizabeth, which made the joke she made all the funnier. Chuckling, ”Maybe you aren’t loud enough?” knowing he never had a problem with people or creatures not listening to him. Then again most mortals are in awe of his prowess, as long as there isn’t a hell hound around.
Nico was the bird Elizabeth... owned? Would that be correct? The deity had met the bird once but it seemed far more possessive of her than the other way around. Birds were often misunderstood as being unintelligent. Having met so many that could actually speak and run errands for other gods he knew not to question them or trust them for that matter.
”That is a question for William, though I have seen her enjoy a game of fetch. It might have been with the stone that summoned her, but it was still a spectacle.” when she had done it with his master the large black dog vanished into a shadow and reappeared closer to the stone. It wasn’t the typical game of fetch but then again, the beast was anything but typical.
On cue the god stood and grabbed at a nearby branch that was dead enough to snap with his fingers. Upon doing so he snapped the stick once more breaking it into two. It was a sizable branch and would give hours on end to whoever wish to chew it. Offering one to Zorro he tossed the other in front of Shadow waiting to see it’s reaction. There was a loud thump as the jet-black dog’s tail swatted the ground letting all know it was interested in the stick.
”Well I see we have an answer.” it seemed it enjoyed sticks. The god was satisfied with his decision. Patting at Zorro on the head again attempting to take the stick from him but making more of a show of it.
Posted by Liz Sundance on Apr 19, 2022 19:52:52 GMT -6
X-Men
Metazoa
Chartreuse
Straight
949
9
Apr 12, 2024 15:17:35 GMT -6
Zek
“A game of fetch, huh? I love it,” Elizabeth said with a wry smile and a toss of her locks. Truly, it was a universal game, if dogs of underworlds and normal worlds both enjoyed it. Heck, Liz enjoyed it too, as a human and by canine proxy!
Then the blonde realized she had a problem. As Hercules engaged Zorro in a competitive tug-o-war, Liz’s connection with her dog revealed stuff to her. Zorro was going to be heartbroken if she ever had to break up with Hercules! The boy hung on to the stick for dear life and dug his feet into the ground, letting out playful snarls as he tried to claim his prize from the brawny man. He ignored the head pats - he knew they were just distractions. Nothing was gonna get him away from his stick!
Liz allowed her own happiness to radiate from her face. As the other stick appeared on the ground and Liz saw Shadow’s reaction, she laughed. “You recognize this, don't ya, girl?” Liz said as she rocked back on her heels and moved into a crouch. She grabbed the stick and swiftly stood. Then she waved the branch in front of Shadow once, twice and with a loud “Go fetch!” she chucked the stick high into the air and as far as she could in a direction where nobody was even close. After all, she didn’t want to hit anyone and she definitely didn’t want to sic a massive black dog on them, or make them think that, at least.
“By the way, we should probably remember that NYC has strict leash laws, so if you see the cops, we’ll need to scram.”
Posted by Hercules on May 19, 2022 10:49:41 GMT -6
Mystic
422
10
May 4, 2024 6:46:59 GMT -6
”Unhand the stick!” Hercules chuckled still playing with Zorro. Looking up he returned a smile to the blonde who was watching them before she started to play with Shadow the Hellhound.
Keeping an eye on Elizabeth and Shadow’s actions he felt another tug at the stick he was holding. ”Who is a fearsome protector? You are! Yes you are!” Hercules asked enthusiastically making sure Zorro wouldn’t pull him away from Elizabeth just in case the dog decided to dive into a shadow with her. While the hellhound was summoned by his Master the beast was still a summon. The immortal knew they could be dangerous or malicious even if it violated a pact. Such dishonor.
Shadow blinked and took a few steps back into the shadow of the tree before fading out. A few seconds later the beast reappeared closer to the stick in the shadow of another tree. From there it grabbed the stick and dove back into the darkness before reappearing next to the blonde. It dropped the stick and sat.
”The beast is not mine to leash. That would William’s job and Shadow is capable of diving into shadows. It could be dangerous to be tethered to her.” Hercules had seen William vanish with the spawn of Cerberus into a shadow a few times before. While he didn’t offer a warning then it seemed William had already gained the beasts trust. Which was uncommon within such a short amount of time, but then again... The boy was extraordinary.
”Do they still require leashes if they are so well behaved?” Hercules asked crouching and continuing to play with Zorro, ”You’re so strong!” The god admired the dog’s tenacity for the stick.
Posted by Liz Sundance on May 23, 2022 19:52:19 GMT -6
X-Men
Metazoa
Chartreuse
Straight
949
9
Apr 12, 2024 15:17:35 GMT -6
Zek
Elizabeth put her hands on her hips and shook her head in wonder for a moment. “Okay, I must admit it,” she said wistfully. “That’s pretty amazing.” Watching Shadow dive in and out of darkness, crisscrossing dozens of yards within seconds? Phenomenal.
Zorro didn’t have those fancy magical powers, but he was doing pretty well too, considering the human he was up against could literally rip the stick and Zorro’s teeth out with a flick of his wrist if he so chose. Not that Zorro was aware of this. He merely knew that the stick was HIS and he was not going to lose to this human! No way! Even if he had to hang from the stick and drag the man down with his body weight! Even the head patting was no distraction, garnering a simple glance of acknowledgement before the attention was focused back on the stick. He didn’t growl though - that’s how you could tell Zorro liked you.
“Um yeah, leash laws pretty much don’t care how behaved your dog is,” Liz said as she hurled the stick away again, this time aiming for a general area in the middle of a field away from trees. She figured Shadow would catch the stick again quickly enough. She shot a glance back at Hercules. “What do you mean about it being dangerous to be tethered to Shadow, though? Does she teleport arms off or something?”
”Interesting.” the giant said gazing away from Elizabeth, Zorro and Shadow for anyone that would be upset with the dogs off leash. Shadow could just be called back to his master. Zorro on the other hand... he’d gladly take the weight of the written citation if it meant it kept Elizabeth and Zorro could stay out of trouble.
Shadow during said time of the god gazing for trouble vanished back into the shadows and reappeared closer to the stick but then had to exit the shade of the trees and shrubs to fetch the stick. ”Most creatures summoned have a will of their own. Even if they are bound by a master. If she didn’t like you and you decided to go for a ride it come down to two things. How much magical power it would take to transport someone who they weren’t bound to, and how malicious they are.” again Shadow didn’t seem malicious but there was a reason ‘Hellhounds’ were feared. They were notoriously ruthless on behalf of whoever controlled them.
”She might draw more power from William and if the master refused to lend out the power... well... I have had to rescue people from walls. It is... a painful process to remove them from it. Not from Hellhounds mind you, but I believe the process is the same.” the god shuddered slightly and looked up to Shadow who was returning with the stick darting between the shadows of outstretched trees.
”Not that William would turn off his power to save you either. My master is fond of you!” Hercules stated as he let go of the stick Zorro had and made a big show of trying to get it back but ‘missing’ the stick when he reached out for it several times.
Posted by Liz Sundance on May 30, 2022 9:55:15 GMT -6
X-Men
Metazoa
Chartreuse
Straight
949
9
Apr 12, 2024 15:17:35 GMT -6
Zek
As Shadow made her return with her stick, Elizabeth couldn’t help the insatiable curiosity welling up inside of her. “Magic is cool,” she said with a small whistle. It reminded her of the first time she started studying ecology, back when she was seven. All the different rules and relationships that she had to learn from the ground up, because the full picture of interactions started making sense to her. Once she picked up on it though, she was hooked.
The relationship of a summoned entity seemed to be symbiotic in nature, and equally seemed like it broke down into mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasitic categories. Hercules definitely seemed to be in the mutualistic category, although a dark part of Liz’s mind noted how easily he could become parasitic. “Make sense, makes sense,” she said musingly. “That’s not too different from the way my power works, minus the energy requirements of course. Animals all have their own personalities.” The only difference being that the animals she influenced continued to exist after she was done with them.
A wry smile etched itself on her face. “Well, I’m pretty fond of William too,” she said, “But just in case, I don’t think I’ll be going on any rides on Shadow any time soon, just in case he happens to sneeze or something while in transit.”
The spike in interest from Zorro attracted her thoughts and she allowed her mind to wander toward his for a moment. His intense satisfaction at having won the stick from Hercules was practically pouring off him. “Hey, why don’t we really give the dogs a workout, hmm? Would you mind guarding my body for a bit? I want to take the dogs on a run,” Liz asked.
The demi-god smirked at the blonde woman who finally decided it wasn’t the best idea. He had no doubt that it would be a conversation with William later, either by him mentioning it to his young master or Elizabeth mentioning it to him. Hercules was fond of the woman and didn’t want her to be stuck in a rock somewhere where he couldn’t save her. The thought was fleeting because it didn’t happen yet however.
”I shall do so with great pride! Elizabeth, you can trust your body to me!” Hercules said puffing out his chest and sitting down near a tree so she could find the spot at the base of the trunk across from. Did she expect Zorro and Shadow to run together? Would shadow? Amused by the idea of a hellhound ‘playing’ like a normal dog he chuckled.
”Just be careful of the leash laws, while they might not effect Shadow I’d be upset if Zorro got a ticket.” looking to Shadow and then to Zorro, Hercules grabbed the nearest stick and launched it. ”Fetch!” while sitting Hercules launched the stick as far as he could.