anyastark:

Anya had spent Thanksgiving with her team and with her family. Early dinner in Boston and then dinner with the family in New York in the evening. It was great having two Thanksgiving Day dinners. The best part of the holiday after the food was the day after Thanksgiving. It wasn't for the shopping or the deals, but for the time honored tradition of rating the male members of the superhero community.

Anya had the rec room of the Avengers mansion all prepared. Pizza, snacks, drinks of the soft kind and other various items for eating and drinking were laid out. Electronics were all prepared for the event. All that was left was for the guests to arrive.

nextgen_baddie:

The Baxter Building's security was on high alert. Just as it should be. All the more cameras to watch the people line up and start beating against the glass. Pressed close as a riot. Pounding on the doors until their hands bruised, blistered, and bled..

Zeb didn't stand with them, of course. He was out of sight... but near enough that the pheremones wouldn't wear off easy. Not for a long, long time. He'd had this crowd primed.

frosted_water:

Korra was nervous. She wasn't going to lie about that. She had butterflies in her stomach, and she was pretty sure her heart was beating faster than it should be. Not that she really had a reason to be nervous. Her sister's teammates were wonderful people, even if she'd only met them a handful of times. But still. It was nice of them to let her join, even if she had zero heroing experience. And she had to stop being so nervous. She was going to help people, like she wanted to. She was going to see new places and make new friends. Everything was going to be fine.

The car pulled up to Alpha Flight headquarters, and Korra got out, thanking the driver as he handed her her luggage. She only had a couple of suitcases, but her mother said she'd send her more of her things once she'd settled in some. Taking her luggage, Korra walked up to the door and rang the buzzer.

nextgen_baddie:

A blizzard covered northern Canada in white, but it wasn't the only thing causing problems. Alpha Flight was correct when they mentioned that the Great Beasts were in fact more than one and usually showed up at the same time.

Tanaraq left a path of destruction in his wake as he made his way toward the more populous areas.

Not too far from Taranaq, Kolomaq left a similar path of destruction in his wake.

treadlightly:

They'd done their scouting. They've put up all the defenses they could, and put themselves in a position to attack. Buck has reviewed what they have on hand, and the situations exploding around them.

"Alright, folks, thank you for your patience. I know its been a tense situation waiting and doing patrol work... but I think we've identified some key points in the enemy strategy. We're still going to have to be careful. We're dealing with major influences here, but...

Alpha Flight... and their current guests, should be obvious. There's every sign that more of the Great Beasts will be awoken... that's a top priority situation.

X-Men... and the Genoshans - in following up the uprisings earlier, we've identified a 'Cult of Apocalypse', who took the whole massive fight before as a sign its time for En Sabbah Nur's awakening. We've located some of their likely strike points, your leadership has marked maps.


Champions and Thunderbolts, we've located a massive danger in the Red Lord. Its been determined that it will likely take both teams to deal with it.

Nightstalkers and Big Hero 6, we have a second target of the same type, Sakhmet. You two are on that.

SHIELD will be picking up on all of the general monitoring, crowd safety and control, and other work we've been doing in the lead up to this.

Finally, Avengers, Defenders and FF - you're with me. We're targeting the masterminds behind this.

Any questions?"

nextgen_holiday:


You are cordially invited to attend the 28th annual Maria Stark Foundation's Winter Charity event.

Four Seasons Hotel
57 East 57th Street
New York, NY 10022

Friday 21st of September
Seven O'clock pm - Midnight

Formal dress required.

Please bring a donation for Toys for Tots.


The grand ballroom of the Four Seasons Hotel on 57 East 57th street was festively decorated for the holidays. A series of lit candles on every table gave off warm light and the dulcet tones of a jazz ensemble filled the room.

People, the upper elite of New York society, Hollywood celebrities, musicians, politicians and even superheroes moved around the room. People sat at tables and talked, while some moved gracefully around the large dance floor.

Tables loaded with unwrapped and unopened toys lined one wall and at one end stood a very large decorated Christmas tree. Wrapped presents sat under the tree, but they were just empty boxes wrapped for decoration. Mistletoe hung from the ceiling near the tree and people stopped to kiss.

The air was light and the mood happy and festive.

frosted_water:

Korra had been doing a lot of thinking, lately. On her eighteenth birthday, she'd asked her parents to allow her to join a superhero team, to allow her to spend more time on the surface, and so she could be a hero like her cousin and older sister. Her parents agreed, under the condition that she either join Alpha Flight, with her sister, or the Avengers with her cousin, Mackenzie. Korra had given it a lot of thought, and decided on Alpha Flight, her sister's team.

Now came the hard part. Seeing if they'd actually let her on the team. Korra had butterflies in her stomach thinking about it, but she wasn't going to wait around any longer. While she was at her mother's house one day, she called her sister, Nim. She'd talk to her about coming out and at least visiting the team, first.

nextgen_baddie:

The barrier between dimensions was usually strong, but there were times when that barrier could be weakened. Either by time or by direct intervention. The barriers to the dimension where the Great Beasts of the North had been banished were weakened.

The first of the Great Beasts to escape the dimensional prison was Tundra.

In central Canada Tundra started ripping up the Earth and destroying everything in its path.

got_the_touch:

Okay, there no sense putting this off anymore. He was going to be getting in on late admission anyway, if he went for it. Jordan had already convinced him it was the right thing to do, and he wanted to do it.

It was just going to be really hard.

"Hey, princess? You in there?" Mason knocked at her door.

sea_shelly:

Alpha Flight had, eventually, returned to their headquarters and home after doing all they could for the town disaster.  No explanation or answers had been forthcoming, and it was possible they never would.  That such tragedy could strike without warning or meaning was disheartening, to say the least.

Tired, Alpha has spent much of the next few days recovering and mourning in their own ways.  The survivors had been taken to local medical services and were expected to recover fully.  But there were children who had been made orphans, husbands and wives who had been made widowers and widows, and parents left to bury children. 

All the survivors save one.  The man they'd found who had been unharmed.  Department H had been concerned with just how he'd managed to escape unharmed and thought he might be a possible super-human, possibly even the cause.  So they had taken custody of him, just in case.  Studying him had so far not shown any signs of anything.

In the temple, Nim settled herself onto the couch, her hair still slightly damp from her soak.

sea_shelly:

At approximately 6:37 am, est, something had happened in Clearwater, British Columbia.  A small town of less than 1500 people, no one had paid it much mind before.  But early that morning a wave of energy had ripped through the town, killing virtually the entire town and causing massive property damage on top of that.  The flare had been seen from miles away.  By the time the news had reached the government, it had been far too late to stop whoever, or whatever, had done it.  But it was not too late to help those who remained, what few there were.  Most surprising, however, was the utterl lack of any radioactivity.

And that was where Alpha Fight came in.  In point of fact, Alpha Flight was uniquely suited for search and rescue operations.  Mel and Alex were ideal for seeking out small spaces and searching under rubble.  Mason's powers made clearing away debris easy.  And Nim and Jordan's strength was more that sufficient for any tasks that remained.  Additionally, they had even called in Beta Flight, the training squadron.  Other than the occasional practice session, Alpha had little to do with them, perhaps owing to some resentment on behalf of both from the time Alpha had been framed and they had clashed.  But today, every hand was welcome.

Nim grunted slightly, lifting up a section of fallen wall.  How long had it been since she'd last been in water?  She'd lost count.  They'd been working for hours now and had only found little more than a handful of survivors.  Who could have done such a thing?  And why?  This wasn't a seat of government, nor home to any real industry, or, well, anything, really, other than people living their lives.

She tapped her communicator.  "This is Nim.  Two more dead at my position."

nextgen_holiday:

“We’re here outside the Four Seasons Hotel in New York where the who’s who is gathered tonight. Celebrities, royals and superheroes have all turned out for the annual Maria Stark Foundation Winter Charity event benefiting Toys for Tots.

The stars and celebrities are out tonight to help a good cause.

Donald Trump arrived with his wife and is one of many other famous faces to arrive. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, Ryan Reynolds, Julia Roberts, Chris Evans, Patrick Stewart, Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift are just a few celebrities who have made an appearance here tonight.

Miss Anya Stark, the organizer of this event arrived with Mr. James Rogers and both had arms full of gifts. Other public heroes are out in attendance and supporting a good cause. Members of the Avengers, Defenders, Thunderbolts, Fantastic Four and other teams are in attendance.

This party also has royal guests. His Imperial Highness Grand Duke Mikhail Loganovich is in attendance with a lovely lady on each arm. Princess Nimue of Atlantis is here tonight and is being escorted by Mason Jeffries of Alpha Flight. Prince Mackenzie of Atlantis is also in attendance and is escorting Miss Andrea Denker of the Fantastic Four. Vincent Vernard, heir to Latveria, is also in attendance tonight. We even have otherworld royalty in attendance as the children of Thor are here tonight as well.

It is a night to have fun and help a wonderful charity."

anyastark:

For a lot of people the day after Thanksgiving meant hitting the stores and getting great deals on items that would most likely be Christmas presents. For the female Avengers and others the day after Thanksgiving meant a different tradition. They would gather and rate the hunkiness of the male members of the various teams.

Anya had sent out invitations to the females on the other teams well in advanced and made arrangements for food and refreshments.

Once the day arrived she and the Thunderbolts traveled down to New York and gathered at the Avengers Mansion. Anya readied the slide show and waited for everyone to assemble.

tooth_n_claw:

It was a rare occasion for Alex to get mail. He didn't have any bills, he didn't order much from online and he didn't have any family to send him things. This time he was expecting mail. He had taken his GED test two weeks ago and the results had finally come in.

Now he just had to open the envelope and see what his results were.

Except he couldn't do it. He just stared at the envelope in his hands.

purplegeist:

Mel had researched, and called Dad and really worked on this. She'd gotten the recipe for a traditional Georgian style of baklava. When it was ready, she haunted the air filtration system and let the scent get everywhere in the base.

got_the_touch:

It wasn't easy keeping secrets from your big brother when he's the team leader and practically in charge of your whole HQ, but Mason had done his best. He'd hired a DJ that was practically elated to get to work with the Temple's pre-existing sound systems, gotten stadium-style catering of hot dogs, burgers, and other heavy foods, and even sent out invites to a handful of other super-teams that Alpha Flight had fought alongside, just to beef up the bodycount for the festivities a bit.

As for his gift for Jordie, he'd spent weeks getting in touch with former Alpha Flight members with his parents' help. They'd ultimately put together a scrapbook about Jordan's biological parents for him. Mason had also put season tickets to Jordan's favorite teams in the same packaging.

sea_shelly:

(backdated to the end of the "Relative Problem" plot.)

So.  Their encounter with the Master had left her changed, in body and in spirit.  The rages she had felt, the instability that had come with them, were gone.  She still retained her ability to borrow the powers of oceanic animals, but her nature abilities had been boosted as well.  Not to mention that, though her facial features were still basically her own, her entire body had all changed. 

And there were still her brothers and sisters to find.  They were out there in the ocean, somewhere, alone and frightened.

But for now...

For now, she had other issues to deal with.   She kept the lights off in her room

tooth_n_claw:

To Alex one of the hardest things in the world was selecting gifts for people. He didn't have much practice with it and it showed. When he was young he had his mom and brother to get gifts for, but in those cases it was usually a homemade gift for his mom and a small store bought toy for his brother. His family never had much money so gifts were small. Now he had money, he didn't spend much of his Alpha Flight pay on himself, and it was Mel's birthday.

He wandered the local mall aimlessly wondering what he could get his girlfriend. There was only so much ABBA things he could get her and something non-ABBA would be a nice change. Though he had no clue what that non-ABBA thing would be. So he walked up and down the mall looking for something to catch his eye or make him think of Mel.

Alex was just about to give up when he spotted Williams-Sonoma. A store dedicated to cooking and kitchen stuff. It was /perfect/ and totally Mel. As soon as he entered the store he was even more hopelessly lost. There was just so much in the store and he had no clue on Earth what exactly to get her. A saleslady took pity on him when she saw his confused face and asked him if she could help. Even with her input he still didn't know what to get Mel. He opted for a gift card with an extravagant amount of money on it.

He thought gift cards were a little impersonal, but he would make up for that fact by taking Mel here and the two of them could make a day shopping and grabbing some dinner afterward.

The gift card was put into a card and he went to deliver it to his girlfriend.

sea_shelly:

It wasn't hard to find the reef Kassi had spoken of.  It was harder to make herself come.  Even though Kassi had offered her help unselfishly, pre-guilt over what might happen to her sister wracked Marrina.  What if she hurt her?  Or worse?  When her body and mind raged so much out of control as they had been, it was impossible to say what she might do.

Marrina took a deep breath as she bobbed in the water.  It would be so easy to just run away from it all.  From Namor and Mac and Kassi, and... Mason and...  and maybe not so easy.

But she knew what her mother had become.  Knew that she'd had to be put down.  She wouldn't, couldn't do that to her friends and family.

sea_shelly:

It was happening more and more frequently, and frankly, Marrina didn't know what she was going to do about.  Department H doctors had never had a clue how her biology worked to begin with (there were several organs they couldn't identify), even with all the records they'd kept on her mother.

And just as likely, Atlantis didn't know anything either.

But she'd nearly killed people, nearly...

She needed someone to talk to.  Marrina called her sister.

nextgen_russia:

It was a risky move, but it had to be done. Shostakov was no friend to the royal family and if he was taken into government custody decades of work would be lost. If his comatose body could be grabbed by those who had the same interests, he could possibly be revived and work on the projects could resume. That 'son' of his knew what his father had been doing, but the kid didn't know half as much as his 'father'. No, they needed Shostakov and they had to get him before others did.

The warning was sent from a small internet cafe computer and bounced through two dozen different nodes around the world before it reached its destination in Canada. They had to be warned that the Russians were coming. Hopefully they would respond appropriately to the incursion into their land and during the conflict and chaos Shostakov could be taken out of there.

There were a lot of variables, but it would go as planned. It had to.

little_mermaid:

Each round was getting harder and though she was loathe to admit it, it was becoming increasingly clear to Kassia that she did not know as much about Atlantis as she should.  It chewed at her, the idea that perhaps there was merit to the voices that were steadily whispering about how a pink royal was worthless and not truly an Atlantean with Atlantean interests at heart.  Except they used the term "bastard dirtwalker" in reference to her.  They still hadn't taken kindly to the idea of her.

She had to shake the thoughts from her head, though.  Namor and his army was going to attack again and she had volunteered to make this raid herself.  Anything to find where the opponent was camped and, perhaps, shut down some of his forces.  They'd managed to shut down the left flank of Namor's forces two days earlier with this technique, though Mac had artfully used a double-agent to execute that operation.  This, this was all Kassia.  She could do this.  She could shut Namor down, win War Games, and prove herself.  Gripping the spear that was her weapon, she took a deep breath and left the safety of the corner she was hiding behind, heading for her target as silently as possible.

nextgen_misc:

The invitations to THE wedding of the year went out today. Heads of state, diplomats and dignitaries from all over the world would be receiving invitations. The fervor over the wedding was building and would reach a peak when Kate Middleton walked down the isle.

nextgen_holiday:


I arise from dreams of thee
In the first sweet sleep of night,
When the winds are breathing low,
And the stars are shining bright.
I arise from dreams of thee,
And a spirit in my feet
Hath led me -- who knows how?
To thy chamber window, Sweet!

The wandering airs they faint
On the dark, the silent stream--
And the Champak's odours
Like sweet thoughts in a dream;
The nightingale's complaint,
It dies upon her heart,
As I must on thine,
O belovèd as thou art!

O lift me from the grass!
I die! I faint! I fail!
Let thy love in kisses rain
On my lips and eyelids pale.
My cheek is cold and white, alas!
My heart beats loud and fast:
O press it to thine own again,
Where it will break at last!

Percy Bysshe Shelley

not_adorable:

Angelo had done some preparation for this. He knew that he and his sister had divergent views on the group occupying his thoughts, but he was confident they could approach the situation like rational adults. Of course, he wasn't above cheating, just a little bit. The jug of homemade cider he'd buried in the neighborhood garden had finally been dug up after fermenting long enough, and some was currently on the stove with butter and cooking brandy milling in it. He'd also just finished dusting some krapfen with powdered sugar as he approached his sister, who was going over his latest home-school exam.

"Gio?" He set down a plate of Italian pastry and cider in front of her. "There was something I wanted to confer with you about."

nextgen_holiday:

There's a piece of paper and a pen attached to a bulletin board. Across the top is written:

New Year's Resolutions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
+

Anonymous entries accepted.

ng_atlantis:

Messengers arrive with official transport for Kassia, Marrina, and MacKenzie, all duly informing them that the time has come to speak with Prince Namor regarding the whole unfortunate string of events that recently took place.

nextgen_holiday:

Christmas. Yule. Saturnalia. Dies Natalis Solis Invicti. Many cultures have celebrated and still celebrate a winter festival. There have been many names for it over the millennia. No matter the name it is a time to come together and celebrate with feasts and gifts with friends and loved ones.

Each culture has a legendary figure who would deliver gifts to children during this time. In Russia and some Slavic cultures he is known as Ded Moroz, Grandfather Frost, and comes not on Christmas but on New Year’s along with his granddaughter Snegurochka, or ‘”Snow Maiden”. In the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe he is known as Father Christmas. In the Netherlands and Belgium he is known as Saint Nicholas or “Sinterklaas” and in France he is known as Père Noël. In the United States we know him as Santa Claus.

No matter the name or who is delivering gifts, it is the season of peace, joy and togetherness. It is the season for thinking about loved ones, friends and those less fortunate. It is a time to witness the goodness and generosity the human race is capable of. It is a time for peace on Earth and goodwill toward man.

got_the_touch:

Mason was wearing two parkas as he and Marrina waited at the set coordinates on the Nova Scotia shoreline. An official envoy from Atlantis was supposed to pick them up here. He was holding her hand, and what of his face could be seen between his scarf and his hat looked worried. He nodded to her.

"Just in case I get killed..." He squeezed her hand. "I love you. And you were worth it."

got_the_touch:

In a very pleasant departure from the previous competitions, this second to last one had actually sent Mason an e-mail to let him know when he'd be arriving. Surprisingly polite, actually.

For that matter, Atlantis had e-mail? He wondered who their provider was.

He was sitting down to lunch with Marrina, having about half an hour before the challenger was supposed to show up. "Man... this is just dragging on." He poked at his soup before finishing some more. He'd recovered from the previous fights just fine, but mentally, things were starting to get to him.

got_the_touch:

Mason trudges towards the front door after receiving a message over the intercom. He hits a panel to call Marrina as well.

"Latest round's up. Two of them this time."

He'd been surprised to hear the blowhard announcing himself, and his brother practically as an afterthought. He shook his head as he adjusted his jacket and hip-pack.

discardedheir:

When the smoke and the dust and in some cases the blood finally clears, there's just the electronically sealed vault door separating the combatants from their captive parents, grandparents, and employers.

Kristoff gets to work on the locks, and soon the door rolls back. The technicians surrounding the prisoners are all cowering in fear with their hands up.

The prisoners themselves -- Silver Sablinova, Victor Von Doom, Namor McKenzie, T'Challa, Magneto, and Exodus -- are all under heavy restraints and hooked up to IVs, so heavily drugged that they cannot access their abilities or think straight enough to plan an escape. They have only recently been brought to enough basic consciousness to -- HYDRA had assumed -- watch their children die on the television screen provided.

discardedheir:

Kristoff sent a message to SHIELD. Full Disclosure. Doom was not in Latveria, and the Doombot signals had apparently been hijacked.

Then he got to work trying to raise Atlantis on the communcations system. Even once a signal got through the general difficulties connections with Atlantis sometimes did, it was something of a wait for anyone of the techs on the other end to be willing to take a call coming from Doomstadt right now. Even then, it some work to get someone to take "Please put His Majesty or Her Highness through as soon as possible. No, this is not a trick, this is Kristoff Vernard of the Fantastic Four" seriously.

nextgen_holiday:

In Canada today is a day for being thankful for the things in people's lives. Today was a day to celebrate family, friends, prosperity and health with food, family and friends. It is a time to reflect on what is important us and to recognize the gratitude we hold for having those things in our lives.

little_mermaid:

If the Doombots were supposed to cause panic and mass chaos under the sea they failed, at least with the citizenry.  Certainly there was a good bit of noise and confusion, but no one ran screaming or jumped behind buildings for cover.  The Atlantean people had dealt with Lemurians for goodness sake.  A Doombot was cause for concern but not full on Nathan Lane-style drama.  No, that type of drama was reserved for the advisers inside the palace.  The first Doombot received notice and almost immediately there was great shouting and flailing and someone actually yelped that the sky was falling.  It woke Kassia from her half-nap and she, like everyone else in the inner sanctum, came running to the war room to find out what the King would do.

Except...there was no King.  Just a lot of nattering, worrying, and flailing.  It went on for about twenty minutes before Kassia realized that something was off.  "Um.  So where's the Army?"  She was told that only the crown could call the Army.  "So where's my Dad?"  No one had an answer. Kassia looked at each adviser in turn, then rolled her eyes. "Oh for fuck's sake...fine.  I'm the crown.  Until my sister can get here I'm the damn Queen.  You there in the...skirt-like toga with the ruffle thing...call the Army.  We're under attack, people!" 

"Goddamn worthless advisers...gotta do everything my own damn self..."  Kassia shoved past palace staff and went straight for the throne room.  Her dad hat a triton in there somewhere.  She'd seen it.  Crowned heads wield cool stuff, right?  Once she found the triton, she grabbed it and then, as advisers yelled after her to seek refuge in the safe room Kassia charged for the door.

"The Fist of Atlantis doesn't cower in safe rooms when her people are under attack." 

***

An hour later, while the Army was dispatching the bulk of the invading 'bots, Kassia stormed back into the palace, a little disheveled and a little scuffed up, and headed straight for the war room...dragging what appeared to be the mangled leg of one of the Doombots with her.  She heaved it up and slammed it down on the table.

"And THAT is how we deal with invaders.  Get my sister on the line.  NOW."

She may have well been Namor Jr.

got_the_touch:

It had been a few days since Marrina got back, and outside of practicing his transmutations and studying some chemical formulas more intently, Mason had been determined not to let this shadow take over his life. He was taking a break and trying to beat his time-attack record in Capcom vs SNK 2 when there was a perimeter alert.

got_the_touch:

For any fool for love, being separated from your significant other feels like a long time.

When said significant other is off talking to her dad who rules two thirds or more of the world's surface, and is discussing a bunch of crazy people out to kill you, it feels even longer.

To keep himself busy, Mason had built an aluminum tree house just outside the base, fastidiously checking the road leading towards it for any sign of her.

sea_shelly:

Atlantis was never a far trip, not if she was swimming full out.  Sure, she could have arranged for pick-up of some kind, as befitted a princess, but Marrina was occasionally about establishing her own independence.  She knew she'd been given incredibly free range in terms of royal demands on her, with her education in matters of state taking place on the side and sliding into her own schedule...

She wondered if all that was finally catching up with her.

In no time at all, however, she was at Atlantis.

sea_shelly:

Marrina and Mason were just leaving the movie, having just seen Scott Pilgrim vs the World, staring Canada's favorite son, Michael Cera.   It had been a pretty good movie, overall, though the fight scenes were a bit over the top.  Giving the super-villain battles they'd been in, it was hard to find them realistic, even with the over the top attitude of everything else.

"You know," Marrina told him, as she took his hand, "Michael Cera kinda reminds me of you."

nextgen_holiday:

Like their American counterparts, Alpha Flight was also celebrating Labour Day. Now that they weren't Canada's Most Wanted, they could relax and celebrate and not have to worry about being arrested. After their recent trials, Alpha Flight needed a day of rest and celebration.

The volleyball net was set up on the lawn and other things were set up in preparation for the cookout. Tables had been placed out around the pool and the large grill fired up to get nice and hot. Burgers, hot dogs, sausage, ribs, corn on the cob, pasta salad, salad, poutine and fruit salad were just some of the food available to eat. Soda, water, fruit juice and other beverages were on ice.

Chaise lounges were set up for those who wanted to kick back and relax. Music was filtered out through the base's communication systems and even Mother Nature had cooperated by giving them a nice warm day.

tooth_n_claw:

There had been a conspiracy within Alpha Flight. It wasn't to topple the government, get revenge for being framed or anything like that, but Mel and Alex had been planning. Those plans involved the birthday of one Jordan Bochs. Their team leader was turning a year older and the passing of such an even would not go unnoticed or uncelebrated.

Alex had done the running and fetching for needed items and then had helped Mel wherever she needed help with the baked goods and decorations. He could provide a pair of human hands for two hours and was always eager to taste test anything Mel made. The arrangement worked out rather well.

In the end the 'Temple' had been festively decorated and there was plenty to eat.

They left it up to Mason to distract Jordan until they were ready.

With everything done and in place and Alpha Flight assembled, they let Mason know that they were ready for the birthday boy to see it all.

nextgen_misc:

After being on the run for crimes they didn't commit, Alpha Flight finally had a lead on the people responsible for their current situation. It had taken all the know how of the team to track down a group calling themselves Omega Flight.

tooth_n_claw:

Alex had been planning for Mel's birthday for quite some time, but events had sabotaged his plans. He had been planning on dinner out somewhere and possibly a movie, but with them being wanted fugitives it made his plans impossible. Alex would make up for the sabotaged plans by buying her a special gift.

He left the cabin when the sun rose and flew a few hundred miles away from the cabin. He needed to use his ATM card and he didn't want anyone tracking down the team. Alex would never forgive himself if he were the reason for Alpha Flight's recapture. So he went a good distance away and looked for a gift for Mel.

It didn't take him long to spot what he thought was the perfect gift. He withdrew all the money from his account. The gift was expensive, but Alex had quite a bit of money in his account and what he didn't spend on the gift, he'd use later for stuff for Alpha Flight. Cash was always better and harder to track.

He purchased the gift as quickly as possible and left on the wing to head back to the cabin. Along the way he stopped and got a cake and some candles. No birthday should ever pass without cake.

The sun was low in the sky when he returned.

The cake and candles were placed on the small table in the kitchen area and the wrapped gift next to it. He went to find Mel.

purplegeist:

The quiet, isolated little spot was a rather sickly lavender color, and a slight feeling of light-headed fear hung in the air.

'Just in case they said anything to all of you," Mel whispered. "My dad's not a terrorist. Anything they said about my grandfather is true, but not my dad." For some reason, it was very important to her to say this.

little_mermaid:

Kassia returned to the hotel she was sharing with Marrina, but it wasn't as quickly as she had made it seem like it would be.  Instead of being back in just a couple of hours it was near four in the morning when she made her way back into the room and smelling faintly of alcohol.  Her eyes were wide and her entire person seemed rattled.  She came into the room and sat down on the couch, the bag with evidence from Frost dropped on the floor as though it were the least of her concerns.

And for the moment, it was.

little_mermaid:

Disguises were easy.

So was convincing people that they were seeing and hearing what you wanted them to see and hear.  Easy if your last name was Frost at least.  From her outpost in the black Mercedes with the tinted glass Kassia had no trouble seeing to it that Marrina got into the building with unfettered access to everything that lay beyond the security desk.  The building was empty of people, of course.  An attack of what some idiot news source tried to term economic terrorism had left the building closed for business but there was still a treasure trove of information on the inside.  Kassia was interested in two things: confirmation that her sister, Tina, wasn't inside and whatever suspicious devices and odd evidence might be there.

They bought it, Marrina.  You have complete access.  I suggest heading to the damage zone first and telling me what you see.  Or rather, thinking it.  I can hear you clear as day.

Her sister wanted a cheeseburger.  That she could hear clearly, too.  Kassia sighed, realizing there was a trip to a fast food place in her future.

nextgen_media:

"We are standing here at 207 Bank Street outside the US Embassy in Ottawa where it appears that Alpha Flight, Canada's premier superhero team is attacking. Large sections of the building are being destroyed and even nature itself appears to be attacking as the winds have picked up and large chunks of hail are breaking windows. A member of Alpha Flight zoomed into the building and appeared on the roof with the ambassador. A moment later the member dropped the ambassador and he fell to the pavement below.

Police are on the scene, but are unable to stop Alpha Flight. Police cars and officers have been thrown around and it doesn't appear anything or anyone is going to be able to stop this apparent rampage by Alpha Flight. What has caused Alpha Flight to do this? Why are they doing this? There are too many questions to be answered at this moment.

Wait a minute. What's this? It now appears that the damage is done and lives have been lost, Alpha Flight is leaving the scene. The police aren't giving chase at the moment, but this reporter is sure that the military will apprehend Alpha Flight at some point."

got_the_touch:

A card gets slid under the door to Marrina's room, with a neatly printed note.
There's an additional note scribbled on with marker as well.

tooth_n_claw:

Alex was tired. He hadn't been on a long distance flight in some time and by the time he reached Alpha Flight's headquarters he was exhausted. He wanted to collapse on his bed and pass out, but there was someone he had to see first.

He smiled at the thought of seeing Mel. Alex had missed her a lot and had been looking forward to seeing her again. Emails and phone calls didn't take the place of actually seeing someone and talking to them face to face. Now he could do that for two hours before he had to change back into an animal form.

Alex went through the building looking for Mel.

little_mermaid:

Kassia was getting fidgety.  She hadn't contacted her mother or her sister, Christina, since she'd reconnected with her father.  She'd been very good, obeying her sister Marrina's every word and while she didn't actually count herself on Marrina's team, she kept active and picked up the place a bit as needed.  She made cookies and indulged in cookies, read a ton of books, and watched television.

That was what made her fidgety.  Various news reports of issues at several Frost Industries facilities around the world.  It was weird.  Some of the reports weren't specific enough for Kassia to figure out what facilities were damaged and though they all said no one had been hurt, that didn't mean she believed them.  Tina could have been in one of them working off clock, or even her Mother.  She wanted to call them, or at least Tina, to make sure things were okay.  But Dad had said not to contact them.

Frustrating.

Before she did anything rash, though, she decided to ask Marrina's opinion.  She knocked on her sister's door.