12272/Unicorn Hunt II: Brooklyn Botanical Garden

Unicorn Hunt II: Brooklyn Botanical Garden
Date of Scene:	09 August 2022
Location:	Brooklin Botanic Garden - Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden
Synopsis:	Epirote, the Ice Mist, had picked the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's Japanese Hill-and-Pond garden for its lair. This black-eyed and jagged-horned mountain-goat like Unicorn nearly drowns both Hope and Phoebe while Mike, Tabitha, Kora and Bart are left to contend with both the Unicorn itself -- and the eerie voice of the Ringmaster that had held it. . Tune in on Friday, August 12 for The Last Unicorn: The Flamebound Achaean
Cast of Characters:	Phoebe Beacon, Tabitha Smith, Danielle Moonstar, Michael Hannigan, Kora Ikassis, Bart Allen, Hope Summers
Tinyplot:	Wellspring of Song

---

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Last week, three unicorns were released from a Merry-go-Wrong held under the auspices of 'The Ringmaster', a Tim Burton-esque villain with a pale face, sharpened teeth and a tall top-hat that had popped out of the carousel and then, using the horrible creatures from it, attempted to drag people into the Dark.

    Tabitha Smith had Boomed her way to releasing the three unicorns, who split into various directions around. The least of whom was confronted, and sent home: Laconian, the Woodwarden.

    Within the park, it was obvious that 'Balm' was running herself a little thin upon entrance past the modest wooden gate into the Hill-and-pond garden. ( https://i.pinimg.com/564x/34/5f/59/345f5946460aa12651b0779b2e7a8668.jpg ). She discarded the stub remains of a cigarette into a metal bin as she shuffled through a leather-bound book with a frown, and mouths a couple of things to herself. Her hood is up currently, the black stab-resistant sweatshirt hiding her burned-in markings for the moment as she makes her way to the designated meeting place; the shore overlooking the red Torii gate in the middle of the pond.

    Today though she's not arriving alone. At her side is a red and white sighthound with blue eyes, who looks friendly and is bouncing and loping around in counter-measure to Balm's brooding.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The botanical gardens in Brooklyn might actually be one of the places you'd want to be taken to on a date. Tabby is certainly impressed enough. Might be Storm's influence and the weather goddess's own gardens.

But there's also the fact that she's chasing unicorns. This came as much amusement to most of her family back in Westchester. Even after she explained it. But now here she is, having parked 'Sybi', her motorcycle somewhere out of the way. She even brought a friend. One that can actually do a better job of telepathically talking with animals than she can. That being the delightful Dani Moonstar.

"So like, we eventually found one. Laconian. he's gone home now! But we got like two more!" she explains with a cheery tone.

The blonde wqearing the same almost biker styled black and yellow synthetic leather X-Suit that she encountered with said Laconian on the hope that the familiar scents might make for a less skittish fae critter. A finger pushing her glasses back up on her nose while she looks around. Balm getting a smile.

"Maybe you should switch to smoking weed. Done me wonders!" she extols the benefits of mariijuana. "Not that I've lit up today. Maybe later when I get home. Yay legalizing!" she states while she further beams a look of d'awww at the bouncing sightboi.

Danielle Moonstar has posed:
Danielle Moonstar is wearing a variation of her costume, trimmed in fringe and with greasepaint across her face, darkening around her eyes and in slashes down her cheeks. Her long black hair is pulled into a braid that runs down her back as she opens up her tele-empathic senses, seeking anything that might pin her as 'unicorn'. Her animal empathy should certainly give her an advantage.

"My people often used herban enhancement to interact with the spirit world and help us in hunting. But my focus is fine enough," she smiles.

She crouches and examines some foliage, looking for signs of passage. While she has no visible weapns, she is, of course, always armed in her own particular way.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
As Balm makes her way into the garden, it is apparent that there are plenty of persons still enjoying the park. The Botanical Park IS a pretty place after all and there's still enough daylight to take some nice pictures.

Click!

Click!

Click!

Although, it's very odd that the ones with the cameras are not focusing on the plants. Instead they're turned, facing in a small group of tourists clustered around.

The camera man lowers his camera, smiling, "Thank you Mr. Weyden! Good luck with Maud!"

The crowd starts to break apart, leaving a very familiar face to Phoebe looking to those departing. There's a bit of a confused look on Mike's face. Lips part as if he wants to correct them, but he shakes his head and starts to step down the path away from them. Which, conveniently puts him on the path towards Phoebe

Being he isn't part of the group, Mike is NOT wearing a costume. Unless you consider secondhand clothes one, that is.

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    New to New York, Kora has dutifully heeded the warnings from her sisters-in-arms and jogs while the park still has people in it. The more or less benign type of person who won't make her wish for the sword and shield she has dutifully hung up inside the Embassy.

    Running shoes are a novelty; no running barefoot either, it seems, if she is to fit in. Though, she enjoys their bounce and bright colors! The Themyscira Arts Center t-shirt is loose over matching red shorts. Her dark hair is pulled back into an elaborate fish-tail braid that sways down her back.

     Kora, slows at the sight of the dog bounding around a young woman in a loose group of oddly costumed people and comes to a stop near her.

     Cheerily, "Hello. Is your dog from America? It reminds me of the hunting dogs from my island."

Bart Allen has posed:
Bart Allen considered seeing if he could bring Thunder for the unicorn hunt, but figured that might make it a bit more apt to run. So Bart is heading to where he is supposed to meet Balm for the searching. He is wearing normal clothes but has on his mask, since there were a few people at the fair he did not know. He does have a backpack slung over one shoulder green carrot tops sticking out of it. When he sees Phoebe and her four legged friend he zooms off for a split second and is back waving over to Phoebe as she heads to the meeting place.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe turns and gives a Mild Look of 'really now' to Tabitha as she extolls weed's virtue, and she stretches her fingers a moment. She doesn't smoke for the nicotine. She gives a wry smile, and a respectful nod to Dani, looking at the weaponless New Mutant with a measure of curiosity. Using ASL, the black, hooded teen points to herself, and spells out B A L M -- using her callsign for this. She's even wearing a neat tech domino that's making the eyes glow blue, keeping tabs on an information feed.

    Michael would get a curious look and a small nod, as she signs to him -We seem to keep bumping into one another.- she signs at him with a wry note -- at this point, he's seen her in and out of the mask. She's pretty sure he'd be able to recognize her.

    Bart would get a smile as Phoebe recognizes him coming into her field of vision, and she gives him a wave in return, though Idu's attention was split between Tabby, who thought he was cute, Kora who thought he was great, and Bart, who he knows brings great snacks with him. And with Great Snacks come Great Responsibility.

    Or something like that.

    Phoebe breathes out and runs a hand over the back of her head a moment, and then she brings her hands up, then pulls out a sheaf of papers.

    HELLO AND WELCOME TO HUNTING THE UNICORNS 2.

-Unicorn is named Epirote.
-Titled The Icemist
Presumably has
    -Telekenetic
    -Telepathic
    -
Ice/cryokenetic/aquakenetic powers.

T and I are 'marked' acc. to previous unicorn.

-Unicorns can stab, trample, kick, bite and use magic. Once I summon it, we may be in a lot of danger.

This is your chance to back out now.

    And she pulls out a sharpie and adds to Kora's:

'his name is Idu and he is from Egypt'

Hope Summers has posed:
    "Oh, heya Elvis." Hope says with a nod of her chin as the mutant approaches, once again carrying her rifle slung over her shoulder over a dark tan cloak covering her shoulders and flaps in the breeze. The unicorn huntress joins the party a little late and with a mini arm based bandolier around her bicep with much longer tranq rounds than she carried into battle last time.

    Stepping up and spying a bunch of familiar faces and some unknowns, the red head gives her nod towards Phoebe. Still not quite taking on that leadership role she was rocking a few months ago, but getting her feet wet again still. "Your show Balm. I assume you're taking the lead?" Hope asks as she spies and senses a few mutants around and knowing Tabitha's powers aren't going to be help, except the telepathy which she kindly borrows with a soft nod. "I could do the mental comms if we'd all prefer?" Hope notes as she unslings her rifle and pulls back the charge, and reaching up to her arm to pluck a tranq and sliding it into the receiver and getting all set for her job. "Unless you want me to do something else?"

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabby had encountered Kora at the Kanga Riding thing at the Themyscirna Embassy not so long ago and fingers are waggled in greeting. Though she kind of keeps a goofy grin when Dani keeps things serious. "The weed is like stress management self medication. It was that or bug Megan with a sleep spell but I hate leaning on anyone for that kinda thing."

Asking for help with mystical stuff however is not one of those things. Hence bringing Dani along. Whom is then doing her stealthy huntress thing about the place.

The use of ASL gets a a pinch of Tabby's nose. She doesn't actually know it but she does have an alternative. <<Okay. This is gonna be easier.>> she opens up and offers anyone showing up and being handed those papers a spot in the mind link she's concentrating on. The difficulty in letting a small number of minds into the communal telepathy chat she started and not just opening up to let every voice in the vicinity in. Goofy expression's soon fading but Tabby looks more like she in the middle of a long shift at work now. <<Ice powers. I can maybe deal with that. Plenty experience there.>> When you go to a school with Iceman.

<<But hopefully Epirote is a talker and maybe not so skittish. My friend Mirage will be nearby as well if need be!>> she adds in regards to the not visible Danielle. It might also allow the arriving Hope to sync with the Cheyenne and add some extra animal Doctor Dolittle skills.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike blinks as Phoebe comes to view. He lifts up a hand in a slight wave of greeting and pauses as she starts signing to him. "...I don't know ASL." He responds, making sure that his lips are visible. Honestly he's not sure what's going on with her. The time in the Bureau of Lost was so much easier when she did the mental speak.

He looks to the gathering group. Whiiiiich is probably why she's not doing that now. Well better not advertise that point then.

And then someone calls him Elvis. Mike looks over to Hope. "Hey Hope." Mike greets, "Just seems to be our week, huh?"

Curious, Mike looks to the gathering group, looking back to Balm as he's handed a sheet of paper. Oh hey! Visuals! Taking the sheet, he glances to the printout. The musician grows silent. The paper lowers as Mike looks to Balm. "Really?" He asks blandly.

And then he hears a voice in his head that's definitely not his. And not Phoebe's. He glances around. <<Ok whatever's going on here, you can't blame me this time. >>

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Holding her hand out to the dog, Kora looks at the silent woman for permission to greet him, then crouches down, smiling. Caresses ensue with special attention to the tender bits behind the fine extra large ears.

    The young woman angles her head back, eyebrows knitting as she reads the message, twice.

    "Unicorn?" she repeats to herself. As fluent as her English is, it takes a moment to understand. "Monokeros!" she exclaims and stands.

    When there is a break in the conversation, she addresses Phoebe and the others in lightly accented English, "Where is this uni-corn? Are you hunting it? Perhaps, I can help?"

Bart Allen has posed:
Bart Allen squats down and does have treats, it is what he ran off and returned with. He lets Kora show Idu attention before he offers the dog some treats and "Hey Idu, how you pup." He talks to the dog petting him, and looks up from his squatting and says "I brought some carrots, and stuff Equines like so thought that might help some." He offers to the group. He looks over to Kora, and says "Magical creatures do you guys have them on Themyscira?" He will stay down at Idu's level listening to people's responses.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Balm looks at Michael, and then she makes a slash motion across her throat, and then points to her ears and gives a thumbs up. She has nooo problem listening. And when he asked 'really', Balm gives a slightly rude hand gesture to him, and then a small smile back to him.

    <Miss Boom here is the one who is responsible, actually. And I am thankful for her help." Balm gives a tight-lipped look to Tabitha before she turns back out to the water of the pond. <She makes this easier.>

    She walks a little forward, and gives a nod at the monokeros. <Monokeros. Unicorn.Epirote may not be as talkative, may be more chatty. Hard to say. Laconian indicated he's been on the carousel longer.> she explains, and then she taps her foot against the ground, deciding here might be a good spot.

    Idu is eating up all the attention, the scritching, the greetings, ear scritches, treats, and leans against Kora slightly with his lithe forty-pound body.

    Phoebe breathes out, and from a little paper envelope she extracts three short, white hairs.

    <I'll take the lead, Hope, - but keep an eye out for wandering civs and make sure they turn off. Impulse. Make sure that if the civvies don't run, they are removed. Bard, hope you have some rhymes in place. Boom the Babe, stay near me. If Something Else decides to join us. Kora -- good to have you here.> she gives a wry smile, looking over her shoulder, and Idu drops down, ready for the fight.

    Phoebe goes to take another step... but it's clear something's wrong. There's been no alert that they were here, no temptation of drawing the unicorn out, but everyone who can sense magic may feel the trail of an icy cold finger up the back of their necks.

    Those who cannot would feel the air drop a couple degrees at first, and then rapidly coming down further. Overhead, a soft snow begins to fall. The pond goes from being water to becoming thick, solid ice, the koi freezing in place as if time stopped for them.

    Idu gives a low whine. He does *not* like snow between his toes.

    There are snorts and the stomping of hooves that echo around, making it difficult to determine from where they're coming from.

Hope Summers has posed:
    "Copy." Hope says, and then as she's turning around to put her back towards the group, the marksman mutant pauses, the chill not getting through her hideous green and yellow jumpsuit, or even the tan canvas she wears on her shoulders but the hairs at the top of her neck catch the change in pressure, and temperature.

    "****!"

    "It's go time everyone. You know your roles. Lets MOVE!" Hope says as she steps away from the group and her hand moves from the handle of her rifle to the side and pulls that slide back and hard with speed and purpose to cause the tranq to eject out of the barrel of her gun, and slides the thing between her teeth as she shuffles her hands to put a normal round into the chamber.

    As she's switching to a lethal round, Hope borrows Tabby's powers once again and unknown to the group, Hope is pushing her mind and emotions out as far as she can with Tabby's powers. A wave of unease and even fear washesh through the area, omitting the team and the stabby-horse, with a mental message, <This place is not welcoming. You want to go home.>

    As punctuation for the thought, Hope keeps her weapon's barrel aimed low to the dirt and without warning,

    BANG!!!

    The sound is borderline explosive and the concussive wave from the sound can be felt in the nearby area, but she wanted the sound to echo loudly through the park. It's very loud and scary to most mortal beings she's discovered. As long as they hear it.

    "Impulse, help me make sure this place is secure." Hope asks, having lifted a hand to hold onto the tranq, freeing up her mouth for speaking.

    Lucky unicorn isn't getting shot. Yet.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Even Tabby happily fawns over the sleek puppers being petted and offered treats. Though when responsibility is aimed at her she shrugs. <<The Unicorns were chained up, much cruel. Not cool. Can't have them in the hands of that badly rhyming fool!>> she explains for those that missed how they got free in the first place.

Tactics are set and Tabby grins and keeps some proximity to Balm. <<I've got some range but hopefully like I don't have to set this place on fire. I kinda like it here. Plus I'd have to explain things again back home.>>

She is only freshly minted in her full X-Man status. Too much property damage is not exactly endearing to those that evlevated her. The Professor or Jean wouldn't be mad. Just disappointed.

The sudden drop in temperature gets a shiver from the blonde woman, even in her climate controlled comfortable X-Suit. Luckily inj addition to mild telepathy the blonde has shared with Hope, she also provides a means for others to deal with the cold while she stays close to Balm. Magic Circle Bait if the last time was an guess. A few orbiting balls of plasma ignite around herself, not much power but enough warmth for now to ward off a lot of the incoming cold. <<I grew up in the Appalachians. I survived New York City winters. And I still never got used to the cold. Must be these damn Pyro powers.>> she says with arms folding and a shiver.

Whether or not her plasma actually works for warmth is a different matter against magic cold. She doesn't even know if she's immune to magic fire as opposed to just normal.

The bang gets a frown. <<They're gonna call the cops!>> she points out in warning to the group.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Balm's display of disapproval is so VIOLENT. And Mike's ability to interpret what Balm really met is very lacking.

Although he was probably close to figuring what the second hand gesture meant.

So rude.

He looks back to the sheet, reading through it again. Okay. So guess Mike's participating in a unicorn hunt. Not sure how helpful he'd be though. Mike peers over the page to the group as the instructions are relayed in his head. He's got a STRONG suspicion the Bard reference is directed at him. <<More of a phantasm really. >> He corrects. << Eh. I'll figure something out. Oh and for reference sake, Unicorns look like the typical storybook version, right? Are they solitary creatures or prefer more of their own? >>

Honestly. He's got a reason for asking.

And then, it gets cold. And someone shoots off a gun.

Well that escalated quickly.

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Still not adjusted to speaking mind to mind, though she takes it in stride, Kora says aloud with a smiling nod to the serious faces around her, "Then, I will help." She pats and leans on Idu who has put his full weight against her bare leg.

    It is decided and rather typical of the young woman to charge headlong into a fight. A fight? Well, a hunt. Kora only wishes she had her armor and weapons so scandalous to modern sensibilities.

    Goosebumps presage the snow that begins to fall. Snow is rather rare in the Aegean except on the very highest mountain which she had not been privileged to visit. Leaning her head back she catches a snowflake on her tongue and looks down with shared concern to the whining dog.

Alert to the sound of hooves, Kora turns in place, looking for their origin.

    She jumps.

Explosions, she wishes that she could take them with the aplomb of the Princess. After taking a deep breath and straightening her shoulders, she turns to regard the shooter with a questioning look.

<<What now? Why this explosion?.>>

Bart Allen has posed:
Bart Allen will pull his backpack off and offer it to Balm and Tabby. "I have some things that the unicorn may like in there." He offers and then as it starts getting cold and Hope speaks he nods, and will start doing an outward spiral for a couple blocks making sure folks are out of the cold radius. He also judges how big the effect is, before trying to think back to the others <OkthecoldgoesoutforagoodbitbutIgotpeoplemovingaway> He has learned to take time when talking to people, he is not very used to telepathy so his thoughts blur a bit as he tries to communicate.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Luckily the unicorn isn't showing itself very easily. The sound from Hopes weapon echoes around them, making even Phoebe duck her head slightly as she winces at the sounds, covering her ears briefly.

    <They won't. It's New York. What's a few gunshots?!> she thinks out to the group, and there's a curl of her hand as she narrows her eyes. <I don't think you'll have to set anything on fire in the real world -- do you feel it? Taste it on your tongue?> she asks, and she grasps her other hand into a loose fist and reaches into her bag.

    Balm's disapproval wasn't violent! She was mimicking why she can't talk and saying her ears were juuust fine!

    Michael's question is answered by the appearance of Epirote.

    Epirote was large than Laconian, and where Laconian was far more deer-like in build and appearance, Epirote was long furred, with the glistening of scales just beneath the fur. Their eyes were blackened, onyyx pools of blank darkness that absorbed the light around them, along with the jagged cut in existence that was their horn in brilliant white counterpoint to the blank darkness of their eyes.

    Idu stays close to Kora , his tail curling up over his back and curling as his ears draw backwards.

    The unicorn doesn't seem to take notice of anyone. The mountain-goat like creature, its shorter, squat ears swinging forward, tilts its head back, tasting the air as if trying to get a better sense of what these creatures are that have stumbled into its claimed territory. Cloven hooves of onyx tap against the top of the tea house roof that he has settled upon.

    Some of the ice from the pont spikes up from the far side, and as Hope transmits its danger here, she gets a large lob of spiked ice in her direction!

    The spiked ice starts at Hope, and then arches around like hands wandering down an icy piano of launching icy death, trying to spear everyone in the vicinity.

    Epirote looks unbothered.

Hope Summers has posed:
    <If they do, the response time is awful this time of ... time.> Hope responds to the team question as well.

    <Good work Impulse.> The red head thinks towards the speedster, able to catch some of what he thought to the team before she takes a breath and raises the hood up over her hair to try and at least fight the snow. Completely unaware of the attack coming past the group and directly for her.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
<<The wide band telepathy telling folks to get out. The drop in temperature. They're so gonna be all Mutant Terrorism on this! The gunshot's just gonna be icing on the cake.>> Tabby points out.

She does stick out her tongue to try and catch some snow and maybe nothing. She even waggles that pink organ top try and catch something. <<We're phased? So like wow. This walk through walls stuff?" she asks curiosly though she makes no attempt to test it. last thing she needs to do if walk into a wall. Or through and unphase halfway. So embarrassing.

The Unicorn's appearance getting raised eyebrows behind Boom-Boom's glasses. <<So I gotta wonder what Achin' the Firehoofed is gonna look like. Prolly not a Rapidash?>> she ponders and yells out to Epirote as he sends an attack of pointy cold at the redheaded Mutant.

"Hey! We're cool, we're friends with Laconian! I'm the one that freed you. Wanna send you home proper! New York is not fun for a lonely guy hoofing it around!" she yells, hopefully the fuzz left on her from when she last hugged Laconian is enough to held jog memories and de-escalate the situation.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Oh yes. Certainly that's what Balm meant with the movements but Mike's clearly pointed out that he's not good with ASL. And sometimes just random hand gestures. And certainly his meta would continue to defend but there's the matter of the unicorn appearing.

Mike shivers as the cold starts to register upon his T-shirted person, but the advice given my Balm makes him consider. Mind games? Is it really an illusion? It still feels pretty freaking cold to him though. As for the source-

Getting a general sense of forboding Mike turns his head, looking over towards Epirote. The jaggend horn combined with the darkness of the eyes takes a few moments to fully appreciate. This is not what Mike had in mind when he read the paper.

<< That is the most metal unicorn I have ever seen. >> Mike thinks unapologetically.

Well. It is true. How many unicorns have YOU seen? << Even his hooves are black . >>

Ok. So the initial thought of a decoy unicorn is scrapped. Being the creature is standing RIGHT there, if he were to shift to form right there, that'd pretty much defeat the whole point, wouldn't it? And then the unicorn starts to move. He sighs. << Right... Going to need a minute or two... >>

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Idu's heat is a small fire warming Kora's right leg. Idly, she lays a hand on top of his head which tenses at the perceived threat. She fights the shivers.

    The monokeros is like nothing she has ever hunted - not a stag, or an underwater creature. It tastes the air like a serpent or iguana; those she knows and remembers sunning themselves on rocks in the summer heat. They were innocent and welcome to share the world and sun themselves, but this...feels awful.

The rapid shared communication between them is partly gibberish to her. Rapidash? Achin' the Firehoofed? Metal unicorn? But the yelled communication has sense. Sending them home. She confirms her understanding, <<We will send it home? But protect people?>>

Bart Allen has posed:
Bart Allen comes back as he finishes with the people. He sees the ice going towards people and moves to his backpack to pull out a pin, and starts trying to ice pick the blob of ice down, and if that does not seem to work, he will grab hope and move her a couple feet to the left to try to get the orb to miss her. He has dealt with ice before but it usually comes from a gun.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    It is perhaps a pretty metal unicorn, all mountain goat and untroubled as he stands on the teahouse roof, watching its wall of spikes get icepicked apart by Bart, bits of slush and softened ice falling around the feet of our heroes -- creating a dangerous combonation of slicked pavement and slushed ice. True to Balm's word, there are no police. There is a cry of someone slipping on ice as they try to escape the side-stepped bubble of slightly altered reality that the unicorn has created, and it appears to look over the gathering of people.

    The temperature continues to drop. Anyone with very good hearing may be able to register that there is calliope music drifting through the air.

    Idu stays nearest to Kora, on the defensive.

    New York is a perfect place. All of its warmth. All of its people. Even YOU and your HEALER carry the mark of those who would drain all life to support their roots. a woman's voice echoes in everyone's head. Accented like something Scandanavian, vague and unplacable and the voice as cold as that first leap into the snow as a child, biting at the ears.

    The unicorn stands, her black eyes still examining all, matte and taking in every bit of light offered.

    I see the hearts of these people and wish them peirced with cold, that they may still and never grow elderly and cruel as life is stolen from them.

Hope Summers has posed:
    Hope is moved, suddenly and sharply and with a gasp of breath as she is about fifteen feet from where she just was. <Thanks for the save Impulse.> Hope projects before the words enter her mind and the redhead's eyes figuratively burn with a rage towards the unicorn.

    She is suddenly cut off from the telepathy of the group, pushing against Tabitha's link with Tabitha's own powers, and with a thought, the connection is severed. She doesn't need coaching on what to do with mass murderers.

    A glance to her left away from the group and a frown as she already fired the one lethal round she brought today, but the time traveller squares up to the beast, regardless of the people between her and it. Drawing on Dani's powers however, Hope feels she can't speak with it but she can feel it and it can feel her. She grits her teeth and shows the thing a portion of her past. This world's future. A world of fire and dispair, and people. People struggling and fighting and yet not frozen. And still existing.

    Hope refuses to speak to this thing, but she's trying to be the diplomat if she can.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
There's a look from Tabby to Balm and a shrug. Tabby is not sure what Epirote meant. <<Uhh, it gets pretty cold here in winter. This heat we been having is kinda messed up. Not that it bothers me but still.>> she says and swirls those orbs of plasma like a collection on mini suns. Tabby having to pour more energy into them as it gets colder.

<<So who's mark? I'd prefer not being drained of power if I can help it. But we do kinda wanna help. This isn't still your home. I'd prefer assholes like that last one not chaining you up again!>> Tabby doesn't have the range to keep everyone too far away from her linked in. But at least with people evacuated she has less background noise to filter out. That music a little clearer and Tabby's head swivels to try and find where it comes from while she's stuck between listening with her brain and her ears and struggles to sometimes tell them apart.

<<Like freezing people ain't the way to go. And I know all about people being cruel. I'm a mutant. There's folks want to hunt me down and disect me just for fun, let alone profit. Don't want that happening to you and and if you ice up people out of compassion, they won't understand. Wrong thing. Right reason. Just gonna get you heat that might melt you down.>> she tries to talk down the dark goat headed unicorn lady.

They might be doomed.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Now there is a drawback to a hive mind imposed by another person. And that would be the jumble of thoughts that are coming together. In a calmer time, it may actually be interesting to have a glimpse into the mind of a song writer. But when your quarry is trying to go stabbity with it's horn, or is in the process of doing it's villanous speech, it's less endearing.

So while Epirote's letting it go with her desire for people to just DIE! The speech is marred with random inserts from Mike's creative process.

<<Sending home... gnome? Grown? Flown? Known. Zone... >>

<<Epriote. ... note?>>

<<Unicorn and Horn. Duh. >>

<<bitch. witch. ... Too easy. Skip that.>>

<< Damn It's FUCKING cold. - No! Chill. Kill. Bill. Wait, no could be misinterpreted. Heard it was a good movie th- focus. Will?>>

After what seems like an eternity, Mike's voice speaks up.

"There is something to note,
wintery Epirote .
That you seem to bring a chill
as you exert your mean will.

Do not attack with your horn,
and listen, unicorn.
Please give us back the heat
and midway with us meet.
We'd like for it to be known
we only wish you to go home."

As the words are uttered, Mike looks over to the unicorn, brows lifting as he mirrors Idu in the puppy dog eyes department.

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    Ice shatters and scatters around them into jagged edges of cold when the man she saw at the arena disappears in a blur. The voice resounding in her head is like the broken ice. Wrong. the cold deadly. She looks down at Idu, in all his innocence he understands.

    Raising her chin, the young Amazon sends back a challenge. <<No one seeks to drain all life,>> she protests. <<Are you so perfect that you can judge us? -We- wish you no harm. Did you not hear? - We - would send you home. Epirus?>>

Bart Allen has posed:
Bart Allen stops and looks over to the unicorn, he takes a couple seconds to admire it and how it is formed and what it looks like but then he speaks up "Not all people are cruel, and not all people get that way as they get older. I mean I thought Max was mean at times, but he was trying to help me, I just could not see it from that point in time. And Joan and Jay are like a billion but they are the nicest people you would ever want to meet. Joan makes great cookies, and then there is Al, he is old to, but he cares for a lot of people. If you freeze people to keep them from being cruel, they can not be kind either. Life is change sometimes it is good sometimes it is bad, but frozen in time, it looses all meaning and the magic of life. Look about you we come here not to try to harm you, or keep you in the state your in, no we come here to try to help you home, where you can be with those you care about and are kind to. We are trying to help you, not take things away from you. If you want to stay you can, but if your trying to hurt people, other people will try to stop you." Then he hears the music and says "And seems the asshat maybe hunting you to harm you.'

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Myew... tint... I suppose then your hearts are becoming as closed as this hidden one. Epirote states, and blinking those matte black eyes the unicorn causes the water to rise up, serpentine in form, made of slush and jagged ice, and with surprising speed the serpent seeks out Hope, with a wish for Death in her heart, and SLAMS her down and to the frozen pool, cracking the torii gate in the process and causing its upper two curves to shatter, splinters flying everywhere as the unicorn drags Hope beneath the icy water!

    A few koi are sent splashing upwards, flopping until they're Frozen Fish Fillets.

    Balm does not seem like she's in a good place mentally, seeing the other Outsider get taken out with nary a sound, as the calliope music gets stronger.

    But never quite penetrates.

    Phoebe strips off her sweatshirt and throws it to the side as she dives for hope, trying to grab to her hand, the tac-pants-and-athletic-top wearing teenager with the close-shorn hair pulling her green-handled knife from her side as she drags it against the ice.

    The unicorn, then, moves, icy mist gathering around it as she steps along the mist, unbothered.

    To return home to a dying land? No, I would be happy to turn this New York into my frigid kingdom.

    And the spikes of ice rise up again.

    And Epirote launches ice and spikes at everyone, this time with deadly intent -- but there is that little warm feeling in the back of Mike's mind. It's working... just not *quickly*.

    <MICHAEL. RHYME AGAIN! Tabitha hit it with everything you got! Kor, there's a golden bridle in my bag. GET IT. Bart -- the museum next door get Kora a spear, a sword **ANYTHING**!>

Hope Summers has posed:
    Hope's eyes remain locked onto the unicorn, the rest of the world seems to swell in her vision though, her eyes wide and pulling in all the information she can. She doesn't squint during battle, she does the opposite. Information will keep you alive. You alive can keep others alive. Hope's training is so ingrained.

    "Do you know why my past has no ice in it? Because you fail here and now. Your kindgom fa-" Hope's face is grabbed in the violent magical attack and she's lifted through the air to be pulled into the sheet of ice the pond has become. Hope fights the whole time, her rifle flailing madly trying to get a bead on the beast to at least put it to sleep, but the angle never comes.

    Her back is the first thing to find the ice and she screams out in pain, or tries to but the slush creature at her face and chest prevents it and she's then out cold on the next slam. Gun dropped and the red head is limp.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
<<That's not what we're being taught at the school I live with. I fight to protect this world, even the people that hate and fear us!>> Tabby mentally yells while the plasma she'd had flaoting grows and floats to meet as many of those ice attacks as possible.

<<Peace and unity gotta build. We've got a few millenia and stuff to work past. Gotta play the long game!>> she calls out while she moves her plasma in a concentrated stream at the Unicorn. Spirals and weaving flames of superheated ioniosed gasses directed with psionic commands.

<<Can we try just settling down? You're going home like Laconian. Away from those that would harm you. You'll be safe to rebuild your own kingdom. No taking over mine!>> she yells and lets others rhyme.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Feeling the warmth in the back of his head. Mike's lips part as he tries to work through more words to use that seem relevant to the conversation.

<<burn, earn, yurn, urn- scratch that, fern - probably not but not as bad as urn, learn, turn)

<<fire, warm, harm, heart, art, glow, show, grow, slow, flow...>>

<<<ice, nice, price, lice-not that one, twice, thrice, mice...>>>

Creating rhymes on the spot takes quite a bit of thought. Unfortunately that ends up coming with a cost as the spike that comes sailing at him comes close. In his attempt to avoid the blur coming right at him. Mike slips on what is apparently an ice patch. How unfortunate.

Or fortunate as the spike ends up hitting him in the shoulder. "OH MOTHERF-!"

Mike hits the ground, bringing a hand over to the spike. Gritting his teeth, he starts again, craning his head to look to the unicorn.

'Dear one whose heart has covered in ice,
please let it come to a thaw, and play nice.
The hurt that has caused for such hate to flow,
rekindle your heart so the love can once more grow.
With the newfound hope within that starts to burn,
A new beginning with your old home you will learn.'

Phrase said, Mike turns his head with a groan, letting the back of it smack on the ground. It didn't have far to go as he was already there. "...'try the garden' he said." Mike grits out, "'It'll be relaxing' he said...UGH. FUCK."

Bart Allen has posed:
Bart Allen nods his head to Phoebe, and as she goes after Hope Bart is off, but he does not go to the museum, no he heads to get Kora a proper weapon and shield. He goes to the embassy, and leaving a quick not, "I O U, one spear, one shield, and Thunder." And with that Impulse collects his friend and with a bit of shared speed, there comes a blur in from the direction of the Embassy, and Thunder the Kanga is doing a leap and turn to tail slap the unicorn away from those who need defended. He looks over to Kora, and offers her, her shield and spear, and then back to the Unicorn "We don't want to hurt you but you will not hurt our friends, right Thunder." and the Kanga makes a kanga sound in agreement.

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    The world shatters into a chaos of ice and cold. The mute woman dives for her friend, another man rhymes with the facility of Homer and a voice tells her to run to a museum. What Kora wants is a shield and a spear, a sword would do in a pinch. She knows enough about life here that dogs won't be admitted to a public place.

    Reflexively she moves in front of Idu to shield him against the spears of ice.

     It's a return to weapons practice for her. Before she has finished dancing and ducking at the icy projectiles arcing toward them, she has her wish held in the hand of the man phasing in and out of existence.

    Shock and pleasure widen her eyes. She remembers to close her mouth and thank him, "Please, tell me your name when we are done and safe here."

    <<Will you fight us? Will you not listen to reason, Epirote? There are lands that would take you into their arms. But if you will not listen to the voice of reason then you will have to reckon with things sharper than your wits!>>

    Kora walks toward the Monokoros with her shield before her, spear held at the ready.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The things kids are taught at school these days.

    Hope's motionless body is dragged beneath the ice, jagged and broken at the surface as Phoebe sends herself after it, her green-handkled knife is stabbed into the frozen pond.

    There, somewhere in the murk, a different battle is happening.

    Idu gives a bark at the creature and the ice, and gives a sharp YIP! of pain as he's struck with ice hard enough to send him backflipping, but doesn't seem to give it much mind. Idu's not only the best boy, he is Tessem. He is Hunting Dog, and he protec!

    He charges forward, nails scrabbling on the ice as he makes it to the pond's edge, his teeth bared as he leaps, completely misses, and slides past Epirote, who seems unbothered by the goings on -- until something does catch her attention.

    A Kanga. A Speedster on a Kanga.

    Well. Things have made less sense in her life.

    The matte black eyes that absorb all the light around them seem almost to flitter, to glow with malevolent light, and then the unicorn looks to the assembled, lips pulled back and showing dull, yellowed teeth, it bellows, rears back, and charges.

    -- NO. NO I CAN FEEL THEM. IN MY MIND AGAIN! I shall not be captured! You *FOOLS* they will take you into the dark!

    Into the dark will all things flow, all the secrets Dark shall know, visit once we have this week, visit twice these creatures seek, rhyme and boom and healer bright, Amazons and feet so light, a hound sniffing 'round in the snow, why all of them to darkness go! Surrender now, friends, time to unwind -- and next we meet I shall not be kind! echoes a voice through the cold -- one Tabitha and Bart would both know.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
While Tabby is trying to herd Epirote away from anyone with her. Mostly to keep the unicorn off Balm's back while she rescues the redhead. Tabby is not looking forwards to explaining that to Cable.

To the Unicorn though Tabby keeps streaming plasma and heat as best she can. Much flames and force directed though only so much to knock her about if the cold prevents any scorching.

The voice Tabby hears, makes her groan and there's a sense of anger through the mind link "Well oh my dang! This guy is lame."

"He's got no game and against the rhymes we sang, if it's all the same."

"To cause this mess we'll blame! I'll send you my flame. A flash and big bang!" she says both aloud and into the wide psychic yonder. Tabby then starts charging a bomb. The size of a basketball. Crackling and condensed with heat, bright loud and intense with conentration of Tabitha's psionic energy.

"I spark suns! I melt guns. You can't have her in this fray. I have to say neigh! You face BOOM-BOOM TODAY!" she taunts back.

The rhyming might have tripped her freestyle senses as much as her protective instincts as she seeks out her target.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike groans.

<< Did we win or lose? >>

And then he hears the voice speaking in rhyme a general sense of discontent fills him.. Well that doesn't scream villain...

"Dammit."

Alright. Hail Mary.

From his spot on the ground, Mike seems pretty harmless. And they're probably right to assume that. But for those still tapped into the hive mind. Yeah. It's spammy thanks to the career musician

<< Rhyme, time, crime, fail, pale, jail, tale, form, torn--->>

<< light bright fight>>

"We will not lose the light,
despite your urges for the night.
The only thing that will go pale,
is your face as you fail
To come up with a suitable rhyme,
when it becomes an important time.
Your actions are in poor form
and from you victory will be torn.
The unicorns futures will be bright
as on you they turn their fight."

It is a most intimidating rhyme. And perhaps, if he wasn't still lying on the ground while blurting it out. The visual would match up. But ooooh is he fixing a stern look towards the the direction of that villainous voice.

Kora Ikassis has posed:
    The voice cutting across her consciousness rivals the cold in Epirote's. Idu's yelp sears her with pity for the brave dog. The flashing man, as she calls him, disappears from her s Kora strides forward to stand behind the woman throwing electric fire. Her spear is puny in comparison, but if she can throw it with enough force it could shatter something.

     Kora can't make herself pass a downed fighter and offers a hand to the man who she believes has been producing Homeric verse. <<Perhaps, you can stand to fight as we try to eradicate this blight.>> She grins and shrugs in apology before moving on to her objective, spear poised in her right hand.

    Shield as her counter balance, Kora extends her right arm behind her and throws the spear at the Epirote. It arcs through the cold air, plasma light turning it into fire.

Bart Allen has posed:
Bart Allen looks to the Unicorn and says "Let us send you home there you can roam. Him we will beat, while you leave on your feet." Yea Bart is not the best Rhymer, but he does look out to the voice and calls out "Los locos kick your ass. Los locos kick your face. Los locos kick your balls INTO OUTER SPACE!" He keeps one eye on the unicorn to make sure it does not charge them, but also watching for the voice. Then to Kora "Impulse is my name, rhyming is not my game."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Explain away your rhyming light, as my noose surrounds you tight, suns you may yet spark young girl but give my experience a whirl -- I have seen suns grow and seen suns die, I have seen a thousand different skies, the faces, names I have possessed would confuse your little mind to guess, so send your balls, your speed your booms, for all is swallowed in the gloom, a dying light a fading land, like escaping little sands from a broken hourglass, we only fight to make it last. Come into the dark my sweet, and lend us your powers neat. And to the one who magics in time -- you find you do it all the time, once it becomes a habbit bold to this little habbit you hold. Your spells help not the Icemist rise --

    All that said while the following happens:

    Idu attempts to dislodge himself from the snow, and he gives an embarrassed whimper before giving a yodeling sort of cry that echoes into the cold. Epirote is rhymed at -- and as she rears to try and strike the dog down she's struck by the fire, causing something to break loose, like frost or hard snow coming off a roof in thehot sun --

    And Thunder bounces about, probably as Bart rhymes as well with the group.

    But they clear my mind like above skies! the feminine voice cries out as the matte blackness falls away from them, fire enveloping her form and the scales falling away like a bad skin condition. With a harsh kick, the ice parts below her, allowing Phoebe to rise up out of the frigid water, carrying an unconcious Hope with her as she tries to scrabble out onto the ice.

    The unicorn gives a bright bleating sound, a bellow like the tolling of heavy bells, and the *Cold* stops, even if the snow and ice remains, the winds whipping warmly around them!

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Tabby grins and lets that bomb up into the sky. High enough that it's booms as loud and bright as promised. A nudge in the mind link to warn those in it to at least not look up.

BOOM!

The oversized flashbang goes off and maybe it threatens to shatter windows if it was in a more built up area instead of a botaniocal garden. The flash of light and heat putting a brief melt on any snow fallin g though what's left above that is still to fall in it's own time.

At ground level Tabitha keeps the heat going to make sure everyone that wants to stay warm is able to until summer can reassert itself. <<A new friend I will say. Your troubles end on this day.>> Tabby keeps the rhyming reassurances up for the thawing Unicorn. <<While I'm not really a unicorn. Your missing one last. Heroes will search so do not be forlorn!>> she might not ever get a recording contract. She might have gotten the idea that everyone rhyming is for the best tactically. <<Everyone alive. No time to be jive. Hope better still thrive!>> she adds expectantly of at least the redhead's health. Once things are settled and Epirote is home and safe then Tabby will collect Dani and scoot.

And maybe toot her own horn. In the bad guy's side she's been a thorn.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike looks to the hand offered in the effort to make him stand. Because standing worked out SO well before. The musician reaches up the hand attached to the not currently impaled shoulder. "Yeah... thanks." He murmurs as he's pulled up. He sneaks a glance to the shoulder, determining how bad it is.

Sure, he knows how bad it FEELS but- Is it something he can patch up or will it need help?

It's funny. He no longer feels the cold of the ice.

Wait.

Isn't that bad?

Kora Ikassis has posed:
Once the poet is on his feet, Kora gives him a nod and a once over. "You will live," she decides.

    What sounds like a thousand spears clashing on shields crashes through the garden. The air warms and it is not until the change of temperature that Kora realizes she can't feel her knees. A quick glance down at herself confirms that her skin is a pale shade of blue. Well, better than the paleness of blood loss.

<<Will it live?>>

Idu's whimper and the mute woman rising from the water with her friend draws her to their side.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    <Just this once,> Phoebe manages to sound **exhausted** even over a mental link <Everybody lives.>

    THe boom in the sky might have driven some away, and as the unicorn trots towards the group, summer returns in her wake.

    Wounds are healed (including Idu's). Hope is dispatched with Bart back to Gotham, to where Phoebe can work her up and back to health.

    Phoebe, in a sports bra, soaking wet, showing off the scars on her stomach and shoulder and the burned-in symbols on her left arm appears to have a brief conversation with the unicorn.

    And then, now without a circle, she closes her eyes and thinks very hard:

    Ut omnis aqua suo tempore volvitur, iterum atque iterum rediens, sic te vinctum in domum mittimus, Epirotus, unde venisti, redi.

    And with a flash, the unicorn is gone. The wounds have healed.

    And Phoebe falls into the pond again that she's no longer standing on ice, and flails, Idu sitting on shore and watching his charge lightly drown.