The Defenders Renewed (Group Thread Open To All)

"How many shells does it hold now?" She asked handing him the other shotgun. "And did you ever think that a big brain is a super power? I sure as fuck can't build robots." She said, looking down the sight of her newly modded shotgun.

"Seven" He replied before shaking his head

"My parents would have said the same thing but it doesnt hold as much weight when both of your parents are super hero's" he said snorting and looking down at the robot spider "or at were super hero's"

"It's a double barrel. It should hold an even number. Where does the last shell go? She asked snatching the gun from him and looking it over critically as he kept talking. She listened to the bitter note in his voice as he talked about things he had no reason to be bitter about. Quit whining and fix my damn gun. Boo hoo, your parents are dead and your super power isn't cool enough. At least you had parents, and no one had to strap you to a table to make you special." She growled throwing the gun back at him.

he narrowed his eyes smacking it away and sending it crashing to the floor. It broke the wooden handle splitting as he glared at her "Fix your own gun and learn some fucking manners while your at it"

He turned walking out struggling to hold back the tears. He cursed under his breath shaking his head and walking back to the OPS center and leaving her alone.

"Well fuck you too!" She shouted sending the screw driver spinning after him. She watched in satisfaction as the handle cracked him in the back of the head. She watched as he walked away. Max slid off of the table and grabbed some cans and a box of nails. She sat down and began to build some nail bombs.

A few minutes later Max was finished working. "I should blow this place up and go home." Max thought as she placed her pile of finished nail bombs into a bag and slung it over her shoulder. "Nah. Too much stuff to steal. Plus I'm hungry." She thought.

Max walked out of the workshop and looked around for a moment before shouting, "Hey Spider Nerd! Where's the grub in this bucket!?"

Gregory went back to OPS settling in and shaking his head "fucking bitch" he murmured to himself rolling his eyes. He decided to forget it for now and went back to work on making sure the single calling the defenders was still going strong. There were a number of people trying to turn it off or dampen it and so he was tasked with keeping it on and circumventing it.

He spent a few minutes checking the signals and latest work arounds before he heard her trying to get his attention.

"Go find it your self" He called into the mic "should be two halls down"

Max flipped off the ceiling, assuming a camera was watching her, before she made her way to the kitchens. She found a steak in a refrigerator, and set it on fire with the stove top. She put the fire out with her hands, and picked apart the steak for edible pieces. She ate her fill then walked out of the kitchen, leaving the burnt remains of her meal on the counter. She returned to the halls and shouted, "Spider Nerd! I'm bored!"

John Pov

"Stop ripping holes in my wall!" John growled to Max stepping out with both Avery and Veronica

"Veronica and Siren meet Max" John said pointing at her and folding his arms "Max if your done being mean to Gregory we were heading back to the ops center to meet" He said raising an eyebrow waiting for her answer.

"He started it!" Max growled. "I wasn't aware children were allowed in this organization." Veronica said, looking Max up and down with distaste. "Go blow the queen." Max said, glaring at Veronica. "You said this would be fun. This place is boring as fuck. When do I get to kill something?" Max asked the Commander.

Avery could head the woman"s carrying on from down the halls, and the smell of flames wafted over to her nostrils. She was pleased that John had said something to her.

"Welcome to the team," Avery said to Max, emphasis on the team part. "You'll probably find things will go alot smoother here when we all get to know each other and you discover which people like being talked to like dirt and those who don't."

"I see your making friends with every one Max" John said resisting the urge to roll his eyes "Max here is going to be on blackwatch along with you veronica" John said stepping between the three girls before trouble could brew.

"Now if were done being rude" John said giving a pointed glare to Max "we can go into OPS center and I can brief you all we havent had any new comers yet so we might as well get started while the others make their way here"

Veronica dreaded the thought of being partnered with Max, but said nothing as the group moved towards the OPS center. "Hey man, I'm not working with tits over here. She looks about as useful as a bird in a fight." Max said, giving Avery a look. "I thought this was going to be a team of badasses, not the fucking Girl Scouts." Max complained. "I'm sure you're very 'badass' when you rob gas stations, but this is a military operation. I'm a trained sniper and infiltrator. I don't need to look useful, because when I take down a target, they don't see me at all." Veronica said, catching herself before she lost her temper. "Only pussies sneak." Max retorted as the group entered the OPS center. Max threw herself into a chair, and put her feet up on a table. "Brief away Commander." She said, pulling out a knife to twirl.

Avery turned on het heel and followed the Commander down the corridor.

"So, looks like this place needs a bit of work Chief. Let me know if you and Spiders need a hand, yeah?" She looked around, a sense of nostalgia washing over her. " I can tell you that I had no idea how glad I would be to be back here." She smiled over at him.

John shook his head favoring Siren with a small smile "It does feel good to be back doesnt it?" He said reaching out and toucher her shoulder before stepping back and nodding at Gregory.

"Put the map up Spider"

"aye sir"

A large holographic map of the world sprang up. It hovered in the air for a second before a large number of red dots began falling into place.

"As you all know or well most of you" John said shaking his head at Max "our enemies the syndicate have been enjoying our forced disbandment" He said pointing at the dots.

"They have been more and more agressive in the past couple of years trying to guide world events until we stand on the brink of world war three the goverment doesnt care its to far in pocket thats why it needs us even if it doesnt want us to stop the syndicate and put an end to Jane once and for all"

"How?" Max asked, looking at the Commander. "That map is wonderful, but red dots don't tell me who I'm shooting." Max said. "Perhaps if you let him finish..." Veronica said, studying the locations on the map. "Where have they been most active?" Veronica asked.

"Russia" John said sighing and waving his hand at the globe. It span before centering on the country which was a swarm of red.

"You guys know the current war brewing between the coalition and Russia" John said turning back to them "the whole things about to go tits up with americans and Canadians all but foaming at the mouth to attack Russia and use it as an excuse to claim their OMNI population"

"The russians of course want to get into it for different reasons mainly because some one has been whispering in their ears that the coalition has enemies who will support them when they attack"

"I havent been able to figure out why however the syndicate and more importantly that crazy bitch wants Russia to be wiped out which is looking more and more like the case" John said "no doubt it has some thing to do with the..... things she thinks are coming to enslave us all"

John felt his vision blur and swore. He had thought by not using alien it wouldnt act as a trigger word yet it would seem even hinting about them was enough for the whispering to start. He heard the language starting up once again the one he both understood and did not understand. By sheer force of his will he pushed it away shaking his head.

"Of course thats just the main syndicate front theres still there usual bedlam and mayham" John said pinching the bridge of his nose "the terrors have come out of retirement they have been going on a road trip in south america causing bedlam and destruction"

"What does she think's coming to enslave us? Is their leader bat shit?" Max asked, looking at the map. "It doesn't matter what she believes. Regardless of the mental state of the Syndicate's leader, she needs to be stopped. Her organization is doing serious damage, for whatever reason. But I think it would be foolish to attack where they're the thickest." Veronica said, turning the map to South America. "What can you tell us about these Terrors?"

"Hello, is anyone home? These spiders are great company, but if you'd like to join us, it'd be much appreciated!"

Jordan walked around the compound, calling out once more. He was beginning to lose hope. About a month ago he had been told of this place by an older friend, and getting here had taken him about that long. Now that he was here, he couldn't seem to find anyone. It was very much like a catacombs, with sprawling tunnels and passageways, but it seemed largely abandoned, besides these weird metal spiders who seemed to be... Building? They were reconstructing it looked like, but all automatically.

Rounding the next corner he found something interesting. A workshop!

"Finally, something interesting. I wonder what we have in here?"

On the ground Jordan noticed a few broken pieces of what looked like a revamped double barrel shotgun. Only one of the barrels was longer than the other? Maybe to shoot an extra bullet. But why just one extra bullet? Whatever. He left it on the ground, and looked around the rest of the shop. That's when he heard the voices.

"Stop ripping holes in my wall!"

Jordan's head shot up and he snapped, moving instantly to the far wall, leaning back against it as he listened down the corridor. Some introductions, blah blah blah, bickering. Now didn't seem like a good time to introduce himself. He tailed the group quietly, fingers locked in snapping position to move at any time. When they reached their destination, and began talking over some hologram, Jordan watched intently from the doorframe, figuring out what was going on, and when he should say hello.

Jordan looked down t his outfit compared to the others, and realized he might not exactly be dressed for the occasion. As of now he easily resembled a homeless man, with an oversized jacket and dirty pants on, it was just what he could find! He also noticed that his sock had disappeared. Damnit, when had that happened?

Avery sat back, eyes assessing the map that the Commander was showing them. Despite the fact that she had purposely isolated herself from most people, she had been keeping somewhat abreast of the political climate. Upon the forced dissolution of the Defenders she had initially gone back home to Australia and helped with government negotiations. After a couple of years her influence soon wore off, she had gone from being Siren who helped save the world to Siren who had wings and sat next to random government officials. Most of whom, if she were entirely honest, were jerks. She also hated living in the major cities; the power lines and high-rise buildings were not conducive to free flying.

In joining the Defenders the moment she turned eighteen, and spending the better part of her year with them, she had forgone her old friends in order to pursue her own dreams. By the time she returned home people had gone to uni and moved on, gotten boyfriends or girlfriends, and were too intimidated by the full knowledge of her powers to maintain any proper relationships. She would have reached out to her fellow Defenders for comfort and company, but she knew that the final year and the disbandment of the group had left many of them in the same position. In this case, she had decided that misery may like company, but she was not going to drag others down with her. So instead she did what the politicians had asked for long enough to truly disconnect from her old life. The government still contacted her every now and again, but she feared that her own country was going much the same way as Canada and the U.S. They were all jumping on the political tension bandwagon and ignoring the real threat.

Well, at least now she would be able to help get to the root of the problem.

Avery was just about to make a comment on the terrors when she spied movement in the corridor. She sat up straighter, wings tensing as she spotted the young man in the hall, wearing an oversized jacket and dirty pants. She blinked when she realised he was also missing a sock. Bloody hell! How had he gotten past security.

"Uh, Chief? Looks like we have company?" She said, jutting a thumb out in the dark-haired guy's direction. He looked too shocked and out of place to be there to kill them, and Avery wasn't in on the new recruit situation.

"Uh, chief? Looks like we have company?"

Shit.

Jordan looked up and found a number of eyes now peering his direction, mostly curious rather than hostile, which was a nice change. People weren't usually very accepting of his powers, as he hadn't officially come out to the public as a hero, no one knew who or what he was.

But these four people in front of him now probably had a better reason to be curious. This was a moon base, after all. Not just anyone could get into a moon base with a missing sock.

"Hi! I'm Jordan. Or Spark? It doesn't matter right, cause my friends call me Jordan, and I figure you guys are pretty cool."

*Snap*

Jordan was now closer to the group joining their semi circle around the projection.

"You guys all look hella cool by the way, sorry about my outfit, I wasn't actually expecting to find anyone. Anyways, you don't know me, I got a recommendation for this place by a guy named Gerard? He said you'd know him, I dunno really. Dark guy?"

*Snap*

Next to Avery.

"Are you The Sien? That's awesome, you used to be cool before the political stuff, I was a huge fan. Are those really real?" He yammered, looking pointedly at her wings.

Avery watched as Jordan teleported around the room. He was clearly nervous and chatting to cover it, but she smiled at him nonetheless. He teleported right beside her and for the second time that day her wings were called into question by a younger male. She wondered what the 'forums' that Spiders had spoken of were, and whether it was a wise choice of her to have cut herself off from the internet fanbase for so long. Although she had to say she was a bit put off by the fact that she used to be cool. Gosh, at twenty eight she had started to feel ancient. She now felt bad for all the times she had poked fun at the Chief's age ten years ago.

"Siren at your service," Avery said. She then flexed her wings out slightly and turned so he could see where they connected to her back. "You bet your butt they're real." She told him.

"Siren at your service, you bet your butt they're real."

Jordan stood back, awed, before looking around at the other members of the group. Somehow, none of them seemed as friendly as Siren. He turned back to her, admiring her wings, the perfect symbol that they were.

"Damn that's cool. I wish I had something lke that, not my stpid snapping. People look at that and see a hero, every time. You don't even have to speak to be majestic and inspiring. All I get usually is screams and side glances when they see how pale my hands are, and realize that I'm an unknown super."

Jordan looked down at his hands, dark memories of frantic chases through the night filling his head. Images of watching roving bands of frightened militia searching for him as he watched from a distance. How many times had that happened now? He'd lost track now.

John was about to answer Veronicas question when sirens words reached him. Before he could call the man in he was suddenly in the group with them jabbering in the same way that Gregory did.

"Spider?" John asked ignoring the man for a second and looking over at Gregory

"Hes a super all right" Gregory said showing John the screens taken of Spark or whatever his name was the minute he came in "I'm getting him registered now"

"Thanks I-" John paused the name having reached him "did you say Gerard?" John said his eyes widening slightly.

"I thought he was dead" John murmured glancing down at his defenders wristbrand
"so many of us are these days" He said shaking his head before sighing.

"Spark welcome to the team" John said stepping forward and taking his hand "I'll have spider work on making you a suit that you wont lose parts of when you teleport but for now sit down and relax you with friends now" He said doing his best to give a social smile (It came off more creepy however).

"Now Veronica to answer your question" John said turning back to the map "While the terrors are the current public threat we need to see whats going on in Russia what the syndicate wants so bad there that they are putting the whole world on the brink of war to get it The Defenders have always existed in three sanctions blackwatch overwatch and ecowatch"

"Siren, Max, and I will be dealing with the terrors before we meet you and i'm thinking Spark here in Russia you have had experience before behind enemy lines and with Spark here able to teleport he might be just what we need to get in and figure out what there planning"

Veronica silently listened to John's plan. Once he was finished, she stood up and slowly approached Spark. She appraised him for a few moments, taking in his scruffy appearance before speaking. "He seems ill prepared for a mission of this caliber Commander. He's untrained, untested, and frankly, he's an unknown. He just shows up out of the blue, and we're going to trust him with a mission this important? He could be a double agent or a spy. Even if he isn't, taking him with me would only slow me down." Veronica said to the Commander, all while looking directly at Spark. "Tell me Spark. Have you ever been in combat before? Have you ever had to decide between the lives of your teammates and the success of the mission? I have. And putting an untrained child in a situation like that will be disastrous. Powers or no powers." She said coldly before turning to the Commander. "He's untrained. Train him. I can handle Russia alone."

"And you guys say I'm a bitch!" Max laughed, after Veronica was finished talking.

"Defenders even black watch do not go in without backup" John said sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose "And while he may be untrained his powers could be invaluable to getting you both in and out of russia"

"The other option is for me to go with you though im not exactly a special ops guy" John said folding his arms "Avery can take command of the team going to fight the terrors and Spark can join her" He said glancing over at spark and then back at Veronica "but im not sending you into Russia on the brink of war with out some backup"