The monument has a pretty sizable crowd of people about it today, and little by littile, it becomes evident that almost everyone here, if not everyone, is one of the Pulsed. Teeth are a little to large, ears a little too long, and other small things give it away. One boy even appears to have a tail, though he never leaves it unhidden for long.
One surprise though, is that a man has managed to set up a booth and is giving out t-shirts, name tags(a few people are using their UnknownPower alias) and bottles of water with the help of a teenage girl who looks a bit like him.
Everyone seems to be having a good time actually meeting other people face-to-face for a change.
After a moment's hesitation, Feliks puts on a name tag that reads I_Know_Kung_Fu. He does not really seem pulsed at first glance since he has no obvious signs that he is anything non-human; anyone watching will eventually notice that he has a fluid, graceful way of moving that he seems not accustomed to.
The man, who introduces himself as Doctor Gale, offers Feliks a shirt as well. It seems he has every size available.
Black Shirt design.
White Shirt design.
Elise's hair started out the day in a lovely shade of olive. But the tips were starting to turn lavender by the time she got to the park. She picked up one of the T-shirts in white. At first she started to ask for a large before she remembered she needed an extra-small. She still hadn't gotten used to her new body. And her knit cap was starting to look a little worse for wear from all the dunkings when she started choking on air. She had a damp scarf tied around her throat today to try and maximize her time before she needed some water to breathe. She put on a name tag and looked around. It was amazing how many other people were here.
Elise recognizes three people. The two boys she met outside Dr. Rassmussen's office and Gerald(whose name tag reads ^pointy_ears^).
Axel comes in with the crowd, wearing his Blue Angel's cap and a comfy, roomy leather jacket. His beretta is holstered under his arm in a shoulder harness. Old habits die hard, he has a magazine in the interior breast pocket. He surveys the crowd, and makes sure his hat is low over his head. Today his hair...maybe it was the sunlight, but it seemed to be more blue today. Regardless, might as well keep the hat on tight.
Axel pauses for a moment in front of the t-shirts before getting a black shirt. He balls it up into a pocket, he can always put it on later. He'll take one of the name tags, writing Blue_Angels_Fan on it before attaching it to his jacket.
After it becomes apparent that no one else is showing up, Dr. Gale pulls a chair over in from of the monument and stands on it calling for everyone's attention.
"Everyone, we are here today to honor a man who wanted to help us all. A man who was brutally killed by one of the very people he was trying to help! Taken from us so soon, Dr. Rassmussen will never see his work completed. He was one of the best friends I've ever had, and my daughter's godfather. He was an amazing doctor in his field of study. Above all else, Dr. Rassmussen was a good person. Without him, the world is a little less bright. We must... we must all work hard... to brighten the world again. For him." Crying now, his daughter helps Dr. Gale down from the chair. After a moment of hesitation, someone else gets up on the chair and says a few words, and when they are done someone else steps up. It appears quite a few people are very sad Rassmussen is gone.
Gets there just after the main speech, grabs a name tage and writes TattBoss82 on it, and grabs a black t-shirt to contrast his whitish hair. He looks around for anyone he recognizes, and sees Felix. He walks over...
"Hey, again. Felix, right? Did I miss anything?"
Elise recognizes three people. The two boys she met outside Dr. Rassmussen's office and Gerald(whose name tag reads ^pointy_ears^).
Elise waved at Gerald, but kept her distance. She guessed he probably wanted to hang out with other people closer to his age. Even if she did look almost as young as him now.
She stops to listen to some of the tributes, but her attention starts to wander during a more rambly less coherent one and she looks around the crowd again. She makes her way through the crowd towards Burne and Feliks. She remembered both of them from the day that they found the doctor's body.
"Hi," she says, not sure what else to even say. It's not like she knew these guys. Ugh. What was she even thinking.
Feliks takes a white shirt and then wanders over by the statue. After the speeches he is musing over the strangeness of mourning for someone he had never met when a voice interrupts his thoughts. Turning, he gives a brief smile to the man he recognized from the day the doctor was found. "Hey, yourself." Before he can answer the question another of the people from that sad day comes up to them. "Hi there. How have the two of you been doing?"
Keeping an eye on the crowd, Axel looks over the crowd. Such a public gathering has a good chance of bringing out the doctor's killer. He doesn't step up to say anything about the doctor, but keeps an eye out for anything suspicious and...well, more out of place than the folks with oddly colored hair and skin.
A few people stand out to Ace as he looks around. One young man, probably no more than sixteen, seems to be trying to talk to everyone at least once. Another, a younger looking girl, just leans against the monument and watches people. A man that looks to be in his mid-twenties also watches people, though he walks around and hovers around larger groups for a bit.
Gerald waves back to Elise and smiles, pointing her out to a few people. They don't seem to interested in her though. Maybe it's the wet scarf.
Feliks takes a white shirt and then wanders over by the statue. After the speeches he is musing over the strangeness of mourning for someone he had never met when a voice interrupts his thoughts. Turning, he gives a brief smile to the man he recognized from the day the doctor was found. "Hey, yourself." Before he can answer the question another of the people from that sad day comes up to them. "Hi there. How have the two of you been doing?"
She shrugged. "Trying to get through I guess. How about you?"
There was a mewing sound from her pocket and she pulled out a siamese kitten and set it on her shoulder where it seemed content to perch.
"Uh, this is Portia. She kinda adopted me on the way to New York."
Feliks smiled at the cat, then turned back to Elise, "Trying not to think I am crazy." He gets an apologetic look on his face and looks from Elise to Burne and back, "I am really sorry, but I am just terrible with names. I am Feliks. Could the two of you remind me what yours are?"
Feliks smiled at the cat, then turned back to Elise, "Trying not to think I am crazy." He gets an apologetic look on his face and looks from Elise to Burne and back, "I am really sorry, but I am just terrible with names. I am Feliks. Could the two of you remind me what yours are?"
"I'm Elise," she said, pointing to the nametag.
"Been ok, just been working, eating and sleeping. Kinda wierd all these folks knew Doc. Sad I didn't get a chance to know him as well, it seems.
"Burne's the name."
"Nice to meet you, Elise."
Axel makes a note of the descriptions of the two men and the younger girl before he starts to mingle with the crowd a bit. The young man he wants to talk to first before he talks with the man in his twenties and the younger girl...but he'll let the young man talk to him first.
Evantually the boy makes his way over to Axel, the name tag on his white Pulse shirts reads 'Neal/Mâché37'.
"Hi. Name's Neal, but you can use my online name if you want. It's cool, seeing all the people Doc had as friends, isn't? Makes you realize you don't hear enough about all the good people in the world."
Axel nods at the boy. "Yeah, it really does. Did you know the doctor well?" Axel's tone is somber, but conversational. He's trying to prompt the kid to talk more.
"Somewhat. I was one of the first ten or so that went to see him. Then I brought a friend to see him. He's FireFingers. I did figure out the Pulse came from somewhere and spread out when he showed me his map."
Axel smiles at the kid. "I was wondering who had thought of that. Did you end up seeing him a lot?"
"A bit more than most, I think. He was one of the few people who didn't seem to care that I've been in a coma for the last three years. I actually woke up the day this all started. Some get well gift, huh?"
Axel pauses his train of thought for a second, and tries to recover. He's been told not to think about the kid in a coma; he now can think of nothing but a kid in the coma. "Yeah, that's some gift. Its been good talking to you Neal. Maybe I'll see you around, its a small city right?" Axel chuckles dryly at his joke.
"Yeah. You got my names if you need me."
The air seems to change, becoming heavy, feeling weighed down with something. People start sitting down in the grass, holding their heads or stomach or just trying to stop shaking. Just as the weight in the air seems to have lifted, the worled seems to rip apart around!
The air seems to change, becoming heavy, feeling weighed down with something. People start sitting down in the grass, holding their heads or stomach or just trying to stop shaking. Just as the weight in the air seems to have lifted, the worled seems to rip apart around!
Feliks, about to speak to Burne and Elise, seems to stagger, then collapses to his knees, gasping for breath. As the world rends itself to shreds and slowly comes together again, he can hear screaming and realizes that part of it is his own voice. His bones feel like they are breaking and reshaping themselves as strange new knowledge floods into his mind. Finally able to master his own voice, Feliks remains huddled on the ground, panting as if he had just run a marathon, his body far larger than it had been a few moments ago.
Burne begins to ask Felix if he's ok, when a chime seems to go off in his head. He stands rigid, unable to move, his mouth open in a silent scream. His eyes begin to bleed light and a dull hum is heard to those near him slowly getting louder. He grows another few inches, his hair gets lighter, and longer, and his features take on an almost other worldly look, becomming more beautiful, almost impossibly so. His inked tats,bleed from his skin like blood, running off into pools on the ground, his 'other' tats seem to spread taking on that foil card sheen, swimming accross his skin into intricate patterns. In his mids eye, everythign around him, including people, almost destruct into a kind of code...a code he understands, as if the very things that make up his surroundings are being broken down into a language only he speaks. Energy begins to roil about him, and almost as soon as the ordeal began, it ends, and he falls limply to the ground.
As Ace starts to wander over to the younger of the two watchers, he collapses to his hands and knees as the very air presses down upon him. For a moment, Ace can't seem to breathe and then the gong sounds in his head. Ace sucks in his breath but then screams.
The scream is the cry of an eagle as it falls upon its prey. Glowing blood starts to drip upon the ground as feathery down starts to grow out of his skin over his body. A pressure starts building on his back, a painful pressure, and Ace tears off his leather jacket. Wings, covered in dark blue feathers that glimmers with a forest green opalescence in the sunlight. His hands end in small dark talons and the bits of his formally black hair that can be seen from under his ball cap is now blue.
It felt like last time. Like she was underwater. Caught in a strong current that was tossing her this way and that. She wasn't sure which way was up. When it ended she found herself on the ground. She must have fallen. Portia nuzzled her hand. Their was definite intelligence in those feline eyes. It was impossible to deny. And...she could breathe better. She gingerly touched the side of neck. The gill slits were still there, but they seemed to seal better. She didn't feel like the air was suffocating her.
She looked around and her eyes widened as she realized that she was no longer the most freakish looking person here by FAR.
"What the hell is going on?" she said hoarsely.
She looked around for Gerald. After all, he was just a kid and she felt at least a little bit responsible for him. She wanted to make sure he was okay.
Hears Elise' voice, and his eyes open. He moves with a bit of grace, getting to his feet quickly. He looks around not quite believing what he's seeing...patterns changing before his eyes
"...I have no idea" he responds.
Feliks shakes his head, trying to clear the cobwebs, and all the hair on his head sloughs off to fall in a pile in front of him leaving his head entirely bald and shining. Strange geometric designs in a vibrant blue trace their way out of his collar and up over his exposed scalp.
He slowly gets to his feet, now towering over everyone near him; he stands nearly eight feet tall and much more muscular.
When he speaks, his voice is much lower than before; a deep bass that is almost felt as much as heard, "Well, that hurt. Is everyone else okay?" Then he opens his eyes. After a moment of confusion he looks down to Elise and Burne, "Wha...How...What? How did you all...What happened?"
"Dunno man, wasn't just you. Another 'surge' it seems."
He angrily brushes one of his platinum locks out of his face, clearly annoyed that he has to shave his head again.
"Geez....I don't actually feel so bad about these anymore," she said, pulling off her hat, revealing her long, pointed ears, as she stared at Feliks wide-eyed.
She looked down at the hat and her nose wrinkled as she saw how ratty it had gotten. Portia rubbed her head against Elise's leg and suddenly a strange energy flowed through her and the hat went from ratty to brand new looking. She squeaked and dropped the hat, panicked.
"How....how did I-?"
The other people around the monument are just as surprised at the new changes. Some stand in awe of what's happened, others sink to the ground and sob into their hands, and still others start cursing angrily. Some even take off running.
Gerald stumbles over to Elise, unsteady with his newfound height and fluid movemets.
"Mom's gonna... freak when she finds out I need new clothes."
The other people around the monument are just as surprised at the new changes. Some stand in awe of what's happened, others sink to the ground and sob into their hands, and still others start cursing angrily. Some even take off running.
Gerald stumbles over to Elise, unsteady with his newfound height and fluid movemets.
"Mom's gonna... freak when she finds out I need new clothes."
"Gerald...ummm....yeah," she takes a deep breath. She's the adult here after all. "Well, thank goodness for thrift stores, right?"
"It could be worse....your ears aren't nearly as bad as mine....and looking around I think we got off pretty light. I mean, we can just pass as cosplayers if we need to, right? Umm..." she checked the side of his neck. "And I don't think you have gills so at least you don't have to deal with that complication....ummm.....the height takes a couple days to get used to."
"Are you okay, Gerald? I mean, really?" she asked, worried.
Ace stands up straight, looking around at those around him even as downy fluff starts falling off his arms and face. Ugh, and I thought shaving was bad. Seeing the situation around, Axel starts going around and trying to keep folks calm. His leather jacket is slung over his shoulder, revealing the under-arm holster for his Beretta and his badge.
"I don't know. Maybe? I feel weird and my head hurts. Like when I... um, nevermind that part, Mrs. Quartermaine." He smiles a bit.
As it travels across the world, the Second Pulse loses no power. Every where it goes, people continue to change. Several gang members grow stronger and uglier as their teeth become fangs and their skin becomes a sickly grey-green. Miners find themselves growing smaller and more lizard-like. Environmentalists find themselves in more animalistic forms, similar to cats or ravens.
But not everyone changed as visibly. For some, the changes were more mental and spiritual than physical. Scientists find formula easier to read, preachers find their sermons carry more weight. Coaches inspire their teams to break more and more records.
However it is the more isolated cases, the ones that appear to change a person in no way, that may carry the most weight.
Two boys, friends since they were crawling, find two cat-sized green stones. A girl in Hawaii finds one made out of obsidian, hot to the touch.
A farmer realizes the clutch of eggs in his hen house didn't come from any of his chickens. Perhaps the fact they're spotted brown and feel like leather gave it away.
South America has an influx of sightings of the mysterious mokele mbembe, while chupacabra attacks become far more frequent.
These incidents were far bewtween, but hardly are the few in number. The Second Pulse brought with it far more than anyone could suspect...
Alistair wasn't quite running but he was walking very quickly. It figures, he thought, I decide to take the train into the city for the doc's memorial instead of driving and, of course, the train is late. He looked at his watch. Then I can't find a cab to save my life. Dammit, everyone's gonna be gone before I get there!
Rounding a bend in the path, Alistair saw the Alice monument ahead and though, Thank god, it looks like people are still here.
He saw the police detective that he'd met at Dr. Rasmussen's office and the girl in the cap he'd seen leaving but before he could approach anyone, everything changed. Alistair felt a great weight squeezing him down and heard the sound of hammers clanging on anvils. How do I recognize that sound? he thought, I've never been in a forge before in my life! He crumpled to the ground with his hands over his ears.
The weight lifted and the sound died away. Alistair got back to his feet. All around him people were doing the same. It looked like whatever happened didn't just happen to him. He saw that people were even more changed than before and felt himself to see if he had changed. His hands encountered a full, flowing beard, easily 6 or 7 inches in length that certainly hadn't been there this morning. His hair was longer as well. His clothes were much too large, at least lengthwise. He had to roll up his sleeves and his pant legs several times just to be able to move around. I can't be more than four feet tall, he thought. He looked for the police detective, remembering him as a steady influence.
When he saw him, Alistair realized the detective now had wings.
"I don't know. Maybe? I feel weird and my head hurts. Like when I... um, nevermind that part, Mrs. Quartermaine." He smiles a bit.
She laughed. "I'm pretty sure that means you're okay."
She looked around looking at all the people in shock...some of them barely recognizable as people anymore.
"I don't think I'm the only one who's gonna be having trouble proving my identity now."
A few people are being checked over by Dr. Gale, but they don't have anything more than minor scrapes or bruises. Everyone listens to Axel, though whether it was the gun, his wings, or just his cop demeanor is unclear.
A call comes in from your commanding officer.
"Axel, we need you to come in. We're getting calls from all over the city about 'freaks and weirdos' commiting crimes."
"You got that right. Hope Mom is okay..."
Axel nods, though his CO can't see it. "Alright. I'm by the Alice statue in the park; need to grab my uniform. I should get into the station in an hour." Axel nods to some of others, and hops up onto the edge of the statue, so he has a temporary platform. For a second he almost loses his balance, but his wings flare out and he regains his balance. Huh. These are useful...hope Mom doesn't freak out. Axel winces a bit, but closes up his wings and looks at the others in the crowd.
"Everyone, please get home. I just called in; reports of people trying to take advantage of the chaos. Try and go home in groups for now. If any of you have some open space to take in someone for the night who would have to go home alone, please do so. If any of you need an escort, I can take you as far as the Bronx." Axel hops off the edge of the statue, nodding in recognition to the others he recognized from the scene at the Doctor's office.
"Well, I guess that's that. Time to go. We can try calling your mom on the way if you want, Gerald, make sure everything is okay. Are you guys going in the same direction?" she asked, giving a quick description of which direction they were headed.
Feliks looks back from Axel to Elise, and his voice rumbles deeply, "I hope my parents don't freak out too! I like in Brooklyn, on Coney Island. Anyone going that way?"
Alistair stops Axel before he leaves. Looking up, he says, "I investigated that blood sample we found in Dr. Rasmussen's office. The only oddity I could discover is that it was highly resistant to cold. It froze at a much, much lower temperature than normal blood. Whoever, or whatever killed the doc must have been pulsed."
To Elise, "I live in Greenwich, Connecticut. I took the train in to the city today. I'm not sure taking the train is a good idea right now. Would it be okay if I hung with you for a while?"
Alistair stops Axel before he leaves. Looking up, he says, "I investigated that blood sample we found in Dr. Rasmussen's office. The only oddity I could discover is that it was highly resistant to cold. It froze at a much, much lower temperature than normal blood. Whoever, or whatever killed the doc must have been pulsed."
To Elise, "I live in Greenwich, Connecticut. I took the train in to the city today. I'm not sure taking the train is a good idea right now. Would it be okay if I hung with you for a while?"
"Well, I don't have a problem with it. What do you think, Gerald? Would your mom mind? You guys are already being gracious enough to let me stay. I don't want to overstep my bounds."
"I have an apt in Manhattan, but if someone has a closer place and doesn't mind a tag along, I'd be much obliged."
His eyes falsh a bit as he manifests detect hostile intent and looks at other folks moving around them.