2013-01-08 Aliens At Centennial Park

[Metropolis]--

New Troy - Centennial Park

Nearly 800 acres in the northwestern portion of New Troy is devoted to Centennial Park. The park gives residents a large open space in which to congregate or enjoy the outdoors. Activities such as running and frisbee are very popular here in the warm months, though running and walking take place here year round. Sometimes the atmosphere is so serene that one might forget they're in the middle of the second largest city in America.

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Martian Manhunter

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[MU] Metropolis University             [O] New Troy

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It's mid-afternoon in Centennial Park, and people are going about their business on this typical day. Some people are jogging, while others are having fun studying outdoors. There's a hot-dog vendor selling to a couple on a date. There's the pond at Centennial Park, and some poeple are watching an oddball, one who's by the edge of the lake, crouching while observing something in the surface of the water by his feet. This oddball is Jacob.

Odd. Martian Manhunter, currently in the form of a young man with sandy-blond hair, observes the oddball. Wanted for something, but not doing anything right now...and right *now* J'onn isn't going to go after him. Not without assessing the situation. He's not sure, to be honest, what the man is wanted *for* and that's enough to induce...hesitation.

On a closer inspection, Jacob is observing... his own reflection. He even goes as far as to touch his own face, and make faces to his own reflection. "This is... The face... of being Jacob?" He tries to add a smile to it. But it's a silly smile, lacking meaning to it - maybe devoid of understanding, is more like it. He turns to look at the sounds of the people looking at him.

Martian Manhunter frowns. For once, he sends out a tendril of thought to explore the man's mind even as he walks towards him. Clearly not afraid...this is a throwaway identity so if he has to blow his cover, he can...although he'd still rather not. He's quite successfully kept his ability to shapeshift under the radar. For now.

Well, the martian telepath's mind touches Jacob's...

Moving about is like entering a maze of... flesh? Tunnels and tunnels of it... Enter a dark tunnel, and you see a nurse approaching you, and then sheer horror and a deathly scream... Exit the tunnel, and move further, to where it's brighter... You see two men looking at you; there's a feeling of pressure, of strain... Physical effort, maybe...? PAIN! SCREAM! EXISTENCE THRATENED! Go back to the main tunnel, new corridor, limbs and faces stare at you from the walls (no, they /are/ the walls!!)... New tunnel, and explosions ensue... people die... a baby's cry... a woman's plea... SHOTS! Back down the tunnel, the corridor follows. Now there's a sound (behind you, bestial roar! You are not welcome!)... down the corridor, a flash of lights... eyes? Eyes in the dark? They're no longer there! Voices of shouting "KILL IT!! KILL IT! KILL..." Gurgling sound, satisfaction... FIRE!! EXISTENCE THREATENED!! EXTERMINATE!! SURVIVE!! The mindwalk ends with something tendril-like jumping from the deep chasm that forms underneath your feet, and lashes out at you as mouths form on every extremity!

In the meantime, Jacob looks at the boy with the sandy hair that approaches him, saying nothing.

Martian Manhunter flinches. It's even visible. Okay. Messed up. Approach with care. "Hey. Are you alright?" he asks out loud, his accent local. Just some kid...not quite a boy, really, he's probably about twenty. But not much more than one in outward appearance...for all that he's older than any normal human and most mutants.

Jacob turns towards the young guy, now giving him his full attention. He approaches him in a casual, yet cautious pacing. And he sniffs the air. Sniff. Sniff sniff. Slowly, his nose makes him migrate his head in the guy's direction. "Your being..." Sniff sniff. He returns to his usual position, and his eyes narrow slightly.

Not...good. An unusually good sense of smell can, indeed, sometimes detect the Martian. Fortunately, his scent doesn't upset dogs. But in this case. "Am I wearing bad aftershave?" he asks, trying to deflect it. That might be an answer, next time. Strong aftershave.

"What is 'aftershave'?", Jacob asks. He reasons, "Is that the fake smell other beings use to mingle with their own?" Simplistic, yet to the point. "No. This... This is much more..." He gives one good huff, more than the pulmonary capacity a human's anatomy would allow. "... personal."

"Huh." The guy's not insane, not quite. No, something else is going on...and that 'wanted' is very suspicious. J'onn wishes he had a few more friends, right now, in low places. Friends in low places are always handy. "You're weird," he informs Jacob, but mildly, clearly not afraid or upset.

Martian Manhunter isn't about to let him do that, shying away a little. Whoever...or whatever...this guy is, he could be dangerous. And very dangerous if he's a power drainer or, worse, a power thief. To everyone else *and* to him. Axiom's gotten enough headaches copying J'onn.

And, as far as Jacob knows, it could be a trap and J'onn's the guy who came to try to retrieve him back to the Facility. As someone who spent the better part of his existence under their control, he sure has a good idea of what was thrown at him in training sessions. "Do not run. This shall be painless." And he lunge-speeds forward, to hold a firm grip on the Martian's 'exposed' skin.

And, as far as Jacob knows, it could be a trap and J'onn's the guy who came to try to retrieve him back to the Facility. As someone who spent the better part of his existence under their control, he sure has a good idea of what was thrown at him in training sessions. However, intead of outright revealing himself - as if acting strangely wasn't suspicious enough -, he just stands there, looking at the disguised Martian. "You do not fit with these other beings", declares Jacob. "Reveal your true being." He keeps his senses alert for others moving about.

Which...he's not about to do. He's carefully guarded his shapeshifting ability, trying to keep it from the eyes and minds of those whom he uses it against. This kid...and he does sense 'kid'...can be pretty intimidating...but not enough to bother J'onn even for a moment. "This really isn't the best place to act like this," he says, mildly.

Jacob is about to say or do something, but he halts, listening to things going on around him, and starts sniffing the air. Smells start to flood his mind, and his eyes widen. Something inside his chest begins to growl. Right now, he's gone on full alert status.

There's a small whisp crossing the air, and all of a sudden, Jacob's body jerks back as he's hit by an object straight in the chest. However, this jerking back is but an inch's worth, if any. Other than that, he shows no signs of moving. His reply is towards J'onn, with a rather severe change in expression. Instead of a simple, one could even say clueless guy, now stands someone who looks at him with a disappointed look.

A number of people, all dressed in heavy gear show up poining weapons at him. "FREEZE! OR WE WILL FIRE UPON YOU!" It's the boys in blue. Cellphones these days, everybody has them - and someone recognized Jacob from the 'wanted' posters by some police precint, and decided to call. "THIS IS THE METROPOLIS POLICE! GET DOWN ON THE GROUND, OR WE WILL FIRE!" From every side of the Park, cops are showing, blocking every exit.

Martian Manhunter is...going to do his best to slip away. He can't fight the cops, even if he's fairly sure this guy didn't actually DO anything. And did one of those cops just shoot him unprovoked? Oh, J'onn, not happy...not happy at all, even as he tries to make his exit. Funny, though, none of the cops QUITE realize there's another guy there. He's...not important at all, it seems.

Cops in full protective gear, plus weapons. Jacob looks around, his facial features contorted in an expression of anger.

The Police speaks over the megaphone, "THIS IS YOUR FINAL WARNING!! GET DOWN ON THE GROUND, OR WE WILL SHOOT!!"

Not wanting to stick around, Jacob begins to move, but the leader of the squad antecipates the movement and shouts, "CONTAIN HIM!" Some of them fire on his feet and legs, while others fire their tasers.

The result? That only leaves him mad. To him, the cops are the covert ops military, coming to take him back to The Facility. Well, Jacob is not about to let himself be taken without a fight.

Extending his hand, it will be to the Police's great surprise that his arms shudder and shapeshift into a huge set of razor-sharp claws. But he doesn't yet charge in, no - instead, he shoves his clawed hands through the ground. The ground underneath his claws breaks and cracks progressively until it reaches two of the squad cars, which are very close to each other...

And massive columns of spikes emerge from underneath them, projecting them up into the air as they explode!! Policemen in full armor gear are projected from the blasts, screaming, while a few others run away!

Which is the point...when what might be called the cavalry shows up. From above, the Martian Manhunter descends. "Enough," he says, simply. He can tell from Jacob's mind that the man is confused, is attacking the cops not to attack the cops. He can tell from the minds of the cops that they truly, genuinely believe him to be a dangerous criminal. He himself? He's not convinced. Especially as nobody warned the cops that the man's a meta. That too is clear in their auras...the surprise. And, of course, the fear. If they weren't wearing full armor? Well, fortunately, they are.

A few policemen look up, and they begin to hold their fire. Jacob, however... not so much. He's never heard of the Martian Manhunter, nor the Justice League, for that matter. All he's ever known was pain and enslavement, and how everyone was a potential enemy. So, on those grounds, what reason does he truly have to stop? None, really. He sees in that an opportunity.

Believing J'onn is their leader coming to face him, Jacob rushes to one of the burning cars, and lunges it it straight at the green guy before he tries to make an escape.

If the car *wasn't* burning, J'onn would just have taken it. As it is, he darts out of the way, with surprising speed. "Be careful. I am not sure he is seeing reality," he says, ensuring the police hear him with a gentle application of telepathy...although inwardly he's cringing. Burning cars, not high on the list of things a Martian wants thrown at him.

And off Jacob dashes, gaining speed with each step he gives. 100 mph... 200... 250... He'll soon be off in the distance, unless J'onn decides to follow him.

Which...J'onn will. He sends "I will handle this," to the cops. The advantage of working for the government...he can, to a point, pull rank. Besides, having seen Jacob's abilities, they're likely quite willing to leave it to the meta.

Jacob looks behind him, noticing the Martian is following him through flight. He accelerates, moving so fast he glides through the surface of the buildings and hops over their tops in the hopes of losing him. Then, he jumps into the air, and jolts out of the way, his silhouette blurring away as he sudden dashes out of the way mid-jump. Now he's nowhere to be seen!

Martian Manhunter narrows his red eyes and hovers. He doesn't need sight to find the man, he can track him by the anger he radiates. And also by his exceptional hearing. Finding him and trying to talk to him, convincing him he's no force of evil. That's J'onn's entire focus right now. He can sort out the 'wanted' mess later.

The anger is just that... anger. And it subsides. In the meantime, the Martian's vision allows him to catch in the corner of his eye, the glimpse of a silhouette disappearing past a building almost half a mile out, off into an alleyway.

<< I mean you no harm. >> Backing off, at least physically. He doubts the man will listen, but it has to be tried. If he goes all the way to ground he might be hard for even J'onn to relocate. It's always a tough situation...and he is *going* to find out why this guy is wanted by the law. No doubt over something not quite conscious. It usually is.

Well, surprise surprise, Jacob doesn't listen. Is he even in the area? It's as if any thought of him is... fading, somehow.

Okay. This is no good. As much as he dislikes it and knows it will be the harder task, he will have to track Jacob down later. Under calmer circumstances. In the meantime...to investigate the circumstances. He starts to lift higher, away from the area.

In the meantime, from the alley, peering eyes study the Martian in full detail. Behind its disguise, both of flesh and of mental archetype, it evaluates him as he appears to depart. He may have to hide, now, given how The Facility seems to be doing whatever it can to find him. So, in his diguise he begins to exit the alleyway, jumping with agility towards a porch and a building ledge, moving casually and apparently not minding the people just yards down below.

But a little girl does notice, and turns to her mom jumping with the excitement for the girls that age. "Mommy! Mommy! Look... A kitty!"

The kitty walks on...