Prowlar

Next up another XL Character. Codename: Density File Name: Alexandre Rasputin Parents: Peter and Kathrine Rasputin Powers: Manipulation of his body's mass Density is the son of the mutants Colossus and Shadowcat with the ability to increase his body mass to the point of invulnerability or decrease it to the point of intangibility. Unlike most members of the XL Alex has no wish to return to his original reality where the Earth has become a protectorate of the Shi'Ar Empire. All super powered humans have been conscripted and trained to be loyal soldiers. Density was one of the last free mutant rebels, known and the X-Jammers (Cross Jammers), to stand against Deathbird's Empire but the last sight he had before being pulled out of time was the destruction of the Starjammer II and the bodies of his friends and teammates being recovered for identification and genetic decoding.

Has anyone attempted an Invisible Woman: Malice using Tarot as a base?

If only things were that easy. If he was gone I would have had one of them shoot him in the head. No body means that he is still out there just waiting for the opportunity to return, after all he has a mandate from God to rid the world of sinners. I really do get the feeling he'll be back, likely once the Maximum Zombie line is released. I'm just hoping that at some point we see a Zombie preacher in the line. As a side note I'd just like to point out that the character has absolutely no connection to DSTChuck. Janitor Chuck is actually a vague reference to a junior high school jock/bully from my own past. It just sort of hit me tonight that I may have made a bit of a custom faux pas by using name Chuck for the character. Gender Reverse Universe: War Birds X.S.E. Strike File: Cardinal (Shauna Cassidy) Cardinal falls into the category of mutants that just won't stay dead. It was believed that the mutant known, as the Banshee had died with the rest of the Muir Island X-Factor unit her appearance with the War Birds proves otherwise. She is more powerful than before having somehow learned or incorporated technology to manipulate sound into solid forms. It is possible that she has accomplished this with technology designed by Peregrin and training from Bluejay. While not a high priority target, if the chance to capture Cassidy presents itself, the high command would like to study her to discover whether there is some sort of resurrection ability hidden within the X-Gene. If capture isn't a possibility then killing her will work just as well. If we have a confirmed kill and Cassidy shows up once more we will still have our answer.

Neo Olympians Codename: Ares File Name: Taylor, Aaron Day Job: Colonel U.S. Marine Corp Powers: Mass Hypnosis, Emotion Manipulation, and Invulnerability At first no one even realized that Colonel Taylor, Brandon Taylor's son, had become a member of the pantheon. As a military officer the soldiers under his command always followed his orders. However he started to notice that even his superiors seemed to be taking his suggestions a little too seriously. When he returned home on leave he was told about the powers his father and cousins had been given. His response surprised everyone when he asked what abilities he had gained by becoming the God of War. When he is transformed Ares is encased in armor, which is only for aesthetic purposes considering that he is completely invulnerable to harm, he carries a rifle that never misses what he wants to hit no matter what direction it is fired and a war axe that can cut through anything. While in the heat of battle he is able to affect the minds of his enemies into believing anything he wants and when not in battle he can command any normal human to do his bidding. Ares is perhaps one of the strongest members of the Taylor pantheon, yet he doesn't abuse his powers. Instead his main concerns are the same as before he gained the powers of a God; the protection of his family, his men, and his country come before his personal needs and safety.

Codename: Deadferret File Name: Weasel, Wade Powers: Artificial healing factor and the ability to slip through extremely small openings. As Deadferret, the merc with a mouth, Wade Weasel was one of the best mercenaries in his universe. However he was also the most annoying and after a failed assassination attempt against the hero Spider-Ham the Fantastic Fur trapped him in the negativity zone. However with his talent at getting out of any and all traps he was soon free. Unfortunately he hadn't escaped back to his own universe but into a strange alternate world populated, not by animals like him, instead there was a single dominate form of furless monkeys in charge. Perhaps the most discouraging fact was that the 616 universe, not only had a single cheap impersonator calling himself Deadpool, contained a whole corps of knockoffs. Instinctively knowing that he was better than the impersonators he chose not to join their little club and instead hooked up with the Rejects, a group better suited to his needs. He now spends his time searching for a way to return to his own universe.

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 11, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac Irons, day eleven: When I woke up this morning I found T.J. sleeping on a cot at the end of my bed. It was disconcerting to say the least. Then things got really weird when he jumped up, ready to help or get me anything I needed. He helped me into the bathroom and then back to bed, even though I felt a lot better, and probably could've made the trip on my own. Right now he is down getting me some breakfast. For the moment I'm going to guess this has something to do with the fact that I have the final say as to whether he stays or goes. Still it is completely out of character to the T.J. that I know. I suppose this would be a good time to put down how I know him. T.J. and I went to the same high school. He was two grades above me, the star football player, and all around stud and the attitude to match. Yeah, like every just about everyone else I had a crush on him not that I'm ever going to tell him that. Still he had everything going for him when he headed off to college. I'm not sure of all the details but he was only gone a semester before he dropped out. It was rumored that he was involved in an accident that left him unable to play football, and while he has walked with a slight limp ever since then I had the feeling that there was more to the story. He didn't even attempt to further his education at the local community college instead he went to work at the scrap yard and for the most part avoided everyone. I hear him coming up the stairs so that is enough for now. Day eleven a little later: I'm not sure, but I may be having a relapse. When T.J. got back with my breakfast he filled me in about his past. It seems that he wasn't in a car wreck after all. Instead he was nearly beaten to death by his own teammates when they learned that he was gay. When he came home his parents cut him off so he had to try to make it on his own and since he had the skills and experience with heavy equipment the junkyard was the best paying job he could find. He'd been avoiding most people since his parents had outed him to the church, a place I hadn't gone since Gamma and Grampa had died, so he felt he could trust anyone anymore. He then apologized for having to take off but they still had more work to do on the trench and it was looking like it would snow in the next couple of days. I told him to carefully dig out the bridge over the canal as soon as possible. When he asked me if I was sure about that I told him to get Sparks or Dee to show him the tunnel, especially the area under the canal. If they acted like they didn't know what he was talking about have them come and talk to me. At that point he promised he would and then before heading out the door he kissed me. I'm not talking about a simple peck either. It was more of a "where have you been all of my life" with a bit of "as soon as you're feeling 'up' to it there is going to be a lot more" kind of kiss. Obviously either Sparks or Dee has outed me. The problem is I'm not sure whether to berate and possibly exile them or thank them. Day eleven afternoon: So now I have the whole story of what happened. While Dee and Sparks were showing T.J. the tunnel they sent David up to keep an eye on me. It wasn't hard to get him to spill the whole story. It started off as usual with him being overly depressed. He told me how everyone seemed to be splitting off into couples: Sparks with Dee, Steele with Jay, and T.J. with me. That just left him out in the cold and on his own. While I was surprised for an instant about him also knowing that I was gay and that T.J. had plans for me I didn't let it distract me from one important point. I asked him what about Chuck. Honestly the look on his face almost made me think I'd just shot his dog or something. The second look was one of terror. I immediately went in for the kill telling him that I knew something had happened and that Sparks was doing everything she could to keep it from me. That meant he now had a choice to make either he could tell me everything or he could keep quiet as Sparks had instructed and I'd imply to her that he had told me everything anyway. He started off by telling me that Chuck was "a racist, homophobe, kitten killing, puppy kicker. He hated everybody and reveled in the fact that God struck the earth down with his divine wrath." After breakfast on the seventh he had followed me outside and then hit me over the head with his shovel. He hadn't used a gun since he wanted to be done with me before anyone could stop him. It was just my good luck that T.J. had walked out before Chuck could get in a second hit. It was at that point that Chuck started raving about race and homosexuality. I guess T.J. was on the verge of shooting him when everyone else came running out to see what the commotion was about. After hearing the filth that Chuck was spewing Dee, Sparks, and Jay agreed with T.J. that shooting him would be doing the world a favor. Instead Steele, David, and T.J. tied him up and drove him as far away as they safely could, well over a hundred miles according to David, and then left him with only his shovel and his axe. The told him if he ever returned to the farm there would be no hesitation in shooting him. When they returned it was decided, since it was my farm, that if I recovered then I was going to be the one in charge. Then they voted on Sparks to be group leader until I was able to take over. I thanked him for filling me in and reassured him that with the colder weather setting in we'd have an easier time finding other survivors and I was sure that there was a young woman out there huddled close to a wood stove or fireplace just waiting for him to swoop in rescue her from the evil zombies. Then he'd bring her back here and show her that even in a world gone to hell there was still a safe warm place to live. At about that point Sparks walked in and David took off yelling something about needing to chop some more firewood. Sparks just shrugged and asked how I was feeling. I just sighed and agreed that she was probably right I still didn't quite feel up to very much movement just yet but maybe by morning I'd be back to normal. She just laughed and said that she doubted I'd be up and moving around before afternoon. She then winked at me and left. I hate to say it but I really don't think we've seen the last of Chuck. He is a survivor and a fanatic. Those kinds of people don't give up easily. Since he believes that I'm worse than the undead he'll keep coming back until he has completed his mission. Personally I hope that if he does make it back here it's as a zombie because I'm not sure I'll be able to kill him if he's still alive and unbitten. Taylor John "T.J." Aaronson

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 10, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac Irons, day ten: Something happened to me on the seventh. I have no memory of that morning but somehow I sustained a concussion and I've been in and out of consciousness since then. Today has been the first time that I've actually regained any intelligibility. Everyone keeps avoiding telling me anything and Sparks insists that I remain in bed for a couple more days at the very least. When I tried to get up I had to agree that I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. I keep hearing the sound of explosions and I've tried to tell Dee and Sparks about my concerns about the cave collapsing but they assure me that the others are being very careful even though they still don't know about the cave. They've both been down there to keep an eye on the situation. They assure me that since the guys started at the canal and are working their way back toward the canyon the major threat decreases with each blast. I suppose I should be thankful that they seem to have things well in hand. Still it took some work convincing Sparks to charge my laptop and then bring it to me while I'm "recuperating". Even playing Solitaire is better than just lying here staring at the ceiling. Day ten later: I guess Sparks has a point about staying in bed. I did get up and make it to the bathroom. However I didn't make it back to the bed and Dee found me passed out on the floor. Now they keep checking on me every five to ten minutes. For a while they even had Jay sitting with me. It's annoying to be babied this way but at least it gave me a chance to get to know one of our newest survivors. Professor Lee, or Jay as she prefers to be called, was teaching anthropology at the college before Z-Day. Like us her class tried to make a run for it, except they headed south, hoping to find an isolated location between the mountains and desert. Unfortunately they only made it as far as the junkyard where they were surrounded. Fortunately T.J. had already set up a basic fortification and was beginning to plan for an extended siege when they arrived. Over then next few days most of their group had taken off on their own or been bitten. It had gotten to the point where they were preparing to make a desperate run when we arrived. Then she started listing off her abilities like how she knew a lot about the native vegetation of the area both for food and medical uses and she had learned many basic survival skills from working on her anthropology doctorate in a Mongolian village for a year. At that point I stopped her and asked why she was giving me her resume. I was really shocked when she told me that, as the one in charge, it was up to me to decide who remained with the group or had to leave. I was a bit shocked at that revelation, since I figured that either Steele or Chuck had taken over while I was incapacitated. I assured Jay that I wouldn't be making that kind of decision until I had recovered from whatever had happened to me. I tried to lead the conversation in that direction to find out what had happened but she clammed up at that point and left the room. I asked Sparks when she next checked on me and she let me know that, as the de-facto doctor, she was the one currently in charge and that if my memory hadn't returned by the time she felt that I had sufficiently recovered she'd fill me in on "the incident". Of course that just makes me want to know even more what really happened to me. I'm sure it wasn't zombie related because I haven't been bitten. Whatever "the incident" is, more happened than just my concussion. Professor Jessica "Jay" Lin

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 6, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac Irons, day six: Today was full of surprises. First off our trip to the junkyard was simple getting in however once we arrived we realized getting the loader out wasn't going to be so easy. The place was surrounded by undead. It seems a few survivors had used a similar car wall barricade except they had trapped themselves inside. With no way to communicate with them Steele recommended we hit the sporting goods store first. He suggested that if we could find a bow he could send the survivors a message. Even though it was stupid we decided to split up and hit both the pharmacy and the sporting goods store at the same time. After all, most of the undead in the area seemed to be clustered around the junkyard. It wasn't hard to find another truck and we split up. Chuck with Steele and Sparks with me. Fortunately Steele was right and we were able to clean out the pharmacy as well as a gas station. David was cheered up a bit that I was at least able to get him a few magazines, beer, and assorted junk food; but more about that later. As a side note I think we'll be hitting the wholesaler on the other side of town next; though I think Steele has his eye on the Armory on the college campus even though it will be overly dangerous. When we got back to the junkyard we had to stay back and wait for Steele and Chuck. When they arrived we discovered that they'd run into a bit of trouble but nothing they couldn't handle. As a bonus they'd picked up a couple of jackhammers and explosives from a road construction site. So now, according to them we can get back to work on the trench. Tomorrow I'll show them the tunnel and point out the absurdity of their plan. Anyway, back to the junkyard, Steele got his letter into the compound. Within minutes the loader, was running and backed against the wall farthest from us. The next thing I see is Chuck lighting a stick of dynamite duct taped to an arrow and Steele shooting it at the wall. The blast did a good job of mincing the zombies but not killing them. Suddenly the loader pushed through the wall and we were all in our vehicles and on the move. About a mile outside of town we all came to an abrupt stop since the loader had run out of gas. It was at that point that we discovered that one of the four survivors had been bitten and had to be taken care of. Another had jumped off the loader shortly after escaping from the junkyard yelling about having to get home to check on his family. Leaving us with two new member of our growing family: Taylor "T.J" Aaronson and Prof. Jessica "Jay" Lin. I'll add more about them in the next couple of days. After a couple of hours we were able to find a few tanker trucks. Most of them were filled with bad milk. Opening a tanker looking for diesel and finding spoiled milk is not an experience I want to repeat very often but fortunately we found two trucks one with diesel and another with unleaded fuel. After cleaning off the undead remains on the loader and filling it up T.J. drove it, Chuck drove the diesel truck and Steele drove the gas truck back here to the farm. When we arrived we found David nursing a black eye and mumbling about life being completely unfair. It seems that he made a pass at Dee and she let him know that he didn't have a chance in hell. He quickly pulled me aside and warned me not to get any ideas about Sparks or Dee since they were a couple. He then mumbled something about the human race being doomed because the only girls left were lesbians. I then pointed out that we had a couple of new survivors and that one of them was a woman. Then I slipped him the magazines he'd wanted. Something tells me he'll be sporting two black eyes by breakfast. David Stone

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 5, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac Irons, day five: We had a couple of close calls this morning. Two zombies slipped through our defensive line and were knocking on the door, as it were. They were easily dispatched but it is imperative that we at least complete the car barricade today. Fortunately no one was bitten but David tripped and sprained his wrist in the chaos. Sparks quickly wrapped him up and then told him to stay off of it for the rest of the day. When she was finished she asked why the stunned looks, after all she was on her last year as part of the nursing program. Then she broke the silence by saying, "now, lets go roast a couple of corpses". So to reiterate our odds of survival have gone way up since we have someone with medical skills. However she also is a bit of an arsonist and I'm afraid that her diagnosis of treatment for any flesh wound will automatically be cauterization. So with the newest information I'm thinking that David is likely going to be our first movie style casualty. We followed the zombie's trail back and discovered that the bridge was our weak point this time. I've parked a cars across the front and back sides to slow them down but I'm going to have Chuck rip out the bridge as soon as we've completed the barricade and the trench. Oh no, I've got to stop Chuck from completing it! Day five continued: So the trench is now out. If it had been completed it would have give any zombies that fell into the cannel easy access to the farm. All they would have to do is wander up the trench until it was shallow enough to crawl out. So now Chuck's car barricade is out best line of defense along that side of the place. Fortunately we've completed the lower level so now all we have to do is find a heavy fork lift in order to get another truck up on top. I know were we can get one but it isn't going to be easy getting to it. There's an auto wrecking yard on the other side of town, but even taking the back roads we're likely to encounter problems. It'll take us most of the day to get there and back, unless it moves faster than it looks, so tonight at dinner I'll suggest we make the trip early tomorrow. Day five end: The trip is set. Unfortunately the forklift isn't going to be our only stop. Sparks insisted that we raid the pharmacy before someone else gets to it, Steele wants to hit the sporting goods store for weapons and ammo, Chuck has put in a request for cigarettes, and David wants "reading material of an adult nature". I told him I'd see what I could do but I wasn't going to be making any promises. Since David is still nursing his sprained wrist so he won't be going with us. Dee, reluctantly, agreed to the task of staying behind and watching him as well as guarding the farm while we're gone. Then after everyone else headed for bed I took Sparks and Dee down to the bomb shelter, through the secret exit and into the cave that runs under the farm. To say that they were surprised was an understatement. Then I cranked up the generator and turned on the lights and started giving them the tour of the lava tube. First I showed them how to open the doors on out into the canyon and explained that the doors had a fake rock façade to hide the opening because my Grandfather and his brothers used the tube as a hideout when they were running moonshine. I pointed out where the extra fuel and supplies were stored as we walked along. I also pointed out the concrete reinforcement where the tube passed under the canal and the secret entrances to the two garages on either side and let them know that if anything happened to me they needed to make sure that the bridge over the canal was destroyed once the forklift was on our side. Of course they had to ask how long the cave was and was I sure it was really secure. So I told them that it went on pretty much straight for five miles and then it was sealed off by a concrete wall and that all the entrances along the length beyond the outer garage had been sealed off from the inside years ago but we may open them back up once we secured the houses on the other side. Also, eventually I hoped to find an electric cart or two in order to make the trips back and forth much easier. They agreed with that. Before we left I noticed Sparks filling a flask with 'shine which she quickly pointed out was "for medicinal and pyrotechnical uses only". I just shook my head ad reminded her that we had an early morning so go real easy on the pyrotechnics. Brittany Sparks Sparks and Dee

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 4, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac Irons, day four: So we started working on the East fence today. It wasn't hard finding the equipment, but operating it was another story. Fortunately Chuck has some experience with heavy equipment. He started digging a trench to connect the canyon and the canal. Unfortunately it isn't going to be much more than seven feet deep at it's deepest and only three feet in places because of the rock. To solve this problem Chuck suggested we build a wall out of cars. So while he dug the trench the rest of us went out after a lot of trucks. We stayed together as a group making damn sure to cover each other's backs. The only time we split up was when one of us would run a vehicle back to the fence. We had to stick with SUVs and pickups since they were the only vehicles that would make it up there. Once we had four trucks up there we'd siphon out the gas, and then Chuck would push them over on their side and together to form a barricade. So far we have half the barricade completed and about a quarter of the trench completed. We've also been keeping a list of places where we can find chain link fencing. Eventually, if we find a big enough loader we'll stack a second row of trucks on top of the first for an impenetrable wall. Another list that we're making is a kill list. We have no way of knowing how many or the names of the people that we had to fight off at the college but Dee suggested we at least try to keep a list of the people that we know are dead starting from when she had to kill her father. So, Dee now has seven kills, Sparks has four, Steele two, David has one, Chuck has three, and I have one. I've also been taking pictures of the dead so that when we start to raid houses we may be able to put names to the departed. At least that is the plan until the batteries in my digital camera give out. Of those killed or known dead so far only three of them haven't been identified. It may seem strange that I'm doing this but even if they are undead now they used to be people with families. Once this is all over with, if humanity survives that is, at least I'll have done my part to put names to some of the departed. Chuck, The Janitor

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 3, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac Irons, day three: Gah, I'm never doing that again. I've been drunk before but nothing like that. I'm almost afraid to go back upstairs. Not only is the hangover still kicking my head around; but I'm sure everyone is going to be yelling about my disappearance. I'm going to have to reveal the fact that we have a hidden bomb shelter since they're going to want to know where I disappeared too; that can't be helped. However, I'm not sure if I'm going to let them know about the cave. I really don't know if I can trust these people just yet. Still it's my own fault. I could have just locked myself up in my room and called it good but oh no, I had to come down here and drown myself for the night. I guess I'd just better get it over with. By now, if they haven't figured out how to work the wood cook stove they're probably getting hungry or burning the house down. Day three continued: While everyone had questions, after I showed them the shelter and started cooking breakfast everything quieted down. After we ate Steele and I walked the perimeter of the property, a task that takes several hours. Basically we started at the house and walked out to the canyon edge. I pointed out that because of the natural bend in the creek those two sides to the place were nearly inaccessible. There are a couple of footpaths but through he winter they will be completely inaccessible and even in the best of weather they're not to be taken lightly. We then followed the canyon around to the South where the canal ended. At this point I pointed out that the canal was a good ten foot at it's shallowest point and that as long as we made sure the bodies didn't pile up we shouldn't have a problem with anyone getting past it. The only real access being across the bridge that we've been using. While we were down that far I gave him a tour of the cinderblock garages, one on the farm side of the canal and the other on the roadside, were we kept the cars during the winter rather than risking the old bridge. He seemed rather impressed with the set up until we reached the East side of the property where the only defense was the old barbed wire fence. It seems out first project is going to be to find a way to reinforce this area. It will be risky but I pointed out that we should be able to find a track hoe to dig a trench and then we could scavenge poles and chain link fences from the surrounding farms. We finished back at the house where I pointed out that both it and the barn were built from concrete and cinder blocks for maximum security, about the only structure on the farm that wasn't heavily reinforced was the old outhouse, and even it had spare cinder blocks stacked around it as a windbreak. Of course that led to the question about why my Grandfather was so paranoid, not that it was a bad thing in our current situation. I laughed and told him how my Grandfather and his brothers supported their families when money was scarce by not only doing many odd jobs but also but by supplementing their earnings by making moonshine. He just sort of laughed and asked where they'd kept the still hidden. I just sort of avoided the question by waving in the direction of the canyon. So after I was so forthcoming about the Ranch he told me a bit about himself. He talked about how he was a Vietnam Veteran, though he'd only served over there during the last chaotic months of the war, and had served the rest of his tour in the states. When he was discharged he'd went back to school and even played a bit of professional football before knee damage sidelined him. Ever since he'd been working as a coach. However he hadn't forgotten his military training and he intended to use it in order to keep all of us alive. Maybe in a couple of days I'll go ahead and show him the cave that runs under the property along with a few of the other secrets Grandpa and his brothers set up over the years. Mr. Steele

It's from the 24 season 1 set Kim Bauer.

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 2, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac Irons, day two: It's strange; I know that the world has basically ended yet out her on the farm it just seems like any other day. Sure the power is out but then that isn't really that unusual. Anyway I spent most of last night wondering which one of us is likely going to die first. Steele seems to have some military training but he is way over the top with his rules and paranoia. It's my place yet he is strutting around like he's the one in charge. If he keeps this up I might not let him know about the bomb shelter and the caves running under the property. Chuck, the janitor, seems level headed enough having fought off most of the creatures during our escape from the college but he's isolated himself in my old room or the grooms quarters in the barn. Even I have to agree with Steele that it is stupid to try and go it alone. With the undead about you really do need eyes in the back of your head if all the old movies are right. David is acting stupid every time Dawna or Brittany is in the room. I swear if he doesn't back off a little he's going to end up dead, and I don't mean un-dead dead either. Around here, if he doesn't get his mind off repopulating the planet, he's likely to do himself in before the girls get a chance. Speaking of the girls, in a stereotypical movie situation, they'd likely be the first to go but I'm certain this isn't one of those situations. Dawna is a country girl through and through. She was raised on the farm where everybody works and that tempers an individual. She isn't likely to just break and run at the first sign of trouble. Brittany on the other hand is obviously not prepared for the whole surviving off the land. If I had to place a wager I'd guess she is going to be the first to go. Still there is just something in her eyes that say, "bring it on and I'll show you what I can do". Naturally I'm not including myself on the list since this is my journal. Therefore, if I die, it doesn't matter. Or perhaps I should just say since this is my story I can't die. Hah! Anyway, it's time to get up and start breakfast. I doubt anyone here knows a whole lot about cooking on a wood stove. Which reminds me, we'd better work out some sort of chore schedule because I'll be damned if I'm going to do all the work around here. Day two continued: Dee, that's what Dawna has asked us to call her, insisted that she was heading over to her parents farm to see if they're all right. Steele tried to talk her out of it but she insisted that she was going, even if it meant walking. Oh and I should mention that she has taken possession of one of the katanas and Sparks, that would be Brittany, took the other. Anyway since there was no talking her out of it I guess I'm going to have to take her over there. If we find her parents we'll bring them back here since my place is likely the most defensible in the area. While it is a risk in attracting unwanted attention we've spent the morning putting up the panel sides on the hay truck so that if we find anything usable we can load it up and bring it back with us. I suppose I'd better finish this up and get going. The last thing I want is to be out after dark. Day two end: I'm back, and I survived the trip, though it wasn't as successful as we had hoped. I spent about half an hour checking out the Jenkins barn and other buildings but I didn't find anything useful. Though I also didn't find any undead. There was a small pile of firewood by the barn that I loaded up and I siphoned enough gas to fill the truck's tank. At that point Dee came out of the house. She wanted my help with something so I followed her to the back yard. The sight was enough to make me loose my breakfast. What was left of Mrs. Jenkins was scattered around the back porch and my old Katana was sticking out of the center of the former Mr. Jenkins head. Dee had already started to excavate a hole to bury the remains but she just couldn't keep going. While I picked up where she left off she went in and cleared out everything that we might be able to use and loaded it in the truck. When she was finished she came back and watched me dig for a while. Then she started telling me about her life. How she loved her parents even though they disowned her that spring when she and Sparks came out to them about being lovers. How she found them when we arrived and how she killed him. At that point rather than breaking down she stood up, took the shovel back, and started digging again. I'm not sure if she even realized that she had outed herself to me but I felt like this would be the best time to tell her about myself. If nothing else then to take her mind off of what had just happened. She did sympathize with me when I pointed out that at least she has Sparks. All I'm left with is an old military nut, the crazy in the barn, and a guy that would find me absolutely repulsive but would be spending a lot of alone time just fantasizing about the Dee and Sparks together. She actually laughed at that and agreed with me. She then promised that she would find me a man even if it meant hunting down every last survivor on the planet until I found an acceptable mate. Of course after that we got on with the grisly task of burying her parents. Even though I'm not religious, I had Dee get me her parent's bible and I read "The Lords Prayer" over the grave and asked God, though I may not be accepted into heaven, to at least watch accept Dee's parents since they were both good people before this trial was laid against us. Dee cried all the way back to the farm and immediately shut herself in her room with Sparks. I relayed what had happened to the rest of out little group, naturally leaving out the private details. I didn't feel like being around anyone after that so I slipped down here into the caves when the others went out to unload the truck. I really don't want any of them seeing me like this so I'm going to spend the night down here. Yeah, I'm just going to wrap myself around a bottle of Grandpa's finest 'shine and forget about reality for a while. Dawna "Dee" Jenkins

Thanks, TENIME, I'm hoping to get the next section finished soon. Even though I have the characters and short descriptions of each I'm still not sure where to go next. As soon as I do I'll post the next character in the series. Of course if anyone has a preference as to whom they'd like to see or hear about next let me know and I'll concentrate on that custom.

Survivor: Zombie Apocalypse (November 1, 0 Z.D.) From the journal of Isaac James Irons: Z-Day, that's what I'm calling it; it's the day that life ended and the dead decided to walk the Earth once more. Things seemed to start out like any other morning after Halloween parties; Students stumbling around campus looking half dead and very few of them making it to class. Like I said, just a regular Monday morning. Hell, even I considered skipping Health and Wellness class in order to go and get a double espresso. Unfortunately I couldn't risk lowering my GPA on something like that. Maybe this would be a good time to tell you a bit about myself. I'm about 6'1" tall with chocolate skin and bleached blond hair. I bleach it because my natural color is actually a dirty brownish blond that no one believes is my real color anyway. I come from a mixed race family. My Dad was Haitian and my Mom was Mormon. That was meant as a joke if you can believe it, one that my parent's often told me when I was about five and I'd ask why they had different skin color. God, I miss them. We were living in California when a drunk driver killed them and I was sent here to Idaho to live with my Mom's parents. Even then I knew that life for me was pretty much over. Surprisingly it wasn't as bad as I'd feared, even though I wasn't any good at basketball, damn stereotypes, I was pretty good at soccer though it isn't a major sport it did at least keep me from being picked on by the jocks. Something that was always a concern considering my other problems; I'm a total comic fan boy, I actually preferred journalism to sports, and given the choice between a weekend of partying and an anime marathon I'd choose the anime subbed or dubbed every time. Perhaps my most damning secret that I've been careful to keep hidden even to this day is the fact that I'm gay. Though I suppose something as trivial as that doesn't really matter anymore. Anyway I'm really thankful of all the long hours of work I put in on Grandpa's farm. He was a traditionalist making sure that I had all the skills that any farmer might ever need right down to teaching me traditional blacksmithing and proper hunting and gathering. As he put it "You never know when things will collapse like in the Great Depression and such basic skills will not only keep you alive but will allow you to help others survive as well." As I was saying I drove into class, skipping the espresso, since I really couldn't afford for my GPA to drop since I needed to get both my academics up so that I could afford to go to a real university for a degree in journalism and art. I was foolishly hoping to break into the entertainment world, preferably comics, or script writing. I don't really see that happening anymore. As I got to class I was rather surprised at how few classmates were there. Out of a class of thirty only four of us showed up. Dawna Jenkins, we went to school together but moved in different circles, and Brittany Sparks. All I know about Brittany is that she's got money and that she's sharing an apartment with Dawna. The other student was David Stone. I knew a bit about him since he was often ended up as my projects partner. He was working to get his basic studies out of the way while studying to improve his computer skills for a future IT degree. In the meantime he was part of the schools technical program working as an apprentice plumber so that he would at least have "a real world skill to fall back on if everything goes to hell". Of course Mr. Steele, the Football coach and Health instructor, was there bright and early. He was constantly looking at his watch and grumbling that if any of his players missed class because they'd been out partying they'd be running wind sprints for a month. It wasn't until the janitor, Chuck, stumbled into the room with a bloody shovel and fire axe that we realized that something was really wrong. Needless to say we would have broke and run if Mr. Steele hadn't stopped us. It was quickly decided that not only was my vehicle the closest but I also had the fewest neighbors so my Grandparents farm would be our best bet as a place to hole up and plan out next move. Considering the fact that whatever turned so many people into the undead happened in the middle of the night and I always take the back roads there was no incidents on the drive home. When we got here the first thing we did is board up the house as best we could then Dee and Sparks went to inventory the food supplies. Chuck and Steele took Gramps' old shotgun and headed out "to do a patrol" leaving David and myself to see what we could do about rounding up weapons. So far we've got an old revolver, hatchet, large pipe wrench, my pistol, and a fantasy long sword (likely useless) that I picked up at a yard sale. There are also two katanas that I made when I was in high school. Basically they're just a couple of metal rods pounded flat with an edge. I say edge but that's being overly charitable, still they're pointed and are better than nothing. I'm betting that one of our first trips will be to the gas station, man I'm glad I got oil in for the furnace a couple of weeks ago, in order to keep the generator running. After that we're going to need to hit the sporting goods stores and pawnshops for some decent weapons and ammunition.

Maybe it's the "New Fantastic Four" team with Wolverine, Spider-Man, Mr. Fixit, and Ghost Rider.

I get that vehicles are off the table for the Marvel License but at the same time all of the movies have had separate licenses, even though they have been listed as Marvel wave numbers, and that's why no final battle Whiplash or wave two First Class. So, if a new license is required for the New Ghostrider Movie, couldn't a motorcycle be a part of but still limited to only that individual wave?

I'd keep most things running as they have been. Change is something that should happen so slowly that it is only obvious in hindsight. I would try to make sure that fans most wanted character would be released yearly, likely just before Christmas, since there will always be another obscure character come along to replace Kang once he is made. At least one four pack per year would be a What If? or alternate universe set to keep things interesting. One of the gradual changes would be to move the troop builder figures into two of the non exclusive TRU slots with the most popular characters from the regular release. However the troop builders would be a variant rather than identical character. As an example the SHIELD troop builder would be female in one release and male in the other. One big change would be in movie licenses. Rather than a single wave I'd make sure that it had the option for two waves. The first for the Main movie release and the second for the video release to allow for the addition of characters that didn't make the first wave (Final Battle Whiplash, Banshee, etc). New licenses I'd pursue include Manga such as Naruto and Fullmetal Alchemist as well as slowly expanding into game properties like Capcom's other properties. I'd also hound Square Enix, like some believe should happen to DC, until they relent and allow mates of the Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Chrono Trigger, and Star Ocean series.

X.S.E. Strike File: Peregrine (Abigail Jenkins) Like Stark, Jenkins has an extensive knowledge of mechanics and engineering but is otherwise completely human. However, unlike Stark, Jenkins wasn't independently wealth so she decided to change that by building a suit of armor and using it to gain notoriety by fighting Iron Maiden. While the armor was good it just wasn't as powerful as Starks and Jenkins barely escaped its destruction. She was captured and imprisoned. She was paroled a short time later, however her stunt had brought her to the attention of several super powered criminal organizations. She was soon hired to act as a security guard by Hammer Industries. She was given designs and components needed to build a new and much more powerful suit of armor. What she didn't realize until later is that most of the designs and components had been stolen from Stark. Once she had modified the design and built the new suit she decided that, considering her failure as the Beetle, she would re-invent herself as a hero and named the armor the Mach-1. Eventually Hammer Industries' criminal acts were revealed. Even though Mach-1 hadn't actually broken any laws the suit was confiscated and eventually it was sold to Stark Industries when they acquired the remnants of Hammer's assets. Out of work and with no other place to turn Jenkins was forced to start over hiring out her skills to criminals in order to survive. First she only worked as a contractor designing and building high tech equipment however as soon as she had the materials she built a new Beetle armor and started working as a mercenary with any group that could pay. Still she had learned a lesson from her former failures and as soon as she could she built a Mach-2 armor and cut back on using her Beetle persona. She was working with a group of former criminals that, like her, had decided to try and turn their lives around by becoming heroes when the Super Human Control Acts were passed. She was arrested and incarcerated in the Vault. She agreed to a deal for her, and her teammate Songbird's, release in exchange for working exclusively for the X.S.E. but that changed when Cooper freed them. Since joining the War Birds Jenkins has taken the name Peregrine. She rarely enters battle. Instead she seems to maintain and modify the team's equipment. When she does enter battle she wears a new suit of armor, intelligence refers to as the Sentinel Buster, and is accompanied by a teleportation device in the shape of a giant robotic dog that the team refers to as Lockjaw II. Whether the robot has any real relationship to the, now deceased, Inhuman teleporter has yet to be determined.

X.S.E. Strike File: Bluejay (Melvin James Gold) Bluejay, formerly the criminal known as Screaming Manny and later Songbird, had the ability to generate sonic vocalizations that created different effects depending on the musical note he generated. However after he was captured his vocal chords were removed leaving him completely powerless and mute. He only had six months left on his sentence before he would be released when Cooper broke in to the Vault. It is unknown what his reasons were for joining the prison break but since joining the War Birds he has started wearing an armored suit, believed to have been specially designed by the criminal formerly known as The Beetle, that allows him to fly. It should be noted that the wings on the suit are non-functional and seem to be there for nothing more than effect. The suit also allows him to manipulate sound replicating his old powers.

It almost looks like it could be the formation of a combined Human and Mutant AoA Sheild Team. The one with the purple mask makes me think of Psyloche or maybe Revanche. The gray skinned guy in the helmet could be Banner, it's been a while since I last flipped through them but I think he survived. While the masked character does look like Basilisk wasn't he the Age of X Cyclops? If that's the case he doesn't have the scars of AoA Cyclops.

X.S.E. Strike File: Canary (Raymond DeMara) Ray Demara started out as a normal human criminal that just happened to steal an advanced cybernetic suit designed and used by Helen Pym when she was calling herself Yellowjacket. The suit gave Ray the ability to shrink down to roughly the size of a bee using "Pym particles" in the helmet as well as grow to giant proportions. While reduced in size the suit generated insect like wings allowing Yellowjacket to fly. The suit was also equipped with "disrupter sting" blasters. Even though he had stolen the suit Ray eventually convinced the Avengers to allow him to join the team on a probationary basis. Not long afterwards he left the team to join a group of heroes in an alternate reality 30th Century. It was believed that he was gone for good; however, he soon returned in an attempt to warn the Avengers of a threat in their own time. The X.S.E. intercepted and incarcerated him for attempting to tamper with the timeline. While he was in the 30th Century significant modifications were made to the Yellowjacket suit. The most obvious change is the fact that the insect wings were replaced with avian wings that can be generated no matter what size DeMara grows or shrinks too. Though from observations made since his escape it seems he is unable to fly if he grows larger than his regular human proportions. Also the suit has somehow been psychically linked to DeMara allowing him to summon it through some form of subspace rift. Since joining the War Birds, DeMara has started calling himself Canary and is using his knowledge of possible future events to coordinate the "Hero" terrorist cells currently engaged against the X.S.E. While Canary is a high level threat we want to capture him in order to continue "questioning" him about what he knows and how it can help the X.S.E. eliminate the super human threat.

Best argument for a Doc Samson I've heard yet.

Indydudes? I don't know about the name but I'd love to see a set to compliment the Femme Fatales. Red Riding Hood/a proper bi-pedal werewolf with a sculpted wolf head mask with a second sculpted mask with Granny bonnet Alice/Mad Hatter with a teapot that has a mouse head sticking out of it Bo Peep/a black wolf (Amaterasu) with blood lined jaws and a sheep's skin helmet and back covering for hiding Snow White/Woodsman or modern hunter for cross use in the Riding Hood set Lexi/Steambot that looks completely non-minimate like (like the Real Ghostbusters Ghosts to give the haters something to complain about while they still pick up multiple sets for a steambot army) Plus a few that aren't Femmes Fatales (yet anyway) Goldilocks/Bear with three alternate heads to army build all three Beauty/Beast I'm torn between a traditional beast and a living version of the Zombie construction worker

As bulked up as Kingpin is I wonder if he would look better if they used the 3" head, rather than the standard block, like they did with the Sony Ratchet.