(( Okay so I know we were sort of talking about doing these using old versions but given that there was such a nice resource all written up I thought I might have a stab at writing the first piece set in Advent. Hope it's okay and nothing's too far out of character Ducky. ))
(( Also FIRST ))
The twisted metal archway that marked the entrance to the Advent Living Museum had been cordoned off by police barriers about twenty minutes ago, but thankfully Alexis had made her harried trek towards the scene via rooftop, having already been above the city when she'd first heard the chatter over the police scanners. From there it was a simple (though moderately terrifying) leap over the high stone wall and down, down, down into what had turned out to be the gorilla habitat. The young heroine took a moment to concentrate as fractures in her legs re-knit, her teeth grit to keep control of the pain that was fading away. With another glance around, awkwardly making eye contact with a wizened old ape that was industriously exploring its left nostril, she hopped across the moat that separated the habitat from the wall and scrambled up onto the pathway. That fall had been tiring enough, but there was work to be done.
Alexis was unfamiliar with the zoo's exact layout, but the sounds of shouting and flashing lights of a few more police vehicles were easy enough to follow. At her approach one of the officers glanced up, then swung round and raised his sidearm, his eyes widening. "Sarge, we've got another one!" he announced. Alexis blinked and raised her hands in a placating gesture as another police officer turned to look at her. "I'm not another one!" she breathlessly answered in a rush. "I'm here to help! Err...another what, anyway?"
The sergeant grunted and relaxed his stance, gesturing to the other officer. "Lower your weapon, Jenkins." His attention returned to the series of sectioned off areas beyond the cop cars that blocked the walkway. "He means another 'mythological hero', miss," he continued. "We got ourselves a bona fide crazy; broke in about forty minutes ago, yelling something about testing himself. He's in with the big cats somewhere. We're just holding here 'til someone figures out what the game plan is with the keepers."
"He's...testing himself with the big cats?" Alexis asked, somewhat nonplussed. She stepped up beside the police sergeant and peered down the wide paved walkway that led towards the zoo's more dangerous and popular animal exhibits. The booming sound of a man's raised voice was echoing back faintly, his laughter and shouting just barely drowning out the noise of a number of distressed-sounding roars and growls made by Advent Living Museum's regular inmates. The few policemen standing at the barrier seemed to be waiting expectantly, their attention on Alexis. She opened her mouth, but couldn't quite think of anything appropriate to say. "Well..." she finally began, "I'll just go ahead and...see if I can sort that out then." Clearing her throat, the young woman slid across the hood of the police car, careful not to snag the edge of her toga on anything. She readied her bow and trod forward towards the riotous sounds ahead.
As Alexis rounded the corner towards the observation deck that overlooked the lion enclosure another booming laugh split the air, ringing with bravado. A jagged looking hole had been smashed in the thick plexi-glass window that generally separated man from beast; the hole was currently serving as an exit for a well-built man in perhaps his early thirties, with long shaggy hair and a well kept beard. "Well fought, my worthy adversary! Take this moment to prepare yourself for another bout!" the man declared, dusting off his hands. He was absolutely covered in scratches and clawmarks, but seemed to pay them no mind, dropping back to his feet with an air of determination and satisfaction. He was also completely naked. Alexis cleared her throat and averted her eyes, though the sound served only to draw the man's attention. He readied himself to face attack, then paused ask he took in Alexis' appearance and straightened with a proud grin stretching across his features. "Ah! Gentle nymph! Have you come to honour mighty Hercules? Forgive me, the deed is not yet done! Fear not though, I shall dispatch my foe after a moment's rest."
This information took a moment to process. Alexis loosened the slack on her bowstring, glancing from the muscled lunatic to the hole in the lion exhibit and back again. "...were you just...wrestling a lion?"
"The first of many trials to come, oh fair and lovely nymph. The beast has proven himself to be more of a challenge than I had first believed, but I am confident. The mighty Hercules cannot be bested!" The madman paused for a dramatic pose and Alexis was forced once again to momentarily avert her eyes. "Look uh...maybe it would be a good idea if you were to put on some trousers? I mean...wouldn't want that...scratched..."
"A man needs all his faculties unrestricted to engage in the noble art of wrestling!" Hercules replied in a decisive tone, then shook with another pleased laugh as an angry roar burst from the long grass on the other side of the thick glass wall. "My opponent is impatient to die, beautiful nymph! You should await me here."
Alexis sighed and raised her bow again, readying to fire. If that man was a demi-god she'd hope she'd know. Besides, it was 'Heracles', not 'Hercules'. "You need to stop this, sir."
"Stop?!" the man asked incredulously, as though the idea of not committing cat-ricide had never occurred to him.
"You can't kill that lion," Alexis explained, her tone taking on the special sound reserved for small children and mental-patients. "That's Arnold. He lived through the fire. He's like a city institution."
"And I shall treat his pelt with honour, wearing it proudly once I strip it from his hide!" Hercules explained, though the last part grew louder, seemingly as a threat to the creature still in his cage. The roar that followed suggested Arnold recognised the tone, and didn't like it.
With a frown Alexis lined up her shot, holding the string taut with one of her specially tricked out flash arrows ready to fly. "If you won't stop, then I'll have to stop you."
The naked madman laughed at this and treated the young heroine to a winning smile. "I do like a woman of spirit! Once I have dispatched my foe and the trial is done then I shall allow you to detain me as much as you wish, lovely nymph, but not before." He turned towards the hole leading to the lion enclosure. On reaction Alexis let the arrow fly, aiming for the wall by Hercules' head, however his arm snapped out and hand closed quickly around its shaft as though the effort were nothing. Hercules turned back to hold the arrow forth with another proud grin. Then it burst forth with white, blinding light.
The tint of Alexis' goggles was designed to withstand the flash, but at such range even she had to blink twice to fully recover her sight. She took two faltering steps back when she noticed Hercules' expression, his face all screwed up. The arrow snapped in his fist. "That was a mistake, little creature. I shall have to teach you a lesson!"
Alexis turned and fled back down the pathway towards the police cordon, fumbling to draw another arrow in the hopes of slowing down the naked male specimen of madness that was hot on her heels. Spinning mid-run she loosed another arrow, the capsule attached to its tip bursting on contact to release an oily payload across the ground behind her before she continued on. Sadly her pursuer avoided the obstacle with a single fluid leap, then kept loping closely behind her. The officers at the barrier snapped to nervous action when they saw the two heroic figures bearing down on them, the undisciplined Jenkins firing off a volley of bullets as Alexis dove back across the hood of the nearest car and rolled to her feet. Hercules laughed loudly as his skin amazingly turned the shots aside with barely a graze.
"Behold the power of the son of Zeus!" The madman raved, bending to find purchase on the metal frame of the police vehicle with his hands, then slowly lifting it above his head with a faint grunt. The policemen scattered, firing a couple more ineffectual shots as they radioed for immediate backup. Alexis gasped, yet her gaze was fixed just behind the imposing figure before her.
With a loud and enraged snarl Arnold the lion lunged for his foolish, fleshy attacker's unguarded leg, having clambered out of the cage that had held him for so many years in search of revenge. The man let out an exclamation of pain and surprise as he dislodged the big angry cat and kicked him away, however the damage was done; while bearing such a burden Hercules lost his footing and toppled over, the heavy police car dropping down upon him with a resounding smash. Arnold roared and raked his claws across the car door with a screech of metal as the fight was denied to him, then turned in search of his next prey.
Tail waving slowly with each step, the lion stalked closer to Alexis, readying to spring forward. The young woman backed just as slowly away from the big cat, trying to keep what distance she could as her brain worked feverishly. There were a couple of strategically planted trees nearby, but nothing close enough for her to scramble up before the lion reached her. She could maybe hop into a nearby enclosure, but given that a quick glance showed it to be housing a trio of bears she didn't think that would be a particularly good trade off. She couldn't shoot Arnold either, she'd just worked to keep someone else from killing him and wasn't going to risk spoiling that now. She'd have to stall; surely the police would be back with the zoo keepers any moment now?
Arnold got impatient and lunged forward, his powerful front paws outstretched with wicked looking claws extended. Alexis rolled to the side, her heart beating wildly in her chest at the narrow escape. Taking a few more slow steps away from the stalking cat as he readied for another lunge she blindly felt across the fletching of her various arrows, weighing up what options were left to her. Another flash arrow? It would probably just make Arnold angry. Sticky arrow? That was designed more for hampering people. ALL her arrows were designed for...wait. Her fingers closed around one slightly larger bolt. It hadn't been perfected yet; even with the lightest polymer threads the missile was heavy and inaccurate, but she was close enough that accuracy didn't mean much...
The internal debate was answered for her when the furious lion leapt in attack once more. Alexis' hand snapped up and loosed the overlarge arrow straight for her feline assailant; the force of the bowstring sent a shiver along the shaft so that it began to come apart, splitting outwards into a mesh of fibres that closed around the lunging lion's body. Arnold roared in surprise and confusion at suddenly finding himself caught, but his momentum was enough to bring him crashing forward the rest of the way towards Alexis as she struggled to use the last split second to duck out of the way, catching a flailing swipe of claws across her thigh in the process. She'd bought herself enough time though, as Arnold directed his attention to shredding the net he'd been enveloped in the cavalry arrived, keepers racing to attempt to tranquilise the angry cat and police rushing all over the scene shouting directions to each other.
Alexis got back to her feet with the help of the police sergeant she'd spoken to previously and after working to heal the nasty fleshwound on her leg turned to point towards the car where the unfortunate Hercules had been pinned, but stopped in surprise with her arm outstretched when she saw the vehicle left on its side; little more than a depression in the ground marked the man's presence. The sergeant grunted softly as he surveyed the scene. "Don't worry miss, he can't have gotten far. Crazy guy like that is bound to turn up."
"That's what worries me," Alexis replied with a soft frown.