Terminal Velocity
WHO: Ikkaku Madarame, Impulse, Master Asia, Star Sapphire, Team Trinity, Tub Ci
WHERE: Across the multiverse
WHAT: A routine attempted super-collaring in Paragon City turns into a death race when Tub Ci demonstrates how you deal with speedsters: you Siphon Speed. Impulse leads Tub Ci on a race across the multiverse at breakneck speeds, struggling to keep ahead of the supervillain who has his number, and increasingly, his speed. And they continue to go faster, until they approach the final speed you can't come back from...
WATCH FOR: Cameo pit-stops, the Superdictionary, stern words from Master Asia, and the fate of Tub Ci is--?!
Paragon City, Rhode Island - the home of thousands of heroes and villains. They're all over the damn place. Right now, let us peek in on what's going on in Independence Port! Independence Port, home of mob wars and fascist recruiters. Let us move in a bit, to the longest straightaway in Paragon: the Valor Bridge. It has served as a racetrack for super-speed heroes for ages!
And now, it is currently the home to a bunch of ninjas, who are beating the crap out of some guys in badly-fitting black suits. Walking among the fights is the leader of the ninjas - the powerful TUB CI! His tattoos are glowing with power, and occasionally he just reaches over and flicks a Family Capo or Thug. When he does this, the poor mafiosos go flying.
Tub Ci
Tang Tub Ci is a Martial Arts Villain. Really, that's what everything about him says. He is an Eastern-looking man with a Fu Manchu beard and moustache. He is extremely muscular, but still lithe enough not to be a gigantic brick of muscle. He is covered, from the neck down, in tattoos. Tattoos of evil martial arts power.
Also, they glow with a rainbow light.
Impulse
Aren't you a little short for a superhero? Impulse looks to be about fifteen years old or so, with a face betraying expressions that make him seem even younger. He wears a full-body jumpsuit of futuristic chromatic fibers, white with a dark red-bronze wide stripe down the middle, with jagged edges recalling a lightning bolt, going from the inner side of his legs up to cover his neck. There it forms into a sort of half-mask, cupping under his chin and stretching out over his eyes, but leaving his nose and mouth and his head over the eyes exposed. His eyes are covered under transparent convex yellow goggles built into the mask. There are tiny golden winglike ornaments on the mask coming from over his ears. He has two conspicuous features not established by the costume: heavily long brown hair, overflowing to reach about halfway down either side of his face, and big old feet, kept in enormous boots integrated into the costume, with rubber treads like sneakers.
"This is pretty awesome," says Bart Allen - or rather IMPULSE, suited up in his superheroic uniform, mask and goggles. Certainly not Bart Allen. Looks like he cons as one of those superheroes significant enough to get his own little logo in the middle of the introductory narration. But then again, sometimes that doesn't mean much.
Impulse, in any case, just happened to be 'running the course,' with a hand gripping two corn dogs on sticks, which he alternates between in taking bites. Now this shift is one he can get used to, dodging between the cars running the bridge, and keeping a lookout for trouble. It's been getting pretty frustrating with the other local heroes keeping most of the trouble contained, though - at least until now.
An electric streak rushes past right over the bridge railing, grasping the mafiosos by their collars one by one. It blurs past, setting each one down at the base of the railings, clear of potential traffic. Then it skids to a halt, just a fifteen-year-old in a white and red-bronze costume, folding his arms and tapping one of his big feet. "I appreciate the irony and all," Impulse says, tossing a pair of sticks that once had corn dogs on them to sail over the railing behind him into the sea below, "but it's not cool to send the mafia to sleep with the fishes either, okay?"
Impulse says, "Hey guys, I got, uh, some kind of ninja guys here, trying to send some 'legitimate businessmen' for a long walk off a short pier. Goin' in."
Venetia Martens says, "Okay! You need any help?"
Impulse says, "Nahhh! Piece of cake."
Venetia Martens says, "Okay! Have fun~"
Impulse says, "You got it."
It takes some doing to get your own logo in Paragon City - most people just try to make their costumes unique, because the tailors offer a wide but ultimately somewhat limited selection. When Impulse runs up, there is a moment where the ninjas look around - but superspeed contains within it something of stealth. It takes a stop to be noticed.
And so when Impulse appears, saving the mafiosos, Tub Ci turns to face him. Tub Ci, being the Archvillain, has the most Perception. "...hero." He says the word as if he is saying 'worm.' "This is Tsoo business. Do not interfere on my territory."
Impulse says, "Guy says they're the Soo or something. Is there anything we've got on the Soo that I should know, or should I just punch their blocks off and call it a day?"
Toushirou Hijikata says, "...I've heard and see nothin' on these guys."
Impulse says, "Gotcha. Punchin' blocks."
Toushirou Hijikata says, "...I like his spirit."
Impulse says, "Well, that's what they're there for, right?"
Toushirou Hijikata says, "Unless you're told otherwise, then yeah."
Impulse stands around for a little while, while Tub Ci is speaking. Rather, while he begins speaking. Halfway through Tub Ci's address, the speedster bolts, running circles around the Tsoo underlings. First he digs in the trunk of the nearest Family vehicle, and comes up with a noose, which can be straightened up to round up and tie up the 'legitimate businessmen' looking guys. Actually, Impulse just kind of assumed they're the mafia. They're wearing business suits, right? Mafia. Then images of the fastest boy alive are rushing all over. Over there, punching the shirtless warrior from every direction. Tripping that guy. Pulling the swords and throwing stars off that walking arsenal and dropping them into the sea.
Impulse is standing behind the last underling when Tub Ci finishes his statement, holding a hand to his mouth while he yawns, his other hand stretched out to the back of the underling's head, positioned ready to flick. "Sorry, were you saying something? I was busy." Then he flicks, with sufficient speed to put a great deal of force behind the motion, although not enough to pose serious injury. Just black a guy out.
The minions are...minions. They con grey. Impulse can handle them all easily. Tub Ci, on the other hand...well, let us cover the minions first. The Family are tied up, and the Tsoo ninjas and martial artists? Well, most of them are unconscious. Police drones will probably wander over when all this is done and take everyone to Ziggursky Prison. Which means they'll be out again in a few months, but that's just how the Zig works - it's made of Swiss cheese.
Tub Ci is more of a problem. When the last underling is knocked out, the martial artist turns to face Impulse again. A speedster. "You are a fool, then! KNOW THE WRATH OF THE TSOO!" The aging martial arts master raises his arms - and his tattoos glow brighter. Suddenly, he leaps forward and slams his leg at Impulse. As he kicks, the leg is wreathed in flame. This is a test to see how powerful Impulse's speed powers are, and how much he relies on them - Tub Ci already knows what he plans to do after the test.
Of course he's tougher. He's bigger and he's got more tattoos and he's bossing the other guys around. He's the stage boss! Impulse would be kinda disappointed if he went down as easy as the other guys. But kinda pumped at how awesome he is.
This kick isn't enough to push Impulse to his limits, though. He doesn't actually have to move at all if he were to vibrate through it, but the thought doesn't occur to him. Fortunately for Impulse, he's easily quick enough to see Tub Ci's burning kick long coming, and Tub Ci isn't even moving his knee before Impulse is out of the way off to the side, holding his arms out and leaning his body back. "Oh! Too bad. Snake eyes. Wanna roll again? I'm right here." He grins cockily, just standing there.
The boy depends almost completely on his speed. He's not even that refined in his use of it.
Tub Ci's face twists into an evil grin. The boy doesn't even strike back. A fool. The martial artist slips into a defensive stance, his green tattoos glowing brighter than the rest. He is, however, a City of Heroes Archvillain. That means he has to monologue a bit now.
"You, hero, risk death. You have forfeitted your chance to run away. Now...now, you will die at the hands of the Tsoo Master, TUB CI!" Lighting claps dramatically between his hands, and thunder crashes.
"For now...you are mine." And one hand comes forward. The mystic tattoos glow brighter - that is, the green ones. Kinetic power is not rare among the so-called Defender heroes...or among the Tsoo. Using the mystic connection between all people, tapped by those tattoos, Tub Ci begins to siphon away Impulse's greatest asset into himself: his speed.
Impulse stares blankly at the Tsoo Master, as he declares his dark power, and his mystic tattoos glow and reach out.
"Your name is Tubby?! Pft." Impulse tries to hold it in, looking down, his mouth curled up on the ends. "I dunno, if I wanted to be a criminal mastermind I'd think a little more--" Can't hold it. "Do you want some more fries with that?! Pahahahahahahahaahaahaaahaaahaaaahuuuuuh?"
Impulse's laughter as he doubles over gradually begins to slow. The mystic tattoos of Tub Ci reach out and grasp hold of something between the young man and something greater, grasping onto a spiritual connection and leeching onto it, clogging the connection with its draw. "Heeeeey!" Impulse scowls slowly, looks down, and then speeds up again - though it takes exertion now, adjusting his speed to a point he's not used to having it at to interact normally with people. "What's the big-- put that back! I need that!" Impulse runs over to Tub Ci, rushing all around him, peering at the tattoos, trying to slap at them to interrupt the connection, his body speeding up into a vibrating blur to dip his head inside Tub Ci's body, and then back out again. Nope, no nanomachines or anything. Just organs.
Tub Ci's eyes narrow. He is a powerful martial artist. His name is an honorable name, a good name of his people, the Hmong. And this - this outsider, this white man, he insults it.
The slaps don't do much - they cause some minor bruises, but Tub Ci is hard to interrupt out of his techniques. It takes things like knockbacks or mezzes! Not just damage. He turns again as Impulse backs out of his body...and then acts with some of the stolen speed, moving faster than he should. His fist slams out for Impulse's head. "My name is Tub Ci! You will respect me, hero - or I will take far more than your speed and your life!" The fist seems to glow as Tub Ci calls on his strength-granting tattoos, his speed drain slowing slightly as he splits his arcane power.
Impulse's reflexes are extremely sharp - but this draining effect has thrown his timing all out of whack. He sees the punch coming, but he can't time when he should be moving, and he's just beginning to move when it slams into his forehead. Impulse is sent sprawling far down the bridge, blood drawn from the strike, head reeling punch-drunk. "Somebody get the license number of that bathtub...?" Impulse's head heaves forward for a time before he shakes out of it, and climbs back to his feet.
Okay. He's doing - well, he's doing something. Something so that all of a sudden Impulse doesn't feel as fast as he was. It's apparently those tattoos of his? So he can't just come in and swipe a device off of him to reverse the effect. And - so what can he do? So what can he do?
He's used to being able to think this through fast enough that he doesn't have to worry about moving until he's done. Through all this time, Impulse is wide open to be targeted by the Tsoo Master again. Glaringly open - he barely seems to be paying attention.
As Impulse goes flying, Tub Ci laughs. That's more like it! Immediately after, he begins running after Impulse, using the stolen speed to make sure he catches up before Impulse is quite ready - but that is apparently not much of a problem. The martial artist would wonder at this were he not busy planning his moves - he'll wonder about it later.
Now, after all, is the time to strike! As he gets near Impulse, he leaps into the air, lashing out with a powerful double kick, which he turns into a backflip, landing back on his feet in front of Impulse. Still smiling cruelly, the Tsoo Master attacks with a pair of palm strikes for Impulse's chest. He's not even bothering with esoteric magical effects on his blows...which may be overconfidence.
Might be. But while Impulse is an athletic young man, he's certainly not used to having to get down and dirty and brawl with somebody on par with him enough to actually land more than a few isolated blows. Impulse's head is snapped back by the first kick, and the second knocks him back off balance, stumbling - and it's an odd motion he makes, one that seems uncertain at which pace to fire the neurons to ensure that his feet hit solid ground at the right angles. Impulse raises a hand slowly to his jaw, wiping off the blood dripping from his mouth - and then looks down at it, like he doesn't believe it.
He's bleeding? Bart Allen is bleeding?
That's not supposed to happen.
The guy is right there.
Impulse looks up to Tub Ci, no longer laughing at him, just a sullen, resentful glare - and then he's turned around, and he's running, tearing back down the Valor Bridge. Bart isn't certain what he's running to do. Is he trying to get away? To see if the ability has a limited range? To lead the guy somewhere he can be dealt with easier?
He wants to get away.
The power does have a limited range - but Tub Ci doesn't intend to allow it to reach that range. Not if he can help it. As Impulse runs, the Tsoo Master roars something in Mandarin and takes off after him. Unlike Impulse, he's not surprised about hitting. Tub Ci is used to that. He's somewhat surprised by the blood, though - that part doesn't happen quite as often.
And the running away is practically unprecendented - most heroes fight until they fall over. The martial artist is not quite used to all the speed he's siphoning - but unlike Impulse, he's a veteran. He knows how to adapt - it's actually something of a Tsoo specialty, given the sheer amount of powers they have to call on. He's still not quite able to catch up - but he's keeping level.
He's got to go. Got to move. Got to run. Run. Impulse isn't used to it feeling like a strain like this - it's normally a joyous thing, to run. To let go of all these restraints he has to put himself under and just go. Now it feels like there are weights on his legs and they're slowly getting heavier, and the air is thick, and it's hard to breathe. Where to go? He doesn't know this plane. Between streets and roads, and if Tub Ci knows the city well enough he can probably cut corners, go through alleys, catch up through smarter navigation. Impulse isn't really thinking clearly, doesn't really have a plan right now, but his instincts are telling him about only one place to go, while the bystanders around are statues to the both of them.
Impulse takes a long runner's leap, and dives through the shimmering distortion in the center of the Paragon City Gate, blurring through the air of the Terminus and passing through another Gate before he lands.
Independence Port, at least, is part of Tub Ci's empire. He does not know all of Paragon like the back of his hand. Peregrine Island, for example - that's somewhere the Tsoo don't go. But Independence? Well...the martial artist lunges over a series of dumpsters, does a handstand atop a sewer grate and luanches himself into the water - where the giant octopus called Luska waits. He runs along her tentacles, leaping after Impulse as he goes the longer way. Sister Psyche, the local major hero, does absolutely nothing to help, because the Freedom Phalanx have a job, and that job is to stand there and hand out task forces.
As Impulse dives through the Gate, Tub Ci is right behind him. The siphoning lets up until they are on the same plane again - but Tub Ci was closing the gap between them throughout Independence, and so that time is small. What Gate will the chase lead to next?
You transfer through the Terminus to Metropolis.
Paranormal Sector - Metropolis
Metropolis, the City of Tomorrow, home of the Man of Tomorrow. This massive futuristic city is far ahead of the level of technology of its surroundings, thanks in part to the brilliance of local corporate magnate Lex Luthor. Clean, sleek skyscrapers make the horizon a sight to behold, from the Lexcorp Building to the Daily Planet, the city's premier newspaper since it began getting exclusives on the activities of Superman, the city's local protector. News filters here, too, of activity of the Justice League and the other superheroes active in this plane. Metropolis has its dark side, however; though ordinary crime is low thanks to the stalwart efforts of the Man of Steel and the highly-armed, advanced state of the Metropolis police, a local crime syndicate called Intergang has made inroads into the city, and there are rumors that Lex Luthor has had hands in some very suspect business practices.
Contents:
Star Sapphire
Obvious exits:
eaboard Highway leads to Paranormal Sector - Gotham City.
corp Express leads to Paranormal Sector.
Tub Ci emerges from a Terminus Gate.
Tub Ci has arrived.
The Port Authority, 11:12 PM local time.
Star Sapphire, redolent in her glittering finery, stands before a shuttered Au Bon Pain in the Bus/Gate Terminal, glancing at the two Zamaronians, in their ceremonial armor so easily mistaken for Amazonian, who flank her. "Why are we attacking this place?" she says, stridently. "This is a place that sells BREAD. It sells a cooked food made from flour. This is not a place worthy of our attention!"
The Zamaronain to the left bows her head. "Yes," she says. "And yet, Star Sapphire, the busy day they had yesterday ensures that there will be plenty of BREAD in their safe. That is to say, using a word in Earthling slang, they will have plenty of money in their safe."
"And further," the one on the right sniffs, "This is a chain which I am told was frequented by the hated Ganthet, to say nothing of Kyle Rainer. This establishment is ill-BRED. It is not suitable to noble people."
"You're stretching the point, Talaxia," Star Sapphire counters, as several late night travellers look on curiously from behind a temporarily-broken kinetic sculpture.
Got to run. Have to run. Run.
That's the only thought that currently has room in the head of Bart Allen, alias Impulse, the fastest boy alive. His legs feel weak and debilitated, it takes effort to lift one and put it in front of the other. Effort. Beads of sweat begin to form. His big feet hit the ground from a long runner's leap from the other side of the local Gate, hit the ground running, straining to keep the effort up as Tub Ci's field of speed siphoning continues to grow in power, with every mite Tub Ci growing faster, and Impulse slower.
The whole world is in slow motion around him as he races down the Port Authority, the Tsoo Master on his heels. An electric streak rushes past the Zamarons, chirping a message which may just narrowly be made out as "HiMaximaIdon'thavetimetoarrestyourightnow," and then it's gone again, racing across the continental United States, for the next major city with a Gate. Despite the fierce urgency of now, he takes a detour through one door of a stationary shop in Cleveland and out another to pick up a Post-It Note and a pen, and halfway across Metropolis he crashes through the Hall of Justice, the local embassy for the Justice League, and leaves a note on Hal Jordan's face before rushing out the other end of the building: 'YOUR GIRLFRIEND'S GETTING BUSY AT THE FOOD COURT.'
Tub Ci is dogged in his pursuit. Impulse has pulled aggro, and he insulted Tub Ci's most honorable name. That just won't stand! ...and he beat up a bunch of Tsoo minions, but that's less important. The name!
The martial arts master is keeping chase, leaping over cars and ducking around signposts - he's still not siphoned nearly enough speed to be able to vibrate through them yet. The Port Authority is a backdrop he does not recognize, so he keeps Impulse in sight instead. He allows only half a second for a brief nod to Star Sapphire - not someone he recognizes, but supervillains have this instinct for other supervillains.
The trip through the stationary shop and then to Metropolis confuses Tub Ci, but he keeps up with it. Indeed, he causes no small amount of screams by smashing the shop's door with a high-speed flying kick. His tattoos are about as brightly-glowing as streetlamps now - or at least the green ones are.
"Maxima?!" Star Sapphire shouts, approximately around the time that Bart reaches the far side of the New York state border. She whirls around to face Talaxia, face tightening in a mask of towering fury. "What did Garrick say to me?!"
"ghk," says Jordan, who was sitting down with a beer after staving off a runaway elephant in the People's Republic of Congo. He takes the note off --
Fortunately for Bart, there's a Gate hub of similar design somewhere out there in Coast City! The main difference is that the architecture is better and the food is worse and more expensive. Can he make it out in time?!
You transfer through the Terminus to Side 3.
You reenter the Earth's atmosphere.
Sci-Fi Sector - Mount Kilimanjaro
When Jaburo was destroyed by the bombardment of the Space Terrible Monster Cloud, the Earth Federation was forced to relocate its central base. They elected to create a new base at Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa. It is a large, broad mountain that provides an excellent defensive position. The base itself is well-defended by numerous Mobile Suits and ground-based batteries. The base is largely located on the mountain's side, but the summit does have a radar tower that is utilized to detect attacks from abroad.
The base's existence is the brainchild of General Jamitov Hyman, a soldier who rose to prominence during the One Year War and the STMC War. It is said that many of the staff here are more loyal to him and his extremist, anti-Colonial thinking than they are to the Earth Federation as a whole. This base is a symbol of his rise to power.
Contents:
Team Trinity
Obvious exits:
rbital lift vehicle leads to Sci-Fi Sector - Side 3.
Tub Ci arrives from the Colonies.
Tub Ci has arrived.
Somewhere in the dusty desert plains of a war-torn Earth, Federation forces were closing in on the last remaining firebase of a band of ragged rebels. What had been planned to be a titanic clash between the GMs of the mighty state military and the Zakus of the desperate bedouins, however, quickly turned into a holocaust neither side had predicted. The first warning came as a shot from above, the first taking out the Federation commander, the second the rebel leader. After that, it was a free for all, as Thrones Eins, Zwei, and Drei commenced their armed intervention in the Sahara sands.
As it stands now, the last of the Feds and rebels have banded together to make their last stand deep in a bunker deep within the base. Standing just outside, the three Throne Gundams hover in formation over strewn supa robo wreckage as they plan their next move. "I can fly in and just slaughter them all," Michael states confidently as he waves Zwei's sword in the base's direction. "Perhaps that might be the best course of action," Johann adds. "Aww, but I wanted to have some fun too!", Nena pouts with folded arms.
None of the Gundam pilots, however, are prepared for their very own surprise to come...
Believe in yourself. Never give up. And most of all, no matter how run down you get...
Never slow down.
Impulse is panting as he runs out of the Gate, beads of sweat running down his face. It all feels wrong. His legs are like iron weights, and the air is thick as molasses. He has to squint to see what's ahead of him in time to maneuver around it. He's pressing himself harder and harder, though, to make up for it, even as the speed he had been using before is transferred into Tub Ci instead. He has to wear himself out more and more to keep out of the Tsoo Master's reach. Soon it will be all he can do just to keep up.
But he can't give up. He'll never stop running.
The world is all but frozen around the young man as he rushes across the sands, his feet keeping too swift to be caught by pools of loose grains and quicksand, moving over the surface without falling. The electric blur is so fast that it leaves a storm in its wake, sand and wind kicked up into a tornado following the speedster across the desert, always one step behind. The lightning streak rushes around the debris of fallen robots, desperately trying to figure out what he can do. He can't outrun this guy forever, can he? Slow him down, maybe. But how hard that is, when his very body feels like it's weighing him down. Impulse ducks under a low-lying heavy ballistic rifle, runs almost horizontally over the side of a dune and the husks of war machines, and then demonstrates a rare bit of creativity from Bartolomew Allen - leaping into his own wake, allowing the air funnel to lift him and use the spin to hurl him farther, in the direction of what must be the next Gate out, on the other side of this war-torn country. But he's slowing down. This is all he can do to stay ahead.
Tub Ci runs with less and less exertion, by comparison. All he has to do is maintain the tattoo power. This is becoming easier and easier, as he doesn't have to focus to run faster - he just has to maintain a steady speed after Impulse. The martial artist has a grin on his face as he follows after, his legs pounding the sand at speeds too fast for the human eye.
Unlike Impulse, Tub Ci has creativity and adaptability more often. He leaps into the air, using his momentum to get to the top of a robot shard, leaps off it and runs across a line of sand blown into the air by Impulse's passing. He doesn't create an air funnel - instead, he runs across the dissolving tunnel of Impulse. Sure, he's creative and adaptable - but when someone leaves you a path, you take it.
"APPROACHING STORM. APPROACHING STORM." Nena peers down at the little spherical companion lying between her feet. "What are you-"
Its upon them before they even know it. A lightning streak crosses the ground, leaving huge dust devils, incredible winds, and a massive wind funnel in its wake. The second streak behind it is all but ignored as the trio of Gundam pilots find themselves confronted with a major problem. "What the @#$*, I can't keep steady!" "Wah! I'm losing control!" "HARO DIZZY. HARO DIZZY." Johann, grunting and sweating as he fights an unnatural force of nature, realizes there's only one option: "Disengage hover!" The other two Trinities didn't need to be told twice, and there's three very loud whumps as all three land in the desert sand.
By the time the storm passes, the battlefield has been re-arranged. Eins sits partially buried in the sand, Drei is also half-buried and draped over an abandoned Zaku, and that pair of legs and armor skirt sticking out of a sand dune is Zwei. Johann groans, "What was that." "This is embarassing," Michael grumbles. "I didn't see anything," Nena admits, "Just..." "FAST AS LIGHTNING. FAST AS LIGHTNING."
Impulse | A number of interplanar news networks, and some local networks, begin to pick up breaking news on a curious phenomenon: a pair of high-speed land-bound unidentified objects, travelling approaching the speed of light, have begun to streak in and out of the Hub Terminus and across all manner of planes across the multiverse. Reporters are working frantically to attempt to tabulate the numbers which the entities have crossed in the past two minutes since they began, and do not yet have a definitive number, although it seems to number in at least four digits. Attempts to capture images with high-speed cameras have been thwarted by the difficulty of keeping up with the entities.
You transfer through the Terminus to Karakura Town.
Paranormal Sector - Karakura Town
Truth be told, this town looks as one might expect of a modern Japanese suburb. The streets are clean here, and the homes usually look neat and tidy. It has a sort of small town charm, with its small, locally-owned businesses - some of which operate out of houses. The local landmarks include a large open market on the end of town close to Tokyo, a large high school, and the family-owned Kurosaki Clinic.
Indeed, if one cannot see ghosts, Karakura Town seems normal. However, those with supernatural senses may realize this place is out of the ordinary. Hollows, ghosts infused with evil energy, are sometimes on the prowl here, and they are combated by the Death Gods - invisible warriors fighting against these accursed ghosts.
For those who know better, this place may idyllic, but it is still a battleground.
Contents:
Ikkaku Madarame
Yasutora Sado
Hueco Mundo
Chad's Apartment
Obvious exits:
ighway leads to Paranormal Sector.
Tub Ci emerges from a Terminus Gate.
Tub Ci has arrived.
Master Asia has arrived.
Nothing ever happens in Karakura. Well, nothing of late. Things have just gone back to a somewhat stable sort of deal, and the lesser Hollows are easy to pick off every once in a while. The Third Seat has heard nothing else about the arrancars, and he still has no idea where all of the other Shinigami went. Maybe they're all partying without him.
That's NOT cool.
Ikkaku huffs, grinding his teeth together while sitting on a stone pedestal connecting a metal fence surrounding an important house somewhere down the empty streets. He crumples his hat in his free hand, his bald head shining in the light. Sure, he's visible due to his gigai, but that's a given. He's still recovering from that random roach battle that took place days ago.
And then the radio goes off about something...fast. "...What the."
Run. Run faster. Never look back. Never stop. Impulse is slouching from his normal running pose, worn down from the effort he has to put in to keep ahead of the Tsoo Master, Tub Ci. Every part of his body aches so hard. He's not even sure that he could match a natural human speed without straining now. But he can't let everybody down. He can't give up. He has to run.
Ikkaku is grinding his teeth when Impulse sets foot out of the Gate, stumbling over himself as he struggles to keep ahead of Tub Ci. Impulse is turning seventeen sharp corners and dodging through nine narrow alleys while Ikkaku crumples his hat in his hand. And when Ikkaku is voicing his consternation at the news, Impulse is already behind, overhead, already past Ikkaku, rushing down the street, headed in the direction of the highway towards Tokyo and the next Gate. He's nothing but the thunder of the sound barrier and a lightning flash down the streets, even as he touches his hands down on Ikkaku's bald head and leapfrogs over him, rather than maneuver around him. He's still losing ground. Tub Ci is getting close.
Tub Ci is - a green glow. That is all that can be seen as he moves. A green glow, lighting up the area he's in as if it were daylight for just a moment. He races after Impulse, his cruel smile seemingly etched on his face. He is moving with ease and speed - it is only Impulse's massive effort, sheer amount of speed to siphon and his own lack of experience with this high speed keeping him out of reach.
The bright green glow passes Ikkaku, along with a wave of spiritual power boosted by magic - the martial artist is an arcane powerhouse, thanks to his torso full of mystic tattoos. He has summoned ghosts to his will and commanded the very forces of gravity. But the power is gone in an instant, as the martial artist runs after Impulse, bringing his spirit and his glowing tattoos with him.
At this, Ikkaku rises an eyebrow, leaning back in his now front row seat. "Okay - now I know what they're yammering about," he mutters to himself, painted eyes observing the two who just entered running.
Or - wait - did he just see them or -
Again, he blinks, still confused. He's sure he saw someone. ....Unless his imagination is playing tricks on him. That breeze is way too strong to be normal. "OI!" he yells, probably missing earshot at this point being so SLOW.
And touched. In the head. Both ways?! "WAIT A MINUTE!!!"
The Undefeated of the East has outlived countless of his comrades, and enemies even more numerous than that. Such is the boon - and the curse - of the peerless martial artist, the master of his craft. To be powerful enough to survive trials which claim lesser men. There are some nights when the memories of his life are thick as spooled silk and he feels each and every one of his years.
This is one of those nights.
"Finally," Master Asia rumbles as he rises from the lotus position, his eyes opening as he steps into the street. It has been said Karakura Town is a nexus of sorts, a crossroads that seems to attract warriors and battles no matter what its residents might desire. And thus the old master knew if he were to bide his time, the disturbance would eventually find its way here.
Master Asia sucks in a deep breath and lets it out slowly as he stands in the centre of the road, seeking the harmony within himself as he reaches out with his perceptions. A true martial artist learns to ignore his surroundings, drive all of the sights and smells and sounds and emotions into a raging fire, and scatter the ashes of them on the winds of his breath. None of it matters. Only the target is important. Focus on the target with sufficient concentration and you will not have to concern yourself with when to strike...the strike will occur.
Which is why, all of a sudden and out of nowhere, Master Asia extends both arms out to his sides and hardens his stance, rooting himself in the earth below. And thus Tub Ci and Impulse may find themselves on the receiving end of the second most devastating double clothesline that Guybrush Threepwood has ever seen.
Keep moving. Always keep moving. Don't look back. Which is good, because if Impulse were to look back, he would see Tub Ci bearing down directly behind him.
The sound barrier has been broken. The light barrier is starting to break down. Impulse's visage is hazy even for those with preternaturally quick senses and reflexes, now. And as the race cuts past the speed of light, time itself begins to strain to keep up with the racers, further complicating the matter of trying to keep up with the two. By the time one is seeing the images of the runners, they're already two planes over.
Impulse winces and closes his eyes. Vibrate. It's instinctive - his molecules shake and roll themselves over those of Master Asia's lariat, and then he's gone, once again. Who was that guy? Crazy beefcake. Impulse probably wouldn't even have survived that collision, especially at this speed.
Wouldn't have survived...?
Four planes over, Impulse pants, and gives in - he looks over his shoulder. He's undeniably slower than Tub Ci now, and he can't even keep ahead on the strength of his own straining and familiarity with the speed. It's over - he's going to catch up.
Never give up.
Impulse grits his teeth, steels his eyes forward, and runs between the ticks of the clock. His legs feel like they're going to fall apart on him. His entire body is on fire.
The dimensional barrier.
And then the runners are gone entirely, and everything around them is nothing but the race, or the very concept of the race itself, energy flowing and surging, and Impulse is only dimly aware of it, but just aware of it to spark a feeling of awe at where they've reached.
You drop the Speed Force.
Vibrating is not quite instinctive for Tub Ci. He is pulling closer, ever closer to Impulse. It's slow - for them, that is - but it's there. He will get that hero. He will crush him, for the honor of the Tsoo. He does not look out at the universe so well - he does not want to see the things that man was not meant to see.
But when the lariat hits him, instincts he never knew he had kick in. He vibrates - a bit more slowly than Impulse, with his more trained instinct - and so his image will likely last a bit longer. But apparently, the human brain has preset instincts for what to do. (This is also why his head glows purple for a moment, as he pops a Break Free and hopes that what he was hit with wasn't knockback, down or up. It doesn't help much.)
Honor demands a takedown. Honor demands it. Two planes. Four planes. He will have to look into that martial artist, later - that was...interesting. But later. Honor demands this.
And then - the world is something else, and Tub Ci gapes. He still runs, but that's autopilot. His brain has nothing to do with it.
What the hell is this?!
Master Asia is aware of some...strangeness at the moment of impact, but he dispels it as nothing more tha a hallucination brought on by the pain of your arms nearly being ripped from their sockets. He shrugs his shoulders, rolling them as if to ensure they are, in fact, still attached before he picks the Tub Ci and Impulse from five seconds ago up by the hair, one in each hand, slams them into the nearest wall.
And then he screams a lot, because he is grumpy and old.
The Speed Force
Beyond the sound barrier, beyond the light barrier, beyond the time barrier, beyond the dimensional barrier, there is the speed barrier. Those precious few who manage to break the speed barrier find themselves tearing a fissure into a tunnel through time, racing through a cleft of dimensions, a space between the physical laws of the universe. The tunnel passes through the speed storm, a maelstrom of raw, primal kinetic energy, drawn from all the motions of the universe, threatening to buffet any who attempt to pass across the full breadth of time. Few indeed have successfully navigated the speed storm to reach that which lies beyond safely. Fewer still have returned to tell what they found there. All describe it in religious terms. To step into the Speed Force is to lock eyes with God.
Tub Ci has arrived.
Master Asia,suddenly screaming, "YOU LISTEN TO ME YOU GODDAMN PUNKS BECAUSE I SWEAR I AM ONLY GOING TO SAY THIS ONCE."
Master Asia says, "IT IS TWO OF THE CLOCK IN THE GODDAMN MORNING AND REASONABLE PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP."
Master Asia says, "YOU GET YOURSELVES OFF TO BED OR I SWEAR I WILL TAN YOUR HIDES AND SEND YOU CRYING BACK TO YOUR MOTHERS. NO SUPERSPEED AFTER 11 FOR GROWING YOUNG BOYS."
Master Asia rattles something - or someone, and then mutters angrily about goddamn punk kids these days.
Master Asia desynch.
A time-lapsed afterimage of Impulse, who has actually just ran far, far, far past, sulks, folds his arms, and says, "My mom won't be born for another hundred years."
Master Asia resynch.
Master Asia NUTPUNCH
Ikkaku Madarame says, "....THOSE WERE KIDS?!"
Shin Matsunaga tch.
A time-lapsed afterimage of Impulse, who has actually just ran far, far, far past, says, "OH, RIGHT IN THE MEAN BEAN MACHINE!"
Master Asia desynch.
A random little girl says, "These should be here!"
You got: Dalek 12x
Impulse stumbles, beginning to slow down now. He can't keep it up. But -- somehow, it doesn't seem quite so pressing now. They're here.
"This is... the Speed Force?" He continues to run - they can't do anything but run, here - down the time tunnel, as the temporal and dimensional energies of the universe rush past in all directions, a narrow navigable tunnel the racers have punched through the fabric of the universe, surrounded by the storm of existence. "Keep moving," he manages to get out, now heaving for breath. "We have to keep moving, or we're not going to make it. Come on!" Guy's nasty - a supercriminal, after all, trying to kill him - but Impulse's first instinct is still to protect. They're both in over their heads now. Tubby doesn't know anything about this, probably - and Impulse doesn't know much more.
Tub Ci doesn't know a damn thing about this, no. The Ancestor Spirits never mentioned it. His master never mentioned it in the Zig. The heroes have never mentioned it. This is a part of the non-universe he hsa never seen, even more than most parts of the non-universe. The martial artist keeps running, largely because he has no choice in the matter...
But still, he has no idea what's going on. His first instinct is to shout at someone. Thankfully, Impulse is here. "WHAT DID YOU DO, HERO!?"
Impulse heaves for breath, falling behind Tub Ci to a degree. "It's... I think..." He looks around as he runs, even while it feels like he's on a treadmill, running forward while moving backward. "We ran too fast. Max - uh, I heard a little about this... it's the Speed Force. I think? We're breaking through to the Speed Force." A pinpoint of light becomes visible ahead, quickly barreling forward to occupy all visible space: a storm of sheer kinetic energy, all the motion in the universe contained within one enormous maelstrom, pressures pushing and shoving in every direction, demanding perfect reflexes, superhuman reflexes, the pinnacle of speed to avoid being pushed aside, down, above - any direction, but outside the tunnel, outside into the temporal stress zone outside the tunnel in time. And beyond the storm, glimmering just narrowly between the ticks of the seconds, a radiant light - a whirling tornado of activity - a sense of something beautiful, like the love of God himself.
Impulse is falling behind, still. He can't keep this up. He stares ahead at the maze of pressures, and has to take a deep breath before he can bark out, reaching forward as far as he can, "TUBBY! GRAB MY HAND!" It may look to Tub Ci like Impulse is begging for help to keep up. He isn't. He doesn't understand what's going on, but somehow, it doesn't look like the fun kind of danger. He's trying to be an anchor.
Tub Ci - well. The man is not stupid. He understands self-preservation in a strange land. He knows that he has no idea what is going on - and that is dangerous. But he also knows that most heroes would arrest him if given a chance to trick him. Trust is not easy for a supervillain. At all.
So when Impulse begins to full behind and holds his hand out, the martial artist looks back at him. "My name is Tub Ci." He does not grab the hand yet - not yet. He does not trust this. What is that boy planning?
"That's what I... hhunh... that's what I said. Tubby." Grave insult as it is, Impulse's eyes behind his goggles betray no mockery this time, just innocent uncomprehension. But every moment that ticks away is another moment that the field is sapping Impulse's speed away, and he's already reached the point where he can't sustain it anymore. He's falling behind - far behind, now - and there's no room to turn back. "It's the Speed Force," he calls, taking another deep breath. "The source of... all the speed in the universe." Bart Allen's universe, at least. "But if you..." Think back. Think back. "If you don't make it..." And then Impulse is too far to hear, disappearing in the far rear of the time tunnel. He doesn't have the speed to keep up, to stay in this place.
There's nothing ahead but the storm. Tremendous pressures at hair-trigger times, instants of buffeting and walls of force which can hardly be seen coming even with the enormous reservoir of speed Tub Ci is drawing from. And now that reservoir feels ever closer, and the connection stronger - and it still peeks out from beyond the storm, if he could only reach it. Perfect, flawless. One of the universe's greatest raw repositories of power.
Power. That's what Tub Ci needs. He needs power, to turn Paragon City - no, the world - into the sort of place it should be. A place where strength is respected, where the Hmong are not cast down, where the weak know their place. But - but he cannot reach that power. He can siphon speed, steal power...but somehow, he can't reach it.
Tub Ci looks about him, noticing that he can no longer hear or see Impulse. He's nowhere. Was that the plan?! Reverse psychology? - yes! That must have been it! "CUUUUUURSE YOU, HEROOOOOOOOOO! I'LL GET OUT OF HERE AND KILL YOU!"
Impulse shouts out to the receding figure in the distance, but the sound does not travel. He can't run any longer. He's done. The tear in time pulls him back in, hurling him out the other side of the portal where they entered. Spent. Collapsed.
Tub Ci, however, is too far in. Now, without the presence of Impulse in this time - this existence on the edges of time - the speed he's siphoning begins to drain back, moving so quickly becomes a chore - but he's too near the storm. A thousand hurdles come at him in a second, and with his waning speed, he will only be able to evade so many, until one knocks him free, out to the edges of the passage, out of the passage. But the entrance to this quasidimension is far back in the beginning of the tunnel. The ways out here are disparate, buffeted and rocking about from the primal motions, ancient centuries and future aeons knocking past each other. Today Tub Ci ran past the borders of time - and failed to cross the finish line.
WHERE: Across the multiverse
WHAT: A routine attempted super-collaring in Paragon City turns into a death race when Tub Ci demonstrates how you deal with speedsters: you Siphon Speed. Impulse leads Tub Ci on a race across the multiverse at breakneck speeds, struggling to keep ahead of the supervillain who has his number, and increasingly, his speed. And they continue to go faster, until they approach the final speed you can't come back from...
WATCH FOR: Cameo pit-stops, the Superdictionary, stern words from Master Asia, and the fate of Tub Ci is--?!
Paragon City, Rhode Island - the home of thousands of heroes and villains. They're all over the damn place. Right now, let us peek in on what's going on in Independence Port! Independence Port, home of mob wars and fascist recruiters. Let us move in a bit, to the longest straightaway in Paragon: the Valor Bridge. It has served as a racetrack for super-speed heroes for ages!
And now, it is currently the home to a bunch of ninjas, who are beating the crap out of some guys in badly-fitting black suits. Walking among the fights is the leader of the ninjas - the powerful TUB CI! His tattoos are glowing with power, and occasionally he just reaches over and flicks a Family Capo or Thug. When he does this, the poor mafiosos go flying.
Tub Ci
Tang Tub Ci is a Martial Arts Villain. Really, that's what everything about him says. He is an Eastern-looking man with a Fu Manchu beard and moustache. He is extremely muscular, but still lithe enough not to be a gigantic brick of muscle. He is covered, from the neck down, in tattoos. Tattoos of evil martial arts power.
Also, they glow with a rainbow light.
Impulse
Aren't you a little short for a superhero? Impulse looks to be about fifteen years old or so, with a face betraying expressions that make him seem even younger. He wears a full-body jumpsuit of futuristic chromatic fibers, white with a dark red-bronze wide stripe down the middle, with jagged edges recalling a lightning bolt, going from the inner side of his legs up to cover his neck. There it forms into a sort of half-mask, cupping under his chin and stretching out over his eyes, but leaving his nose and mouth and his head over the eyes exposed. His eyes are covered under transparent convex yellow goggles built into the mask. There are tiny golden winglike ornaments on the mask coming from over his ears. He has two conspicuous features not established by the costume: heavily long brown hair, overflowing to reach about halfway down either side of his face, and big old feet, kept in enormous boots integrated into the costume, with rubber treads like sneakers.
"This is pretty awesome," says Bart Allen - or rather IMPULSE, suited up in his superheroic uniform, mask and goggles. Certainly not Bart Allen. Looks like he cons as one of those superheroes significant enough to get his own little logo in the middle of the introductory narration. But then again, sometimes that doesn't mean much.
Impulse, in any case, just happened to be 'running the course,' with a hand gripping two corn dogs on sticks, which he alternates between in taking bites. Now this shift is one he can get used to, dodging between the cars running the bridge, and keeping a lookout for trouble. It's been getting pretty frustrating with the other local heroes keeping most of the trouble contained, though - at least until now.
An electric streak rushes past right over the bridge railing, grasping the mafiosos by their collars one by one. It blurs past, setting each one down at the base of the railings, clear of potential traffic. Then it skids to a halt, just a fifteen-year-old in a white and red-bronze costume, folding his arms and tapping one of his big feet. "I appreciate the irony and all," Impulse says, tossing a pair of sticks that once had corn dogs on them to sail over the railing behind him into the sea below, "but it's not cool to send the mafia to sleep with the fishes either, okay?"
Impulse says, "Hey guys, I got, uh, some kind of ninja guys here, trying to send some 'legitimate businessmen' for a long walk off a short pier. Goin' in."
Venetia Martens says, "Okay! You need any help?"
Impulse says, "Nahhh! Piece of cake."
Venetia Martens says, "Okay! Have fun~"
Impulse says, "You got it."
It takes some doing to get your own logo in Paragon City - most people just try to make their costumes unique, because the tailors offer a wide but ultimately somewhat limited selection. When Impulse runs up, there is a moment where the ninjas look around - but superspeed contains within it something of stealth. It takes a stop to be noticed.
And so when Impulse appears, saving the mafiosos, Tub Ci turns to face him. Tub Ci, being the Archvillain, has the most Perception. "...hero." He says the word as if he is saying 'worm.' "This is Tsoo business. Do not interfere on my territory."
Impulse says, "Guy says they're the Soo or something. Is there anything we've got on the Soo that I should know, or should I just punch their blocks off and call it a day?"
Toushirou Hijikata says, "...I've heard and see nothin' on these guys."
Impulse says, "Gotcha. Punchin' blocks."
Toushirou Hijikata says, "...I like his spirit."
Impulse says, "Well, that's what they're there for, right?"
Toushirou Hijikata says, "Unless you're told otherwise, then yeah."
Impulse stands around for a little while, while Tub Ci is speaking. Rather, while he begins speaking. Halfway through Tub Ci's address, the speedster bolts, running circles around the Tsoo underlings. First he digs in the trunk of the nearest Family vehicle, and comes up with a noose, which can be straightened up to round up and tie up the 'legitimate businessmen' looking guys. Actually, Impulse just kind of assumed they're the mafia. They're wearing business suits, right? Mafia. Then images of the fastest boy alive are rushing all over. Over there, punching the shirtless warrior from every direction. Tripping that guy. Pulling the swords and throwing stars off that walking arsenal and dropping them into the sea.
Impulse is standing behind the last underling when Tub Ci finishes his statement, holding a hand to his mouth while he yawns, his other hand stretched out to the back of the underling's head, positioned ready to flick. "Sorry, were you saying something? I was busy." Then he flicks, with sufficient speed to put a great deal of force behind the motion, although not enough to pose serious injury. Just black a guy out.
The minions are...minions. They con grey. Impulse can handle them all easily. Tub Ci, on the other hand...well, let us cover the minions first. The Family are tied up, and the Tsoo ninjas and martial artists? Well, most of them are unconscious. Police drones will probably wander over when all this is done and take everyone to Ziggursky Prison. Which means they'll be out again in a few months, but that's just how the Zig works - it's made of Swiss cheese.
Tub Ci is more of a problem. When the last underling is knocked out, the martial artist turns to face Impulse again. A speedster. "You are a fool, then! KNOW THE WRATH OF THE TSOO!" The aging martial arts master raises his arms - and his tattoos glow brighter. Suddenly, he leaps forward and slams his leg at Impulse. As he kicks, the leg is wreathed in flame. This is a test to see how powerful Impulse's speed powers are, and how much he relies on them - Tub Ci already knows what he plans to do after the test.
Of course he's tougher. He's bigger and he's got more tattoos and he's bossing the other guys around. He's the stage boss! Impulse would be kinda disappointed if he went down as easy as the other guys. But kinda pumped at how awesome he is.
This kick isn't enough to push Impulse to his limits, though. He doesn't actually have to move at all if he were to vibrate through it, but the thought doesn't occur to him. Fortunately for Impulse, he's easily quick enough to see Tub Ci's burning kick long coming, and Tub Ci isn't even moving his knee before Impulse is out of the way off to the side, holding his arms out and leaning his body back. "Oh! Too bad. Snake eyes. Wanna roll again? I'm right here." He grins cockily, just standing there.
The boy depends almost completely on his speed. He's not even that refined in his use of it.
Tub Ci's face twists into an evil grin. The boy doesn't even strike back. A fool. The martial artist slips into a defensive stance, his green tattoos glowing brighter than the rest. He is, however, a City of Heroes Archvillain. That means he has to monologue a bit now.
"You, hero, risk death. You have forfeitted your chance to run away. Now...now, you will die at the hands of the Tsoo Master, TUB CI!" Lighting claps dramatically between his hands, and thunder crashes.
"For now...you are mine." And one hand comes forward. The mystic tattoos glow brighter - that is, the green ones. Kinetic power is not rare among the so-called Defender heroes...or among the Tsoo. Using the mystic connection between all people, tapped by those tattoos, Tub Ci begins to siphon away Impulse's greatest asset into himself: his speed.
Impulse stares blankly at the Tsoo Master, as he declares his dark power, and his mystic tattoos glow and reach out.
"Your name is Tubby?! Pft." Impulse tries to hold it in, looking down, his mouth curled up on the ends. "I dunno, if I wanted to be a criminal mastermind I'd think a little more--" Can't hold it. "Do you want some more fries with that?! Pahahahahahahahaahaahaaahaaahaaaahuuuuuh?"
Impulse's laughter as he doubles over gradually begins to slow. The mystic tattoos of Tub Ci reach out and grasp hold of something between the young man and something greater, grasping onto a spiritual connection and leeching onto it, clogging the connection with its draw. "Heeeeey!" Impulse scowls slowly, looks down, and then speeds up again - though it takes exertion now, adjusting his speed to a point he's not used to having it at to interact normally with people. "What's the big-- put that back! I need that!" Impulse runs over to Tub Ci, rushing all around him, peering at the tattoos, trying to slap at them to interrupt the connection, his body speeding up into a vibrating blur to dip his head inside Tub Ci's body, and then back out again. Nope, no nanomachines or anything. Just organs.
Tub Ci's eyes narrow. He is a powerful martial artist. His name is an honorable name, a good name of his people, the Hmong. And this - this outsider, this white man, he insults it.
The slaps don't do much - they cause some minor bruises, but Tub Ci is hard to interrupt out of his techniques. It takes things like knockbacks or mezzes! Not just damage. He turns again as Impulse backs out of his body...and then acts with some of the stolen speed, moving faster than he should. His fist slams out for Impulse's head. "My name is Tub Ci! You will respect me, hero - or I will take far more than your speed and your life!" The fist seems to glow as Tub Ci calls on his strength-granting tattoos, his speed drain slowing slightly as he splits his arcane power.
Impulse's reflexes are extremely sharp - but this draining effect has thrown his timing all out of whack. He sees the punch coming, but he can't time when he should be moving, and he's just beginning to move when it slams into his forehead. Impulse is sent sprawling far down the bridge, blood drawn from the strike, head reeling punch-drunk. "Somebody get the license number of that bathtub...?" Impulse's head heaves forward for a time before he shakes out of it, and climbs back to his feet.
Okay. He's doing - well, he's doing something. Something so that all of a sudden Impulse doesn't feel as fast as he was. It's apparently those tattoos of his? So he can't just come in and swipe a device off of him to reverse the effect. And - so what can he do? So what can he do?
He's used to being able to think this through fast enough that he doesn't have to worry about moving until he's done. Through all this time, Impulse is wide open to be targeted by the Tsoo Master again. Glaringly open - he barely seems to be paying attention.
As Impulse goes flying, Tub Ci laughs. That's more like it! Immediately after, he begins running after Impulse, using the stolen speed to make sure he catches up before Impulse is quite ready - but that is apparently not much of a problem. The martial artist would wonder at this were he not busy planning his moves - he'll wonder about it later.
Now, after all, is the time to strike! As he gets near Impulse, he leaps into the air, lashing out with a powerful double kick, which he turns into a backflip, landing back on his feet in front of Impulse. Still smiling cruelly, the Tsoo Master attacks with a pair of palm strikes for Impulse's chest. He's not even bothering with esoteric magical effects on his blows...which may be overconfidence.
Might be. But while Impulse is an athletic young man, he's certainly not used to having to get down and dirty and brawl with somebody on par with him enough to actually land more than a few isolated blows. Impulse's head is snapped back by the first kick, and the second knocks him back off balance, stumbling - and it's an odd motion he makes, one that seems uncertain at which pace to fire the neurons to ensure that his feet hit solid ground at the right angles. Impulse raises a hand slowly to his jaw, wiping off the blood dripping from his mouth - and then looks down at it, like he doesn't believe it.
He's bleeding? Bart Allen is bleeding?
That's not supposed to happen.
The guy is right there.
Impulse looks up to Tub Ci, no longer laughing at him, just a sullen, resentful glare - and then he's turned around, and he's running, tearing back down the Valor Bridge. Bart isn't certain what he's running to do. Is he trying to get away? To see if the ability has a limited range? To lead the guy somewhere he can be dealt with easier?
He wants to get away.
The power does have a limited range - but Tub Ci doesn't intend to allow it to reach that range. Not if he can help it. As Impulse runs, the Tsoo Master roars something in Mandarin and takes off after him. Unlike Impulse, he's not surprised about hitting. Tub Ci is used to that. He's somewhat surprised by the blood, though - that part doesn't happen quite as often.
And the running away is practically unprecendented - most heroes fight until they fall over. The martial artist is not quite used to all the speed he's siphoning - but unlike Impulse, he's a veteran. He knows how to adapt - it's actually something of a Tsoo specialty, given the sheer amount of powers they have to call on. He's still not quite able to catch up - but he's keeping level.
He's got to go. Got to move. Got to run. Run. Impulse isn't used to it feeling like a strain like this - it's normally a joyous thing, to run. To let go of all these restraints he has to put himself under and just go. Now it feels like there are weights on his legs and they're slowly getting heavier, and the air is thick, and it's hard to breathe. Where to go? He doesn't know this plane. Between streets and roads, and if Tub Ci knows the city well enough he can probably cut corners, go through alleys, catch up through smarter navigation. Impulse isn't really thinking clearly, doesn't really have a plan right now, but his instincts are telling him about only one place to go, while the bystanders around are statues to the both of them.
Impulse takes a long runner's leap, and dives through the shimmering distortion in the center of the Paragon City Gate, blurring through the air of the Terminus and passing through another Gate before he lands.
Independence Port, at least, is part of Tub Ci's empire. He does not know all of Paragon like the back of his hand. Peregrine Island, for example - that's somewhere the Tsoo don't go. But Independence? Well...the martial artist lunges over a series of dumpsters, does a handstand atop a sewer grate and luanches himself into the water - where the giant octopus called Luska waits. He runs along her tentacles, leaping after Impulse as he goes the longer way. Sister Psyche, the local major hero, does absolutely nothing to help, because the Freedom Phalanx have a job, and that job is to stand there and hand out task forces.
As Impulse dives through the Gate, Tub Ci is right behind him. The siphoning lets up until they are on the same plane again - but Tub Ci was closing the gap between them throughout Independence, and so that time is small. What Gate will the chase lead to next?
You transfer through the Terminus to Metropolis.
Paranormal Sector - Metropolis
Metropolis, the City of Tomorrow, home of the Man of Tomorrow. This massive futuristic city is far ahead of the level of technology of its surroundings, thanks in part to the brilliance of local corporate magnate Lex Luthor. Clean, sleek skyscrapers make the horizon a sight to behold, from the Lexcorp Building to the Daily Planet, the city's premier newspaper since it began getting exclusives on the activities of Superman, the city's local protector. News filters here, too, of activity of the Justice League and the other superheroes active in this plane. Metropolis has its dark side, however; though ordinary crime is low thanks to the stalwart efforts of the Man of Steel and the highly-armed, advanced state of the Metropolis police, a local crime syndicate called Intergang has made inroads into the city, and there are rumors that Lex Luthor has had hands in some very suspect business practices.
Contents:
Star Sapphire
Obvious exits:
eaboard Highway leads to Paranormal Sector - Gotham City.
corp Express leads to Paranormal Sector.
Tub Ci emerges from a Terminus Gate.
Tub Ci has arrived.
The Port Authority, 11:12 PM local time.
Star Sapphire, redolent in her glittering finery, stands before a shuttered Au Bon Pain in the Bus/Gate Terminal, glancing at the two Zamaronians, in their ceremonial armor so easily mistaken for Amazonian, who flank her. "Why are we attacking this place?" she says, stridently. "This is a place that sells BREAD. It sells a cooked food made from flour. This is not a place worthy of our attention!"
The Zamaronain to the left bows her head. "Yes," she says. "And yet, Star Sapphire, the busy day they had yesterday ensures that there will be plenty of BREAD in their safe. That is to say, using a word in Earthling slang, they will have plenty of money in their safe."
"And further," the one on the right sniffs, "This is a chain which I am told was frequented by the hated Ganthet, to say nothing of Kyle Rainer. This establishment is ill-BRED. It is not suitable to noble people."
"You're stretching the point, Talaxia," Star Sapphire counters, as several late night travellers look on curiously from behind a temporarily-broken kinetic sculpture.
Got to run. Have to run. Run.
That's the only thought that currently has room in the head of Bart Allen, alias Impulse, the fastest boy alive. His legs feel weak and debilitated, it takes effort to lift one and put it in front of the other. Effort. Beads of sweat begin to form. His big feet hit the ground from a long runner's leap from the other side of the local Gate, hit the ground running, straining to keep the effort up as Tub Ci's field of speed siphoning continues to grow in power, with every mite Tub Ci growing faster, and Impulse slower.
The whole world is in slow motion around him as he races down the Port Authority, the Tsoo Master on his heels. An electric streak rushes past the Zamarons, chirping a message which may just narrowly be made out as "HiMaximaIdon'thavetimetoarrestyourightnow," and then it's gone again, racing across the continental United States, for the next major city with a Gate. Despite the fierce urgency of now, he takes a detour through one door of a stationary shop in Cleveland and out another to pick up a Post-It Note and a pen, and halfway across Metropolis he crashes through the Hall of Justice, the local embassy for the Justice League, and leaves a note on Hal Jordan's face before rushing out the other end of the building: 'YOUR GIRLFRIEND'S GETTING BUSY AT THE FOOD COURT.'
Tub Ci is dogged in his pursuit. Impulse has pulled aggro, and he insulted Tub Ci's most honorable name. That just won't stand! ...and he beat up a bunch of Tsoo minions, but that's less important. The name!
The martial arts master is keeping chase, leaping over cars and ducking around signposts - he's still not siphoned nearly enough speed to be able to vibrate through them yet. The Port Authority is a backdrop he does not recognize, so he keeps Impulse in sight instead. He allows only half a second for a brief nod to Star Sapphire - not someone he recognizes, but supervillains have this instinct for other supervillains.
The trip through the stationary shop and then to Metropolis confuses Tub Ci, but he keeps up with it. Indeed, he causes no small amount of screams by smashing the shop's door with a high-speed flying kick. His tattoos are about as brightly-glowing as streetlamps now - or at least the green ones are.
"Maxima?!" Star Sapphire shouts, approximately around the time that Bart reaches the far side of the New York state border. She whirls around to face Talaxia, face tightening in a mask of towering fury. "What did Garrick say to me?!"
"ghk," says Jordan, who was sitting down with a beer after staving off a runaway elephant in the People's Republic of Congo. He takes the note off --
Fortunately for Bart, there's a Gate hub of similar design somewhere out there in Coast City! The main difference is that the architecture is better and the food is worse and more expensive. Can he make it out in time?!
You transfer through the Terminus to Side 3.
You reenter the Earth's atmosphere.
Sci-Fi Sector - Mount Kilimanjaro
When Jaburo was destroyed by the bombardment of the Space Terrible Monster Cloud, the Earth Federation was forced to relocate its central base. They elected to create a new base at Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa. It is a large, broad mountain that provides an excellent defensive position. The base itself is well-defended by numerous Mobile Suits and ground-based batteries. The base is largely located on the mountain's side, but the summit does have a radar tower that is utilized to detect attacks from abroad.
The base's existence is the brainchild of General Jamitov Hyman, a soldier who rose to prominence during the One Year War and the STMC War. It is said that many of the staff here are more loyal to him and his extremist, anti-Colonial thinking than they are to the Earth Federation as a whole. This base is a symbol of his rise to power.
Contents:
Team Trinity
Obvious exits:
rbital lift vehicle leads to Sci-Fi Sector - Side 3.
Tub Ci arrives from the Colonies.
Tub Ci has arrived.
Somewhere in the dusty desert plains of a war-torn Earth, Federation forces were closing in on the last remaining firebase of a band of ragged rebels. What had been planned to be a titanic clash between the GMs of the mighty state military and the Zakus of the desperate bedouins, however, quickly turned into a holocaust neither side had predicted. The first warning came as a shot from above, the first taking out the Federation commander, the second the rebel leader. After that, it was a free for all, as Thrones Eins, Zwei, and Drei commenced their armed intervention in the Sahara sands.
As it stands now, the last of the Feds and rebels have banded together to make their last stand deep in a bunker deep within the base. Standing just outside, the three Throne Gundams hover in formation over strewn supa robo wreckage as they plan their next move. "I can fly in and just slaughter them all," Michael states confidently as he waves Zwei's sword in the base's direction. "Perhaps that might be the best course of action," Johann adds. "Aww, but I wanted to have some fun too!", Nena pouts with folded arms.
None of the Gundam pilots, however, are prepared for their very own surprise to come...
Believe in yourself. Never give up. And most of all, no matter how run down you get...
Never slow down.
Impulse is panting as he runs out of the Gate, beads of sweat running down his face. It all feels wrong. His legs are like iron weights, and the air is thick as molasses. He has to squint to see what's ahead of him in time to maneuver around it. He's pressing himself harder and harder, though, to make up for it, even as the speed he had been using before is transferred into Tub Ci instead. He has to wear himself out more and more to keep out of the Tsoo Master's reach. Soon it will be all he can do just to keep up.
But he can't give up. He'll never stop running.
The world is all but frozen around the young man as he rushes across the sands, his feet keeping too swift to be caught by pools of loose grains and quicksand, moving over the surface without falling. The electric blur is so fast that it leaves a storm in its wake, sand and wind kicked up into a tornado following the speedster across the desert, always one step behind. The lightning streak rushes around the debris of fallen robots, desperately trying to figure out what he can do. He can't outrun this guy forever, can he? Slow him down, maybe. But how hard that is, when his very body feels like it's weighing him down. Impulse ducks under a low-lying heavy ballistic rifle, runs almost horizontally over the side of a dune and the husks of war machines, and then demonstrates a rare bit of creativity from Bartolomew Allen - leaping into his own wake, allowing the air funnel to lift him and use the spin to hurl him farther, in the direction of what must be the next Gate out, on the other side of this war-torn country. But he's slowing down. This is all he can do to stay ahead.
Tub Ci runs with less and less exertion, by comparison. All he has to do is maintain the tattoo power. This is becoming easier and easier, as he doesn't have to focus to run faster - he just has to maintain a steady speed after Impulse. The martial artist has a grin on his face as he follows after, his legs pounding the sand at speeds too fast for the human eye.
Unlike Impulse, Tub Ci has creativity and adaptability more often. He leaps into the air, using his momentum to get to the top of a robot shard, leaps off it and runs across a line of sand blown into the air by Impulse's passing. He doesn't create an air funnel - instead, he runs across the dissolving tunnel of Impulse. Sure, he's creative and adaptable - but when someone leaves you a path, you take it.
"APPROACHING STORM. APPROACHING STORM." Nena peers down at the little spherical companion lying between her feet. "What are you-"
Its upon them before they even know it. A lightning streak crosses the ground, leaving huge dust devils, incredible winds, and a massive wind funnel in its wake. The second streak behind it is all but ignored as the trio of Gundam pilots find themselves confronted with a major problem. "What the @#$*, I can't keep steady!" "Wah! I'm losing control!" "HARO DIZZY. HARO DIZZY." Johann, grunting and sweating as he fights an unnatural force of nature, realizes there's only one option: "Disengage hover!" The other two Trinities didn't need to be told twice, and there's three very loud whumps as all three land in the desert sand.
By the time the storm passes, the battlefield has been re-arranged. Eins sits partially buried in the sand, Drei is also half-buried and draped over an abandoned Zaku, and that pair of legs and armor skirt sticking out of a sand dune is Zwei. Johann groans, "What was that." "This is embarassing," Michael grumbles. "I didn't see anything," Nena admits, "Just..." "FAST AS LIGHTNING. FAST AS LIGHTNING."
Impulse | A number of interplanar news networks, and some local networks, begin to pick up breaking news on a curious phenomenon: a pair of high-speed land-bound unidentified objects, travelling approaching the speed of light, have begun to streak in and out of the Hub Terminus and across all manner of planes across the multiverse. Reporters are working frantically to attempt to tabulate the numbers which the entities have crossed in the past two minutes since they began, and do not yet have a definitive number, although it seems to number in at least four digits. Attempts to capture images with high-speed cameras have been thwarted by the difficulty of keeping up with the entities.
You transfer through the Terminus to Karakura Town.
Paranormal Sector - Karakura Town
Truth be told, this town looks as one might expect of a modern Japanese suburb. The streets are clean here, and the homes usually look neat and tidy. It has a sort of small town charm, with its small, locally-owned businesses - some of which operate out of houses. The local landmarks include a large open market on the end of town close to Tokyo, a large high school, and the family-owned Kurosaki Clinic.
Indeed, if one cannot see ghosts, Karakura Town seems normal. However, those with supernatural senses may realize this place is out of the ordinary. Hollows, ghosts infused with evil energy, are sometimes on the prowl here, and they are combated by the Death Gods - invisible warriors fighting against these accursed ghosts.
For those who know better, this place may idyllic, but it is still a battleground.
Contents:
Ikkaku Madarame
Yasutora Sado
Hueco Mundo
Chad's Apartment
Obvious exits:
ighway leads to Paranormal Sector.
Tub Ci emerges from a Terminus Gate.
Tub Ci has arrived.
Master Asia has arrived.
Nothing ever happens in Karakura. Well, nothing of late. Things have just gone back to a somewhat stable sort of deal, and the lesser Hollows are easy to pick off every once in a while. The Third Seat has heard nothing else about the arrancars, and he still has no idea where all of the other Shinigami went. Maybe they're all partying without him.
That's NOT cool.
Ikkaku huffs, grinding his teeth together while sitting on a stone pedestal connecting a metal fence surrounding an important house somewhere down the empty streets. He crumples his hat in his free hand, his bald head shining in the light. Sure, he's visible due to his gigai, but that's a given. He's still recovering from that random roach battle that took place days ago.
And then the radio goes off about something...fast. "...What the."
Run. Run faster. Never look back. Never stop. Impulse is slouching from his normal running pose, worn down from the effort he has to put in to keep ahead of the Tsoo Master, Tub Ci. Every part of his body aches so hard. He's not even sure that he could match a natural human speed without straining now. But he can't let everybody down. He can't give up. He has to run.
Ikkaku is grinding his teeth when Impulse sets foot out of the Gate, stumbling over himself as he struggles to keep ahead of Tub Ci. Impulse is turning seventeen sharp corners and dodging through nine narrow alleys while Ikkaku crumples his hat in his hand. And when Ikkaku is voicing his consternation at the news, Impulse is already behind, overhead, already past Ikkaku, rushing down the street, headed in the direction of the highway towards Tokyo and the next Gate. He's nothing but the thunder of the sound barrier and a lightning flash down the streets, even as he touches his hands down on Ikkaku's bald head and leapfrogs over him, rather than maneuver around him. He's still losing ground. Tub Ci is getting close.
Tub Ci is - a green glow. That is all that can be seen as he moves. A green glow, lighting up the area he's in as if it were daylight for just a moment. He races after Impulse, his cruel smile seemingly etched on his face. He is moving with ease and speed - it is only Impulse's massive effort, sheer amount of speed to siphon and his own lack of experience with this high speed keeping him out of reach.
The bright green glow passes Ikkaku, along with a wave of spiritual power boosted by magic - the martial artist is an arcane powerhouse, thanks to his torso full of mystic tattoos. He has summoned ghosts to his will and commanded the very forces of gravity. But the power is gone in an instant, as the martial artist runs after Impulse, bringing his spirit and his glowing tattoos with him.
At this, Ikkaku rises an eyebrow, leaning back in his now front row seat. "Okay - now I know what they're yammering about," he mutters to himself, painted eyes observing the two who just entered running.
Or - wait - did he just see them or -
Again, he blinks, still confused. He's sure he saw someone. ....Unless his imagination is playing tricks on him. That breeze is way too strong to be normal. "OI!" he yells, probably missing earshot at this point being so SLOW.
And touched. In the head. Both ways?! "WAIT A MINUTE!!!"
The Undefeated of the East has outlived countless of his comrades, and enemies even more numerous than that. Such is the boon - and the curse - of the peerless martial artist, the master of his craft. To be powerful enough to survive trials which claim lesser men. There are some nights when the memories of his life are thick as spooled silk and he feels each and every one of his years.
This is one of those nights.
"Finally," Master Asia rumbles as he rises from the lotus position, his eyes opening as he steps into the street. It has been said Karakura Town is a nexus of sorts, a crossroads that seems to attract warriors and battles no matter what its residents might desire. And thus the old master knew if he were to bide his time, the disturbance would eventually find its way here.
Master Asia sucks in a deep breath and lets it out slowly as he stands in the centre of the road, seeking the harmony within himself as he reaches out with his perceptions. A true martial artist learns to ignore his surroundings, drive all of the sights and smells and sounds and emotions into a raging fire, and scatter the ashes of them on the winds of his breath. None of it matters. Only the target is important. Focus on the target with sufficient concentration and you will not have to concern yourself with when to strike...the strike will occur.
Which is why, all of a sudden and out of nowhere, Master Asia extends both arms out to his sides and hardens his stance, rooting himself in the earth below. And thus Tub Ci and Impulse may find themselves on the receiving end of the second most devastating double clothesline that Guybrush Threepwood has ever seen.
Keep moving. Always keep moving. Don't look back. Which is good, because if Impulse were to look back, he would see Tub Ci bearing down directly behind him.
The sound barrier has been broken. The light barrier is starting to break down. Impulse's visage is hazy even for those with preternaturally quick senses and reflexes, now. And as the race cuts past the speed of light, time itself begins to strain to keep up with the racers, further complicating the matter of trying to keep up with the two. By the time one is seeing the images of the runners, they're already two planes over.
Impulse winces and closes his eyes. Vibrate. It's instinctive - his molecules shake and roll themselves over those of Master Asia's lariat, and then he's gone, once again. Who was that guy? Crazy beefcake. Impulse probably wouldn't even have survived that collision, especially at this speed.
Wouldn't have survived...?
Four planes over, Impulse pants, and gives in - he looks over his shoulder. He's undeniably slower than Tub Ci now, and he can't even keep ahead on the strength of his own straining and familiarity with the speed. It's over - he's going to catch up.
Never give up.
Impulse grits his teeth, steels his eyes forward, and runs between the ticks of the clock. His legs feel like they're going to fall apart on him. His entire body is on fire.
The dimensional barrier.
And then the runners are gone entirely, and everything around them is nothing but the race, or the very concept of the race itself, energy flowing and surging, and Impulse is only dimly aware of it, but just aware of it to spark a feeling of awe at where they've reached.
You drop the Speed Force.
Vibrating is not quite instinctive for Tub Ci. He is pulling closer, ever closer to Impulse. It's slow - for them, that is - but it's there. He will get that hero. He will crush him, for the honor of the Tsoo. He does not look out at the universe so well - he does not want to see the things that man was not meant to see.
But when the lariat hits him, instincts he never knew he had kick in. He vibrates - a bit more slowly than Impulse, with his more trained instinct - and so his image will likely last a bit longer. But apparently, the human brain has preset instincts for what to do. (This is also why his head glows purple for a moment, as he pops a Break Free and hopes that what he was hit with wasn't knockback, down or up. It doesn't help much.)
Honor demands a takedown. Honor demands it. Two planes. Four planes. He will have to look into that martial artist, later - that was...interesting. But later. Honor demands this.
And then - the world is something else, and Tub Ci gapes. He still runs, but that's autopilot. His brain has nothing to do with it.
What the hell is this?!
Master Asia is aware of some...strangeness at the moment of impact, but he dispels it as nothing more tha a hallucination brought on by the pain of your arms nearly being ripped from their sockets. He shrugs his shoulders, rolling them as if to ensure they are, in fact, still attached before he picks the Tub Ci and Impulse from five seconds ago up by the hair, one in each hand, slams them into the nearest wall.
And then he screams a lot, because he is grumpy and old.
The Speed Force
Beyond the sound barrier, beyond the light barrier, beyond the time barrier, beyond the dimensional barrier, there is the speed barrier. Those precious few who manage to break the speed barrier find themselves tearing a fissure into a tunnel through time, racing through a cleft of dimensions, a space between the physical laws of the universe. The tunnel passes through the speed storm, a maelstrom of raw, primal kinetic energy, drawn from all the motions of the universe, threatening to buffet any who attempt to pass across the full breadth of time. Few indeed have successfully navigated the speed storm to reach that which lies beyond safely. Fewer still have returned to tell what they found there. All describe it in religious terms. To step into the Speed Force is to lock eyes with God.
Tub Ci has arrived.
Master Asia,suddenly screaming, "YOU LISTEN TO ME YOU GODDAMN PUNKS BECAUSE I SWEAR I AM ONLY GOING TO SAY THIS ONCE."
Master Asia says, "IT IS TWO OF THE CLOCK IN THE GODDAMN MORNING AND REASONABLE PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP."
Master Asia says, "YOU GET YOURSELVES OFF TO BED OR I SWEAR I WILL TAN YOUR HIDES AND SEND YOU CRYING BACK TO YOUR MOTHERS. NO SUPERSPEED AFTER 11 FOR GROWING YOUNG BOYS."
Master Asia rattles something - or someone, and then mutters angrily about goddamn punk kids these days.
Master Asia desynch.
A time-lapsed afterimage of Impulse, who has actually just ran far, far, far past, sulks, folds his arms, and says, "My mom won't be born for another hundred years."
Master Asia resynch.
Master Asia NUTPUNCH
Ikkaku Madarame says, "....THOSE WERE KIDS?!"
Shin Matsunaga tch.
A time-lapsed afterimage of Impulse, who has actually just ran far, far, far past, says, "OH, RIGHT IN THE MEAN BEAN MACHINE!"
Master Asia desynch.
A random little girl says, "These should be here!"
You got: Dalek 12x
Impulse stumbles, beginning to slow down now. He can't keep it up. But -- somehow, it doesn't seem quite so pressing now. They're here.
"This is... the Speed Force?" He continues to run - they can't do anything but run, here - down the time tunnel, as the temporal and dimensional energies of the universe rush past in all directions, a narrow navigable tunnel the racers have punched through the fabric of the universe, surrounded by the storm of existence. "Keep moving," he manages to get out, now heaving for breath. "We have to keep moving, or we're not going to make it. Come on!" Guy's nasty - a supercriminal, after all, trying to kill him - but Impulse's first instinct is still to protect. They're both in over their heads now. Tubby doesn't know anything about this, probably - and Impulse doesn't know much more.
Tub Ci doesn't know a damn thing about this, no. The Ancestor Spirits never mentioned it. His master never mentioned it in the Zig. The heroes have never mentioned it. This is a part of the non-universe he hsa never seen, even more than most parts of the non-universe. The martial artist keeps running, largely because he has no choice in the matter...
But still, he has no idea what's going on. His first instinct is to shout at someone. Thankfully, Impulse is here. "WHAT DID YOU DO, HERO!?"
Impulse heaves for breath, falling behind Tub Ci to a degree. "It's... I think..." He looks around as he runs, even while it feels like he's on a treadmill, running forward while moving backward. "We ran too fast. Max - uh, I heard a little about this... it's the Speed Force. I think? We're breaking through to the Speed Force." A pinpoint of light becomes visible ahead, quickly barreling forward to occupy all visible space: a storm of sheer kinetic energy, all the motion in the universe contained within one enormous maelstrom, pressures pushing and shoving in every direction, demanding perfect reflexes, superhuman reflexes, the pinnacle of speed to avoid being pushed aside, down, above - any direction, but outside the tunnel, outside into the temporal stress zone outside the tunnel in time. And beyond the storm, glimmering just narrowly between the ticks of the seconds, a radiant light - a whirling tornado of activity - a sense of something beautiful, like the love of God himself.
Impulse is falling behind, still. He can't keep this up. He stares ahead at the maze of pressures, and has to take a deep breath before he can bark out, reaching forward as far as he can, "TUBBY! GRAB MY HAND!" It may look to Tub Ci like Impulse is begging for help to keep up. He isn't. He doesn't understand what's going on, but somehow, it doesn't look like the fun kind of danger. He's trying to be an anchor.
Tub Ci - well. The man is not stupid. He understands self-preservation in a strange land. He knows that he has no idea what is going on - and that is dangerous. But he also knows that most heroes would arrest him if given a chance to trick him. Trust is not easy for a supervillain. At all.
So when Impulse begins to full behind and holds his hand out, the martial artist looks back at him. "My name is Tub Ci." He does not grab the hand yet - not yet. He does not trust this. What is that boy planning?
"That's what I... hhunh... that's what I said. Tubby." Grave insult as it is, Impulse's eyes behind his goggles betray no mockery this time, just innocent uncomprehension. But every moment that ticks away is another moment that the field is sapping Impulse's speed away, and he's already reached the point where he can't sustain it anymore. He's falling behind - far behind, now - and there's no room to turn back. "It's the Speed Force," he calls, taking another deep breath. "The source of... all the speed in the universe." Bart Allen's universe, at least. "But if you..." Think back. Think back. "If you don't make it..." And then Impulse is too far to hear, disappearing in the far rear of the time tunnel. He doesn't have the speed to keep up, to stay in this place.
There's nothing ahead but the storm. Tremendous pressures at hair-trigger times, instants of buffeting and walls of force which can hardly be seen coming even with the enormous reservoir of speed Tub Ci is drawing from. And now that reservoir feels ever closer, and the connection stronger - and it still peeks out from beyond the storm, if he could only reach it. Perfect, flawless. One of the universe's greatest raw repositories of power.
Power. That's what Tub Ci needs. He needs power, to turn Paragon City - no, the world - into the sort of place it should be. A place where strength is respected, where the Hmong are not cast down, where the weak know their place. But - but he cannot reach that power. He can siphon speed, steal power...but somehow, he can't reach it.
Tub Ci looks about him, noticing that he can no longer hear or see Impulse. He's nowhere. Was that the plan?! Reverse psychology? - yes! That must have been it! "CUUUUUURSE YOU, HEROOOOOOOOOO! I'LL GET OUT OF HERE AND KILL YOU!"
Impulse shouts out to the receding figure in the distance, but the sound does not travel. He can't run any longer. He's done. The tear in time pulls him back in, hurling him out the other side of the portal where they entered. Spent. Collapsed.
Tub Ci, however, is too far in. Now, without the presence of Impulse in this time - this existence on the edges of time - the speed he's siphoning begins to drain back, moving so quickly becomes a chore - but he's too near the storm. A thousand hurdles come at him in a second, and with his waning speed, he will only be able to evade so many, until one knocks him free, out to the edges of the passage, out of the passage. But the entrance to this quasidimension is far back in the beginning of the tunnel. The ways out here are disparate, buffeted and rocking about from the primal motions, ancient centuries and future aeons knocking past each other. Today Tub Ci ran past the borders of time - and failed to cross the finish line.