The Phoenix Enigma

This story can only accept characters who rank no higher than "Hypera" on the Power Tiers. You may come up with a character just for this story, or simply use a character you own that has participated in the Villains Multiverse. You may also use up to two characters.

If you have a character that is participating, list him/her/it below (5 or 6 characters total are preferable for the story):

1. Ruichi

2. Nebula

3. Hollow

4. Aeris

5. Pathos

6. Tueor

Chapter I
Consciousness returned slowly to Ruichi as dim and blurred shapes appeared in his vision. It appeared that his hearing was muffled as well, but he could almost make out someone calling his name.

"...Rui...chi... Ruichi..."

Groggily, Ruichi stood up, and with a jolt of horror that snapped his senses awake in an instant, realized that he was trapped within a clear glass tube barely wide enough for him to sit in.

"Ruichi!" called the voice again. Ruichi recognized the voice as that of Nebula's; his closest friend and constant companion. Turning to his right, he realized with another horrifying shock that she was also encased within a glass tube.

"Nebula!" Ruichi exclaimed. "Where the hell are we?"

"I don't know..." Nebula said, scared to tears. "There are others here... a lot of others..."

Ruichi turned about, horrified, gazing upon the rows of glass tubes. Most of them had some person or creature trapped inside, and some were struggling to escape, but to no avail. Ruichi then noticed his scythe leaning against a side of his chamber. "Odd..." he thought. ''"If someone put us in here, why would they leave us with our weapons?" ''

Ruichi lifted his scythe and attempted to smash through the glass. His scythe simply bounced off of the glass, leaving no scratch.

"...Ruichi, I'm scared..." Nebula cried. "Will we be okay?"

"I... I don't know..." Ruichi said quietly.

Another voice can be heard nearby, disturbing in the way it continually changes from almost infantile to deep and menacing, the figure in the tube shaking every now and then as their body shifts and warps in time with their words: "..when I get out of here I'm going to tear you apart.. I.. I'm sorry.. please.. let me go.. I don't like it here.. I.." the sentence is broken by manic laughter.

A tiny figure lays motionless in another tube, resembling a humanoid bear with blue fur - his form fitted into a small silver suit of armor with glowing crystals dotting the surface: the creature's eyes remain closed as it lays motionless, resembling a stuffed toy in both size and appearance.

A figure remains struggles with himself. "How did I get in here!? Where am I?"

Suddenly, a voice rings out loudly, echoing throughout the room. The voice is female and human, but disturbingly calm:

''“Welcome, one and all, to the Phoenix Industries Detainment Chamber Twelve. Each and every one of you has been selected to participate in a compulsory experiment. Completing the upcoming assessment successfully with all vital functions in working order will result in your immediate release from this facility. The consequences of failure include the possibility of a minor case of severe damage to your self-esteem followed by a 99.976% chance of near-immediate death."''

Aeris was "woken" by the announcement. "Experiment?" Aeris kicked at the glass to no effect. "I don't like the sound of this at all..."

''"The guidelines of your assessment are as follows..." the voice continued; "each one of you will recieve a Pheonix Industries Electronic Scanning Card Key. The front door to the main facility is locked, and can be opened only with eight of these Card Keys. How you obtain the keys is entirely up to you, subject, but only the other subjects will be holding the keys. Gaining entry to the main lab with all vital functions in working order will mark the end of the assessment. Failure to participate will result in immediate termination." ''

Nebula looked around frantically, wide-eyed. "Does... does this mean we have to..."

Ruichi closed his eyes and gripped his scythe tightly. ''"I don't want to kill anyone... Nebula won't be able to kill anyone... what the hell am I supposed to do? By the looks of things, most of these other people will be after our blood to get their hands on these keys..." ''he thought to himself.

"So when do we start?" Aeris asked. He was not amused at the obvious test. "We can't get anymore cards from inside the glass."

The tiny "bear" doesn't move nor speak - his eyes staying shut as if in sleep, the crystals in his armor glowing continually before his eyes suddenly open, ice blue in color and suddenly a tiny paw launches itself at the glass with frightening strength for something so small.

Tueor looks around trying to find the source of the voice but cannot find anything. "Fine, I'll play your little game. I will not lose though!"

"..no.. I don't want to.. I.. KILL.. KILL.. KILL!" the crazed voice echoes, frightening banging coming from the tube containing the constantly shifting figure.

''"You all will be transported to the grounds of this facility along with your keys." ''the voice said. "Once there, remember to collect eight keys and head for the entrance to the facility with all vital functions in working order. Good luck, subjects."

A blinding flash of light emanates from each tube as everyone is teleported away...

[[File:Phoenix_Game.png]]
The above is a map of The Phoenix Industries grounds. The scale bar in the lower left is to give an idea of exactly how large the grounds are. The red circle is the lab entrance, which requires eight keys to open, and according to the overhead voice in the Detainment Chamber, gaining entry means you will have passed the test...

You can choose whichever direction to go first, according to the map. Ruichi starts at the number 1, Hollow at the number 2, Nebula at the number 3, Tueor at the number 4, Pathos at the number 5, and Aeris at the number 6.

For more information about the map, see Phoenix Industries. If one User character meets another... well, we'll figure it out, depending on what happens between those characters.

Ruichi Start
Ruichi finds himself lying on rough grass, face-up. There was an object in his hand- turning his head, he could see that it was a small card with the words "Phoenix Industries" inscribed upon it. He quickly scrambles to his feet and find his scythe lying on the ground in front of him. He takes it up, gripping it tightly, and looks about frantically.

"Nebula?" he calls out. "NEBULA! NEBULAAAAA!"

His voice echoes into silence. Moments later, he could hear the crack of gunshots in the distance.

"...it's started..." he whispered to himself.

Hollow Start
(Start at the number 2 on the map)

Nebula Start
Nebula awoke to find herself curled up on the hard ground. Underneath her hand, she could feel a small object; on closer inspection, she assumed that it was the card key that was promised to each of the "subjects". Fear took a hold of her as she quickly got up onto her feet. Looking around, she noticed that she was in the corner of a large, metal building.

"What do I do? What do I do?" she repeated quietly to herself. She backed up, pressing herself against the corner, paralyzed in terror.

"Ruichi... where are you?" she whispered tearfully.

Tueor Start
(Start at the number 4 on the map)

Pathos Start
(Start at the number 5 on the map)

Aeris Start
(Start at the number 6 on the map)