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Description
Perez Park
Paragon City
MGA Earth
12 hours previously
_________________________________________________________________

It had been a beautiful morning.

Paragon City sparkled in the sunlight. The metropolis had been the jewel in the crown of the globe since the aftermath of the Second Ritki War. Only a very few had ever objected to the special attention payed to the city in the days of reconstruction. After all, was this not the home of those who had played a major part in saving the planet from the horrors of the invasion and prevented it from descending into anarchy in the chaotic times that followed?

Adam clambered out of the battered and aging Camero that now sat in the parking lot adjacent to Perez Park. His girlfriend Laura exited the car from the driver's side. Her honey-blonde hair bounced off her shoulders as she shot him a dazzling smile. Adam still couldn't quite believe that they had been together for the last six months now. They had met in his political science class at Paragon U and the chemistry had been instantaneous. Never before had he been involved with a girl who had been so into him. It was as if she wanted to know everything about him down to the smallest detail. It was fantastic.

He fished the picnic basket out of the trunk and strolled arm-in-arm with Laura toward the sprawling expanse of greenery. A light, pleasant breeze played across the blacktop of the parking lot that was starting to warm noticeably in the sun.

"So who are we meeting again?", asked Adam with a curious glance toward his girlfriend.

"Oh, just some friends of mine", said Laura with an enigmatic smile. "But they probably won't be arriving for a couple of hours yet."

Adam fixed her with a raised eyebrow and a lop-sided smile.

"Friends huh? Are these the same friends you always rush off to hang out with every Wednesday night? The ones you always avoid talking about?"

"Maybe", said Laura batting her eyelashes and wearing a look of totally contrived innocence.

"Ha! I knew it!", cried Adam. "So I finally get to meet the mysterious Wednesday night crowd. Let me guess. You are a secret society dedicated to bringing back New Coke, right?"

Laura made a face.

"No huh?", said Adam. "Let's see. Shriners? Nope. That's a guys only thing. Goths? Hmmm, I've never seen you in black eye-liner and a trenchcoat."

"I know", he said snapping his fingers. "You are New Age nature worshippers. That's why we are meeting in the park. Are we going to get naked and dance around a bonfire?"

Laura laughed and punched him playfully in the shoulder.

"Oh you wish. It's nothing that mysterious, champ. But I'll tell you one thing. These people are just dying to meet you."

Adam grinned and made like he was straightening an invisible necktie.

"Well I'd better be on my best behaviour then. And speaking of dying. You are going to die from the heat soon if you keep that sweater on. I don't know why you wore that thing today anyway."

Laura plucked self-consciously at the red sweater that she wore and failed to meet Adam's gaze.

"Oh? Well you know it's not all that warm. And it can get pretty cool under the shade of the trees with this breeze blowing. I'll be fine."

The two of them strolled through the west gate and into the park.

They passed a memorial that consisted of three life-size bronze figures standing on a large marble plinth. The three figures stood with their backs to each other forming a rough triangle. Each faced a different direction and their heads were bowed in solemn repose. One was a woman in military combat gear. The butt of her assault rifle rested on the ground between her feet and she gripped the upright barrel of the bronze weapon with both hands. The second figure was of a man in street clothes whose hands were clasped tightly in front of him. The third metal figure was of a man dressed as a costumed hero. A mask covered his lowered face and he wore what appeared to be a utility belt. His bronze hands bore flared gauntlets and his boots featured small metallic wings.

A simple carved inscription overlaid with gold leaf on the plinth read;

                                               "In Memory of the Fallen."
     "Dedicated to all those that made the ultimate sacrifice during the dark days of the
                                                     Second Rikti War."

"Wow!", said Adam looking around. "There are a lot of people here today. I mean I know that Perez Park is popular on weekends but there seem to be even more people here than usual."

"You think so?", said Laura. "Well we better stake out a good spot while we have the chance then."

Adam was right. There were plenty of the usual weekend park-goers in sight. Families with children picnicking on the grass by the lake. Joggers sweating their way along the running trails. Dog owners out walking or tossing balls with their pets. Small groups of young people tossing around frisbees or footballs. But today there were quite a few larger groups of people around. Some were sitting around on the grass while others milled about as if they were waiting for something. Still others were bent over and seemed to be working intently on some type of artwork. Most of them were probably around Adam and Laura's age but some were definitely older.

"Oh hey! There's a good spot", said Laura indicating a place under the trees.

The sound of her voice snapped Adam out of his haze of thoughtful curiosity.

"Huh? Oh great."

"You know it's hard to believe the stories about how this place used to be", said Adam as he spread their blanket over the grass. "I mean before the war and everything."

"That's probably because they aren't true", replied Laura as she pulled out a bottle of juice and a large bag of potato chips from the wicker picnic basket.

"Just more MGA propaganda", she muttered under her breath.

Adam stretched out on the blanket with his hands behind his head.

"Well I know that Mom and Dad would never bring me anywhere near Perez Park when I was younger. And the older guys at school would always be telling stories about some kid wandering in here and getting snatched by the Circle of Thorns."

"The Circle of what?", asked Laura with a derisive snort.

Adam raised himself up onto one elbow and took a plastic cup of juice from his girlfriend.

"I keep forgetting that you are from L.A. babe", he said with a smile. "We had a lot of freaky gangs in Paragon before the war. Real freaky. Some of them got wiped out by the Rikti. The Masters kind of….took care of the rest of them afterward."

Laura leaned over Adam and gave him a light kiss on the lips.

"Let's not talk about the past", she purred. "And let's not talk about the Masters. Let's just focus on the here and now, ok?"

"That sounds like a very good idea", he said nuzzling her ear.

The two young lovers lounged around and canoodled for what seemed like an age. Simply enjoying the physical nearness of each other. They also talked about school, their families and their plans for the next semester break. Laura wanted Adam to fly back to Los Angeles with her to meet her parents and Adam wanted to head south to visit one of his cousins in Texas. In the end, like young people always do, they decided that they had all the time in the world to make up their minds.

As the sun reached its zenith they delved into the picnic basket again. There was fruit and sandwiches galore along with plastic containers full of potato-salad and coleslaw. They tore into the repast as if it was their first meal in days.

Eventually, after every last morsel had been consumed, Adam wiped mayonnaise from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and patted his stomach in satisfaction.

"I am absolutely stuffed", he said stifling a belch.

"Men!", said Laura rolling her eyes and laughing as she packed the empty containers and trash back into the basket.

Adam leaned back and lazily cast his eyes around the park. After a moment however he sat bolt upright.

"What is it, babe?", asked Laura.

Adam frowned. He had been so caught up with Laura and their picnic over the past couple of hours that he had failed to notice that the number of people in the park had grown even further than before. So many in fact that it was starting to look like the lead up to a show or concert.

"Is there something scheduled here for today?", he asked. "Like a band or something?"

"No", said Laura. Although Adam was so intent on scanning the area that he barely heard her. "Nothing like that."

Adam stood up to get a better view of the crowd. A minute later his heart skipped a beat. He could now see that many of the people in the crowd were carrying placards and signs. All of them bore slogans such as;

    "No way MGA!"

    "Crossbow Has Got To Go!"

    "Police, Yes! Crossbow, No!"

    "Just say No! To a police-state!"

Here and there, throughout the throng, Adam could see people wearing red berets. Their white t-shirts all bore the starburst symbol of the Masters surrounded by a red circle with a diagonal slash through the centre. They seemed to be working the crowd up. One of the redcaps started to lead a large group of people in a loud chant.

"NO WAY MGA!! NO WAY MGA!! NO WAY MGA!!"

"Oh no", breathed Adam.

He could hear other chants starting up in the distance and raised voices from closer to where they were sitting

"Babe?", said Adam still looking at the crowd. "I really think we need to go."

"Go? Why?"

"This is just not a good place to be right now, Laura. Seriously."

"All I see is a bunch a people getting together to exercise their right to free speech, babe", said Laura. "What's wrong with that?"

Adam turned to his girlfriend and his face was a mask of concern.

"Nothing! It's just….", his words trailed off as he turned his gaze back on the protestors.

"Oh man. There are so many of them. Too many", he murmured.

He turned back toward Laura, quickly rolled up their picnic blanket and grabbed the basket.

"I just don't like crowds, ok? C'mon. Let's go."

"But you haven't met the others yet", Laura said with a look of distress. "And they were so looking forward to finally meeting you."

"I'll meet them some other time". Adam's voice was tense.

Laura seized his free arm and began tugging him toward the crowd.

"Oh it won't take long," she said in a pleading tone. "They told me exactly where I could find them. Come on, babe. Please? Do it for me?"

Adam took another long and worried look at the crowd and then at his girlfriend's pouting face. He crumbled.

"Ok. We'll find your friends and I'll say 'Hi' but then we leave. Ok?"

Laura shot him another dazzling smile and began to drag him through the mass of people.

Description
Perez Park
Paragon City
MGA Earth
12 hours previously
_________________________________________________________________

It had been a beautiful morning.

Paragon City sparkled in the sunlight. The metropolis had been the jewel in the crown of the globe since the aftermath of the Second Ritki War. Only a very few had ever objected to the special attention payed to the city in the days of reconstruction. After all, was this not the home of those who had played a major part in saving the planet from the horrors of the invasion and prevented it from descending into anarchy in the chaotic times that followed?

Adam clambered out of the battered and aging Camero that now sat in the parking lot adjacent to Perez Park. His girlfriend Laura exited the car from the driver's side. Her honey-blonde hair bounced off her shoulders as she shot him a dazzling smile. Adam still couldn't quite believe that they had been together for the last six months now. They had met in his political science class at Paragon U and the chemistry had been instantaneous. Never before had he been involved with a girl who had been so into him. It was as if she wanted to know everything about him down to the smallest detail. It was fantastic.

He fished the picnic basket out of the trunk and strolled arm-in-arm with Laura toward the sprawling expanse of greenery. A light, pleasant breeze played across the blacktop of the parking lot that was starting to warm noticeably in the sun.

"So who are we meeting again?", asked Adam with a curious glance toward his girlfriend.

"Oh, just some friends of mine", said Laura with an enigmatic smile. "But they probably won't be arriving for a couple of hours yet."

Adam fixed her with a raised eyebrow and a lop-sided smile.

"Friends huh? Are these the same friends you always rush off to hang out with every Wednesday night? The ones you always avoid talking about?"

"Maybe", said Laura batting her eyelashes and wearing a look of totally contrived innocence.

"Ha! I knew it!", cried Adam. "So I finally get to meet the mysterious Wednesday night crowd. Let me guess. You are a secret society dedicated to bringing back New Coke, right?"

Laura made a face.

"No huh?", said Adam. "Let's see. Shriners? Nope. That's a guys only thing. Goths? Hmmm, I've never seen you in black eye-liner and a trenchcoat."

"I know", he said snapping his fingers. "You are New Age nature worshippers. That's why we are meeting in the park. Are we going to get naked and dance around a bonfire?"

Laura laughed and punched him playfully in the shoulder.

"Oh you wish. It's nothing that mysterious, champ. But I'll tell you one thing. These people are just dying to meet you."

Adam grinned and made like he was straightening an invisible necktie.

"Well I'd better be on my best behaviour then. And speaking of dying. You are going to die from the heat soon if you keep that sweater on. I don't know why you wore that thing today anyway."

Laura plucked self-consciously at the red sweater that she wore and failed to meet Adam's gaze.

"Oh? Well you know it's not all that warm. And it can get pretty cool under the shade of the trees with this breeze blowing. I'll be fine."

The two of them strolled through the west gate and into the park.

They passed a memorial that consisted of three life-size bronze figures standing on a large marble plinth. The three figures stood with their backs to each other forming a rough triangle. Each faced a different direction and their heads were bowed in solemn repose. One was a woman in military combat gear. The butt of her assault rifle rested on the ground between her feet and she gripped the upright barrel of the bronze weapon with both hands. The second figure was of a man in street clothes whose hands were clasped tightly in front of him. The third metal figure was of a man dressed as a costumed hero. A mask covered his lowered face and he wore what appeared to be a utility belt. His bronze hands bore flared gauntlets and his boots featured small metallic wings.

A simple carved inscription overlaid with gold leaf on the plinth read;

                                               "In Memory of the Fallen."
     "Dedicated to all those that made the ultimate sacrifice during the dark days of the
                                                     Second Rikti War."

"Wow!", said Adam looking around. "There are a lot of people here today. I mean I know that Perez Park is popular on weekends but there seem to be even more people here than usual."

"You think so?", said Laura. "Well we better stake out a good spot while we have the chance then."

Adam was right. There were plenty of the usual weekend park-goers in sight. Families with children picnicking on the grass by the lake. Joggers sweating their way along the running trails. Dog owners out walking or tossing balls with their pets. Small groups of young people tossing around frisbees or footballs. But today there were quite a few larger groups of people around. Some were sitting around on the grass while others milled about as if they were waiting for something. Still others were bent over and seemed to be working intently on some type of artwork. Most of them were probably around Adam and Laura's age but some were definitely older.

"Oh hey! There's a good spot", said Laura indicating a place under the trees.

The sound of her voice snapped Adam out of his haze of thoughtful curiosity.

"Huh? Oh great."

"You know it's hard to believe the stories about how this place used to be", said Adam as he spread their blanket over the grass. "I mean before the war and everything."

"That's probably because they aren't true", replied Laura as she pulled out a bottle of juice and a large bag of potato chips from the wicker picnic basket.

"Just more MGA propaganda", she muttered under her breath.

Adam stretched out on the blanket with his hands behind his head.

"Well I know that Mom and Dad would never bring me anywhere near Perez Park when I was younger. And the older guys at school would always be telling stories about some kid wandering in here and getting snatched by the Circle of Thorns."

"The Circle of what?", asked Laura with a derisive snort.

Adam raised himself up onto one elbow and took a plastic cup of juice from his girlfriend.

"I keep forgetting that you are from L.A. babe", he said with a smile. "We had a lot of freaky gangs in Paragon before the war. Real freaky. Some of them got wiped out by the Rikti. The Masters kind of….took care of the rest of them afterward."

Laura leaned over Adam and gave him a light kiss on the lips.

"Let's not talk about the past", she purred. "And let's not talk about the Masters. Let's just focus on the here and now, ok?"

"That sounds like a very good idea", he said nuzzling her ear.

The two young lovers lounged around and canoodled for what seemed like an age. Simply enjoying the physical nearness of each other. They also talked about school, their families and their plans for the next semester break. Laura wanted Adam to fly back to Los Angeles with her to meet her parents and Adam wanted to head south to visit one of his cousins in Texas. In the end, like young people always do, they decided that they had all the time in the world to make up their minds.

As the sun reached its zenith they delved into the picnic basket again. There was fruit and sandwiches galore along with plastic containers full of potato-salad and coleslaw. They tore into the repast as if it was their first meal in days.

Eventually, after every last morsel had been consumed, Adam wiped mayonnaise from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and patted his stomach in satisfaction.

"I am absolutely stuffed", he said stifling a belch.

"Men!", said Laura rolling her eyes and laughing as she packed the empty containers and trash back into the basket.

Adam leaned back and lazily cast his eyes around the park. After a moment however he sat bolt upright.

"What is it, babe?", asked Laura.

Adam frowned. He had been so caught up with Laura and their picnic over the past couple of hours that he had failed to notice that the number of people in the park had grown even further than before. So many in fact that it was starting to look like the lead up to a show or concert.

"Is there something scheduled here for today?", he asked. "Like a band or something?"

"No", said Laura. Although Adam was so intent on scanning the area that he barely heard her. "Nothing like that."

Adam stood up to get a better view of the crowd. A minute later his heart skipped a beat. He could now see that many of the people in the crowd were carrying placards and signs. All of them bore slogans such as;

    "No way MGA!"

    "Crossbow Has Got To Go!"

    "Police, Yes! Crossbow, No!"

    "Just say No! To a police-state!"

Here and there, throughout the throng, Adam could see people wearing red berets. Their white t-shirts all bore the starburst symbol of the Masters surrounded by a red circle with a diagonal slash through the centre. They seemed to be working the crowd up. One of the redcaps started to lead a large group of people in a loud chant.

"NO WAY MGA!! NO WAY MGA!! NO WAY MGA!!"

"Oh no", breathed Adam.

He could hear other chants starting up in the distance and raised voices from closer to where they were sitting

"Babe?", said Adam still looking at the crowd. "I really think we need to go."

"Go? Why?"

"This is just not a good place to be right now, Laura. Seriously."

"All I see is a bunch a people getting together to exercise their right to free speech, babe", said Laura. "What's wrong with that?"

Adam turned to his girlfriend and his face was a mask of concern.

"Nothing! It's just….", his words trailed off as he turned his gaze back on the protestors.

"Oh man. There are so many of them. Too many", he murmured.

He turned back toward Laura, quickly rolled up their picnic blanket and grabbed the basket.

"I just don't like crowds, ok? C'mon. Let's go."

"But you haven't met the others yet", Laura said with a look of distress. "And they were so looking forward to finally meeting you."

"I'll meet them some other time". Adam's voice was tense.

Laura seized his free arm and began tugging him toward the crowd.

"Oh it won't take long," she said in a pleading tone. "They told me exactly where I could find them. Come on, babe. Please? Do it for me?"

Adam took another long and worried look at the crowd and then at his girlfriend's pouting face. He crumbled.

"Ok. We'll find your friends and I'll say 'Hi' but then we leave. Ok?"

Laura shot him another dazzling smile and began to drag him through the mass of people.