San Fransapporo (Masks: A New Generation IC)

[Razade]

http://i.imgur.com/6ZxGI7P.jpg (http://imgur.com/6ZxGI7P)
ISSUE ONE: A new day, A new night (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ddQ2cmtCFM)

The cover of The Worst Generation #1 is a spread of the full team in various action poses overlooking a large central park. The sky behind is cloudy, threatening rain, while the non-Hero people below go about their day.

The day is fairly standard in downtown San Fransapporo, the public rail lines are active and people are going about their business on a cloudy and cool day. Large billboards play various advertisements hawking wares, weather reports and live news feeds. Children play in parks nearby while parents and office workers on break listen to the numerous buskers and street performers that ply their trade in these small manicured green havens between towering polished high rises and office buildings.

The illusion of calm is shattered however as the billboards glitch before going black, replaced soon after by the symbol of Shield Maiden, a notorious C-Rank villain known for her abject hatred of what she deems a "weak" and "passive" society. She is often backed by various Valkyire, young women attracted to her power, though she seems alone today. "Verily I say!" she shouts as panic erupts in the street, slamming several civilians and an oncoming tram to the side with ease with one of her two massive bronze shields. "Be there among you a challenger? Be there among your number one who possess the spirit of a warrior? Come! I tire of these squalling children!" With another impressive sweep of her shield another tram is flung from its tracks. The down-town Diamond Square is now mostly empty save those trapped in the vehicles.

-Panel Break-

The next pages open to The Seven Stars or as the media has dubbed them, The Worst Generation, going about their daily lives until the call of action is received. Shield Maiden is downtime in Diamond Square with hostages and no heroes seem to be responding to this threat!

Hey! Tell me what you were doing in the city before all hell broke loose, how you're alerted to the danger and how you approach it!

Team Pool (2)

[Merilan]

The Hakari Shrine...

Things started very peacefully -- like any other day.

Hakari Myorei was dressed in her usual shrine maiden clothes -- a white haori jacket with detached sleeves, a long red skirt and her signature red ribbon tying strands of her hair back. She diligently swept the porch of the lineage's Japantown Shinto shrine while quietly ruminating over some prior events from the day before. Her daily routine at the shrine was so rote at this point, being a lifelong task, that she was able to mentally detach herself from the activity. She could apply herself to other things in the meantime, like making a mental inventory of everything that the group consumed and replenishing them. Let's see... we need more milk in the base fridge, replace the lightbulb in the pantry, thoroughly dust and swab down the entire place before the gathering this weekend, check the news bulletins again for any news of Justice...

"Verily, I say!"

Myorei paused, looked up, and then lowered her head with a very polite little sigh. Yep. Just another normal day.

Her eyes flared open. Ley lights trace themselves under her feet, tracing the intricate pattern of the Hakari yin-yang mandala. A low spiritual moan echoed from the seams of the cobblestone underneath her. With a grimace and a low snarl of pain, bladed crystalline wings erupted from below Myorei's shoulderblades, and she took to the air, alight on a bed of ephemeral spiritual lights.

Now

Freedom swept into the scene, the tips of her wings trailing sky-blue trails of light, diffused motes of a shimmering spiritual echo faintly glowing from her form. She carried Lacerta in its sheath at the right side of her waist, though Callidus was undergoing some... repairs... back at the sewer base due to some certain shenanigans. On her other hand is her gohei, her purification rod, ribboned streamers of white paper flowing in the wake of her flight.

"Stop this disruption immediately, Shield Maiden," she announced, levelling her rod at the warrior. This was risky -- she knew her teammates ought to be around Diamond Square at this time of day, or at least other rapid-response heroes, but she didn't know how long they'd be before they arrived. And there were people at risk now.

She scanned the scene briefly, and then immediately flew down and interposed herself between Shield Maiden and the tram she'd toppled over. "A shield should protect, not terrorise. You shame your namesake."

I'm going to defend the citizens from Shield Maiden. Rolling with Savior! [roll0] Oh dear! I'll expose myself to danger, as I'm right there with Shield Maiden, of course.

[CoreBrute23]

Socket
A small girl is crying under a tree, pointing at it’s sole inhabitant.

“Kitty come down!” She cries pointing at the proud tabby looking down on at her.

“Do not cry small human!” An echoey but friendly voice announces. “For I am here to use my mighty cables to rescue your cat, BWAHAHAHAHAHA!” The 8 foot tall yellow Android walks up to the tree, and raises his left arm.

Suddenly, metallic tendrils erupt from his arm, coiling around the cat before it could react. With the feline securely held, Socket brought the cat to the little girl, who grabbed it in wonder.

“Thank you golden bunny!” She smiles broadly.

“Bunny?” Socket’s two antennae wiggle in confusion, unintentionally resembling literal rabbit ears.
Suddenly the electronic billboards start to fizzle out, and a voice announces. Sockt’s ears picked up as the villain spoke.

“Oh my Clarke!” Socket turned towards it excited. “A proper grandiose announcement of intent!” He started sprinting towards the woman’s location. “We need to share notes! Maybe she can tutor the team in correct monologuing!”

At no point did it occur to Socket to enquire if the cat actually belonged to the little girl. Given the way it struggled in her grasp, the answer would likely have been no.
Can I write that I arrive there, or do you just want a post describing that I’m heading in that direction? To be fair, I probably won’t be there first; given how heavy I am, it’s more of waddle with pace, then a sprint.

EDIT: Ok scratch that, Freedom just showed up, so I'll do the same.

He saw Freedom fly overhead, and followed her path in the sky to the location. When he got there, he was stunned by two things.

The first was the amount of damage Shield Maiden had wrought, and the people she had endangered.

The second was Freedom's excellent use of grandiose language. "Myorei I'm so proud of you! You're really improving. Now throw in a Bwahahaha so they know you mean business!"

I'm not going to do any move yet, but I will set my rolemodel to Freedom. Show me the way Myorei! [Hold 1]

[herodofcows]

"So, wait, I don't get it," Amelia says around a mouthful of sandwich, "Why was he pretending to be Colin Farrell? Hell, why did they cast Johnny Depp at all??"

She and Sam were hogging a booth at Skipper's downtown. Usually Amelia would be trying to bum dumplings off of Golden Phoenix's favorite delivery boy, but she was flush with cash thanks to a months-late birthday card from her mother and she'd been feeling something greasy.

"That's so lame, I really wanted to like that movie . . ."

And then the billboards start blaring.

Amelia's face goes slack for a moment . . .

"Be there among you a challenger?"

. . . and then erupts into a wolfish grin.

"Be there among your number one who possess the spirit of a warrior?"

"Dude . . ." Amelia turns to grin at Sam, "She's playing our song. Let's go!"

She slaps a twenty on the table and nearly pounces out the door of the café, only briefly regretting the loss of her sandwich. As she moves, her clothes flow from her civilian attire into the cloak and crimson armor of Reaver. Her Soul-Weapon materializes in her hand, taking the form of an enormous two-handed axe.

And then she sprints.

Reaver is no speedster, but she can cover a LOT of ground in very little time. Zooming down the road, dodging around or leaping over cars as she runs . . . thus, I say, Reaver charges her way towards Diamond Square.

Her momentum carries her into the park and gives her only a second to assess. Myorei is already here, of course; putting herself into harm's way for the sake of others as per usual. Socket's just made it over . . .

". . . throw in a Bwahahaha so they know you mean business!"

"BWAHAHAHA!" Reaver roars as she flings herself at Shield Maiden axe-first. She smashes her weapon at the villain's side, clipping the shield but still managing to score a palpable hit.

"How was that, Socket?" she crows, ducking under her foe's counter-blow with a grin on her masked face, "Ya think she knows we mean business?"



Keep rollin', rollin', rollin' . . . for Directly Engage A Threat.

[roll0]

Gonna pick "Resist or avoid their blows" for now.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.

"Because ... well $h!t, I don't know, but it was a good movie right? I mean if you didn't like it, you pick the next one, or we could show it to the crew and see what they think." Sam smirked around a mouthful of fries, "I think you'd be out voted."

He watched her face grow slack as she realized the truth, they would love Imaginarium. "Heh. You know I'm right ..."


"Be there among you a challenger?"

"Well, $h!t ...," he lowered his voice to a whisper, "nothing gets that glaze over your eyes like a good fight. Alright, let's ditch this place, swing around to an alley, then circle a block ... "

He watched Amelia slap money on the table run out the front door and within twenty feet she was Reaver, in her distinctive armor with that huge freakin' cloak and big honkin' axe. He slapped his forehead and thought to himself, 'Yeah, gonna have ninja's knocking at my door anytime now. 'Hello, can Shade come out and play?' That's great!'

He smiled awkwardly at the waitress, "Yeah, she had a little case of I.B.S., might wanna change the oil in the deep fryer." With that he went to the washroom himself, hit the light switch, and then accompanied by increasingly familiar shadows he changed into Shade, pulling the mask over his face, and the hood over his head. NOW, he was ready to take on some buxom Nordic blond warrior.

A chill washed over him as he stepped through the darkness, ending up in the alley behind Skipper's, he then vaulted up the fire escape, ending up a few stories above the street, then began to skip, vault, roll, and flip to the action, the shadows allowing him to make short jumps, his approach vector erratic and unpredictable.

Once he got to the scene, he felt some relief wash over him, Freedom and Socket were already here. Yup, and there goes Reaver, trying to behead the big baddie. Despite himself, he smiled. He crouched on the roof top, surveying Diamond Square. He tapped the comm unit that the murder hobo had given the team, hopefully the rest of the crew had theirs in.

>>Shield Maiden in Diamond Square. None of her Valks are with her, so be cautious, she may have back up coming. Or this may be a distraction.<<

Alright, time to spring into action, he leapt to the roof of the nearest overturned Tram, and quipped at the blond beauty.

"Shakespearian English? Verily I sayeth to thee that the great bard had yet been born when last your brethren sailed across yonder waves. Sheesh!" Turning his attention back down to the tram he popped his head through the roof hatch, "Don't worry guys, we got this! Anyone injured?"

Shade will Assess the situation, rolling Superior of +1, [roll0]. Lets see how the random generator hates me today ...

Well that's impressive! I will ask; What here is in the greatest danger, and How can we best end this quickly?

[Kirjath]

Phil looked around his humble abode with a sigh. It wasn't the most luxurious space in the sewers, but for whatever reason his team had chosen it for their secret lair. It was a pragmatic decision; after all, it was still easier to move down here undetected than many places, but Phil was still confused as to why they would want to spend time down here. He only lived here because of necessity, not out of any fondness for damp, dark places. Besides that was the pungent odor that permeated the very walls of the tunnels. That had to be the first thing the new base would need to fix.

Fortunately, Shadowstep had given him a crate of scented candles and a few boxes of matches from a warehouse she had "liberated" a month ago.

"When I saw them, I thought of you." She had said, and Phil wasn't sure whether to be grateful or slightly insulted. "You can use them for that little club you've got now."

So for the better part of a month, Phil had been trying to learn how to use matches. When he'd been human, it was a simple task. In his new body, it was a daunting trial that was slowly driving him mad. He could hardly pick up a match without snapping it in two. When he did manage to pick one up, he'd break it on the side of the matchbox. Phil had gone through three boxes so far. But he needed to do something about the offensive smells the team would likely encounter down in their new base, and that meant scented candles.

>>Shield Maiden in Diamond Square. None of her Valks are with her, so be cautious, she may have back up coming. Or this may be a distraction.<<

Shade's voice shot into Phil's inner ear and he jumped. The communicators they had were mostly designed for human ears, but the small holes Wereshark had on the side of his head were thankfully just right for the device to rest comfortably. That didn't make it any less loud or surprising when teammates suddenly called him.

*snap* *crunch*

Another match gone. Looking down at his other hand, Phil slowly realized he'd also crushed the matchbox. He'd just opened that one.

>>On my way.<< Phil growled as he dropped the matches and dove into the sewer canal. Of course it would be a supervillain. Every time it seemed like he was having a nice afternoon, a supervillain would show up. He turned left at the next junction, and then right; his fin cut like a knife through the top of the water as he made his way to his teammates. Now that he was concentrating on it, Wereshark could smell the blood of the injured. The scent made his insides boil, and Phil desperately tried to turn his thoughts towards anger at Shield Maiden rather than an insatiable hunger for the hostages.

When he reached the nearest sewer entrance to the battle, Phil burst through the grate and dragged himself out onto the street. Several of the hostages shrieked in newfound panic, and Wereshark let loose an angry roar in response. There was no banter that came to mind, no quip or witticism that he could think of. That was for Sam and the other much more clever members.

Glancing around, it looked like Sam and Myorei had the hostages taken care of. Well, at least Myorei was protecting them. That was good, especially if Phil lost control of Wereshark when the battle got intense. Amelia was also engaged with the Shield Maiden, but it looked like her shields were blocking any significant strikes. Socket was also there, but he wasn't doing anything yet.

"Well, here goes nothing." Phil muttered to himself. Likely, he would just end up making a fool of himself again today.

He quickly slipped into the rush of adrenaline Wereshark was feeling and charged at Shield Maiden. His claws stretched towards her and his powerful jaws snapped together with vicious intent.

"Fresh meat!" Wereshark bellowed as he closed the distance to his opponent.

Hoping to roll Be The Monster here, so +Freak. Also, not sure how to actually roll yet.

EDIT: OOC thread fixed it. Roll is an 11 total, so I'll pick "you frighten others you had not intended to scare" for the downside.

[LoP]

Ghost
Conditions: Normal

They were beginning to suspect.

Parvathy was spending way too much time with Kyrios or the Seven Stars, and she had slipped up, hadn't been able to keep all the plates spinning at once. Her grandmother just assumed it was her "volunteer work" and was very proud, but her usually forever-too-busy parents had begun to notice. This was so not like party-girl Parvathy.

So, a little "old Parvathy" had to come back. Which meant dates. Leave an obvious trail of boys and girls behind for her mother to notice. It would mean an hour, at least, a week, wasted on chatting with beautifully empty shells of people, but it was an investment against prying questions later.

Most of the last couple dates had been stupefyingly boring, but this last one had at least shown some promise. The first round of standard "you look amazing," and "what's good here" had fallen quickly into awkward silence, as - Robby, was that his name? - tried desperately to remember his stupid pick-up artist training and Parvathy idly wondered how many steak knives she could hide in her pockets. A few more desperate stabs at conversation had met with Parvathy just staring like a praying mantis at the throbbing carotids at Robby's neck.

Then Robby had mentioned he had started training in MMA after school, and Parvathy perked up noticeably. In relief and growing enthusiasm, Robby mentioned his latest tournament and how he had barely lost a place on the podium to a guy that was clearly better than him. Parvathy had drilled him on every position and every move they had done, analyzing their fight in her head as they munched on their burgers. Robby was surprised a girl like Parvathy would be interested in MMA, but he was glad she had at least seemed to warm up to the topic.

"So its clear you are a crappy striker," Parvathy had said artlessly, sopping up burger juice with her fries. "If I were you, I think I'd have gone for the takedown, gotten his legs into saddle or inside sankaku and twisted his heel into his butt until his knee snapped."

"Whoa, do you do sambo? That's cool, but... uh, leg-locks were illegal at my tournament."

"Why?" Parvathy had asked, and Robby had laughed. "Because they are dangerous, and you can cripple people that way?"

"That's the point." Robby kept laughing, and Parvathy found herself smiling, enjoying herself ...

"Get on the tram. Downtown. Now," Kyrios raspy voice had croaked in the commlink she kept in her ear at all times. Switch flipped. Parvathy's smile changed, from pretty and warm to suddenly razor-sharp, more intense. More true.

Yes. It's go time.

She didn't need to ask Kyrios what was going on, or why... she trusted that whatever it was, it'd be a lot more fun than this.

"Sorry, I got to go. Its just... just," Parvathy said, standing up abruptly, and struggled with a nice thing to say . She came up empty. Whatever. "This is boring," she blurted out, her apologetic smile fading from her face as she walked, then ran, away from Robby, who just gaped after in shock.

"Well, that's over at least," Parvathy had said, kicking off her heels and running to make the tram. She tapped her Metro card, slipped in, took a seat next a haggard looking mother and her brood of four bawling and fighting children, and put a hand in her bag to stroke a finger over the reassuring nothing-feel of the nanocore-cloth fabric of her stealth-suit.

"Onboard. Destination?" she subvocalized into her throat comm as the tram swayed under her feet and began accelerating away toward downtown, the busy San Fransapporo streets becoming blurs in the windows.

"No destination. Try to keep your balance. Over and out," was all Kyrios said, a moment before the world jammed Parvathy hard to the left and the entire tram flipped end over end.
~~~~
The world stopped tumbling, and Parvathy opened her eyes to a toppled tram crammed with screaming panicking people. Instinctively she had curled up into a protective ball, and was for the most part alright. Her comm-link buzzed to life.

>>...Shield Maiden in Diamond Square. None of her Valks are with her, so be cautious, she may have back up coming. Or this may be a distraction.<<

She tram was sideways, with the floor now a wall blocking her view of what was going on. She heard and then saw Shadow Scorpion leap onto her tram.

"Shakespearian English? Verily I sayeth to thee that the great bard had yet been born when last your brethren sailed across yonder waves. Sheesh!"

She couldn't help herself from grinning, then pushed a crying woman out of her way and began kicking out a splintered window.

"Don't worry guys, we got this! Anyone injured?"

"Plenty, but they'll be alright. Fancy meeting you guys here. Shield Maiden, eh?"

The window finally gave way to her stockinged heel and she crawled out from the ruined tram, keeping herself mostly hidden behind its mangled corner as she pulled on her Ghost-suit, letting it self-deploy on her body. Within moments she was covered from head to toe in a sensor-absorbing nanocore-cloth sheath, and her helmet HUD fired up.

"I don't expect we'll be seeing any of her glam friends today," Ghost said, her voice now heavily modulated. "Bit of a falling out with the big shield lady when they started stealing tech for themselves. Let's put her down hard and fast. Where are Wereshark and Dynam-"

"Fresh meat!" came Wereshark's cry as the massive monstrosity came barreling onto the scene. Inside her Ghost-helmet, Parvathy grinned.

"Oh. There's Wereshark. Well, one to go..."

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis

Charlie sits cross-legged off to the side of the mat of the aikido dojo in civilian clothes, polishing a bokken. He and Ross-sensei did a lot of dojo maintenance during these one-on-one sessions - Charlie was happy to help, but was still trying to figure out what he was supposed to be learning. (He'd asked straight up the second or third time Ross-sensei had had him change out of his hakama after bowing to O-sensei's picture, and Ross-sensei's response had been to say that when he figured it out, he'd have learned the lesson.) Still, it was nice to just spend some time with his teacher as they did the chores to keep the dojo in good working order."

"... I got an 'A' on the paper, but it was so weird listening to all the other kids read theirs, and just hearing all these things that sound so strange to me, but that are just normal for everyone else. And talking to Gunny about stuff like that makes him get that look like he thinks he's not doing enough, y'know?"

Looking over his work, he stands up to return it to the rack, and is about to grab another when Shade's voice crackles in his comm.

>>Shield Maiden in Diamond Square. None of her Valks are with her, so be cautious, she may have back up coming. Or this may be a distraction.<<

He spins around to find Ross-sensei smiling in that way that meant he was trying not to laugh. "Go save the world," he says, before Charlie can open his mouth. "I think we're done for the day here anyway."

Charlie bows to him and the picture of O-sensei on pure reflex before rushing the changing room, his shirts coming off and his armor deploying even before the door swings closed. He stuffs the shirts in his locker next to his bag, steps into the access door to the furnace, and leaps up to the roof-access hatch there. His helmet unfolds up over his head as he comes out on the roof, and blades of light flare outward from his shoulders as he hurls himself as fast and hard as he can off the edge. It's falling with style as opposed to actually flying, but he makes better time this way than just leaping like some oversized bug, and he does much less property damage.

A few soaring arcs later, he drops into Diamond Square, landing behind Freedom on the overturned tram. "Sorry I'm late, was in the middle of some stuff," he says sheepishly, his wings dissipating until needed. To Shield Maiden, he calls out, "Hey! Can I join the party, or will you whine about us not fighting fair if I don't wait my turn?"

[Razade]

Freedom, Reaver, Wereshark

Shield Maiden buckles under Reaver's blow, skating back a few inches as her heavy boots dig into the dirt. "A fight! Yes, come to me little one!" she shouts, twisting suddenly to hurl one of her massive shields out towards Freedom who has moved towards the trams. "The fight is here! Join your friend! Come, be not afra...." It's about this time that Wereshark appears on the scene and while you're close enough to see how shocked and suddenly nervous she is that a nine foot tall shark man has burst onto the scene, she merely digs her heels further into the concrete ready for the blow. This also puts Reaver in the path of the shouting sharkman.

Roll to take a powerful blow as you expose yourself to danger and get a massive shield in your grill. That is unless someone rolls and succeeds a Defend.
You're right in the thick of things and a giant Wereshark appears out of nowhere screaming and charging you and Shield Maiden both. What do you do?
Shield Maiden certainly looks scared but she hasn't fled. You get an opportunity. The hostages are now terrified of you.

Ghost

As you pull yourself out of the tram you see how close to the action you really are, Reaver and Shield Maiden exchange blows or at least Reaver does which causes Shield Maiden to buckle under the assault. You're also close enough to see that Freedom has moved to help protect the people in the tram you just pulled yourself out of and is the target of Shield Maiden's counter attack. To make matters even more complicated, Wereshark seems to be on a frenzy and the trapped civilians do not respond well to his presence. Already a few people are shouting and panicking about "another monster on the loose" and people are getting shove-y in the upended tram.

You've got options. You could take Shield Maiden's defenses out, setting her up further for Wereshark but it might risk Reaver in the process. You could defend Freedom from your vantage point or you could calm down the civilians before they do something stupid.


Shade

Your words aren't enough to quell the quickly growing concern over Wereshark unfortunately but from your higher vantage point affords a much better view of the battlefield. Shield Maiden's relatively close to the tram lines, a little push is going to be a big problem for her. You also see just how screwed Reaver is what with how Shield Maiden has decided to bunker down. She's between a sharkman and a hard place.

The answers are

1. Right now, Reaver and Freedom is in the greatest danger. With a charging Wereshark and Shield Maiden in close proximity, she's in for a world of hurt. Freedom is close to getting a shield in her face.
2. Take out Shield Maiden

Dynamis/Socket

You're both standing outside the conflict, you can see Shade on scene on top of one of the trams. Reaver and Wereshark are engaging Shield Maiden and Freedom has moved to help defend the tram. Ghost is nowhere to be seen but you can assume she's here if everyone else is. Right now, you're the pair least engaged in combat and the tram that Freedom and Shade are on isn't the only one. A few people are already pulling themselves out of the other and trying to flee but they're clearly disoriented and panicked.

You're in a position to do plenty of things, what do you do?
You're in a position to do plenty of things, what do you do?

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.

Phil was pissed, Sam could tell, his predator brain was threatening to take over his childhood friend, and he was running straight towards Shield Maiden. His strength and his mass should push her back towards the ...

"Ghost!" Shade called from the tram roof, "Use your plasma sword-thingy! Power lines!" He pointed to the lines that criss-crossed over the tram tracks the Shield Maiden was inches from, the resulting shock should ... should ... at least give the rest of the team an opening.

He watched the shield arc towards Freedom, and felt a pang of guilt, but to get Phil to tackle Shield Maiden back towards the, hopefully, electrified tracks he needed to clear his path. He leapt from the roof of the tram, tucked into a tight roll, looked at his monstrous friend, "Sorry Phil, I'm cutting in." He quipped as he wrapped an arm around Amelia's waist, tugging her out of Shark's on coming path, he had hoped his sudden shift in weight would hurl them both clear of Phil's bull rush, but he only succeeded in staggering Amelia, getting her out of his way.

He looked up at the monstrous grey skinned form charging towards him, mouth agape, rows of jagged, serrated teeth, and black, cold eyes. He forced himself to see his friend, and not the monster that the bystanders, who even now were running in panic, chose to see. "There's your dance partner!" He threw his hands up shielding himself hoping he wouldn't get trampled.

Sorry Merilan! Snap decision! I am going to Defend Reaver, rolling Savior of +0, but I have Influence over her, for +1, and acting on my Assess gives me an additional +1, for a total of +2. [roll0]. Lets hope this works and we don't get turned into street pizza.

Success, kinda ... I will choose to expose myself to danger, ie. take Reavers spot in the path of an on coming Phil ... and add a Team to the Pool, we may need it. Psst! Phil, feel free to spend that Team and hop over me and not crushing your BFF, ok? ;)

[CoreBrute23]

Socket

As the shield came swinging down on Freedom, her vision was obscured by a large yellow presence. Sparks flew off Socket's chest as it came in contact with the Maiden's weapon.

"Myorei are you alright?" He asked, seemingly unconcerned with the attack on his person. "I know monologuing can be a rush, but you shouldn't hurt yourself doing it." At that moment Reaver came in like a lightning bolt, taking the fight to Shield Maiden.

"Excellent Bwahahaha Reaver! 2 Gold stars!"

Defending Freedom: [roll0]

Just realised it should be a 9, because I have influence over Freedom. I'll add a team to the pool, and I think this is getting too easy for us (also, I'm not sure her shield can hurt me). Let's escalate the situation, because I want to see how far Raz goes when someone gives him free reign to be evil. :smallamused:

[Merilan]

Freedom let out a surprised noise, but realised that the yellow presence in front of her could only be Socket. She quickly regained herself and nodded, saying in return, "Thank you, Socket," while filing away a more formal note of gratitude for after the battle.

She turned towards the trams and knew that the citizens would throw themselves into a fit and harm themselves if someone didn't take control. She put a hand to her commlink and spoke, "Dynamis, are you there? Like Shade said, Shieldmaiden's minions aren't here -- could you fly up and do a round, make sure we aren't being distracted from the real threat here?"

She moved towards the tram and made the spot decision to carve open another exit with the Lacerta -- the sword gleamed with an unearthly light for the moment she slashed through the metal, trailing a soft hue of cascading moonlight, then it was back in its sheath as she pried it open and looked to the passengers inside.

"Everyone listen to me!" she boldly announced. "File out of this tram in twos -- help children and the elderly when you can! That shark is our ally, and you have no reason to fear him!"

I'm going to provoke the citizens into making an orderly evacuation -- [roll0].

[Mr Sitouh]

"One second, gonna help finish things up here real quick!" Dynamis says, before leaping upward, wings flaring out. He banks so he comes to the peak of his jump directly over Shield Maiden, seeming to hang there for a moment before his plunge downward commences directly towards his opponent. "Heads up!" he calls out a split second before he slams feet-first into Shield Maiden.


Rolling to Directly Engage, and since I'm pretty sure this will frustrate Freedom:

[roll0]

I think I'll resist or avoid her blows, and take her shield from her :smallamused:

[herodofcows]

Reaver laughs gleefully at Socket's commentary, belying the relief she feels at seeing Myorei protected. She may not trust the machine, but damn if he's not an asset.

"Nice, Socket! Wait, two stars out of a possible HOLY SH- OOF!"

She has a moment of nigh-pants-wetting alarm as Wereshark comes roaring out of nowhere. Intellectually she knew that 'shark was a nice guy, her teammate, someone with whom she'd spent many an idle hour arguing about music . . . but in the heat of battle it was hard to see past the tons of predatory muscle barreling her way.

Her alarm gives way to disorientation as Shade shoves her out of the way. She staggers a bit, finds her balance . . . and realizes that Shade has placed himself in the same danger from which he'd just saved her.

"Shade!"

She leaps back over, her Soul Weapon flickering to form a tower shield to defend them both from the oncoming onslaught. She braces and grits her teeth, but her footing is still unstable and she can't QUITE stick her landing.

"Wait, this may have been stupid . . ."

Rolling to protect Shade from the danger from which he protected Reaver!

[roll0], +1 from Dynamis' Team expenditure, escalates the situation.

[LoP]

Ghost
Condition: Normal

"Ghost!" Shade called from the tram roof, "Use your plasma sword-thingy! Power lines!"

Not a bad idea, Ghost thought, pulling her "plasma sword-thingy" from her hip and igniting it. With her stealthsuit on and activated, Ghost was able to bound outward from her hiding spot unseen and get to a better vantage spot, which gave her a completely unobstructed view of the fight... just in time to see Reaver and Shade do the hokey-pokey and turn themselves around, barely avoiding Shield Maiden's blows but leaving them still in turdsville.

"Jeez, guys, get a room," Ghost muttered, not entirely inaudibly.

Ghost decided against severing the power lines for fear of accidentally lopping a loose livewire right on Shade or Reaver; she deactivated her sword and put it away. What she needed to do was get Shield Maiden's attention off Reaver, Shade, and the civilians, and onto a target that could handle her: namely, Wereshark. With a few quick steps, she leapt directly onto Wereshark's shoulder, crouching invisibly there.

"Easy buddy, just your friendly neighborhood Ghost," she murmured, trusting Phil would be able to smell her even if he couldn't see her. Then she altered her voice modulator, hoping it could decently pass for shark.

"Grrrr, I am the Wanton Wereshark!," the invisible_Ghost_Fakeshark shouted at Shield Maiden, amplified by the suit, hoping she'd think it was Phil challenging her. "You think yourself mighty? I was the top predator of the oceans for a million years before your people even learned to rub two sticks together! Fight me, or would you rather pick on children?"

"Sorry," Ghost subvocalized via the comms to Phil. "But you got this, go get her!"

I'm going to Provoke Shield Maiden, which is a roll +Superior. I want her to ignore everyone and everything and just focus on Wereshark.

[roll0]

Just a normal hit. Shield Maiden can 1) stumble, 2) err, or 3) overreact, her choice. She could even do what I want, too, if she feels like it. :smallbiggrin:

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Normal

Wereshark could smell their fear. Somewhere, his primitive mind was excited about that. It reveled in the new screams of the hostages. The feeling was dangerous, and Phil instantly reined back the monster when he saw the panicked faces of Amelia and Sam. He knew how the hostages would react to him, that was normal. But now, even his team thought he was going to barrel through them? He was only trying to scare Shield Maiden, get her to flee the scene and leave everyone alone. He hadn't meant to do something like this. They looked like they were about to defend themselves from...Wereshark? A sullen anger pricked at him, but was quickly turned aside by guilt at the thought of endangering his friends.

Phil suddenly felt something land on his shoulders, but his body didn't even buckle from the impact. He couldn't see behind him easily, but his nose instantly told him it was Ghost on his back.

"Easy buddy, just your friendly neighborhood Ghost."

Embarrassment burned at him. Did they think he was out of control already? It shouldn't have come as too much of a surprise, the way he lunged at Shield Maiden.

"Grrrr, I am the Wanton Wereshark!," Ghost said from his shoulders. "You think yourself mighty? I was the top predator of the oceans for a million years before your people even learned to rub two sticks together! Fight me, or would you rather pick on children?"

...Phil almost burst out laughing. He knew what Ghost was trying to do now, it was a maneuver they'd done before on Fishery Row. Get the bad guys to focus on the big shark man and not anyone significantly more squishy. Thankfully, his new body couldn't smile, and all that came out were a few wheezes that would hopefully be mistaken for strange animal noises.

Phil grunted to Parvathy in acknowledgment, unwilling to say anything that would break Ghost's façade. Instead, he dropped down on his fours and bounded past the pair of teammates in his way. He could see Dynamis launching himself into the Shield Maiden, and moved to tackle her with his considerable bulk. Once the enemy was pinned, this would all hopefully be over.

OOC: Directly engage threat (I'm not sure what my 'opportunity' amounts to, is it a +1?) [roll0]

EDIT: If I do not have that +1, I'll choose to take something from Shield Maiden (her mobility). If I do have that +1, I'll also continue to impress, surprise, or frighten her.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.

As Phil thundered past Amelia's glowing tower shield, Sam did a little fist pump. Then he saw Shield Maiden brace, and bring her own shield up. He couldn't let her prolong this confrontation, two trams were in jeopardy and he was sure that the press would blame it all on them.

"Ah hell no!" He rolled up, and vaulted the intervening space to SHield Maiden, crouched low, and brought his lead leg torquing into the back of her knee, crumpling her base, which would put her off balance for Phil's tackle.

As his grey skinned friend threw himself at his target, Sam ducked, but felt the sand paper like hide of Wereshark snag his hood.

"Whew! Close" he whispered to himself.

Spending a Team to support Wereshark's Directly Engage, it's now a 10! Way to go bud! :)

[Razade]

In all the chaos Shield Maiden goes down hard from your combined and well executed assault, her extra shield being ripped away at the last moment before Wereshark barrels into her amid a flurry of rather racy expletives even too extreme for your young ears. With a solid thud the warrior lands flat on her back with enough force for the ground beneath to tremble. All seems calm, despite the warrior's flailing and cursing, until a large chunk of asphalt slams into Wereshark from the fallen tram.

"Get outta here you monster!" a civilian shouts, a few more brave or stupid people joining in as they hurl more trash and debris into the fray. "Yeah! You better run, Freedom's gonna take you out! She's a real hero!" another shouts. Meanwhile the rest of the civilians are in a panic, pouring from the trams in a steady stream and into the plaza. What was a fairly controlled space is now utter chaos with panicked normals trying to figure out the best way out of the situation which sadly places them directly in the line of fire. This is complicated all the more as the familiar sound of several drones fill the air with the letters KFEX, the local news station, emblazoned on their sides. This mess is being broadcast live!

In the confusion Shield Maiden has managed to sit up, her string of insults quickly turning to laughter. "Foolish children! I am stronger now than I have ever been! Witness the gifts Thor has given me!" The air begins to charge with electricity, the shields strewn about the battlefield beginning a powerful revving noise. You're not sure what's about to happen but it's probably not good as Shield Maiden's armor begins to glow a cherry red as licks of static electricity begin to lance off of her. What ever is about to happen is probably not going to be good and there's a lot of collateral around. To add to the problem, you're being broadcast to the wider city audience. What do you do?

Shield Maiden was incenced by your words, gain Influence over her. Things are looking dicey with all the people running around and Shield Maiden seeming about to do something crazy. What do you do?
The civilians are trying to tell you that you're not a hero, just a monster. If you accept their words lower Savior by 1, increase Freak by 1. Or roll to reject
You're at the center of what ever is about to happen, what do you do?
You're close enough to know something bad's about to go down and there's a lot of people swarming around. What do you do?
You're near enough to some people to save. You're also familiar with these drones enough to do something about them if you wanted. What do you do?
Out of the frying pan, into the fire. The whole place has gone crazy and you're still in the middle of it. What do you do?
The civilians are telling you who you are. A warrior who fights monsters. If you accept their words lower Mundane by 1, increase Savior 1. Or roll to reject

[Merilan]

Freedom
Conditions: Angry

The buzzing of the drones almost fell on deaf ears in the midst of the chaos, but Freedom knew that this battle could already have more dire consequences down the line. They had to step up to the plate once more, and it was the people that she was most focused on. Emotions were running extremely high, and people weren't necessarily doing what's best for themselves, or for their fellow neighbours. She frowned, something in her feeling righteously angry that they would look on Wereshark and his efforts with such disdain -- there was no difference in the two of them, but these people wouldn't hear it. They're too focused on outwards appearances. How could they?!

She drew the ofuda out from her sleeves and concentrated, the mandala of the Hakari once more shimmering beneath her feet as the ley traces emanate where they may run. "<Come to me, spirits of protection! The maiden of spirits beckons you forth!>" she proclaims in Japanese.

With as careful control as she can, knowing that she isn't the most talented compared to Justice, she erects a shimmering red barrier around the plaza -- enough to hedge out the citizens that are trying to enter, and at the same time keeping whatever destruction Shield Maiden's got in mind in.

I accept the citizens' words.

I'm unleashing my powers to create a barrier that will prevent the citizens from entering our battlefield, reshaping our environment. [roll0] I'm going to mark Angry since Freedom feels quite upset that the citizens are shaming Wereshark.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty (-2 provoke/assess)

Thanks to Sam's timely intervention, Shield Maiden was down, shrieking curses at them as she fell. Philip knew how to swear in three languages, but this was a bit extreme even for him. The fight was probably over now that they had her down, and Phil let out a relieved sigh and gave Sam a grateful nod. No one had been seriously hurt, and nothing had been irreparably broken. All in all, it was a rare accomplishment. The feeling of accomplishment quickly vanished as a large rock smacked into his back. He wasn't immune to pain, and Wereshark growled as he half-turned his body to get a glance behind him. One beady, black eye focused on the crowd just as another piece of debris bounced off his hide. They were shouting at him, angry at him. They thought he was just another villain, and they reacted like they always did. Like they always would. Wereshark raised an arm to defend himself from the assault even as Phil felt his heart sink into his stomach. He couldn't even argue with them, he was a monster. He wasn't like Freedom, who's first instinct had been to save the hostages. Instead, he had come barging out of the sewers like he was going to eat someone. What had he expected?

Phil tried to ignore the sharp pain as the rocks struck him and turned his attention back to Shield Maiden. This couldn't be wrapped up until the culprit was in jail. He was surprised to find that she was...happy? Wereshark could feel the electrical current run through her before the air around him started crackling. His skin was buzzing with the strangest feeling as it warned him of the danger. It was somewhere...not from Shield Maiden. From her suit? He glanced about him again as the area buzzed with electricity. The shields as well?

Freedom was saying...something. Probably in Japanese. A blood red barrier started rising up around them, and the pelting of rocks mercifully stopped as soon as it had begun. She was definitely more of a hero than he was. She had the ability to save so many people, what could he do? Phil glanced down at the buzzing in Shield Maiden's armor, and a thought struck him.

"Destroy her shields!" Wereshark roared as he dove on Shield Maiden again. They could call him a monster all they wanted, but no one was hurting his friends.

OOC: Rolling to defend my allies from her armor by enveloping it. [roll0]
EDIT: Going to use my success to add a team to the pool. The guilty condition was gained from accepting the citizen's label shift, but Freak was already maxed.

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis
Conditions: None

Dynamis, grinning ear to ear as Shield Maiden goes down under Seven Stars' combined assault, feels that smile start fading as people start chucking things at his friend and teammate. He's about to start yelling at the *******s when Shield Maiden starts laughing. As Freedom's barrier goes up and Shield Maiden goes down again under a giant pile of shark, Archangel training has Dynamis moving to do exactly what Wereshark is telling him to. A kick sends the shield near him flipping through the air to land atop its mate, and a street sign already knocked over by the tram gets ripped free of the ground to serve as a makeshift weapon.

"Hey, Reaver! Watch this and tell me how my form is!" Dynamis calls out, before leaping almost to the top of Freedom's barrier, his wings flaring into life at the peak of his jump. Their push and gravity combined drive him hurtling towards the ground in a dive that would make any Final Fantasy dragoon proud, aiming his street-sign spear to drive through the humming shields.


Rolling to Unleash My Powers and reshape the environment by destroying the shields.
[roll0]

[CoreBrute23]

Socket was glad Freedom and placed a barrier to protect the civilians, (and more importantly, stop them from throwing things at Phil), so he could focus on the threat at hand.

He turned to the shield that lay near Freedom and him in the Tram. He waddled towards it as fast as he could, and grabbed it with both hands, gritting through the electricity. Wires popped out of his wrists, looking for somewhere to plug in. Hopefully, he could drain the shield of it's power, if not gain control of it.

Seems like Unleash Power to me to render the second shield inert. [roll0]

Wow, we are doing really well with these rolls. :smallbiggrin:

[herodofcows]

Reaver braces for a blow that doesn't come, even as Shade goes zipping out from behind her shield to set up Wereshark. She fights down equal parts annoyance and amusement at the controlled chaos that comes with fighting as a team, grinning despite herself.

And then the world goes electric. Shield-Maiden is laughing. Bystanders are yelling. Amelia feels a clench in her gut, her vision going a little red, tiny little fragments of the God-King's presence eating away at her brain like electric spiders . . .

But her team. Her f***ing team.

They spring into action like a well-oiled machine, protecting bystanders and suppressing the villain's charging power. Within moments, a grave and present danger has become a contained and controlled situation. F*** "the Dregs", f*** "the Worst Generation". They're the Seven f***ing Stars!

"Nice!" she calls out belatedly in response to Dynamis. She blushes slightly beneath her cloak as she registers the delay in her compliment, made all the more embarrassing by its brevity. Was it weird? Did she just make it weird?

Amelia, you friggin' spaz . . .

Shaking these thoughts from her head (to be obsessed over later), Reaver makes a sauntering beeline for the pinned Shield-Maiden. Her Soul Weapon flickers, the tower shield now replaced with an enormous warhammer that she holds casually over her shoulder. She swaggers up to Wereshark and Shield Maiden, grinning from ear to ear.

"Keep her pinned, 'shark, will ya?" she leers, placing her maul gingerly next to Shield Maiden's armored torso and settling into a golfer's stance, "Gotta work on my swing a little."

She purses her lips in mock concentration, eyes glimmering with glee as she stares into Shield Maiden's eyes. THIS was her element, a little souvenir from her days in the gladiatorial pits: violence and showmanship, fear and fury.

"Let's see, relax my grip, choke up, square my shoulders, annnnnd . . ."

BASH. BASH. BASH.

Three careful swings, and Shield Maiden's armor is smashed off of her. Reaver notes with relief that the villainess is wearing clothes under her chainmail. THAT could have been awkward . . .

"Looks like you're two shields and one suit of armor down," she sneers at her foe, "Guess you're just 'the Maiden' now? WHO WANTS A PIECE OF THE MAIDEN HERE?"

Rolled a 12 in the OOC Becomes an 11 since I'm technically unleashing my powers. I shall create an opportunity by smashing her armor wide open, and secondly I shall impress/surprise/frighten the opposition. Reshaping the environment to remove her armor without grievously harming her!

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.

Sam managed to extricate himself from under the Shield Maiden dog pile, he looked around, taking in his environment. It appeared that Freedom had warded the immediate vicinity around Maiden and the Stars, keeping the innocent bystanders safe from any of Maiden's shocking (heh!) new abilities.

He yelled up to her, "Good job Freedom!" As he looked up though, he got a view of the KFEX Media drones, Great, just what they needed more footage of them being pelted with garbage from Fransapporo's citizenry. Thankfully, Sam had been spending time in he photography club studying people, moods, body language, affectations, he wondered if he could apply that same knowledge of how to frame a portrait to the people themselves.

He shadow stepped out of Freedom's ward, and carefully watched the instigator, the man who had thrown the piece of asphalt at Phil. He saw the obvious fear, and anger, but he tried to look deeper, to find something so he could defuse the situation.

After bypassing Freedom's wards due to my shadow step, I am attempting to Pierce the Mask, of the entire crowd if possible, if not just our rock thrower would be fine. I am rolling with Mundane, +3. [roll0]. Hopefully our trend of high rolls keeps up. Annnnd that looks like a miss, and potential.

Roll's probably not important enough for a Team pool, but that'd be up to you guys.

[Razade]

The barrier Freedom erects seems to do the trick. Not only does it stop the random civilian run through the battle zone but it stops the stream of rocks and debrie raining down on Wereshark. It does not, however, stop the shouting which turns very quickly to Shade. "Why're you defending a monster! You're heroes!" one shouts, a rock slamming against the barrier with a wild screech as its deflected. It would be fair to say, as the twin shields are destroyed and the armor is ripped clean off Shield Maiden, that the "villain" has lost. The remaining electrical energies draw inward as the last chunk of armor is ripped clean, a shrieking wail arising from the woman within as her hair goes white and her skin wrinkles, visibly aging the once youthful woman before your very eyes.

Silence once again overtakes the plaza as the crowd, reading the fight over, slowly disperses leaving only a few stragglers behind. The news drones linger only slightly longer before zipping off leaving your band of merry heroes alone with a softly panting Shield Maiden as the distant sounds of police sirens wail ever closer. You all know that the police and their Tonbogiri handlers take a dim view to young heroes at the best of times and considering the collateral from this combat you're likely to take the brunt of what went down here. Some of you could easily slip away in the confusion but that might leave your allies with more on their plate. Sticking around though might be more problematic for Wereshark who is barely viewed as a hero as it is and Tonbogiri isn't likely to miss a lone Wereshark slipping away on foot and what about Socket? Does Tonbogiri even know he exists? Should they if they don't? And what was up with Shield Maiden, that certainly wasn't normal!

You're still invisible and could probably get away, leaving your team to fend for themselves. What would your mentor do in times like this?
You're not out of the woods yet big boy. Tonbogiri certainly doesn't look well on you and as far as they can see...you brutalized a villain. What do you do?
It's the fuzz! Would Gunny be happy if you got arrested?
You tried to get into the protesters head, instead they're trying to get into yours. They're trying to tell you who you are. If you accept, lower Savior by 1, raise Freak by 1 or roll to reject.
Does Tonbogiri even know about you? Do you think it's wise that they might learn about you? What do you do?
You're in the clear if you wanna run. You know Tonbongiri is going to pin this all on Wereshark if you see yourself out. But if you did that, you'd be throwing an ally under the bus. What do you do?
You're a known element to Tonbogiri, maybe you should stick around while your friends leave? But how would the Shrine feel if you got punished for this little scuffle.

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Angry

Freedom was still incensed -- even in anger, she wasn't the type to have outbursts, but to those who know her, it's rather clear with how her eyes narrowed, her lips thinned. She flew straight against the citizen who yelled, and purposefully interposed herself against the rock, letting it hit her -- she rubbed her head against where it bounced off, leaving a bit of a mar.

"Is this the kind of thinking you want to perpetrate?" she challenged aloud, making sure the drones were on her as well. "Monster, villain -- are you about to let someone's appearance cloud your judgement? Look at what he's done for you! He took time and energy and put his life on the line, to protect your fellow citizens from being harmed in the attack. Do you take that for granted?"

She clenched both her fists and continued her tirade. "Where do you think supervillains come from? They aren't birthed from some convenient nest of evil. They're birthed from thoughts like that -- racism, prejudice, xenophobia, hatred -- and if you view me as half the hero you think I am, then I'm not letting that thinking stand."

She knew she'll get in trouble for this -- but letting her opinion on this be known was far more important than maintaining her image, at the moment.

I think it's most accurate to say that I'm supporting Wereshark -- I'm standing up for him, protecting him against those who're calling him a monster. [roll0]

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.

It was odd, maybe the crowd was right, maybe the answer wasn't always in the mask. It separated them from the crowd, elevated them, impartial, impersonal. Sam slipped into the shadows, quickly removing the mask and hoodie, switching back into his civilian clothing, he wandered through the dispersing crowd.

He bumped into the rock-thrower, "Oh hey, sorry man, did you get a look at the Shark? He pulled me out of the tram before he rushed that crazy shield slingin' chick!", he continued on, found a mother carrying her young daughter from the wreckage, helped them up, "Wow, good thing that robot dude was here eh? He deflected that crazy chick's frisbee, and it was coming right for us!" He saw two young kids, crying, he went over consoled them, "Hey guys, it's ok, gotta be brave, like the Shark dude was when he tackled the big bad lady. We'll find your mom, okay?" He continued wandering, leading the two kids, found an elderly man with a cut on his forehead, "Hey there gramps, lets get you to an ambulance, get that cut checked out." He smiled as he supported the old guy's weight, "Could been worse, good thing Freedom's shield protected us from the viking's lightning bolts."

As the Tonbogiri forces started vectoring in on Phil, Sam, the old man, and the two kids distracted them, "Hey guys, these two lost their mom, and the old guy's gonna need that cut looked after. Good thing the Seven Stars got here eh? Coulda been alot worse!"

I am going to accept their Influence, as the Mask itself embodies Freak, I am going to try to support my friends in another manner. I will use Mild Mannered, to attempt to sway the crowd's reaction towards Wereshark, figuring if I can get them behind him, the police, while taking statements may be less hostile towards Phil.

Rolling Mundane, +3. [roll0].

[herodofcows]

Reaver's eyes dart over the angry crowd, considering. Wereshark needs backup, no question, but Socket might be in trouble if the fuzz shows up and gets a good look . . .

"Anybody who can't get in trouble with the law, leave. We'll meet later at the usual place, okay?" she calls to her teammates, standing over Shield Maiden with her maul over her shoulder.

"So, what was that little hissy fit about, granny?" she sneers at Shield Maiden, placing her boot on her stomach, "Bad breakup with your little sewing club?"

Gonna try and pierce the mask on Shield Maiden!

[roll0]

[Mr Sitouh]

As Freedom lectures the crowd and Reaver moves to keep Shield Maiden out of any more trouble, Dynamis offers Wereshark a hand up to his feet, pulling him into the one-armed bro-hug of teenage guys everywhere. "Ignore those idiots, OK? you saved the day there." He looks around at some of the damage from the fight and grimaces a bit. "Man, we're gonna get yelled at, and I didn't break anything major this time," he grouses, before an idea occurs to him. "Hey, let's see if we can't at least get one of these trams back on the tracks, huh? You take one end, I'll get the other."

Moving to one end of the less-damaged of the overturned trams, he sets his footing and finds a grip he's reasonably sure will handle the load about to be put on it. "You ready?" he calls to Wereshark. "Lift on three! One, two, THREE!"

Rolling to Unleash My Powers and right the tram: [roll0]

Mmm, I think I'll have the situation be unstable - maybe we lifted too hard? Perfect opportunity for Wereshark to show he's a good guy by catching it, though! :smallbiggrin:

EDIT: Since Wereshark's not helping, I'll take Insecure - Dynamis is nervous if he's actually helping things or just making more trouble.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty (-2 assess/provoke)

Reaver smacked the armor clean off of Shield Maiden with expert precision, and Phil caught a full glimpse of the woman rapidly age beneath him.

"Eugh." Wereshark shuddered and released his grip on the villain as Reaver took over. That wasn't something he was expecting or wanted to see. A quick image passed through his mind of what he might look like if he ever managed to change back into a human, but Phil shook the thought from his mind. There just wasn't time to worry about it. The Tonbogiri would soon be there, and Wereshark had no fond memories of their encounters. Besides, the day was saved; the sooner he could be gone, the better.

Glancing around, Phil noted with gladness that all of the team was accounted for and unhurt. Ghost was still on his back, and Socket wasn't even scratched from the shield that hit him. Freedom was lecturing the crowd, and he could smell Sam in that throng of people somewhere, even if he couldn't pick him out just yet. Reaver still had Shield Maiden in check and was taunting her viciously while Dynamis had...offered him a hand?

Phil couldn't help but stare at the gesture for a moment before wrapping the lean boy's hand into his own. He was always surprised at how powerful Dynamis was with such a thin body. Dynamis quickly pulled Phil up and into a friendly embrace, his arms wrapping around the shark man as far as they could. It was a nostalgic move all the way back from his time at San Fransapporo High. His team had all rejected the crowd's words, they were all sticking up for him in ways that Phil wasn't entirely sure he deserved. He was just glad that Wereshark couldn't blush, because he was growing mightily embarrassed over all the attention.

At Dynamis' suggestion of moving a tram, Phil finally shook his head. He wasn't sure that flipping a heavily damaged tram back onto the rails would be enough to fix things, but Dynamis' enthusiasm was almost too powerful to ignore. He had run over to the downed vehicle without even waiting for Phil's response.

"No, sorry Dynamis. C'est gentil de ta, things will calm down faster if I weren't here. I'll see you back at the base."

And with that, he made his way back over to the sewer grate and slipped quietly back into the waters running beneath San Fransapporo. Phil wasn't sure if Ghost was going to stick to his shoulder the entire time, but he made sure not to dive just in case.

[CoreBrute23]

Socket stood behind Freedom, offering a much larger presence to her words, with the sun behind him. For those watching, it looked like he mirrored her positions, like an imposing shadow.

"Wereshark is our friend, and he's as much a hero as anyone without a cape can be." Socket said in agreement.

Spending a team point (assuming we still have one, can I get a count on those please GM?) to increase Freedom's roll to a 7.

Socket leaned over and saw the beginning of a bruise on Freedom's forehead from the rock.

"Myorei, you're hurt!" He kneeled down next to her. "I have something for this." He pulled out a band-aid from his person-it has a smiling crescent moon on it.

"You kept everyone safe, the civilians, Wereshark, the rest of us, without trying to hurt Shieldmaiden. " He peeled off the sticky side of the bandaid so he could apply it. "That's really amazing. But you can't let yourself get hurt in our place." He moved to put the band-aid on her forehead, unless she stops him.

"So how about I keep you from getting hurt, so you can stop everyone else from getting hurt?" Socket can't smile, because he doesn't have a mouth, but it's clear he's trying to be comforting from his tone.

I'm gonna try to comfort Freedom. I get +1 because I have influence over her. I'm hoping this triggers my Thermodynamic miracle move When you tell
someone how you see them as exceptional or
unique in a way that others overlook, you can
roll +Freak instead of +Mundane to comfort or
support them.

which would let me roll +Freak. If allowed, I'll be rolling +3. Otherwise, I'm at -1. So, subtract 4 from my roll if my move doesn't trigger.

[roll0]

EDIT: Wow, the hug box is powerful in this game.

[Merilan]

Freedom was about to speak further, but Socket stopped her. She looked at the large, eight-foot yellow robot with somewhat curious, shimmering eyes as he mended her with a band-aid. "Socket..." she whispered, a little more genteel. She closed her eyes for a moment, and took a deep, centering breath. She had meant what she said, but it probably didn't help to rebuff a crowd that was already high on emotions at this point. She needed to keep her cool.

"Thank you, Socket," she answered back as she opened her eyes, smiling. "For protecting me in the battle as well. I know I can count on you to protect me, and the others as well."

I'm gonna clear Angry as a result of Socket's comfort or support someone -- also, Wereshark can also choose an option since Socket's support bumped it up to a 7!

[CoreBrute23]

Socket nodded at her answer.

"Is it ok if I ask, why does protecting people in battle make you happy? Or," He recalls her yelling a moment ago. "Does it not make you happy?" He desperately wanted to learn more, and Freedom was a good teacher.

I think I'll be triggering my team move. When you share a triumphant celebration with someone, ask them what makes them proud or happy about the actions they took, and write down a new Lesson based on it. I think my questions asks that, or close enough.

I'll write a lesson based on your response.

[LoP]

Ghost wanted to interrogate Shield Maiden, ask why she was running around causing trouble alone, but to do so would require her revealing herself with Tonbogiri milling around.

Ugh, Tonbogiri. Parvathy had a deep-seated loathing for Tonbogiri, a distrust she couldn't quite place; in fact, she had a now instinctual aversion to almost all organized law enforcement, or even other superhero groups that weren't the Seven Stars. No doubt her paranoia was a part of Tisiphone's botched neural imprint on her, and exacerbated by Kyrios' constant admonition to trust no one.

So as the fight wound down, and the Seven Stars very rapidly started getting surrounded by authorities, her training screamed at her to fade out, to run, or to join the crowds and melt away. A deeper part of Parvathy, however, forced her to stay with her friends; cutting and running was cowardly and sneaky, wasn't it?
Ghost's bones burned, urging her to run; she forced herself to stay. Invisible, silent, crouched on Wereshark's shoulder like a gargoyle, but still, she stayed.

After what seemed like an eternity, Wereshark lumbered away, like a moving mountain of apex predator.

When they were finally away from prying ears and obnoxious people, Ghost finally let herself relax. She felt mostly like her normal cocky self. She slipped off Wereshark's shoulder as they entered the water; her suit was self-contained and could, among many other things, act as an overly engineered deep diving suit. There was no way she'd be able to keep up with Wereshark underwater, even with her suit's turbine modifications, but at the even pace they took heading back to base they swam along together just fine.

The enveloping water felt nice, and she felt better suited hanging around just Wereshark then with the entire team AND Tonbogiri. She relaxed even more.

"You kicked butt back there," Ghost said, punching Wereshark's arm playfully. "I can't imagine what was going on in Shield Maiden's head when you bumrushed her. All of you guys rocked the house... hope I was able to carry my own weight."


Sorry guys, I can't post more than maybe once a day during the week, and my weekends are always pretty busy. Rogue One viewing party! I am SO hungover...

Anyway, I'm sharing a triumphant swim with Wereshark. Wereshark, was Ghost an effective team-mate? Either answer is fine, both work towards my evil master plan.

[Merilan]

Freedom was quiet for a moment, feeling a cold breeze push against her for a moment. Just an errant, faint breeze, but one that reminded her of her portent nonetheless. The ache that her wings granted her was a reminder of that, and she tried to keep the smile up against Socket.

"Socket, I..." A pause. "I do it because it's my fate. My destiny." Another pause, as she thought about how to relate it to the robot, and then said, "Like your... core programming? I'm not an expert on machines, but I heard Shade and Ghost talking about it -- how you're created with a purpose in mind. That's my purpose in life. Does that... make sense?"

She wondered if the robot would pick up that she dodged the question of happiness, but she chose to not dwell on that for too long.

I think that in my previous pose, I shared a triumphant celebration with Socket and told him that I viewed him as an equal -- I'll mark potential if that's okay?

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Normal

As Wereshark slipped into the water, he felt Ghost finally roll off of his shoulders. He could hear some modification in her suit activate, and soon they were swimming along in the quiet stream of the San Fransapporo Waste Management system. Wereshark's head bobbed from side to side as his tail drove him forward at a steady pace, and Ghost swam beside him almost leisurely. He had no idea why she wanted to swim through the city's waste, but he wasn't going to eschew the company.

"You kicked butt back there," Ghost said, punching Wereshark's arm playfully. She didn't even fall behind in her pace beside him at the maneuver. "I can't imagine what was going on in Shield Maiden's head when you bumrushed her. All of you guys rocked the house... hope I was able to carry my own weight."

"Pretty sure I was the one carrying your weight." He teased gruffly. "How long were you planning on staying up there?"

Phil was sure she would shoot back with something clever; Ghost was always more than a couple steps ahead of him. But her question tonight was...different from her usual business-like demeanor. He wasn't exactly sure what to make of it. Even before he had changed, empathy wasn't one of his strong suits.

"Honestly, I thought you did fine. You got into Shield's head, and made her focus on me. It's a good strategy, like we used to do back on Fishery Row. Gets less people hurt. You've always been more of a thinker than me anyways. It would've been better if I'd started with that rather than...Besides, I don't think Shield was gonna last long enough to see how you really perform."

"And did you see the way Amelia acted when I charged? And Sam...I saw it. They both thought I was gonna flatten them."

Phil trailed off as they continued to swim along at a leisurely pace. If one could stand the smell and the occasional floating debris, the waters down below San Fransapporo weren't entirely bad. A shower was probably still wise after dipping in them though.

"What I'm trying to say is, I admire the way you're always in complete control."

[Razade]

Shade


The crowd that remains does seem to pick up on our narrative, a few even agreeing with you on their own without much cajoling. You're also far enough out by the time your sweep is done to notice the police cruiser with SFSPD emblazoned on the side come to a halt not too far away. Out steps a familiar figure, not Brittany Bishop as you'd probably hope, but one of her close compatriots whom you met during the Energizer attack on Hexxen. A one High Secretary Olivia Ava, a tall leggy number who isn't afraid to crack a few heads and show a little leg. She's not alone either, a few police officers scrambling out of the car after her. Does this make you more or less nervous?

You met the High Secretary shortly after everything went down with Energizer. How did that go? What do you do now that you see its her on the scene?


Dynamis, Freedom, Socket, Reaver


The fight is completely out of Shield Maiden, this is easy to tell as you continue to stick near her. The boot to her stomach doesn't even earn much more than a groan, milky eyes staring blankly up at you. Shield Maiden wasn't a spring chicken even when she started but this close up Reaver, it looks as if she's aged at least forty years in the span of maybe ten minutes and the process only seemed to stop when you got her most of the way out of her armor which now lays strewn about the battlefield in badly mangled chunks. That was your doing of course.

The tram doesn't take make for you to move, Dynamis, and while it probably won't avert the chewing out you're worried about you win points with some of the people that are still milling about to see what the final word is. Wereshark left you though, how does that make you feel? The fuzz is finally here Socket and Freedom though it seems they're still a little delayed talking to stragglers and others hanging around. You could still get out of here in time if that's what you want to do. That window is closing though and swiftly as High Secretary Oliva Ava spots you and starts to make a beeline for your group.

The sirens have stopped and you can already hear the police and their handlers coming. What do you do?
You and Socket keep it up, good stuff
You and Freedom keep it up. Good stuff.
You've started cleaning up, you're a good samaritan. The fuzz is finally here, is it time to try and skip out or are you sticking around? What do you do?


Ghost, Wereshark

The swim back to base is uninterrupted, providing plenty of time to chat and take it easy. Once you reach your base, it's empty as you'd expect with the whole team out. What does your base look like? Is it large enough for you all to have a place to stay if you need to? How is it laid out?

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.

The color drained from his face as he recognized High Secretary Ava when she exited the car. Well, he knew it was her when he saw her shapely leg swing out of the vehicle, he just pushed that thought from his head! Oh! Crap! He thought to himself, he remembered the last time the Stars had encountered the High Secretary;


HexxenTek's grand atrium was a ruin of shattered glass, twisted steel, and sporadic urban sculptures, Energizer hovered above them, his Tac-Net program running, his drone army feeding him a real time tactical feed, analyzing his opponents each and every move. In fact, sense he got the program up and running, the Stars hadn't been able to hit him with the same move twice, they had to be unpredictable in their tactics.

Socket had informed Shade about the upload, but even Dr. Mechano's construct couldn't determine the location of the private server that the physio-facial recognition data, and tactical analysis was being stored. However, during the clean up, Shade had come across the High Secretary executing a final download. What was disconcerting was the fact that the Britt had EMP'd the entire building to assist the Stars in shutting down Energizer's Tac-Net. The High Secretary *shouldn't* have been able to execute a dump file and retrieve data from HexxenTek's systems, because they should have been fried by the EMP. Sam had never discovered what was on that data dump, but he was convinced it was the Tac-Net data, and that the Secretary was actively working against him and his friends.

"$%*& guys! We got trouble!" he spoke into the comm, "Legs is here, and she looks p!$$ed!" He circled around the crowd, following her, she was hard to read at the best of times, but if he could give his friends any idea as to her current demeanor it would help.

I am going to try to Pierce her Mask, and determine what's her current attitude, towards us, and the situation. Rolling Mundane, +3. [roll0]. Let's see if or improbably high rolls continue to work in our favor.

Lets go with; What do you intend to do?

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal

Freedom gave Socket another pat, but then Shade made mention of the appearance of -- uh, 'Legs'. That was the woman he suspected of sabotage or infiltration during the Hexxen Tek attack... what was she doing here? This whole battle still gave her an uneasiness she couldn't shake off. She couldn't leave now. "I need to check something first," she told Socket, then floated over to where Shield Maiden lay at the moment.

This was strange. What power was Shield Maiden wielding, and why had it aged her so rapidly? Where were her flunkies, during the attack?

She closed her eyes as she floated nearby, and tried to pry into her spirit -- get a sense of what happened to her, what influences or forces she dabbled or made a dark deal with. Perhaps there'll be a clue there, something they can follow up on...

I'm unleashing my powers to extend my spiritual sense. Just what happened to Shield Maiden? [roll0]

[herodofcows]

Reaver feels a swell of relief as Freedom makes her way over to check on Shield Maiden. Reaver is . . .

Karnifel, Hexxen . . . A lot better at breaking things than fixing them, aren't you?

"Swear to god, I didn't even touch her," she says as Freedom takes over, stepping aside, "One minute she was the right side of forty, the next . . . blegh."

She stands aside and and watches Freedom take a moment to do her thing.

"Guess we're lucky we're never gonna look like that, huh? Gonna leave some pretty corpses!" she exclaims with brittle cheer, compelled by some demon of snark.

Amelia, SHUT UP!

She spies Dynamis looking a little lost, his hand braced on one of the trams. A pang of sympathy goes through her as she sees Wereshark retreat from the ask for assistance, even as the emergency workers start filtering through.

Oh gods, Amelia, don't do it, don't try to comfort him, you're gonna make it worse, don't don't donnnnn't . . .

"Be right back, okay?"

She strides over to Dynamis, dismissing her weapon and parsing through her word choice even as Sam calls out his warning.

"Her? Sonova . . . look, stall her, will you? Be charming, I know you've got it in you somewhere! Hey! D!"

She punches him on the shoulder in what she imagines is a friendly and not-at-all-awkward manner.

"Uh . . . don't trip about 'shark, all right? Dude just took a cinderblock and a lot of hate. He's gonna need a moment, you know? Nothing to do with you or anything you said."

Gonna try to comfort and support Dynamis, with the goal of making him lose the insecurity. On a miss, I'm gonna say that Reaver's gonna start to feel a little bit like she's a social wrecking ball and become Guilty.

[roll0]

[CoreBrute23]

Socket stood still as he took in what Freedom said, his electrical circuits going into overdrive. After Freedom left, he started talking aloud.

"I have a purpose in life..." He wondered. "I was created with a purpose..." He suddenly frowned.

"But what is my purpose?"

At that moment, Shade's yelling shook him out of his repose. He looked over to where the other heroes stood-he didn't want to be on his own if High Secretary Legs was here. She scared him.

Alright, I'm taking from Freedom's statement the following lesson:

I am created with a purpose in life, that I must fulfill.

Which is a great thing to teach someone who was built by a supervillain. :smallbiggrin:

[Mr Sitouh]

She punches him on the shoulder in what she imagines is a friendly and not-at-all-awkward manner.

"Uh . . . don't trip about 'shark, all right? Dude just took a cinderblock and a lot of hate. He's gonna need a moment, you know? Nothing to do with you or anything you said."

"Yeah, I know - best he's out of here before we have to deal with the Secretary here anyway, right?" Dynamis says, flashing Reaver a smile that's more grimace than intended. He watches the cops moving to take control of the scene, his posture straightening a bit. "Well. I'll go give her the debrief for what went down here, then."

And with that, he's heading for High Secretary Ava, his stride unconsciously falling into military step as he gets his game face on. "Glad you're here, ma'am," he says crisply as he comes close enough to not have to shout. "The situation's contained, but Shield Maiden did a fair amount of damage to the area before we arrived on the scene, and her shields and armor seem to have gotten some upgrades you'll want the techies looking at ASAP." He manages to keep himself from saluting, but just barely.

[Razade]

Shade


High Secretary Ava's current mode could easily be summed up as "furious", the tall woman visibly seething and its clear from how every single officer with her gives her a wide breadth that this isn't a sudden shift in mood. She doesn't recognize you of course, being out of your superhero outfit but you are just a civilian so it's not surprising when one of the officers approach you. "Excuse me sir, I'm afraid this is an active crime scene. We have a medical team on the way if you're injured. If you're not we'd ask that you move along in case the situation declines."

The police officer is asking you to leave the area. For your saftey of course. There's at least five of them in the area with more on the way and of course Ava is here. You could stick around but that will look totally suspicious. What do you do?

Freedom


Your spiritual sense opens upon a stark, static background. The vibrancy of life that was Shield Maiden is near the end of its road and the glaring white noise takes physical shape like a thousand spiderwebs stretched taut over Shield Maiden's soul. Where there are spiderwebs, there are spiders. Hundreds, thousands, millions pour from the webbing to form a massive black form darker than a moonless night and then it attacks.

Roll to take a Powerful Blow. If you fail by 7-9 please mark "Infected Spirit" on your sheet instead of taking one of the options for the move. If you fail by a 10 mark a condition and mark "Infected Spirit" on your sheet. I'll PM you if this happens.


Socket


Indeed. What is your purpose? Freedom's got her spirit vision going and the rest of the troop seem to be dispersing. Dynamis is moving to engage Ava, he might need some backup which a friendly face like yours with Tonbogiri might provide. Reaver is still around and while Shield Maiden hasn't moved much she might still have one last thing up her sleeve.

What do you do?


Reaver


Well that didn't go well. It seems Freedom is doing something with Shield Maiden and Socket is close at hand. Dynamis has gone to take care of Ava and...wait was that Sam in the crowd? Not Shade, that's when he's got the mask on. This is Sam. And it looks like a few of the cops are moving in on him. He might need your help. Then again, Dynamis needed your help too and how did that go?

What do you do?


Dynamis

Ava looks up from one of the discarded piles of rubble and shield as you approach, the sour expression somehow even more ugly on what would otherwise be a pretty face. "Dynamis." Her tone is cool and familiar but all together unfriendly as she regards you. "Thank you for your suggestion. Might I ask who authorized you to engage Shield Maiden? From the looks of it you and your little band of misfits have cost the city a good deal of money in damages." she continues crispy, motioning to one of the officers nearby to the pile as she turns to address you fully. "I want all of your friends cleared out of here immediately. If I so much as smell one of you in a five block radius in the next hour I will be taking you in for questioning. You however will stay and give your report."

Uh oh, you're in for it now. She's saying that you made the situation worse, using her influence to tell you who you are. A misfit and a troublemaker. If you accept, lower your Saviour by 1, increase your Mundane by 1. Otherwise roll to reject her Influence.

[CoreBrute23]

Since Reaver and Freedom were close to Shield Maiden, and thus each other, he moved towards these two (also Legs still scared him). He could tell Freedom was fixated on something involving Shieldmaiden. Socket turned to look at Reaver.

"So what should we do now?" He asked Reaver.

Socket could handle Dynamis while you go after Sam if you want. Socket doesn't know Sam is Shade, so he wouldn't suggest it, but he would do it to help out.

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis' hands clench into fists as his teammates' efforts are so casually disregarded. "We came, we saw, we stopped the bad guy from wrecking the square. End of report," he snaps.

With that, he launches himself skyward, wings flashing to life, partially for an extra boost, but mostly to blow leaves and dust in the Secretary's face. As he glides away, he calls over the comm to the others, >>Get out of there, she's not gonna listen to us, so let her handle the rest of the mess. See you at base.<<

Taking Angry as the result of my failed 'reject influence' roll.

[herodofcows]

Reaver watches Dynamis leave with a growing pit in her stomach. That grimace . . . ugh, she'd said the wrong thing, again. She'd screwed up, again. Her palms itch with the desire to do something to assuage the feeling in her stomach, but the emergency workers are taking over and she doesn't know what to do . . .

"So what should we do now?"

Socket's voice jerks her from her reverie with all the suddenness of a defibrillator. She looks up into his eyes (are they his eyes?) and tries to pull it together.

"Uh . . ." she stutters, shaking her head, "Socket, hey . . . I don't honestly know, man. It looks like everyone is doing their thing. I guess we could-"

And then Dynamis' voice crackles over the comm, mercifully sparing her the need to make any kind of real decision.

"Well, looks like we should probably dip out. Think you can make it back on your own, or do you need me or Freedom to walk with you just in case?

She turns back towards Myorei, gesturing for Socket to follow.

"Freedom? You coming with? . . . Freedom?"

[Merilan]

Freedom shook her head at Reaver when she tried to assert that she did nothing -- she smiled gently and said, "I know. I just think there's something else going on here..." as she went and entered her spiritual focus, closing her eyes and tuning herself out of the material world for a moment.

She stood still for a moment, her sleeved arms spread to either side of her. It was faint, but a bit of the spiritual energy seeped out of the glowing emanations of her crystalline wings as she did so... ...

... and then she saw it. And it saw her.

W-what? What is this... pressure?

The shrine maiden started to flail as she made choking noises, and dropped to her knees almost instantly -- she held her hands to her chest and clutched it, gasping.

No, go away-- get away from me... spirit, begone!

The spirit spiders began to overwhelm her senses, and she struggled and grappled at some spiritual thread that wasn't visible to the naked eye. She had to retreat, sever the channeling link, retain some semblance of her own soul's form. Finally, she did so, but it wasn't without damage -- she grasped at her chest harder, her eyes nearly rolling over as her face paled further.

The light of day was starting to come back to her eyes, glassy and faraway; she was sweating, like she'd just been elsewhere and distant.

"Her spirit is..." she rasped, "Some foul spider-like creature has taken hold of her spirit. It has drained away all vibrancy from her life... but what is it...?" She switched over to Japanese, mumbling despondently as she wrapped her arms around herself, "<If only I were a better shrine maiden... like Hiryou... sister...>"

Freedom is feeling Hopeless about how poor her own spiritual channeling skills are, especially compared to her sister's, and over the bleak vision she'd just been exposed into.

[CoreBrute23]

"Myorei!" Socket immediately picked up Freedom, pulling her away from Shield Maiden. His huge form made it look like he was cradling her like a child. "You're perspiring at an excessive rate! Do you want water?" Socket sounded alarmed and turned to Reaver.

"Did you understand what she meant by spirit and spiders?" He looked down at Shield Maiden, who he just realized looked a lot older than on the billboard. "Can you go tell High Secretary Legs? Maybe she can help." The whole time he was unconciously rocking the shrine maiden in his arms.

Socket isn't the best at comforting people on his own, without his move, so this may be awkward. Still, I'm gonna do it anyway! Comfort at -1 (cause influence).

[roll0]

We only have one team in the pool, so we couldn't increase it if we wanted to. So I'll take a potential for my failure as a caregiver/rock-a-bye robot.

[herodofcows]

"Freedom!"

Reaver's stomach drops as she sees Myorei go into a fetal position. Socket is already comforting the shrine maiden, but Reaver stays glued to her side for all that.

"Screw the secretary, we have to get her someplace safe! Let's go!" she snaps at Socket, picking up the pace towards the sewers and gesturing for the robot to follow. As they walk, she half-jogs next to Socket, speaking in a whisper to Myorei as she starts sweating under her cloak for reasons that have nothing to do with the ambient temperature.

"Hey, hey, Myorei, snap out of it, okay? The spider didn't get you, okay? It didn't get you, you're fine, you're going to be fine, okay? You're not like Shield Maiden, your life has plenty of vibrancy. You've got vibrancy coming out your eyes, right? This thing isn't gonna get you down, not you. Okay? Okay?"

Her voice goes up an octave as she continues to cajole, and she clutches Myorei's hand in a death-grip.

Gonna roll likewise to Comfort/Support, taking advantage of that Influence on Freedom. Dice, don't fail me!

[roll0]

All riiiiight, if it's all the same to everyone I'll clear Freedom's Hopeless condition!

[Merilan]

Freedom's sight was clouded still, and she was relying on something akin to a spiritual vision, gazing into spirits in order to help her assert her whereabouts... and it didn't help that Socket was the first one to speak to her -- it was like hearing voices out of nothing, the way she was now, held by nothing. Blackness. "A-ah-- no, please--" she begged, though Reaver's voice cut in, and she settled down slowly.

She grimaced in further pain, and her head thrashed forward. Her wings finally gave way, and shattered into millions of little shards, dropping to the ground and then melting into wispy little spiritual motes. The large scars on her exposed back where they normally protruded were not bloody, fortunately.

"It didn't... get me..." she whispered, trying to line her thoughts up in tune with Reaver's. "Reaver... okay--" she winced as Reaver grasped her hand, but it was pain that let her know she was alive. "Okay."

[CoreBrute23]

Relieved to see Freedom was at least aware of Reaver, Socket sent a message through the coms unit he had installed.

<<Shade, Wereshark, Ghost. We are heading to Starbase. Freedom is suffering some kind of affliction. Magic I think, she talked about spirits and spiders.>>

Socket's been trying to get Starbase going as a location name for our sewer HQ for a little while. Not sure if it's caught on.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.


"Excuse me sir, I'm afraid this is an active crime scene. We have a medical team on the way if you're injured. If you're not we'd ask that you move along in case the situation declines."

"Yea, sure thing dude. You do your thing." Sam shoved his hands in his pockets, and stalked the periphery of the park. Freedom, Amelia, Socket and Dynamis hadn't left yet. He watched, moved through the crowd but stayed behind the barricade. Dynamis started to move towards the Secretary, they exchanged some words and he shot straight up into the afternoon sky. Yeah, she had a real knack for getting under your skin.

Then he watched Freedom collapse, and had to hold himself back from rushing to her side, what the ...! Then he remembered, Shield Maiden had aged rapidly when Amelia and Dynamis had began destroying her stuff. Was her life force tied up in that ...



<<Shade, Wereshark, Ghost. We are heading to Starbase. Freedom is suffering some kind of affliction. Magic I think, she talked about spirits and spiders.>>

Well, $#@^! Ok, Sam thought to himself, Think! Socket would watch her vitals, but the gang really didn't have a clue about magical, spiritual, ju-ju. Thankfully Sam knew someone who did.

<<Keep a close eye on her,>> Sam spoke into his comm, <<I'll see what I can find out about spirit spiders, and meet you back at Shark's pad.>>

With that he took off in the direction of the Golden Phoenix.

[Razade]

Dynamis

You're free from the group, they didn't seem to want to let you in on Freedom's predicament and you've already jetted off, do you have somewhere in mind that you're going? What do you do?


Shade

The officer doesn't harass you further, he's just doing his job and you're complying after all. You hear High Secretary Ava shouting in the background but what over is anyone's guess. Lady's crazy. The Golden Phoenix soon fills your vision. What does it look like? How popular is it, considering the large population of transplants from Asia is it considered a more authentic place or has it opened its doors to a more Western taste? You can already here old Han shouting orders to customers long before you get inside even if it isn't busy.

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis
Conditions: Angry, Insecure

With a tailwind and a good start, Dynamis can make it four, maybe five blocks before he needs to regain altitude. Today, there's a nasty crosswind and he's making sloppy mistakes. He skids to a stop on a rooftop a block and a half away after narrowly avoiding a touchdown in the middle of an intersection, shaking with anger. His helmet retracts as he throws his head back and screams his frustration to the universe at large.

Then, he takes several deep breaths, until if he's still not calm, he's enough calmer to make it back to the dojo without killing himself our someone else. He wants to grab his clothes and bag before making for their base, and he should let Gunny know and his phone's in his bag. Helmet back on, he resumes his trip.

[Razade]

Dynamis
Team Pool (1)

The dojo is just as you left it, considering you haven't actually been gone all that long. Where is the dojo situated in San Fransapporo. What's its clientele like? Describe the place while you go looking for your gear. Your re-arrival hasn't gone unnoticed however and by the time you collect your things, Sensei Ross is approaching. "Sure didn't take long. Still a lot of cleaning up to do, don't think you can get out of it." He flings a polishing rag your way as if to emphasis this. "Outsides need touched up too, if you're not busy."

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis

Aikido of San Fransopporo isn't much to look at from the outside; only the sign distinguishes it from the other buildings in a commercial complex near the edge of Japantown. Exiting from the changing rooms, as Charlie does after slipping back down the rooftop HVAC access and into his shirts, one sees a large room, the majority of the floor covered in tatami-textured mats, the walls a simple white. At the center of the longest wall, a portrait of Morihei Ueishiba, the founder of aikido, hangs, flanked by several scrolls of Japanese calligraphy. One of the shorter walls is lined with racks for the wooden swords, staffs, and knives used in practice; the other has doors leading to the changing rooms, storage, and the dojo offices - a path runs from the door around the back edge and along the access to these, so they can be reached without stepping onto the mats. It's not a particularly fancy dojo - aikido's more inward focus and lack of competition leads to a much smaller interested group than other styles seen as more aggressive or useful for self-defense, which means fewer students and a smaller budget - but there's a mix of ages and skill levels, all working to improve themselves and each other together. It still blows Charlie's mind to compare it to his unarmed combat training back with Archangel, in a very good way.

When Ross-sensei tosses the polishing cloth at him, he snags it from the air. "I know, sensei," he says, bowing respectfully, "but there's some stuff fishy about what just went down that I'm meeting the others to try and figure out. I'll come and finish up here before group class tomorrow, I promise, but I can't stay right now." He picks up the bin of finished bokken and, bowing to O-sensei's portrait, steps up onto the mat to go return them to the racks on the wall.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Condition: Guilty

Reaver laughs out loud as Myorei seems to halfway come to herself. She doesn't let go of her friend's hand, but she seems to loosen up considerably as they finally approach the entry to the sewers.

"Attagirl! See, you're fine. You're fine. Come on, like some gimmicky Viking wannabe was gonna take you down. That's bulls***, right Socket? No way. No way."

Her brain goes into overdrive as they enter the sewers, grasping for anything to keep Myorei talking and not focusing on . . . whatever it was that messed her up this badly.

". . . So, okay, how about this: top three mistakes you'd make if you were gonna go to college. Socket, you can join in too. Go!" she exclaims peremptorily. This is her default game whenever she's hanging out with Myorei and feeling morbid: list three things that would happen (positive or negative) if they weren't fated to die in some way.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Normal.

http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/Zen_Gypsy/Golden%20Phoenix_zpsxbuprzkj.jpg (http://s1084.photobucket.com/user/Zen_Gypsy/media/Golden%20Phoenix_zpsxbuprzkj.jpg.html)

Sam crested the hill that led to the Phoenix, he stopped for a moment, it was still early afternoon the lunch crowd had dispersed, and the evening rush had not yet started. Mei, the young hostess, was out front arranging some freshly cut flowers, when she saw Sam she smiled and waved. Sam, for his part, ducked his head, blushed, and worked his way around to the rear of the restaurant, and came in through the loading dock.

He walked through the back, and towards the kitchen, he saw the old man bent over a wok. He looked around nervously, ensuring that they were alone. "Mr. Han?" He panted, it had been a long run, "I need your help," he paused, "well, a friend does. It's important."

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal

"Language... please..." even halfway stunned and beside herself, it was like muscle memory that Myorei just blurted that out. It was probably good that she did -- she was regaining some semblance of herself, she just appeared very worn, pale and exhausted. Her hands were still at her chest, and they wouldn't budge.

She tried to keep her head from lolling too badly, as they descended down to the sewers from a nearby access point. "I'd-- um, I'd join the theatre club. I can't act." It was clear she hadn't given college much thought -- as someone who just joined high school recently, Myorei was already finding that overwhelming enough. "Why-- does everyone say college is better? I don't understand that..."

[CoreBrute23]

"My 1st mistake would be joining a sorority. I assume mistakes 2 and 3 will only spiral out from there, if television has thought me anything." Socket offered, as they marched to their base.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Condition: Guilty

"Oh! Right, language. Sorry . . ."

Amelia has actually given college a fair bit of thought, as a sort of fantasy in her idle hours. She's not exactly sure WHAT she would study, but the idea of learning something constructive is a nice one.

"Well, the way I figure, college is probably better because you can kinda make your own life, right? No parents, nobody running your life, just . . . wait, Socket, what?"

She interrupts herself, Socket's response finally filtering into her consciousness.

"Uh, Socket, are you . . . uh, have we been misgendering you? I thought, you know, with your name . . . Uh . . ."

Take foot. Insert in mouth.

[CoreBrute23]

If Socket could raise an eyebrow he would.

"I am an android Reaver. I don't have a gender." Socket pauses. "At least I don't think I do. I wouldn't really know what to look for." He glanced down below his stomach, but it was smooth as always. The droid shrugged.

"Socket is Socket."

I just put he in there as a default. You can refer to Socket as whatever gender you like.

[Merilan]

Freedom appeared to have a much more basic question: "What's a sorority?" she blinked a few times

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty

"Oh! All right, cool. Got it . . . But yeah, sororities. Perfect for making mistakes, I bet."

Reaver looks around as they get to the entrance of the sewers, trying to reorient herself amid the labyrinthine maze of pipes and open sewage corridors. How did Wereshark manage? It's so easy to get lost . . .

Freedom's question throws her for a loop for a second.

"Uh, sororities . . . okay, so imagine our team, except we have all of these stupid things we have to do to join and we mostly drink a lot and plan charity stuff and we have to follow a bunch of arbitrary rules. And we have chants and stuff that we have to do. And it's only women."

Reaver's knowledge comes directly from a recent flick starring a curly-haired chubby guy and that one dude from that annoying musical (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4438848/). She also half-remembers a few facts from that one movie about that one law student who dresses in pink a bunch (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0250494/). Ultimately, it's all speculative but imparted with the air of one with vast knowledge.

[Razade]

Dynamis

Your instructor certainly doesn't look the most thrilled but he understands, offering you a bow before moving off to work on the repairs he mentioned. You're otherwise unmolested for the rest of your time in the dojo, it seeming that it was just you and your sensei.

You've got free reign. You don't know where the others are headed because they didn't include you in their text message so you don't know what's going on with your Rival or Love. Let alone them making their way to the sewers.


Ghost and Wereshark

You reach your base without concern however considering you're in the sewers you don't receive the text from the others about them coming or about Freedom's condition.


Shade

The restaurant is thankfully fairly slow in the afternoons which means that while Mr. Han is busy making orders there's enough of a lull currently that he's not going to shout at you for distracting his "very important flow". He looks up from his wok, narrowing his eyes a little. "What's it this time boy, I'm not posting bail money for one of your friends." He slides the wok off the heat, wiping his hands down on an apron that no matter how hard he works always seems to be crisp and clean every time you see it. "Fen! Finish this order." he then points to you then his office. "Well talk inside." He brushes past you into his cluttered office, not even bothering to make sure if one of his numerous daughters takes over or not.

What do you do?


Freedom, Socket, Reaver

You somehow manage to slip away with your wounded comrade, leaving Shield Maiden and the battlefield behind for High Secretary Ava to take over though you do hear her shout after you even as you leave and get a bloc away. Lady's got pipes. Your talk of mid-aught and more recent films however is cut short as even as you get away from one battlefield you find yourself in another. Socket, you're the first to notice a large build up of electrical energy before a blast lances from one of the nearby electronic billboards. You're not the one being targeted however, Freedom is. Considering she's already in a bad way, she probably doesn't need any more problems. Reaver and Freedom, you're the next to notice as the bolt leaps at the latter. What do you do?

You're the only one with the reaction time. You can roll to Defend to protect Freedom or make another other roll you want.
Sorry to keep hammering you bud, roll to take another powerful blow if Socket doesn't get a 7 or above on his Defend roll
You're under attack! Is it the cops? Someone else? Who knows. What do you do?

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis
Conditions: Insecure, Angry

Once the polished bokken are put away, Charlie heads out, making for Starbase as quickly as he can on foot. He does make a stop at the Pizza Patrón closest to the 'superhero entrance' to buy a stack of their ready-to-go pepperoni pizzas - two for him, two for Phil, two for everybody else seems like a reasonable compromise between team unity, appetite, and his available cash, and maybe food will get him calm enough where he's not glancing down every alley hoping for some poor hapless schmuck doing something shady he can beat the tar out of. To distract himself a bit, he sends a text to Gunny - With study group. Will be home before curfew.

He reaches the access to the storm drain that drops down into the base, making sure nobody's watching before he heads down the pipe. Stopping at the lip of the drop down to the base, he skins down to his armor again - he can handle the drop without his wings, he's done it before, but he doesn't want to wreck the pizzas - and, after stowing his shirts and making sure the pizza boxes are secure, steps off the edge.

[CoreBrute23]

"Reaver take Myorei!" Socket immediately turned around and attempted to tossed Freedom to Reaver to catch. He didn't want her to get electrocuted by conduction, just because he was holding her. However, the lumbering android could not outpace lightning.

[roll0]

What's that? Is that the smell of potential? It must be Christmas!

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Condition: Guilty

"What the- 'ODSBODKINS, SIR!"

The Karnifel-ism blurts from Reaver's lips as Socket flings Myorei towards her. Fueled entirely by adrenaline, she snatches her friend from the air with one hand and brings her securely to the ground. Her other summons up her Soul Arm in the form of an enormous tower shield, against which the lightning crackles ineffectually.

"Socket, check the billboard!" she barks over her shoulder before turning back to Freedom, "Freedom, honey, I can't reach my communicator. I need you to get yours and call for help! Whatever was powering Shield Maiden is back and still after us!"

This latter declaration is more of a guess, but it's one Reaver feels gut-sure about. Lightning, after all, does not strike the same place twice unless someone is guiding the bolt.

[Merilan]

Myorei let out a yelp of surprise as Socket suddenly tossed her, and Reaver took hold of her; a moment later, Reaver's tower shield covered the both of them, and a deafening clash of thunder struck against the surface upon which they hid behind. "What was... what was that..." she murmured, starting to become anxious.

"Y-yes," she answered Reaver a bit plainly, reaching to her ear and murmuring:

<<W-Wereshark, Shade, Ghost, Dynamis, are you there? We're in the-- the sewers under attack, we think whatever possessed Shield Maiden's still at large, be careful-- it can control elec-- electricity.>>

She tried to regulate her breathing, putting a hand to her forehead -- she couldn't manifest her wings or contribute much to the battle at the moment, and the thought of reaching out with her spiritual senses positively terrified her. No, she needed to-- she needed to think. Think, Myorei, think!

I'm going to assess the situation. Step back, think back on what she knows, piece the clues together... [roll0]

10! So two questions:

What can I use here to expose our enemy?
and
How can we best end this?

[Razade]

Dynamis

The sewers are as you remember them. Fetid, damp and unseasonably cool. The number of weather controlling Meta-Humans that make San Fransapporo their home has made the waters in the sewers thankfully low but nothing can change the fact that you're in an abandoned waste disposal system that once accommodated a burgeoning metropolis. Your entrance into the sewers is a well known once, graffiti and other gang signs spill fairly far into the culvert entrance before it starts to branch into the sewer proper and the architecture is bended and warped, carrying voices possibly even for miles in the labyrinth dwelling under the surface of the city. So it's no surprise that as you enter the sewers proper that you're greeted with a few loud cries from deeper within and what sounds like the sounds of a struggle.

You know the way to the base. Maybe you could beat your friends there and set up your pizza party? Then again, you're not the only one who makes the Sewers home and a lot of those other people are generally not here because it's their first choice. You're also alone. But someone might be in trouble. What do you do?


Socket, Freedom Reaver

The blast strikes you, Socket, full on in the chest before arching towards Freedom though before it hits Reaver's shield expands over your downed companion as the lightning fizzles off its surface. It's like being struck by a tank going full speed and while your body is durable the lightning lances through your neural connections. Further down more billboards and electronics start to go haywire displaying Shield Maiden's sign along with various other symbols and just garbaled information. Civilians also seem to be targeted as cellphones start to ring, some even start to smoke and fizzle in people's pockets. Your communicator only returns static, no backup is coming.

Roll to take a Powerful Blow. If you roll a 7-9 pick one off that list. If you roll a 10+ take one of the following from the Newborn Regeneration List.
● Forget all your lessons
● Lose an important memory of a teammate; they lose Influence over you
● Swap an ability with another one from the Newborn playbook

The worst of the pain from the poison has run its course. Keep Infected Spirit and it's penalty.

Your Answers

Your enemy is clearly doing something with the Billboards, getting away from them might draw them out

Get somewhere off the streets or at least away from the center of town

You defended your teammate! Now what do you do?

[CoreBrute23]

Socket's body convulsed violently as the electricity coursed through his circuits. As he did so, his mind began to reboot to an earlier state...

"Come on Freedom, it's really fun." Socket said eagerly, gently dragging Freedom by the hand.

"Socket, internet cafe's aren't really my scene. I should really be back at the temple." She looked backwards wistfully, but Socket would have none of that.

"Come onnnnnnn Freedom. These people are super friendly. They got excited when I told them I was bringing a superhero. Speaking of which-"

"No capes Socket. We've been over this." However they'd reached the cafe, and the door opened. A tall man with gangly legs and rubbery skin waved at them.

"Hey, there's my bro bot!" He fist bumped the large android, before turning to Freedom. "And the priestess herself-it's an honor. Your parents saved my uncle once. Please come in, make yourself comfortable."

Inside the cafe was all manner of mutations, from cosmetic, to almost unrecognizable as human. There were some stares from those around, and Freedom seemed a little nervous.

"E-excuse me." A small kid, about 10 you'd say, with an anteaster's snout was pulling at Freedom's sleeve. "Sorry, but I just had to say..." the little tyke gulped nervously.

'Your wings are really pretty." The little mutant then ran off blushing. Socket looked back at the surprised priestess.

"They are really pretty Freedom." Freedom looked back at him, and smiled.

"Please. Call me Myorei."

Suddenly, as the memory flashed through Socket's mind, it vanished entirely, as the file became corrupted.

Socket's eyes flashing haphazardly, unaware of what he just lost.

"Reaver, take Freedom to Starbase. I'll check the billboards. Don't wait for me." He pointed up at the bilboard and his cables erupted out, in an attempt to plug into the billboards to discover the cause of it's malfunction.

I've lost an important memory with Freedom. She has no influence over me anymore.

Gonna try and do something about those cables. Unleash! [roll0]

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Condition: Guilty

Reaver briefly considers disobeying Socket's order. "No, surely not!" or "I won't leave you!" or "We stand together, through thick and thin!": all heroic phrases that run through her head and would feel halfway appropriate for the situation.

"I'll be back with help!" she calls as she hustles Myorei into the tunnel.

Less than noble? Perhaps, but Freedom needs help. Socket can take care of itself. And . . . really, the uncomfortable reality is that she's all right with leaving precisely because Socket IS an "it".

"Ghost! Wereshark!" she calls into the echoing sewers as she half-carries, half-drags Freedom inside, "Socket needs help and our comms are fried! HELP!"

[Merilan]

Freedom's eyes widen, watching helplessly when Socket convulsed with electricity and collapsed. "Socket!!"

She grimaced and grit her teeth, even as she felt the spiritual poison start to flow through her system and make her head clearer. She looked to Reaver as the robot launched its cables and hooked himself up to the billboard. "We are sitting ducks as long as we expose ourselves out here -- our enemy seems capable of manipulating electrical currents, and perhaps light as well. The sewers should provide us with some cover."

She turned her head to Socket, biting her lip. "As soon as you're done, head to Starbase, Socket. Keep yourself safe."

She hurried unsteadily with Reaver's support, stumbling on her sandaled feet. She did not summon her wings -- Reaver and Socket both know it's a very painful process for her, one that she probably doesn't want to risk knocking herself out with by doing twice on the same day.

[CoreBrute23]

As soon as Reaver left with Freedom, Socket fell to his knees, the true extent of the damage kicking it. He felt bad for lying to Reaver about how badly he had been hurt. And he wasn't sure he could take another hit like that-he wasn't invulnerable to lightning

Still, as his mind rebooted, his memory core repaired itself. He remembered Myorei's smile on that day, when she told Socket to call her by name. When she felt proud of her wings-and when her wings shattered.

"I'm...going to stop you...from hurting Myorei!" He yelled, his cables soaring at the bilboards.

Raz told me to take a 10+ move instead of the reborn list, which is good for me, because I didn't want to lose a memory yet. So I'll take two conditions 'Insecure and Guilty', as well as 'you give ground, opponent gets an opportunity' which I think is covered by me being on my knees, alone.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Guilty.

Sam followed Mr. Han into his office, as the old man, slowly walked around his large desk and sat behind it, he looked around. The office itself was filled with old, seemingly random curious and items, statues, incense, maps, books, candles, and other, more nebulous things.

Mr. Han often refered to them as reminders of his past, however there were more important things to discuss. Sam took a seat, Mr. Han had helped him balance his chi spirit when he first became afflicted by the Shadow Scorpion's scroll. He knew of his activites as Shade, though he never implicitly stated he approved. Mr. Han was like that, reserved, and said more with a nod, or a grunt than any spoken words, so when he did speak those words usually carried great weight.

Alright, here goes, he thought to himself as he began. "You saw the news? Down at the Park? The gang and I stopped Shield Maiden, but when we disarmed her, something happened. She aged, rapidly, and then Myorei she," he paused, he felt terrible that he wasn't there right now, but he wouldn't know what to do, Mr. Han might.

He took a deep breath and continued, "Myorei screamed passed out, something about darkness, spiders, attacking her spirit? That, it couldn't be ...," he pulled up his sleeve, the shadow tattoo writhed on his skin, pulsing, shifting, moving. "... because of me could it?"

[Razade]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Guilty.

Sam followed Mr. Han into his office, as the old man, slowly walked around his large desk and sat behind it, he looked around. The office itself was filled with old, seemingly random curious and items, statues, incense, maps, books, candles, and other, more nebulous things.

Mr. Han often refered to them as reminders of his past, however there were more important things to discuss. Sam took a seat, Mr. Han had helped him balance his chi spirit when he first became afflicted by the Shadow Scorpion's scroll. He knew of his activites as Shade, though he never implicitly stated he approved. Mr. Han was like that, reserved, and said more with a nod, or a grunt than any spoken words, so when he did speak those words usually carried great weight.

Alright, here goes, he thought to himself as he began. "You saw the news? Down at the Park? The gang and I stopped Shield Maiden, but when we disarmed her, something happened. She aged, rapidly, and then Myorei she," he paused, he felt terrible that he wasn't there right now, but he wouldn't know what to do, Mr. Han might.

He took a deep breath and continued, "Myorei screamed passed out, something about darkness, spiders, attacking her spirit? That, it couldn't be ...," he pulled up his sleeve, the shadow tattoo writhed on his skin, pulsing, shifting, moving. "... because of me could it?"

Mr. Han snorted loudly at the question, how could he see the news when he was working let alone a common place attack in a city of super heroes. He said nothing though. "Just 'cause its an arachnid doesn't mean it's related." he finally says, pulling a long stemmed pipe from one of his desk draws. It somehow lights itself. "Were you near her? Did you touch her? What's that head on your shoulders for if your not gonna use it boy? Think long an' hard."

[Mr Sitouh]

Charlie stops when he hears what sounds like a fight, listening to judge where it's coming from, before breaking into a jog, still carrying his bag and pizzas. His armor deploys around his torso and legs, but he leaves his arms and head uncovered - he doesn't feel like taking his shirt off again (and part of him wants whoever's there to see him as some skinny kid and start something). "Hey! Is everything all right?" he calls out as he goes looking for trouble.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty

The rest of the journey to the secret Starbase (as the other had affectionately decided to call it) was uneventful. Ghost and he had talked for a little while longer, but mostly Phil just enjoyed the rare moment of silence that marked their pleasant journey home. There had been no communications from the team, a rare enough occurrence, and no bizarre or unfortunate event to interrupt them as they went about their business. Altogether, Phil was starting to have a good afternoon again.

It was only as he climbed out of the sewer water did he notice that Wereshark's skin was tingling. Something was wrong, and it had to do with electricity again. Distantly above his head, he could hear the sounds of cars honking and people panicking again. It wasn't a precise ability, he still wasn't entirely sure what benefit it provided to actual sharks, but Phil knew enough about his skin's senses to trust when they gave him warnings.

"Something's not right." Phil said as he turned his head about and sniffed at the air in Starbase. "The team should've been here by now. They should've said...anything by now."

There had definitely been no communication over the comlink, no indication of any trouble whatsoever. In fact, it had been an unusually quiet period for his usually chatty teammates. Wereshark reached out with his senses, trying to see if he could catch a whiff of his other team members or if his body could track the electrical signal that seemed to be rampaging about in the distance.

OOC: Rolling to Unleash my Powers [roll0]
Unfortunately, super hearing is not one of Wereshark's abilities.

[Razade]

Reaver, Freedom

Socket buys you time to slip away into the sewer you hear a commotion ahead and what almost sounds like Dynamis shouting not far ahead. Have you actually found refuge or could this be another attack?

What do you do?
What do you do?

Socket

Your probing reveals that you're not the only one in the billboard's programming, angry red lines of coding flitting by you in a dazzling display of technological know how. Shield Maiden certainly couldn't do something like, someone else must have been working with her to hack the billboards but who? It'd require a lot more time and not being electrocuted to find out but you're fairly sure even when the hacking ends you could find out with that time. Who ever is behind the attack however doesn't seem inclined to give you the time you need however as the angry lines of code start to attack you at your access points, a powerful voice booming in your head. "Silence the girl! After her!" the voice drones in your skull, the words growing more convincing as they try to overwhelm your protocols.

What do you do?

Dyamis

The shouting is getting closer even before you start to move and it's not long before you near another entrance down into the sewers. The commotion is clearly coming from up above and it almost sounds like it might be Reaver!

How do you engage this situation. The love of your life may be in danger?

Wereshark

You're the one who lives in the sewers longest and while there's always some kind of commotion day and night, the commotion you hear now isn't your typical misfits getting up to no good or random party thrown by drunk college students. It almost sounds like a fight is going on up a few bends from the base. What do you do?

You need to pick if you take a Condition or a have it be temporary/unstable

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis
Conditions: Angry, Insecure

When recognition hits, Charlie's bag and stack of pizza boxes hit the ground in unison as Dynamis breaks into a sprint. >>Reaver, what's going on? I'm coming!<< he calls over the comm, flinging his now-ripped shirt aside as he runs.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

He couldn't pinpoint the electrical signal, but Wereshark's ears were still good enough to pick up the agitated sounds coming from nearby. Something was definitely happening, and Phil knew it would be something he didn't like. Had a supervillain found out where he lived? Had another superhero decided that the beast below San Fransapporo needed to be put down?

Whatever it was, it was far too close to their base; far too close to his home. Phil was finally losing patience with the day's events. A haze settled over his vision, and he knew it was the first warning sign that his control was slipping. He couldn't even stop himself as Wereshark let loose a low growl and dove back into the waters of the sewers. Within moments, he was speeding off towards the disruption.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Guilty.


"Just 'cause its an arachnid doesn't mean it's related." he finally says, pulling a long stemmed pipe from one of his desk draws. It somehow lights itself. "Were you near her? Did you touch her? What's that head on your shoulders for if your not gonna use it boy? Think long an' hard."

Sam's brow furrowed, he thought for a moment, "No, I guess you're right ...," he paused, unsure of himself, "I am sure that if Justice finds out she'll find a way to blame me anyways. It's just ... Myorei's hurt, and I dunno what this thing might do to her, it turn Maiden into an old witch looking lady." His head snapped up, "Sorry! No offense!"

He took a deep breath, seemed to consider something, "It's just, I don't know how to deal with magic, and spirits, and shrines, not like Freedom does. And if something that she's *used* to dealing with can get the jump on her, we could all be in trouble."

[CoreBrute23]

Socket could feel his core hurt as the invading viruses attempted to override his control. Still, he couldn't just unplug-he needed to know more!

"Identify yourself!" He yelled. "What are you? Who are you?" He tried to force his way through the code, to see the source-but the voice kept getting louder and louder...

Let's see if I can get some answers. If I fail, guys I apologise for potentially going full evil robot on you.

[roll0]

OOC: Well then. I wish I could be selfish to boost it by 1, but I've got no idea how, without doing something like telling the source where our HQ is. Anyone get any ideas?

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Condition: Guilty

"Dynamis!" Reaver howls, crouching by Myorei and feeling like shards of glass are grinding away in her stomach.

This situation just feels all wrong. Freedom is down and still out of it. Socket is . . . well, she's not sure WHAT Socket is doing, but the fact that it's not following is worrisome. Their foe is some sort of disembodied lightning spirit, of the kind that she can't immediately hit . . . and she'd VERY much like to be hitting something right now.

She feels a giant swell of relief as Dynamis crests the corner. In spite of the peril, and in spite of Freedom's magical ailments . . . well, it's Dynamis. Things feel slightly more under control with him around.

"The lightning thing's back," she begins, very nearly in calm tones, "It's coming from the billboards, and Freedom is messed up real bad but Socket's out there alone and they both need help!"

A thought pokes into her head, a memory of a special wooden carving and a magical circle of healing within a special longhouse . . .

"I can try to help Freedom, I think. I might have something for this. But Socket needs help too and . . . and I can't think of anyone better than you."

She looks up at him, earnestly trying to will away the doubt and guilt in her chest by building up her teammate. Her hand finds his shoulder and she squeezes as hard as she can. The guilt within her seems to melt away as she knows, somewhere within this sudden gestalt of fear and friendship, that she's saying what is true and what Dynamis needs to hear.

"Get to Socket, D. He needs help. He needs YOUR help."

Rolling to comfort or support Dynamis (with Influence).

[roll0]. Goodbye, Guilty!

Also, planning to try and use the magic of the healing circle within Reaver's longhouse to try and fix up Freedom. To do that, I am planning on:
1. Using Reaver's Portal ability to blink to Ghost (in the Starbase), grab the wood carving required to access the longhouse, and then Portal back to Freedom. This would be 2 Doom Points already.
2. Access the longhouse's demiplane and fight through the undead warriors that guard the longhouse proper.
3. Do . . . whatever it is that Raz says I need to do to gain access to the specific powers from the Sanctuary needed to help Freedom.

How much of this can I do in one round? And am I understanding all of this correctly?

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal

Myorei let Reaver set her down by her, as she went to go speak with Dynamis. She felt a little lump harden at her throat as she swallowed, staring a little bit distantly towards the both of them. She couldn't help but dwell on how this entire situation happened because she was careless and not powerful enough with her spiritual power -- she let the spider's vision strike her, and catch her off-guard; a more powerful shrine maiden wouldn't have let that happen to her. A more powerful shrine maiden would've stepped back in time.

"No-- look," she insisted to Reaver, grimacing. "We can't keep shuffling around like this -- Dynamis will need your support to combat whatever Socket's dealing with outside. Wereshark ought to have heard us by now, this sewer is his home -- I'll stay here and have him help me. I feel better, honest. The worst has passed."

Myorei felt genuinely scared for a moment, at why exactly she said that. Like some part of her just told her mind, 'Fine, if Dynamis makes you feel so at-ease, then go with him'.

I'm... provoking Reaver to go with Dynamis and help Socket, instead of using her teleportation power to head to her Sanctuary to help me!

[roll0] That's a 10, so if you do it, you add a Team to the pool; if you don't do it, you mark a condition.

Eep!

[Razade]

Shade

Mr. Han sits in silence even after you've finished talking, puffing at the pipe in a lazy manner as he stares off. "You could bring her here. Could look her over but not sure I could help or if I should, the Preserver's reach is long. You want them busting my shop down boy?" He shakes his head, for a moment looking as if all the time and experiences weighed him down. "No. If it were anyone else maybe. But not her. You gotta find your own way this time boy. Life's fulla tests. Some are 'arder than others. Now get outta here. I got work to do. You think about working with them Preservers. Whole lotta nothing good comes outta them."

Han's not going to help you help Freedom, what ever his reasons. You could head back to the team to tell them the bad news, you could argue with Mr. Han...maybe you could convince him after all. It's not too late in the day either. Lots of other social obligations going on after all. What do you do?

Socket

The code writes itself into your programming, an invasive itch at the back of your mind. "You're a weapon. Do your job, eliminate the girl. She's seen too much." The compulsion comes again, stronger than before but the good Doctor's not considered a genius. As the code tries to hack into your movement subroutines they hit a break, the code retreating back as a massive power surge powers down the whole street. You can still feel the compulsion in your head but the attacks have stopped. Sadly there's nothing to hack into anymore and people are starting to notice that the power went out right around the time you hooked in.

The person or persons behind the attack now have Influence on you. Mark "Unknown Assailant" until you discover their identity. They're also telling you who you are, roll to reject their Influence or shift your Freak down by 1, Danger up by 1 as you except their words. What do you do?

See? No evil mind control here.

[CoreBrute23]

Socket fell to the ground as the lightning surged away. His cables fell to the floor, automatically retracting into his motionless body.

A strange sound came from the android's frame. It took a little while to build up, but it was soon clear what it was.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You fool!" Socket stood up quickly, raising his arms triumphantly, likely scaring civilians around him. "You dare think you could hack into the mainframe of Socket, creation of the genius Dr Mechano the Wise! No, it is I," He held a hand over his face dramatically, before pointing at the blank billboard.

"Who has hacked you! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!" Socket raised his arms triumphantly to the sky. "Your backdoors and false accounts will not be enough to protect you!" He punched the air in front of him. "For I am,"

"A founding member of the Seven Stars, " He punched again, like a shadowboxer. "The Mascot of Rock'em Sockets Wifi cafe," He flexed his robot muscles. "And future pledging at the San Fransapporo Gamma Delta Sorority!

"I AM THE DROID WHO KNOCKS! BWAHAHAHAHAHA" He goes on laughing like this for several minutes unless someone comes to stop him.

I know it's a long shot, but any chance this clears Insecure? I'm fine if it doesn't, I've always got plan B.

Anyway, spent my advancement to add +1 to Mundane. Although a new move is triggering I think. Does this count as embodying my lesson 'Always announce yours plans in a grandiose manner'? If so, I'll be shifting Superior up by 1, and Danger down by 1 (otherwise I'll keep it the same).

Just wanted to note for the GM: If you cause misunderstanding, collateral damage or unintended consequences, mark potential.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty.

He didn't know why, but Han's hesitance, his refusal to help Myorei stung. He felt his chest tighten, his throat constrict for a moment, he took a deep breath, stood up. "I see, you'll help some kid who picked up a god damn ninja scroll, but when a real HERO needs your help you're too SCARED to do anything about it!"

A dozen thoughts went through his head, a communications project for Mr. Caetano, a photojournal for the yearbook, dinner with his parents at Alison's new apartment, a hundred things he could be doing. SHOULD be doing. And yet, the image of Myorei stumbling and falling to the ground kept surfacing in his thoughts. She was a hero, a teammate, and a friend, and something had happened to her, and he couldn't just stand by without doing ... SOMETHING!

"You know what," as he spoke he reached into his pack and pulled out the mask, "you're right, I need to learn to be my own man. Coming here wasn't a mistake," his free hand reached out to Han's desk, turned off the banker's light there, throwing the entire office in gloomy shadow, "it was a lesson. Sometimes the only one you can rely on is yourself." His voice was muffled by the mask, by the shadow in the small, cluttered office.

"Hold on Myorei, I've got you."

As Han inhaled on his pipe, his weathered face unreadable, the chair opposite him was empty.

Time to put on my Game Face! I will mark Angry, my goal: Heal Myorei's Infected Spirit. And using a combination of my Acrobatic, Free Running Parkour + the sheer Awesome-ness of Shadow Stepping, I will make my way back to Starbase.

I assume that the electrical surges knocked out our comm's which is why I have not been responding to the messages. If I am wrong, we'll assume he turned it off while talking to Han, and it's back on now.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

From the murky depths of the canal, Wereshark could see them. There were three on the ledge just inches away from the water. They were distracted, making those noises with their mouths at each other. He had approached as quietly and as deeply in the water as he was able to down here, trying to stalk his prey where they couldn't see him. Wereshark could smell their distress, and it was tantalizing. A powerful surge, a quick swipe, and he could drag the wounded one into the water. Nothing survived encountering him in the water.

No, wait. He recognized that smell. Familiar, friendly. Someone who had taken blows meant for him, stood up for him, cared about him. Phil's mind reemerged from a foggy haze, desperately trying to wrest control of his body back from the desire to hunt. Wereshark emerged from the water and dragged himself onto the small ledge next to his teammates. A milky, translucent membrane was covering his normally beady eyes, and it gave him an unfocused appearance. With a quick motion, Wereshark slammed his head against the wall and the membrane disappeared; his body rocked back and forth for a second as he regained balance. The sharp pain brought clarity to his thoughts and sent the beast retreating back into the dark corners of his mind. Now that he could think again, Phil's eyes gazed at the three heroes before him as he slowly turned to look them over.

What were they doing here, so close to the base? Why hadn't they just continued on their way? Why weren't the comlinks working? What were those noises he'd heard earlier?

"Are you hurt?" Phil asked Myorei as he moved to gather her up. "What happened to you guys?"

[Razade]

Socket

Mark Potential for causing a misunderstanding Mr. Murderbot. Shift your labels as you'd like. You're being watched even if it is by unreliable meat bags. Going to give Dynamis his chance to reply before I post an IC for you. But wanted to make sure you did all your book keeping.


Shade

It's mid-afternoon still as you burst out of the Phoenix, plenty of long shadows to zip between as the sun begins its descent to twilight and beyond. Your travels however aren't crisp and quick as you'd probably like however as the streets and roads are in utter gridlock and the rail system is stalled. It's a rare sight in the city but it's almost as if a few blocks are totally without power! This of course means that the average criminal element is out in force, trying to use the downed security systems to get away with a few quick things before the power returns. Stopping them would be a detour but someone has to do something right? Is that someone you?

What do you do?

Mr. Han

Mr. Han only exhales another puff of smoke as the lights go off, he's got at least four daughters that you know of and several have grandchildren around your age. Moody teenagers certainly aren't anything new to him. He elects to leave the light off though the sound of an old style rotary phone can be heard in the darkness. "It's Han. Yeah, go get her" there's a pause "You old bat. Your grandkid's sick. Thought you should know. Naw...my kid's got it handled, don't go meddlin'. Yeah, kiss my ass hag." The sound of a phone slamming into its holder ends the panel.

Wereshark

You're doing great! Just didn't want you to think I'd forgotten about ya. Keep up the great RP! Not much I can add here until Dynamis and them all respond :smallsmile:


Freedom, Reaver, Dynamis

Wereshark arrives on scene, boy is it getting busy in this panel!

Reaver, you're free to teleport out here if you'd like. Freedom, I suppose you're waiting on Reaver and Dynamis. Dynamis, you're good to go when ever

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Normal Angry

The Sewers

Reaver jumps slightly as Wereshark suddenly surfaces and bashes his head against the wall. One wouldn't expect it from a big guy like him, but in his natural environment he can be sneaky as hell. Ordinarily she'd be able to take it in stride, but right now her nerves are JUST on the wrong side of jangled.

"Socket needs help," she replies to Wereshark, letting go of Dynamis' shoulder and speaking in a businesslike tone, "There's something up with the billboards. Lightning, like what was going around with Shield Maiden. Freedom's in a bad way, but I can help her. You guys back up the bucket of bolts.

"As for YOU . . ."

She turns back to Freedom and scoops her up in a Prince-Charming carry, a beatific smile on her face even as anger starts to course through her. Every single one of her friends has been throwing themselves in danger on her behalf today and she has HAD IT.

". . . They've got Socket. I've got you. Deal with it. I'm not in any damn mood for you to try and sacrifice yourself, so cut it out."

FLASH

With a minor explosion of dark energy, Reaver and Freedom vanish, teleported away to . . .

The Starbase

FLASH

Reaver and Freedom appear in the middle of the spacious cavern. Reaver immediately drops Freedom off in a beanbag and sprints to her corner of the base. A quick rummage through her stuff, and she pulls out a small wooden carving of a wolf.

The wolf bears some description, if the reader will permit an indulgence: its body is a symphony of lines denoting fur and muscle, its tail exquisitely detailed as it slopes downwards from the arch of the beast's spine. Its face is a masterwork of nuance: wise eyes deep-set, ears perked and wary, a patient mouth ready at any moment to snarl. The careful eye might discern a hint of designs and patterns within the swirls of fur, but only a practiced arcanist might divine their meaning.

"Ghost, keep her here while I'm gone," Reaver barks, cradling the carving with a kind of gentleness, "If she tries to do anything stupid, kick her a**."

FLASH

Another explosion of dark energy, and the carving clatters to the floor. Purple light suffuses its every line, and there are suggestions of growls, roars, and screams emanating softly from it. Reaver is gone.

The longhouse, silhouetted against the absence of sky.

A field of grass, heavy and windswept. A mist-covered path, gravel crunching beneath her feet.

The sentinels come, as they must. They sport weapons from a multitude of lands. Some are human. Some are humanoid. Some defy description. All have been dead for eons.

Reaver hefts her Soul Arm, now a blade nearly long enough to require two hands. She gestures imperiously at the foes before her, snarling.

"I have neither time nor patience for this.
Press your attack, or let me pass forthwith!"

They charge. She roars. Battle is joined.

Unless Raz has any objections, I'm going to say that Reaver can defeat these foes but she has to take a powerful blow in so doing. Next round, we'll get into the longhouse and see what to do about Freedom . . .

[roll0]

Reaver is now Afraid and Guilty!

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal (as normal as can be in a situation like this)

Freedom shared Reaver's surprise when Wereshark emerged from the waters, doubly so when she could see that milky membrane and a hunch twigged in her mind-- but before she could say anything, he dealt with it, slamming his head against the wall. She winced; she wasn't looking too well herself -- the worst of the poison's run its course, but it's left her haggard, pale -- paler than usual, exhausted.

She couldn't even really open her mouth to speak before Reaver took charge and explained, gasping as the astral warrior scooped her up into a bridal carry. A faint flush came over her cheeks as she found herself cowed.

"Y-yes," she muttered obediently, knowing she was about to put herself down the line like usual... but then again, wasn't that what Reaver was doing too? They've all got this bad habit...

FLASH

And then like thunder, they were gone -- and she hazily fumbled and collapsed onto the beanbag, groaning and staring towards Reaver as she protested, sounding hurt, "You're-- you're going to hurt yourself as well--" she felt herself rasping. "Amelia..."

Then she was gone.

It was really quiet in Starbase. It really let someone marinate in the feeling of their own failure.

She grimaced, and brushed at her own chest for a moment, gasping again, and limped over with a look to Ghost. "Just-- going to meditate." She moved over to where her lotus mat lay, and sat at the centre. She drew a breath, and focused... and started to remove herself from her thoughts, escape her feelings, control herself. Regain herself.

That's all she could do at the moment.

Not really sure this counts as anything.

[Razade]

Reaver

The battle is quick and brutal as you remember most battles with the skeletons that often protect The Longhouse. The place in question is as you left it. Wooden walls, flagstone flooring and strange arcane flames that hover in the air to illuminate the building's various rooms and indoor gardens. Past your healing circle. Past the various doors that lead Elsewhere and your armories is what you seek. It was here before you. It will be here after you. It floats silently in one of the hand crafted groves that supply your sanctuary with food. It has no name, your companions refused to speak of it. A large stone portal hangs in the air and beyond it only stars. It calls itself, when you speak to it, as The Innominate.

http://i.imgur.com/3kmbcph.jpg (http://imgur.com/3kmbcph)

Its surface ripples as you approach, a sign you know that what ever exists within or beyond it will respond to you. What do you do?

Ask away.


Freedom

As you move to meditate in the oddly empty Starbase (wasn't Ghost and Wereshark supposed to be here?) you find that the still lingering pain from the venom makes finding your center difficult. Even as you try you can feel the slow seep of something black inside yourself, chewing away at anything it can as tries to degrade your very soul. How must Shield Maiden have felt? Are there others like her? Where did she come into contact with such a thing in the first place. All good questions to mull over, if you had the time and safety to do so.

I believe Reaver will be along for you shortly

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty.

As Sam hit the edge of a three story building, he stared incredulously as three figures brazenly smashed their way into Fuji Dijital, a high end electronics distributor. He recognized the figures, they wore a wolf's head emblem over a stylized razor blade.

The Razor Dogs. Seriously.

They were going in through the rear loading door, he'd come across these guys before, street thugs, but they had connections with some local fences, they were tough, aggressive, and typically armed. Sam would look the other way, find some place quiet, make a phone call, 911. Safe, secure. Thing is, Sam wasn't here, it was Shade, and he was NOT having a good day.

"Butch! Hurray up with the %$& damn crowbar, we don't have to worry about anything! No alarms, no cops, no %^$(!#@ worries!"

"Yeah Butch, hurry up, I've got things to do!" Shade vaulted down the fire escape, landing behind the three Razor Dogs, "First and foremost is KICK YOUR A$$!" He dropped down low, planted both his hands and swung his hips, bringing his shin around and planted it into the back of Butch's knee, and as the man began to collapse to the pavement he reversed his momentum, and slammed his elbow into his targets back, driving his face into the loading dock.

Shade sprung from his grounded position, back towards the shadowed corner of the alley. "Looks like Butch just lost his enthusiasm for larceny, how bout the rest of you?"

As he spoke, he concentrated on the shadows beneath the partially open loading door, coaxing them forward, to slither towards the looters, to entrap them and immobilize them.

I will attempt Unleash my powers here, I am trying to solidify the shadows and create tendrils that can entrap/wrap up the looters. [roll0]. Hopefully that works ... orrrr not. /sigh!

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Wereshark snarled as Reaver vanished in a flash. It seemed like Amelia still didn't trust him for a great many things, and his temper flared at being dismissed like that. She hadn't even bothered to answer his questions. Phil had to remind himself of all the times she'd come down to his lair to share her terrible, terrible music with him. All the times she'd excitedly shared with him all the mundane things he couldn't enjoy anymore. She was a good friend, usually. Something was definitely not right with this situation, and the more he thought about it, the more agitated he became.

Still, going after Socket? If he had been messing with billboards, that meant Wereshark would be returning to the surface. Amelia should've known how much Phil hated doing that, but if Myorei was having some sort of...magical problem, it was definitely out of Phil's ability to help. Several deep breaths later, Phil turned back towards Dynamis. Socket was in danger, and the robot was also a good friend. Phil shook his head and moved off down the tunnel and towards the surface.

"Let's just go." He said to Dynamis, in a nasty tone he couldn't keep from showing.

Unfortunately, Socket was a bit more difficult to track by scent alone. He always smelled like most other machines to Wereshark, though the metal he was made of had a somewhat unique flavor. Fortunately for Phil, the loud, maniacal laughter was a dead giveaway as to the robot's location.

"At least he seems fine." Phil thought to himself as he pushed up a nearby manhole cover to see where the noise was coming from. He wasn't small enough to actually fit through a manhole cover, but Phil could at least stick his nose into the air and perhaps catch sight of his metallic friend. Sure enough, Socket was standing in the middle of the street. Laughing.

"...Socket?" Phil whispered urgently. "What are you doing?"

People were already staring at Socket, and the last thing Phil wanted was to draw attention to himself; it would probably lead to more rocks being thrown at him. The citizens of San Fransapporo had a bizarre willingness to try and hurt things much bigger than themselves sometimes.

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis
Conditions: Angry

Dynamis listens as Reaver brings him up to speed. Then she's there with her arm in his shoulder, telling him to go save the day, and it's probably a good thing Wereshark showed up and slammed into a wall then, or he'd have done something crazy.

Instead, once she and Freedom vanish, he turns to his massive teammate, grinning. "All right, time for us to save the day again! Between the two of us, bet we can do this before the pizza gets cold!"

[CoreBrute23]

"Bwahahahahahahahaha-" Socket could laugh maniacally for far longer than most, given that he didn't need oxygen to fill his lungs. Or lungs.


Wereshark
"...Socket?" Phil whispered urgently. "What are you doing?"

People were already staring at Socket, and the last thing Phil wanted was to draw attention to himself; it would probably lead to more rocks being thrown at him. The citizens of San Fransapporo had a bizarre willingness to try and hurt things much bigger than themselves sometimes.

"Hahaha-Wereshark! Dynamis!" He turned to see his two team mates, and waved at them.

"I did it guys! I hacked the bilboards!" He said far too loudly, before walking over to them. Speaking at a more normal tone,

"I managed to get a track on that person who threw lightning at Myorei and I-oh Myorei." The large droid immediately began to deflate (metaphorically). "I didn't even think if she was ok. I'm such a lug nugget." His shoulders slumped and he held his head in his hands.

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal

The relative silence of Starbase didn't do a whole lot for Myorei, but it did help her concentration as she meditated, stepping back and letting herself flow through between the seams of conscious thought. She could feel it, that inky, vast darkness within her -- it ebbed at her conscience, and every moment she could feel it trying to probe, claw, tear away at her soul. It threatened to sap away at everything that could define her as a living creature, to leave her behind in a vestige of time and space, forever an unmoving husk, a dessicated footnote in history.

Hiryou... what would Hiryou do...

She couldn't help remind herself of how Justice was also poisoned, when she went on that undercover mission with Shade. She hadn't seen her since then, heard hair nor hide. It was something that really tore away at her--

--she choked a little, as she found the presence in herself starting to claw away at those doubts. No. Must concentrate. Think positively, Myorei...

She slowly moved from her mat, looking at the little pile of artifacts that she'd neatly stacked on a shelf in her corner of Starbase. There wasn't much, but was there something she could use here to help turn the situation around...

I want to assess the situation, mostly to see if there's something that could help me stave off the infection on my spirit. [roll0]

What here can I use to stave off the infection?

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry, Afraid

Reaver is gasping and panting as she enters the longhouse, dried gore flecking off of her with every step. Her body is crisscrossed with fresh wounds, and one arm hangs limply at her side.

The horde had been no picnic this time; somehow, there had been no thrill in making war against the assembled masses of unthinking bellicose undead. Instead of the refuge she has come to expect from breaking a horde, there is only disquiet.

She is angry, yes; angry at Freedom and Shade and Socket for putting themselves on the line for her. It is a rankling unpleasant feeling: how DARE they make her vulnerable and afraid through their connection to her? For she IS afraid, as well; afraid of the vicissitudes of their chosen lifestyle, afraid of coming out from her longhouse and finding her friends dead or dying, afraid of confronting the possibility that all of this might have come out differently had it not been for the rashness of her impulses. And amidst all of that . . . guilt. Guilt upon the consideration that she alone had chosen this path in the face of Freedom's request, guilt in the face of her own recklessness, guilt because she cannot fix things, only break them . . .

In such a state, I say, does Reaver come into her longhouse and face the Innominate.

"Bodiless spirit of this sacred place,
I seek a boon of healing, not for me
But for one to whom I'm bound by friendship
And love born of spirits twinned by fell fate;
Some malady of spirit infects her
Vested with symbolism arachnid;
Stalwart Innominate, hers is a heart
Righteous and pure, heroic down to the
Very bone and sinews which gird her form
Thus it is that for her sake I come here,
Braving the horde of deathless foes outside
And risking the God-King's early rising
From his slumber, and my untimely death;
Innominate, how might I purge this curse?
I'll dare all ere I let her pain get worse.

Asking for them conditions to cure her.

Also I was drunk as a skunk when I wrote about half of this last night. I COULD edit it, but that would involve effort, so I'm posting it here in all of its beer-fueled glory!

[Mr Sitouh]

"No, you were covering her retreat - Reaver was making sure Freedom got taken care of. That was good tactics, and you did great!" Dynamis gives Socket's arm a friendly mock-punch. "But now it's our time to fall back and regroup. So let's go before something else shows up out my pizzas get eaten, huh?"

Trying to support or comfort Socket!

[roll0]

[CoreBrute23]

"Thanks Dynamis." Socket said, standing a little straighter. "Are we supposed to meet back at Starbase-wait you left pizza behind? Do you want us to get infested with turtles again?" Socket held his body and quivered.

"Not the turtles...they poop everywhere. Everywhere."

I shall clear my Guilty with that. Unfortunately, Socket's pre-existing Afraid condition is alive and well, especially since you brought up the Teenage Mutant Ninja Trauma.

Also, yeah Socket's ready to go to Starbase, soon as the GM gives the sign that nothing's in our way...

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

"Yeah." Wereshark replied, eyeing the gathered crowd warily. "We're meeting at Starbase. Pretty sure Ghost is still down there, and Reaver probably got there with Freedom ahead of us."

Without another word, he dropped back down from the manhole and into the sewers. He gave the air two quick sniffs and stalked off in the direction of Dynamis' pizza.

"I'll be right there, I think I know where Dynamis dropped lunch."

[Razade]

Shade

Your shadow tendrils almost make it to the crooks before they halt and wither, a sleek form sliding up behind you from the darkness of the loading bay. "Not so fast Kitten." you hear as a heavily tattooed arm slips around you, the shadows leaping to bind you instead. "Couldn't keep your nose out of a little trouble eh, Squirt Scorpion? Why you wanna mess with some stooges like them when I'm here?" She turns you around and while she's cloaked in the gloom that gives her her namesake, you can see she's dyed her hair a particular shade of violet with makeup to match.

You know Gloom, this isn't your first time running into her. She's a teenager like you, similar powers to yours and she's got a "thing" for you. How long have you known her, what was the first meeting you had with her?


Freedom

The idols and trinkets do seem to react to your touch as they usually do though there's a clear weakening in your connections with them. You're also fairly certain that Ghost stocked the medical supplies like you'd asked but who knows with her. She does what she wants. It also sounds like the boys are on their way back. At least it's hopefully them.

There's probably some medicine around, that might help the physical symptoms. You might be able to use some spell tags or cleaning idols to delay the spiritual stuff.


Reaver

The Innominate shifts, the sound of stone on stone grinding through The Longhouse as the outer wheel of the portal begins to move. This? This is new. When it finally comes to a stop the portal has opened up around you, the endless inky night sky sweeping over you like a dome before there's a final crushing thud as the portal drops seamless to the floor. "When first you take breath at the transition of day and night the circle will be ready." it booms in your head. This part isn't new. It's voice is your own only louder, as if each were a wave of mountains crashing against some unloving shore. It rattles your teeth, it aches your bones and with each word its ass if the power of this vast and ancient thing seeks only to wipe you away completely and without remorse. To grind you down until you are empty like the night sky.

"The Reaver is not enough. She does not know this threat. She is weak. Another must assist you, one who walks in both day and night. One as a Man. One as a Beast." The sky around you hums and trembles, the sounds of further grinding issue from Elsewhere and still the words ring in your skull like the last churchbell. "With petals grown at graves. With swaddling of new life. You will heal this stain. Yet you will still be weak. You will still be Reaver. Your end remains. Your end will come. There is no hope for you. No hope for The Reaver." With that, the Innominate grows silent. The stars blaze and in a flash you are back on the loud and busy streets of San Fransapporo, the sidewalk around you scorched the inky blackness of the moonless night. People walk around you, but this isn't the first weird thing they've seen. Some time tonight a city worker will come and replace the sidewalk. No one will remember the strange girl who appeared from nowhere.

1. Come at Midnight.
2. You need Shade's help.
3. You need an orchid grown in a graveyard and the blanket of a newborn.

What do you do?


Wereshark, Dynamis, Socket

Hoofing it before the hammer drops is a sound idea. The chaos is only getting worse on the streets when Wereshark shows up and Socket continues to dig himself a hole. It's probably a good idea to lay low. The way back to the Starbase is clear though it seems Ghost has excused herself leaving only Freedom behind. There's also the pizza, un-turtled at the moment, though your friend sure doesn't look so hot.

Freedom is indeed back and looking out of sorts. What do you do?
You're back! There's pizza! And Freedom! What do you do?
Your rival sure looks like she's in trouble. You're back at base at least

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal

Myorei wasn't so concerned about her physical state and injury more than she was the taint on her spirit -- it was persistent, and it threatened to claw away at her own presence. She trembled and held an array of ofuda to scatter around her in a specific pattern, a bolstering ritual that Grandmother Yumei taught her long ago.

"<Spirits of healing, spirits of life,
By the wake of divine Amaterasu,
Let the kegare within me be stemmed,
That I may once more become aligned,
With mother nature's bountiful land...>"

I'm doing something dangerous and trying to unleash my powers to try to rectify this problem before it becomes worse! I have a +1 forward from my assess, I believe, so... [roll0]

That's a hit, so I believe I'll take the 'unstable or temporary' outcome -- Myorei knows this won't fix the problem, just delay it.

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis
Conditions: None

"Two of those pizzas are for you, Phil," Dynamis says as they reach the base, his helmet retracting as they reach the base and he slips his flannel shirt back on. His attention focuses on Freedom, walking over to the edge of her ritual and waiting for her to finish, pulling up a stool to perch on.

Once she's done, he looks at her expectantly. "So clearly I bugged out too soon, which is my bad. But what the Sam Hill happened?"

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Wereshark found the pizzas pretty easily. Unfortunately, Dynamis had dropped one of them a little too close to some discarded junk someone had tossed down here. There was some kind of green substance dripping out of it and onto the pizza box. Probably a mad scientist's experiment. With a shrug, Phil picked the box up and emptied contents into his gaping mouth. It wasn't terrible, and this wasn't the first time Phil found that his muted sense of taste came in handy.

"Two of those pizzas are for you, Phil," Dynamis commented as they reached Starbase. Ghost was nowhere to be seen, but that wasn't unusual.

"Good. I already ate one of them." Phil remarked as he set the other pizza boxes down on a small table. He quickly brushed a crushed box of matches off and onto the floor to make some room.

Freedom still looked like she was hurt somehow, but Reaver wasn't anywhere to be seen. Her scent still lingered in the room, but it didn't exit at any point. It hovered around and just disappeared into the air. She must've dropped Myorei off and teleported again. Hopefully to get some help. Phil paced impatiently while Dynamis perched on a nearby stool. Together, they waited for Myorei to finish her...whatever it was she was doing.

"So clearly I bugged out too soon, which is my bad. But what the Sam Hill happened?"

"I was wanting to know the same thing." Phil growled. "Amelia was much less forthcoming, and now she's gone. How badly are you hurt? Who did this?"

[CoreBrute23]

"Myorei?" Socket cautiously stepped towards her, as if afraid his proximity might cause her to break. "How are you feeling?" All his grandeur and proclamations from before was gone, replaced by the young droid, scared for it's friend.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty.

As he twisted in her arms, he turned around to look into her eyes, all of thought of the Razor Dogs gone, replaced by memories of the past. "Seline?" He near whispered, swallowed hard. "I know you're pissed at me, but you were ... they thought it was me making those heists!"*

He smiled, or tried to, "Listen, you saw the news, what went down in the park. One of the Stars is down right now, and I'm the only one who can save her!" He struggled, he knew that her time in the Between gave her a stronger connection to the shadows than he had, however, the scroll had imparted him with heightened agility, senses, and strength she didn't possess**. "I don't want to fight you Gloom! But Freedom's life is in danger! Let me go, and I'll owe you one."

His face softened, he really did feel responsible for what happened to her, "Please?"


* Issue # 5 Worst Generation Mini Series; Dark Reflections]First appearance of Gloom! Where it's revealed that Seline survived the Between and emerged, forever changed! She contrived a series of heists using her Shade-like abilities, while Sam, pursued by the Tonbogiri for crimes he didn't commit struggles to clear his name.


**Issue # 2 Worst Generation Mini Series; Reaving Shadows!]It was almost four months ago, before Energizer, before Hexxen. Amelia had set Sam up on a date with one of her friends, Seline. She had promised to be his wingman, she knew that the Odin Pox were playing at the Asylum and had gotten them tickets. Somehow. Seline and Sam had hit it off, she was way more into the Pox than he was, but she was cute, in a gothic way. Not his thing, but who was he to judge. And then, it happened.

Yup.

Ninja's.

%$^@ you San Fransapporo!

Amelia summoned her spirit weapons, told Sam to get Seline out, as she turned to face off against the ninja squad. He shadow stepped with Seline, problem is, one of those ninja's shadow stepped with them, it hadn't ever happened before. Hell, he was extending himself just to bring another person with him, but to fight in the ... Between. When he appeared outside Asylum, he was bleeding, badly. He'd been able to defeat the Ninja, but somehow lost Seline in the Between.

I am going to try to Pierce Seline's Mask. Rolling Mundane +3, however, I am Angry, so at a -2 penalty. [roll0]. Let's hope I get some leverage!

Orrr ... potential!

[Razade]

Starbase Crew

Your powers slow the venom spreading in you Freedom though you know that its only a stop gap measure. The venom is still in you. It's still eating away at your spirit. But forget all that, your friends are here and they brought pizza! Maybe they can help until Reaver gets back?

Feel free to keep the RP up, good stuff :D


Shade

Gloom's face twists into an angry sneer as you call her by her name. "Oh, another of your friends is in trouble is it? Only you can help her?" Her shadows twist, slamming you up against the wall as cold laughter fills the quickly darkening room. "That's a laugh, so full of yourself. You can't save anyone Sam. You're not even a failure, you're a boy playing make believe and all you can do with it is hurt people. Like you hurt me."

Mark Gloom on your list as having Influence over you. She's also using that newfound Influence to tell you who you are. Reject or shift Savior down by 1 and Mundane up by 1. What do you do?


Reaver

I believe you said you were going to stop in here? I'll wait to see what you do

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

The air rushed out of his lungs as he was slammed into the wall, but Sam kept pushing, "Seline! I know you're in there. I tried to get you out of the club. To protect you!" He didn't know how long Freedom could withstand the assault on her spirit, he didn't know how much time she had left!

Through gritted teeth he snarled at Gloom, "I don't have time for this, I don't want to hurt you," he grunted as the tendrils tightened, "but you are not leaving me with a choice!"

Rolling to Reject! Let's hope! [roll0]. Ouch! I will Mark Insecure, and Raz you can adjust my Labels as you see fit. Please note my Mundane is +3, so can't be shifted up. Well you could tell me to do it, and I wouldn't be able to, but I would mark a 4th Condition.

Oh! And that's a Potential and my 1st Advance!

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal

Freedom trembled slowly, her eyes slowly gaining focus. Wereshark caught her scent, much more afraid and anxious than normal, clammy and -- possessing a foreign stain, in some sense. Hard to tell, with Myorei, sometimes. Her humanly scent seemed off at times, not right, like when she manifested her wings.

"We don't have a name..." she started, trying to not look like she felt overwhelmed at the moment, glancing to each of her friends. "A spider. I saw it in my spiritual seance. A dark, vicious shadow, appearing as a horde of spiders, draining away life from anything it touches, until it is nothing but a timeless, lifeless husk, devoid of vitality..."

She paused and trembled. "It's in me, at the moment. I've slowed it, but it will break through. Amelia... Reaver is... somewhere." She put her hand to her face for a moment, but her eyes widened as she sprang to her feet, exclaiming, "Socket, are you--"

She stumbled as her head whirled, feeling like the world was going to spin, but she made it to the yellow mech in time. "--are you all right? Are you harmed? I heard the thunderclap..."

[CoreBrute23]

Socket tilted his head at Freedom's concern.

"Me? Oh don't worry about that." He noted nonchallantly. "I was only struck by around 100 terrawatts. Nothing to conern yourself over. I mean, the presence attempted to hack into my mainframe, and turn me into a weapon to kill you but that's nothing to concern yourself with."

Awkward pause.

"So...I think I can track the lightning bolt attacker through the internet. Shall I proceed?"

If the team agrees, he moves over to a makeshift terminal built in the back of the base. It was difficult to shield the hobbled together machine from getting damp, but it was an excellent way to get plugged in. Socket input his cables to the terminal, and began to search for that hacker.

So, what kind of roll would tracking this assailant down be? Unleash Power? Pierce the Mask? Assess the situation?

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Angry, Guilty, Afraid

Reaver stands stock-still for a moment, breathing heavily through her nose. She's dealt with the Innominate before, but it never gets any easier. Hearing the prophecy of her death again in the midst of everything going on . . . it's like a shock of cold water to her very soul.

Pedestrians weave around her, scarcely giving her a second thought. It's comforting, in a distant way: being in a sea of people, drifting in the current of the human river that runs through the city. For half a second, it almost feels centering. Almost.

Shade. Gotta find Shade.

FLASH

The dark energies of her portal take her away, drawing her to her friend . . .

. . . scratch that. Her friends.

"Seline . . ."

Her voice comes out as a rough bark, even as her insides feel an icy knife of shock pass through. She steps hesitantly towards Gloom, but then falters. In her hand, her Soul Arm becomes a battle axe . . . a spiked chain . . . a scimitar . . . and then dissipates as she dismisses it.

"Let him go, Seline," she says dully, intonation buried and drowning amidst overwhelming emotion, "This isn't you. You're not a killer . . ."

Way to go with the meaningless cliché, Amelia. Say something that MEANS something!

". . . and if he dies, so does someone else."

Her hand rests lightly on Gloom's shoulder. She looks at Shade pleadingly, trying to get him to understand what she's trying to do.

"Please. You can save a life here, Seline. If you're mad at Sam, mad at me . . . fine. We'll resolve that. But Sam isn't lying: he's the only one that can save this person. Let him go, and I PROMISE you we will settle this thing between us later. But NOT NOW. Please . . ."

All RIGHT! Rolling to provoke Gloom into letting Shade go for now. If Reaver has influence over Gloom, add 1 to the roll below. As it stands, this is gonna be chancy . . .

[roll0]

. . . o hai Potential!

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Wereshark caught the small scent of anxiety from Freedom, but he could already tell that just from looking at her. Magic, of course it would be magic. His pacing became more agitated as Phil stewed in his thoughts. He didn't know what spiders Myorei was talking about, but he knew there was nothing he'd be able to do about this. He hated feeling helpless. What use was this monstrous body he had? A teammate...no, a friend was down and out and there was nothing he could do, nothing he could break to make it better. For all his might he was, for once, too mundane. Or maybe just the wrong kind of freak. He wasn't even concerned about Socket's hacking admission. If anything, the fact that the robot could be programmed to kill them was just another thing the two had in common.

"So...I think I can track the lightning bolt attacker through the internet. Shall I proceed?"

"Do it." Phil answered as he stalked over to the machine. If that meant finding someone he could fight, then Wereshark was very much on board.

But where were Ghost and Sam? They could probably figure something out here. Sam at least knew things about magic, and Ghost was...Ghost. She probably knew some sort of martial technique for exactly this kind of situation.

>>Shade. Ghost. Freedom is still down, and it sounds like it's getting worse. What's going on?<< Phil growled into his comlink. Maybe the device was working again. Maybe the other teammates would be more use than he was in this situation. He hadn't even seen his friend since they parted ways on the surface. Unfortunately, he would never be able to track Sam down with just his nose. Anyone who could teleport was usually quite capable of fooling even Wereshark's enhanced senses.

One thing seemed certain, if Wereshark had to pace for much longer Phil worried he very well might end up breaking something.

[Mr Sitouh]

Charlie listens, pieces coming together to give him the bigger picture of what went down. "So we've got hackers and dark magic going down? Peachy."

When Socket suggest hacking back, he nods in agreement, but adds, "Before you do that, can you route a phone call to Tonbigiri so it won't be traced? I told High Secretary A**hole it was tech-y stuff, we should let the Britt know there's magic in play before some poor schmuck in the lab gets zapped."

He looks over at Myorei. "Do you mind being the one who does the talking there? You're the one people actually respect out out of the lot of us."

He grabs the convenience store lettuce wrap he'd picked up along with the pizza and puts it in front of Myorei, then picks up two of the pizza boxes. "Now, while you do that and we wait for Reaver to get back from Narnia, I've got something I want to talk to Phil about, bruiser to bruiser." He nods towards the area they've set up, looking over at his massive teammate, before heading that direction himself.

[Merilan]

"S-sure," answered Myorei, both to Dynamis' request and Socket's plan, though she wasn't sure if she could keep her voice straight. She didn't like feeling small like this. She needed to re-capture her strength and courage. She looked down to the lettuce wrap and let out a little sigh of relief, and took a bite out of it. "Thanks, Dynamis."

[CoreBrute23]

Charlie listens, pieces coming together to give him the bigger picture of what went down. "So we've got hackers and dark magic going down? Peachy."

When Socket suggest hacking back, he nods in agreement, but adds, "Before you do that, can you route a phone call to Tonbigiri so it won't be traced? I told High Secretary A**hole it was tech-y stuff, we should let the Britt know there's magic in play before some poor schmuck in the lab gets zapped."

"Uh, I'm not sure if that will make things harder to track. That would just make it easier for Tonbigiri to realise we are hacking-which I believe is a crime isn't it?" He asks, little concerned.

I'm a bit confused what you want here Dynamis. Are we just telling Tonbigiri we are hacking, or are we trying to make it look like Tonbigiri is hacking this guy?


He looks over at Myorei. "Do you mind being the one who does the talking there? You're the one people actually respect out out of the lot of us."

Socket waddles over to Freedom, his cable trailing behind him, before sitting next to Freedom. He bent his head to her height, and his ear wiggled, indicating she should speak into it.

Who is Freedom talking to?

And I still don't know what to roll here, so I'll just do unleash power-hacking isn't something he's an expert in. +2 from Freak, +1 from having influence on this unknown assailant, +1 from taking 1 forward on him.

[roll0]

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

There was no answer on the comm but static. Wereshark growled again, but his irritation was quickly interrupted by Dynamis walking up to him.

"What?" Phil asked, much more pointedly than he meant to. He instantly regretted snapping, and took a moment to breath.

"Sorry. What's up, Charlie?"

[Mr Sitouh]

Charlie's response to Phil's initial snappishness is to hand over one of the pizza boxes. "First off, I wanted to say you rocked out there today," he says, snagging a slice from his own box. "So, when Reaver gets back, I've got an idea about figuring out where Shield Maiden got the upgrade with the spider surprise that I want you to help me with. I just want to check with you first - is the whole 'rar I'm a monster' thing how you want to play it in public? Because it's a powerful way to roll, but I know that's not who you are, really, and you can't take off a mask like most of us can."

[Merilan]

Myorei looked towards Socket, and nodded as she leaned to Socket's ear. "Hello? This is Freedom, from the Preservers..."

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Phil eyed the pizza box as Dynamis held it out to him. Normally, he preferred eating where no one could see him like he had back in the tunnel. Unfortunately, Wereshark's stomach grumbled and ended the internal debate. He grabbed the pizza box and emptied the contents into his mouth with a bite. After a moment, he also tossed the pizza box into his mouth and crunched on that. Cardboard wasn't really healthy, but he wasn't particularly picky. Even if tiger sharks ate discarded trash, it didn't entirely explain Wereshark's unending hunger. The best Phil could reason, his body just turned everything into fuel.

Well, anything soft enough to be digested. He wasn't sure he wanted to try eating metal just yet.

"First off, I wanted to say you rocked out there today," Dynamis said, snagging a slice from his own box.

"Uh, thanks." Phil replied uncomfortably. He never did well in these embarrassing situations. "You did fine too. Good job grabbing her other shield."

"So, when Reaver gets back, I've got an idea about figuring out where Shield Maiden got the upgrade with the spider surprise that I want you to help me with. I just want to check with you first - is the whole 'rar I'm a monster' thing how you want to play it in public? Because it's a powerful way to roll, but I know that's not who you are, really, and you can't take off a mask like most of us can."

"Not who-You think I started this!?" Phil exclaims, his voice starting to rise above normal volume. Wereshark straightened up to his full height and glowered down at Dynamis. "I do not 'play' anything in public, they were the ones! They told me, day after day, year after year, that I was a monster! Maintenance workers got lost running away from me! Vigilance tried to arrest me!"

Phil had just about had it with today. He wasn't sure why he suddenly exploded at poor Charlie, but he couldn't stop himself this time.

"And you know what, they're right, Charlie! Look at me! I was just trying to scare her, but I don't even know what I really did. I just let the shark take over for a second; it usually works on most villains! They just cower for a bit and surrender. And what happened today? Half the street gets chucked at me! Hell, you saw how Amelia acted when I went in. Even Sa...even Shade thought I was going to hurt someone. Hurt them."

Phil couldn't take his mask off, that was definitely true, but that wasn't all of it. Sometimes he wasn't even certain where the mask ended anymore. He finally shrunk back a little and Wereshark seemed to deflate sullenly. "So yeah, sure, I think that's how I will 'play' it in public. I'll be the big, bad Wereshark. Let a few villains surrender before we fight, that's how I've always done it. They can throw as many streets as they want at me, their opinion won't ever change."

And maybe next time it wouldn't sting as much. After a moment, Phil finally sat down. He averted his gaze sheepishly as he continued.

"I'm sorry, Charlie. I know you mean well. All of you have always been there for me. I-I can't say how much I've appreciated that. And I just get angry in response..."

[Mr Sitouh]

Charlie listens while Phil vents at him, stopping his munching to give full attention to his friend.


"I'm sorry, Charlie. I know you mean well. All of you have always been there for me. I-I can't say how much I've appreciated that. And I just get angry in response..."

I'm going to try and Pierce Phil's Mask, first off.

[roll0]

So, I get to ask three questions. I pick:

How could I get influence over you?
What do you want me to do?
What do you intend to do?

[Mr Sitouh]

Once Phil winds down his rant, Charlie nods. "For what it's worth, you have every right to be angry. The world is full of people who didn't take half a second to look and see the caring, intelligent guy you are, and they've treated you like garbage. But that's why we're doing this together, right? We're the Seven Stars, and nobody gets to decide who we are but us."

"Anyway, here's the plan - Ghost said the Valkyries ditched Shield Maiden over upgrades, right? Maybe they saw what their boss didn't and noped out - and if so, then they can tell us somewhere to start looking to find out who's behind it. You sound like you read a lot, so I'll bet you know more about Viking stuff than I do. I want you to figure out something we can go walk through their territory singing or shouting that will get them so mad they'll come out and fight us. Then we can beat 'em down a bit, and see if one of 'em will spill the beans about their ex-boss. What do you think?"

Charlie finishes his slice and grabs another, watching Phil expectantly.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

"Why would I know anything about Vikings?" Phil asked in confusion. He hadn't actually read a book since he'd changed. Those kinds of things had a very short life in a damp place like the sewers, and Wereshark more often than not ended up eating the ones he found anyways.

"Wait, do you know where the Valkyrie's territory is?" He asked Dynamis. "If you do...that's actually a pretty good plan! We could do that while Socket takes care of things here!"

Heck, even if Dynamis didn't have that information, all Wereshark would need was a scent. It was crazy enough to be plausible. Old minions or not, they likely knew something about what Shield Maiden had done. And if Shield Maiden wasn't so tough, her Valkyries couldn't be a match for either Wereshark or Dynamis.

"Socket! Please take care of Myorei. Myorei, we'll be back as soon as we can. If Shield Maiden was any clue, we can just march in there and demand an honorable combat or something stupid like that."

With a quick motion, he slapped a hand on Dynamis' shoulder.

"Great thinking, Charlie. I'm ready when you are."

OOC: Dynamis has influence over Wereshark for now. Use it wisely.

[CoreBrute23]

Myorei looked towards Socket, and nodded as she leaned to Socket's ear. "Hello? This is Freedom, from the Preservers..."

"Hi Freedom, this is Socket of the Seven Stars." Socket responded. He wiggled his ear at her, and the dial-up sound is heard. "I don't know why Dynamis asked me to call someone, as there's no cell reception down here." He tilted his head at her.

"Why don't you lie down and rest? We've got this for now." Socket wished he could smile at her, but his face was built without expressive features.

Still waiting to hear how the hack went.

[Merilan]

Myorei paused, and then stared at Socket for a long moment.

Eventually, she eventually sniggered -- and snorted, and broke out into a full blown laugh. "... Socket! That was really funny," she shook her head and held her stomach, nearly doubling over in stitches, finding that possibly unintended joke terribly funny. At the very least, it helped to defuse some of the tension and anxiety in her. "I feel really bad not being able to do more... I'm concerned for Reaver as well, but she's very good at what she does."

[Razade]

Shade and Reaver

"Of course I'm in here silly. That's why I'm trying to kill you." Gloom snaps, another mirthless laugh escaping. "How can you hurt me more than you already have Sam. You ruined my life! You turned me into this!" Another swing though this time you don't connect with the wall as your ally Reaver suddenly appears. "Oh! I see how it is!" Gloom shouts, instead choosing to hurl Shade at their uninvited guest. "You want him?! Have him!" she shrieks even as more of the dark tendrils rise up to form a change. "But neither of you are getting away. We're going to be together. Forever."

You're hurtling towards Reaver! What do you do!
I don't think you got through to her. But you've got other problems, Shade's coming at you pretty fast. What do you do?

Socket and Freedom

Miraculously, that Doctor that built you must have thought of everything when he built you, your call goes through Socket though the reception is grainy and laced with bursts of static even still. It doesn't seem likely to cut out any time soon at least. A loud voice comes through the other line, blasting out of Socket's ear. "Hello? Who is this. How did you get this number? Whose that laughing, this is a restricted line. Hello? Did you say Freedom of the Preservers?" Neither of you recognize the nasally male voice on the other end.

While this is going on, Socket your connection to the internet gives you a fairly basic layout of the city and its electrical grid superimposed in your mind. With a little searching you can find the electrical outage in various work orders and the required field work to source the issue. The surge originated in what appears to be Hexxen Corp.

You're call went through! What do you do?
Hey! You got through! Now what?

Wereshark and Dynamis

It seems, as the voice suddenly breaks through the general calm of Starbase, that Socket's managed to get a call out. Neither of you recognize the voice on the other end either. You're also doing bro-talk, maybe it's best for Freedom to handle this? What do you do?

You guys keep it up, not sure what I can add here
You guys keep it up, not sure what I can add here.

[Merilan]

Myorei paused, and her cheeks scored red immediately as the call actually went through. "O-oh, my apologies, sir. This is Freedom, from the Seven Stars. May I speak to the Britt... er, Miss Brittany Bishop, please?"

[CoreBrute23]

Socket was unsure why Freedom laughed, but before he could determine why, the dial-up call went through. He knew connecting through a landline might work in the sewers. How he managed to get this number, well that was something he promised he wouldn't tell the other team mates about.*

In the meantime, his eyes went blue as he began going through records of the electric grid, and matched the surges with the information he gleamed from his exposure to the lightning source.

"Hexxen Corp." He said suddenly. "It came from Hexxen Corp."

I like to think, because this is clearly a number we aren't supposed to have, rather than say Socket is just a super hacker, which he isn't, he got this number through some secret mission/mischief with a different member of the team. I'm thinking Shade, Ghost, Dynamis or Reaver. Anyone want to volunteer a good story?

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Angry, Guilty, Afraid

"Woah!"

Reaver yells involuntarily as Shade is flung towards her. Gloom's shrieking threats ring in her ears, her tendrils of shadow expanding around the area . . .

The Chosen's laughter rang out across the town square as Amelia ducked behind the ornate fountain, breathing heavily.

"Carrow?" she gasped between breaths.

Ragga checked his pulse, the flame in his eyes dimming as he gave his friend a quick once-over.

"He is wounded grievously," the orc whispered, his gravelly voice raised in concern, "He requires the care of healers."

"Blood-red hells . . ." she swore, brows knitting, "And our camp some ten leagues back, left for a fool's errand . . . Ten thousand blood-red buggering hells . . ."

She tightened her grip on her axe and rose up, flinching only slightly as the Chosen's shadow magic blasted away another chunk of the fountain.

"Be ready to run," she growled, bracing herself.

"Amelia . . ." Ragga begins, but she has already ducked around the edge of the fountain.

"You!" she roared, hefting her battleaxe in a manner that had caused the crowds to roar in the fighting pits, "Warlock, necromancer, fiend, Chosen of the God-King Himself! Face me now!"

Her voice echoed about the town entire, even as Ragga began to drag Carrow away.

"Do you know me, Chosen? I fear no battle! I bow to no shadow magics! I am bone-breaker, life-taker, blood on the wind and storm from the pits! I am a sunderer of stone, an eater of fire, a herald to death! I AM THE REAVER!"

. . . and in that single electric moment, things become crystal-clear.

Quicker than thinking, quicker than dreaming, Reaver catches Shade and uses her momentum to sling him to his feet. Her Soul Arm flickers to life, a familiar battleaxe of comforting heft.

She is angry still, angry for the danger facing her team. She is guilty still, guilty for her recklessness. But, fear?

"I fear no battle, and I bow to no shadow magic," she snarls, half to herself, "I am the f***ing Reaver."

Fear has left the building.

As per my roll in the OOC: Defended Shade, and cleared Afraid.

Hey! It rhymes!

[Razade]

Myorei paused, and her cheeks scored red immediately as the call actually went through. "O-oh, my apologies, sir. This is Freedom, from the Seven Stars. May I speak to the Britt... er, Miss Brittany Bishop, please?"

There's a protracted silence on the other end and then a click. Not as if you're being hung up on but as if you're being transferred. The muzac that blares from Socket's head helps confirm this though you don't wait long. "This is Brittany Bishop. How can I be of assistance?"

[Merilan]

"Miss Bishop," Myorei expressed, trying hard to keep her voice down to a business-like level, "Have you heard of the attack on Diamond Square? We wanted to inform you of a hacker who's been controlling billboards around town. It may be prudent to keep the Hexxen Corp tech under surveillance just in case of an intrusion..." A pause. "Some kind of dark magic may also be in play, possibly in connection. Shield Maiden was involved. Please be on alert, and please let us know if you see anything as well..."

[Mr Sitouh]

As he hears the call goes through, Charlie nods to Phil. "Sounds like she's got things here," he agrees, slipping out of his flannel shirt again as his armor redeploys. "Meet me up top and we'll roll out!" His helmet forms up, his wings flare out, and he leaps up towards the surface.

Once he gets up where he can get phone reception again, he's got his smartphone out, checking SuperSlowdown (ostensibly a traffic app, but also useful for figuring out villain-affiliated gang territory if you know what you're doing). When his comrade catches up to him, he grins. "Good news, the Valkyries hang out down near the Old Dock district, easy access from above and below. Race you there?"

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

As he sailed through the air pivoted, tried to twist his center of balance so that the impact wouldn't break Amelia's ribs. Suddenly, she caught him, with an almost implacable strength, her face twisted with rage, anger, and something else. Something deeper.

He was able to twist away from her, even as her spirit weapon began to manifest as an ominous looking headman's ax, as Amelia ... no, Reaver began to speak, Sam knew that Amelia was gone, buried under, whatever the hell she'd experienced fighting the God-King.

Sam was tired, Shield Maiden had ignored him, he'd flinched in the face of danger, ran away when Freedom needed him most, he was getting his @$$ kicked by an ex-girlfriend, and now he needed his closest friend to bail him out ...

NO!

He'd touched the Scroll of the Shadow Spirit, absorbed the knowledge of the Scorpion Clan, ninja's, assassins, warriors. He could step through the Between, and return unharmed. Command the Shadow, and more!

He was Shade, the Shadow Scorpion!

He brought his fists forward, his fingers, flying through complex forms, as he focused his chi energy, feeling it seep out of him into the shadows, into the Between. He closed his eyes, and flexed, his mind, his spirit, and attempted to wrest control of the shadows from the woman who had been abandoned to the Between.

I am going to use my Janus move, The Mask, and affirm my Mask's Label, Freak, and switch that label with my Mundane. Shifting my Freak to +3, and my Mundane to +0. I will then attempt to Unleash my Powers, absorbing ALL shadows in the alley into my body, becoming a featureless, black silhouette. Alright, lets see if this scene plays out as cool as I'd like. [roll0].

Let's hope!

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Reaver steps back a moment, grabbing Shade by the shoulder.

"You go low, I'll go high. Let's . . ."

It's at this point that she notices what Shade is actually DOING.

"Oh. Oh! Right!"

Now, Amelia is far from a magical expert. She knows a few mage-hunting tricks, admittedly, but those mostly reduce down to "get in close and smack the scrawny bastards until they quit doing their thing".

And if Shade is trying to duel Gloom for control of the shadows, then the least she can do is distract the latter . . .

"Hey, Gloom!"

She sprints towards Gloom, the crimson energy from her Soul Arms and Armor coalescing over her form. She dismisses the axe entirely . . .

"Take THIS, you petty, spiteful,-"

. . .Going instead for a flying knee in the stomach.

"-unironically-enjoying-Evanescence PILLOCK!" she finishes, shoving her former friend for good measure. Try focusing on magic with THAT.

Spent Team to aid Shade!

Dang, I'm a poet and didn't even know it!

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

As Seline hit the wet pavement, Shade crouched over her, suspended by tendrils of shadow, he looked into her face, his mask impenetrable. He whispered, the words sounded cold, almost hollow, "Sam spent days trying to find you, searching the Between, hunting the Scorpion Clan, nothing. He was angry, scared, guilty, he wanted nothing more than to save you."

His finger tips brushed against her cheek, followed the curve of her neck to her shoulder where her tattoos began. "All *I* want is my shadows back!" As he spoke, the shadows began to slither towards Shade, like tar, making a wet, sucking noise, as they traversed the pavement. They began to crawl up his body, turning his costumed form into nothing more than a living shadow, a void in the bright San Fransapporo sun.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Phil was very much interested in hearing Hexxen Corp's involvement in all of this. If they were responsible for Freedom's current condition...no, there would be nothing he could do against them at the moment. Tempted as Wereshark was to go on a rampage through one of their office buildings, there was little he and Dynamis could do against their security system. Even more, they didn't have any solid information about why Hexxen Corp's name came up in Socket's hack. Phil managed to redirect his thoughts back towards the Valkyries with some effort, that was at least something he could wrap his mind around right now.

He turned to Dynamis again and gave him a nod. "Alright. Let's go."

Dynamis launched himself into the air, and Phil climbed out of the sewer the usual way: after finding a nearby grate. The manholes were just too small for him unless he wanted to cause the city's super-maintenance extra trouble by ripping up the street. Again. Wereshark blinked in the sunlight a few times as he emerged in an alley. He wasn't terribly fond of daylight anymore, seeing as his vision was now much more accustomed to the dark. Dynamis was checking something on his smartphone, and Wereshark jerked his head back and forth, trying to see if any civilians were around. It seemed he was on the surface quite a lot today, but that didn't mean people would stop panicking if they saw him again.

"Good news, the Valkyries hang out down near the Old Dock district, easy access from above and below. Race you there?"

Phil nodded again, excitement pumping adrenaline through Wereshark's body. It was time to swim, time to hunt; he was finally back in his element. "Yeah, I know where that is."

Without another word, he dove back through the grate and into the dark sewer waters.

[Razade]

Freedom/Socket

Socket, you remain the telephone as the line goes quite once more. "The Worst Generation." you hear muttered on the other end of the line. "Well, thank you Freedom." she finally comes in fully, her tone a little more friendly and relaxed yet still quite crisp "I had heard of the Diamond Square attack but that's not my current jurisdiction, have you referred this issue to any of the Operatives or the High Secretary?" There's another pause. "I...well thank you for your heads up. Unfortunately we can't simply spy on one of the largest companies based in our city without some angry phone calls and threats to our operations here. Unless you can provide us some more substantial evidence we'll have to simply take this as a call from a concerned citizen. While I have you on the line Miss Freedom, there was another subject I'd like to ask your opinion on. We've several spiritual possession cases in one of our suburbs, do you think Wisteria flower or Ginko root would be a better aid in cleansing them?"

It also seems your team mates have left, it's just you two now. And the phone call of course. Though you'll notice a familiar feeling of someone trying to invade what ever cyberspace your communication skills go through though this time it seems fairly familiar as coming from Tonbogiri headquarters. They're not even trying to hide it, they probably don't know that you hacked into their lines. You might even be able to steal some information from them if you're careful but you run the risk that they'll get your location.

A big shot is asking you for help! What do you do!
You can feel someone trying to tap your connection, roll another Unleash to create some interference or you can always hang up.


Wereshark/Dynamis

Wereshark is already off! Swimming through the bay towards the docks, how are you going to catch up there Dynamis?

The swim is fairly easy for you Wereshark, being...a shark..., though as you near where you think the Valkyrie hangout known as Valhalla because of course it is, there already seems to be a commotion.

How're you going to keep up with a giant sharkman? Do you arriave after or before Wereshark?
Dynamis is nowhere to be seen but you know he's pretty fast. He could have beat you here. Maybe that's what the commotion is all about?


Reaver/Shade

Gloom succumbs to the combined assault, the shadows and darkness she uses as defense drying up as they're sucked up by Shade and any barriers cracking under Reaver's attack. Gloom lets out one last snarl as she tries to desperately flinging herself to the last slowly seeping shreds of darkness, disappearing into it as if she'd jumped into a bottomless ocean. She's gone, but the both of you know she'll be back. The commotion also seems to have stopped the robbery, most of what was being packed away left where the crooks stood. Now it's just Shade and Reaver alone, a soft hum filling the air as the electricity kicks back on. Reaver, the hum seems familiar. As if the Innominate grinds slowly behind you, just out of sight. Did you really win here?

You're connected to The Between, you could easily track down Gloom. You know that's how she got away. But what about Freedom? What do you do?
You're a conquering hero yet again! Don't forget to start your "I'm the ****ing Reaver!" counter going. But no more villain! No more robbery! You're in the clear, what do you do?

[CoreBrute23]

Socket's left ear, the one Freedom wasn't speaking to, started to wiggle strangely. Hmm, should I tell Myorei someone is trying to call us? Socket wondered. No, it's rude to interrupt someone while they are on the phone. I bet it's just a mistake anyway, I'll redirect them. Socket's left ear twisted a few turns.

Suddenly whoever was trying to hack Socket heard a woman pick up the phone.

"Hello, this is The Golden Phoenix. We have the best Chinese food this side of the Pacific, and don't let Squiggles Interdimensional Eatery tell you otherwise! Their food is radioactive you know, and not even from this universe's China. How can I take your order?"

I got a 13 in the OOC thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21539413&postcount=544), so Socket is just redirecting the hack to the Golden Phoenix-making it very clear to Tonbigiri that they are being diverted. If they keep coming at him, he'll just keep diverting them to different fast food places.

Also the woman is one of Han's daughters, because I don't remember how Han is supposed to talk.

[Merilan]

Freedom hesitated, and then first clarified: "No, we haven't, Miss Bishop. I will... return to you if we do unearth more evidence, yes." She paused at the question about the possession, grimacing as she tried to rack her mind about spiritual possession. She-- could natter on about how it wasn't as easy as choosing one or the other -- she'd have to inspect the possessed, examine the kind of aura that they themselves had, the kind of background they have, in order to more definitively narrow down what kind of spirit they were dealing with...

"Dried Japanese Wisteria has been used in the Preservers' repertoire for a long while now," she finally decided, "We only recommend using this as a ward to contain the spirit, however. We cannot guarantee spiritual extraction unless proper methods, such as using ofuda and safely channeling the spirit outward, are done..."

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Reaver lets out an involuntary gasp as Shade drains Gloom of her shadows, but that gasp becomes a groan as her former friend manages to flee.

". . . damn it."

She kicks a nearby rolling cart, which goes flying away with an unsatisfying clatter as the electricity flickers back on. Her head feels as though it's filled with skittering spiders, and the hum . . .

The God-King lurks behind my eyes, beyond my sight. He is waking. He is coming.

F*** Seline, f*** Mordaunt, and f*** f***ing Shield Maiden . . .

She walks up to Shade, trying to keep herself in the now and meeting with enough success to pass for focus.

"Sorry to beat and run," she begins brusquely, launching into the tale with all of the frustration bubbling within, "But we've got a problem. I know how we can help Freedom, but I need your help. Midnight tonight, we need to be showing up in my longhouse with an orchid from a graveyard and a newborn child's blanket. That'll give us a ritual to help Myorei. It . . ."

Mordaunt is the light that casts every shadow in my soul. His slumber is ending. My doom approaches.

Shade . . . Sam doesn't look so hot.

Her focus shifts, even as the feeling in her soul persists. Sam doesn't deserve to be looking this way, and he DOES deserve a better listener than her, but . . .

". . . What's up, bud?" she asks lamely, wishing she weren't tripping over her own crap while trying to help with his.

Gonna try to pierce the mask on Shade, and see what's troubling my buddy!

[roll0]

[Mr Sitouh]

As Wereshark dives back into the sewer to make for the bay, Dynamis starts running himself. The Old Docks are downhill from their usual exit, the wind's at his back this time, and it's all commercial buildings between here and there, full of nice flat roofs perfect for launching from without having to slow down.

He leaps, his wings catch the wind as they blaze to life, and Dynamis soars towards his destination. He's fairly sure Wereshark is going to beat him there - Phil's fast in the water - but pushing his limits like this is its own reward, really.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

He powered through the watery canals of the sewer and out into the bay in just minutes. The feeling of the open Pacific before him was always powerful, and Phil was sorely tempted to let Wereshark go hunting for some fish. Unfortunately, there was never time for that kind of thing. Dynamis could fly, or at least glide, and as such was probably already at the Valkyrie's territory. And there was no way he was letting another friend face danger alone. Phil turned back towards San Fransapporo and cut a quick path along the shore. In the distance, he could hear a lifeguard call in some of the beachgoers due to the threat of a shark in the waters; it didn't matter to Phil, he wasn't sticking around.

When he reached the docks, he could already feel something was happening. There was loud noises, a commotion similar to what he'd found in the sewers. He dove deeper into the ocean, gathering distance between himself and the pier he intended to land on. With a kick and the powerful force of his tail, Wereshark gathered speed and launched himself out of the water and onto the seventh pier in the Old Dock district with a solid crash.

This was it. It was time to dive into that place again; the place where the monster dwelled. If it was to help Freedom, and if it finally made him feel less useless today, Phil was all for it.

"Face me, sisters of the Shield Maiden! I will be your undoing!" Wereshark roared.

Phil had plenty of time to come up with something during his trip here, but now that he said it out loud it seemed incredibly stupid. Thankfully, Wereshark couldn't blush.

OOC: Going to try and provoke the Valkyries into fighting Wereshark. [roll0]

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

Shade looked towards Reaver, there was a flicker, his body began to return to normal, however, the shadows around the two seemed, deeper, darker, and they seemed to move of their own accord if one wasn't directly observing them.

"I could track her you know," he paused, continued, quieter, softer, his voice almost muffled. "I feel as though I could pluck her from the Between right now."

He took a moment, cleared his thoughts and looked to his friend, "However we need to remove the taint from Freedom, her spirit is too bright to be shrouded in darkness." Amelia began to explain her ritual, a longhouse, a blanket, and an orchid, a laundry list of items as if from some quest in one of Sam's MMOs.

"The Longhouse? Interesting, though it won't be Freedom we'll be healing ..." He sprung to the fire escape, and then vaulted over the edge of the Fuji Dijital's roof. He tucked into a roll, and came up running, he looked back to Amelia, "It'll be me."

Only three more blocks to the sewer entrance, and once there he could do what needed to be done.

[Razade]

Freedom/Socket

There's silence on the other end, for the both of you. Bishop seems to be listening intently and what ever trace was going on seems to have been thwarted. "Thank you Freedom" Bishop finally grumbles, the sounds of a few chairs pulling against the ground interrupting anything else she was about to say. "We'll do our best, if we need further help we'll contact your Shrine. Do try to keep out of trouble?" With that, the call cuts, a dialtone ringing for only a few moments longer before your hack into the phone lines ends. Wereshark and Dynamis have apparently left, they said something about going to Shield Maiden's base. Reaver and Shade are still out and Ghost is no where to be found. There's also Hexxen, which seems is linked to all this trouble. What do you do?

Well that's that. Bishop can't do anything without evidence but you've got her number now. Nothing else to do but wait, or is there? What do you do?
Who ever was trying to trace your call was thwarted, you saved the location of your base for another day. Bishop's also ended the call. What do you do?


Wereshark/Dynamis

As you issue your challenge Wereshark you find the root cause of the commotion. The Valkyries are at the front of their large mostly open air base, shouting orders to one another as a few Tonbogiri choppers circle above. It appears that your bright idea wasn't had just by you. One turns around when they finally hear you, like Shield Maiden covered in armor from head to toe with shield and spear. "We've got company! Hold the line!" she shouts as she begins her approach. "I'll handle this one. Don't let them break through or we're finished!" She then proceeds to charge. What do you do?

Dynamis, it's clear Wereshark has beaten you but he's not the source of the commotion, you got a pretty good gaze at just what's going on from your vantage point. Several choppers hover in the sky and a fully loaded anti-riot truck sits out in front of the renovated warehouse the Valkyries have made their home along with quite a few heavily armed anti-Meta soldiers trying to break past a massive barricade the women have erected and are defending quite efficiently. You've also been spotted, you're the only hero here flying around, and the choppers are moving in quick to hedge you out of the fight below were you can see Wereshark already in the thick of it. What do you do?

Looks like you stepped in the middle of something here doesn't it? The Valkyries don't seem too interested in you considering Tonbogiri is kicking their ass. What do you do?
Wereshark beat you but not by much, though that's the least of your problems. Looks like Tonbogiri thought about hitting Shield Maiden's base too. What do you do?


Shade/Reaver

The distance between where you are and the easiest exit to the sewers isn't that far away and with the electricity back on there's not a whole lot to stop you. Your path is clear Shade, your destination certain.

Reaver, your friend just said some pretty bat**** stuff. Are you going to follow him? Are you going to try and stop him? The solution the Innominate gave you was for Freedom. Will it work for Shade too? Will you need something different? What do you do?

You're in the clear, tell me how you get to the base.
You're in the clear. Tell me what you do to follow Shade.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

As usual, Phil was regretting his decisions with record speed. Facing off against so many opponents was probably a bad idea, but now even the Tonbogiri was here? They would love to get their hands on Wereshark one of these days, Phil was absolutely convinced of that. And if they found out who he was, his parents would likely find out next, and that was unacceptable. He considered running away for a moment, but the commanding Valkyrie was on him too quickly. Even more, Dynamis was already there as well, and Phil couldn't abandon his teammate.

Wereshark quickly shielded his eyes as the Valkyrie closed. He wanted nothing to do with sharp sticks near his weaker areas, and these women looked like they meant business. How was he even supposed to get the information he needed from them like this? Even if Phil won, the Tonbogiri were already on the scene. Once again, it looks like he'd made a rather terrible decision.

"Stay back!" He shouted at the armored woman as he lashed out with a swipe. That weapon was his first target, he didn't like pain much.

OOC: Rolling to directly engage [roll0]
EDIT: with the success, I'll try to take something from them (their weapon) and I'll also impress, surprise, or frighten them if I can.

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis

"Well isn't this interesting," Dynamis mutters as he sees Tonbigiri on the scene. Now he really wants to talk to the Valkyries. He pulls upward, letting the wash from the chopper trying to hedge him off give him a bit more altitude, as he scans the scene and considers his next move.

Going to assess the situation here: [roll0]

Well then! I'm going to ask:

what here can I use to get the Valkyries to talk to me?
who here is most vulnerable to me?

[Merilan]

Freedom deflated a lot more after the call cut off, sighing and putting a hand to her forehead. Well, that at least ended civilly, and without anyone's sense of sensibility getting offended. But evidence... "Socket, you said the heck was coming from Hexxen Tech. Is there any way to create evidence from that? I-- do not have much knowledge of technology, admittedly, but..."

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

Shade continued to free run across the roof top, vaulting, rolling, and springing from handhold to ledge, sliding over, under and around obstacles with both speed and grace. He was unsure of Freedom's condition, and knew that time was of the essence. However, Reaver was following him, and he avoided the Between, partly because he didn't want to out distance his teammate, and secondly because he didn't wish to risk another encounter with Gloom.

As he approached the storm drain that would take him towards Phil's place, the Starbase as Socket had started calling it, he vaulted down, reaching out to the shadows, using them as tethers to slow his descent. As he approached the junction, he swerved to his left, hopped the catwalk, and went down through the arch that led to the main living area.

"Freedom?! Stars?!? You guys here???"

As I am not trying to out race Reaper to the base, she can pull me aside at any point or just follow along. Whatever works.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

"What? Dude, what are you . . . Shade? SHADE!"

Reaver curses under her breath as her friend leaps up onto the rooftops and moves to intercept. She groans internally as the age-old issue comes into play: yes, she's strong and fast, but most of her teammates can outpace her when they're in their element. Freedom and Dynamis can friggin' fly, so THAT'S a pain (do I have a type?). Wereshark can tear through the sewers like that one swimmer guy with no butt and all the gold medals. Socket . . . well, okay, Socket she can more or less handle.

And then there's Shade with his damn teleportation and the damn acrobatics on the double-damned rooftops!

"Shade! Wait! I OH S***!!!"

She half-shrieks as she vaults over an air conditioning unit and realizes that there was a whoooole open street she hadn't seen coming. She has three seconds before she hits the ground and spends two and a half of them creatively cursing in the finest Karnifelian fashion.

"Unholy hell-locked dwarf-buggered spiked-"

FLASH

"-son of a SLATTERN, SHADE!" she finishes, portaling into the base . . .

And in the depths of the Beyond, where scraps of dead histories dance in motes around concreted fragments of lost lands and yesterdays are scraps before hungry maws . . . the God-King stirs, half-roused from slumber. His eye casts about, still slowed from his long deathly sleep, searching for the flare of power that woke him . . .

. . . "Stop, okay? Just STOP!" she yells as Shade comes catapulting into the base less than a second behind her.

"What are you doing, dude? What the hell are you doing?"

[Merilan]

Freedom was about to speak further, but flinched with agitation as she whipped her head and stared at Shade and Reaver both crashing into Starbase in their usual high-octane freneticness. "I--I am here," she murmured, looking a lot more wan and pale than before. She didn't know how long she had before her spell would wear off, and the spider would continue to strike at her. "You don't have to yell. What... is it?"

She stared at Reaver, and grimaced slowly, looking down. "Socket traced the hack back to Hexxen Tech. The Britt can't move without solid evidence, though. Did you find answers... in the ether?"

[CoreBrute23]

"The only evidence I can provide is in my memory banks, and I don't think we can get anything out of it. Even the new memories I've made since I was awaken is heavily encrypted, let alone whatever memories come before-" Suddenly Shade appeared, shouting Freedom's name.

"I, Socket, am also present." Socket announced, not wanting to be excluded.

[Razade]

Wereshark

"You're the one who came to us dude!" The woman shouts back even as she backs up, her weapons dropping from her hands like they're simply toys. "If you don't wanna fight get the hell out of her!" she shouts, keeping her distance even as she looks for a way out from the situation. She's inbetween a rock and a hard blace.

She's not attacking but who knows how long that'll last, she's obviously scared but she's not running. Where's she going to run anyway? What do you do?


Dynamis

The anti-Meta agents of Tonbogiri are closing in, the barricade keeping them at bay but the end of this fight is pretty clear here. There are only about eight Valkyrie on the wall, one fighting Wereshark, there's only three full agents from Tonbogiri along with their police backup which numbers in the dozens. Not to mention the helicopters that are keeping you away. "Dynamis of the Worst Generation. This is a Tonbogiri Operation. Please leave the designated area, we have it under control. Failure to comply will authorize us to use force."

Answers!

1. Help fend off Tonbogiri

2. The Valkyries.

What do you do?

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

"Oh sorry!" He lowered his voice at Freedom's re-buff, as he walked by Socket he noted the damage and scoring that had been done to his normal golden hued self. "Ouch Socket, some battle damage there. We might need to break out the Armor-All and the Sham-wow. You feelin' ok?"


. . . "Stop, okay? Just STOP!" she yells as Shade comes catapulting into the base less than a second behind her.

"What are you doing, dude? What the hell are you doing?"

He spun and looked at his oldest friend, beneath the mask Sam's face twisted into a grimace of guilt, and insecurity, Amelia could hear it in his voice, but his game face was on, he shoulder's were squared, he was ready to take on all comers in a stubborn act of defiance and self sacrifice. "I'm doing what I can to save Freedom ... if she's been infected by some spiritual darkness, shadow, spiders, *I* can see it?!? It's kinda my thing right?"

He paused, if he was going to be able to do this, he needed his team to back him up, "Listen Reaver, you stepped over to Oz, didn't you?" When Amelia first spoke of Karnifel, he could see the pain, and the loss written large on her face, he never teased her about it, but he always referred to it as something other than it's true name, to him it seemed to lessen the blow to her. "Talked to the man behind the curtain, and he told you what? That you needed my help?" He placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezed slightly, "Maybe letting me do my thing *IS* that help. It'll be ok, I promise."

He strode over to where Freedom was sitting and lowered himself to the floor in front of her, sitting in a half lotus. He took a deep breath, calming himself. "Hey there Myorei, how ya holdin' up?" He paused, considered how much to share, again the insecurity flickered. "I got my powers when your sister, Justice, was tusslin' with some ninjas. I know, San Fransapporo right?" He tried a smile, a soft chuckle, "While she was kickin' @$$, I was hiding in an alley, saw one of the guys protecting something, she saw him too. When she attacked him he dropped it, it looked important so I picked it up, figured I could take it to the Shrine after all the excitement."

He shrugged non committally. "When I touched it, it went all shadow hentai on me." He shuddered at the memory, "Wasn't pretty, your sis missed me in the wrap up I guess. I woke up hours later, the thing is, the next day I talked to a man whom I really respect. He told me what I had felt was a chi imbalance, too much yin energy. Yin is dark, secretive, sinister. Yang is bright, open, honest. That's us Myorei." He reached out, and took Myorei's hand in his, "My connection to Yin, to the shadows, might let me isolate the spirit, draw it out. To at least identify it."

He swallowed, hard. "The question is, do you trust me?"

I am going to Unleash, to extend my senses to allow me to 'see' the Infected Spirit. I am rolling Freak, +3, I have Influence on Myorei, for an additional +1, and Game Face allows me to take a +1 Forward, that'd bring me to +5, however, I believe it's capped at +4, so we'll save the Game Face bonus for another check. Here we go! [roll0].

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Reaver's face softens as she looks at Freedom's frailty. The guilt of how she's handled things comes back full-force, and Shade hits her with the hard sell for the easy option JUST at the right moment.

"I . . ." she begins, trying to clap back with the appropriate level of vitriol before succumbing with a faint half-whisper, "I don't know if that's how it WORKS, Sam. I think we have to follow the steps exactly or else . . ."

Shade turns to talk to Freedom, and Reaver is left with the feeling that she's failing. Again.

"Uh . . . there's a ritual for your condition, yeah. I need an orchid from a graveyard, a newborn's blanket, and me and Shade need to go back to the Innominate at midnight. I don't know how general or specific things have to be, but the Innominate hasn't steered me wrong yet . . ."

Your end remains. Your end will come. There is no hope for you. No hope for The Reaver.

". . . so you're going to be okay, promise," she finishes, putting on a hopeful smile that she only half-feels.

She rounds to Socket, looking for some kind of . . . outlet.

"Hexxen, huh? Is that where Dynamis and Wereshark went off to?"

[CoreBrute23]

Socket shook his head, still very confused by Shade's abracadabra-ing.

"No, they went to fight Shield Maiden's Valkyries. I don't know where that is though." Socket looks back at Shadow and Freedom.

"Uh, I may not be an expert on magic," Socket said slowly. "But the ritual didn't say bring Myorei did it?" He turned back to her. "If it didn't say bring her, maybe Shade is supposed to incubate this...curse, to bring to your Ozzy land." Honestly Socket had no idea. He just wanted his team to stop yelling at each other.

"Maybe you and I can go talk to the people at Hexxen Corps?" He asked Reaver.

[Mr Sitouh]

"Dynamis of the Worst Generation. This is a Tonbogiri Operation. Please leave the designated area, we have it under control. Failure to comply will authorize us to use force."

Well, this plan went south faster than anticipated. He sighs, getting ready to talk instead.

""Hold your fire, AEGIS!" he shouts, his voice pitched to carry even over the choppers' noise. ""I have information relevant for your investigation and the safety of your officers. Can I come tell you in person, or would you rather have it on the six o'clock news?"

So, not sure if that'll be enough to count as provoking someone susceptible to my words, but in case it does, I want them to let me in to talk to whoever's in charge.

[roll0]

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Reaver gives this the nod. Midnight's a while away, and it's not like she cares enough about her Friday classes to go back after all of this.

"Sure. Let's pay them a visit. You okay to go back there, big guy?"

Assuming the answer to be yes, Reaver starts making tracks towards the sewer route putting her (and, presumably, Socket) near the public entrance to Hexxen.

Feel free to move us along to there, Core or Raz!

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

That wasn't quite what Phil had expected from a ex-lackey to the battle hungry Shield Maiden. It was almost civil. Then again, he had attacked first, so it was likely the best response he could have possibly gotten. The Tonbogiri were shouting at Dynamis in the distance, and they seemingly hadn't even noticed Wereshark's arrival on the docks yet. Time to make this succinct.

"Uh...just tell me who or where Shield Maiden got her new armor tech from, and you can go back to fighting the Tonbogiri?"

[Merilan]

Freedom was still trying to digest everything, everyone was speaking at the same time and suddenly she'd gone from taking a phone call to having to conduct a ritual with Shade and Reaver. She trembled a little, her hand feeling very pale as Shade held it. He asked her if she trusted him.

She hesitated.

Shade never told her who he is -- and while she had come to respect that, she felt like that had come not out of some sense of privacy but perhaps because of another reason... another reason that'd come clearer not. "Do you not tell me who you are because of Hiryou? When we infiltrated that clan, Hiryou told me that you were a threat, a dark taint."

She furrowed her brow, and advised, "Shade, I trust you, but imbalance is dangerous for a reason. You yourself have said it -- that shadow scroll has misaligned your balance of yin and yang." She frowned. "If you were to draw this dark spirit, it may seek you and further imbalance you."

She sighed very quietly. "What will Reaver's ritual do? I-- do not know of Karnifel's rites. What did she say? Will it eradicate the dark spirit, or at least channel it harmlessly away?"

It bothered her, the way Amelia teleported away earlier, with that look on her face that said that she was ready to do anything ... she was scared. She was scared that this spirit would just move between her allies.

[Razade]

Freedom/Shade

Your shadow senses expand through the main room of the Starbase, Shade, casting everything as a negative. Large spiders crawl over the stark white relief of Freedom, black splotches covering her skin where the first "bite" occurred, angry black veins radiating from it. These things aren't beings of shadow however, they're not even really there in a spiritual sense. It's as if they're some manifestation of the venom coursing through Freedom's system. What's worse, as Freedom airs her misgivings and worries the black veins start to grow.

Freedom, you of course can't see this but you can feel it. The venom seeks out those negative feelings, feeding off of them. You can feel the weight of your worries grow, trying to pull you down further into disillusionment and anger. You can feel yourself slipping. Would Justice be having these issues? Would she risk her friends and allies like you have, just from a simple mistake? Maybe she should take over for Grandma.

The venom's taking its hold, do you give in to these baser emotions? Do you reject them? Roll to reject the influence of the Venom.
The source of the problem is clear, Freedom has spiders in her soul. Maybe this is above your expertese? Maybe Reaver's solution is the better solution?


Reaver/Socket

Hexxen Corp is at the edge of the city, it's more than a simple jaunt through the sewers though it does bring you out to the city above. Neither of you can fly so it's either foot travel or public transportation, either way. It's going to be a journey. Are you sure this is the right thing to do though? Freedom's in a bad way and Shade might be too if things go wrong. Freedom caught this thing, it's clearly communicable and its not like Hexxen Corp is going to be going anywhere.

Nothing's holding you back, you and Reaver are free to go to Hexxen Corp. Shade's doing some crazy stuff though, think it's clear to leave?
To Hexxen Corp? To Hexxen Corp! Or you could stick around, Shade's doing some crazy stuff.


Dynamis

The helicopters continue to circle you though they don't seem too willing to just give you what you want. They're also not trying to shoo you away, you can't see the pilots but it seems there's some conflict on how to handle you and your demand.

They err, you get a critical opportunity.


Wereshark

The Valkyrie gives you an incredulous look, glancing back at the ongoing battle. "Really? You're here about Shield Maiden? How the hell would I know, last we saw her was a month ago when she got the stuff! Came in a big crate. Doesn't matter, we kicked her out. Technology like that doesn't make you a better warrior. It's a crutch, she took a crutch because she was getting old. Now you can either help us out here or get lost. Don't have time for you!" With that, she turns and rushes back to the front lines where the fighting seems to hit a fever pitch.

She doesn't seem to be lying though who can tell. You could help Tonbogiri out here, these are criminals after all. Or you could help out the Valkyries, or just leave like asked. What do you do?

[Merilan]

Freedom took a moment and squinted herself. Hiryou... you'd have no trouble with this. You were always so powerful... you wouldn't put anyone in danger. Your friends wouldn't need to... She paused, trembling, as she looked back to Shade. You were always Grandmother's preferred one, so why did you leave...?

[Mr Sitouh]

>>Wereshark, you having any luck?<< Dynamis calls over the comm, banking away from the choppers before he stalls out. >>I can back you up, but I'd have to kick Tonbigiri's ass to do it.<< He comes in for a landing near the edge of Tonbigiri's cordon for the public, listening for Phil's reply and looking to see if any senior officers or news people come over to talk.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Phil watched warily as the Valkyrie left. Wereshark was dying to get his jaws around something, anything, and Phil was trying his best to squash that impulse. Threat of the Tonbogiri severely dampened his fighting mood and left him feeling immensely frustrated. Another dead end in their search for something to help Freedom.

Dynamis' voice over the comlink interrupted his brooding, and Phil turned his attention back to his friend in the sky.

>>No luck, really.<< He answered as evenly as he could. >>Turns out the Valkyries and Shield Maiden split a month back. They don't know where the tech came from, only that it was shipped here in a crate.<<

The Tonbogiri were really letting the Valkyries have it. Phil could feel Wereshark itching for more combat, but his own fear was proving greater. There was no possible way a tussle so close to the agency would turn out well for him. And if he ended up losing control...well, Phil tried not to think about it.

>>I'm leaving, Dynamis. There's nothing here worth a fight with the Tonbogiri.<<

And with that, Wereshark dove from the dock again and into the San Fransapporo bay.

[Razade]

Dynamis

"Sir!" you hear as you land, it seems the helicopter pilots, a prim and pressed officer is quick to move to where you land looking quite cross. "Unless you've been authorized to assist in capturing this band of criminals, we'll have to ask you to vacate the area. We understand that you wish to help but we can't afford you being injured. If you have information, we ask you share it and move along."

Wereshark is off. You and he both heard Socket say that what ever went down near the base came from their corporate headquarters. You'll need Socket to hack things. Let's not forget that you've got more than just this super stuff to worry about. And Tonbogiri has got you more or less surrounded.



Wereshark

The Valkyries seem to be too busy fighting to stop you, and you suspect probably happy to see you gone. You could always head to Hexxen Corp though that'll take you out of the water and they're not reasonably likely to just let a teenage shark man into their corporate office. Freedom and Socket are back at base, who knows where Shade and Reaver are. Maybe it's best not to coop yourself up though? And what about Dynamis?

It's a wide world out there, where are you planning on going? Back to base? Somewhere else?

[Mr Sitouh]

"Shield Maiden's armor in the Diamond Square attack carried a contagious magic - right now we're working on treating Freedom for exposure to it," Dynamis replies. "Wereshark and I were coming to see if we could find more information as to where it came from. So if you find a large empty crate delivered about a month ago, approach it with caution." He turns to go, then pauses. "Also, if there's anything you want to pass back to the Seven Stars,", he looks meaningfully at the officer, "Bridget Bishop knows how to contact us."

[Razade]

Dynamis

The officer frowns, clearly mulling over what you've told him before muttering into a handheld radio at his belt. Before you take off however you hear the officer shout your name. "Dyamis! Hold a moment!" He makes a quick few steps in your direction, his voice going a little lower as the fighting seems to reach a fever pitch. "If you could bring us Freedom, we might be able to assist you. The medical staff at HQ is second to none, it would be our pleasure to help. As a thank you for your cooperation and assistance in taking down Shield Maiden?"

What do you do?

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.


"Shade, I trust you, but imbalance is dangerous for a reason. You yourself have said it -- that shadow scroll has misaligned your balance of yin and yang." She frowned. "If you were to draw this dark spirit, it may seek you and further imbalance you."

He paused, looked at Myorei, his brow furrowed. Lightness tainted by shadow, Yin energy, imbalance. Was she ... the Yang to his Yin. He flinched, yea, that sounded ... not entirely appropriate. When he felt the heat rise to his cheeks he was grateful for the mask.

"Perhaps you are right. I had hoped, that by stepping to the Between, the place between shadows, I could draw out ... spiders ... the infection." What he had noticed is the way the spiders seemed to increase their activity when she doubted herself.

"You're right about your sister, Justice, she was hunting those ninja's pretty hard core, maybe she's concerned that there shadow magic will make me one of them." He kind of shrugged, "What I do know, is that you and your sister, you've trained for this your whole life. Reaver, she was plucked from her regular life, but she had a whole lifetime in Narnia to learn how to be a hero. Dynamis, and Socket, despite their personal tragedies, were built for this. And Shark, well, what happened to him sucks, but there's no doubt in my mind he has both the physical and mental strength to succeed."

"Me, I'm just a kid who was lucky enough not to die when he touched the bad mojo ninja scroll." He stood up, and awkwardly held a hand out to Myorei to help her up, "I've always admired you Myorei, even before I picked up that damn scroll. Your a symbol of what's best in all of us." He smiled wanly.

"Let's go tell Reaver I haven't martyred myself for the team just yet ..."

I am triggering my Team move, by sharing a Vulnerability with Freedom, revealing the secret that Shade doesn't feel like he matches up to his teammates, and that she provides him with an example of what a hero should be.

I would give Freedom Influence over me, but she already has it, so she can shift my Labels as she sees fit. However, after she shifts my Labels, I will shift my Mundane up and my Freak (My mask's Label) down.

[Mr Sitouh]

"Bring you Freedom? What kind of team do you think we are?" Dynamis' voice is incredulous.

He turns back, facing the officer directly, his posture straightening. "Thank you for the offer of assistance, Officer," he says, his wording formal. "I'll inform the rest of the Seven Stars, and we'll send notification ahead if we determine that to be the best course of action." His message delivered, hopefully on all levels, his wings flare into life and he launches up and away.

>>Yeah, they don't want our help, let them handle the mess,<< he comms to Wereshark. >>Let's head back, see if Reaver's figured out how to get Freedom back on her feet.<<

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

Myorei had a flattered, sincere look on her face for a moment, and placed her hand on Shade's shoulder. "Shade, it doesn't matter whether you lucked into it or you were born to be raised into it -- you made a conscious choice to make a positive difference. You could've been any other one of those ninjas, who chose to commit crimes and be selfish. But you didn't. And that counts for the most. Don't... don't forget that."

She looked a bit more assured afterwards. "I'm glad you didn't, too. Come on, let's see what Reaver has in store."

She picked herself up and looked at where Reaver and Socket had gone off to...

Myorei is telling Shade that he's a Savior - I think Savior up, Danger down?

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Reaver is in the midst of exiting the sewers before she realizes that Socket isn't following.

"Socket? Sock- oh, what the hell man . . ."

Grumbling to herself, she reenters the base.

"Swear to god, that bucket of bolts had better . . . Oh!"

Her eyes snap over to Shade and Freedom, both standing and talking as though nothing is wrong. Her heart skips a few beats.

Holy hell, did it work??? Did Shade just . . .

"Uh . . . hey!" she calls out with a half-smile hidden beneath her mask, "Did it, you know . . . I mean, wow, that was fast! Huh!"

She goes up to Shade and raises her hand for a high-five. Her mouth goes motoring as relief floods through her.

"Dude, props! Like, I'm gonna admit, I doubted you there! Didn't think you'd be able to pull it off! Never again, though. Remind me of this next time I ever question you!"

Her gaze turns to Freedom now, and her glee is palpable. She grabs her up into a massive hug, popping her back a little with the sheer ferocity of affection behind it.

"And you! Look at us, acting all terrified and doomy-gloomy over this! Shows us to get all worked up over a little bit of nothing, right?"

She looks around at everyone, beaming.

". . . Right?"

[Razade]

Valkyrie Battle Site

The panel remains as Dynamis jets off, the Tonbogiri Officer reaching for his phone.

The panel cuts to Brittany Bishop in her office, a cluttered place though there's a method to her madness. She says nothing as the muffled voice carries through the telephone into the room, the call brief. "It was The Worst Generation again, as predicted." she states, turning to look at High Secretary Ava whose back is pressed against the office door. "And you didn't get a read on their base?" she asks coolly, inspecting one of her trade mark pistols.

"No Ma'am. The trace was disrupted, seems they were watching out for it. We tried to keep Freedom on the line but...it was a lost cause. I still think Dynamis is our best bet to keep them in line. He's the most mallable, I can call his..." Ava sighs, holding up a hand to silence her Operative, slowly standing up off the door as she holsters her weapon. "I want you to keep an eye on them. They're willing to offer help to us now, let them do the grunt work then. If they decide to stop being so helpful you have your orders. Do not attempt to deviate from them Operative Bishop. Are we clear?" The tall woman takes a few steps to Bishop's desk, placing a large card on the table before the panel shifts directly to Brittany Bishop, her face a mask of polite understanding as the sound of boots clip off into the distance. The panel closes on Bishop's hand next to it, the card marked with two spears crossed into an X with another spear thrust down its center. "Yes Ma'am."

Dynamis/Wereshark

Both your travels back to Star-Base are uneventful and you arrive just in time to hear the tail end of the conversation.

I'd say give Socket a chance to post. Then you're all free to do what ever/

[CoreBrute23]

Socket hadn't moved from his spot when Reaver began to leave, watching the interaction between Freedom and Shade, (although he wasn't close enough to hear what they were saying) his face emotionless. He then stood up as Reaver came in.

"I'm not sure anything was done." Socket said slowly. "Albeit, I don't understand how magic works, but whenever Shade has done something before it was always visually impressive." Before he could elaborate further, Wereshark and Dynamis arrived.

"Hello." He waved at the two. "Did you discover anything?"

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Wereshark arrived at the base in the usual manner: stalking in from a random entrance and soaking wet. He had some sort of fish in his mouth that he quickly gulped down. Glancing around, Phil noticed that all the other members of the Stars were finally present. Reaver was wrapped around Freedom and seemed...happy? Socket was looking slightly scratched still, but otherwise looked the same as always; and Phil hadn't even seen Sam for most of the day. Dynamis had also arrived at around the same time, perhaps a bit earlier.

"Hello." Socket waved to the two arrivals. "Did you discover anything?"

Phil shook his head and balled a fist up in irritation, his arm shaking with barely contained frustration.

"No," he growled. "How is she?"

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis

"Hey, you got more than I did," Dynamis says, pulling back on his flannel shirt. "At least you were able to confirm someone else provided Shield Maiden's new armor. All I got was hassled by Tonbogiri." He grabs himself another slice of pizza. "They tried to offer their help dealing with Freedom's situation as thanks for our assistance, can you believe it?"

[CoreBrute23]

"Oh that explains it!" Socket said to Dynamis' statement. "That must be why they attempted to locate us when they called. They wanted to send help for Myorei." Socket placed his head in his hands.

"Now I feel bad for redirecting their tracer hacks. I should have told them where we were." He started wiggling his ear.

"Should I call them back?"

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.


". . . Right?"

As Amelia got brighter and more optimistic, the shadows deepend around Shade, still bolstered by the Between. "No, I tried, I got a look at it, but it isn't something tied to the Between, it's something ... else." He sighed, folded his arms across his chest, "You had a Plan B though right?"

[Merilan]

Freedom flinched a little as Reaver threw herself to her -- she hesitated, but then placed an arm around her as she squeezed back. "Reaver..." she spoke up, but then her voice just dropped, like she felt it becoming heavier, and heavier. "It isn't Shade's fault. I felt it was too risky for him to attract another being of darkness -- a being of Yin. I don't want us to just -- pass this around like it were a potato. Let's try this ritual you've painstakingly found for us in Karnifal."

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

And just like that, the weight settles back inside of her stomach.

"I . . . yeah," she says slightly dully, letting go of Freedom (with perhaps a touch of reluctance?).

"Shade and I need to go into my longhouse at midnight. We need an orchid from a graveyard and a newborn's blanket. Shouldn't take too long to gather that. We'll get you ship-shape in no time . . ."

It's not fair it's not fair it's not goddamn FAIR

She notices her fists have clenched. In her hand, her Soul Arm has turned to a cruelly-curved flensing knife, of the variety that she and Carrow would use when . . .

She relaxes herself forcibly, and her Soul Arm is dismissed.

"But hey, Hexxen, right?" she exclaims with brittle cheeriness, "Turns out they're responsible for the blackouts. What say we pay 'em a visit?"

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

Freedom took a deep breath and looked around towards the group, nodding towards everyone. Good. They were all here. As long as they were all here, it feels like they can have hope. It was only when they strayed apart, was when things started to feel like they fell apart.

"Okay," she spoke up with a much more familiar voice, stronger and full of confidence. Time to step up to the plate.

"We've got three situations on hand, two of which relate to Reaver's ritual. We need to find out what's going on at Hexxen Tech and find out the source of the hacking, we need to find a newborn's blanket at a nearby hospital, and we need to find an orchid in a graveyard."

She looked at each of them in the eye.

"Socket and I will go to Hexxen Tech -- I've got the rep to probably pull some strings and let us get someplace, and I spoke to the Britt earlier, so that should make things easy."

She looked towards Dynamis and Reaver, and then said, "Dynamis, Reaver, you two can head to the hospital. You two can pass for human better than Wereshark and Shade can, so you'd be a better fit for that mission."

Finally, she looked to Shade and Wereshark. "Wereshark, Shade, I want you to find an orchid in a graveyard. Wereshark, you've got a keen sense of smell, so you can probably identify it by scent, and Shade, you're used to the darkness, so that'll be a big help too."

She faltered for a bit, as the guilt of knowing that the last two missions were only a problem because of her started to creep up to the back of her mind. The arachnid claws started to pick away at the edges of her soul, make her doubt about her actual capability--

--no, enough!

"Any questions?"

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis frowns, thinking, then raises his hand. "I'd actually suggest holding off on Hexxen until we've got your situation solved, and we can have the rest of us at least standing by," he says. "You and Socket are definitely the ones to take point there, but if we force the hand of whoever's behind this? Shield Maiden was a public test - they're sure to have bigger guns they haven't busted out yet. When we move, we need to be ready for that, which means getting you better."

"Maybe you two could go hit up that cafe Socket hangs out at? The community there seems like the sort to hear about weird stuff like power enhancing crap being tested and stuff..." He runs a hand through his hair, looking around to see what the rest of the team thinks. Part of him has ideas for other arrangements that might work better for finding and getting the stuff, but he doesn't want to step on Freedom's feet too much, and this plan has him going with Reaver, which makes it a very good plan in that regard.

[Merilan]

Freedom kind of expected Dynamis to be the one to raise objections, if anyone, though she considered it as well. It is true that Hexxen Tech would have the most opposition, and it would be a greater risk to head them off at the pass without everyone present in the case that a battle erupted.

"I am concerned about the reach that our hacker friend possesses," she admitted. "Last time, they were able to strike us from a far distance, using electricity in the form of billboards. We had to go underground to avoid them."

She settled for a moment, then acquiesced, "However, you, Wereshark and Shade have both gone out without being attacked since then, and given what happened, it seems a relatively safe bet that the hacker is after me specifically. But I do agree that Hexxen Tech is probably not something we should visit without our full force."

She looked to Socket. "The cafe, then?"

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Reaver relaxes a little as Freedom and Dynamis start hashing out plans. This feels . . . better. Not great, but at least she's following someone else's orders. Reaver is just fine with following orders these days, ever since . . .

"Holy hells, KODAR! GET BACK! GET-"

KRAKKA-THOOM

The giant's falling form had nearly crushed her as Veritus flung her and Carrow out of the way telekinetically. The first claws of panic began slashing at her mind. Kodar was down, not dead, couldn't be dead, but her plan was already going WRONG . . .

. . .

"You think you can best ME, little gladiator?"

She'd smiled into his face, her blade bearing down slowly against his telekinetic shield. The arrogance of her . . .

"No, but I'd bet I've managed a pretty distraction. Carrow! Now!"

The thief's knives had been blindingly fast, she'd felt POSITIVE that nobody could deflect them.

KZZZAT

His eyes had been hollow, so hollow as his body slumped . . .

. . .

When the God-King's lightning had finally taken Ragga, all of her tears had been spent. She'd been battering still at his telekinetic shield, feeling it give inch by inch as Veritus and the orc had poured on fire and magic from both sides, dodging and ducking behind the ornate sculptures and pillars of the God-King's palace.

She'd seen Ragga go flying out of the corner of her eye, but hadn't looked, telling herself he was all right, all right, all right . . .

. . .

Veritus had held her as she vomited and sobbed, as the crowds outside cheered, as a new day dawned on Karnifel.

. . . well, just ever since.

"Sounds good to me," she chimes in, idly dismissing the nasty guilty memories with the practiced ease of denial. She heads back towards the sewer entrance, gesturing for Dynamis to follow.

"So, ah . . . everything good with you and Wereshark?" she asks quietly as they proceed down the sewer.

[CoreBrute23]

"Maybe you two could go hit up that cafe Socket hangs out at? The community there seems like the sort to hear about weird stuff like power enhancing crap being tested and stuff..."

Socket raises his hand like he's in class, waiting until someone permits him to speak.

"Are you saying the customers likely engage in illegal power enhancement because they are physically mutated? Isn't that a prejudiced presumption?" There's a pause. Then he turns to Freedom.

"Are you able to walk Myorei, or would you like to ride on my back?" He asks.

Socket will go to the cafe if that's where people want him and Freedom to go. But yes, he did just call out Dynamis for being an anti-mutate.

[Razade]

With your plans set, you break into your respective teams. Do you have specific callsigns when you group up like this? If so, what are they. Work together to come up with them if you wish. Traveling around the city is cheap, sometimes even free, and quick however San Fransapporo is still one of the largest cities in the country and the places you're going are mostly new or never were connected to the now defunct Sewer system. You arrive to each of your locations as the sun begins to set.


http://i.imgur.com/b137CxO.jpg (http://imgur.com/b137CxO)
Open Grace General Hospital (Reaver and Dynamis)

Open Grace is one of the best known "civilian" hospitals though a good portion of the staff are still Meta-Humans and retired heroes from the Gold and Silver Age. As it stands, the hospital is in reality several buildings broken up by ward, department and specialty. You both find yourself at the Maternity/Neonatal Ward, the smallest though understandably busy section of the Hospital Grounds. Two young people without an escort, also understandably, attracts some attention. One of the many on call nurses, an elderly gray haired woman, comes up swiftly when they see you enter. "Hello! How may I assist you today" she chirps with enthusiasm and energy in spite of her wrinkled face, glancing between the both of you. "Are you here to see your mother? I can help you find her room if you'd like? You must be so excited to welcome a new brother or sister into your family!"

This kind old nurse seems to think you're brother and sister and is offering some help. What do you do?



http://i.imgur.com/kowUhxm.jpg (http://imgur.com/kowUhxm)
Jade Vine's Floristry (Wereshark and Shade)

Jade Vine's Floristry, run by a now retired Silver Age heroine, sits on San Fransapporo Bay blending in with the natural astethtic the city has attempted to garner over the years what with it being built right into the national monument of Sleeping Giant Reserve. The Reserve itself is a pristine redwood forest and unlike much of the city, has no climate control to keep it free from weather. This typically means that is raining about 80% of the time anyone is nearby. Today is no different. It seems, from the long line coming out the door, Ms. Jade is quite busy. What do you do?

Have you ever been to Jade Vine's before? Or the Sleeping Giant Reserve? If so, when. What were you doing in this section of the city?



http://i.imgur.com/dzzYhFg.jpg (http://imgur.com/dzzYhFg)
Rock'Em Socket (Freedom and Socket)

Rock'Em Socket is fairly dead at this time of day still but Socket, you know it's going to get busy soon as the sun finally starts to set. Jeremiah is no where to be seen though Socket, also as a regular patron, you know that this isn't unusual as he too is much more active on the floor at night. That isn't to say however that there are no customers, a few sit in the far back of the establishment and the regular waitresses (dressed in frog themed costumes) make their rounds. One approaches you both swiftly enough once you find a place to sit. "Socket! Long time no see, come to try out another one of our special menu items?" she leans down, glancing at Freedom. "And you brought a date, good for you trying out new things." she winks before standing back up. "Can I get anything for you ma'am? It's on the house if you're with Socket".

Well that seems a misunderstanding? Or is it? Also, what's kept you busy enough not to visit your favorite hangout for a week or two?
Well that's awkward, this lady thinks you and Socket are a couple. Do you say anything? Also what would Grandma think, you coming to a cafe like this? Also, knowing what you know, certain teas and herbal drinks are known to delay venom spread. Maybe they have something that can help you out?

[CoreBrute23]

"Of course I brought a date Clarissa." Socket said confidently. "I always have at least a few at a time." He turned to Myorei...and then reached down to his fanny pack..

"I know how much you like them." He passed her a bag of nuts, berries and dates. "I had to keep them vacuum sealed. You know how Phil likes to eat everything he smells." He nodded excited.

"Sorry I haven't been here recently. I've been working on the server in the Starbase. And, you know...the other thing." His ears tilt downwards, almost like an upset rabbit. He then looks around.

"Do you know who else is here? Any of the regulars? Has YoMama420HarambeBlazeit arrived to play Gratuitously Real Tournament?"

You should probably take over here, cause otherwise Socket's just gonna play video games.

[Merilan]

Freedom smiled quietly, if a bit wan, at the waitress as she looked to Socket and blinked. "Oh... thank you," she nodded, before taking the bag of dates and nuts and putting them on the table. "Do you happen to have any tea...?"

It looked like Socket had a better grasp of who to ask for at the moment, so she watched the robot with some pleasure, enjoying seeing him interact with others.

[Razade]

Freedom/Socket

Clarissa offers a smile back, seeming rather used to Socket's strange mannerisms. "No...it's been real quiet around these parts for the last week. Rumbles say that something's going down across town. Lot of our regular customers buying into some martial arts class or something. Dunno, keeps the place slow I guess. Charlie's here in the back but he's been in a foul mood lately. Won't even come see me off hours." she pouts, winking to Freedom. "I'll get you your tea honey." With that, Clarissa walks off though returns quickly with a kettle of water and packets of tea. Certainly not what you're used to at the Shrine. Clarissa doesn't linger but she's still on the clock and around.

Freedom, you notice something with your natural spirit senses and the taint within you. The venom throbs in your body now that you've had a few minutes to sit and relax. It's almost as if you can see lines of the black gunk along the floors and walls and computers. There isn't a pattern per say, but there's a lot of it just laying around.

Who or what is Charlie? What does he come here for?
The rest of the team thought you were suited for this job but what would Grandma think if she knew you were in some Mutant Cafe? Roll to check your Legacy. The results will be waiting for you.

[Mr Sitouh]

"So, ah . . . everything good with you and Wereshark?" she asks quietly as they proceed down the sewer.

"Yeah - I think we'd have both be happier if we'd actually been able to check things out with the Valkyries instead of getting Tonbogiri up in our grill. He's harder on himself then he needs to be, but that's all of us in a nutshell, really." He glances over at her as they walk. "How are you doing? That was a nasty-looking knife you had there when you were talking about hitting Hexxen - everything all right?"


"Are you here to see your mother? I can help you find her room if you'd like? You must be so excited to welcome a new brother or sister into your family!"

Charlie had been planning to duck into a restroom, costume up, and then ask for a blanket directly. Aggressively Helpful Nurse sees them before he can put this plan into action, though, so time to improvise!

"Um, actually we're here for a class assignment - we were supposed to meet Doctor..." A quick glance at a whiteboard behind the nurse station counter shows a crossed-out name, "Patel? We were going to interview him about his job?" He opens up his bag and starts rummaging as if looking for a paper. "...um, you've got the question list, right, Amelia?"

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

En Route to the Hospital

Reaver sighs as they crest the sewer entrance and start walking towards the metro stop. Her cloak and armor flow back into her typical clothes as she starts patting herself down to find her transit pass.

"Yeah, and it's not like he needs more of that. The whole city's got that part covered . . . huh?"

She reddens slightly as Dynamis brings up the flensing knife and fixes her gaze straight ahead.

"Uh . . . yeah. Stress, you know? It's been a long day already, and I'll have to get the homework from my afternoon classes from someone, and . . . gah, you know. The usual bulls***."

She checks herself for a moment, but it's Dynamis. Talking to him is like talking to a big welcoming bowl of warm soup.

Holy crap Mrs. Goldberg is right, I SUCK at metaphors . . .

". . . I just want to hit something, you know? Like, REALLY smash something or someone up with my bare hands. Or, I dunno, go to town on someone's skull with a hammer. Throw a car at a building. SOMEthing."

She says this with a shrug and a sigh, as though to play off the statement as something day-to-day.

At the Hospital

"Ah! Uh, yeah, one second . . ."

She fumbles for a second, slapping her pockets as though looking for a notebook before a flash of inspiration hits her.

"Right! Yeah, got it on my phone right here," she exclaims genially, pulling out her flip phone and beginning its interminable boot-up sequence. Amelia's dad couldn't really spring for a smartphone, which could sting sometimes, but there was no denying a certain circumstantial convenience to the low-tech option.

"Give it a sec, it's kinda slow . . ." she hedged, hoping the nurse would have better things to do as her phone slowly inched to life.

[Razade]

Reaver/Dynamis

The nurse takes the phone, glancing between you a little more skeptically before glancing back at the On Call list. "Doctor Patel has three deliveries today doesn't he Carrol?" she calls back to another older woman behind the desk who only nods in response. "Shall I call him for you? I'm sure he's between surgeries. If you promise to keep it short I'll make sure you get in?" She hands your phone back to you Reaver, she's not really paid to care after all. Just to be friendly and welcoming. "Go sit over there and I'll call you once I get a hold of Doctor Patel. What did you say your names are dears? Amelia and?"

[Mr Sitouh]

En route

"I know, right?" Charlie adjusts his bag on his shoulder as they head for the bus stop. "If I weren't doing this, I think I'd have gone nuts by now from just having to hold back all the time." He looks over at his friend, suddenly shy. "So, um. If you want to spar, after we get the blanket, we can - going at a punching bag or whatever's just not the same, I know that."

Trying for a comfort/support here.

In the hospital

"Chad," Charlie lies, using the name of one of the jocks who consistently calls him a sissy (one day, one of them is going to do more than call him names, and then things are going to get interesting). He looks around the ward as he zips his bag up, making a mental map for what he's about to try. "I've got an idea - be ready to leave in a hurry, he whispers to Amelia as he stands up. To the nurse, he asks, "Can you point me towards the restroom real quick?"

[CoreBrute23]

"Don't worry Clarissa. I'll have a word with Charlie." He felt bad for the young mother. Not only did she have to raise a child alone, but her son Charlie aged at an accelerated rate. Even though he was only 2, he looked and acted like a 15 year old, being gifted with incredible intellect. Socket thought she did a really good job, spending time with her child whenever she could.

I wish my father could spend time with me. He thought glumly, before looking towards the back. Charlie, despite his youth, actually did a lot of work online. He didn't speak about it much, only that it was 'tech stuff' for 'smart people'. Still, whenever Socket was able to talk him away from the computer, Charlie taught the robot a lot. The two had a lot of similarities, given their young chronological age, but appearance of maturity.

"Myorei, do you want to come see Charlie? I know he doesn't get along well with most people." Whether or not she agrees, he heads to the back where Charlie is.

I may have twisted it when you said 'off hours' to mean Charlie's off hours, rather than Clarissa. While Charlie does stay late sometimes, I'm not sure that he's mature enough to not go home with his mother.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

En Route

She smiles up wanly at Dynamis and leans into him for a moment, her head briefly resting on his shoulder as they walk.

"Heh. That's really sweet of you, D. Thanks."

And it is sweet, in a bizarre world-out-of-synch way. He didn't let her comments pass, but he's also not trying to pass it by or start digging to figure out what's wrong with her. He's just accepting it, accepting her for what she's feeling right now. She's not honestly sure if anyone else in her life would have reacted that way. It's . . . nice. Really, really nice.

"I feel like breaking things is all I'm good at, sometimes."

Reaver's mouth gets going before her brain entirely realizes what's happening.

"It feels like that's what I was built for, you know? Everything that I accomplished in Karnifel? Hell, everything I've done here? All because I'm good at breaking things. I can break gladiators, sorcerers, demons, f***ing supervillains . . .

Oh my god shut up shut up shut up

"Like, throwing down with Shield Maiden? That felt amazing. I mean, I literally want to do that all the time. All of that adrenaline, that rush, the wave of fear and exhilaration that just pulses through you, the strain of a weapon against armor . . . I never want to stop feeling that."

Her voice starts to break slightly as she keeps talking, monologuing in a half-trance.

"Because when it DOES stop, when everything else starts happening, I . . . I don't know, everything becomes confusing, or, or I screw something up, or I jump the gun and I make everything worse. And it just, it sucks," she half-sobs half-laughs at the absurdity of the inexpressiveness of her word choice, "Like, you can't just break things as a way of living. And I want to know how to fix things, you know? I want to be able to put the pieces back once I'm done breaking things, but I can't, and now here we are going after a f***ing baby's blanket because I had to go running to the Innominate because I can't fix things on my own, and . . . ugh . . ."

She growls this last bit, but all of the anger has drained out of her. She feels sick with guilt bubbling in her stomach. There's that full feeling behind her eyes, that unseen ocean that seems to offer an endless reserve of tears if she'd only unclench some unseen fist within her soul and let loose.

"F***. Do I just sound completely psycho to you right now or what?" she asks in a joking tone that belies just how serious is the question.

Sharing a weakness or vulnerability! Team move ho!

At the Hospital

"Ch . . . Chad?" Reaver blurts out in half-shock before clumsily catching herself, "Uh, I'll be right here! Pee like the wind, not into the wind!"

Chad??? Why Chad??? Who even still names their kid Chad???

She sits down where the nurse had indicated, trying to keep a relaxed pose as her eyes stay glued to Dynamis and her feet prepare to go dashing through the hospital corridors.

But seriously, Chad???

[Merilan]

Freedom began to rise up as Socket went to the back, speaking, "Ah, yes, let me--" She paused, staring towards the black, inky darkness beginning to seep out of... everything. Out of the seams of the nearest LED monitors, from the folds of the booth chairs, from the glazing of the windows. "... um-- no, on second thought, you go ahead. I need a moment to gather my thoughts."

Already... I hoped the ritual would buy me more time...

[Razade]

Dynamis

The nurse points you down the hall where the public restrooms are, it doesn't seem like she's going to follow you or keep an eye on you. What do you have planned?

Answers to your questions.

1. Scrubs

2. Get a blanket.


Reaver

"Just come fetch me when you're brother comes back dear" the nurse offers helpfully before going back to handling other patients as they come in. This leaves you all alone. That should give you plenty of time to dwell on the conversation you had while you walked her. Wasn't life in Karnifel easier? No one expected you to deal with such mundane issues. Everyone loved you, well...everyone that wasn't the minion of an awful God King who ruled with an iron fist that is but those are minor details. While this is the general entry of the for the Hospital, the room is rather full of people with minor cuts and bruises. Several more injuired people are at the front. Hospitals are a vortex of the dying. How you feeling champ?

Dynamis has left you to your own thoughts while you wait for his signal. He didn't tell you what that was but I'm sure you'll know it when you see it. Right?


Socket

Charlie sits in the far back near the employee entrance. His mother's set up a high chair at one of the computer terminals and the "teen" is laser focused on it. The terminal is cluttered with plates, toys and gadgets. Charlie rarely leaves his spot, even when his mom isn't at work. He glances up only at a moment when he hears you approach, frowning. "At least you're still here Socket."

Charlie may seem lost in his computer most of the time but you know he's long since managed to hack into the security cameras. He's probably seen a lot since you've been out


Freedom

As you scan the room, you notice that while there isn't a definate pattern to the black stringy substance there does seem to be an understandable spread. The largest congregation of the stuff is with the computers and video game systems. Where most of the customers tend to congregate considering this is an internet cafe. The other largest area is the door leading out, the second most often used place in the building considering its foot traffic. What's more, the trails are leading in. Not out. Someone or something has been corrupting this place. Probably a lot of someones or somethings considering the mass. Your own venom seems to resonate with the accumulation. You feel...healthy. Better than healthy. You feel powerful. Every fiber in your being sings with life, with this kind of power...you might be stronger than Justice.

The venom is reacting to the accumulation inside the cafe. While you're here, take +1 to Unleash and Directly engage rolls until otherwise stated. However, the venom is continuing to try and take its sway over you. It's telling you that you're powerful, that you're mighty. Roll to reject or shift your Superior up by 1 and Savior down by 1.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

As Sam followed Phil through the sewers, he was lost in thought, the events of the day replaying in his head. He was worried about Freedom, and wanted to help her deal with the aftermath of their confrontation with Shield Maiden, however Freedom seemed to think he wouldn't be strong enough to handle the backlash, that he didn't have enough control, or 'balance' to withdraw the energies that were assaulting the very core of her spirit. Hell, even Amelia seemed to think the only thing he was good enough for was to go pick some damn flowers.

He sighed, kicked a can down the tunnel, the sound of it hitting a wall, echoing through the sewers. As Phil led them to a large storm drain, they were able to exit the sewers without incident, and circle the Sleeping Giant reserve. As they walked Sam's mood lightened, slightly, he looked at the trees and remembered the last time he'd been to the reserve.

"Hey Phil, I ever tell you 'bout the time me and my folks came camping here? Unmitigated disaster." He chuckled to himself, "My dad being away from his savant phone, unable to check the SFSX*, my mom trying to do her yoga in the mornings despite the torrential downpour." His voice trailed off as he realized he was talking about his parents to the guy who felt he had to let his continue to believe he was dead ... "Oh ****. Sorry."

He sullenly pulled down his hood and continued to walk through the reserve, until they came to the board walk up to Jade Vine's Floristry, the crowd of people was daunting. More so to Phil, he imagined, but at least they wouldn't have to worry about the electrical grids exploding, or Hexxen Tek hacking them through camera's. Ivy was notoriously low tech, she only had a rotary phone and a transistor radio from all accounts.

Undaunted by the crowds, Shade began to walk through, "Excuse me, Yes, he's part shark, pardon me, Seven Star's business, We'll just be a moment, No he's not hungry, One of the Preserver's lives is at risk."

* SFSX = San Fransapporo Stock Exchange

I'm assuming this is a Provoke, trying to get the crowd to allow us to pass with minimal fuss, seeing as I am travelling with a seven foot tall, five foot broad man-shark, I am hoping they are susceptible to my words. I am rolling with Superior, +1, however I am feeling Guilty, so that's a -2, for a net modifier of -1. [roll0]. Lets see how this goes.

Yup, that sucked. Potential!

Plan B: http://i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j419/Zen_Gypsy/princess-bride-o_zps8dcvqits.gif (http://s1084.photobucket.com/user/Zen_Gypsy/media/princess-bride-o_zps8dcvqits.gif.html)

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

What are you trying to say? I could be... stronger than Hiryou, I...

There was silence from the shrine maiden, as she picked herself up and limped herself over to the computers. She didn't really know how to operate one, or a video game, but she'd watched the regulars before at their tournaments.

She grimaced as the power surged through her and she stood up straight.

No, you're wrong... this isn't strength. This is a false power, full of lies... I've seen it before.

She sat down at a computer, and stared at it, seeing if she could puzzle out how this device was corrupted -- if the attacker left any kind of a trace...?

I got a 7 on my reject, so Freedom's going to reject the venom's words that she's strong and say that it's a false kind of power. She also wants to access the computer to see what's what.

I'm gonna mark potential from that move, which brings me up to 5! Huzzah!

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Phil led the way through the sewers in silence. Once it had become apparent that they would be the ones to collect an Orchid, someone had suggested the Sleeping Giant reserve. It seemed like a good idea, since Wereshark couldn't just pick out what an Orchid smelled like without some kind of reference. Of course, now he felt like a dog chasing a scent. It was slightly humiliating, but at least this way he could be of some use to the group without smashing something.

Sam kicked a can as they walked and sighed to himself, and it was only then that Phil noticed something off about his old friend. He turned to glance at the shadowy teenager for a moment, not quite able to read his expression. It wasn't for the first time Phil wished his mutant powers had made him able to read minds or at least have some increased intelligence. Unfortunately, he'd been more of a jock in high school anyways, so it made sense his powers related more to physical prowess.

As they finally left the dark confines of the sewer, Wereshark blinked a few times in the late afternoon rain as it filtered through the trees. The reserve had always struck him as particularly beautiful, but Phil hadn't visited it much as a child. He'd only been able to visit the few times his parents had taken samples for some studies.

"Hey Phil, I ever tell you 'bout the time me and my folks came camping here? Unmitigated disaster." Sam chuckled to himself, "My dad being away from his savant phone, unable to check the SFSX*, my mom trying to do her yoga in the mornings despite the torrential downpour." Suddenly, Sam grew quiet for a moment. "Oh ****. Sorry."

Phil stared at Sam for a moment, his expression neutral.

"No, you never did tell me that story." He responded quietly. "I imagine your dad started having withdrawals within minutes. I always thought he would've had that thing surgically attached at one point. And I can't believe your mom tried to get mine started with yoga too; she was just too busy with the gene project they were working on..."

They had reached the usual crowd that flocked to Jade Vine's Floristry. Even without his sharpened senses, Phil had always thought they reeked of various herbal and medicinal smells. The crowd was particularly why he'd never visited this shop before even as a child, and it was hard to focus on anything else for a time. Sam pushed through, encouraging those gathered to move aside. Some had already turned to see the giant shark, and they got that fearful look on their face. Phil ignored them this time, he had much more important things to do.

"Hey, how are they doing these days?" Phil asked Sam as they continued walking. "How are your parents handling this? And how...how are mine...coping?"

[Razade]

Wereshark/Shade

You get a little through the line though eventually you hit a wall. Not literally mind you, but physically as a man, equally as large as Wereshark, looms in front of you. He turns to face you his body a solid slab of muscle, and by the scowl on his face, hatred. "No cutting. You ain't special." he growls past torn lips, his face a series of terrible scars and fresh wounds, cracking his knuckles menacingly. Those you cut start to murmur angrily as well but no one seems to want to start anything. Except the guy in front of you. He seems like he wants to start something. The man turns around once more, the line continues to move as normal and the weather, though wet, is at least warm.

Well that didn't work out as you planned and the crowd's against you. You'll have to figure out another way to get around or you'll just have to wait. At least the line is moving. What do you do?

You've got some time to talk, the line's not moving fast. But Shade, Shade's trying to get ahead fast. Maybe you should slow him down? If for no other reason than the guy ahead of you will give you more problems than you've got. If the look and sounds he's making are any indication.

[Mr Sitouh]

En Route


"F***. Do I just sound completely psycho to you right now or what?" she asks in a joking tone that belies just how serious is the question.

"Nah, it makes perfect sense," Charlie says matter-of-factly. "It's physics, right? It's always easier to break things than it is to fix 'em. Then you have to think about all the time and energy that got put into making us incredibly good at breaking stuff - my enhancements, your Soul Arms and Armor, both of our training. Of course it's going to feel like we're terrible at fixing things next to all that!"

He continues, his gestures becoming more emphatic. "But you keep trying, and you're good at it! I mean, you're the reason we've got a way to deal with this curse at all! And you have the Innominate because you convinced a wizard to help your team back there save the world from an evil God-King! That's not just breaking stuff!" He's quiet for a moment, then adds, "You're what I'm trying to be, y'know? Someone who's more than just the weapon other people tried to make you into. You do it, so that means it can be done."

Charlie thinks there's definitely hope for you, Amelia! Shift your Savior up and your Mundane down!

[Mr Sitouh]

In the Hospital

Once out of the nurse's line of sight, Charlie spots a convenient supply closet, which he walks up to and enters with the purposeful stride of someone who is supposed to be there doing something they're supposed to do. A baggy pair of scrub bottoms fit over his pants, his flannel shirt gets tossed into a laundry cart to complete the ensemble, and he's heading back towards the maternity ward, to those not looking closely a staff member on a mission.

[Razade]

Freedom

The computer, in our spiritual sense, appears covered in sticky black webs. Globs of the corruption stick to certain keys, who ever was using the thing was busy. You might be able to piece together a message or even contact the lingering spiritual power within the lingering venom though like when you connected to Shield Maiden, there is certainly risks there.


Yay! You no longer are under Influence under the venom! Now to just kick the rest of the damage you've already got.

1. What here can I use to draw the dark spirit out? - Your natural spirit communing powers could probably pull out what ever it's here, but it seems mostly just fragments of something larger that remain. An Unleash would allow you to connect to the fragments, a Provoke might be able to force enough of the fragments to collect to do what you wish.

2. How can I best end this quickly? - Find the person or the people who are coming into Rock'Em Socket that are infected like you.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

As they moved towards Ivy's, Phil responded.


"Hey, how are they doing these days?" Phil asked Sam as they continued walking. "How are your parents handling this? And how...how are mine...coping?"

Sam shrugged, "Honest truth?" He paused, "Haven't told them, they think Mr. Han's a cantankerous old man who makes me work like a slave after school." He almost smiled, "I mean not far from the truth. I'll make you a deal, I'll tell mine when you tell yours?"

It was like watching an eclipse as a mountain of a man blocked his path. A huge, scarred, scary looking man. Sam cracked his knuckles, shifted his stance, and then a thought crossed his mind ... Freedom.

"Wow, a big @%^ scary looking man. So big, so bad, so scary a trickle of pee might of just ran down my leg. I've been looking for a guy like you all god damn day, someone I can lay out just to prove I can." He smiled beneath the mask, "But it's your lucky day, I don't have the time to kick your @%^ a friend of mine, Freedom," he looked around, making eye contact with the angrier members of the crowd, "you know the one who has put her life on the line for this city more than a dozen times. Is %^$&#* dying from some super-villain she fought in the park this afternoon. Now, my pal Shark and I need to get a sample of an orchid so we can track down some %^% $%#* medicine to cure my friend and stop her from dying! So if that inconveniences any of you I'm %^$&*(& sorry but her life is worth a few minutes of your time."

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

Freedom focused her thoughts, and then let her mind drift as she felt her soul reach outward. She extended her spiritual 'fingers', trying to grasp at the black soul-stuff that surrounded the computer, communing with the dark webs and the spiritual presence beyond it. This was good. She can control it... she can control it, can't she?

I know you're there. Now... you'll tell me who you've corrupted, and what message they've typed.

I'll Unleash my power to extend my senses -- I have a +1 from the Assess and a +1 from the prior accumulation. [roll0]

Not sure if I should be rolling two moves at once, but Freedom is also trying to provoke the dark presence to reveal the message that was typed on the computer's keys. I'm Guilty, so I have a -2 to the action... [roll1]

[CoreBrute23]

"Commander Hacker Blaster." Socket salutes Charlie like a soldier. "Permission to speak sir Master Commander Hacker blaster?" With anyone else, it might seem like Socket was playing pretend, like you'd do with a toddler, or it might come off as condescending. However, Socket is taking it completely seriously-after all, Charlie is older than him.

"I wanted to thank you for your guidance on cyber security. It helped a lot earlier today." He bows as best he can, but his body isn't very flexible. "I couldn't have done without your lessons Master Commander Hacker Blaster Trainer." He then looks up at the surrounding table.

"If I may ask, is everything alright? You seem a little...sullen?" He struggles with the word.

First of all, Charlie has influence over Socket, despite the fact he's not an adult, just because it's very easy to influence the robot.

Second, I'm attempting to use my Thermodynamic miracle move, to comfort Charlie, with my Freak Roll, to hopefully get him to open up to me. If you don't think my move applies, -2 from my roll:

[roll0]

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty

En Route

Reaver feels herself begin to flush and curses her pallor internally.

I'M what he's trying to be? That . . . heeheehee . . . Oh wow . . .

To disguise the incoming blush, she looks away for a second and pretends to fuss with something in her pocket.

"Well, y'know," she replies as she eventually manages to face him with only the slightest flush, "You don't really need to try. You already are a lot more than just a weapon. You're, uh, you're a teammate, you're a, well, you're a SUPERHERO, you're my friend, you . . . yeah. You're, yeah, you're a lot more than what those bastards did to you. You know that, right?"

On impulse, she reaches up to his face . . . and abruptly realizes she has no idea what she was going for, so she pinches his cheek.

. . . What are you, his grandmother???

"I, uh, thanks," she fumbles, drawing her hand back down slightly fast but still smiling and blushing, "That, that really means a lot. Hehe."

Gonna call this a clumsy comfort or support. If I somehow end up with a 10+, add to the Team pool.

[roll0]

Hospital

Reaver takes her seat with a brief nod to the nurse, and then finds herself at a bit of a loose end. She glances around, but the whole Neonatal section is fairly dull. There's no bustle, and relatively little hustle. There is activity, certainly: any maternity ward is going to have its fair share of goings-on and derring-to. But, overall? Quiet.

Gods, imagine having something like THIS in Karnifel . . . magic is all well and good, but understanding the workings of the body proper? Hell, understanding DISEASE? Staving off infection without the supernatural, without invoking the eldritch . . .

You pinched his CHEEK? WHY?? That is so WEIRD and he thinks you are weird now you weirdo!

It would be cool to be a doctor, I guess. Fixing PEOPLE, not just things. Med school would probably kick my *ss, though . . . Well, not like I'm going to have the chance to go to med school anyway . . .

(Crap. Bio. Gonna have to get the bio homework off of someone. At least Dad won't notice that I missed classes again . . .)

Oh god, I pinched his cheek, why did I do that, that was so DUMB AAAAAGH

Why is that guy even here? His hand is cut? Please, let your body do the work . . .

WHY DID I PINCH HIS CHEEK???

She shakes her head, trying to clear out the intrusive embarrassed thoughts . . . and then catches sight of Dynamis in scrubs walking into the neonatal ward.

". . . what . . ."

[Razade]

Dynamis

No one seems to notice that you haven't come out of the bathroom yet or that you've changed into scrubs. A few nurses even greet you as Doctor. The disguise is going well. What do you do now that you're in disguise? Reaver's waiting on your signal and though your disguise has succeeded it's not going to last forever. Even worse, someone might think you're actually a doctor and then you'll be drug into surgery! Do you even know how to preform a surgery? Best hurry.

It seems Reaver rolled a 7 on her Comfort/Support. That means if you open up to her words you can clear a condition, mark potential or shift labels if you open up to her words

Socket

"At ease and...thanks. I think you're giving me too much credit though." Charlie grumbles, motioning to a nearby seat that couldn't possibly seat you. "Everyone's just...gone...Mom's making a brave face but no one's tipping. Everyone who does come in is...angry...frightened. No one wants to play games and when they do they get mad when they lose. It's like all my friends are gone. I was afraid they got you too. A couple of the guys have started talking about strange stuff too lately. Wanting to be seen by "normies", send a message that mutants aren't going to be held down forever. It's scary."

He's opened up to you, you can also clear a condition/add a team to the pool. What do you do?

Reaver

Is that the signal? It might be the signal. Now would probably be the wrong time to make a scene but can you be sure you're not supposed to get a move on? You pinched his cheek and now you're in a hospital with him raiding the place for a baby blanket. Where did things go wrong to lead you here?

Not much I can add here, sorry! Dynamis is driving this train, no brakes! CHOO CHOO

Freedom

Images come in spurts and fits, garbled but in enough sequences to form a vivid picture. Faces you recognize, faces you've spoken to directly. It's not just one person, it's a group. A large group. Most of the mutants in Rock'Em Socket's have been infected though the source isn't someone you recognize. He's tall, dressed in a pressed suit and tie with a hat settled over flowing white hair. He wears a Harlequin's mask, his hands gloved. He's passing out syringes to a few of the more sullen and abused of the mutants, the contents to your eyes the corruption itself. In an instant however the well dressed man looks up, almost as if he can see you. A chill runs through the lines of corruption and they react as if burned, the images breaking apart as the lingering memories and sensations of the blight seek the gentle silence of the still fresh wounds the venom has left in you. It does no further harm to you but the memories and that chill filling will be with you until you're healed. What do you do?

You have your man but not his face. You do have power over this corruption. Add "Spiritual Venom" to your Influences.

Shade/Wereshark

I believe Wereshark said he was going to do something after you posted Shade. Don't want you to feel left out though, so I'll leave you to it. What ever happens, you'll get to Ivy's soon enough.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty, Angry


"I'll make you a deal, I'll tell mine when you tell yours?"

"Deal." Phil grunted, though he made a mental note to ask Sam about that again later. At this rate, that meant he would never tell them, and Phil wasn't sure Sam wanted to distance himself from his parents like that. It had hurt deeply for Phil to do that, and he still found himself wishing he could just pop in and hug his parents again.

The man blocking their path was impressively tall, though he looked as if he had been flossing with barbed wire for some reason. Phil wasn't sure there was something here that could help a condition like that, but before he could say anything Sam went on the offensive. Unfortunately, he sounded a lot like someone playing the "I know a celebrity" card.

"We're not actually here to buy, all I need is a whiff of an orchid and we can go. Not quite sure what this line's about anyways." Phil added after Sam finished.

If this was just the line for the store entrance, the owner really should have thought about upgrading some time ago. Making so many people wait outside and in long lines was always a recipe for disaster, and Wereshark was getting itchy from the smell of anger seeping from the man in front of them. Too much longer, and he'd need to go somewhere with fresher air.

[Razade]

Wereshark/Shade

"No one cares!" Someone in the crowd shouts, another flings a half full cup of soda from behind you and splashing it all across the ground. "Yeah! My kid's got a fever of 102! We're all here for a reason! Shut up and wait your turn jackass!" The line continues to move at a sluggish pace, the large man in front of you ignores the rant though he does begin to clench and unclench is hands. You can see the door now as the line moves once more. You're almost there and you can actually even see Jade Vine walking about the store, a frail older woman in roughspun homemade clothing with the bones and skulls of birds and smaller animals hanging out of her graying hair and clothing as little ornaments. You could probably push ahead but the natives? The natives have lost their chill. Jade doesn't seem to notice or care at least. With one more customer out, it's just you and the big guy remaining, Jade shooting the both of you a mysterious smile as she approaches. "Ya'll sit down dears, right oar dere. I'll be wit ya in jus' a moment. Try some tea. It'll relax ya." She motions to a small hutch within her shop overladen with tea cakes and kettles, a few mostly clean chipped tea cups sprawled about haphazardly inside.

The shop is, as one might imagine. Cluttered. Overgrown with vines and plants. Several greenhouse attachments provide a stable supply of fruits and vegetables that appear to be on sale. The rich scent of petrichor and loam fill the air, the place is cramped (especially so for Wereshark who has to duck to not hit his head on the rafters) but homey. Cats of various shapes and stripes wander about the place, rubbing up against your legs and generally making themselves a nuisance. Eventually Jade Vine approaches after shutting the door to her shop. "Now then!" she shouts, her eyes crinkled in what might be a smile that doesn't quite reach her mostly toothless mouth. "What's lit the fire under your butts boys. Shoutin', hollerin', pissin' off mah customers and such like."

http://i.imgur.com/J6F4jen.jpg (http://imgur.com/J6F4jen)
You've made quite the scene. While you're already to your destination I'd like you to roll + what your Mask Embodies. We'll call this move Facade's Reputation

1-6: Someone important in the city has changed their opinion on how they see your heroic identity for the worse. Expect consequences for this display in a major way.
7-9: You've aggravated someone in the scene, they're a minor player and you'll find yourself impeded on something important.
10+: You've made people mad but they're going to forget in a few hours. Your reputation
The crowd is getting angrier. They're starting to throw things and generally getting more ramped up. It's not just the big man in front that's seething, Shade's doing a good job jerking people around. What do you do?

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Phil had never been in Jade Vine's shop before. At first he had thought it was just a florist shop, but the people seeking remedies confused him. A pharmacy would've been much better for someone with a fever, but now that he was inside it made much more sense. His parents had never taken much stock in organic medicine of any kind, but the lady clearly had clientele for a reason. At least, Phil hoped there was a reason.

"Just here to get a whiff of an orchid, ma'am." Phil said as he scratched his nose absentmindedly and ducked under another rafter. He definitely wasn't about to apologize for spooking her customers, as that had been largely unintentional, but he put a hand on Sam's shoulder anyways. Wereshark's muscles were twitching in anticipation of a fight with the big man next to them, and Phil wanted to stall that confrontation if at all possible. "Don't think the genus or species matters, so long as it could grow in a graveyard. It's apparently very important for some sort of magic ritual that our friend needs, and we're short on time."

[CoreBrute23]

Socket scoots over to the seat, and bends down just enough that it looks like he's sitting on it. He's broken enough of these chair to know what they could and couldn't withstand.

"Commander Hacker Blaster," He said softer than before. "You know I wouldn't leave you. Who would keep me safe from the Evil organisation Nega-Saturn Communion*?" He patted the young boy on the shoulder.

Maaaaan. I hate it when Dynamis is right. He thought inwardly. Socket was really upset that people he knew could be connected with this.

"Do you have any idea who 'they' are? The ones who are telling our friends these things?" He asked. "Or maybe which of our these guys were saying those mean things? I'm sure Myorei and the other Seven Stars can help."

The problem with being in a superhero world, is it's impossible to tell the difference from a real threat, and the imaginary nonsense children make up. Especially when they turn out to be the same thing. :smalleek:

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

W-what was that?

Freedom's eyes widened as the connection shrivelled away, flecks of a spiritual equivalent of ember as they washed away and the trails of corruption rescinded. It was like he could see me... who was that man...? That man in the mask...

She frowned. This was even messier than she'd thought, hoped it would be. She needed to find out more information... the shrine maiden slowly picked herself up from the computer and headed to the counter where Clarissa was working.

"Excuse me," she spoke slowly, "Do you know if you've seen a tall, white-haired man in a jester... harlequin's mask around here? About... this tall," she approximates with her palm, "Dresses in a coat, wears gloves?"

[Mr Sitouh]

When Amelia looks away, Charlie cringes inwardly - he screwed up, he said the wrong thing, he ruined it - but then she looks back at him, smiling, and the world is not in fact ruined.

Then she's saying how he's everything he's afraid he's not down in that part of his brain convinced everything is going to go as wrong as possible, and she's reaching out to... pinch his cheek? He's not sure what to make of this, but she's smiling and he's smiling and it's good.

"Thank you," he says, feeling a blush of his own coming on. "I do, up here," he taps his head, "but it's good to be reminded sometimes."

Marking potential, if that's sufficient opening up.

Hospital

His disguise is less than paper thin, but it's holding - time to move before that falls apart. Walking through the ward, he turns into the first private room with a baby and tired but happy people there.

"Excuse me," he says from the doorway, trying to put on his best 'yes I am a responsible yet friendly adult' face (his favorite therapist from after being liberated from Archangel being a key role model.) "My name's Charlie Vance, and I have a bit of an odd request to make, on behalf of the Preservers. May I come in?"

[Razade]

Team Pool (2)

Socket

Charlie thinks for a few moments but shakes his head. "Alphonse and Aiala but Mr. Frog kicked them out. They haven't been in over a week, got into a big fight with some of the others over something. No one would tell me what though, I'm just a kid. I wanna play some video games, you can join me if you want? I don't really wanna talk about this anymore. I doubt anyone else is gonna come in tonight either."

He doesn't seem to know much more but maybe he's got the security recordings?


Freedom

Clarissa looks up from the bar as you approach, putting a towel aside. The question is certainly not what she expects, leaning on the counter and closer to you. "That doesn't sound like any customer we've ever had. Regular people don't come here too often, not like you and me anyway. But a few of the clients started carrying these tarot cards a few weeks back. The Fool...that's like a jester? We confiscated a couple the other night. They've got writing on the back. I could go get one for you to look at? What's all this about anyway?"

http://i.imgur.com/2uPmRhj.png (http://imgur.com/2uPmRhj) The Tarot Card "in question"


Dynamis

A beleaugered but content man looks up, the mother blissfully passed out with her newborn baby in her arms. "You...oh of course Doctor, were you in the operating room helping with the Dilevery? I thought our Doctor was Doctor Porter? Did he send you by to see Abigail? Come right in, do you need a seat? You can use mine if you do, I really should be getting going. Just wanted to wait for Abigail to fall asleep. She's perfect isn't she?" The man quickly gets out of his chair for you, not seeming to take any kind of no for an answer even as he prepares to pack.

I'm going to ask you to roll another "Maintain Disguise" here. So that would be with your Superior. Same as the last one on success, failure.


Reaver

It doesn't look like Dynamis is coming back. You haven't heard a commotion but who knows how far he really got. Maybe it'd be best to go looking for him? Sticking around in a waiting room is probably not the best use of your time and the Nurses are starting to look at you and then quickly whispering between themselves.

[CoreBrute23]

Alphonse and Aiala. Socket struggled with trying to remember who they were. He didn't really spend as much time with everyone in the cafe as he would like.

Do I know who they are?

As Charlie asked him to play, Socket knew what he was supposed to do. He knew he should ask Charlie more questions, maybe see if he could look at the security feeds. But the truth was, Socket didn't want to know more. He didn't want to think the people he spent time with could be involved in something like that. He didn't want to cause Charlie anymore grief. He just wanted things to be fun again.

Socket extended a cable from his wrist, which evolved into a usb wire.

"Player 2 is ready." Socket noted as he nodded, before plugging into the computer.

I'm gonna run away from something difficult, in this case, making Charlie upset by asking any more questions, so I'm throwing myself into gaming. Assuming Raz finds this acceptable, this should clear my Afraid condition. Let me know how it works boss.

Sorry Freedom, that you're doing all the work.

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

I see... he did not necessarily infect them here, but there was a common electronic vector that they infected -- or, perhaps, was used by the hacker once they were infected...

"Could you please do me a favour?" Freedom asked of Clarissa, urgency creeping into her tone. "These clients of yours that have these cards -- they're ill, infected with a spiritual venom. Ask them to visit the Hakari Shrine, please."

She felt pretty bad about sending them off to the Shrine, but it was the only place she could think of where they'd receive the proper aid. That was even assuming that Reaver's ritual could be repeated... if not, she'd have to ask Grandmother Yumei for assistance, and she wasn't certain she'd help her.

She checked the tarot card more carefully, looking at the writing in the back, and gazing into her spiritual sense to see if there's any 'residue' in the card itself, or whether it's harmless.

[Razade]

Socket

This seems to cheer Charlie up immediately, any other talk devolving into the typical chatter that people do when playing games.

We'll clear Afraid if Freedom leaves you to it. Otherwise, keep Afraid.

Alphonse and Aiala are two rather high profile mutants that come into the store, a couple. They both part snake though look mostly human. They don't really play games, they just use the computers and the social group.



Freedom

Clarissa nods in understanding. "Hakari Shrine" she repeats back, moving to get some pen and paper. "That sounds horrible! I'll make sure to tell anyone I can, you can count on me miss. I-I better...I better get back to work though." The back of the card has some form of writing though seems to be clear of the venom, it's just a crappy novelty tarot card. The writing seems to be part of a map, part because it's obvious it needs something else to complete it. You can maybe make out some structures, it almost looks like what ever it is is on Bear Island. Bear Island, where the Hexxen Industries capital is.

What do you do?

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty

Reaver stares blankly for several seconds as Dynamis goes walking past in scrubs. This just took a turn. She's not sure if this is a signal or not, and he said she'd need to be ready to leave in a hurry, but . . .

Oh hell, this is the Taco Truck incident all over again . . .

She scowled into the communicator, pointedly angling the video call away from the flaming construction site.

"Okay, ONE, it was not my fault that we were late! I was . . . Well, I didn't know that, did I? You just said 'wait for the signal', and I . . . okay, no Sam, I'm gonna stop you right there, NOBODY in their right mind would get that a busload of nuns was 'the signal'!"

"Mmph? MMPH! MMPH!" came a sudden noise from the rug she'd duct-taped shut. She closed her eyes and counted to five as Wereshark got on the line with her.

". . . Yes, I UNDERSTAND that, 'shark. Really, I do. That thing with the fire hydrant was on me, 100%, and I am VERY sorry. But that doesn't change the fact that this WHOLE thing was totally avoidable, and SONOFAB****!"

This last came out as a yelp as the squirming rug nearly rolled off the roof, avoiding a splattery fate only thanks to her panicked reflexes.

"I gotta go. He's awake. Send Socket ASAP, and make absolutely sure that those guys with the kilts don't follow him. NOW! Mr. Manager," she growled, producing a menacing looking knife from her Soul Arm, "WHAT DID YOU DO WITH THAT HOT SAUCE CONTAINER?"

. . . no. We don't talk about the Taco Truck incident. Repress. Repress . . .

Slightly disoriented from unwanted memories and sense flashbacks of pepper and onions, she rises woozily from her seat.

"Uh, bathroom . . ." she says to nobody in particular, and then heads down the hallway after Dynamis.

She catches the tail-end of his speech, and immediately drops down to tie her shoes. The dad seems blissed out, and the mom is asleep . . . really, this should all be a piece of cake, right?

[Mr Sitouh]

"Yes, she's beautiful," Charlie agrees, smiling at the baby. (He likes babies, as long as nobody's expecting him to hold them or something.) "I'm here indirectly because of your daughter - the superhero Freedom, of the Preservers, is looking into some dark magic she found during Shield Maiden's attack earlier today. She's working with Seven Stars and Tonbogiri, and they have a ritual to neutralize it. However, one of the items needed is a blanket from a newborn baby." He glances at the blanket Abigail is wrapped in, hoping it's not some heirloom.

"We'll definitely replace it, and if the ritual allows we'll return the original - I don't have all the details for the ritual yet. But you'll be able to tell your daughter she helped keep San Fransapporo safe from the day she was born." He looks at the proud father, hoping that this isn't about to blow up in his face.

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

Bear Island... is that where he's luring all the mutants? But to what end... no, we know why -- power absorption. Much like Shield Maiden, the process would leave them decrepit, lifeless husks. It's the venom that convinces them that they are powerful, while all the same sapping them of their vitality in the end...

Freedom returned to her little booth and dipped the teabag and let it brew for a moment, brow wrinkling. She hadn't really developed a taste for dry teabags. They always wound up tasting so... off. She took out the cellphone she had and sent a text message towards the rest of the group.

>>Freedom here. Have some good, and some bad news.
The good news is that I've managed to identify where Hexxen is planning their next big move. I caught wind of the venom's transmission vector and saw a glimpse of the perpetrator.
The bad news is, the venom's infected more people than we expected -- a lot of the regulars at Rock 'em Socket are sick.
I've asked Clarissa to direct whoever's infected to the Hakari Shrine for now. They'll be gathering at Bear Island where Hexxen Industries capital is.<<

She blinked and wondered how Socket was doing with Charlie, peering towards the door in the back. She got up slowly and knocked. "Socket...?"

[CoreBrute23]

Socket doesn't react to Freedom, completely engrossed in the game he's plugged into. It's not clear whether he's ignoring her or if he just didn't hear her.

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

Freedom blinked a few times, and then furrowed her brow, looking to her phone. Socket hadn't responded to her text, and she knew he was clearly in there. Perhaps they were busy? She wouldn't want to interrupt if Socket and Charlie were having a particularly involved conversation...

She bit her lip, but then eventually chose to let it go. She turned towards the table to sip at her tea -- making a little face as she did, then turned to Clarissa again. "Sorry to bother you again, but if Socket comes out, could you tell him I went back to the shrine? I'll meet him with the others later."

She headed out with that, and took to the alley to stoop down and focus -- the spirit-infused mandala erupting once more at her feet as she concentrated on her very essence and being. Slowly and painfully, through grimaced teeth, her large blue crystalline wings erupted once more, beautiful and translucent, though having a strange web-like pattern over them that was unusual.

She leaned against the wall for a moment to recover her breath, and then flew to the air on soulful motes, rubbing at her forehead as she did so. Back to the Hakari Shrine she goes... she neglected her chores for the day, given the attack on Diamond Square. The lawn still needed sweeping, she hadn't polished and replenished the offertories at the oratory hall...

I--I'm too lenient a mom and am allowing Socket to play videogames, enjoy your cleared condition!

[Razade]

Reaver/Dynamis

The father looks at you for several long moments and then, with a sigh, gives a nod. "Of course, it's just the hospital blanket. Anything to help I guess. We'll need another one though, if it's not too much trouble? I suppose I could just ask the nurse." He moves carefully so as not to disturb his sleeping wife or child and in a few moments offers you the thick pink blanket. "I hope it helps. I guess it'll be a story to tell Abby when she's old enough. Just do me one thing. You make a name for yourself so she can be proud she helped you."

Blanket get! Now what? If you take it to the base it might get damaged. Maybe it's better kept at your Sanctuary? You should probably help get another blanket too.
Blanket get! Now what? You know the others are working on the other bits, maybe finding a graveyard would help? You should probably get another blanket too.


Socket

Charlie seems to really appreciate having you there to play video games with him Socket, even more than usual as evidenced by him taking it easy on you for a couple games. That doesn't last long though as his unfortunate competitive streak rears its ugly head. You're going to be here for a while whether you want to be or not. On the plus side, maybe you can use this as hours worked for Jeremiah.

Not much to add here, give me some games you're playing. How it all goes down, once time moves we'll throw some stuff in at Rock'Em's and...you'll find that Freedom has left you behind ;D We're going to have you roll Chillin, Maxin, Relaxin and being all Cool to see just how this whole thing goes. Please roll + your Mundane.

1-6 You're thrashed in what ever it is your doing. Mark a Condition.
7-9 You blew off some steam. Add a team to the pool, clear a condition or take +1 forward to your next action
10+ You are the undisputed champ of video games. Take influence over your opponent and pick one option from 7-9



Freedom - Hakari Shrine


http://i.imgur.com/sEcUwGk.png (http://imgur.com/sEcUwGk)

You fly to the Shrine, a tiring experience even outside its normal strain on you considering the events of the day, but you reach it unmolested. The Shrine isn't too busy today it seems, most of the people there going about their business and only taking note of you long enough for a pleasent smile and a nod in your direction. That is until you spot your Grandmother at the top of the stone steps that lead to the main temple on the grounds broom in hand. She gazes down at you and then turns away. You know what that means. She's unhappy, as she often is, and she expects you to follow.

What do you do?

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

"G-grandmother," Myorei blurted out as she landed on the shrine grounds, lowering her head. When she saw that Grandmother Yumei had simply turned around to walk off, she knew that she was in trouble; she hurried after her, wings still present as she headed up the shrine steps. Along the way, she stopped at the chozuya, a little roofed fountain where she washed her hands and her mouth and clapping her hands in prayer for a moment, before entering the shrine itself and to the hall where grandmother usually addressed her.

[CoreBrute23]

Socket was in the zone-literally. He had a first person perspective of the character, which helped a lot when in platforming situations.

Unfortunately, it just made things a lot scarier when he was in armed combat with Charlie.

"Not the face!" Socket screamed in game, ducking under his opponent's Space Naginata.

rolling Mundane which is -1. I don't think I have influence over Charlie, even though he's 2, because I treat him like the boss, so I won't include a +1. Correct me if I'm wrong GM.

[roll0]

At that moment, Socket rolled to the side by shear instinct, and got up in a moment. He twirled his two handed Galaxy Axe in an exagerated motion, before leaping higher than expected from his slender video game avatar.

"Bwahahaha!" With a solid swipe, Charlie's avatar disappeared into pixels. Socket roared victorious. "WHO WANTS A PIECE OF THE MAIDEN HERE?" Anyone who was watching might notice that Socket's avatar, the Maiden of the Nega-Storms, looks a lot like Reaver in battle form.

ROUND 2

Socket gripped his weapon tightly, eager to start the next round. He was so focused, he didn't notice the beeping of a message waiting for him on the communicator.

Since my Afraid is cleared up, I'll give the team another point in the pool. That brings us to 3 I think.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

Sam stood sullenly behind 'shark as he spoke with Jade Vine herself. He certainly wasn't feeling himself right now, and he wasn't sure why. Everything that had happened so far today, he had needed someone to bail him out, his confrontation with Gloom, his plan to absorb the infection, healing Freedom, his attempts to get them in to see Vine quickly, it was all just pissing him off.

Phil sensed it, put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down, he shrugged it off. "Lets just get out of here fast, we've got more important things to do."


You've made quite the scene. While you're already to your destination I'd like you to roll + what your Mask Embodies. We'll call this move Facade's Reputation


1-6: Someone important in the city has changed their opinion on how they see your heroic identity for the worse. Expect consequences for this display in a major way.
7-9: You've aggravated someone in the scene, they're a minor player and you'll find yourself impeded on something important.
10+: You've made people mad but they're going to forget in a few hours. Your reputation

Alright, my Mask embodies Freak, and I am exemplifying my Mask at the moment, so my Freak is +3, rolling Facade's Reputation. [roll0]. We'll see how my little tantrum has affected the people of San Fransapporo!

Question, does this count as breaking something important in terms of clearing Angry? You can lash out and hurt someone with words, I just hurt my own reputation, possibly the Team's by my actions. Or is this just a consequence of Shade being pissed off?

[Razade]

Wereshark/Shade

Jade Vine listens even as she moves about her store, nodding a little though the frown is probably not a good sign even as she starts to mix a series of herbs into a bag before running it over the large man's open wounds which knit miraculously with a powerful green light. The large man hands over some money before seeing himself out but not before shooting Shade a dark look, pointing at him before the door slam shuts behind him. "Aright then." Jade Vine turns to the both of you.

"Didn't I tell yas to have some tea. Kids dese days, I tellya what. Best be calmin down there big man, it ain't you. Take a drink, growin' boys need more tea. S'thas what you are, just a big boy. Aint'cha" She motions again to the hutch as she takes a seat. "You can sniff at mah flowers, much as ya want but won't help ya. Not the season for'em out there. But ol'Jade here. She can help ya, she can grow em anywhere. Question's how much ya'll wanna pay fer my time. An if your gonna apologize for makin a mess out there. Angry customers ain't no fun ta deal with, and you two are just gonna run. Boys is all the same. Had six of my own ya know. They visit? 'Course not."

She's telling you who you are. That you're not an aggressive monster, just a kid. If you listen, lower Freak by 1, raise Mundane by 1.
It doesn't count for clearing Angry, you have to intentionally break something. It can't simply be a consequence of your actions. Now! What do you do

[Mr Sitouh]

"I hope it helps. I guess it'll be a story to tell Abby when she's old enough. Just do me one thing. You make a name for yourself so she can be proud she helped you."

"We will, I promise," Charlie says solemnly. "Thank you." With that, he exits, blanket in hand. A word at the nurse's station in passing draws some odd looks (Charlie's pretty sure he used the wrong word for something - hospital jargon wasn't something his Archangel covert training had covered) but he's gone, hurriedly shedding his scrubs and making for the exit with Amelia before anyone gets to the point of calling security.

Once they're out of line-of-sight of the front door, he lets his cheerful 'don't mind me, I know where I'm going' posture fall, leaning back against a lightpole with a sigh of relief. "Whew, mission success! And we don't have to worry about security footage or anything!" Pushing back to his feet, he grins over at his friend and teammate. "Sorry I didn't fill you in more, but I was figuring out what I was doing next about 10 seconds before I did it. Besides, if things had gone south, you needed to be able to make a clean getaway more than me, and if I'd told you my Plan B, you'd have been right there backing me up."

Subject to GM approval, this may qualify as sharing a triumphant celebration.

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Angry, Guilty

Phil growled as she set tea in front of them. "I'm not one of your sons, lady."

With effort, he reached down to try and pick a teacup up between two of his fingers. He only managed to get the cup a few inches off the table before it shattered in his grip. He held the two fingers up and showed them to Jade as he brushed the sharp pieces of ceramic off of his skin.

"You wouldn't know anything about my condition, not unless you've got a special plant in here that cures..." he gestured to himself, "this."

"And I really don't think you do. Now if you can grow an orchid in a graveyard for us, great, that's all we're here for anyways. But if you want to talk about tea and angry customers, we are going to run out of time, and I am not about to let that happen! So, what will it cost and how long will it take?"

OOC: Rejecting influence [roll0]
Gonna pick shifting danger up and mundane down as Wereshark demonstrates he still can't do small mundanities properly, also going to cancel Jade's influence on Phil and take +1 forward against her.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Condition: Guilty

Reaver is FLABBERGASTED as she watches Dynamis finesse the entire situation. Sure, he's there in disguise, but . . . going in there and blatantly asking for what they needed without subterfuge, shenanigans, or malarkey?? Never in a million years would that have occurred to her.

She follows him out in a daze, avoiding eye contact with the nurses and awkwardly shuffling through the mass of people. When they finally get outside, she yelps in excitement, jumping up and and down while she shoves him in sheer cussed joy.

"Dude! DUUUDE! Holy s***, dude!"

She keeps jumping as she half-paces half-skips around him, letting out a bunch of bubbling anxiety and nerves with every bouncing stride.

"I cannot believe you. I cannot friggin' BELIEVE you. And it worked? HOW DID IT WORK??"

She crows out a victory whoop, scaring multiple pigeons and giving a few passerby a bit of a start. The grin on her face is so wide as to threaten to split her head, and she throws herself into an enormous hug with her teammate.

"Ahh man . . . you're the best," she chuckles . . . and then stops as she realizes she just sprang a hug on him.

Before she can think any further, she is saved by her communicator vibrating. She hastily extricates herself and reads the message. Abruptly, she's all business.

"Damn . . . so, it is Hexxen that originated the curse," she muses, staring at the message in puzzlement, "But that doesn't . . . since when does Hexxen mess with magic?"

>>Copy that. Focus curing you first, then we'll investigate. Got the blanket safe and sound. Any word about the orchids?<<

She sends this and turns to look at Dynamis . . . and then her phone chimes with the custom text tone she set for her dad. She grimaces and pulls it up.

"One sec . . . ah, goddamn it . . ."

From: Dad

Your school called. Get home. Now.

She groans, a minor pit settling in her stomach.

"Well . . . my dad knows I skipped class today," she sighs glumly, facing Dynamis again, "Whaddaya think? In for a copper, in for a gold?"


I'm not sure what's going down here mechanically but I'll have Reaver ask Dynamis' advice. GM, anything else that should happen?

[Mr Sitouh]

"It was that or grab a blanket and run, and, well, I could always do that after I asked, y'know?" Charlie rolls with the shove, grinning back as Amelia dances around.

And then she's hugging him! And he's hugging her back, first out of pure reflex and then because Amelia's hugging him and this is amazing (he tries, mostly successfully, not to think about the various cybernetic bits she'll feel pressed up against him like this).

And then it's over, and it's back to the business at hand. He reads Freedom's message, frowning. "If they're working on hybrid tech/magic stuff, it'd explain a lot of the rumors about them," he comments, trying to get his thoughts to stick to saving the day. "I don't know what their long game is, but I can't see it being anything good..."

And then she gets a text from her dad, and Charlie watches the joy and energy just drain away. When she asks his advice, he tilts his head, considering. "Maybe it's time to tell him about this? I can come along for support - I'm not Freedom, but he'll have at least seen us on the news today..."

[Razade]

Freedom

Your grandmother is waiting in her usual place, a small chair overlooking the main temple complex of the Shrine at the edge of the Hall, a pot of tea at the ready and some of her favorite mochi snacks she tends to eat when she's stressed. There's already one empty plate underneath the full one. She motions for you to sit when you approach, looking over the parishioners. "You were playing with your friends again today." she says coolly, still not gazing in your direction. "Tonbogiri was asking after you not too long ago. They sent a Mrs Bishop here personally, something about running from the scene of a fight. I taught you better than that." She finally turns to look at you, her voice raising an octave as she stamps her cane against the polished wood floor. "Myorei, you know I have allowed you to be with your friends but if this continues this...shirking of your duty to our name I will have to take measures into my own hands. You are on thin ice Granddaughter. I want you well and I want you here at the Shrine. You are to take over for me when I am gone. How will you do that dead? Or worse, disgraced. Is it your desire to be like your cousin? To shame us?"

Here it comes!


Socket

Charlie actually seems more happy with the resistance, he always comes to you when he's bored just beating everyone else in the store. This, even more than just your usual presence, means you're not likely to get away still. Perhaps you should trick him into doing some work on top of the games?

Not much to add here, we'll keep you playing video games until the Orchid scene finishes up then you'll be free to go. Sound good?


Dynamis/Reaver

Reaver, your phone rings again. It seems your father isn't taking your silence well.

Just writing a prompt, you guys keep up the good RP!
Just writing a prompt, you guys keep up the good RP!


Shade/Wereshark

"Mayhbe I don't. You reckon right." Jade Vine takes a step back, eyes narrowing a little as she moves off to one of the many cluttered shelves. "But I know a'boy who needs my help when I seen one. I still want that apology boys. But I'll help ya. Was gonna ask for something more personal, magic's a personal thing. But now." She marches back up to Wereshark, a few in those dull green eyes as she plants a finger firmly into the mutant's chest. "You gotta come an' help me run this place fer a day. Do that an' we'll go grow yer smelly orchid. An' an apology. You boys need'ta learn you some manners an' I'm the one ta teach ya."

You can get the orchid, cheap and easy. All you have to do is agree to do some community service in exchange. What do you do?
All it'll take to help Freedom is to apologize to a weird old lady. What do you do?

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

Myorei couldn't help notice the plate of mochi and how Grandmother frequently ate them when she was frustrated; she lowered her head, her expression sinking back. <Forgive me, Grandmother,> was all she whispered at the end. <It is not... it is not my desire to shame you, nor the shrine...>

She paused when Yumei mentioned Justice, and her gaze went a little sidelong. <I will not... shame you... forgive me, this unworthy child...> She lowered her head further, and then did a slow bow, touching her head to the shrine floor, then repeating it again.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Condition: Guilty

Reaver scowls as her phone starts ringing, and Dynamis' words do very little to assuage the sudden flare of irritation.

She couldn't tell him WHY she didn't want to tell her dad, because that would involve telling both her dad AND Dynamis that she was going to die. Sure as anything, that would lead to her spending her last few months, years, whatever dealing her dad's feelings on it. Either he'd spend that time being guilt-stricken or over-protective, or he . . . wouldn't. She's not sure which would hurt more.

Either way, she's comfortable with their current dynamic. Adding knowledge of her "extracurricular activities" would literally complicate things for the rest of her life (however long that might be).

Still, she can't ignore this. Dynamis is right as far as that goes. And . . . maybe she doesn't have to tell him EVERYTHING, but . . .

Grunting slightly, she flips her phone open.

"Hi dad . . . Yeah, look, I'm sorry. A friend of mine is in trouble and I had to go help. I'll get the homework and copy the notes and whatever else, but I had to go."

She gives Dynamis a look at this, one half exasperated and half quiescent.

"Where next?" she mouths to him as she awaits her father's response.

Willing to roll for the results of the conversation or play it out on my own as you please, Raz!

[Razade]

Reaver

"Amelia Lynne Kremensky!" Your father shouts, easily heard past the receiver. "I am not raising a hooligan. I don't care if your friend is dying in the street, call an ambulance. You wouldn't be in such a mess if you hadn't skipped school. What am I going to do with you? I'll call your teachers and get the work, you won't be seeing your friends for a week either. March your butt back home this instant or it'll be two weeks. Do I make myself clear young lady, I swear...where did I go wrong? Too much freedom, not enough? Tell me Amelia, why do you make me worry so much. You're going to turn out just like your mother if you keep this up."

Yet another reject time unless you take his words to heart! He's saying you're going down a bad path, that you're endangering yourself and not being the smart girl he knows you are. Superior down by 1. Danger up by 1.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Reaver was all set to feel slightly guilty about her dad having a crisis . . .

"Da . . . Dad, okay, I'll be . . . Dad . . ." she half-stutters, trying to interject something akin to an apology . . .

. . . And then he went and compared her to her mother.

I liberated a WORLD! she wants to yell into her phone, passerby and her secret and all the rest of the world be damned, I fought and bled my way up from the pits to break the chains of my fellows! I killed a tyrant oppressing millions! I buried three men who were more fatherly to me than you EVER were, you self-righteous prick!

When my friends need me, I AM THERE. Where was mom? Or, hell, where were YOU when the God-King took ME?

She does not say this. Instead, her eyes widen and she freezes mid-stride. When she speaks, her voice is so thick with irony that one moment's listening would compel Alanis Morissette to correct her dumb song in an instant.

"WOW. Okay dad, it's gonna sound like I'm hanging up, but-"

She snaps the phone shut, scowling. She doesn't look at Dynamis, preferring to stare straight ahead with eyes that could pierce the concrete.

[Razade]

Freedom

<"You didn't come here to grovel."> Grandma Yumei mutters, taking one of the mochi to munch on as she looks back out over the Shrine. <"Sit up, it's bad for your spine. I've already done your chores for the day. Say your peace and get back with your friends. You don't have all night.>" She take another glance at you, frowning as her gaze seems to pierce into you. <"Do you.">

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.


"But ol'Jade here. She can help ya, she can grow em anywhere. Question's how much ya'll wanna pay fer my time."

Are you KIDDING me! Sam caught himself though, he didn't blurt it out, though as angry as he was it wasn't hard to tell he was fuming, and the shadows caught his anger, and his frustration. They began to writhe against the walls of the woman's shop. Blackmail!, he thought, This hag is bending us over a barrel for a god damn paycheck when Freedom's life is on the line!

But before he could get Phil and walk the hell out of her shop, she spoke again.


"You gotta come an' help me run this place fer a day. Do that an' we'll go grow yer smelly orchid. An' an apology. You boys need'ta learn you some manners an' I'm the one ta teach ya."

"No deal. 'shark here didn't do nothin', except for stop me from throwing down with Scar-Face. He's not the one who pissed off your customers. I am. Me. One week, that's what you get grandma."

[Mr Sitouh]

Charlie can't hear what's being said on the other end of the line, but he can tell when whatever Amelia's dad says hits all the nerves. He grimaces when she hangs up, waiting a moment to let her regain some cool as he tries to figure out something to say that'll help.

Rolling to Pierce Reaver's Mask: [roll0]

[Razade]

Wereshark/Shade

"Listen, boy." Jade Vine swivels on Shade hard, hands planted firmly on her hips. "Price ain't negotiable. Yer big strong friend 'here's gonna help or you ken forget it. Cause a ruckus in my shop. Actin like yer the only one wit problems. Like yer friend's problem's the only one matters, well only fer you it does. I ain't no friend o'the Preservers. You best count yer lucky stars, Shade o'the Worst Generation, I don't charge ya more! Mahybe think on how yer actions 'ffect those round you, 'stead of runnin your fool mouth. Now we're gonna act all civil like right now, or you can up and out my shop." Jade's scowl quickly shifts back to a smile as she holds out the pouch she fished from her collection. "This 'ere's what you'll be wantin. We can go right now, any place you pick. I'll even close my shop fer a while. What'll it be boys."

If you want her to accept your terms you're going to have to roll a Provoke, otherwise she's just going to laugh in your face and kick you out. The agressive route certainly doesn't seem to be working. What are you doing to do?
Shade's certainly not assisted in making this a smooth transaction. All it'd take is to agree to her terms. What do you do?

[Kirjath]

Wereshark
Conditions: Guilty, Angry

Her price was more reasonable than he had anticipated, and it caught Phil by surprise. It especially worked out since he didn't have any money. Phil wasn't certain what he could really do in a shop this small without breaking everything, but he wasn't about to point that detail out. If she wanted a giant shark, he wasn't terribly busy; and she had even offered payment up front. Despite Sam's outburst, Jade was being more than reasonable, and Phil finally sighed in resignation.

"It's ok, Shade." He rumbled quietly to his friend before turning back to the super-florist.

"I'll do it. One day, that's it. But you get what you get, and I can't guarantee I won't break anything accidentally."

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Guilty

Myorei remained silent for a while, but then pulled herself up, her head still bowed. Her Grandmother was definitely difficult to read, but she wouldn't dare cross her with any objection. <"Even now as we speak, they try their hardest for me, for what I lack in spiritual prowess..."> A pause, as she rose to her feet gently, bowing her head again. <"My friends... are precious to me, Grandmother.">

There was one thing she could do while she was here at the Shrine -- she drew her gohei and stepped to the centre of the oratory hall, facing the lined shelves of offertories. She took one step forward, and turned, performing her dance as she waved the purification rod around, enticing the spirits to come to her side. There was a little otherworldly howl as a cascading aurora of colours started to emanate from beyond the spiritual veil, gathering about her as she performed her rite.

This was good. This calmed her. To be one with the spirits, to channel the spirits that effused themselves throughout the world... it'll help her get ready for the battle to come.

Myorei is using Between Two Worlds to channel spirits. [roll0]

That's an 8, so I'm holding 2 -- I'm gonna clear guilty through spiritual communion, and also take a spiritual blessing to grab telepathy as an ability I can use once.

[Razade]

Wereshark/Shade

"See now. Actin' like adults now, arntcha." Jade tosses the pouch at the pair of you. "I'll meetcha at Cascadia Memorial in an hour. That's four blocks from 'ere. Use one of them fancy phones o'yers to find it. I gotta close shop, you go git walkin boys." She then turns and starts to busy herself, seeming confident you'll take the dismissal.

She's going to hold you to that, you better believe it. You've got an hour to burn, what do you do?
Wereshark's taken one for the team. You have an hour to burn. What do you do?

Freedom

Your Grandmother only snorts, waving you away. Once your ritual is done your phone buzzes. Perhaps it's Socket replying? Sadly not but on the plus side it is another part of your team. The blanket has been retrieved.

It seems Dynamis and Reaver have the blanket. No word from the others. What do you do?

[Mr Sitouh]

Dynamis

"So, um." Charlie scratches his head nervously. "Want to grab something to eat while we wait? I think there's a burger place near here that's supposed to have pretty good shakes..."

He trails off as he realizes how his suggestion might sound. He doesn't want to ask her on a date (OK, part of him does, but not right now) but, well. When you're not sure what to do and things seem bad, you get something to eat and see if things look better afterward.

[herodofcows]

Reaver
Conditions: Angry

Reaver rounds on Dynamis, half-wishing she could muster up a good reason to snap, yell, or scream at him. She can't, but she'd like to.

". . . sure. Burgers. Whatever," she growls, stalking in the direction indicated. Too late does she remember the limits of her birthday money, which sets the scowl even further into her face. Too late now, though: she's committed to the bit and has to play it out.

[Merilan]

Freedom
Condition: Normal

Myorei bowed her head to her grandmother once more, then departed towards the courtyard of the shrine. She readied the Callidus, her father's second sword where it was sitting on its pedestal in her room, praying to its spirits for a moment as she finally re-armed herself with her weapons.

"Socket... I wonder if you are done...?" she hesitated, then tried to get in contact with the robot directly, ringing his 'number', so to speak.

[CoreBrute23]

"14 losses, 14 wins, 2 ties from time outs," Socket began to speak for the first time in almost an hour, as he disconnected from the console. "It's time for the grand finale-"

Beep beep beep. Socket's ear like antennae started shaking as it began to ring. Socket's eyes glanced upwards as he aswered.

"Hello? Myorei?" Socket asked concerned. "Finished? What do you mean?" He noticed an unread message in his communicator and accessed it.

"Oh no!" He stood up. "I'm sorry, I lost track of time. Where are you? I'll come over now." He turned to look at Charlie, gave as much of a bow as his inflexible frame would allow.

"I'm sorry, I have to leave Grand Master Commander Hacker Blaster Trainer. I hope we can finish this match next time."

Where do you want Socket to meet you?

[Merilan]

Freedom paused for a moment, then let out a little sigh. "Socket, just what were you..." A pause, then she shook her head. "Just meet me at Starbase. Let the others know we're gathering there, if you come in contact with them."

She slipped her phone into her sleeves, then took the katana towards her sash and set its sheath in place. She stepped towards the porch, and flew off towards the sewers to head back towards headquarters.

[Zen Gypsy]

Shade (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21485491&postcount=9)
Condition: Angry, Guilty, Insecure.

Shade was sulking in the corner of the shop, he stared at the old hag, she p!$$ed him off, something fierce. She used to be a hero of this city, a real flora-kinetic hero. However, now she was peddling flowers and herbs in her shop, and when they asked for her help because one of their teammates lives was at risk, she bartered with them.

He waited until Phil caught up, "F^%&ing blackmail! She was a hero, did the whole cape and cowl thing, but because she's got a beef with Myorei's grandma she's gonna f^%%ing barter for the cure. Worst generation, my a$$! If we were the worst generation, we wouldn't be trying to clean up the $h!t that HER generation left when they retired to some god damn flower shop."

He looked over at his friend, maybe his closest, his small dark eyes peering right through him, "I'm sorry I wasn't much help in there, it was all I could do to keep my shadow from coming off the wall and strangling her."

He sighed, he tried to push the anger, the hurt, and the guilt away. It'd been a long day. And it wasn't over yet. "We got an hour to kill, wanna grab a slice?"