One Shot Challenge

[Quellian-dyrae]

'Twas the night before Arcmas, and all through the town,
A family of Dreamers to bed had laid down,
For the peril that stalked them had nary a care,
For even pretending that they would fight fair.

--

A soft pop of displaced air. A moment or two to reorient oneself to one's new surroundings. It was the only warning that any of you got.

It was a chill winter night in Piscatun, the 28th of Nonender. Arcmas was tomorrow. By all rights, this should have been a peaceful night before getting up early to head over to your parents' house to spend the holiday hanging out, exchanging gifts, and eating way too much.

Instead, you were awakened from sound sleeps (well, not Rose, Rose doesn't have to sleep, Rose just had her night interrupted. The nerve) by the sudden appearance of unidentified people wearing sleek, high-tech tactical suits partially covered by long white labcoats.

The tac suits were complete with masks, so there wasn't much in the was of identifying features to make out on the attackers, but they weren't entirely identical. The one facing Rose was carrying two high-tech looking guns, one about pistol sized and the other more the size of a submachine gun, as well as a belt holding several metal spheres with rings of lights around the center. The suit was lit by dozens of powerful energy cells. The one in Allan's room had an armored vest and some sort of pack on its back, and carried a big ol' gun and a flashlight-looking device, as well as a huge hammer on its back. Alex's attacker had a bulkier, more mechanical suit, with more obvious cybernetics. Joy faced an enemy that had had dozens of pockets all over its labcoat, as well as two bandoleers and a utility belt filled with various syringes, vials, and other devices. Almost certainly an assortment of powerful chemical agents, probably with an explosive or two in the mix.

The attackers didn't say a word. They offered neither challenge nor demand, neither threat nor taunt. The simply struck. With cold dispassion and clinical precision, showing no more emotion than the impassive masks they wore displayed.

Rose's attacker raised the pistol-like weapon, before suddenly firing the submachinegun-like one from the hip, but rather than a spray of bullets, out shot a searing line of fire. The lights of the energy cells in the suit briefly dimmed as the weapon fired, the beam packing a veritable inferno into a pencil-thin, white-hot ray that would almost certainly burn through anything it hit.

Allan's attacker took aim with the little flashlight thingy. It wasn't light that came out of it, and neither was it one of those little power-nullifying beams that SIDE's little flashlight-thingies shot. Nothing seemed to emanate from it at all. But gravitational force crushed down around Allan from all sides as soon as his attacker flicked the switch.

Alex's attacker simply closed in and started pounding on the guy with piston-like punches, blow after blow after blow falling with the speed and force of a jackhammer.

Joy's attacker reached for a vial...but in a way that left a subtle nozzle under its wrist pointed towards Joy, a blast of some sort of chemical agent burst from it to fall over the scientist.

Each of the attackers has dropped a small spherical device, about the size of a marble.

Yeah those are bombs.

So. You've been targeted by Dreamcatchers.

You may all (well, really, mostly Allan, since Rose's Perception and Alex's substituted Treatment beat the Insidious DCs) thank Joy,
since her substituted Technology beat the Subtle 2 DC of their Analytical Assessors when they were first spying on you. Due to their Feature, this caused the attempt to simply act as if it hadn't occurred, so none of you have to deal with a Triggered debuff.

By default, since nobody said anything to the contrary, I'm assuming you all have your own places. If any of you want to start in someone else's house, either because they live together or they're staying over for whatever reason, you may do so as an Edit Scene. Otherwise, you all begin alone.

While you are being attacked in your sleep, even in a challenge game I'm not going to say there's a risk of being caught totally defenseless. Their teleports wake you up.

Rose, you're Immune to Sleep. I'm assuming you're at home, but you can be doing whatever when the attack occurs. If you wish, you may Edit Scene yourself into a populated area instead. I'm not sure if this will do anything more than put civilians in danger, but hey, the option's open if you want it. Your Perception beat DC 25, so you're not Surprised, and you may perform free actions prior to initiative, such as activating powers.

Allan, your Perception beat DC 20 so you're not Surprised. However, you failed to beat DC 25, so you can't perform any free actions prior to initiative. Since you were sleeping, you are Prone and your Sustained powers are currently inactive.

Alex, your Perception totally bombed. You're Surprised, and since you were sleeping, you are Prone and your Sustained powers are currently inactive.

Joy, your Perception beat DC 25, so you're not Surprised, may perform free actions prior to initiative (so you can equip your suit in time to help defend you from this attack), and you came to before the attacker fully reoriented itself, so you're able to leap out of bed before initiative begins. Unfortunately, your security system was sabotaged and your projection blocker disabled, possibly while you were out shopping for Arcmas presents just to add insult to injury, so your home's security can't help you much.

Dreamcatcher Energist:
Move: Attempt to Feint Rose at [roll0].
Standard: Attack Rose with High Intensity Energy Beam at [roll1] vs. Reflex, critting on a 16+. On a hit, Reflex DC 23/18 vs. Secondary Effect Damage and Dazed+Impaired/Stunned+Disabled Affliction. Hit regardless of Feint
The attack's Variable Descriptor is set to fire (they didn't actually roll well enough to know you have a fire weakness, and didn't get to Analytical Assess you to try to mind read your Complications, but they know your powers and have enough Dreamer Lore to know it's a safe bet against a plant Dreamer). If you fail your resistance check against this attack, the degree worsens by one. Take a :smallcool: Hero Point for the Complication.

Dreamcatcher Physicist:
Move: Meh.
Standard: Attack Allan with Gravitic Crusher, Power Attacking for 3 (+5 for Prone) at [roll2] vs. Toughness/Reflex/Toughness. On a hit, Toughness/Strength or Reflex/Toughness DC 26/21/21 vs. Damage, Grab, and Progressive Weaken Toughness. Remember, you only roll once under the house rules even though they use different resistance checks. Hit

Dreamcatcher Roboticist:
Surprise Move: Meh.
Surprise Standard: Attack Alex with Cybernetic Implants, Power Attacking for 5 (+5 for Prone) at [roll3] vs. Reflex. On a hit, Toughness/Will DC (28/23)+Multiattack vs. Damage and Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless Affliction. Remember, you only roll once under the house rules even though they use different resistance checks. Hit due to Vulnerable
Regular Standard: If Alex is not Defenseless, attack Alex with Cybernetic Implants, Power Attacking for 5 (+5 for Prone) at [roll4] vs. Reflex. On a hit, Toughness/Will DC (28/23)+Multiattack vs. Damage and Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless Affliction. If Alex is Defenseless, including because of being Incapacitated, instead use Abduction Warp, All Out Power Attacking for 5 (+5 for Prone) at [roll5] vs. Will. If it doesn't roll a natural 1, Will DC 32 after auto-crit or be teleported away with the Roboticist. Hit either way
Regular Move: If Alex is Defenseless, nothing. If he's still not Defenseless by this point, teleport away.

Dreamcatcher Biochemist:
Move: Attempt to Feint Joy at [roll6].
Standard: Attack Joy with Biospray at [roll7] vs. Fortitude. On a hit, Fortitude DC 23/18 vs. Damage and Dazed+Impaired/Stunned+Disabled Affliction. The Damage carries a Secondary Effect. Miss unless Joy fails to resist the Feint

Here's the good news. As you may have deduced from their attack stats, the Dreamcatchers are in fact lower Power Level than you are! (Statistically; they make up for it with PP, to be fair). The bad news is they will also make up for it by fighting as dirty as I can possibly justify. Defeat them, and end the threat to your family. Fail, and you and your siblings will be captured, tortured, experimented on, and put through gods know what horrors for Arch knows what purposes. Good luck, and let the challenge begin!

All PCs are on turn.

[Cazero]

Joy sprang out of her bed, reaching for her suit as fast as she could. She started sorting her rushing thoughts as the automated emergency assembly responded her vocal command.

A Dreamcatcher. Wearing a white labcoat, at night, while trying to abduct someone. That's a crime against common sense. The pockets look handy though...
How did they get in? That ploping sound was displaced air from a teleportation. My security systems should have blocked it. They must be compromised. I need to fix it. The nearest crystal is...
Is that a biochemist? That reminds me of that article I was reading yesterday, what was it about again? Protein folding? I'm not there yet, but...
I should have made a sealed suit. How do I fight that? Maybe breaking all those vials. An hypersonic attack should also soften that armor...
This is going to make me late for Arcmas. Dammit, it's too early in the morning to get an earworm. What time is it anyway?

The chemical blast surprised Joy, who barely had the time to cover her face. She stepped back, coughing, and started to wiggle her fingers. The robotics arms in her back responded immediately. "You also got pockets in your sleeves? Nice coat." she said with a half-hearted smile.
While the arms were pointing her attacker and the humming of hypersonic vibration started filling the air, Joy walked straight to the nearest active crystal, lighting it up for a checkup on her system.

Move action : get to the nearest active crystal panel away from the biochemist, and
*Quickness* Free action : start checking up/restoring the security system of the house, routine Technology 30. If safe, connect the suit interface to it.
Standard action : arm and shoot Hypersonic Resonance at the biochemist : [roll0] vs active Toughness. On hit, Fortitude DC 18 vs Weaken Toughness 8.
Repetition : none available

[manwithaplan]

"Aw, what the hell?!"

Taking blow after blow, Alex was not prepared for this rather rude assault on his person. But before he could hit back, the guy was...gone. He grimaced, and then rolled out of bed, wearing nothing but his boxers as he moved to the bathroom with a bruise on his head and eyes that refused to focus. Through the distraction, he contacted Allan with his powers.

Hey dude, you up? I just got jumped!

He made it into the bathroom and pulled his cabinet open, reaching inside for a long bandage which he immediately wrapped around his forehead. He supplemented with a few pills that he instinctively grabbed; he didn't know what they were, but his brain just kinda knew for him.

...Like, by a guy that can actually hurt me.

Move Action: To the bathroom.
Standard Action: Routining a Treatment check to remove that unwanted Affliction.

Status: Bruised. 0.5/1 Regeneration.

[Thokk_Smash]

As a child after his Dream, the nights before Archmas were always sooooo loooooooong. Even his dreams seemed to drag on before the morning came. That's faded only slightly as the years have gone. He's glad Rose was nice enough to stay over his house, or else he's afraid he'd've been bored out of his mind before passing out.

Well, he's not bored anymore.

The pop of displaced air brings him to wakefulness, but he can't do anything substantial before the strange assailants attacked. The strange gravitic push upon him struck true, but with a grit of his teeth he pushes through it. He sees the other assailant begin to shoot a gout of fire at his sister, and his body rushes in before he even really processes it. He shoves her out of the way and manages to windmill his arms to shoo the flames off of him before they can hurt him. Strange embers remain, and he can tell it hasn't finished its job.

"Yeah, Rose and I just got attacked, too," he thinks to Alex as he lays a hand on Rose's arm. "Statistically speaking, Joy probably has someone attacking her, too. Stand by for transit."

Dreamcatchers. Who else could it be. His mind starts to process that information, and after a goodly amount of time (so a few nanoseconds), he begins to move. And when Allan moves, he moves. Picking his sister up, running to his door, setting her down, opening the door, taking her through, closing the door, all takes about a quarter of a blink. He rushes to Alex's house next--his keychain with several shinies jingling as he unlocks the door. Another few hundred microseconds to pick up his brother, and he's off to Joy's house.

Joy's house is trickier. He sets his twin and sister down and looks at the doorstep curiously. The half-dozen lawn gnomes are turned over and he scratches his head, stumped. He brightens with a grin, and checks under the "Welcome" rug--there is the house key, hidden in plain sight. Smacking his forehead lightly, he unlocks the door and speeds in. Hoping that Joy wouldn't resist his customary bear-hug greeting, he hugs, then picks her up and puts her under his shoulder like a football.

Back out of her house, and scooping up the others on the way, he speeds to Rose's house. Her home is near a copse of trees, and it's within here that Allan plops them all down at the end of his run. "Okay, so! We've got four, possibly more, Dreamcatchers coming after us. Holy Arch, I'm terrified! How are y'all?"

Despite his words, his demeanor is generally bright as he focuses his life's energy to surround his family. Solid light-energy covers his family, weaker than normal but providing some modicum of protection. Nearly invisible, more energy winds itself around them to defend them.

Free action: Set Font of Energy to: Speed 12, Quickness 2, Enhanced Life 10. Current Enhanced Life Essence kinda unimportant.

Move action: Move through Piscatun, gathering the fam and bringing us all to a copse of trees near Rose's house. Considering Rose's powerset, I hope this isn't too big of a stretch, considering what tonberrian wants to do (create trees/a tree anyway).

Free action: Enhanced Life Essence becomes Protecting Presence: Deflect 10 (Reduced Range [Close], Burst Area, Selective, Subtle 2, Feature [Use Mobility in place of Stealth for calculating Perception DC], Precise) Linked Create 5 (Precise, Impervious 4).

Standard action: Use Protecting Presence. Everyone is Deflected at 1d10+20, which is Subtle 2 (DC 40 due to Mobility) and Precise, and has a Rank 5 Created barrier (Impervious Toughness 4) around them that is also Deflected.

Status: Fine
HP: 1
Pseudo-HP: Nil D:

[manwithaplan]

"...Statistically sp-"

Although he was still nursing the mark where he'd been hit, Alex was completely unfazed by the sudden swap of location. He was very used to this sort of behaviour. Just usually he at least had a shirt and some modest pants on before...ah well.

"Hey guys. Dreamcatchers? Mine was just a man in a robot suit."

He looked around, on edge, before turning to face his back to his siblings so he could peer out into the forest. Not many types out there that could hurt him, and that first beatdown suggested that these fellows were an exception, but not much of one. Just got to stay on guard...

[tonberrian]

Rose turned to react to the teleporting intruder, looking to dodge the flame-lance, but even as she was getting her bearings Alan pushed her out of the way and took the brunt of the blast. And then a blur of motion and she was home. She threw out some ironwood seeds and put them in a protective wooden dome, hard as steel, before turning to her siblings.

"Dreamcatchers? I don't want to be some sort of hideous experiment! What now?"

Pseudo HP 1
HP 2
Status: Shaken, not stirred

Using Create 12 to make a dome.

[Cazero]

Joy kept typing in the air for almost a second, blinked, tried to pinch herself through her armor, then subvocalized the pincher command. Not a dream, back to hacking.

"Hey. Hope you didn't mess my gnomes Allan. Now we should..."I don't know what to do. I should weigh pros and cons or something.
Cops might not be up to the task. We still want to...
What kind of horrors would they do to me? Best case scenario probably involves...
Only one SIDE agent in town. How likely is it that...
Don't supress that earworm with another, it doesn't work, don't supress that earworm...
Others Dreamers might have been attacked already or be unwilling to take the risk. Wich...
They must have accounted for Allan's speed. Can we really...
Did I start that sentence?"...think about what to do?"

[Thokk_Smash]

"Bro, who else would assault random strangers in the middle of the night?" Allan says with amused incredulity. "Defiant are all 'Raaaggh, Imma punch you in the nads 'cause you're different', these guys didn't even give a single quip!"

He looks at Joy with a look of sheepishness that quickly vanishes. "Oh, no, yeah, they're fine," he says with a nervous chuckle. "I mean, I think...I didn't have a ton of time to put 'em back all nice, c'mon, sis." Time is relative, even for a speedster...right?

[Quellian-dyrae]

The air was chill and the night quiet as the siblings took shelter in a dome of wood. The good news was, nothing immediately started like smashing into the dome or anything!

The bad news was that Joy's suit, synched up with her security system, was outputting some warnings. Another attempt had been made to breach the security, although it hadn't gotten anywhere.

That said, based on its speed and the outputs you were getting, it looks like it's more than just mundane hacking. There's some technopathy at work.

Immediately thereafter, the security system output an alert of a second attempt at infiltration beginning. This one wasn't going quite as fast but...there were some odd outputs. Alerts and warnings were coming in abnormal orders, some systems seeming to be bypassed altogether. Most people might have passed it off as the work of a uniquely skilled hacker, or maybe more technopathic trickery. But Joy knew better. Joy was sufficiently familiar with the technology to recognize the signs of a Matrix-based attack.

In addition, a security camera output popped up in Joy's HUD. The Dreamcatcher was moving through the house...with frankly unnerving ease. It was abundantly clear that it knew the layout and exactly where it was going. This Dreamcatcher had been inside Joy's home before. Had spent a fairly extended period of time in there, by the looks of it.

Blinking from point to point (projection blockers prevented any passage through objects, but not across open air), the Dreamcatcher made its way towards the security hub. Once it reached the entry, it pointed a hand and sprayed a blast of acid at the door.

Another Dreamcatcher - the energist, for those keeping score at home - appears outside your home.

You're being watched.

Hey, you guys don't mind if I occasionally throw in total red herring skill spoilers do you? No? Good.

You hear quiet movement outside the dome of wood.

Biochemist:
Move: Use Space Folder to teleport through the house until reaching the security hub. I am assuming that's closed off, however.
Standard: Use Combat Chemistry on Joy's home at [roll0] vs. Toughness. On a hit, Toughness ([roll1]) DC 23 vs. Damage Linked Weaken Toughness.
End of Turn: Secondary Effect triggers. Joy, Fortitude DC 23 vs. Damage. Fails to beat active Toughness. Shame too, that would have breached the door.

Energist:
Move: ???.
Standard: ???.
End of Turn: Secondary Effect triggers. Allan, Reflex DC 23 vs. Damage.

Joy, the default stats for your security system's Keeper are as follows:

Abilities

STR: 8. STA: 8. AGI: 0. DEX: 0. INT: 0. AWE: 8. PRE: 0.

Stats

Attack (8): +8. Damage: +8. Reflex (9): +9. Toughness (1): +9. Fortitude (1): +9. Will (1): +9. Init: +12.

Skills

Insight 0 (+8), Investigation 8 (+8), Mobility 8 (+8), Perception 0 (+8), Stealth 8 (+8), Technology 8 (+8).

Advantages

Improved Initiative, Move-by Action.

Powers

Matrix Parkour: Flight 8 (Platform, Quirk [Must begin and end movement solidly supported]) {7}.

Matrix Combat: 16-point point Strength-discounted Array. Each option also confers a corresponding Advantage {12+3}.

CHOOSE ANY FOUR OF THE FOLLOWING:


Flurry: Damage 8 (R/T; Multiattack). Takedown.

Defensive Strike: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Deflect 8 (Secondary Effect, Reduced Range [Close]). Defensive Attack.

Stunning Strike: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Affliction 8 (R/F; Dazed/Stunned/Incapacitated). Power Attack.

Distracting Strike: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Affliction 8 (R/W; Vulnerable/Defenseless/Incapacitated). Agile Feint.

Hampering Strike: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Affliction 8 (R/R; Impaired/Disabled/Incapacitated). Improved Disarm.

Crushing Strike: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Weaken Toughness 8 (R/T). All Out Attack.

Crippling Strike: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Weaken Strength 8 (R/F). Improved Smash.

Hindering Strike: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Weaken Fighting 8 (R/W). Accurate Attack.

Gun: Damage 8 (R/T; Ranged). Improved Aim.

MMA: Damage 8 (R/T) Linked Move Object 8 (Reduced Range [Close]). Improved Grab.

Calculations

Abilities 48 + Stats 16 + Skills 16 + Advantages 2 + Powers 22 = 104 PP

Since you are Familiar with the Matrix, you may choose your Keeper's four Matrix Combat powers rather than having to roll randomly.
You may also swap its points around, though do bear in mind this is a permanent setting, not something you can do freely with each attack. You can't completely design new stuff, but you can move points between things it already has. You can't add additional points. Also I only now noticed that in the Aranth thread I counted Abilities as 1/rank when I built the Keepers' sheets, so they're not nearly as shortchanged as I thought they were. You may also specify a strategy for it. You can't control it directly; I'll roll out the Matrix combat round by round while you guys are doing whatever you're doing.

That being said, for the time being you guys are considered out of combat.

[Cazero]

"Ho joy." Yes, Joy just said that. The circumstances make it much less funny than usual.
"Good news, the guy who jumped me is stuck in my house until they hack the security again, and we might have time to jump it first. Bad news, there is at least one matrix user and slash or technopat cracking the security remotely. That means possible physical Avatar on site, so we're not looking at a single target regardless of wether or not the rest of them show up outside to assist."
Worse news, there is a psycho who might have spent weeks watching me sleep stuck in my house. Now that's creepy.

[manwithaplan]

"Stuck in your house?"

Alex reached up to his forehead and pulled the bandage off, throwing it to the ground. If there was meant to be any sort of injury or damage under it, his siblings certainly couldn't see anything of that nature. He excitedly moved over to Allan.

"Let's run over there right now and jump him! Four on three!"

[Thokk_Smash]

"Okay, ladies and gent, hold on tight," Allan says, grabbing his siblings (and tossing Alex over his shoulder fireman style). They all become intangible as Allan's energy suffuses his siblings and himself, bringing with it a warmth that encompasses their whole bodies. Once more he speeds away, this time towards Joy's home once more. Passing through the wood, he keeps careful eye on his short jaunt to Joy's house; he's having a hard time believing none of them followed him.

He phases through the house easily (thanks for not setting the shock fence to hit me, sis!), and finds the room the Dreamcatcher within is in. He sets them all down nearby, but not too close. He goes and shuts the door they came in, then shoves a nearby bookcase in front of the door that the Dreamcatcher just attacked; nerd that she is, Joy's got bookcases to spare!

Free action: Set Font of Energy to: Speed 10, Quickness 2, Enhanced Life 12.

Free action: Set Lessened Presence to Insubstantial (Reaction, Affects Others, Burst Area, Limited [Only within Close range], Power Lifting gains Affects Corporeal).

Move action: Bring everyone to Joy's house, setting the group around the Dreamcatcher. Since I can pick up things as a free action, I'll shuffle things around so there's stuff blocking the door to the security room (which I assume Allan can tell was attacked by the damage taken).

Holding a Standard action 'cause I assume we'll be going into combat?

[Quellian-dyrae]

Round 1

You don't fight a speedster in the moment. Even a noncombatant speedster. If you fight a speedster in the moment, you've already lost. In any given moment, a speedster can do dozens, scores, hundreds, even thousands of things. And you, generally speaking, can't. Fighting a speedster is about anticipation and preparation, about thinking several moves ahead so that by the time the speedster has finished easily dealing with whatever you did in the moment, the actual attack is already waiting for them.

B-O-B-O-O-O-M-M-!-!

Which explains why the moment the siblings left the dome, two bombs went off. So that wasn't cool. Really, though, when you think about it, that was a fairly obvious sort of preparation to make. It did suggest that the Dreamcatchers had some means of tracking, spying on, or precognitively predicting the movements of the siblings, though. No way they just guessed they'd have set up in that particular patch of woodland. But given that, it was hardly the sort of trap that earned the sort of reputation the Dreamcatchers had accumulated. Like, they were insubstantial when they left the dome. The explosive force passed right through them.

VWRRRRORP!

The physicist came dropping down from just above the bombs' blast area, a rippling wave of conflicting quantum probabilities emanating out from what looked like a diamond-shaped silver-blue power cell in its suit (those who had faced other Dreamcatchers would have seen similar cells in their suits too). Space folded around the siblings as they ran, threatening to toss them away from each other while they were still disoriented by the sudden explosions. That was better, at least. A lot of people would just trust the bombs to do their dirty work. Following up personally at least displayed a level of tactics appropriate to a trained warrior-scientist. But as long as they could get through that, they could race to Joy's house to ambush the scientist still trying to escape.

VWRRRRORP!

As they approached the house, another burst of space-warping quantum probability rolled over the four siblings from the Energist, who had in fact been waiting outside under a quantum cloak, and unfortunately Joy hadn't noticed the subtle depressions in the grass where it was standing in her security camera feeds. But to be fair, given the speed of the energist's reaction, it must have known they'd be coming. So the Dreamcatchers must have been watching them when they came up with this plan. Somehow. But at least this is starting to feel properly Dreamcatchery. Good on them, I guess.

It did, to be fair, also mean the biochemist was totally expecting them. It appraised Allan for a moment as they rushed in, and then darted off, vanishing under a quantum cloak.

I was going to have you guys roll Perception and if you got at least Dazed by the bombs and rolled low enough you'd have been surprised, but being Insubstantial let you avoid that!

The Biochemist has no actual chance to be surprised because they were watching and listening to you plan and thus knew you were coming.

Two bombs are Triggered as you leave the dome. However, you're all Insubstantial and thus immune.

The Dreamcatchers were listening to you plan and prepared to take action, so they are able to act ahead of you as you reach them.

Physicist:
Free: Swaps Utility Suite prior to readying action to begin dropping
Standard: Attack with Abduction Warp, All Out Attack for 4. This attack targets Will. On a hit, Will DC 22 or you are teleported one Distance Rank per point you fail by. I'll let you know where you end up once I see results, but anyone who gets teleported does not end up in the room with the Biochemist. Joy, your armor is being Selectively excluded, so if you're teleported it gets left behind (though Allan will have it). Anyone who gets teleported is not brought along and so not subject to any following attacks. Abduction Warp has a Secondary Effect, but it only applies if you pass the first save.
Rose: [roll0]. Miss
Allan: Selectively excluded.
Alex: [roll1]. Miss
Joy: [roll2]. Miss
Move: Use Shun Space to reposition and Hide in Plain Sight using Master of Stealth at [roll3].

Energist:
Standard: Attack with Abudction Warp, All Out Attack for 4.
Rose: [roll4]. Hit
Allan: Selectively excluded.
Alex: [roll5]. Hit
Joy: [roll6]. Hit
Move: Use Shun Space to reposition and Hide in Plain Sight using Master of Stealth at [roll7].

Biochemist:
Standard: Use Analytical Assessor on Allan at [roll8] vs. Will. Whether or not it hits, Will DC [roll9] vs. Mind Reading limited to learning your weaknesses and Complications. If it does hit, and your Will check fails to beat DC 18, you suffer Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless and Weaken All Defenses, but these penalties only apply against the Biochemist. Miss
Move: Use Shun Space to reposition and Hide in Plain Sight using Master of Stealth at [roll10].

All PCs who are still here are on turn. Out of combat actions don't count towards combat turns, so Allan may take a full round of actions.

Dreamcatcher Programmer:
Move: Use Space Bender to teleport into Close range of the Keeper.
Standard: Attack the Keeper with Avatar Combat at [roll11] vs. Reflex/Fortitude. On a hit, Toughness/Will ([roll12]) DC (23/18)+Multiattack vs. Damage Linked Weaken All Defenses. The Programmer is Deflected at 1d20+8 for the next two rounds. Hit. Bruised.

Keeper:
Move: Agile Feint at [roll13] vs. [roll14]. Fail
Standard: Attack the Programmer with Defensive Strike at [roll15] vs. Reflex, Deflected at [roll16]. On a hit, Toughness ([roll17]) DC 23 vs. Damage. Keeper is Deflected at 1d20+8 for the next two rounds. Miss

[Quellian-dyrae]

You appear in total darkness, standing in some sort of foul-smelling liquid that goes about up to your knees. You can hear water flowing, and feel it flowing steadily past you, along with occasional soft solid objects floating by.

Give me a DC 15 Fortitude check against Dazed+Impaired/Stunned+Disabled from the stench and...stuff.

[manwithaplan]

"Ewww!"

He fumbled about, looking for dry land.

Hey bro I'm in the sewers, can you come grab me?

[Thokk_Smash]

Allan stops in the hallway proudly, looking to his...two(?) siblings in his grasp. "Really, bro?" he asks with exasperation. "The jackass in here ran to the living room," he says to his sisters before zipping off.

Still intangible, he goes straight down into the sewage connecting to Joy's house, night vision goggles slipped firmly over his eyes. Zipping around the sewers (with a grimace of disgust at the smell), he spends a few seconds investigating the area around a thousand feet from Joy's house. Finding Alex's ethereal form, Allan grabs him by under the shoulder and begins dragging him back to the house. "We gotta keep up the buddy system, man," he admonishes lightly.

He ends his movement next to the apparently empty space that holds the Biochemist Dreamcatcher. Allan focuses for a moment, becoming solid once more, before his hands become a blur of fists. There is a display of white-yellow energy that threatens to overwhelm the man's mind as his practically invisible fists threaten to send him to sleep.

Move action: Go into the sewers to grab Alex then go into Close range of the Biochemist.

Free action: Reconfigure Font of Life to Enhanced Life Essence 24, Life Essence Manipulation to full Overwhelming Presence

Standard action: Attack with Overwhelming Presence, Power Attack for 2, with Subtle 2 (DC 40 Perception to see the Damage) [roll0] Reflex/Reflex vs Fortitude/Will DC 23+Multiattack/18+Multiattack Damage (Asleep) and Affliction (Entranced/Compelled/Controlled, Progressive, Cumulative, Multiattack, Limited [Compelled/Controlled only to cease hostile actions, Entranced can be ignored in any round in which the target does not make any actions that could harm another, directly or indirectly])

Status: Fine,
HP: 1

[manwithaplan]

Uh, bro, do you wanna not run me into any teleporter bombs then?

Alex stepped forward and spread his hands apart before bringing them towards each other with all the force he could muster, clapping them together with such might that a shockwave of force would blast towards the Dreamcatcher Allan was fighting in the corner.

Standard Action: Shockwave Clap. Toughness Attack [roll0] for DC 29 Toughness Damage.
Move Action: Nah.

Status: Normal.

[Cazero]

Following Allan's lead, Joy enters the living room. "Feel free to redecorate."
After a quick setting of parameters to avoid hitting her siblings (and that fancy crystaline sculpture that embodies the mathematical solution of... nevermind, Alex toppled it), she starts crushing the dreamcatcher against the wall with gravity waves.
Move : get in the right room
Free : still monitoring my hacking.
Standard : DC20 Selective Area Grab with Grav Hook, attack roll : [roll0] vs Reflex
Repetition : none available

[tonberrian]

Rose enters the living room and tries to sap up the unfortunate biochemist!

Move action: move to living room
Standard: Sap Snare [Dazed and Vulnerable/Stunned and Defenseless]: [roll0]

2 HP remaining

[Quellian-dyrae]

Round 2

The power and kinetic dampeners built into the biochemist's tac suit absorbed and nullified the forces that the twins had unleashed against it, but that used up about all the energy the suit had to spare. Joy's gravity waves lifted the Dreamcatcher off the ground, offering little opportunity to dodge as Rose covered it with sticky sap, binding it completely.

Now covered by sap, the Dreamcatcher's position was plain to see.

But while the biochemist might have been poorly equipped for dealing with Joy's fortifications, the energist wasn't. A beam of brilliant fire tore into the wall, intense enough to melt through just about anything - the only question was whether it would melt enough of the wall to open the path for teleportation. If it did, both Dreamcatchers would vanish at the next instant.

You discern that this teleport device created some momentary quasi-physical connection between the two (if you passed this check with Technology, you recognize it as inducing a localized form of quantum entanglement). That is to say, the energist is able to teleport the biochemist from a distance by touching it with a Subtle 2, Projection Extra Limb.

Biochemist:
Stunned.
End of turn: Attempt to recover from Stunned+Defenseless (DC 22): [roll0]. Recovers

Energist:
Standard: Attack Joy's house with High Intensity Energy Beam. Fortunately since the biochemist is stunned it can't provide targeting advice, so the beam won't hit any of you. All Out Attack for 4, Power Attack for 4, at [roll1] vs. Reflex (Defenseless). On a hit, Reflex ([roll2]) DC 32 after auto-crit vs. Damage. A Breach will melt a hole big enough to make ranged attacks through (though targets on the other side have improved cover). A Destroyed result will melt an entire section of the front wall, allowing projections through the newly opened space. ...Okay yeah Joy's like entire front wall is melted.
Move: If the wall goes down, use Space Bender enhanced by Emergency Warp to teleport away with the biochemist. This teleport is Precise, allowing an escape from Grabs.

Technically Rose and Joy might get teleported from the Secondary Effect of the energist's prior teleport at end of turn, but since it'd be trying to teleport them through the floor it'll get projection blocked even if a section of the wall gets melted.

All PCs are on turn if the wall is not destroyed. If it is destroyed, we exit combat time as the Dreamcatchers retreat.

Programmer:
Standard: Attack the Keeper with Avatar Combat at [roll3] vs. Reflex/Fortitude, Deflected at [roll4]. On a hit, Toughness/Will ([roll5]) DC 23+Multiattack vs. Damage Linked Weaken All Defenses. The Programmer is Deflected for the next two turns. Miss
Move: Use Shun Space to reposition and Hide in Plain Sight with Master of Stealth at [roll6] vs. [roll7]. Stealthed

Keeper:
Move: Close with Programmer if detected, or use active Perception ([roll8]) if not. Detected
Standard: If Programmer still undetected, active Perception ([roll9]). Otherwise, attack with Hampering Strike at [roll10] vs. Reflex, Deflected at [roll11] now that I remember it has Improved Defense. -2 on the attack roll if move action used for detection, for charge. On a hit, Toughness/Reflex ([roll12]) DC 23 vs. Damage Linked Impaired/Disabled/Incapacitated. Miss after charge penalty, not that it would have mattered.

[manwithaplan]

"Yeah, seeya, chump."

Alex gave the Dreamcatchers a wave as they teleported away and then looked about, first inspecting the destroyed wall and then looking at his own form; shirtless, in boxer shorts, and covered in crap from the sewers. And there wasn't really a whole lot he could do about it, as his impeccable adrenal glands were wiring him up enough to only be concerned about the danger, but not enough to cost him his cool.

"Allan, can you get us to another safe spot? Police station? Come to think of it, shouldn't we be calling SIDE?"

[tonberrian]

"I don't know about you, but I don't think I'll ever feel safe again."

[Thokk_Smash]

Allan's mind runs a mile a nanosecond as he mulls over the situation. "The Dreamcatchers might be expecting us to stop by the police station," he thinks to his brother while motioning to his sisters to keep close to him. He's not confident the Defiant aren't listening to them this very minute. "Natalia Evelyn would definitely give us shelter, and her place is wicked fortified against intrusion, and she's as strong as us, to boot."

Out loud, he says, "Hang on, guys." He grabs his family and goes intangible once more. He speeds out of the house and through the city to the house of Natalia Evelyn. He drops off the others, then shoots off to the sheriff's department. He snatches a little stack of sticky-notes and scribbles a quick note: "Hi, this is Viva from the ACC. My family and I are kinda being attacked by Dreamcatchers at the moment. Joy's house is trashed, so we're seeking shelter with Natalia Evelyn. My commlink line is etcetc, my phone number is XXX-XXX-XXXX. Pleasepleaseplease help! DX"

He puts the note onto the deputy sheriff's desk, right in front of their face. Allan also swings by the SIDE office and leaves a similar note there, even if no one's there. Zipping out of the building, he runs to Sheriff Ramsey's house. Finding the man's home, he knocks rapidly on the front door before leaving the sticky-note on the door. On that note, he adds a "P.S. Sorry for waking you!!!"

After that, he returns to his family in front of Natalia's home. Out loud, he says, "Natalia! Please let us in, we're seeking shelter!"

Setting movement array to: Speed 10, Quickness 2, Enhanced Life 12.

Setting utility array to: Insubstantial 4 (Reaction [Coming into Close range], Affects Others, Burst Area, Limited [Close range], Power-Lifting gains Affects Corporeal).

Spending the time needed to get to those places and leave those notes in those places. The others are Insubstantial while in transit to Natalia's house.

[Quellian-dyrae]

Allan deposited his siblings outside of Natalia's house and sped off, gone in the blink of an eye.

In two blinks of an eye, the bombs exploded.

Because really, seeking shelter at the home of the powerful Dreamer with an extremely well fortified house who offered sanctuary to Dreamers in need was a fairly predictable response to being attacked by Dreamcatchers.

But the good news was, they were all still incorporeal! So the bombs didn't so much as muss their hair. And even with the bombs positioned for maximum destructive power, the potent defenses on Natalia Evelyn's house held firm. The sum total result of taking a full-force blast from three powerful explosives? One of the walls was kinda cracked a bit.

Also, Natalia was awake now.

In a third blink of an eye, the elemental speedster was standing before the three insubstantial siblings. And while her nightgown may not have been quite the right attire for the impression she wanted to make, her fierce glare and the flipping flaming sword she was brandishing would probably get it across nonetheless. Given that her home had been attacked and you were the only people in the vicinity, she did not seem particularly inclined to hear requests for aid at the moment.

And then, without warning, your bodies returned to solid states.

Natalia is currently Hostile and will attack if you can't make her understand what happened or otherwise talk her down in one round of posts. Be warned that if you leave without doing so, it may become much harder to secure her aid later.

--

Ahem (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-0G_FI61a8)

...You know what else is a fairly predictable response to being attacked by Dreamcatchers?

Going to the police.

In the blink of an eye, Allan was at the night deputy's desk, writing out a quick note. For maybe a second or two, the blur that the world was when his powers were focused more on his body than his mind slowed down to recognizability as he stopped running to speed-write the note. The deputy resolved into the form of Bridgette Klein, a freckle-faced local girl who had just come back home last year after completing her college education, to protect and serve the town she had grown up in. He could see the drunk man in the holding cell. He'd recognize him as Virgil "Virgie" Traverse, a local clockmaker. He was one of Estruan's many proud craftsmen, disdaining automation and in some cases innovation to create old-school, hand-crafted works that were more pieces of art than practical tools. And he had been known a time or two in the past to get a bit belligerent if he had a few drinks in him and someone mentioned how mechanical clocks were ludicrously outdated in his earshot. He could also see through the window in the door to her little office, the town's SIDE agent, Scarlet Pierce, was busily typing away on her computer. That wasn't much of a surprise, really. Agent Pierce and Sheriff Ramsay had a deal worked out. Pierce minded everything on Archmas. Sheriff Ramsay handled it on the Feast of the Gift.

In two blinks of an eye, Allan's note, Bridgette, Virgie, and the entire sheriff's department were gone.

In a super-speed reaction, Allan had been able to react just barely in time to reach Scarlet, phasing the SIDE agent into incorporeality and saving her from the five tremendous blasts that ripped through the building. But even with his speed there was nothing he could do to save the clockmaker and the deputy from the explosions that thhee hDarde acmacuastecdh etros ghoaodf fs.e.t..! He saw their bodies torn apart by the blast, and he felt their lifestreams evaporate. There was no escaping the horror of what had happened here. There was no running away from it. No running away...

Scarlet stared in grief and horror at the crater that had been the sheriff's department...for the sum total two seconds that were pretty much the requirement for a person to be a human being. And then, with an utterly flat look on her face that was worse than any tooth-gnashing expression of wrath, she looked at Allan and asked with terrible cold calm, "Who?"

Allan may or may not have been able to answer her in his present state.

But she would nonetheless get her answer soon enough.

*Pop*

*Pop*

*Pop*

Allan, your Disaster Overload Complication triggers. Take a :smallcool: Hero Point. You are now unable to use your Font of Energy array. This prevents you from completing your intended movement, leaving you in the ruins of the sheriff's department. Since this also ends the enhanced effect of your Lessened Presence power, Scarlet and your siblings become corporeal again.

Each round at the end of your turn (as if recovering from an Affliction), you may attempt a DC 24 Will save (20 + 2 per person killed) to overcome the guilt enough to activate your Font of Energy powers again, although what mid- and long-term effects this trauma may have on Allan I leave to your discretion. The DC lowers by one each round.

The Physicist, Roboticist, and Energist have all teleported in. They're each about forty feet away from you in a different direction.

I rolled for recovery off-line and the Biochemist failed, so it's still Stunned and Defenseless, and as such didn't also teleport here. You owe Rose a cookie.

That all said, I'm not completely heartless. Only like 95% or so. You may consider yourself on turn.

Programmer:
Move: Attempt to Feint the Keeper at [roll0] vs. [roll1]. Tie goes to higher bonus. Resists.
Standard: Attack the Keeper with Technomantic Compulsion at [roll2] vs. Will, Deflected at [roll3].
On a hit, Will ([roll4]) DC 18 vs. Cumulative, Secondary Effect Entranced/Compelled/Controlled. lolnope
End of Turn: Secondary Effect triggers. Deflected.

Keeper (if able to act):
Move: None.
Standard: Attack the Programmer with Defensive Strike at [roll5] vs. Reflex, Deflected at [roll6]. On a hit,
Toughness ([roll7]) DC 23 vs. Damage. Miss

[manwithaplan]

"Uh, hang on, not us! Dreamcatchers. Dream-"

Alex went quiet all of a sudden. His raised hands dropped to his sides and his mouth dropped open. Then all at once his fingers clenched into fists and his mouth turned into a scowl.

He turned to run away.

"They've destroyed the police station, they're gonna kill my brother!" He yelled over his shoulder.

"I'll bring him here, he's ACC, he'll ex-"

The end of his sentence was lost as he jumped, beyond-perfect muscles launching him well out of earshot.

For a few seconds.

Boom!

He landed back on the yard after flying out of somewhere in the distance, haunted look on his face, his brother on one side and Agent Scarlet on the other. He promptly set them down.

"Talk to old mate, he'll explain everything. But come on, we need shelter! And a shirt."

Then he took the SIDE agent aside, making sure she was okay.

"I think we need, uh...oh, man. I think we need you to call in more help. Can you bring a big unit of SIDE guys?"

[Quellian-dyrae]

Alex landed by Allan and Scarlet, went to grab them to leap them back...

And Scarlet shifted away from his arm.

Scarlet wasn't entirely clear on who these three were, but she was clear on the fact that they were the ones responsible for the explosion. Her visor told her they lacked Dreamer powers, and while that might not tell the whole story, it was obvious that they had tech. But she was SIDE, and there were few in the world whose tech was better. Her gun and stun grenades hadn't been on hand and were presumably destroyed in the blast, but her power nullifier and, more importantly, her energy baton were on her belt like always. To her eyes, as Alex arrived, it was three on three, and while she may have been unarmored and down a couple weapons, they were two of the most powerful Dreamers in the city, even if they were civilians (and thus, not to be expected to be able to make an accurate on-the-fly threat assessment).

But most importantly?

They had blown up her office. And they had killed a deputy in her care and a civilian in her charge.

Scarlet Pierce was furious.

"No!" she snapped at Alex, drawing her stun baton. "You three on the ground! Allan and Alex Warran, these three have initiated an attack on an Ilessian law enforcement institution. If they fail to surrender immediately, then under the authority of SIDE, I am authorizing the use of Dreamer powers and lethal force against them!" She may have said your names, but it was clear who the message was really intended for.

The Dreamcatchers just raised their weapons.

Scarlet is not fully cognizant of the situation, and as a result rejects Alex's grab.

Alex used his move action arriving, he needs another action to return.

You may spend your standard action to attempt a Grab, and then either jump away on your next turn or with Extra Effort if it succeeds.

Either of you may attempt to convince Scarlet to leave with you. This is a standard action, DC 25 Persuasion, -5 due to being greatly rushed, further -5 if you want to try as a move action. It cannot be Routined without Skill Mastery.

You can forego your initial plan and take a different standard action.

Or you can proceed as planned, leaving Scarlet behind.

[Thokk_Smash]

There are parts of being a speedster with hyperactive senses that feel more like a curse than a blessing. Allan isn't sure he'll ever be able to get the image of poor Bridgette Klein being vaporized into ash, or the scream of Virgie in the distance as he gets to Scarlet. His innate connection to nearby lives flares and fills his mind, his soul with even more searing pain, and he feels his connection to his own body disconnect and shut him off from his powers.

Tears are streaming down his face and he doesn't even remember them starting. He's shaking in pain both mental and spiritual. "L-Lex, they blew up the police station, they set bombs there, I didn't know, I didn't know, I didn't know..."

When Alex lands, Allan reaches for his brother's hand gratefully. And when Scarlet shakes out of his grasp, his heart sinks. "Officer Pierce, please!" he cries, voice rising involuntarily and full of pain. "These are Dreamcatchers! They've already destroyed Joy's house and triggered bombs outside of Rose's house. They're not random thugs, please don't make me feel your death, too!"

Standard action to try and Persuade Scarlet, -5 for being severely rushed: [roll0]

[Thokk_Smash]

Allan breathes a shaky sigh of relief when Scarlet allows herself to be brought back by Alex. He breathes shakily again when they are in the dirt near Natalia's house, but notices the pockmarked exterior of the house and ground--and the especially angry look Natalia is giving them all right now. His mind realizes the situation in a second, and he gulps whatever relief he'd gotten into the pit of his stomach.

I'm sorry!" he cries, bowing low at the waist. "My family were attacked by Dreamcatchers in our sleep, and apparently they set bombs wherever they thought we'd go for help. I didn't know, I didn't know, but I'm afraid for my family's lives! Please, please can you shelter us?"

Move action Persuasion, -5 for Move action: [roll0] ****

End of turn Will DC 24: [roll1] Well, at least I recovered that

[tonberrian]

"Please, we've just been attacked all night. I just want to stay somewhere where I can feel safe for a moment!"

Persuade, in the OOC, is for an aid attempt. Not that we really need it now.

[Cazero]

Joy remained silent for most of the exchange. She should have anticipated that.
"There are probably more bombs around town, and they had some way of spying on us during the attack. We need to figure out how if we want to minimise damage and establish a counter strategy."
What exactly she was doing, she kept to herself. She didn't want to risk alerting the Dreamcatchers of her little tracking operation.
Technology check at -5 to track the location of the programmer without being noticed : [roll0]

[Quellian-dyrae]

Scarlet stiffened at the word "Dreamcatchers".


If you have any reason to believe the suspect is a Dreamcatcher, disengage immediately and call for backup.


IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE A GOOD REASON!

And then, yeah, she grabbed Alex with both hands and held on tight. The powerhouse leaped them away just as the Dreamcatchers began rushing forward, rippling waves of quantum probability rolling off of them.

Natalia's expression softened as the siblings hurriedly explained what was going on. She hesitated for a second, casting a somewhat plaintive look over her shoulder at her home, but her expression firmed up quickly. "Come on," she said in a tense voice, opening the door and stepping aside to let you enter first, scanning the horizon with her sword ready. As Scarlet moved to enter she cast her a look and opened her mouth just a bit, but snapped it shut and didn't stop her.

"M-Miss Evelyn? What's going on?" asked a high, quavering voice once Natalia had followed you in and closed the door. Standing at the top of the staircase was a young girl probably no more than ten, maybe eleven years old. Her hair and skin were dark, but it was hard to tell her eye color past the soft pink glow that was radiating from them.

"It's okay, sweetie," Natalia said gently. "Just...some more company."

She gave you all a look that spoke volumes.

Meanwhile, though, Joy discovered that however much research and spying the Dreamcatchers might have done, they evidently didn't know that she was familiar with the function of the Limbran Matrix. The programmer's connection was well concealed by mundane security standards, but had gaping security holes against anyone looking specifically for signs of a Matrix intrusion. Joy was able to trivially follow the connection right back to the home of Michele Sharp, the phys ed teacher at the local school and the coach for various little league games in town.

Sharp's old enough that ya'll were probably in her classes back in grade school. Allan, as an athlete, she might well have been a fairly prominent figure in your life growing up.

You can't really say for sure with the Tac-Suits, but the Physicist looked to be roughly the same height and build as Sharp.

And evidently, the Programmer had no indication that it had been traced, for it kept pounding away on the Keeper in the Matrix.

Programmer:
Move: Feint the Keeper at [roll0] vs. [roll1]. Vulnerable
Standard: Attack the Keeper with Avatar Combat at [roll2] vs. Reflex/Fortitude, Deflected at [roll3]. On a hit, Toughness/Will ([roll4]) DC (24/18)+Multiattack vs. Damage Linked Weaken Toughness. Programmer is Deflected for two turns. Hit. +5 Multiattack. Bruised and Dazed.

Keeper:
Move: None (well, Dazed, I guess).
Standard: Attack the Programmer with Hampering Strike at [roll5] vs. Reflex, Deflected at [roll6]. On a hit, Toughness/Reflex DC 23/18 vs. Damage Linked Impaired/Disabled/Incapacitated. Hit
End of Turn: Secondary Effect triggers. Deflected at 1d20+8.

[Cazero]

"Now I really need to check us up for planted bugs." Joy considers the state of undress of her siblings for a short moment. She also remembered changing her brother's diapers because memory is a sneaky bitch. "My suit is the most likely candidate but you never now."
She had to cannibalize the peripheral cameras systems for it, and the effects of her interrupted night were already starting to kick in, but Joy managed to quickly repurpose them to search for spying electronics and started scanning the group with them.

Using Extra Effort for a Power Stunt : Turning the Peripheral Cameras into Electronic Trackers
Analytical Acute Ranged Detect (Electronics), Reduced Duration (Concentration) for 2pp
Then using that to scan around and see if I find trackers or other similar electronics.

Just because I can multitask, also making a routine Investigation of 20 for the same thing. (This one probably won't do much.)

And a Routine Technology of 30 in the computing of my suit just in case it's a software.

And if I don't find anything, consider that I'm starting Inventing with routine checks for a counter measure against long range sensors. Not exactly decided on the exact mechanics, but it's going to cost 4pp or less for rushing it in 30 minutes at -15.

[Cazero]

The inconclusive scan was concerning since how the Dreamcatchers established their ambush at Joy's house remained a mystery, but it was also relieving since Natalia's wardings could guarantee them some privacy right now. So Joy quickly checked that the windows' shutters were closed (you never know, one might be able to read on lips or carry a listening laser), waited for the poor kid that didn't need the risk of trauma to get back in her room, and then dropped her information bomb.
"I've traced the physical position of their hacker to the home of Michele Sharp, and I think Ms. Sharp is one of them."

She let a short moment go by for everyone to catch the picture, then made her second serving.
"And I have more. Since their hacker is currently engaged in the Matrix right now, we have a window of opportunity during wich said hacker is particularly vulnerable against a quick strike from meatspace. I'm trying to check what kind of automated security they have."
Technology check at -5 to analyze/circumvent the security of Ms. Sharp's house without being noticed :[roll0]
Joy gazed in her visor for a few seconds. She was expecting top notch security software, but still got caught off guard by a security daemon. Her suspicions of alarming the hacker were confirmed when the Avatar disengaged from combat with her Keeper.
"Now that was... interesting. The window just closed. They know we know."

[tonberrian]

"Okay, guys, I'm the first to admit that it's really nice to have a bed to sleep in tonight. Well, I mean. Metaphorically for me. But we can't stay here until SIDE shows up. The Dreamcatchers, they'll try to drag us out of here. And that girl will be caught in the crossfire. We can't expose her to that!"

[Thokk_Smash]

Allan is visibly shaking before Joy's info dump, and her mention of Ms Sharp only worsens it. "Oh, Arch," he whispers as his brain makes the connections for him. "I feel like I'm gonna hurl..."

He manages to hold in his stomach contents with a will. "I-I agree, we can't stay here. Now that their hacker is stopped attacking your house's security, they might go after Natalia's, now. But we need to have a plan of some kind, we can't just run willy-nilly, or else..."

His mind flashes back to his mistake just moments before, and he grimaces in pain. "Officer Pierce, is there, like, a protocol we can follow here? A SIDE safehouse someplace close by or something?"

He takes out his phone and dials the number for Gary Stacks--hopefully the guy takes his call, late though it is.

[Cazero]

At the sight of Allan's phone, Joy immediately stops him from dialing with one of her robotic arms.
"Wait. Not with your phone. The bombs. Calling for help is too obvious. Let me forge you a number first. And with a Matrix user we should also worry about geolocalisation, so calling from anywhere they know we are could still be dangerous."
Hopefuly she's starting to catch up and anticipating properly.
"If I could get some pieces of the detonated bombs, I might be able to extrapolate how the others work."
Routine Technology 30 to forge a phone number.
edit : same thing to forge the geolocalisation.

[Quellian-dyrae]

Natalia went to take the young girl back to bed while her latest guests discussed a plan of action.

"Not in Piscatun, no. Protocol for a suspected Dreamcatcher attack is to fall back and call for backup," Agent Pierce said, with a carefully controlled voice, her face a professionally neutral mask, although her hands were bunched into slightly shaking fists. "I assume they would have little more trouble tracing my phone than one of yours?" she asked, taking it out and holding it out to Joy with a clear "me next" look on her face.

Joy would quickly find, however, that the possibility of the call being traded was the least of their problems.

Allan's phone wasn't getting a signal. Like, at all. And, as it happened, neither was Pierce's.

That wasn't really a thing that happened in Aranth. Signal services were handled by hundreds of satellites. Communication devices worked in the middle of the flipping ocean. The only "poor service areas" that existed were intentionally signal-blocked locations, and deep underground.

And tonight, evidently, Piscatun.

[Cazero]

"Well. Apparently they can take down the cellular network." Joy paused for a short moment to remotely check the situation from her house's computers. "And the internet. Probably city-wide, maybe larger, wich indicate either a very large power source or a remote intrusion on the satellite providing service."
Her suit connection still working was easy to explain as she initialy designed it to use an unusual frequency to anticipate risks of interference with experiments in the future. Since that was holding for now, she decided to establish a linkup with both phones.
"The subfrequency signal I use for my suit is still working so we might be able to keep in touch that way, but I won't be able to initiate connections remotely. At least not right now."

[Thokk_Smash]

Allan's shakes intensify for a brief moment when Joy mentions the communications being shot. No. No, those monsters will not isolate their town. Allan made a horrific mistake, but he can't let these beasts act unseen by the authorities.

"Give me a second," he says with a grim determination. He reaches into his core, to the center of his being. To him, all life is connected. It's how he can sense people from afar. If he tries hard enough, he imagines that he can reach his soul to theirs.

~"Officer Pierce, tell me who to contact to send this to the right people,"~ he thinks to Scarlet, his voice feeling like a ray of sunshine in her mind. He also sends his consciousness out to contact Gary Stacks and Sheriff Ramsey.

Power stunting One is All, All is One: Communication 3 (Subtle 2, Rapid 2), Feeling the Lifestream loses Concentration, gains Extended, Rapid, Analytical).

Free action: Get Pierce in contact with her superior, and contact Snooze and the Sheriff.

[Quellian-dyrae]

Joy was able to connect the phones to her suit easily enough, allowing a bit more flexibility with communications.

~Ayumu Bell is the Captain at Awlcite. He's the one who would actually be putting a force together, so might as well go direct to him,~ Scarlet responded, not seeming at all taken aback by the sudden telepathic contact.

Even better, you felt the link connect successfully to both Stacks and Ramsey, although since both of them were asleep there was mo reaction to just the link.

[Thokk_Smash]

Allan breathes a sigh of relief when, finally, something he's done doesn't end with something exploding. ~"Okay, I'm going to link you to him. Hopefully he's awake..."~

Allan takes the light of Scarlet's soul, and reverentially shuttles it at speeds beyond thought and light multiplied toward the distant light that is Ayumu Bell's soul.

While doing that, he gently reaches out for Snooze and the Sheriff's souls. ~"Sheriff, Snooze, I'm sorry but I need you both to wake up,"~ he thinks to them in a fraction of a second. ~"My family is being attacked by Dreamcatchers, at least five. Try not to make any sudden movements--I have no idea if they might've bugged your guys' houses as well. They've attacked all of my siblings, and th-they detonated bombs that destroyed the sheriff's o-office. I-I managed t-to get Officer Pierce out, and we're in Natalia Evelyn's house right now. Officer Pierce is contacting her superior in SIDE to request backup now."~

~"Snooze, I know you don't much like my family, but these guys are Arch-damn certifiable, and have already killed t-t-two in-nocent civilians. They've cut off the cell network in the city, and the internet. So, please, lend us a hand so we can keep our city safe."~

If needed (and able to Routine), Allan will Routine a 30 Persuasion.

[Quellian-dyrae]

~What do you need me to do?~ Sheriff Ramsay sent back, without even a second of hesitation. Sheriff Ramsay was not the sort of man who let relative power and supernatural weight classes stand in the way of protecting his town. ~And what do you mean they destroyed the sheriff's office? Is Bridget okay? And uh...Virgil was in a holding cell when I left for the night. Did they get out?~

But there were...a few moments of tense silence on the other end of the telepathic link. Dreamcatchers were Dreamcatchers, after all, and let's be clear, your family were big fish in Piscatun. Any one of you would have rightly been competitive for the most personally powerful individual in the entire town - and most of that competition would be coming from the other three! Even taking into account that none of you were really professional combatants, just on raw Dreamer power alone, the four of you together easily represented the single greatest concentration of personal power in Piscatun, and frankly, probably several other nearby towns.

Hero or not, it was a simple fact that any opposition that could threaten you was just as big a threat to Snooze.

~Sheriff, there's nothing you can do,~ Snooze told him. ~If the Warrans are running scared, these guys will go through you like a bullet through toilet paper. Allan, I have nothing against your family, but the fact is there are four of you, you're each as powerful as I am, and there's no way a group of Dreamcatchers came to this town without knowing how to deal with intervention from the local Hero. Adding me to a fight is not going to amount to much. Here's what I can do. You said you're calling in SIDE? I can go out to meet them, fill them in and coordinate them with you. Me plus a decent SIDE response is enough fighting power to change the game around. You guys just sit tight, wait for them to get here, and come out swinging as soon as we can engage. Understood?~

"Bell's whelming all the forces he can get on short notice. That should amount to more-or-less a Combat Unit.
ETA about forty-five minutes," Pierce reported.

For the record, if you didn't have that much Persuasion, he was gonna tell you to go to an area where other people wouldn't get hurt, lure the Dreamcatchers out, and he'd surprise them once they were engaged. And then "unfortunately" not arrive in time, because frankly Dreamcatchers are terrifying and he has no desire to fight them without overwhelming force if he can help it.

[tonberrian]

Rose keeps an "eye" on the surroundings, scanning from plants to try and catch the Dreamcatchers before they attack the house.

[Quellian-dyrae]

There didn't appear to be anyone outside, which was certainly good news right? With little left to be done, the family could settle in for a tense wait.

Natalia came back down after about five minutes. Pierce filled her in on the situation, which she responded to with a placid nod. There was an air of calm readiness around the Paradisian speedster, though her sword did not leave her hand, and the gentle breeze swirling around her made clear she was ready for immediate action.

The minutes ticked by. The night waited patiently.

Pierce seemed to get more tense over time. Natalia Evelyn's house was as safe a haven as was likely to be had in the city. If any safehouse would stay the hands of their attackers, this was it. And yet, as time continued to pass without any action, she only grew more agitated. These were Dreamcatchers. Every minute they weren't actively attacking was another minute they were preparing their next move. And it was debatable which was worse.

"Bell says they're on their way," she said, after an interminable twenty minutes.

Literally less than fifteen seconds later, the house started...shaking.

Rose still saw nothing outside.

Initiative:
Rose: [roll0].
Allan: [roll1].
Alex: [roll2].
Joy: [roll3].

Scarlet: [roll4].
Natalia: [roll5].

Dreamcatchers: [roll6]. Ayup

If the Dreamcatchers win initiative:

Physicist:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Attack Evelyn's house with Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll7], critting on 19+. If that hits Active Toughness (14), Toughness ([roll8]) DC 30/25 vs. Concentration Damage Linked Concentration Weaken Toughness. If the building is at least Breached, this Cone Area attack will also resolve against those in the living room, although the Weaken is Limited to Structures Only. Miss

Biochemist:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Attack Evelyn's house with Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll9]. Toughness: [roll10]. Miss

Roboticist:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Attack Evelyn's house with Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll11]. Toughness: [roll12]. The bad news is that's a crit. The good news is after reviewing my house rules the building's Impervious Toughness actually is just high enough to ignore these things baseline. Crits can ignore Impervious rather than getting +5 to the DC though, so this attack does land. The house is Breached (meaning you guys get attacked, which I will roll in the OOC), takes a Bruise, and has its Toughness reduced by 1.

Energist:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Attack Evelyn's house with Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll13]. Toughness: [roll14]. Miss

Programmer:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Attack Evelyn's house with Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll15]. Toughness: [roll16]. Miss

They appear to be using some sort of earthquake-generating devices. If the home's defenses are breached, you can probably avoid harm from such things by getting off the ground - although that won't help if the house comes crashing down upon you!

It's tough to say for sure given the access to stealth that the Dreamcatchers have proven to have,
but it seems implausible that these earthquake devices could be used from outside without causing some obvious visible disturbance.
And really, what better place to stage an earthquake attack from than underground?

Now, that may potentially offer an advantage to exploit. It'd be risky, but the Dreamcatchers are almost certainly expecting a return attack. If you were to delay that for a bit, they might believe you are unable to strike back at them effectively, and start attacking more aggressively. Any of them that are still making attack rolls by their third salvo will probably All Out Attack, if no attacks have been made against them until then. And if you can come at them at that point from an angle they don't expect from you (remember,
they probably know all of your powers), you might even be able to catch them by surprise. Of course, this would require letting them attack the house unopposed for that long.

...Also, I mean, I know Rose didn't see anything, but frankly, knowing these guys, what are really the odds that they haven't left more bombs by the door before starting this attack?

[Cazero]

"Artificial earthquake. Take cover."
With a complex hand gesture, Joy pointed her artificial arms up, and a large dome of dim, orange light formed above her almost instantly. Four vertical pillars of the same light were connecting the dome to a flat surface forming a few inches above ground, at a slower pace to give everyone enough time to step on it.
Even though she knew it would provide little protection, Joy found the soft humming of the hardlight projectors reassuring.
Joy condition : fatigued
Repeated action : none available
Free action : set array to Hardlight Construct
Standard action : use Hardlight Construct to Create a structure intercepting earthquake attacks against people inside it
Move action : nothing

[Quellian-dyrae]

Round 2

Pierce was quick to hop onto Joy's platform, although the uncertainty of the attack seemed to cause her siblings to hesitate. The quake seemed to have damaged the power system some, as the lights all went out, but the house was otherwise holding up in pretty decent shape.

"Don't worry, that was just some feedback energy," Natalia said. "It'll take a lot more than some huffing and puffing to blow this place down." Even so, there was no sense in taking risks; the breeze flowing around her stilled as she aligned her power from air to earth.

And to be fair, the Dreamcatchers brought more than huffing and puffing. The shaking became a bit less intense, but...

You feel heat coming from the floor.

Pierce:
Move: Onto the platform.
Standard: Defend.

Natalia:
Move: Meh.
Free: Swapp to Speed of Earth.
Standard: Defend.

Programmer:
Move: ???.
Standard: Aid the Energist with Installed Skill at [roll0]. ...Natural 1's autofail attack rolls.

Energist:
Move: ???.
Free: Activate Energizer on self.

9 points to add Linked Weaken Toughness 8 (R/R; Affects Insubstantial [Incorporeal]) to High-Intensity Energy Beam.
-1 point to remove Incurable from the damage.
-1 point to add Inaccurate 1.
-8 points to remove the Enhanced Area from both Damage and Affliction.
8 points to add two ranks to all Effects.

Standard: Attack Natalia's house with Energized High-Intensity Energy Beam, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll1]+Aid vs. Reflex (14), critting on 16+. On a hit, Reflex ([roll2]) DC 31/25/25 vs. Damage Linked Dazed+Impaired/Stunned+Disabled Linked Weaken Toughness. The Damage has a Secondary Effect. Ward-blocked

Roboticist:
Move: ???.
Standard: Concentrate on Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator. Crits don't persist through Concentration, so this can only damage the house if its Impervious Toughness has been further weakened (but even one point of Weaken will put it in range). If so, Toughness ([roll3]-penalties) DC 31/25 vs. Damage Linked Weaken Toughness. Since the original attack missed ya'll you have nothing to worry about from this one. Impervious

Biochemist:
Move: ???.
Standard: Attack with Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll4] vs. Toughness (13-Weaken), critting on 19+. On a hit, Toughness ([roll5]-penalties) DC 31/25 vs. Damage Linked Weaken Toughness. I'll resolve any breach attacks in a follow-up post. Crit ignores Impervious, but resists

Physicist:
Move: ???.
Standard: Attack with Custom Module - Portable Earthquake Generator, Power Attacking for 5, at [roll6] vs. Toughness (13-Weaken), critting on 19+. On a hit, Toughness ([roll7]-penalties) DC 31/25 vs. Damage Linked Weaken Toughness. I'll resolve any breach attacks in a follow-up post. Hit. Impervious.

I'm probably going to make a follow-up post based on results here. Okay never mind. All PCs are on turn. Rose, Alex, and Allan are considered to have delayed and may act twice if desired.

[Dorni]

~Sheriff, Virgil... ~ He couldn't finish the thought. He could still see the man's body and lifestream being torn apart. ~There just isn't a sheriff's office anymore. But we'll hold tight here best we can. I gotta go, they're already attacking again.~

He let go of the link. Natalia's home may be fortified, but if they did nothing the Dreamcatchers would reduce it to rubble in short order. When his brother's idea came to him over their bond, he silently agreed and charged outside, searching for their assailants. If they could snatch one of the Dreamcatchers and drag them inside, they could force a fight where the man couldn't simply teleport away.

Free: set Font of Energy to Endless Roads.
Move: Race outside and start searching for Dreamcatchers. If they're not immediately apparent, search every square in an expanding cube with Flight 20
Standard: we'll see pending the search results

[Quellian-dyrae]

Guess what Allan found?

Go on, guess!

Did you guess bombs!?

BECAUSE HE FOUND SOME BOMBS!

...Yeah, pretty much as soon as he opened the door, the five bombs that the Dreamcatchers had planted outside went off.

Subtle Checks:
Better of Perception, Insight, and Technology. Anyone who beats DC 15 is not Vulnerable, and anyone who beats DC 20 can take reactions if you have any (such as Interposing). I'm giving you guys +5 though because it's like, come on, you have to be expecting this sort of thing by now.
Rose: [roll0]. Can't Interpose
Allan: [roll1]. All good
Alex: [roll2]. Can't Interpose
Joy: Minimum 26 so yeah. All good
Pierce: [roll3]. All good
Natalia: [roll4]. Can't Interpose

Attacks vs. Toughness. On a hit, Toughness DC 23 vs. Damage. The house itself is Impervious.

Rose (DC 22):
[roll5].
[roll6].
[roll7].
[roll8].
[roll9].
One hit, one crit

Allan (DC 23 after Evasion 2):
[roll10].
[roll11].
[roll12].
[roll13].
[roll14].
One hit

Alex (DC 24, 19 if Vulnerable):
[roll15].
[roll16].
[roll17].
[roll18].
[roll19].
Two hits

Joy (DC 20):
[roll20].
[roll21].
[roll22].
[roll23].
[roll24].
Bombs got nothin'

Pierce (DC 13 since no body armor, 8 if Vulnerable):
[roll25]. Toughness: [roll26].
[roll27]. Toughness: [roll28].
[roll29]. Toughness: [roll30].
[roll31]. Toughness: [roll32].
[roll33]. Toughness: [roll34].
...5 Bruises and Staggered. M&M characters are hilarious.

Natalia (DC 22, 17 if Vulnerable):
[roll35]. Toughness: [roll36].
[roll37]. Toughness: [roll38].
[roll39]. Toughness: [roll40].
[roll41]. Toughness: [roll42].
[roll43]. Toughness: [roll44].
Bruised and Dazed

Alex and Rose still have two turns, Allan has one standard action and then one more turn, Joy has one turn. If you're Dazed or Staggered here you lose any remaining move actions though (actually come to think of it Allan would also lose his first turn standard).

You neither spot not bump into them. However, you do notice that there doesn't seem to be any collateral damage outside from the, you know, localized earthquake devices that they seem to be using. You'd think there's be like cracked ground, fallen trees...heck, at least some dust in the air.

[Dorni]

Zoom. Allan was back in the house. "Nothing. I didn't find any of them, just more bombs. But SIDE's on its way with a whole batallion. We just have to hold out till they get here."

Zoom. Allan was on the other side of the room, standing more-or-less in the middle of the house. He took a breath then reached for the Lifestream within, then channeled it outwards, wrapping the house in a tangible protective field.

Move: Middle of house as needed to fit house within Area 1.
Free: Set Font of Energy array to Enhanced Lifestream
Standard: Protecting Presence. Wrapping house in Create 12 (Impervious 11) created life essence field and Area Deflect (1d20+10). Applying Deflect to all PCs, Natalie, House, and created objects.

[Cazero]

Focusing on defense. Holding off Dreamcatchers for who knows how long.
Better than no plan.
"I'm finishing something that should help."
Joy has been working on the theoritical aspects of an experimental entropy detection and reversal field, and she should be able to recalibrate the tools of her suit to create one. If it worked. Just triple checking the theoritical maths on it while setting it up.
And the house already sustained just the right amount of damage for a live test. Excluding biological entities because tonight is not the time to figure exactly how much entropy human body functions need to keep working.
At least the anti-gravity pull needed to isolate the target should work, and that would have the nice side effect of protecting against earthquakes.
"Lifting the house. Might shake a bit."
Joy condition : fatigued
Repeated action : maintaining the hardlight construct
Free Action : Utility Arm Pack Power Stunt
Entropy Reversal Field (35/35pp)
Immunity 2(ground-transmitted effects)
Sustained, Affect Others, Limited to Others
Linked
Healing 10
Persistent, Restorative, Affect Objects, Limited to Objects
Cost 2pp/rank of Immunity + 3pp/rank of Healing + 1 : 35
Standard Action : use Entropy Reversal Field, targetting Natalia's house
Healing roll : [roll0]

[Quellian-dyrae]

It has been said before, but it bears repeating, that the Warran siblings were each competitive for the title of the most powerful Dreamer living in the town of Piscatun, and collectively represented the single greatest concentration of Dreamer power in the entire town, and probably any town nearby. It was in fact likely that none of the cities in the vicinity could field a cohesive unit of Dreamers that matched their power.

But then, this perhaps begged the question, what does that really mean? When you are being hunted by warrior-scientists as well prepared as they are merciless, what really was the measure of a Dreamer's power?

Was it really just a question of strength in direct combat? Did the title of strongest go to the Dreamer who could output the greatest force with the most accuracy, who could most reliably avoid the attacks of its enemies, and resist those that got through? To compare the power of two Dreamers, do you really just have them blast or punch each other until one falls unconscious a hundred times, and declare the mightiest to be the one who won most often?

And if not, what other measures do you take into account? Is it a question of how fast they can run, how much they can lift? How far they can project their powers, and how quickly they can clean up their living room? Do you take into account how many different things they can sense, and what variety of effects they stand immune to, and if not then how do you choose who is stronger between a Dreamer who can throw fire, and one who can become living flame? Is it in how much matter they can create from nothing, transform into something else, move with their minds, or teleport elsewhere? Do you count how many fancy modes of movement they possess, or simply ask whether or not they can fly?

Is a mimic who can use the power of a hundred other Dreamers, but only half as well as each, the strongest or weakest in the group? If your only power is to summon beings who are stronger than you, does that make you a powerful Dreamer, or a weak Dreamer with powerful friends?

Did it matter more what power you had, or how you used it? Few would dare to claim that the power to multitask really well could compare with the power to circumnavigate the globe in under half a minute, to exert over four hundred tons of force, or to transform into a giant plant woman. But how many multitaskers could build a suit like Joy's?

Questions like these were debated widely throughout Ilessia, and the world of Aranth beyond it. And their answers did matter. For it was a widely accepted fact that the Emperor of Haptarus was one of most powerful Dreamers on the planet, if not the strongest of them all. And yet, none who would speak of it actually knew what he could do. Funny how everybody knew he had so much power, when nobody knew what power he had.

And the people of Aranth might never settle on a final answer as to how you truly measure the power of Dreamers as a collective. But here, tonight, regarding the specific case of how one could really say that the Warran siblings were the most powerful Dreamers in Piscatun. To that question, we had an answer.

Because there was no other Dreamer in town, nor any group of them. Not Gary Stacks and Omar Hu and Natalia Evelyn and Julie Magee. Not any permutation of four or ten or twenty of the give-or-take thousand Dreamers that lived in Piscatun, that could have answered the threat of a quintet of Dreamcatchers with portable earthquake generators by floating an entire flipping house off the ground while simultaneously healing any structural damage it received and surrounding it on all sides by a wall of supernaturally resilient wood that was, itself, surrounded by a shining barrier of pure concentrated life energy!

The house of Natalia Evelyn had become a beacon, and a warning: This is what you get when you pick a fight with the most powerful Dreamers in town!

There was no further shaking, nor was the integrity of those barriers tested by further energy blasts. The Dreamcatchers...they didn't have an immediate answer for this one.

But that was okay.

They'd go home and think about it...

The Dreamcatchers teleport away. You are out of combat time.

There's some twenty minutes until SIDE arrives and ??? [time units redacted] until the Dreamcatchers come up with and/or invent a new strategy.

Anything you guys want to do, or should I skip ahead?

[Quellian-dyrae]

There wasn't much else to do but wait. Well, mostly. Joy was keeping herself busy, but Evelyn's place didn't exactly have the fully-stocked workshop that she was used to, and as it turned it, it wasn't actually possible to build a fully-functional teleport detector from household objects in less time than it takes to deliver a pizza. Strange though that may seem.

Pierce had been pretty badly injured by the bombs, but it was nothing that Allan's powerful life energy couldn't mend, if he so chose.

Fortunately, the next thing to happen was not some new horrible attack by the Dreamcatchers. It was a telepathic message. Pierce perked up a bit when it came through, but Evelyn didn't seem to notice, so presumably it was only going to Pierce and you four. ~This is Agent Delma Alger of SIDE. We're approaching city limits now.~

Pierce let out a little relieved breath. ~Nice to hear from you Alger. We're still holed up at Miss Evelyn's house. It's the one that's currently flying and surrounded by a mass of wood and a glowing forcefield. So, you know, you can't miss it.~

~Copy that. Actually I think I can see you from here. Very Arcmas-y.~

~I can see you guys,~ And Snooze. Presumably it was only going to Pierce, you four, and Snooze. ~That's me heading your way.~

~In the flying car?~

~Don't judge.~

~Alright, we'll meet up at the flying house, and figure out a-~

Surprise Round

Physicist:
Move: Teleport from hiding into position.
Standard: Attack with SmartGun, All Out Attack for 5, Power Attack for 2. Area Attack vs. Reflex. On a hit, Toughness DC 25+Multiattack vs. Damage.
ACV 1: [roll0] vs. 18. Toughness: [roll1]. Hit. No Multiattack. Vehicle disabled.
ACV 2: [roll2] vs. 18. Toughness: [roll3]. Hit. Full Multiattack. Vehicle disabled.
Captain 1: [roll4] vs. 22. Toughness: [roll5]. Miss
Captain 2: [roll6] vs. 22. Toughness: [roll7]. Miss

Biochemist and Roboticist:
Move: Teleport from hiding into position.
Standard: Attack with Abduction Warp. If a given ACV is affected, they will Selectively attempt to target each agent within separately, and Selectively target independent of equipment; agents who resist may remain with ACV if desired. All Out Attack for 5, Power Attack for 1, Team Attack. Area Attack vs. Will. On a hit, Will DC 23 vs. teleportation.
ACV 1: [roll8], [roll9] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll10]. Teleported Distance Rank 6

Driver: [roll11], [roll12] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll13]. Teleported Distance Rank 8. All Equipment and Devices lost.
Agent 1: Routine 18, [roll14] vs. 18. Will: [roll15]. Teleported Distance Rank 8. All Equipment and Devices lost.
Agent 2: Routine 18, [roll16] vs. 18. Will: [roll17]. Teleported Distance Rank 8. All Equipment and Devices lost.
Agent 3: Routine 18, [roll18] vs. 18. Will: [roll19]. Teleported Distance Rank 8. All Equipment and Devices lost.
Agent 4: Routine 18, [roll20] vs. 18. Will: [roll21]. Teleported Distance Rank 8. All Equipment and Devices lost.
ACV 2: [roll22], [roll23] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll24]. Both miss

Driver: [roll25], [roll26] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll27].
Agent 1: Routine 18, [roll28] vs. 18. Will: [roll29].
Agent 2: Routine 18, [roll30] vs. 18. Will: [roll31].
Agent 3: Routine 18, [roll32] vs. 18. Will: [roll33].
Agent 4: Routine 18, [roll34] vs. 18. Will: [roll35].
Captain 1: [roll36], [roll37] vs. 20, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll38]. Teleported Distance Rank 8. All Equipment and Devices lost.
Captain 2: [roll39], [roll40] vs. 20, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll41]. Teleported Distance Rank 2. All Equipment and Devices disarmed.

Energist and Programmer:
Move: Teleport from hiding into position.
Standard: Attack with Abduction Warp. If a given ACV is affected, they will Selectively attempt to target each agent within separately, and Selectively target independent of equipment; agents who resist may remain with ACV if desired. All Out Attack for 5, Power Attack for 1, Team Attack. Area Attack vs. Will. On a hit, Will DC 23 vs. teleportation.
ACV 1: [roll42], [roll43] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll44]. Both miss

Driver: [roll45], [roll46] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll47].
Agent 1: Routine 18, [roll48] vs. 18. Will: [roll49].
Agent 2: Routine 18, [roll50] vs. 18. Will: [roll51].
Agent 3: Routine 18, [roll52] vs. 18. Will: [roll53].
Agent 4: Routine 18, [roll54] vs. 18. Will: [roll55].
ACV 2: [roll56], [roll57] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll58]. Both miss

Driver: [roll59], [roll60] vs. 18, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll61].
Agent 1: Routine 18, [roll62] vs. 18. Will: [roll63].
Agent 2: Routine 18, [roll64] vs. 18. Will: [roll65].
Agent 3: Routine 18, [roll66] vs. 18. Will: [roll67].
Agent 4: Routine 18, [roll68] vs. 18. Will: [roll69].
Captain 1: [roll70], [roll71] vs. 20, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll72]. You already got teleported max distance so whatever
Captain 2: [roll73], [roll74] vs. 20, +5 for contributing. Will: [roll75]. Both miss

Round 1 to come

[Quellian-dyrae]

~We're under attack! I've been teleported away from the rest of my team. Status, sound off!~

~It looks like half your team vanished. I'm moving in.~

~I'm okay just...not sure where I am at the moment.~

There were a few more sound offs of the same.

~ACV's fried.~

~They blinked me out of my suit but I see it.~

~We could use some help out here,~ Agent Alger sent, and it was clear she was talking to you guys.

Okay, wait. Before anybody rushes off to do something. These guys have planted bombs pretty much everywhere you've tried to go.
Bombs that go off even when passed by at Allan's speeds. Now, it's simply implausible that they've surrounded the entire outskirts of the city with bombs and, frankly, it's not like Allan can't breeze you through them intangibly. Thing is, these are Dreamcatchers. They know that.
They know exactly how fast Allan is. Realistically, there is no reason he couldn't have raced all of you straight to Arbera or something. Threat over.
They have to have a contingency for that. A contingency that can't just be raced past invisibly.

It can't be a proximity trigger. Allan's too fast. It has to be some type of active tracking. Positioning based. When you get in certain designated areas, bombs go off. That's obvious enough.

So how do they stop you from just picking up and leaving town?

The answer is obvious. They set bombs at your parents' house, which will presumably explode if you get anywhere close, or if you leave city limits.

The same city limits the SIDE agents haven't...quite...reached.

The revelation that they disabled the signal satellite to the city is the key. They must be tracking your specific spiritual energy signatures via the satellite. That's the only reasonable way they could be scanning such a wide area at that level of speed. If you can somehow get control over whatever programming they have on the satellite, you should be able to disable their ability to track you, and that could change the name of the game.

Round 1 - Dreamcatcher Turn

Physicist:
Standard: Attack the people in ACV 2 with SmartGun, Power Attacking for 2. Area attack vs. Reflex. On a hit, Toughness DC 25+Multiattack vs. Damage. This attack deals lethal damage to Minions.
Agent Spannagel: [roll0] vs. 16. Toughness: [roll1]. Miss
Agent 1: Routine for 16. Toughness: [roll2]. KILLED!
Agent 2: Routine for 16. Toughness: [roll3]. KILLED!
Agent 3: Routine for 16. Toughness: [roll4]. KILLED!
Agent 4: Routine for 16. Toughness: [roll5]. KILLED!
Move: Teleport into hiding at [roll6].

Biochemist:
Standard: Attack Captain Marsden with Combat Chemistry, Power Attacking for 3 at [roll7] vs. Toughness (DC 13 unarmored). On a hit, Toughness ([roll8]) vs. DC 26/21 Damage Linked Weaken Toughness. This attack may be lethal to an unarmored agent. DYING! and -11 Toughness
Move: Teleport into hiding at [roll9].

Programmer:
Move: Teleport into range.
Standard: Technopathic Compulsion on Snooze's car, at [roll10] vs. Will (DC 10, Defenseless from Absent Intellect). On a hit, Will ([roll11] after Disabled from Absent Presence) DC 23 after auto-crit vs. Cumulative, Secondary Effect Entranced/Compelled/Controlled. CONTROLLED!
If Compelled or Controlled, it is forced to eject Snooze, resulting in Toughness ([roll12]) DC 21 vs. falling damage. Resists
Move-by Action: Teleport into hiding at [roll13].

Energist:
Move: Teleport into range.
Standard: Attack Snooze with High Intensity Energy Beam at [roll14] vs. Reflex (DC 16). On a hit, Reflex ([roll15]) DC 23/18 vs. Secondary Effect Damage Linked Dazed+Impaired/Stunned+Disabled Affliction. Hit. Resists. SNOOZE IS A HERO REMEMBER!
Mve-by Action: Teleport into hiding at [roll16].

Roboticist:
Standard: Attack Captain Marsden with Cybernetic Implants at [roll17] vs. Reflex (DC 16). On a hit, Toughness/Will ([roll18]) DC 28+Multiattack+Toughness penalties vs. Damage, DC 18 vs. Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless. This attack may be lethal to an unarmored agent. Fails a Resistance check while Dying and is KILLED!
Move: Teleport into hiding at [roll19].

All PCs are on turn. Allied NPCs will act in my next post, before the next Dreamcatcher turn.