[M&M 3e] Operation Gutterstorm (IC)

[Cappinski]

Link to OOC Thread - http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showt...terstorm-(OOC)

A great portion of New York city is still under construction, but at least that shows that the wound left by the Invaders is finally starting to scab over. Little is actually known, save for what the news crews managed to record in the melee. Scientists are still discussing the implication of intelligent alien life, even though all they have to mull over accounts to a garbage scow's worth of technological corn-husks. The facts are these: lives were lost, but many more were saved by a team of super-powered individuals. Some, literal knights in shining armor. Others, monsters turned against a common foe. A few extraordinary individuals stood against an army in a showdown that has taken us months to fully recover from. The great media machine I am so proud to be a part of was quick to give the group a name, and Tony Stark aka Iron Man, was even quicker to make sure that name was shouted from the rooftops. One of the first additions to the Manhattan skyline was a contribution that still glows in an area mostly without power. The Avengers tower. It is a beacon pointed straight towards the future, a sign that even if that portal were to re-open and hell rain from the skies, heroes would be there to catch it. But what about foes closer to home? What about the villains in our streets? What about the crime that is not extra-terrestrial in origin? The Russian and Sicilian mafias are still alive and well and they are tame compared to the gallery of rogues that stood against the Avengers before they came together. Those were skirmishes that left smaller scars on the world stage, but scars nonetheless. We should still remember Ivan Vanko, the menace known as the Green Goblin and the terrorists behind the attempted assassination of Senator Kelly--- our eyes are cast upwards, but we should not stare too long. There is still filth in our gutters, New York. We cannot assume that we are safe, within or without. We must remain vigilant, or we will lose every forward step we've taken. We will have our city stripped right out from under us by people who cannot see the value in standing together. Earths mightiest they may be, even the Avengers cannot save us from ourselves. The New York Bulletin's Retrospective on the Battle of New York Benjamin Urich

Night has fallen on the city that never sleeps.

Winter has come and gone and the crispness has fallen from the air and left behind only a memory of the chill as the moon crawls higher into the sky. People walk, unafraid amongst the construction towers and the road-work that has revitalized the economy and created a mini-boom. Storefronts proudly proclaim they are open with great big, handwritten signs. The power might be out, but the warble of generators keep the windows bright and the refrigerators running and the people endure. Above all the pedestrian through-traffic and the siren call of radio-DJs just beginning to queue up a late night jam session, something dips into the horizon. There is a flash of shadowed steel, or a material reflective like a mirror and then nothing. It could have been a passing plane, or it could have been a moonbeam catching a cloud just right. Only a few people may have seen it, and fewer still will speak of it. The people of New York just want to move on. They want to live their lives without the fear that the city could be taken over at any moment.

The meatpacking district is the only place the bustle does not spill into. It was untouched by the fallout from the Battle, stark and stalwart with its red brick buildings and industrial chimneys. But no band-saws grind, no night-workers shift stock. It is silent like a tomb. And one of those warehouses, a non-assuming one with its papers all in order and its structural tests passed, houses more than just a butchery and a freezer large enough to store a hundred dead bodies.

It is the workhouse of a man who goes by Guru. It is his den - a home away from prying eyes and a place to do business. Behind a fake wall and down a flight of stairs he stands among piles and piles of techno-leftovers. Prime pickings from scrapyards - the best that modern technology had to offer and some it still has yet to offer. Guru is shrewd, despite his eccentricities and he has built an empire on providing that which cannot be easily developed to those that have need of it. Circuit boards for nuclear devices, experimental flight-craft for would-be-villains-- the trade floor boasts many such impressive items, and even several re-activated Chitauri staffs that sparkle with insidious energy. They are some of the only things he has left to remember the Invasion by. Anything he manages to acquire from the Invaders is quickly cleaned out by his investors, just like the one that is coming in tonight. A big-name with a big wallet. A chance at a payday and networking both.

Guru strokes his long grey beard and jingles his peace-necklace against his lips as he stares at his collection and thinks how best to arrange the room so that the Chakras flow freely. He wants the customer to feel at home. He wants them to spend money. His eyes dart over to his loyal retinue of bodyguards. Each of them is wearing a tie-die shirt, hand-stitched out of hemp fabric. Their arms are crossed in front of their chests, all five men who would not look out of place playing linebacker on the football field or wading waist-deep into a battlefield with nothing but a battleaxe. The only outlier is a woman. A recent hire with impeccable credentials that he has tasked with personally overseeing his day-to-day activities. The other men might have been the obvious muscle, but she was his eye-candy. She was his Shiva.

She went by Harley. And she was close by.

Not too far from that Warehouse is an old subway terminal. The windows are shuttered closed and the doors are locked. There are fewer baubles and less niceties beneath the staircase leading down into a tunnel lit by worklights. It is cramped, it is moldy, but there is power and running water and that is all the sometimes scientist, all-the-time speedster Max Velocity needs. He is not stupid. He has staked out the neighborhood. He knows of Guru and his grey-market and may have even dealt with the man once or twice when he was finding his footing. Guru has always been there and Guru will continue to be. He is like bedrock - there for years, forming the foundation for others.

And that is what has led the wayward timetraveller Exis to the neighborhood. Technology in this time and place is hard to come by. Technology that works even less so. So many ants running around thinking themselves impressive for devices they can fit into their pocket that still require haptic feedback in order to perform routine calculations. But he is not the man Guru is expecting - and perhaps that is for the best. This deal would provide the perfect cover to infiltrate Guru's shrine and pick through what tech there is to see. The Chitauri were after all, advanced lightyears ahead of the time when they invaded first. And lightyears is exactly how far ahead the technology needs to be in order to give him the materials he needs to fix his chrono-slider.

Another street. The same neighborhood. Another rooftop. A man clad in black leather watches a limousine lazily creep along the asphalt - its occupants, a mafia higher up named Donnie Santangelo . Something grinds in the limo's gearbox. There is a sharp hiss of hydraulics and metal, but it's not enough to stop the car completely. It coasts to a stop and the driver exits looking dismayed. His hands are on his hips. Donnie Santangelo's righthand man - a severe looking enforcer that goes only by The Suit. He is wearing something English and striking, fabric that hugs his chest tight and manage to trick the eye into doubling his already formidable size.

That man on the rooftop, known to some as Karmic, is aware that Donnie Santangelo is nothing compared to the silent guardian he keeps at his side. The Suit is stronger than any man should be. He's fast, too. He chased a man down during rush-hour traffic without tearing a cufflink. He beat that man to death with a manhole cover. And now fingers that can bend steel are curling around the door handle of the limo and letting Donnie Santangelo out.

Donnie Santangelo, the same man Red has slated for execution. Another criminal. Another piece of scum in a suit that thinks he can extort local business even with the electrical grid down and the water-lines shattered. Another leech sucking the blood of the city dry. Blood that is by right hers to take.

All the pieces are in place. All the gates are aligned. Potential sharpens the night air enough to give Tellurius pause. The Warehouse district is a place where anyone walking the streets is free game. The cops don't come here - paid off by local mafiosos and men like Guru. There is power in the air, laylines leading him further down the grid that New York is built on. Something is beckoning him towards Guru's warehouse, towards a chance to meet all these men and women for the first time. A chance to make an impression that he might not even know he's going to make.

Or he could ignore the magical fist clenching in his gut.

So could Red, Exis, Max, Harley and Karmic. The night was still young. The deal could go down without a hitch. Red could keep her blade sheathed, Exis could find his tech elsewhere, Max could stay inside his subway tunnel and Karmic and Harley could both watch, unseen from the shadows or standing in the light respectively. Tellurius could turn around and walk the other way.

Nobody had to do anything.

[NineOfSpades]

"Evening Donnie...having some car trouble?" Red called out, leaning up against a lamp post a little over a block up the road from where the cool black limo had rolled to a stop.

She'd been tailing the car for a while now, waiting for a good chance to strike. And this opportunity was about as good as it got. No power to the area meant minimal lighting, and the district was pretty much deserted this time of night. Few witnesses, little chance for civies to get caught in any potential crossfire. Cloaked in the night, she felt powerful this evening. Powerful and hungry...

Donnie Santangelo, small timer in the big picture. Tough guy who liked to put the squeeze on anyone below him. He'd probably scream as he died, and that thought alone was getting Red all kinds of excited. She hadn't had a proper feeding in a few days, and like an itch she couldn't scratch, the blood-lust was constantly scraping at the back of her thoughts. But now...now she was close to feeding time. Donnie would scream, Adrenalin flooding his system as his body went into full panic mode. The taste was like ambrosia, nectar of the gods. Soon, she reminded herself. Just a little longer.

So, yeah, she was playing things a little loose. Going in cocky. It wasn't like she was expecting much trouble. Donnie was a lamb ready for slaughter, and his goon looked like a tough guy, but he was out of his depth here. Dawn was a very, very long way off, and even the toughest guys wouldn't be able to last through this night in one piece. "Big guy, I don't know what he's paying you, but if you stay out of my way, I'll let you take half of whatever Donnie-boy's got in his wallet once I'm done with him. Trust me, he won't be needing it"

Red remained where she was, casually brushing a stray hair from her face as she reclined, looking for all the world like she owned this whole neighborhood. Her sword was in its sheath, slung over her shoulder. She flashed a smile, cocked to the side and betraying her darker motives, her red eyes seeming to shimmer faintly in the gloom. A trick of light perhaps? Maybe, but those fangs seemed awfully real.

Spoiler: OOC

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Going to Ready an action. Since I'm 90% sure Suit is going to attack me, I'll prepare a move action to teleport from my current spot to right behind Donnie, as a move action. Figure I should seperate the two of these guys as soon as possible.

Not sure how good the lighting is here, or whether there is enough for them to see clearly. I'm assuming there are enough dark spots that I can teleport or hide freely.

[WindStruck]

Power. Tellurius needed more.

His old mentor said the rest was up to him. Maybe it was just an excuse to be lazy. Or maybe it really was one of those 'you can only learn for yourself' things. Either way, the man was completely unreachable as of late. With the police on the young mage's case, he couldn't blame the guy either.

Luckily, something was in the air tonight. If Tellurius was to crush Draco Lovelace and stave off those crazy SHIELD guys, perhaps the means to do so would be found here. Or maybe the whole thing was schmuck bait.

He stuck to the shadows, remaining vigilant, and didn't drop his guard for anything.

Spoiler

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stealth: (1d20+9)[13]
perception: (1d20+7)[20]

[Quellian-dyrae]

Karmic watched from the rooftop as the vampire made her approach. He gave a little shake of his head. For his money, a blitz ambush from surprise was the winner every time, especially when dealing with a metahuman.

As a rule, Adam preferred not to engage such opponents. Bad luck became a lot worse when the guy you were fighting had superhuman powers. Not that he'd have said anything. That wasn't the persona of Karmic, the arrogantly confident ninja vigilante. Certainly, he wouldn't have spoken of his misgivings in Red's vicinity. He might have twinged inwardly when the vampire got cocky, but he wouldn't ever let her believe there was anything that Karmic didn't feel capable of dealing with.

That said, he didn't move from his vantage. A blitz ambush while you were already busy fighting another opponent was at least as good as one that came from complete surprise. He wished he could expect that the overmuscled goon would back down, but he didn't. Adam knew didn't have that kind of luck.

Beneath his mask, Karmic smirked. Considering the force arrayed against them, it was probably safe to say: neither did they.

Spoiler

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For now Karmic's holding ready. And I suppose I better roll Stealth since he can't routine checks and now that he's on screen the dice have to get their due . (1d20+16)[29]. EDIT: I like how Karmic's first roll of the game was a natural 13. Well played, dice.

[5a Violista]

Harley

Standing here just waiting has given Harley some time to think. Mostly, she is thinking about how lucky she is to have been hired by Guru and how easy and relaxing she expects this job to be. Tomorrow morning, she won't have to sneak into the house covered in blood and what-else to wash it off before Jessica wakes. She won't have to tear her clothes into scrap material or burn the evidence off of them. She won't have to cook something greasy for breakfast just to disguise the smell of sweat and drugs. She won't have to come up with a story about why her old jacket has another hole in it. Most importantly, she'll be able to pay for her daughter's dance class.
That's a good thing.

Harley looks around the room, and notices that her employer is trying to rearrange the room, to make small changes to it. She looks around as well, noting what looks slightly off, unbalanced, or out-of place. (After all, this is practically what she does for her day job, on the days she can find someone willing to pay her. This is what she studied in school.) After coming up with a short mental checklist, she steps towards Guru. "If I may," she interjects, as if asking for permission.

Then, she continues. She points over at an object. "That over there, it looks slightly out of place in that lighting; it should look better moved over..." she turns her arm, pointing at a different nearby spot, "...there." She points over at a place to sit. "And sitting right there would feel cramped: there should be a little more space around it."

She pauses and waits to see how he reacts to that advice. She would list off more things, but in her experience some people think they know what's best. In those cases, you need to gauge whether they would take your advice or not.

Spoiler: OoC/Roll

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rolling Expertise:Interior Designer to determine what things in the room would look better where.
If you would consider it a routine check: she gets 16 = 10 + 6
Otherwise: (1d20+6)[14]
(Would it be routine? Routine checks are ones that have less pressure, and in my experience being recently hired and trying to impress gives a lot of pressure, so I don't think it would be routine in this particular situation. Maybe possible later checks would be routine, but not the first one.)

[prufock]

Exis scrolled through his sensor array, scanning the nearby buildings for intel. Surveillance first, always a good policy, and easy here in the early 21st century. Though he had found the limitations annoying at first, the lack of true security was a silver lining. Only one building here with much activity, several unfriendlies. Audio sensors picking up chatter, something about redecorating. A separate conversation of someone having car trouble, a vehicle stopped nearby. Interfacing with his Foglet he downloaded the aerial view, noting possible points of entry and egress - second story window. This might get tricky, but he had options.

His wireless scanner was not giving him much here. Several domestic routers available, but nothing connected to the building mainframe. He'd have to use some more direct measures for this job. He could wait, of course, but it could be some time before he'd get an opportunity like this, to get his hands on real advanced tech.

Exis crept closer to the building, following the power lines, spotting the transformer. He fingered him multi-blaster gingerly, pulled it smoothly from its holster, set it for tech-drain, and leveled it at the transformer. Hesitated. There were no reports of this night, at least not in his downloaded database. This could go right or very, very wrong. Times like these he missed the WorldNet.

He pulled the trigger. Lights out.

Spoiler: Action!

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Making a routine attack at the transformer, Nullify 6 (Fortitude resists) (Extras: Affects Objects, Broad - Technology, Simultaneous). Objects do not get a resistance check; the effect works at its maximum degree of success. Basically, the transformer should stop functioning until a "user" reactivates it. This should, if I've interpreted this correctly, cut the power to the building, at least temporarily - hopefully until someone can reset the transformer.

If you disagree with this interpretation of Nullify on an object, please let me know and I'll change it to Exis using the Multi-Blaster's Damage effect instead.

Spoiler: Stats

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Hero Points: 1
Damage: 0
Conditions: None

[Zen Gypsy]

Max Velocity
Hero Points: 1 [Luck: 1]
Condition: Cautious.

Three processing cores, located on the seventh floor of CordCo's New York offices, isolinear optical chips ran in parallel series to provide maximum redundancy and impressive processing speeds given the current technological paradigms. While it was an Australian based firm, they were a subsidiary of Stark Enterprises, and their expertise in data storage and security drew the attention of Stark, who acquired the foreign company, and now used their technology to protect S.E.'s data.

To breach CordCo's security, acquire their cypher, and crack S.E.'s data encryption, Max knew of an algorithm that he could use to gain access, but it would require a multiphasic network. In his timeline, the Avengers had used such a network to co-ordinate their various cells against the occupying forces; ironically developed from the Chitauri's own neural network that allowed them to slave their drones into a cohesive unit. Unfortunately the tools of this time period were limited, and to reverse engineer the network he would need access to a variety of Chitauri cybernetic and neural implants.

The evening was chill, about 7^o C, a light fog was rolling in from the Hudson, preceded by a soft, steady drizzle. He rolled up his collar against the rain, walked through the pool of light in front of the Whitney Museum of Art, stopped a moment and looked down at the paper he had been reading earlier, Ulrich's article on the Battle of New York. He shrugged his shoulders, dropping the newspaper into a trash bin, and turned left onto Washington. He was approaching Guru's warehouse, he knew his supplier would have an assortment of technology there, little of it would be of use to him, but sometimes the man was capable of getting his hands on legitimate Chitauri tech.

Max walked up to the warehouse, a narrow face, shorn hair, and three days growth, he looked disheveled in his too loose khaki's, hoodie and windbreaker, but his eyes were bright, intelligent, and constantly moving. He circled towards the rear of the facility, the staff entrance, which was typically watched over by Guru's tie dyed muscle was unguarded, though the LED on the camera was a dull, steady green. Faster than the human eye could follow, he changed to his working clothes, a red and black body suit made of a low friction fabric, courtesy of Reeds unstable molecules, adorned with ultra lite contoured metallic alloy plating and faceplate that offered some protection and anonymity.

A set of lockpicks appeared in his hand, and he was through the door, and inside the facility. He was aware of the false wall and the stairs that led down to the workshops and show room. He had, after all, aided Guru before, in analyzing, assessing, and re-purposing technology that the aging middle man didn't fully comprehend. He performed a quick sweep of the warehouse before proceeding to the hidden wall. He noted the keypad, it was sixteen digits, at 2.09e¹⁶ he calculated that he'd be through the keypad in less than ten seconds.

That was when there was large whine and a pop from somewhere outside, and the lights went out.

****.

Spoiler: OOC

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Super-Speed array is currently set to Quickness 5, Speed 10, for a total of Quickness 10 & Speed 15. I will roll Initiative, and then use my Movement action to approach Guru, and my Standard action to search the entire warehouse. Assuming a thorough search would take an Hour (9 ranks of time), I could do it in 3 seconds (-1 ranks of time; a Standard action). Initiative check (1d20+24)[37], and the Technology check to enter through the servants entrance. (1d20+15)[31].

[Cappinski]

Spoiler: EXIS

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The transformer outside the Warehouse clicked off.

It was like someone had flipped a switch down at the power station - some tired worker with not enough brains in his head. The street-lights in the area, the flourescents inside the warehouse that were glowing green and white and spilling light onto the street, went dead. Guru's whole section of the district went dark, all thanks to Exis and his little toy. Modern technology didn't stand a chance against a man from the future, and he had a mission. No time for subtlety, no time for niceties. There was a chance at a future, his future, somewhere inside that Warehouse and he was going to find it.

(Anyone without Darkvision or another sense that can be applied will now be taking a -5 to Perception tests outside the Warehouse)

Spoiler: HARLEY

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Inside the Warehouse, beyond the false wall and in the display room, Guru was stroking his beard and nodding. He could see all the points that Harley was making. With a snap of his fingers the other guards in the room set to work and with a breath, the chakras were flowing freely like water bubbling over rocks. He was smiling behind his worn fingers. His Shiva had always found ways to surprise him, though this development went beyond her usual efficacy. Her brutality was apparently now matched only by her skill in Feng Sui. He was already thinking about a raise, a little bonus dropped into her bank account. He pushed up his glasses. "I gotta say, man--" he grunts as he pulls up a stool and swings his legs around it. "You've got your ways. Like, you've got this way about you. Your aura, I mean."

He'd given her this talk before. He'd given everyone this talk. It was how he liked to start conversations, by reading the peple he was speaking to. So far, Harley had managed to avoid it. "I see a lot of red, man. A lot of it. But there's other colors back there. Colors you push down real deep. Blue, like-- like the color you paint a boy's room. And green, like the Earth Mother." He was beaming. It was times like this he looked less like a super-villain and more like a friendly uncle who'd stumbled into a family reunion after hitting up a bar for courage.

His necklace was blinking. He stopped mid-sentence, arm outstretched. He pursed his lips and flicked a button on the side and a holographic projection of the exterior of the Warehouse was presented. It was dark, save for two headlights. He flicked another button. The view changed. Donnie Santangelo and The Suit were there. Looking, no, glaring at a woman in the middle of the road. It's obvious whatever power failure outside has suffered has not penetrated the cocoon of technology Guru had built for himself.

"Oh ****, man." He hissed. He jerked a hand in Harley's direction. "Oh ****, oh ****. You need to get out there man. I know this girl-- I know that sword. She takes out our client nobody's going to come here, man. Nobody's going to buy anything ever again!"

There was panic in his voice. He was sitting up on his stool. "Stop that bitch before she harshes our vibe any worse! She can't kill Donnie! They'll come after me so hard not even that cloaking device I got over there is gonna be able to hide me."

Spoiler: RED AND KARMIC

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Donnie and The Suit hadn't moved since Red had approached. Donnie had his hand halfway into his suitcoat, no doubt ready to pull a piece. The Suit, big hulking brute that he was, had shifted so that his form was almost completely covering Donnie's. Like a good bodyguard, he knew how to make sure he took the hit, and not the bloke that was paying his checks. Donnie piped up from behind his shield made almost entirely of meat and fine stitched English cloth.

"The Suit don't talk to people like you!" His voice was squeaking. He was sweating, turtleneck darkening around his jaw and chin where it was pooling. "Suit don't talk to nobody I don't tell him to talk to, ain't that right!"

The Suit nodded silently. His hands remained at his side. His face was the picture of calm. If he knew who Red was, he didn't show it. If he knew what she had done, or the swathe she was cutting across New York, it didn't affect him in the least. One of his giant hands reaches out and closes around the limo's radio antenna. There is a snap, and it comes free from the hood in one clean jerk. It's his own answer to a sword, a small thin piece of metal that if applied to bare skin would open it up like a ziplock bag. The Suit was smirking now.

Donnie was still talking.

"Why don't you just slither on home, lady. I know what you want and you can't have it. I'm a made man, see. I'm protected. You try anything, the Suit here is gonna feed you your own legs. And if he don't manage to do the job, Guru and his boys are going to come knocking. Yeah. That's right. You're gonna have an army to deal with--- an ARMY, Red!" Nobody seems to have noticed Karmic, crouched on the roof. Not Donnie, not The Suit, and not Guru who was still sweating in his tye-die shirt and leather jacket somewhere they could not see.

Spoiler: OOC NOTES

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There is now plenty of shadow to teleport pretty much wherever you want. The only place outside of your range (not covered in shadow) is a line in front of the car that the headlights are lighting, and the interior of the car itself. The engine's stalled but the lights still work. If neither of them have any alternate vision modes, they will be taking negatives to perception, also!

Neither the Suit nor Donny have attacked.

Spoiler: TELLURIUS

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It's a showdown in the street, one that Tellurius can see plainly as he approaches. The car headlights are now the only source of light outside in about a block's radius. A woman stands beind two men. Both of them in suits, one nearly seven feet tall. The woman, Red, wielding a sword with a confident air. She's smiling. Is it a gang war, maybe or a movie rehearsing before the first take? Why else would anyone be out here this late at night? Why would your senses have drawn you here if only to watch?

Spoiler: MAX VELOCITY

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Meanwhile, Max pushes inside the Warehouse that Guru uses as a shell for his night-trading. It's dark and quiet. The bone grinders in the corner have switched off. The doors, once electrical and opened with a button press, now have to be slid by hand. Saws gleam on corkboard mounted to the walls and hooks dangle, still unmuddied by blood or vital fluids. This place is nothing but a ruse - a labyrinth to throw off anyone curious enough to poke their heads in. But Max knows this, even in the dark. Max knows exactly where to find the rendering vat with the door hidden along its exterior.

He would also know that he was being watched. Sensors in the floor, cameras in the ceiling, scanners in every door jam. This place was wired. Nobody gets in or out without Guru being aware. For a man of peace, he is as paranoid as they come. And his voice crackles over the defunct PA system in the room Max is currently occupying. The door only opens when Guru wants it to. No keypad, no biometrics - just a simple yes/no switch triggered by the peace medallion that never leaves his side.

<<M--Max? Is that you? What are you doing here, man? It's a bad scene outside. Some-- some Hitgirl is after Donnie. She's gonna splatter his brains all over the pavement if you don't do something. You gotta do something man. I already got Harley heading out there but I mean, man-- man-- I'll pay you!>>

[WindStruck]

While it's true it seemed there was some reason Tellurius was led here tonight, acting right now was... just beyond stupid. He didn't know who was who or what was even going on. It wasn't that a little action scared him. Oh no, far from it. But, before he started slinging spells, he at least thought it prudent to actually have some clue what was going on first.

Look before you leap.

[5a Violista]

Harley
Inside the Warehouse

Harley smiles. "Thanks, you're very flattering," she says before Guru gets into talking about auras. She likes him. He's a pretty good employer.
When he goes into more detail, Harley starts to wonder: is she really that easy to read? He's completely correct. Can everyone tell these things when they talk to her? Even during the day, when she's pretending to be normal? That's a troubling thought. Or is it just him? If it's just him, that's fine, and the things she wants to remain hidden...are still hidden.

She sees and looks at the projection of the people out there. Especially the woman with the sword."Okay," she says, as she receives her mission. "He'll be fine," she reassures, as she shrugs off her blazer-jacket. And her shoes, easily removed because that's how dress shoes are for women. (Just because she's moderately dressed up doesn't mean she'll let her clothing get in her way.)

As soon as she can, she starts running to the exit, to leave the room and then the warehouse. Her gloves also fall to the ground. As she runs, something starts to grow out of her shoulders and tear through the blouse's cloth: at first, it looks like bones, forming large bone claws. Dark skin stretches along it, then it turns reddish, being coated in blood as if it were dew.

Since she does not know exactly which street it is on, her intent is to fly upwards just enough to see the glow of the car's lights. She's much faster flying than running, anyway. There's not really much time to strategize or wait: only to jump right in.

Spoiler: OoC actions

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Move action: Activate Flight(Wings) power

[prufock]

Exis leaps.

Airborne, Exis mentally cycles through the wireless transmissions he can detect, noting some security feeds. Tapping into the hub, he attempts to overwrite the data feeds - setting all gates to negative should do it. No presence, no countermeasures. That won't stop anyone inside from activating it manually, but hopefully it will take a minute or two.

Hitting the second-story window, he crashes through feet-first and drops down into the darkness below, sensor array flipping through night vision and infrared. He picks out the potential targets in the room, switching his blaster to flash. Now for the fun part.

Spoiler: OOC

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For the wireless feeds, I'm basically attempting to set all the transmissions from "there's something here" to "there's nothing here" in hopes that this will cancel any offensive security measures.

Technology: (1d20+18)[29]

With infrared and night vision, he should have no trouble seeing anyone who isn't actively hiding in the darkness. Perception check provided in case there is anyone using Stealth.

Perception: (1d20+12)[27]

[Quellian-dyrae]

Adam gave a little sigh as the lights went out.

It wasn't so much that the darkness bothered him. Okay, sure, his night vision wasn't really any better than the next guy's, but more shadow only aided attempts at stealth, and when the world around you was plunged into darkness, on the vampire's team was where you wanted to be.

But it was just a sign that probability was raring up to have its usual fun with him.

Adam pushed off, a light hop carrying him yards as he sprang from the roof to land lightly on the other side of the car, taking advantage of both the darkness and the cover it provided to get closer to the brewing conflict hopefully undetected. It would let him observe the situation more easily in the darkness, ready to strike when the time came.

Spoiler

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Repositioning. Haven't done anything to break stealth, so prior roll remains.

[Zen Gypsy]

Max Velocity
Hero Points: 1 [Luck: 1]
Condition: Gone.

Spoiler: OOC

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Stating my Actions first, and will provide Narrative after determining the Success, or Failure, of those outcomes. Maintaining my Initiative check from previous post, 37, with Array set to 10 Quickness, 15 Speed. By my calculations to sweep the streets to determine Donnie's location would be about a 2km by 2km area, which at Quickness 10 I could search in -1 Time, 3 seconds, or a Move action. This would leave me with a Standard action. As a Free Action I will modify my Super Speed Array to Speed 15, leaving me with a Base Quickness of 5, and a Speed of 20; at the same time I will switch my Speed Stunts Array to Snatch & Grab. Giving me Close Combat 12, & Enhanced Strength 12, as well as Fast Grab, Imp. Grab, Imp. Disarm, and Imp. Hold. I will then Surge for an additional Standard Action, now, with two Standard Actions, I will use one as a Move Action, coupled with Move-By Attack this will allow me to end my turn anywhere within 4,000 miles of Donnie's current location. I will then perform a Grab Action on Donnie, from Surprise, due to Concealment, (1d20+12)[27]. If that Grab actions succeeds, we're gone, and I will narrate the result.

[NineOfSpades]

Red Laughed. It was a deep, throaty laugh. The kind that starts in the pit of your stomach, a hearty chuckle that you just can't keep in. Donnie was sweating bullets, and his champion was armed with a bit of wire ripped off of the hood of the car. Paper tigers would have better odds.

"Oh Donnie...Donnie, Donnie, Donnie...You're no made man. Hardly a man at all, really. Just pig that I've been fattening up, waiting till you were good and juicy." She paused licking her lips. Red could hear Donnie's heart beating, the pulse of blood through his veins. There was that hunger again, urging her to hurry. But Red liked to take her time with scumbags like this. When they found the body, it was better that his friends would know that Donnie's last moments were filled with fear and pain. "Talk all you want about your friends, and their army. But I don't see them here tonight...so, I guess I just have to ask. How protected are you?" With those words, Red drew her sword, and faded away into shadows, the darkness cloaking her from sight.

There was a moment of stillness, the very air laden with hesitation. It was the stillness before the gunshot, the calm before the storm.

Red struck hard, a beast appearing out of nowhere. After all, her prey were human. And there was a very human fear of the dark. Fear of what might be lurking out there, ready to attack. She was more than happy to take advantage of those fears as her blade sliced through the air. Its target was The Suit. Donnie might be the evenings meal, but she'd never get a chance to really enjoy drinking him in with the lug looming over. And in the long term, it would make it that much harder for her targets to find goons willing to protect them, knowing what happened to the previous batch. But, all that was really just excuses. Truth be told, Red was just hungry for blood and didn't especially care where it was spilled.

Spoiler: OOC

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Using Concealment to sneak attack The Suit (Surprise should make him vulnerable). Red will stand ontop of the Limo to attack, not that high ground counts for much.

Power attacking with Katana, -4 attack +4 DC, Crit on 16-20

Stealth roll is probably unnecessary, but just in case (1d20+17)[20]

Attack Roll (1d20+10)[16]
DC 29 Toughness

[Cappinski]

Spoiler: EXIS

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The glass shatters against Exis' boots and drops a cascade of sparkling diamonds onto the abandoned cutting floor below. They catch the moonlight fetchingly, refracting white into his infa-red scanners as night-vision reveals nothing but an empty, stoic work-floor. Strange, that there were no scuffs on the cement or blood staining the corners where mops couldn't reach. Strange, that so many of the machines aren't even plugged into the main power circuit. There were many strange things about this Warehouse that matched up with what he had heard - that this was just a front, that nobody comes or goes even though the paperwork is in order. Whoever ran this place was thorough, but not thorough enough for someone who had been trained extensively in the fine art of noticing the little things.

Something beeps inside Exis' head - with as wide a radius as his tools allowed him, intercepting radio-traffic from a command console another, simpler device was cake. Hacking into that feed and changing the data-flow was something different. Technology should not be that hard to master, especially not technology from this century. The binary warped and twisted and refused to budge and thankfully he hadn't failed enough to draw attention.

There were no bodies in the darkness, but there were heat-signatures. Power running through walls. Power that hadn't been shut off by his ray. Laser trip-wires dotted the ground, sending arcs from one side of the room to the next. Exis noticed then, that he was standing smack-dab amongst them. There were no fooling these sensors, not when there was no software to interact with. Something whirred behind him. One of the larger cutting stations split apart at the center, like a mouth forming against the steel. A saw whirred. He felt something harsh bite into his midscetion, then smelled the acid tang of copper in his nose.

Blood. His blood. A slash across his midsection, ripping through his outfit and revealing soft, pink skin. Not enough to pierce the subdermal implants, but enough to break through the wrapping.

The Countermeasure makes a hissing noise, its effort expended. The buzz-saw retracts and clicks back into place hidden once more behind the splitting-table it had been a part of.

Spoiler: OOC NOTES

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Rolled dodge and toughness for you. You are now Bruised. Good news is that trap probably won't activate if you continue to walk along the floor. Bad news is that you are aware that those sensors send data right where everyone can see it and if the trap activated, chances are the Warehouse knows you're there. Might want to make some stealth checks going forward!

Spoiler: HARLEY

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The exit to the warehouse lead Harley into the cool night air and the scintillating starlight unmarred by local sources. She was able to, with captivating horror, go airborn in a splash of bone and blood. The sidewalk is caked with red, glistening as she swooped further away to get her barings. She was a shadow of the moon now, against the backdrop of the sky. Each body around the car was locked in its own struggle, she could see that from her vantage. The man in the Suit was holding firm in front of the Mafioso, but the woman who was there a second ago blinked out of existance like she had never been there at all. The machines had been able to see her, through some trick of innovation - but you see nothing except the gleam of steel against the Suit's charcoal pinstripes and you hear nothing save for Donnie's loud, aggressive posturing.

There is a whirl of movement - a sonic boom loud enough to shake Harley to her core. Then, another eyeblink and the Suit is holding a struggling man by the throat, hitching an arm around his neck to strangle him. It's all over in a split second, and is followed by the shattering of glass and steel as the Suit casually kicks the sputtering limo clear across the street and into a storefront.

If Guru is worried that the Suit can't hold his own -- this girl must be something serious.

Spoiler: OOC NOTES

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You can see The Suit, and Donnie Santangelo, but that is all. Red currently has Concealment from all senses except for Tactile, and you do not have proximity enough to make a tactile perception check! That being said, her damaging power is not Subtle, so you have an IDEA of where she might be instead of only kinda guessing where she WAS but she will be getting a bonus on her resistances if you attempt to do anything to her, specifically. AOEs, who knows.

Karmic's stealth check is higher than your perception check (I rolled for you on my end) so he is still off the radar.

Spoiler: RED, KARMIC, MAX and TULLURIUS

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There is a sudden crash of impact - of the sound barrier being ripped apart. Max Velocity warps into being next to Donnie. He's quick - but the Suit must have heard him coming, somehow. The Suit turns, looking away just long enough for Red's sword to find purchase against his spine. Cloth rips but skin does not. Somehow the goliath's hide has turned away the Vampire's blade. There is no claret to taste, no sweet, bitter difference in the air. At least, none belonging to Donnie's silent bodyguard.

Max feels something slam into him. Alone, the force is not significant but coupled with his own considerable momentum the result is catastrophic. Knuckles break in the Suit's hand as his fist makes contact with Max's midsection - a bodyblow that should not have been possible. The air behind Max explodes in a wind-tunnel, tearing through the night louder than an artillery shell. The Suit shifts his weight. His arm bends at the elbow. Max's arm is bent as well - trapped in a clench that leaves the bulk of the Suit free to manage Red on top of the car - the vampire he doesn't seem to have any problem seeing even though his eyes are shut. His feet scrape against the concrete. He is smirking again, teeth barely showing. His grip tightens on both Max and the radio antennae he is wielding like a fencer in his off hand.

There's blood somewhere in the night. Red can smell it, a little ways up and on the wind. Crimson has spilled on the pavement and is somehow dribbling from above. It doesn't make sense, at first. But then she sees her. Like something out of a biblical picture book there is a woman hovering, wings slick with ichor. She is staring near where Red had been, but not where she was currently. This newcomer might have wings, but she was as blind as any of the other sheep. The only thing that made her special tonight was that her feet were not touching the ground.

"Suit ain't some pushover," Donnie yodles behind the gargantuan, completely unaware just how many players were actually in this game. "Suit eats punks like you for breakfast! All your fast friends, all your **** and it don't mean nothin'!" He gawks at Max with eyes that would not be out of place on a puffer fish. "You picked the wrong day to mess with Donnie Santangelo, kid." His gaze sweeps back up to the city, jaw unhinging. "ANYONE ELSE WANT A PIECE OF DONATELLO 'THE RITZ' SANTANGELO? C'MON. I'M RIGHT HERE."

The Suit extends a dress-shoed foot and almost casually slams it against the side of the limo Red is standing on. The thing's engine was already smoking. It wasn't going to get them anywhere. So like a gnat swatting a fly, the Suit removes it from the equation - unaware that the Darkness is where Red is at her strongest. How could he know, after all? Men like the Suit don't believe in fairy tales.

Men like Tullurious do - and he continues to watch all of this from down the road aways. This is not a quiet fight. This has gone from soft conversation to a knock-down, drag-out brawl.

Spoiler: OOC NOTES (RED)

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Good news, your acrobatics was more than high enough to land on the ground without being knocked prone. Even BETTER news, there's now a bunch more shadow in the street, giving you free rein to teleport where you like! Seems like things are coming up Red, because since the speedster is not currently able to move, he's no longer moving at speed rank 10 now, is he? That means he's visible. You're also tertiarily aware of Harley, floating up in the above-space. She's almost entirely made of blood, so that's not even going to require a check from you.

Spoiler: OOC NOTES (MAX)

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So you're grabbed, which isn't so great. You managed to shake off a Bruise even though the Suit hits like a freight train (good job!!) but you are currently Immobile and Vulnerable. It could be worse! Since you aren't actually moving, speed ranks don't factor in and that means alot of the stuff that is reliant on you being supafast is no longer working. You're going to have to get free and get a running start to whip up that flurry. You can always try to escape the grab as Move action, but you're going to be at a -5 to do so! You're also going to start suffocating in a little while, but I'm sure you'll get out before that happens.

Spoiler: OOC NOTES (KARMIC)

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I was tempted to have your bad luck send that car directly into your unseen body, but you haven't done anything except slink around and I'm a action/reaction kinda guy.

[Quellian-dyrae]

Well, this was getting complicated.

Definitely time to enter the fray, though. The bad luck was abrewing, and Karmic didn't want to be on the receiving end. The Suit would make a wonderful target to vent on. He seemed all big and beefy, surely he could take a mild case of the burning hatred of the entire universe. Surely.

Smirking beneath his mask, Karmic hopped out from behind the car, landing before the suit and immediately lashing out with a rapid flurry of blows. "You didn't tell me this was going to be a party," he commented to Red, deadpan. "I would have worn nicer shoes."

Then he slipped past into the shadows of the street. The less aware his opponents were of his position, the better.

Spoiler

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Free: Set arrays as follows: Cursed Strike; Epic Fail; Try, Try Again.

Free: Activate the Enhanced Trait of Try, Try Again to enhance his Martial Arts with Multiattack.

Move: Into Close range of The Suit.

Standard: Attack The Suit at (1d20+12)[31]. On a hit, Toughness DC 27+Multiattack vs. Damage, Will DC 22 (no Multiattack) vs. Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless Affliction. On a miss, Acceptance charges, and target The Suit with Epic Fail; Will DC 22 vs. Entranced/Compelled for one round. The single command for this use of Epic Fail is to attack an empty space near an opponent of his choice with a targeted attack, All Out Attacking for the maximum he is capable of (basically, he swings and misses badly, leaving himself open).

Move-by Action: Into an area with concealment, using Hide in Plain Sight to hide at (1d20+16)[25].

[WindStruck]

Tellurius smirked. This was just going to get more wild if he didn't step in. Or perhaps once he did, everything would explode.

He makes a simple incantation, which produces a small globe of light, which floats about 20 feet off the ground. He also keeps it about 20 feet or so away from him to not be in the center of the light.

Spoiler: ooc

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routine expertise magic: [19]

In technology terms, the light might be something like a high-end "lantern". One of those particularly bright LED types that can actually make a large amount of light with efficient power usage. Except of course, it's magic and rather incorporeal. (physical attacks would whiff right through it)

Then he saunters forward closer to the crowd. "Well now, what's all this?" he says with a smug air of amusement.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think someone was about to get their ass handed to them on a silver platter. But seriously, what's the deal? Can't we all just get along?"

Spoiler: roll

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persuasion: (1d20+11)[13]

Though the effort was sincere, the diplomacy was merely a token effort. After all, these guys seemed pretty interesting, and it would be a shame if some of them wound up as a stain on the concrete. Still, Tellurius was kind of itching for a fight at this point, almost hoping someone would throw the first punch at him.

[Zen Gypsy]

Max Velocity
Hero Points: 1 [Luck: 1]
Condition: Annoyed.

As his target slipped from his grasp with surprising ease, Max's jaw opened incredulously. Then the slab of beef protecting the Mobster dropped a short body shot into his abdomen, luckily the punch was slow and he was able to step around the impact, though the effort of dodging the powerful blow unbalanced him, allowing the brute to put him into a clinch.

A series of small staccato sonic booms accompanied his sudden movements as he twisted in first on direction, then another, shifting and changing his momentum every picosecond, he tore free from the brutes grasp just as a two more men made their presence known. One hovered just off center in a field of light, contrasted by the surrounding darkness, and the other dropped to a vehicle made a quip towards the woman in red, and proceeded to launch a vicious attack on the brute himself.

He whispered to the brute as he slipped his grip, "Idiot! I was here to escort your boy to the Guru, these people obviously don't have his best interests in mind." He turned to Donnie, "Say the word and we're gone. Stay and die, choice is yours."

Spoiler: OOC

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Power Stunting from Hyper Accelerated Physical Response: Quickness 5; Impossible to Hold: Insubstantial 1. This will allow me to automatically flow out of any non-airtight restraint, like the Suit's grip. I will hold my action, if Donnie gives the go ahead, I will remove us both from the scene, if I am subject to an attack I will take the Defend action.

[prufock]

Exis mutters a low curse as the blade cut into his flesh. "Glitch!" He touches his side where the blade had bit. Not too deep, the Subdarm^® had done its job.

This wasn't going to be as easy as he had hoped. The commotion outside had covered his entry, but the signal surpassed any primitive code he had thus far encountered. It must be the alien tech. He wasn't going to be able to crack it without more time. Time he didn't have, now that his presence had been registered.

Exis calls Foglet to him through the window. Stepping forward carefully to avoid the sensor grid, he follows the electrical lines running through the structure, and cycles his vision to x-ray. There, several rooms concealed beyond this one. No identifiable means of entry. Reasoning that the host was aware of him already, he opts for a more direct approach. Going to the wall around the first room, he uses Foglet to cut a large hole in the drywall, revealing the studs and wiring. Foglet sets about cutting as many wires as it can find, while Exis clicks his blaster to lethal force.

Spoiler: OOC

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I'm not in combat here, so I'm not tracking my actions; but it shouldn't take too much time to move to the wall, call Foglet in, and cut the wall open. Probably two rounds' worth.

Foglet has a multi-tool, so it shouldn't be too difficult for it to set about slicing some power lines. He can also fly, so he can hover as he cuts the lines, hopefully not getting shocked by doing so. While they're on an independent circuit, I can see that there IS power going through them, so cutting the lines should cut the circuits inside the room.

If there is no visible armor on the other side of the other side of the wall, I might just blast my way into the "storefront" area in my next post; I'm expecting it to be protected, though.

Spoiler: Stats

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Hero Points: 1
Damage: 1
Conditions: none

[NineOfSpades]

Red
Hero Points: 1
Condition: Crowded, Hungry

Tsuyu, without being to much of a braggart, would probably be willing to admit that she had pretty honed reflexes. Part of it came from her expanded sensory range, part of it came from years of practice, but the point being this: It wasn't often that she had trouble keeping up. Tonight, however, everything seemed to be happening so fast that she couldn't even swivel her head fast enough to see it all unfolding. Some blur came out of nowhere and distracted The Suit, giving Red a chance to unload her best swing to his exposed backside, and the thug didn't seem to even notice.

That didn't exactly bode well...

Before she really had time to process it, Karmic made a move, finally springing out of the shadows. Couldn't have picked a better time, since this situation was getting dicey and that was exactly the sort of situation where you would want the cavalry to show up. Helped to keep the scales on her side. Suit was also helping, since he punted the car and squashed one of the only remaining light sources in the area. To bad she didn't have much chance to enjoy the welcoming dark, before some other jack*** comes strolling along with a glow-ball. "What can I say? I thought this was going to be a private shindig" Red shrugged to Karmic, before the wind shifted and she caught a new scent from oveherad.

Oh, would you look at that, there's a bloody angel in the sky overhead. Because, you know...that's such a common occurrence.

Red didn't like any of this. Ambush and surprise were her trade, and now that she seemed to be on the receiving end, it was throwing her off her game. The smell of blood in the air wasn't doing her own hunger any favors. She could almost feel her thoughts getting hazy. And then there was Donnie, shouting into the darkness, trying so hard to be a big shot that he was blinding himself to how entirely out of his depth he was. Red tried to keep her head together. Blood-wing and Glowstick were wild cards, no way of knowing which side they were coming down on, with glow stick especially being a problem since he was stealing her shadows away. Suit wasn't going to go down easy, but he was tangled up at the moment with the red-blur and Karmic. Blur sounded like he was there for Donnie as well, which would probably make him an issue for her in the very near future. So it came down to using this opportunity to do-pile the thug, or deal with Donnie before he had a chance to escape.

Another breath, another taste of the blood in the air, and all the dark temptations it carried with it. For Red, The choice was already made. It was time to feed.

Once more, the dark was her ally, and Red simply willed herself to be elsewhere. Though her back had been to Donnie, it took no real effort to locate him. Indeed, she'd have to be brain-dead to ignore the tantrum he was throwing. She moved in from behind, her eyes spotting his exposed throat, her ears ringing with every drumbeat of his thumping heart. "I'd like a piece of you, Donnie-boy, since you offered" She whispered in his ear, before going for his throat.

Spoiler: OOC

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Teleporting to Donnie (Specifically to behind him) and attacking from the shadows. Is he Surprised?

Stealth check + Hide In Plain Sight: (1d20+17)[32]

Bite Of The Vampire
Attack roll (1d20+12)[20] Vs Parry Defense
Grab roll (1d20+12)[32] Vs Strength Or Dodge Roll EDIT: Thats a 20!

If Successful
DC 22 Fort Vs Weaken Stamina + Fatigued/Exhausted/Incapacitated, And Donnie would be Restrained or Bound. Red has Improved Grab, so she would not count as grappling. Red would also heal, but she's uninjured.

[5a Violista]

Harley

In the moments it takes for her to land, Harley quickly tries to assess what's going on: basically, the only people she can clearly see, recognize, and locate are Donnie Santangelo and the Suit. Everyone else is either too hidden or too shadowed or moving too quickly.

Okay, that was easy.
There's really only one thing she can do until she can figure out what's going on and where that woman with the sword is.

Her arms start to change; they first grow shiny with some sort of liquid. She lands near Donnie, because that's who she was told to protect; the Suit can probably handle himself.
"Guru sends his regards," Harley says, "and protection." This is to signal that she's on their side, because it would be poor manners to just hop in without letting them know she was here to help them.

She snaps her fingers, and her hands and arms ignite with a hot fire.

Harley now looks around, trying to understand what's going on and what she needs to do.

Spoiler: OoC/actions

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Move action: Land close to Donnie Santangelo
Move action: Activate alternate form array: fire arms. This activates Energy Aura(fire) 2 ranks, which will affect anyone who touches her unless she chooses to exclude them.

Assumption I'm making: Because Red is still moving in the shadows and sneaking up behind Donnie, Harley can't see her yet and since I won't know his reaction until Cappinski posts again, I'll assume she can only see and hear the things she saw in the last GM post.