Heritage

"Shoot!" Nothing made Casey guts churn more than seeing a large group of people start to panic, because it was so easy for innocent people to do harm to each other when the turned into a mob, and there wasn't too much she could do to stop them, even with all her powers- Wait! She thought back to the crowd of tourists in harm's way back when she helped with that exploding cargo container back in August; maybe she could use the same trick? Pitching her voice at the proper radio frequency, she once again projected her voice over a PA system, doing her best to sound calm and reassuring; no sound came out of her own mouth, but it was very clear coming out of the speakers. Of course, the whole time she was glaring at the three women with death in her eyes as she stalked right up to the 'original' gunwoman. "Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please. We are experiencing an emergency situation, but it is currently being addressed. Please move in an orderly fashion to the emergency exits, and then gather on the north side of the building to receive further instructions. Please assist any elderly or disabled patrons outside the building, and thank you for visiting OCEAN-Freedom."

Diplomacy check: 1d20+10=27 Voice of Reason it is!

Hmm...there was a trick I did with MG in another thread, and if you're okay with it, I'd like to try it here, too. Protecting innocents will always be Casey's number one priority, and the panicking crowd has her worried. What she did before was use her Communication ability to hijack a PA system to calm a panicked crowd; my rationale is that in the age of Wifi and Bluetooth, there is probably some way to use a radio signal to override a PA. If you're cool with that, that's what she'd do with her action; she may move somewhere as well.

Untrained Gather Info check: 1d20+2=20 24 is Attractive counts, but that's not enough to hit the next DC bracket.

Uh...Casey doesn't actually HAVE Gather Info yet; definitely something to invest in as part of my next character edit. Anything else I can do? Take 20 on some sort of Unskilled check?

Casey cursed inside when she saw she'd failed to topple all three women, but her eyes went wide when she realized she'd failed to stop them from shooting. No! This cannot end this way! The next several seconds moved with agonizing slowness as she watched the slugs (slugs!) tumble free from all three shotgun barrels; she could stop some of them, but sadly not all. She was able to take two in the chest, and witness them flatten as her bioenergy field flared at the points of impact, but she could only watch helplessly as the third slug slipped past her on its way to its intended target.

Toughness check 1: 1d20+12=25 Toughness check 2: 1d20+12=29

Casey listened attentively as Punchline related his story; clearly he was a strange individual, but she could sympathize with his trusting nature, and felt bad that he was betrayed by someone he thought was a kindred soul. She was laughing at his dead-on impression of their kidnapper when suddenly the AEGIS agent hit him like a freight train! Casey flew over to the unconscious toon's side to check his vitals. "He's not our guy, Agent! This is Punchline, he's a...weird cartoon clown we rescued from inside one of the movies. But he does know our perp; he calls himself the Fanatic. They exchanged some tech knowledge, which the Fanatic used to trap him in the movie before he kidnapped our fictional victims." She checked for pulse, pupil dilation and breathing on the hapless clown, though she wasn't sure if he still had any of those things.

Lynn's faerie nature meant she was abnormally swift and agile, and her sharp ears caught something just before everything went 'kerblooie', so she threw herself backwards, turning into her pixie form in mid-air and ducking behind the bulk of her desk, which shielded her from the brunt of the blast. For her part, Gretchen was knocked backwards out of her chair, and probably would have split her skull open on one of the bookshelves if she wasn't currently protected by the disguised Cloak of Mystery. In the seconds of insanity that followed, a very clear imperative rang in the young woman's head Get everyone out of the store NOW! On it! And override the fire alarm system! If we can contain this, I don't want all the books soaking wet! Also done! Her young partner staggered out of the office, smoke billowing behind her, and spoke in a very firm voice as she quickly made her way to the alarm system control panel behind the bar. "I need everyone to evacuate the store immediately. We have a very serious situation, and it is not safe in here for you. Don't worry about your purchases, we can settle all that later." She rapidly punched in an override to keep the sprinklers from going off for now, then turned to the two other employees on the floor. "Maddy and Lance, please escort them all outside." "Is Boss lady okay?" asked a worried Lance. "She is fine. Now get the hell out on the street." The two 'civilians' quickly did as they were told, herding the handful of customers outside. Meanwhile, Gretchen poked her head back into the office to see what the hell was going on. Pixie!Lynn floated over to Morgan to check on him, hovering in his face as her gossamer wings caused little eddies in the smoke. "Are you okay, kid? Anything broken?" She periodically threw worried glances back over her shoulder at the awe-inspiring...genie?

Grimalkin/Shrike (42) [Maxed] More Bright Lights and Good Cheer (7) Peace on Earth, and Mercy Mild? (4) Positions Available, Part 1 (7) Positions Available, Part 2 (9) The Box of Delights (2) The Old Curiosity Shop (7) Troid an Fomhóraigh (2) Ultimate Cosmic Power, Itty Bitty Living Space (4) Vignette Miracle Girl (14) Dark Dealings (5) Halloween Hijinks (1) Lights, Camera, Action! (4) The Young Woman and the Sea (4) Vignette Slither (4) A very Bedlam Christmas (3) Flames of Revenge (1) Grim's points go to Slither

The Shrike Gretchen chuckled and nodded in agreement with Rose. "Yeah. This is all still pretty new to me, too. My girlfriend practically begged me to come, and now that I'm here, all I want to do is leave. No offense." Then mild-mannered reporter Danica Devons showed up, making Gretch feel even more uncomfortable, but at least she had a little history to draw upon. "Look at you, Dancia. Covering events all over the globe. It seems like it was just yesterday I saw you at the grand opening of Silberman's Books. And then after that, covering that awful earthquake in Sapporo. You certainly are the world traveler." It was often hard to read Gretch even without the mask, due to her rather flat tone and minimal facial expressions, but there might have been a hint of humor buried under there somewhere. And then Bonfire showed up; where were all these people she knew coming from? The Shrike's shoulders drew just a hint closer together as a fourth person entered the conversation, which was just about her limit. "Hey there. it's Freedom's favorite redhead, doing what he does best. Mingling and radiating heat." Frankly, introductions and small talk were pretty much beyond her, so Gretch drained her drink and signaled a waiter with a wave of her hand; she needed more alcohol, stat! Grimalkin Lynn shook her head and sighed. "No, she's...skittish in crowds; I'll have to check on her soon. I'm the 'party animal' in our relationship, and now I'm starting to regret pushing her to come. And yes, it's all very new to her." Turning her focus back to Klara and shrugged. "Me, I've been doing this for decades, and sometimes I forget how overwhelming it can be when you're just starting out." Noting her three daughters, Lynn smiled. 'Your girls are beautiful."

As Merge filled out the paperwork, Lynn pulled up the scheduling software on her PC. "So the next question is, where do you want to work? We're looking to fill both sales floor and bar positions, but you can always switch between them. If you do sales, you get ten percent of any sales over twenty dollars; if you work bar, you get tips." She put her feet up on her desk. "Either position, you get health and dental and a twenty-five percent in-store discount, plus a free drink and baked good per shift. Starting wage is twelve bucks an hour. I value loyalty very highly, but I like to think I give my employees reason to be loyal; I challege you to find another bookstore in the city with these kinds of perks." Meanwhile out on the sales floor, Lance kept craning his neck between customers to see if Merge was coming out yet, much to Gretchen's equal parts disgust and amusement. "So, do you think Boss Lady is going to hire her?" "I think she already has." "That's, that's cool. That's cool..." Gretch just rolled her eyes and signalled for the next customer to step up.

"Well, I appreciate your honesty, Merge." Lynn drummed her fingers on her desk, then sighed as she leaned forward. "The fact of the matter is, retail is easy; no part of it really taxes your brain, and as long as you're good with people, every single aspect of it can be taught. There's a reason why it's most people's first job; well, that or flipping burgers. My gut tells me you'll be good at this job, though I have been wrong before." She paused and drummed her fingers again. "Would you excuse me for a moment? I need to consult with my partner." And with that, her eyes went unfocused as she established mental contact with Gretchen. Hey. Hey. How goes it? It's...it would be her first real job. Outside of crime, that is; no resume, no previous work experience. She wants the job because...basically, she's Pinocchio; she wants to become a real girl, and she feels working in retail, with people, will help her with that. It's just...even for me, this is a leap of faith, y'know? There was a long, awkward pause that soon became unbearable. Please say something. Sorry. I was doing a Google search on her criminal career...she never killed anyone, mostly targeted banks and businesses with ties to shady people. There are a few reports of her helping people, and working with heroes. We have seen her in action, and she helped rescue me from that awful, endless hotel. And? I'm not going to tell you what to do. You've already hired two people with checkered pasts who I never would have hired, and they both turned out to be hard working and very dedicated employees. I know you take doing a 'mitzvah' very seriously- You read that book I gave you? Yes, I did. It was interesting, and explained a lot about your behavior and choices. So while my philosophy and attitude towards people is very different than yours, I'm beginning to see why yours works. So listen to your heart and your gut, and I will back your play, whatever it is. I...thank you, Gretch. You're welcome. Now go hire a known criminal. Lynn suddenly burst out laughing, and wiped away tears she didn't realize she was crying. "Ahem! Sorry about that. Okay, we're going to give this a shot." She pulled open a drawer and grabbed the standard paperwork. "What I need for you to do is fill out an application and some tax forms, and to get me Nicki's driver's license or state ID and her Social Security card. On the application, where it asks if you've ever been charged with a felony, you answer 'no' if you've never been caught; if you have, I'll need the name and number of your parole officer." She handed Merge the forms on a clipboard and a pen. "Just fill everything out like you were Nicki, and we'll go from there."

Hmmm...I think moving to Interpose CE1 makes the most sense; since she's still standing and therefore her shotgun is much closer to the guard. CE2 is on the ground and therefore at more of a disadvantage, as well as being the crappiest of all the CEs, and therefore hopefully a worse shot. I'm thinking of bringing her heatvision into play with the classic 'oh, my gun's red hot!' trick; can she still do that if she Interposes? Forgive my lack of rules knowledge after playing this game since 2008; I'm just very rules dumb, and usually don't have my book with me.

Lynn smiled warmly, shook hands firmly and laughed a lot, for she was truly in her element; to be honest, when she was younger, she was a bit on the shy side around new people, but after 80+ years of hero work, her more extroverted side gradually came to the fore. However, the sight of all the children was a bittersweet one, reminded her of the life she left behind when she came back home, and the observant might note a bit of moisture in her eyes, though she clearly smiled in delight to watch their antics. "Nice to meet you, Klara and Tracy! I'm Lynn, aka Grimalkin, and this is-" Don't say my name! "The Shrike." There was only the slightest hiccup as Lynn quickly adapted to her partner's wishes. "I have to admit, this is my first time coming to one of these; I was out of commission for about three years!" Gretchen nodded, smiled a bit and shook hands, none of which she was particularly good at (well, she could nod just fine), and generally looked like she wanted to curl up into a ball and disappear; as soon as she could slip away, she did so, making a beeline for the bar. After she obtained her Jack and Coke, she noticed a younger heroine in full costume, looking a little lost; not seeing anyone else talking to her, and sensing perhaps a kindred spirit, she forced herself to approach Rose and nodded. "Hey. Great party. If you like that kind of thing." She smiled a little half-smile and sipped her drink.

Lynn had to laugh at Merge's last point. "Well I'm not going to lie; when Gretchen said you were here to apply, visions of unlimited shift coverage were dancing in my head!" Then she looked a bit more thoughtful as she pondered the concept of bringing Merge on; she was certainly an unconventional choice, and even if she dialed her style back a bit, there were probably still going to be a few raised eyebrows. But something about her earnest desire to, in effect, become a better person through retail struck a cord with the changeling. There were many times throughout her life that Lynn (and even more so Grimalkin) was not taken seriously, and she never quite forgot that sting. There was a scene in one of her favorite Disney movies growing up, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, where Quasimodo was strapped to a wheel while the crowd hurled tomatoes at him, a scene that to this day choked her up. That was her, back before she ran away at the ripe old age of fifteen, 'Scary Sheri' the little freak; she remembered the looks, the whispers and rumors, and how it twisted her whole body into bloody knots. She never wanted anyone to feel that way again, if she could help it. Now, was Merge another Quasimodo? Not exactly, no; no one was going to be throwing any tomatoes at her anytime soon. But she couldn't help but feel a strange kinship with the colorful former criminal (something else they had in common), nor could she forget her help in dealing with the threat of the Duke or rescuing Gretchen from beyond the Mirror of Al-Kazar. If she could help her become a better person, even just a little bit, wouldn't that be worth something? Plus she got the feeling she'd be a lot of fun to have around the store, with her energy, colorful appearance and attitude. Lance certainly seemed to like her; yes, Lynn had taken a peek earlier via her glamour, and no, she didn't comment on Merge changing her outfit, though she certainly appreciated the attempt at professionalism. After all this thinking, she directed her gaze back to the eager applicant. "Okay, I'm definitely intrigued by the possibilities of bringing you on, and I do think you might be a good fit for the store. But, I need to take a few other things into consideration; do you have a resume, and do you have any prior experience? Forgive me if I'm talking to you like a teenager, but you are an unusual case."

Grim and Shrike hadn't yet stepped very far into the hall, hanging back a bit as they 'read the room'. They both felt a little self-conscious in their 'working clothes', but luckily they had the means to fix that. "Whaddya say we glam it up a bit? Put on some fancy threads?" Gretchen looked around nervously; this was so not her scene. "Yes, we can..." She leaned in close to whisper in her partner's ear. "I never dress up. I don't know what I look good in." Lynn leaned in close and kissed her cheek. "Don't worry, love; I'll help you." She took a step back and looked Gretch up and down. "You've got dark brown hair, dark blue eyes and very pale skin, which I believe makes you a Winter. I would try...a blue gown, maybe a bit metalic? Matching shoes, and we can get your hair up. And only show as much skin as you feel comfortable showing, okay?" "Okay. Okay." Five minutes later, the lovely couple stepped further into the hall, and they made quite the pair, Gretchen in a beautiful, shimmering dark blue gown with matching mask, and Lynn in a deep cranberry one, also with mask. Lynn's was off the shoulder and a bit daring, whereas Gretchen's sported full sleeves, but was nonetheless very flattering. Both wore their hair up and looked positively regal. Noting the lack of any paparazzi, the changeling allowed herself the luxury of wearing her true, somewhat more womanly 'mature' form, eschewing Grimalkin's 'pixie stick' look, which helped with her gown considerably. I feel like a complete idiot. You look utterly breathtaking. ...Really? Really. Let's see if I can spot someone I actually know....ooh, Mark Lucas! You know Mark Lucas. Yes, we go way back! Here, I'll introduce you. Leading her reluctant lover gently by the hand, Lynn made her way over to Mark and playfully tapped him on the shoulder. "Excuse me sir, do you have any silver ingots? I was hoping to give them to some street urchins." This was an obscure reference to the one time he and Grim had travelled to an alternative London, locked in a perpetual winter.

Can we stickie this somehow? I think this is a great resource.

Lynn felt kind of bad for probing, as this was obviously an area of discomfort for Merge, but she honestly felt that if they didn't address these issues now, they would only come back to haunt them later. "Okay, so basically you're an aspect of Nicki, but still your own person; I got it. Assuming I hire you, you'd be listed as 'Nicki' in all the paperwork with Nicki's IDs and such, but we'd all call you Merge." The changeling paused for a few seconds as she considered her next question carefully. "Well, before we go into relevant experience or anything like that, I guess my first question is, why do you want to work here? I know you're a fun and likable person, which does translate well into sales, but it just...seems like an odd fit, is all. Retail, that is; I mean, I like to think we have a very special place here, but it is still a bookstore." She shrugged. "Aren't you afraid you might get...y'know, bored? We do spend a lot of time just standing around."

1d20+10=18

"Hi, welcome back!" Lynn rose up from behind the desk and smiled; the office looked much the same as Merge recalled it from her first visit, with bookshelves on four walls, the big desk and Lynn's tall leather chair behind it. The changeling leaned over the desk to shake the duplicate's hand; this morning, she wore a sage green sweater, loose cut jeans and comfy walking shoes. As she resumed her seat and motioned for her visitor to sit in one of the leather guest chairs, the shopkeeper cleared her throat in mild embarrassment. "So I'll be honest, I'm not quite sure how to address you; do I call you Nicki or Merge? And if you are Merge, do you have a legal identity that can go onto tax forms?" She shrugged and looked helpless. "I mean, before we can go any further, I need to know that you exist as a legal entity; sadly, that's the nature of the world we live in."

Grim nodded as Zee explained the rules of this place. "Okay, that makes sense; if he were conscious, he'd be able to say what reality is, but since he isn't, one of us needs to do it for him. And because we're from the same bloodline, it has to be me." She had a lot of experience imposing her will onto formless chaos; she did it every day when she manipulated her glamour. Only this time, it was a matter of scale. So the real question was, what kind of reality should she make? She wanted him to be comfortable, and it would probably be easier to follow the rules already set up in this place. A hotel, the lovely assistant, a dressing room; the familiar world of a professional magician. She recalled a childhood visit to the Beaudrie Opera House in the Theater District, and used those memories as a foundation, though she allowed herself a few flights of fancy. Her great-grandfather Ira was lying on a couch onstage, the spotlight upon him, of course; the footlights illuminated the stage, but the rest of the theater was dark, the house lights and the lights along the aisles dimmed for the performance. The proscenium was beautifully carved and painted, depicting vaguely Arabesque patterns and scenes. The rest of the house followed the same design, as though the audience sat under a night sky in a garden near a distant oasis; small lights twinkled in the painted ceiling, and projected clouds slowly rolled across the bowl of the heavens. The air smelled faintly of sawdust, grease paint and roasted nuts, the classic bouquet of the performer. If Ira was to wake up now (would such a thing happen?), he would feel at home, which is all Lynn could hope for. She took a few tentative steps forward, coming out of the shadow of the balcony, and looked around. Gretchen said nothing, though her eyes drank in the sights like thirsty travelers.

"Oh, wow," said Casey at the amount of preparation the mysterious party planner had gone to in setting all this up. Of course, with her super-speed she could have done all of this in the blink of an eye, but that in no way diminished the planner's efforts. At the sight of the young winged man wearing the mask, she had an 'ah-ha' moment; she leaned over to whisper in Saku's ear. "That must be Jann Fa-Re; I think he calls himself 'Bird of War', though I've never met him. I'm going to say hi." At that, 'Link' floated up in the air and drifted over towards the masked youth, looking a bit more like Peter Pan now that she was flying. "Hi, are you Jann? I'm Casey. Did you put this all together? It looks pretty cool!"

Despite herself, Gretchen turned around and sort of peeped over the back of the chair to see what Morgan was up to, the technician in her too intrigued to ignore it. Meanwhile 'Highland Lynn', smelling faintly of pine and heather, listened intently to the magician's explanation, gleaning some of what was being said, but a lot of it was frankly going over her head. It wasn't that Lynn was stupid (she was, in fact, fairly bright), but anything that felt too much like homework tended to make her eyelids heavy; her free-spirited nature rebelled at too much order.. At the mention of bobby pins, however, she actually laughed out loud. "'Bobby pins'? I don't think I've even touched a bobby pin in years! Let me have a look in the drawers, though; I hold on to all kinds of junk." The redhead began to slide open various drawers on her desk, rummaging around and occasionally sniffing the air. "Maybe I was too optimistic; I don't think I have any- ah-hah! Found some!" She handed them over to Morgan and leaned in closer, eager to see a bit of magic demonstrated.