Heritage

Casey shook her head. "I have no idea, but it's open and we're both starving, so let's do it." She rose up in the air and very gently picked up Haruko and cradled her in her arms. "You ready? I won't go too fast the first time, I promise." And with that, they took off, never going much more than twenty feet off the ground; the wind whipped past their faces and golden motes of light trailed behind them as they flew, and at one point the young flyer spontaneously whooped for joy. "Woo-hoo! God, I love this so much!" Casey kept her speed well under fifty miles an hour, though it often felt much faster; she sailed in a wide loop around the back of the dorms, then arrived at the front of the Scoble Building, gracefully landing as soft as a cloud. "There we go, back on terra firma! Let's eat!" She held the door open for Haruko, grinning like a happy fool.

GM The professional killer took the hand up, clutching his chest as he rose. "Yeah, you're damn right it ain't because of your hair; your color's running, dollface." He pulled his hand away and looked at his bloody fingers. "Next time try Sassoon Pro Series; it holds up better to getting wet..." The Man took a deep breath, which made him wince. "S###! Look, I don't know who you are, blondie, but I've got a job to do; I don't know if your another pro or some kind of 'super-duper', but I'm giving you one last warning." He pulled a long military style blade out of his left sleeve. "Walk away right now, or I will have to hurt you."

Notice check to penetrate RR's disguise:1d20+7=26 Based on her >taking 20 earlier for 24...yeah, this is not her night.

That would be an awesome way for those two fae to meet!

"Oh great; people." With a sigh, she grabbed a steri-wipe from the box she kept by her monitor station, rubbed her hands and face with it vigorously, then tossed it gracefully into the dismat for particle disassembly. She tugged her Thermos off the bulkhead and trudged over to the lounge, where Oskar always entertained his guests; the heads on the walls made her want to barf. A cloud of chill followed her in, wrapped around her like an icy blanket. The frosty blonde cleared her throat and offered a slight bow. "Fellow sentients, welcome aboard the Xeno; I'm Ana Plonsky, engineer, at your service."

Casey grimaced sheepishly. "Yeah, about that; while I was speed-reading through the Wikipedia entry on Shinto, I double-checked the school website to see what the cafeteria specials were today. Turns out it's closed on weekends." But then she grinned. "Which means we get to eat at the staff restaurant! It's over that way." She pointed towards the garden gate. Then she got a mischievous look in her eye. "Would you like a quick flying demonstration? I won't go very high; strictly nap-of-the-earth, under the radar stuff."

So I brought this idea up in chat and folks seemed intrigued, so I'll just go ahead and put something up here. Grimalkin loves Halloween; it's her favorite time of the year and she's been off-world, so she wants to do something big; her plan is to hold a special charity event, a full-blown walk-through 'haunted house' designed by and powered by superheroes! She negotiates with the city to obtain the use of a large, fairly open building (for some reason, I'm drawn to one of the piers at the Waterfront) to set it all up, and she and a handful of heroes put it all together. The PCs would start out running things, describing their various scare techniques, but then of course something goes Terribly Wrong, the exact nature of the calamity TBD. The PCs have to work together to protect the paid visitors without causing a panic, aka 'it's all part of the show!' I'd really love not having to run this, but would do so if no one else was game; what say all of you?

Casey frowned slightly, unfamiliar with a few of the words her new roommate had used; she pulled out her smartphone and began furiously tapping and swiping the screen; a few seconds later she stopped, blinked a few times and carefully put her phone back into her small bag. "Sooooo, Shinto is way more complicated than I imagined..." Clearing her throat, she continued. "So why wouldn't Amaterasu bless you when you were in America? There are Shinto shrines here, or at least there are in Hawaii, and the Sun shines down everywhere." She shrugged. "I mean, assuming it was her; there could be other stuff going on, I suppose."

Is it okay if I wait to post until the others on-board the Xeno?

Actually I forgot that her Rage lasts for 5 rounds, but she essentially engaged it during a non-combat sequence; what say you, O mighty GM? Would she be able to drop out of it, or would she still be a ragin' Cajun for a few more rounds? I'm fine either way.

I don't think she has a chance of failing that Dex check (Grim's at +8 due to her 26 Dex), but here goes anyway. 1d20+8=26 Grim's gonna try and box DukeBot 5000 in within a prison made of nonconducting hard rubber...which just sounds wrong somehow DC 16 Reflex Save to avoid the Rubber Room!

GM The second assailant fell to the floor next to the first, and for the moment, the pool was once again quiet, other than the slow breathing of the Rat's victims and the gentle lapping of the water. Suddenly The Man coughed and spat up a mouthful of blood, then pushed himself to his knees; he shook his head a few times and blinked his eyes. "Whuzzah...?" Then his gaze locked onto the redhead, and his features set in anger. "You." He pointed towards the door. "Get the hell out before the cops and security start showing up." There was blood in his teeth again, but mostly he looked tired and pissed off.

Gunman's Toughness Roll: 1d20+1=17 And down he goes!

Casey found a bench and indicated Haruko should join her. "So you just woke up one day with you powers? That's odd." She gazed at the ripples in the koi pond, and the bright orange fish darting about under the lily pads. She started to say something, stopped herself, then frowned and continued anyway. "Look, I don't mean to pry, but I'd like to help you find out how you got your powers; I mean, not only would that be just one less thing for you to worry about, but it might also help you learn to control them, right?" She turned to face Haruko more directly. "You said you thought they might be mystical or spiritual in nature; where either of those things a major part of your life before you started glowing? Like do you go to church, or maybe a Buddhist temple a lot?"

Casey looked very relived. "Oh okay, that's cool." But then she folded her arms, cocked her hip and raised an eyebrow. "Wait a sec, I'm not 'your type'? I think I'm offended by that!" But then she laughed, stuck out her tongue and continued walking. "Probably for the best, really. Also it's always nice to hear that blondes don't really rule the world..." For a while, the taller girl said nothing, seemingly happy to just be in the moment, but then her earlier train of thought returned. "Oh, about the glow thing; I was about to say I glow sometimes, too! Watch this!" Casey pulled off her glasses, undid her hair and shook it out, then held out her arms as she rose into the air. Motes of golden light winked in her long blonde hair as it billowed around her face, and more hovered around her body like glowing drops of honey; she was beaming, clearly happy to give her powers free reign. "Pretty cool, huh? I glow even more when I pick up something heavy, like a truck!" Then she dropped lightly back to the ground, replaced her glasses and began to twist her hair back up on her head as she resumed walking. "So yeah, that's a thing..." Soon they reached the Zen garden, which was indeed a lovely tranquil place. "Oh wow; looks like I found a new favorite reading spot!"

Casey nodded and smiled. "Oh yeah, the cherry blossoms! I've seen them in DC a few times when my dad took me, but I'm sure it's much nicer back home in Japan." When Haruko started glowing, her roommate cocked her head to one side. "Y'know, it's funny, I kind of glow, too, sometimes, when-" She stopped suddenly when the tone of some of the Japanese girl's words started to sink in. "Wait a sec; uh, forgive me for being rude, Haruko, but...where do you stand on the whole..." She held her hands out to each side, and sort of rocked back and forth. "Dating spectrum." And then she got a little pink in the cheeks. "Because I'm fine wherever you stand, but I am straight." She moved her hand up and down in a sort of chopping motion. "And I hope that's not a problem." She started chewing on her lip again, clearly concerned but also hopeful.

The blonde sighed and shook her head. "No, not at all, I was just..well, I can fly, and I was hoping at some point to find a 'flying buddy'. Which now sounds stupid when I say it out loud..." She grabbed a wrist bag from her bureau and twirled it around a few times. "Ready when you are!" Once they were outside, Casey closed her eyes and took a deep breath as they walked. "Mmm, I love the fall out here! You get all these colors in the trees; back in Colorado where I'm from, we've got mostly pines." She paused and gave her roommate a concerned look. "Does my speed changing thing bother you? I can stop, if it makes you uncomfortable."

Casey nodded. "Oh, that's sounds cool; let me get some pants on." Another blur and rush of air, and she was standing by the door in matching Rockies sweatpants and a well-worn pair of Teva sandals, looking at a map in one of the school brochures. "Yeah, we can do that, sort of swing by the cafeteria afterwards." She dropped the brochure on the bed next to her notebook, then chewed on her lip for a few seconds as she looked around the room, as though she was trying to work something out. "Um, hey Haruko, by any chance do you..fly?"

Once Ana was back at the Xeno, she opened the airlock and headed back to the engine room to begin a pre-flight check, in addition to checking the atmospherics and supply manifest; she didn't know how long they'd be out, but it was always better to have extras of everything. It took a while for several of the diagnostics to run, so in the meantime she headed back to her quarters (aka 'the Meat Locker'), unlocked her suit and stepped out of it, allowing it to fold itself up for storage. Then she pulled on her coveralls, tied up her work boots, filled up her magnetic Thermos with iced coffee, and returned to the engine room. She took a big swig of coffee, then stuck her Thermos to a convenient bulkhead as she glanced at the reports. "Looking good, looking good..."

Reflex save: 1d20+21=38 Not sure I needed to roll that, but there you go! Initiative: 1d20+12=25

D'oh, forgot to do that! I'll put one up when I get home.

Casey took careful notes as Haruko continued unpacking and shared her language, always making sure to write the words out phonetically as well. She asked lots of questions, especially about grammar and exactly what the words meant, recalling how her Hispanic friends back home would laugh at her earnest textbook Spanish. After about an hour, she sighed and set her notebook aside. "Well arigatou, Haruko-san!" She grinned and bowed very slightly. "Hey, do you feel like taking a break? I'd like to stretch my legs a bit and wander the campus, maybe check out the cafeteria?" She patted her stomach slightly. "I'm not gonna lie, I eat like a horse!" The blonde pulled back the sleeve of her sweatshirt and flexed an impressive bicep, revealing that underneath she was pretty cut. "See that? Guns like these need fuel!"

Casey nodded and grinned as the light flowed out of the Japanese girl. "Coooooool!" As Haruko continued, Casey reached over and set the stopwatch on her desk, exchanging it for a bright pink Slinky that she rhythmically passed from hand to hand as listened to the other girl's story. She was sympathetic to whatever misfortunes might have befallen her new roommate over her new abilities; after all, there were parts of her own story she couldn't reveal. The tall blonde girl chuckled at her question. "Yeah, that's the right word; don't worry, your English is much better than my Japanese!" Then a thought struck her. "Hey, maybe you could teach me? Not like the whole language obviously, but maybe common words and phrases, stuff like that? I want to be a journalist, and knowing other languages is a really big help in that field." Suddenly she was sitting on the edge of her bed, a reporter's notebook and pen in hand, the very picture of the attentive student. "Like I know konichiwa means 'hello' and domo arigato means 'thanks', but that's pretty much it." Her pronunciation was pretty terrible, but at least she was interested.

Grimalkin (all points go to Deep Freeze) >Double Dutch >It Was A Graveyard Smash >Man vs Nature: Here Comes the Boom >Starting Over Deep Freeze >Getting There Is Half The Fun Miracle Girl >Late Admissions GM (all points go to Miracle Girl) >A-Haunting We Will Go >Last Fare of the Night

The blonde squinted a bit as she zipped open a side pocket on her backpack. "Uh, about a month, I guess? No, closer to two months; definitely before school started, though." She fished out an athletic stopwatch on a lanyard, peered at it for a few seconds, and then looked up at Haruko. "Yeah, stand right there, that's perfect. Aaaaaaaand, go!" Suddenly there was a flurry of movement and a great deal of wind whipping around the small dorm room that only lasted for a few seconds; when it was over, Casey was sitting cross-legged in the middle of a made bed, wearing a pair of pajama pants and a big comfy Colorado Rockies sweatshirt. The wall on her side of the room was covered in pictures of airplanes (most small civilian craft and a few fighter jets), pictures of natural scenes probably cut from old calendars, and lots of maps: road maps, topographic maps, and a large aeronautical map of the Freedom City area. The desk had a laptop and was covered in personal photos and Girl Scout badges. There was no sign of any of her luggage. Casey clicked the button on top of the stopwatch and grimaced. "Darn it, four point three seconds! That took way too long; sorry!"