Dr Archeville

Archeville audibly gulped, and Mona saw a bit of color come to his cheeks. "Actually... ja, ja, he did owe me von," he replied at last, smiling. "Und by 'he' I mean de eponymous Timothy. He und some friends vere backpacking through France a few years back, und de inn dey vere staying at vas used as a target for a new veapon developed by some ultra-tech supervillains. At least, I dought it vas a veapon; I had been tracking dem down for some time. Turns out de 'veapon' vas in fact a being of living nuclear energy; very nasty. De villains got avay before I could subdue dem, do I did manage to short out some of deir technologies; I treated de people at de inn, und dey vere all qvite grateful." As he spoke, Archeville shed the last bits o his 'caught off-guard' look and took a more confident mien. "Is Jazz your favorite type of music?" His hands still fidgeted a bit, until he began tracing around her knuckles with his fingertips, "any particular favorite artists?" Cell phones were brought out as a few patrons began to take pictures of the famed (and somewhat freakish) couple.

Archeville was still quite groggy. "Polymers? I..." Terror filled the Doktor's eyes, though Gossamer wa not sure if it was due to the look of the armored man or something she had said. "Doctor de Havilland, qvickly, you must sever deir communications links! All of dem!," he begged/ordered as he frantically undid the straps that kept him bound to the chair. The mechanized mercenary began laughing again. "Dey did steal part of mein mind, Doctor, plans und schematics for all manner of advanced technologies, und dey are beaming it to who knows vhat Black Market und Criminal Undervorld servers even now! Vhen you brought me out of de trance I vas reciting a formula for a plastic dat can varp light und radio vaves vhen it is electrically charged -- an invisibility cloak!"

"Yes, vell, dat does bring us do de ozher part of de eqvation," the Doktor began, "de 'Human Factor'." He actually began to pace a bit, "A security system, like any piece of technology, is only as good as de von who uses it. I believe a shift in your training routines is in order -- or, for some of you," he looked to Dynamo and Fulcrum, "de start of a training routine." "Colt, Grim, Jack, you haff been mit de team from de very beginning, und I am proud of de good you haff done. Your vork on de 'Zombie Drug Ring' back in February alone was most impressive. Und I am glad to see you haff expanded de tea's roster, und de team's charter, making contacts mit more und more of de city's newest superheroes und establishing a netvork for dem. However, you must all remember dat dis is first und foremost a superhero team; I am not funding a social club. Ve can all be better dan vhat ve are now." Archeville paused, and suddenly realized that, due to the gravity-defying nature of his Belt, he had paced himself up onto the ceiling.

Polymer stuff. That, specifically, is from here.

That sounds like 100 heavy set people, more than could (easily) fit into a Tiny (Townhouse-sized) HQ.

The ride was smooth, though Rift would have preferred something other than the soft Classical music that played from concealed speakers. The seventh floor was filled with crisscrossing hallways, with innumerable offices between them. It was very quiet up here; if he strained she could just make out some soft murmurs from behind closed doors. As he wondered which way to go, a pleasant voice chimed out. "Visitor ID badge confirmed. Subject: Rift. Please follow the illuminated arrows to your appointment." A soft light from under Rift caught his eye: glowing arrows, forming a path to the right and going around a corner. After about a minute of following them, he found himself at a door which opened to what looked to be a large electronics testing lab. Standing by a computer terminal was Doktor Archeville, who turned to face him just as he stepped up to the doorway. "Ah, guten tag, Herr Rift!," the super-scientist said warmly, "so good of you to come! Please, come, sit!" he added, pointing to a pair of black leather chairs by one workstation.

So a bus, not a door. You'll need some Progression for extra carry capacity, then.

The Power feature gives the HQ a power, built on up to (2 x your PL) power points. Robin, being a PL 10 char, could use the Power Feature to give is a 20pp power (or a few small powers totaling up to 20pp). We do allow you to take the Power feature multiple times, so as to make a bigger power. I did so with Archeville's Hanover Home HQ Is this supposed to be for a Dimensional Portal, or for the whole HQ moving? If the former, you'll need the Portal extra (under Teleport); if the latter, you don't need it, since once it moves, it's moved.

"Hello, Mr. Rift!," the receptionist said in a voice as perky as her appearance. "Doktor Archeville is expecting you, up on the seventh floor. Here," she continued, holding out a VISITORS ID badge attached to a blue lanyard, "you'll need this to get around." Rift briefly wondered which had a higher percentage of plastic, the ID badge or the receptionist's chest. "There's an elevator right down that hallway," she went on, pointing to the largest of the hallways behind her. "Have a super day!" Elsewhere, on the ninth floor, Archeville was going over some test results from his latest experiments -- the development of a "weather machine," to help direct and mitigate some of the harsher effects of thunderstorms -- when an alarm from reception alerted him of Rift's arrival. "Alright, gang," he said to the other technicians, "I am needed elsevhere. You are good to go from here, ja?"

2 April 2010 Thaneuronic Radiation A unique form of energy that interacts with brainwaves/neural energies in a most disharmonious way. The name I have coined for it comes from the Greek word for death (thanatos) and the word neuron (which is a Latin derivative; using the Latin derivative for death -- mors, mortis -- does not have the same audible flow). A weapon utilizing this energy would do more damage to someone the smarter they are! Which makes it the perfect failsafe against me. But who to trust it to? Scarab seems an obvious choice, but that's also why she'd be the first one I'd take out if I ever did go (fully) mad. Arrowhawk? Perhaps, though he would want it in arrow form (which I could do for him). Gossamer? No, too inexperienced, she would probably pull the trigger too late. The Interceptors? Colt is a crack aim, so he would be the best bet to use it, and Jack of all Blades may be able to use his powers to create a blade of thaneuronic radiation, so it would be two-on-one. However, again, if I go off the rails one of my first acts would probably be to brainwash or destroy them. The disturbing part of this? I found these schematics and energy readings in a file labeled "Anti-Quark Gun."

Any particular time for this? Ballpark, at least? Before the Grue Invasion (May 2010)? After?

What was he coming by for again? General testing of abilities, or something more specific?

Archeville had not looked into her dating history. Before now, he had not thought to do so, and since yesterday, he was far too busy with making plans for their date. And, judging by the double-take he did when he saw her (and the coffee stirrer now freed from his twirling and clattering on the tiled floor), her own preparations were definitely appreciated. He rose when she approached, and kissed her hand. "Und you look absolutely stunning, Mona." Ever the gentleman -- as far as she knew -- he pulled out the chair for her, then moved it aside when he realized she would not be able to actually use it. If she had bothered looking into his past, she would have found a peculiar thing: during most of the year, he was near-celibate, barely seen even having dinner with anyone (though there was one notable exception), focusing entirely on his work when not saving the day. This all changed, though, during the two weeks of Oktoberfest, when he'd return to his homeland and let his hair down, being seen with three or four different girls each night; this pattern had repeated every year for the past decade or so. Gossip columns often speculated on who (if anyone) he'd ever settle down with, with a few stating -- with tongue (mostly) in cheek -- that he'd only ever settle with a women he made. He chewed ever-so-slightly on the right corner of his lower lip, "Have you been here before? I haff not, but I haff heard good dings about it. Such as de live Jazz performances on de veekends."

Dead Head unholstered his shovel and twirled the handle around in his hand a few times, "let's get goin', then!" He had no idea which way to go, and Avenger's shadowy form was of no help; the Revoltin' Revenant could barely see him, much less see which direction he was facing. "Hope this goes better than that time we tangled with Samedi!"

Archeville nodded, "I believe I saw someding about him on de news. A disgruntled dentist, I believe, claiming to be related to Overshadow." He released Devin's arm, turned an nodded at one of the receptionists, then strode towards the bank of elevators in the hallway behind the lobby. "Come along, come along; I am happy to help but I haff much to do!" Following, Displacer found the Doktor was standing at a bend in the hall, past the elevators. When he saw Devin approach, he pointed to a section of the wall, a screen displaying a 3D map of the building. "Dere is de cybernetics laboratory," he said, pointing to a spot on the seventh floor. "Can you teleport to it?"

The OOC thread for the first date of Doctor Archeville & Fulcrum. Of course, there will be interruptions. I'm sticking this in The Lands Beyond b/c a majority of it will be taking place in Doc's castle in Germany and at his space station.

Date: January 16th, 2010 (Saturday) Time: Around noon. 49oF, WSW wind 11 mph, clear skies. Skies forecasted to remain clear throughout the day. Doktor Archeville had known of Fulcrum for some time -- he knew of most every superhero and supervillain in the world, particularly those of Freedom City -- and had even fought alongside her briefly (very briefly) during the Hell Invasion from a couple of months back. He knew she was strong and tough, but more importantly, noble and compassionate, like the man she tried to emulate, the famed Centurion. After their recent meeting, however, Viktor saw her in an entirely different light. He had spent every moment since she left ArcheTech preparing for this date, making sure that it would be memorable. He had not really been on a date in many years -- after his college days, his intimate interactions with women tended to be of a far more transitory nature -- but he got an altogether different sens from Mona. He had to of course be careful not to overdo it, lest she think he was some sort of mad stalker with a crush, but there were no equations or formulae for this sort of thing, so he was definitely out of his element. And it thrilled him. They had agreed to meet at a Timothy's Bistro, in Midtown, for coffee to start; afterwards he would show her more of 'his world,' though he kept the hows and whens a secret. And there, in the Bistro, he sat (drawing more than a few stares and whispers), in polished black work boots, neatly pressed black khakis, purple dress shirt, blue tie, and what could only be described as a formal white lab coat, nervously twirling a coffee stirrer between his fingers. "It... it is tradition for de voman to make de man vait, ja?," he thought aloud.

Yeah, I say we stop here, I'll start up the next thread. Continues here (IC) and here (OOC).

"Silver screens are an excellent suggestion, Herr Colt," the Doktor said, his tone becoming a hair lighter, "since de biocidal properties of silver vill also help against any airborne pathogens dat may be released in here. I vould also suggest rigging a high-voltage, low-current electrical shock to go through de silver mesh, as a further deterrent." He turned to Jack, and stared at the swashbuckler a moment, trying to decipher what he was saying. Suddenly, "Ah! Ja! Program de lights to strobe in a pattern causing microseizures in de brain, specifically de parts regulating form changing. Vould help against shapeshifters, metamorphs, size-shifters. Und... against any verevolves who take offense to all de silver going into de house." When Fulcrum spoke, it was clear to all (well, maybe not to Dynamo; he was young yet) that the Doktor struggled to keep his semi-professional tone. "Anozher excellent idea. Perhaps some pressure plates, too?"

Special cameo by Dead Head?

Archeville winced at the scraping metallic sound, "ach! Vhat noise!" He grabbed Devin's arm and examined the hand, and moved the finger back and forth as he placed an ear near it to find the source. "Hrm, sounds like de proximal interphalangeal joint." He looked up to Devin, though still held his hand, "vhen did dis start? Has it suffered any damage?"

Archeville seemed most surprised at Vince's outburst. "Ja, Vince, I know I designed de systems here, und you, und I am not excusing meinself from blame here," the Doktor replied in a slightly strained tone. "Though I also thought I programmed you to be more observant." He turned back to the others, "I do not know if he can turn to mist or not, like some legends say, or if such an ability is limited to nighttime hours, like de Stoker novel says. I do know dat garlic vill do nutzing, de few samples he gave me to study showed no adverse reactions to any member of de Alliaceae family, or any similar polysulfide compounds. He did tell me silver is effective against him, und it vas not until I used a silver scalpel on him dat I vas able to obtain his skin samples." "Oh, und do not store whole garlic bulbs in de refrigerator," he added, "it makes dem sprout early und makes dem bitter, und causes it to turn blue-green vhen cooked." Archeville left eye twitched ever-so-slightly, "right, not getting off-topic. Okay..." He took another deep breath, "I vould advise not focusing on Avenger per se, but on vhat he can do, und on similar abilities. Focusing solely on vays to keep Avenger out vill be of no help if Nacht-Krieger decides to come in und slaughter you all, und methods of detecting und stopping either of dem may be useless against de Power Corps or de Psions."

Hope that little flashback is okay, Durf.

Flashback Between exiting the cab and entering the Finn's store, Archeville used his Electromagnetic Screwdriver to send out a pre-recorded "general alert" message, which would be received by any of his allies within a few miles. It was a bit of insurance in case things got hairy inside, though he was not entirely certain it would actually reach anyone. Still, it made him feel a bit more confident. As luck would have it, a certain teen teleporter with an ArcheTech bionic arm was within a few miles of the Doktor.... Now "Never seen it before?," Archeville asked in mocked surprise, "vell den, Herr Finn, since dis is your place of business, I believe you should be de first to go down vhile ve check it out." Archeville pointed his techno-wand at the Finn, one end glowing an angry red.

Time: 8:30-ish pm, Sat night Crossing the Mona-Glen bridge over South River to Lincoln, the team was unusually silent. No witty banter, no puffed-up bravado, just a grim pall settled over everyone. Especially around Jack, whose powers were subconsciously draining a bit of the light around him and making the area a few shades darker. The Lincoln Youth Center, which lay about 3/4 of a mile northeast of Joseph Clark High School, seemed perfectly normal. Teens were playing basketball in the attached fenced court, lit by several large streetlights. They moved freely in and out of the building. They laughed, the ate snacks, they did all the things teens should be doing; from the MAVERIC all looked copacetic.