Dr Archeville

"Well, that's mighty considerate of Him," Dead Head said in a clearly mocking tone, "though it would've been nice if He'd decided to do that, oh, say, two months earlier!" Back in his living days, Dead Head had been raised Baptist, so he'd given Heyzel some leeway -- either he was an angel come down to help, or a metahuman who was patterning himself after an angel. But the more he thought about it, the less comfortable he felt about him. Not for any personal reasons -- all the times he'd died, he never saw any tunnel of light or heard any choirs of angels singing him up to the Pearly Gates -- but for what their existence meant for humanity at large. "Or in '93, during the Terminus Invasion!," the clearly irritated revenant continued, "or during those big World Wars! Why now, and not then?"

"Eep!," Archeville squeaked as he made a mad dash for and leaped behind the bar.

I believe that's a good place to segue from "background" to "the actual story" :)

Undisclosed Location An unfocused, far-away look washed over the Doktor's face for a brief moment, then he snapped back, "I believe Nadia vould approve, ja," Archeville replied, "dough you may vant to pick a smaller town, von not as vell known -- or as easily researched by anyvon trying to break your cover." "As for 'clearing it'," he continued, "I haff talked to headmaster Summers und shared mein concerns mit him, und he agreed dat a third party observer vould be beneficial. I haff most of de papervork prepared for your admittance, I vill just need you to give me some information on your new persona to help finish dem."

"Ha!," Dead Head cried out when Phantom appeared, "the man on the tee-vee was right!" I just hope that what I think might be hunting us ain't who I think it is. Ya may not be able t'track Atlas by any magic," he said as he tossed one of the unconscious cultists into the folks of her cloak, "but I bet we'll be able t'hear him smashing his way through these walls. Let's jes hope we do so before he -- or anythin' huntin' us -- bursts through the subway lines!"

Archeville did a few more checks on the three panels, then looked up to Taylor. "De scan dis device performs vill take a few moments; once it is done it vill create a highly detailed 3D hologram for us all to see. Vhile it works, I vill need you to remain wholly in dis dimension; it does not vork on intangible beings." Archeville turned his head and nodded to Jack, then hit a button on one of the panels. From out of the floor, at the gaps in the pen triangle that the three mirrored panels formed, rose telescoping metal rods, each with a metal ball on top. The rods extended up the full length of the panels, but were not quite wide enough to completely close up the triangular space. "Sorry," he said a bit sheepishly, "I guess I should haff asked if you are in any vay claustrophobic. But, since ve are already here...." Archeville hit another switch. The three metal rods began throwing off hundreds of tiny bright blue electrical sparks that arced between the gaps between them and the panels, while the balls on top threw off longer bright blue bolts which arced all over the place. The hairs on everyone's arms and the backs of their neck were standing up, the tang of ozone filled the air, and the hiss and crackle of the electricity would make any attempts at conversation a touch difficult. Inside, the mirrored surfaces were glowing faintly, one red, one green, and one blue. Taylor could also hear another sound, just audible over the crackle and pop of the electrical arcs: the sound of the machinery, or so he assumed. chhhg... nrrr... fffnnn... chhhg... nrrr... fffnnn... chhhg.. nrrr.. fffnnn.. chhhg nrrr fffnnn... chhhg-nrrr-fffnnn... "AH HAH HAA HAH HAH HAH!!!" Archeville was in full-on Mad Scientist cackle mode; Jack missed when or where he got the goggles from. "AHHH HAH HAH HAAAAHHH.... right, dat's enough of dat," the Doktor said after a few moments, just as abruptly switching back to the calmer mode he'd been showing earlier. He hit another switch, and the (completely harmless) electrical arcs stopped, the metal rods retracted, and two of the three panels swung out so they were arranged less like a triangle and more like a three-way mirror; Taylor was quick to dart out of the area. He manipulated some controls on the device he'd constructed earlier, and a very realistic life-size 3D image of Taylor appeared where she had been standing.

Blink? Geez3r? Gizmo?

In case it needs statting:

Doktor Archeville Archeville downed a shot from the bar before sauntering over to the center of the dance floor; while walking over he motioned for Derrick to come over and stand beside him. "I believe," he said in a slightly low and conspiratorial tone, "dat de tradition in dis situation is for de man who catches de garter to place it upon de leg of de voman who caught de bouquet...."

Undisclosed Location "Astute as ever, Lynn," Archeville replied with a sly smile, "Your qvick vits will serve you as well as, if not better dan, your metamorphic capabilities." "Now," he said, walking towards the door, "if you vill follow me to de operating theatre, I can get de psionic shield implanted; it should require no more dan an hour of brain surgery...." "Joking! Joking!," he quickly said, throwing his hands up. "Dough I do haff a shield for you, a small device," he said as he reached into one of his lab coat pockets and pulled out a tiny clear box containing two thin button-sized discs. "You can vear dem behind de ears, und dey vill completely shield you from Albright's telepathic abilities... vell, theoretically, at least. Dey vill vork against other psychics, too, dough not nearly as vell. Dey are powered by your own body heat, but can get erratic vhen exposed to extremely low or high temperatures."

I think Avenger's a bit preoccupied with RL concerns ;)

:clap: :clap: :clap:

*Doc begins working on a very sleek tin foil hat*

Oh, is this still your (tentative) list?

Nice work I think I was actually the one who'd suggested she take Immunity (critical hits), with the descriptor being "bits of deific armor materialize just in time to deflect the blow just enough so it's not hitting a vital spot." This was back when she still had Create Object.

If you don't have anything specific in mind, then you probably shouldn't be asking if it's allowable.

Old Age fears -- rightfully so -- that she'd kick its ass if it ever came near her.

"Dat is vhat dis device is for, Jack" Archeville replied in a moderately warmer tone, "to get a peek inside und see just vhat is going on." "De Void, eh?," Archeville turned back to Taylor, "Dat's a new von to me, dough I haff heard of de Zero Zone. Can you tell me more of it? Are dere any creatures native to it, or dat use it mit any frequency?" "Oh, und vould you stand over here, please?," he indicated a spot bordered by three panels, each about 7 feet high, covered in Science!-y stuff on the outside but perfectly reflective on the inside, arranged in a triangular configuration but with open corners. The Doktor approached one of the panels with his newly-constructed gadget in one hand, and used the other to manipulate controls on the panel.

And just b/c it's possible doesn't mean it should be allowed -- that would be more a function of the genre (and mood and tone) of the game you're in, and what the Refs would permit in the interests of allowing for cool games/stories.

Undisclosed Location "Creepy? It's not creepy," Archeville said, unclasping his wrist and pointing up towards the air, "It's Science!" Somehow, his voice actually reverberated on that last word. "Und it also ties in to de assignment I vould like you to undertake," he said as he walked around the table and tossed down two folders he withdrew from his lab coat. "Dose are brief dossiers I haff assembled on two students at Claremont, Alexandra Albright und Michael Harris, better known as Psyche und Phalanx. I haff... concerns about dem, und vould like you to covertly monitor dem in deir day-to-day dealings." Lynn would find the folders contain a few photographs and descriptions of the two students, along with their class schedules, a list of places they frequented when not in class, a brief personality profile, and a description of their metahuman powers. Alexandra's file was far more complete than Michael's -- his personality profile just said "introvert" -- though neither contained information that Lynn herself could not have found out. That is, until she got to the last page in each folder, which was a very official and heavily redacted government report. It contained most of the same information the rest of the folder held, but all those thick black marks made more questions pop into her mind.

Dead Head nodded to himself in self-satisfaction as he saw the two cultists drop. Then he got a disturbing feeling in his guts. "'ello?," Dead Head called out, his jaw still hanging half-off his face. " 'ell... oh, 'old on now..." He reached up and jammed his jaw back into place, and the bones and muscle re-knit themselves back together. "Ah, much better. Umm.. Phantom?," he called out, "Phantom? Atlas? Avenger? Anybody?" "Wait here," he thought out loud, "or try an' get back to the central chamber where all the cultists were? They say that if yer lost, the best thing to do is stay in one spot... " For the moment, that's what Dead Head did.

"Prison?," Dead Head said, half-questioningly. "My body's no prison! I mean, sure, it's no temple, it could use some fixin' up... and the colors are kinda drab... but it ain't like I got anythin' locked up inside me!" Well... not that he knew of, at least. "Hey, waitaminute!" he said as he glared at the angelic being, "who ya callin' 'unfortunate,' man? Ah like bein' what ah am!"

Doktor Archeville (before the bouquet toss) "John, Samael, good to see you both," Archeville greeted Arrowhawk and Atlas. "Both doing vell, I trust?" The Doktor almost regretted having so recently attended Oktoberfest, because his still-vibrant memories of it made the offering at this wedding look absolutely tame by comparison. At least, at first glace. As he studied it, Archeville realized that Ace Danger himself must have had a hand in providing the party's potent potables, and the selection was top-notch. (during the bouquet toss) The Doktor leaned in between the two men, "I do hope for equal representation, und ve get a garter toss. It vould only be fair, ja?"

"Out of synch mit every dimension? Vell, den, vhat of de Terminus?," Archeville replied. "Is dat not 'outside' of all dimensions, flowing around dem like a river around stones? Und vhat of... of... oh, how did she vord it... " The Doktor paused a moment, tapping his chin with one finger, then, "Ah! Vhat of ''de incohate und alien spaces beyond de planes'?" Whoever 'she' was, she knew of the far realms which birthed entities such as The Unspeakable One. "Vhatever dis is, Jack," Archeville continued, now in a rather detached tone, "I strongly advise against feeding from her. If she is pregnant, her body vill be producing an increased volume of blood, to nourish both her und de fetus, und dey vill need every drop. Und if it is someding else... vell, I vould rather not haff two patients to deal mit. How is de blood substitute from de vedding gift I made for you?" As he talked, he continued to assemble the unknown device he was building.

Undisclosed Location A whiff of ozone, metal, plastic, assorted chemicals, beer and sausage suddenly assailed Lynn's nose, coming from behind her. Turning, she saw Archeville, his left hand outstretched, and his right hand clasped to his left wrist. Oddly, he seemed almost... surprised that she saw him. "Ah! Hello, Lynn! Sorry for dat little bit of deception -- I vas standing here de whole time, testing out some improvements on mein cloaking field."