Ecalsneerg

To Nick, Siobhan would have sounded noticeably terser than usual. "Get to my apartment, quickly. We've got another problem in a small town, and I think it's a whole lot bigger than Stratford." There came the sound of smoke being inhaled sharply. "I'd teleport there and get you, but I'm doing some quick research. But at least this time no one has to drive up there." Nick heard the sound of a couple of books being tossed to the ground, then a muffled "Kinesi", and then the sound of turning pages. "OK, get here quick, I've got to phone another guy."

I cannot especially be bothered playing out phone conversations ( ), so just have the guys appear at Siobhan's apartment door.

"So are you listening? So are you watching me?" 6.30pm Friday June 8th 2011 Siobhan Drake sighed as, once more, she was stuck in the tedious task on going through her email inbox and getting rid of all the cranks, naysayers and the occasional threat (and tonight, one slightly scary marriage proposal), to filter down to those people who actually wanted her help. And what she saw made her sit up so rapidly that it dislodged a sleeping Hayley from her perch on Siobhan's shoulder and go crashing into the waste paper basket. <What? What's going on? Who's on fire?> "Get the cordless phone," said Siobhan, clicking her fingers to turn into Equinox and stepping away from her laptop, but not before sending one quick message saying that help was on the way. "I'm calling for back-up."

2.35am, Friday June 17th 2011 The man barely needed to use the grappling gun clenched in his teeth, even scaling the sheer surface that was one of Pyramid Plaza's towers. Like a jungle cat, he gracefully yet powerfully swept up the side of the building, only rarely spitting his gun casually into a waiting hand to fire a magnetic line and pull himself up a particularly tricky stretch. Clad in nothing but a pair of black trainers, loose tracksuit bottoms and a dark grey t-shirt, the man moved silently, his feet barely heard bashing into glasswork, gentle enough not to break it. Until finally, the man reached the window he wanted to, and eased himself up onto the sill, only then letting out a laboured, exhausted sounding breath, and pulling the thin metal rod from where he had tied it to his trousers with a piece of cord. With a phwwwwwiiip noise, the thin metal rod extended into a long metal cane, which the man casually, almost as an afterthought, whipped against the glass with a clunk, clunk, clunk. <Elena, if you're not in your apartment,> thought John Fraser. <Get back to it. I'm on the windowsill outside what looks to be your living room. I'm the man with the... well, I'm the one standing on the side of a tall building unsupported. You get the hint.>

Notices: Equinox, Hayley (1d20+15=29, 1d20+8=15)

Right... Resist Distract DC 36 and Taunt DC 31 (1d20+20=29, 1d20+20=21) Well, buggery. DC32 Toughness save. Ew. (1d20+10=19) Failed by 13... he ain't unconscious... yet! But he's Staggered, and knocked back... ... into the fire demon, as per Gizmo rolling this: HP reroll. (1d20+7=27) I hate you so much, Gizmo. Right, so the base DC for the damage on each is DC24. Flame demon save; acid demon save vs DC 24 (1d20+12=20, 1d20+10=17) Then the acid demon's aura hits the flame demon... DC 22 save vs acid aura (1d20+11=30) So. Much. Hate. But you did play baseball with two demons. And critically hit. So... have a HP for cool stuffs. Initiatives! Demon 2 - 20 - NPC- flaming, Bruised x1 Keter - 16 - NPC - Uninjured Jack - 13 - 6HP - Uninjured, Extra Effort Equinox - 12 - 2HP- Fatigued, Bruised x2, Injured x1, Stunned, Prone Demon 1 - 5 - NPC - acidic, Bruised x1, Staggered, Stunned, Prone Demon 3 - 5 - NPC - spines, uninjured Demon 4 - 1 - NPC - metal chains, uninjured

Equinox raised an incredulous eyebrow. "Who turns people into sheep? I've heard of apes, frogs, the whole assortment, but not sheep. It's just..." She struggled for words for a moment. "Just... wow." Equinox nodded in concurrence with the plan. "Sounds like a good plan. I'm not going to take him down without giving a chance to come quietly, no, but that doesn't mean we have to be sloppy and leave ourselves wide. The robots didn't pick up on my astral form, so I assume if they lack magical sensory equipment they'll lack the electronic equivalent. I do think you should go down behind us, though. If we walk in without trying to hide, there's less risk of them finding someone who is hiding."

"Magical linguistics?" smiled Equinox. "That wasn't even ancient Greek. I learned it in college and when on vacation." She held up her hands in surrender. "I'll admit I only use it because it sounds cool." Siobhan shook her head. "There's no such thing as bad magic, ma'am. The problem is that there's bad or misguided people, and then there's various magical entities who aren't exactly friendly... And the inevitable artifacts and tomes of black magic that those people and entities have left lying around. Maybe I'm disproving my own point here but..." The witch shrugged her shoulders. "If you know what you're doing and act responsibly the most harm you can do to yourself is..." In an attempt to reassure the librarian and bring some levity to the situation, she put on a sheepish look. "Lose an eyebrow trying to light a cigarette with a fire spell."

In hot pursuit of the acid demon came a dragon like monstrosity, massive with four clawed feet, the talons like machetes, the creatures head a fanged and eyed mess spitting gouts of flame from every orifice. Snapping through branches effortlessly and igniting trees in its wake, it flew towards the pair of superheroes, spitting a gout of hellfire from one hold on its bizarre head. The blast took Equinox from behind, lifting her up and tumbling head over feet, with a smell of scorched flesh and burning fabric. Upside down in mid-air, gritting her teeth to hold her defensive spells in place, the witch slammed into the tree, barely denting the thick aged bark but bouncing off it with a sickening thud, and crashing to the floor in a heap. Her protective spells flickered, but somehow held, the white light flickering on and off as Equinox tried to push herself to her feet with dizzy, weak knees and trembling hands.

Demons 1, 2, 3 and 4, then Keter and Equinox (1d20=5, 1d20=20, 1d20=5, 1d20=1, 1d20+1=12, 1d20+1=16) And Keter's had time to put that sky high Constitution to work on recovery checks, so he's back in black. Initiatives! Demon 2 - 20 - NPC- flaming, uninjured Keter - 16 - NPC - Uninjured Jack - 13 - 6HP - Uninjured Equinox - 12 - 2HP- Fatigued Demon 1 - 5 - NPC - acidic, uninjured Demon 3 - 5 - NPC - spines, uninjured Demon 4 - 1 - NPC - metal chains, uninjured Firstly, a flaming demon to complement the acidic one. He blitzes Equinox while she's flat-footed. Attack vs Def 13, at DC 29. Toughness save, if necessary (1d20+6=16, 1d20+11=24) And bruises, injures and stuns the hell out of her. Taking 1 on her Concentration will pass her save to keep up her rank 7 Force Field, so we'll skip that. The knockback of 9 throws her 100' into a tree, which is Toughness 5. DC20 Toughness for hitting tree; then DC24 Toughness for the poor tree (1d20+11=14) And actually Toughness save for the tree (1d20+5=24) The tree isn't harmed (wow), but Equinox takes a second bruise. Keter is still some distance off hiding in the woods, and the other demons are approaching but not yet within distance. The acid demon is to the right slightly ahead of Jack, the flaming one likewise to the left. Jack's up. Initiatives! Demon 2 - 20 - NPC- flaming, uninjured Keter - 16 - NPC - Uninjured Jack - 13 - 6HP - Uninjured Equinox - 12 - 2HP- Fatigued, Bruised x2, Injured x1, Stunned, Prone Demon 1 - 5 - NPC - acidic, uninjured Demon 3 - 5 - NPC - spines, uninjured Demon 4 - 1 - NPC - metal chains, uninjured

Equinox strode off into the forest, the smell and stench of black magic, hellfire and brimstone suffusing the air around them with black smog, their noses with an acrid smoking smell and the two heroes' magical senses with an unspeakable sense of wrong. Crows and pigeons lay dead on the ground, their corpses already beginning to fester and rupture. Somewhere quite close came a scream, human enough to curdle the blood, but just inhuman enough to convey that all was not well here. Lighting a cigarette and walking on in defiance of it all, Equinox began speaking quickly and in a low tone of voice. "We get in there, hit him hard and hit him fast. I offered him a chance because it's the right thing to do, but I don't for a second expect him to come quietly." She without warning turned to look Jack straight in the eyes. "You hit him, I'll deal with anything else out there. Got that?" But before Jack could answer, he saw a tree just explode behind Equinox and a huge red figure, wreathed in acidic goo and with eyes as black and terrifying as the maw of a crocodile. The demon barreled towards them at inhuman speeds, carried on leathery wings.

Right, having thrashed this out with Dok... Gecks is officially joining! So I'm'a need a few of the team (preferably not all of them, as that's not really needed) to introduce him to the HQ and so forth under "Dok's instructions", as he's still having issues with being around to post. So... recruits? Objections to Gecks joining from anyone who hasn't known bout this?

Explaining the joke? Google translate claims Drosisteíte means "cool off".

Equinox clenched her teeth as the book struggled and fought, but she wrestled it to the ground, thin arms straining as she hurled it to the ground and produced her wand, pointing it like a gun at the downed book. Through still-gritted teeth, she hissed out "Drosisteíte!" Ice burst from the tip of the wand, flowing around in a chalice shape to pin the book to the floor, held down in a net of thick, solid ice, covered in sharp spines of frost. She looked around sheepishly. "That probably works a bit better if you speak Greek."

Grab the book! (1d20+7=19)

Equinox stared in horror as she watched the army of robots multiplying. <We've wasted too much time. We're going to have to stop this now.> She took a deep breath, and let go of the effort of will holding her spell together, the pressure in the back of her skull snapping like a steel wire pulled too tight. Her body shocked clean upwards, taking a huge gasping breath as the white light in her eyes erupted forth like a firework. "He's making robots, who make more robots, ad infinitum." The witch stood up, frowning at the coat Push had tucked in underneath her."Thanks for the coat. Get Blueshift on the radio now and tell her to hold her position, we'll be in as soon as possible. There's a factory under there, and we're confronting this professor." By now, she had her wand in her right hand, left hand securing her pentacle around her neck firmly.

Quick Change into Costume, turn on Force Field, turn on Pentacle Force Field, turn on Subtle. No amount of safety is too much safety!

"Long story short?" shrugged Siobhan. "Some poor kid started developing mental magic powers, and unconsciously used them on this raccoon. I fixed her up, but... somehow I ended up with a familiar, and not a normal raccoon, by the end of it all." The witch nudged her familiar with her foot. "Although I think the appetite is normal." "Oh, great," sighed Siobhan. "Everyone stand back, I'm going to try and handle the book." With a few elegant hand movements, her outfit burst forth into a black coat over white shirt and pants, hair turning jet black as her eyes began glowing and the pressure of a wall of solid magical force erupted around her, invisible to the eye. "Here goes nothing," said Equinox under her breath, going to grab the book lying on its side by sliding her hand through the slot in the stacks, rather than further risk her safety by standing in front of the barrage of books.

Equinox rubbed at her eyes, looking down at the steering wheel. She sucked in a long, slow breath. Then extended a hand with a vague 'pushing' gesture, and said with some purpose, "Kinisi." With a shriek of tortured metal, the door flew open, and Equinox stood up out of the car, mystic wards blazing white around her; and her wand in her hand, carved runes on it blazing with red-hot flames. "You're right," she said. "It's no use dwelling on the past. He's a threat now. And I'm not leaving you to go it alone." She whirled and faced the woods. "He'll know we're here. Let's make sure he knows why." Her expression became one of incandescent fury, her wand raised to the sky. "Simon! You've had enough chances to hand thyself in, but I grant thee one more chance... Stop. Just STOP! Or I will see that you rot in prison before the day is over." She looked down at the ground for a second, then raised her head high once more, casting her hair back over her shoulder. "We're coming for you now. Pyrokagius!" A lance of flame shot up into the air, blazing brilliantly hot before extinguishing. Equinox, not even looking back, began striding forwards into the forest.

Looks good to me. :approved:

The engine roared as Equinox forced the car out of the city limits, heading up a narrow road towards the forest on the city outskirts. "In the attic?" asked the witch, forcing a small smile. "I think I burned my Backstreet Boys posters long ago." "But it's not quite the same thing." She took in a long, deep breath. "He's beat me once, and I know he can do it again. He's lead me astray before, and I'm just terrified of something happening again." A haunted look entered her eyes. "I only ever found three quarters of those other mixed up kids. I don't know if the others are even alive. I panicked, ran away, and by the time I came back, it was too late." She pulled into a parking space and killed the engine. "He's basically my boogieman."

The raccoon happily took the cookie, making jolly little squeaking noises as she took a huge bite out of it, rubbing close up to Nick's leg. "Huh," snorted Siobhan. "Seems she's more than a little fickle." She knelt down to scratch Hayley behind the ear. "I'm not going to ask why you carry cookies in your pockets, however." <For eating!> came the raccoon's voice in her head, somehow sounding like her mouth was full despite the communication being purely mental. "But if it's not poltergeist activity, that leaves aside the obvious answers and makes finding out what this is a fair bit trickier. They're miles ahead the most obvious candidates for something like this." The witch frowned. "Maybe some sort of faerie? A weak demon?"

Equinox Notice (1d20+15=19), and Hayley gets 18 with Skill Mastery

Actually, Immunity won't work, to my knowledge. Immunity is the auto-passing of saves, strictly speaking, and Obscure offers none. However, Counters Obscure Limited to own powers is 1pp, so it's really an academic difference.

"OK," sighed Equinox, fiddling with the gear stick. "But this can't get out, I'm not proud of it. As a kid, I was a... screw-up. I ran away from home, and fell in with a bad crowd of wannabe mystics and cultists. They weren't bad kids, except for Simon Kerr. For all his faults, he was this charismatic leader, who made everyone feel like they were powerful." She sighed. "We believed him. But, really, he just wanted to use us for our powers. I... eventually figured out what was going on, and told him to stop, and left. I went to stop him afterwards, but I'd arrived too late. He'd called up a demon and lost control of it. He escaped while I tried to bind it, and at that point in my life I wasn't that powerful. It beat me, and nearly killed me. If it hadn't been for Adrian Eldrich, I'd have died." "Simon's obviously lost a little of his sanity by now, but even so, he's still very talented in one thing: talking. To humans, he comes across as a loony, to demons, he's still a skilled bargainer. He'll have probably called up some awful things from the depths of Hell. He's got his hellfire abilities, as you've seen. And, since you likely angered him, he's not going to hold back." She looked away from the road momentarily. "If you try to take him on again, I'll go after the demons. Even now, I don't think I'd be able to take him on in a straight fight."