Avenger Assembled

Angelic looked torn between what she was doing up above - jabbing buttons on her arm, focusing on the drones, and the conversation below. "What? I am trying to broadcast false sensory data here-" She set her face in a hard frown and said, "Purely synthetic machines cannot do magic." Her white featureless eyes blinked against an ancient hurt before she conceded, "but not all life in Rurland is purely synthetic. What are you all talking about?" she asked. "Kay told me...nothing of what you were doing. Didn't you find it?"

"C'mon, Ashley," said her escort with an exuberant smile. "You always said you wanted to, uh, surprise the Raven!" For just a moment, Ashley assumed the manner of a long-suffering elder sibling before putting away her phone. "Okay. But if things go south here, you and I are leaving - end of discussion." "Sure thing!" said the girl cheerily. She walked fearlessly up to Calliope and Charlie, sticking out her hand for a shake - her grip was warm, fever-hot or more, but she didn't seem to be suffering from it. If anything she wasn't sweating at all. "Hi there, Ah'm Judy." "Yes, she is," said Ashley with a glance her way. "Judy is my ward." Judy grinned at that. "Hah, that makes it sound like you'll have me in shorts before you know it!" "That was _one_ costume, and it was _one_ summer," Ashley grumped affectionately, hands in her pockets.

Winter Salem is cold, secretive, and sensitive. He was always much more of a true believer than his sister (even within the confines of the People of the Faith) so it took a terrible betrayal to send him fleeing here. His powers tend to revolve around winter - cold, ice, freezing, and other things. He wears his dark hair shoulder-length, a slightly feminine cut by the standards of the society that produced him. Abilities: 0 + 0 + 4 + 2 + 4 + 2 = 12 PP STR 10 (+0) DEX 10 (+0) CON 14 (+2) INT 12 (+1) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 12 (+1) Combat: 8 + 8 = 16 PP ATK: +4 (+6 Weather) DEF: +7 (+3 Dodge, +4 Base, +2 flat-footed) Init: +0 Grapple: +4, +2+16 Knockback: -3/-1 Saves: 3 + 5 + 4 = 12 PP TOU +7/+2 (+2 Con, +5 Force Field) FORT +5 (+2 Con, +3) REF +5 (+0 Dex, +5) WILL +6 (+2 Wis, +4) Skills: 40 r = 10 PP Concentration 4 (+6) Intimidate 12 (+13) Knowledge (Arcane Lore) 4 (+5) Knowledge (Theology) 4 (+5) Handle Animal 4 (+5) Notice 4 (+6) Sense Motive 4 (+6) Survival 4 (+6) Feats: 7 PP Attack Specialization (Weather) Dodge Focus 3 Environmental Adaptation (Stormy Weather) Power Attack Startle Powers: 1 + 6 + 5 + 2 + 34 = 48 PP Feature 1 (Weather Sense) [1PP] Flight 3 (50 MPH/500 fpm) [6PP] Force Field 5 [5PP] Immunity 2 (environmental cold, heat) [2PP] Weather Control 12 (24 PP, PFs: Dynamic, Dynamic Alternate Powers 4, Variable Descriptor 1 [any weather]) [34PP] DBE: Environmental Control 1-6 (4 points worth of effects [Cold, Hamper Movement (icy/wet surfaces), Heat, Light [ball lightning], Reduced Visibility (rain/sleet/snow), Wind] in a 5 to 250 ft. radius) {4-24, 0-20 left} DAP: Blast 1-8 (lightning or other weather; PFs: Indirect 2) {4-18, 6-20 left} DAP: Blast 1-7 (mini-blizzard or other weather; Extra: Area [5-35-ft. Burst, General]) {3-21, 3-21 left} DAP: Dazzle 1-7 (thunder-stroke or other weather, auditory & visual; Extras: Area [5-35-ft. Burst, General]) {3-21, 3-21 left} DAP: Move Object 1-8 ('Air Control,' Str 5-40, Hvy Load 50 lbs. - 3 tons; Extra: Range [Perception]) {3-24, 0-21 left}

Summer Salem is cheery, upbeat, and optimistic - with an edge that turns hard if her brother or anything she cares about is threatened. Her powers are tied to her name and tend to center around thunderstorms, bright sunlight, and other 'summery' weather events. Deep down in her heart she wasn't so sure about leaving but she would never let Winter go anywhere alone. She wears her dark hair shoulder length, a slightly masculine cut by the standards of the society that produced her. Abilities: 0 + 0 + 4 + 2 + 4 + 2 = 12 PP STR 10 (+0) DEX 10 (+0) CON 14 (+2) INT 12 (+1) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 12 (+1) Combat: 8 + 8 = 16 PP ATK: +4 (+6 Weather) DEF: +7 (+3 Dodge, +4 Base, +2 flat-footed) Init: +0 Grapple: +4, +2+16 Knockback: -3/-1 Saves: 3 + 5 + 4 = 12 PP TOU +7/+2 (+2 Con, +5 Force Field) FORT +5 (+2 Con, +3) REF +5 (+0 Dex, +5) WILL +6 (+2 Wis, +4) Skills: 40 r = 10 PP Bluff 8 (+9) Concentration 8 (+10) Knowledge (Arcane Lore) 4 (+5) Knowledge (Theology) 4 (+5) Handle Animal 4 (+5) Notice 4 (+6) Sense Motive 4 (+6) Survival 4 (+6) Feats: 7 PP Attack Specialization (Weather) Dodge Focus 3 Environmental Adaptation (Stormy Weather) Power Attack Second Chance (Checks vs. Fear) Powers: 1 + 6 + 5 + 2 + 34 = 48 PP Feature 1 (Weather Sense) [1PP] Flight 3 (50 MPH/500 fpm) [6PP] Force Field 5 [5PP] Immunity 2 (environmental cold, heat) [2PP] Weather Control 12 (24 PP, PFs: Dynamic, Dynamic Alternate Powers 4, Variable Descriptor 1 [any weather]) [34PP] DBE: Environmental Control 1-6 (4 points worth of effects [Cold, Hamper Movement (icy/wet surfaces), Heat, Light [ball lightning], Reduced Visibility (rain/sleet/snow), Wind] in a 5 to 250 ft. radius) {4-24, 0-20 left} DAP: Blast 1-8 (lightning or other weather; PFs: Indirect 2) {4-18, 6-20 left} DAP: Blast 1-7 (mini-blizzard or other weather; Extra: Area [5-35-ft. Burst, General]) {3-21, 3-21 left} DAP: Dazzle 1-7 (thunder-stroke or other weather, auditory & visual; Extras: Area [5-35-ft. Burst, General]) {3-21, 3-21 left} DAP: Move Object 1-8 ('Air Control,' Str 5-40, Hvy Load 50 lbs. - 3 tons; Extra: Range [Perception]) {3-24, 0-21 left}

"You have to tell her the truth," said Ashley, the anger bled out from her voice by disbelief. "I can't-" She stopped and pinched the bridge of her nose, seeming to calm herself, and said, "For God's sakes, Callie," she said, "maybe you have to shield her now, but you cannot keep the truth from her. Not because it's lying to yourself, not because she's smart enough to go out and play detective on her own, but because she's a smart kid who deserves to know the truth." She made eye contact and whispered sharply, "Hasn't there been enough lying? Callie hadn't said who the he was she was talking about. Ashley assumed nobody needed that spelled out.

"Three," finished Angelic automatically, not even bothering with a direct punch as she instead slapped the wizardling across the face with force that could have taken paint off a steel door. It hit him and he hurt, staggering back and raising his hands to defend himself - to throw another knife. It didn't matter.. "You see." She reached out and caught the wizard by the collar of his robe, lifting him into the air one-handed. "Pathetic." She shook him like a ragdoll and threw him to the ground, then put her silvered foot on his chest for good measure. "Chitin is right. Your name makes you sound ignorant, yes?" she chided with cool amusement. "Did you think magic would save you from your foolishness?" That got her a rude remark in return, and she pressed down with her foot. "You-you stupid kids! You're just a bunch of science drones! You don't know anything about real arcane power-" He did not seem to be able to get up.

Angelic: Move Action: another startle https://orokos.com/roll/838202 Ah well, should probably get some Skill Mastery on that! Standard Action: She'll haul off and sock him. She'll All-Out Attack for +2 https://orokos.com/roll/838205 = criminy Let's HP that https://orokos.com/roll/838206 ugh the lowest of the low, but it hits! Tou = 25 + 2 = 27 https://orokos.com/roll/838207 = he takes another bruise Eira's gonna surge to finish the job https://orokos.com/roll/838208 = 22 Tou vs 27, sure https://orokos.com/roll/838210 = 13 All right, we had to push it a bit, but he is down for the count! Not actually out but he is surrendering. Now for an IC post!

Then the door flung itself open, and two figures appeared. One was familiar enough - Ashley Tran in a biker jacket and leather, gloved hands at her sides as she stepped in. She looked around, a sharp look on her face, and called out "Okay, I'm here! What was the big emergency-" She eyed the room, looking at Charlie, Calliopie, and everything else in that space. "Wait a second. That wasn't a code. There was an actual party?" she demanded, sounding thoroughly disgusted. The girl behind her gave a cautious little wave to the other two. The two women resembled each other though the second speaker was clearly younger, vaguely Eurasian features with dark hair down to her shoulders, eyes hidden behind dark glasses and wearing a dress that came down well below her knees. "Well it's okay, Ashley," said the girl with a distinct Southern accent, "Ah mean what safer place could Ah be in than right here?" "Okay, okay," said Ashley, sighing as she automatically scanned the room. "You just...talk to them for a minute. I'm going to see if I can raise the Raven..." She took out her phone and began irritably jabbing at it.

Judy's smile fell away from her eyes for a moment - before she reached up and patted her hair. "Ah did it myself from a Youtube tutorial. With a little help cleaning it up afterwards, of course." Her smile curled at the edges on that one before she said, "You'd look nice with short hair. You should try it." She sat up and moved around her room, finally parking herself somewhere that must have been a dresser or desk with her phone propped up on it. "Ah'm really glad to see you. I, ah, wanted to ask you something about telepathy, if that's okay."

Chitin's energy darts blasted into the dark wizardling - he cursed and threw his arm up to protect his face as small energy blasts struck his side and upper torso. And many other things - the use of the darts in the confined space of the hallway saw an Exit sign and the overhead lights explode in a shower of sparks as the darts found home, a few more burying themselves in the wall with a sound like bullets striking granite. And then Angelic arrived. She was quicksilver power and speed, wings folded behind her like an Art Deco figurehead, eyes glowing white as she crossed the space to where the boys fought within seconds. She landed and spread her wings, blue-white lightning seemed to crackle along the struts, polished so bright Chitin could see himself reflected in her metallic body. Then she turned to him and hissed in a low, throaty, obviously artificial contralto - "We are inside of a building!" She reached back as if catching her wing by invisible cords, then brought her wing down across Malachite's raised arm with a slash of energized metal. The wizard cried out in pain as Angelic cut where Chitin had blasted, bleeding now from a deep cut in his arm. "Who are you!?" he demanded. "I am Angelic," Eira sneered, spreading her wings just a little wider. Cursing he pulled a knife from nowhere with his good hand and hurled it at Angelic's throat. She brought her other wing down at the last second and the thrown blade hung there, held in place by the electricity between the 'bones' of her wing before suddenly disintegrating altogether. Eira glared at Malachite and said coldly "Pathetic."

Hah-hah, yes, good, good. Reflex: 22 Tou: 21 He is now bruised. Angelic has entered the chat! Move Action: flies up HP: Surge Move Action: STARTLE well that wasn't helpful 27 Standard Action: hit him =20 Hits by 1! Tou vs 25 18 Bruised x2 and dazed! I'll give myself an HP to counter the hit. Malachite throws a knife at Eira https://orokos.com/roll/837757 = 25 a hit! Tou vs 24 25

Name: Eira Katastroff Codename: Angelic Year: Senior Pronouns: Her Current Intramural Team: Orange Squad Current Roommate: Lulu Beaumont Reflection: Ugh Eira would never, ever admit this but she wants to make friends and be liked. She's doing okay with this so far? Community Cause: Visiting sick kids in hospitals, building things for them.

Stabbed! It burns and stings!

Name: Judy Smith/Ashley Smith Codename: Daystar/Watchdog Year: Seniors Pronouns: Her/Her Current Intramural Team: Blue Squad Current Roommate: Each other. Nothing weird about that, right? Reflection: Judy can feel everything slipping away - her friends, her family, her humanity. She's proud of the new strength she's found and of the ties she _has_ been able to keep over the summer - but she's afraid that everything she's done, all the sacrifices she's made, were for nothing. Ashley wants to help Judy have the self-confidence to be her true, authentic self and strike back against the world that terrifies her. And then she wants to move far, far away. Community Cause: Judy is tired of politics, frankly, and even the soup kitchens she volunteers at make her think of her fractured relationship with her family now. She has her youth ministry here on campus and a desire to redeem the world, but how can she do that from a cloak of anonymity? Ashley can't do much from behind her secret ID either, but she'd like to volunteer at a gym to teach kids physical fitness. And then maybe go somewhere far, far away.

Malachite: https://orokos.com/roll/837437 = 22 Angelic: 25 Okay so we go Chitin Angelic Malachite Chitin there is now a big magic knife sticking out of Yellow, who is injured! What do you do?

"Thank you," said Judy with a warm smile. "Ah did it myself from a Youtube tutorial - of course Ah had a little help cleaning it up afterwards." She gave Abby a tight smile. Despite the story Abby had heard about Judy's origins, the girl was usually pretty close-lipped about where she went and what she did with her sister during summer break. "Dropping out, huh? So is there like a Harry Potter school somewhere, or..." Her tone had been light, but she trailed off uncertainly before she admitted, "Ah, uh, don't really know anything about magic. Ah just assumed there was some kind of private school for witches, er girl-wizards, somewhere." She frowned briefly, then admitted, "That's actually, ah, one of the reasons Ah called today, besides just catching up." She sat up in bed and moved around until she was sitting at some kind of desk, obviously propping her phone up in front of her. Behind her Abby could see floofy, flowery curtains over a drawn shade. "Ah'm sorry if this is a personal question, but ah know you said you aren't a witch professionally, but are you somebody whose....ah, religion is a witch? Or is being magic a thing you're learning how to do?"

"Yes," said Urmakare, earning him a glare from the metallic Angelic. Looking highly annoyed at this set of circumstances, he told them a tale of how a business partner of his had contacted him to secure an item for a particular wealthy investor. He'd pushed for names and gotten a location; the Ecogrid on Bornholm, an experimental EU-run research station testing novel sources of power generation. Eira interrogated him further, getting a name (Hans Holheim, an unpowered go-between) for Urmakare's contact, and the flight he'd be taking to Bornholm. "They're probably in the air now; you might catch them or be waiting for them on the island - I don't really care. I already got paid and if you turn _me_ in for theft, I might have to turn the rest of you in for burglary," he said with a sneer. Eira called him something truly vile and said, "You had better be where we can find you when we come back." Turning to Soliton, she said unsmilingly "Soliton can you take us to the island? I can give you the GPS coordinates of the Ecogrid"

We'll call the DC to hit Yellow 25, since it's a held item? https://orokos.com/roll/836729 = 27 Oh no! Well take an HP and give me initiative, Giz.

"...how _dare_ you speak that way to me!" said the dark wizard, his eyes widening. "You little #$($, do you know who I am? I'm Malachite - and you're just some stupid kid-intern!" He spread his hand, moving them in an intricate pattern. "I know the demons are here and I'm going to find them!" His eyes narrowed as he looked at Ryder, then focused over his shoulder at Yellow. "Oh, is that one of Dragonfly's little drones spying on us? I'll show you what I do to spies, intern!" And with that, he made a gesture in his sleeve and pulled out a wicked-looking throwing knife that he whipped past Ryder's head and directly at Yellow! For her part, Angelic had been watching Ryder's travels by tapping into the building's security system. An observer wouldn't have seen her look terribly concerned when the wizard teleported in; between Miss Americana upstairs, Dragonfly and Wander on this level, and Chitin's own armor, he was probably not in any jeopardy from the "idiot who came to Thunder Bay to teach people hockey," she muttered, an English phrase she'd picked up from Kimber. And then the man threw the knife, and Eira said a bad word she'd heard once from Gina Evans. "I will return, children!" she said to the kindergarteners, "he is just, uh, getting lost!" she added unconvincingly. And with that she burst out the door, skin seeming to fade away in place of a cool silvery flesh that reflected colors all around as she erupted down the hall!

There was a distinct sound of banging and thumping as Ryder entered the hallway where Dragonfly and Wander were working with the Infernects. They didn't sound like noises of peril, really, just sounds of work as if both boss and security chief were very busy. And then suddenly the air rippled before him and a dark figure emerged from nothingness itself! The figure wore a black cloak emblazoned with a strange sign - a black-winged goat with a woman's torso, caduceus in its lap, and tail extended behind it. Ryder had a very good view of the demonic symbolism because the mysterious figure had appeared with its back to him. "Behold! I have come to free-what the hell!" The voice was younger than he might have expected, and as the speaker turned around she certainly looked that way - the young man's dark mustache was thin at best and his goatee downright patchy, his bald head clearly a product of artifice. "I...hey! Where are the demons, kid?" he demanded, his voice having shifted from theatrical English to a distinctly Jersey pronunciation. The boy before him couldn't have been twenty. "You'd better tell me!"

Judy was laying back, her head against an elaborately crocheted pillow with a half-visible message covered by her hair. Not that there was much of it - it looked like over the summer she had hacked off most of her very long, raven-black hair and replaced it with a shoulder-length bob closer to how her sister typically looked. It definitely wasn't pink, though. "Hey girlfriend" she said with a smile. "How's your summer? Mine's been...busy," she said with a nervous laugh. "But it's just me in the hotel today, so Ah thought Ah'd give mah favorite, uh, magic-person a call." Abby had heard about Judy and Leroy's breakup right before everyone left for the summer. Most everyone had.

Eira hung back for a moment - in a rare show of indecision - before coming over to inspect Ryder's work. She nodded, hands folded behind her back, and said unsmilingly "It is good work." She smoothly connected herself first to the system she'd been working on with one datacable, then to the base Ryder had developed. Her blue eyes deeply unfocused for a moment, as if she was staring inside herself at something vast and cool - then she pulled away, a look of satisfaction on her face. "It is done." She glanced over at the children, who seemed absorbed for the moment in playing a hologram game coming out of the security ball, then said, "If you and Yellow wish to give this to Dragonfly, I will be fine with the children." She smiled thinly.

Summer 2020 The Cahill family was in southern California today, having had their regular campaign season Sunday service in a silvery crystal cathedral that towered three times as high as any of the buildings in the small Oklahoma town where Judith Claudia Cahill had been born. She'd closed her eyes at the right moments and prayed the right prayers, but Jesus and the Holy Spirit had seemed terribly far away. She'd picked a fight with her sisters, something easier now that they were all stuck together again for the first time in nearly four years, and won the freedom to sulk in her room instead of joining the family for dinner. So she lay on her bed and listened to the news outside without having to turn on her television, then after a moment's consideration she took out her phone and texted Arcane. Hey Abby. Can you FaceTime?

Eira frowned at Mette, her quicksilver face wrinkling, but evidently couldn't argue with her logic. She spread her wings high and slowly took off towards the hovering drones, relying on her internal propulsion here removed from proximity to a large city with its metallic infrastructure. In the hovering sky, Angelic faced down the drones, with first one, then another turning to hover in her direction. It was hard to tell where the inhuman machines were actually looking for the observers on the ground, but the spread of her wings and the presence of her metallic body seemed to be blocking the camera views for now.

Eira laughed - a short, rather unpleasant bark. "My parents do not know anything about science. You should not assume every family is like yours. The world of superheroics is a diverse one - with many kinds of families." She smiled thinly, then realized Charlie and Mia had glanced her way. She had the grace to look abashed for a moment, then turned away to focus on working again on her arm where it lay spread open on the table.