alderwitch

"Well, we could do in in long weekends. Somewhere where days equal weeks. That way we can hop back over and deal with things in between jaunts to keep the fires to a minimum." Taylor suggested, reaching up to touch the strained lines in his face. His cheek was cool as always under her palm but Taylor barely registered that difference these days. She smiled and feathered a thumb over his skin. "I love you, Jack. Are you going to be okay with all of this? It wasn't exactly part of the plan."

Reflex save reroll: 1d20+2=10 Tough save: 1d20+14=24 since this is a do over, I assume I get the HP back?

Twisting mid-air, Psyche tried to avoid the worst of the explosion. The debris that did spatter her hit the glowing aura around her body, leaving her mostly unscathed. She reappeared as suddenly as she had vanished, floating silently in the air in the alleyway. She gathered up a handful of the sparkling aura that had protected her in her hands and flung it out at the boys. It flatened into a large looking sheet of power that flew towards them as it formed into a bubble shape around the boys.

Reflex save: 1d20+2=21 Tough save: 1d20+14=15 Burn my HP for the reroll: 1d20+14=17 That's a 27 which is plenty. Okay, we'll do this. I'll switch my array from concealment to create object and see if she can catch Edge and Phalanx in a bubble. Reflex save DC 21.

"Hold on," Phantom ghosted to a stop, floating in the middle of the passageway. She looked more annoyed than afraid as she pushed her hood back and focused her senses to try and pierce the spells layered over the brick. The white glow from her eyes flickered as she glanced up and down the passageway. After a moment or two she tucked her hood back up and muttered with distaste, "Shadow wolves. They'll try and surprise us. About as difficult to get a hold of as I am and with the same susceptibility to fire.

Taylor quirked a brow at the conspiring glance Moira shot in her general direction on her way to pressing Stesha about possible wedding plans. "Don't look at me. Jack proposed in the middle of an 'oh my God, we're going to die' fight. I know Derrick's going to do something that involves a good deal more forthought and planning than that. Once he figures out that he should. Derrick will probably even ask permission for her hand and all that. I mean, he's more than a bit old fashioned." Taylor said with a smile over at Stesha, "He'll do it up right, after all, that's what he does."

"I have to skip movie theaters too." Taylor commiserated with Dead Head in an aside, "My startle reflex results in phasing and I'd end up ghosting through three rows of people. Which is quite a scare for them and not so good for my whole secret identity thing. So I've expanded my movie collection. Jack isn't a horror buff so we haven't even watched a bunch of them." She smiled over at her boyfriend, shifting slightly on her perch so that she could press a hand against the cold leather of his jacket. Taylor wasn't sure the rest of the newly dubbed Midnighters realized what a gesture it was for Jack to invite everyone into his home. She squeezed his arm gently in support and quickly provided the directions before adding, "We'll meet there next time. I'm willing to trade ambience for seats that don't get my butt wet." Taylor scooted off the headstone in question and began brushing the snow off her jeans. Sure the cold didn't bother her but that didn't make wet and clammy jeans comfortable either.

Alex's laugh was childlike in its delight at the impromptu snow fight. This was really the real gift of Claremont. No teen here had to worry about keeping to human norms and a day of playing in the snow could be exactly that but free from worry of what a passerby might think of such things. She beamed at Mike and announced, "Kay, trade!" Without waiting for his response, Alex shifted places with him to take the defensive spot. For a moment she looked entirely ludicrous in front of her boyfriends much larger form. Her booted feet splayed out for traction in the snow. Laughing at the first barrage, she began to form up force walls that she used to deflect the snowballs, "Let 'em have it, Mike!"

Oh, no, oh, no, oh, no, Taylor desperately flung her hands up, moving quickly and gracefully through the countering gestures and praying she'd be in time to stop the spell. She was - but barely. The margin she succeeded by was too small for her own comfort and as she flung her hand out to shatter the curse with a wave of pure white power, Taylor wasn't certain she'd be successful a second time. "Jack, I can't hold him off for long!" Taylor whispered even as she raised her hands to try. "Stop him!"

Phantom would be green, that's pretty easy to call. She's all about overcoming fear and willpower. Her power ring would probably be used to enhance her mystical abilities. Lots of portals and arcane summoning I would think. As for Psyche, she'd be Indigo Tribe. She's one of the most compassionate characters I've ever created. Comes with that obscenely high empathy :D

Underneath the white dusting of snow, the bright lemon yellow of Alex's parka was like a beacon of sunshine in the winter wonderland. The thick wool hat pulled down over her hair was an equally unnatural hot pink, neither of which went with the fluttering red and green stripey scart fluttering in the wind. She was laughing as she huddled between a large boy and the bulk of a snow drift. Turning her face in towards his chest, Alex closed her eyes. It was easier to target the other students with her mental senses than her physical. With a laugh, four snow balls rose up behind Mike and went zipping at their targets, guided by invisible telekinetics.

Patchwork Girl: 29 Arrowhawk: 25 Scarab: 25 Grim: 19 Moira: 19 Phantom: 17 Colt: 16 Ace: 16 Arcanix: 16 Iron Golem: 16 Atlas: 15 Fleur: 15 Avenger: 14 Dark Star: 12 Doc Archevielle: 4

"Well, there's always consequences. Not just for us, but our families. I mean, when we start a family of our own - in the distant future! - I'm sure we'll have all those concerns too. But stastically, a car accident is more likely than a super villan. There's been studies." Alex nodded smartly before she broke off to accept her pizza with a smile of appreciation. "So much better than school cafeteria!"

35 Had to spend an hp, roll to counter magic.

"I think I'm allowed to have multiple worries," Taylor huffed but she let the anxiety over her parents drop for the moment. Jack was right at least in that it wasn't the largest concern at the moment. Her brow creased in thought for a moment as she worked the logistics of the Midnighters stepping in silently for a few minutes. As she still had Jack's hand captured, she ran light fingertips over the back of his hand, fiddling with the still-shiny wedding band. "That could work, especially if I teach James how to contact us if there's an emergency. If we dimension hop, we'll have to do it in smaller steps, I think. As creepy as he is, I don't know of a doctor better than Archevielle. Certainly no one I trust." Taylor looked about as unhappy as she felt with that pronouncement, if resigned to the matter. She'd just have to put up with the unpleasant sensations.

Alex wrinkled her nose up at that. She liked Eddie quite a lot but talk of 'future Eddie' made her thoughts turn to his current (and in her opinion, unhealthy) relationship with their future off spring. "I'm sure he'll manage it. He has an awful lot of talent. He'll keep our secrets though if we asked. I don't think a lot of us really have the need to be all secret I'd, though. Maybe Gecks and Mark."

Phantom is holding her action to counterspell any magic cast by magic-rune dude.

Done by Sandman XI I changed around Taylor's sheet a bit, raised her Con, dropped her Reflex save, changed her trade offs and moved her languages to a training based power that has the innate power feat upon chatting with Shaen. Dropped her regen and a pair of feats to pay for the net cost change. Also updated her fluff. All part of my goal to get her eventuall up to something like caps. Someday. [b]Player's Name[/b]: alderwitch [b]Power Level[/b]: 12 (188/188 pp) [b]Trade-Offs[/b]: [-5 Defense for +5 Toughness] [b]Unspent PP[/b]: 0 [b]Characters Name[/b]: Phantom [b]Alternate Identity[/b]: Taylor Chun [b]Height[/b]: 5'1" [b]Weight[/b]: 135 lbs [b]Hair[/b]: Thick and very straight black hair that falls to the middle of her back. [b]Eyes[/b]: Brown [u][b]Description[/b][/u]: Between Taylor's height, her reserved body language, and her dimpled cheeks, she still gets mistaken for a freshman at the University more often than not. Experience and increased comfort with herself have at least given her enough poise to generally correct that assumption. Having taken up jogging and working out with a sparring bag, Taylor has added some muscle to her curves. She is sturdily built and relatively fit. She still tends to dress like she's watched Indiana Jones just a few too many times, with rescued bomber jackets from the Salvation Army and fedoras that have seen better days but she's added some class to her wardrobe. Whether its her own preference or the fact that Ace has become her usual shopping buddy, most of her clothing has a 40s retro flair. As Phantom, Taylor is anything but average. In the cloak and cowl of her alter ego, Phantom is downright otherworldly. Her eyes glow white behind the three quarters black face mask. The folds of the inside of her ragged cloak crackle with eldritch energy and she flickers between solid and ephemeral states without conscious thought. Unlike most of the magically oriented, Phantom uses no arcane gestures or words of power but rather directs her fel energies with her eerie baleful glare. A creature of all dimensions and none, Phantom flickers through reality with disquieting ease. It's easy to mistake her cloak for her source of power as when she vanishes from sight, her cloak folds in first on her, and then on itself. Even stripped of the glittering Eye of Heshem at her throat, Phantom's powers are unhindered. [u][b]History[/b][/u]: Taylor was born to your average middle class Americans. Her mother was a typical wasp and her father was a Chinese American, both of whom were born and raised inside Freedom City. Taylor's childhood was a normal one. She was a studious, if shy, child that spent much of her time focused on schooling although she had her share of childhood friends. The only oddity in her normal life was her great-uncle on her father's side. The elderly gentleman was always filling her head with stories of his youth helping Johnny Danger on all those daring quests. This is undoubtably where Taylor picked up her tendancy to dress like a bad pulp era character although with jeans and baseball t-shirts under her reclaimed, beaten jackets. When Taylor went into college, she was tempted to study archeology but had a natural flair for languages and instead went into the linguistics program. About this time, Taylor's beloved grandfather took ill and she recieved a package from him containing the Eye of Heshem, a glittering amuelet with its gem larger than her thumb, and instructing her to keep it safe. For a time, the Eye travelled about in the pocket of her beaten leather jacket before, bored one night working the midnight shift at the library, she began to work on the translation of the inscription. The first time Taylor recited the ancient script aloud, she was knocked near senseless as the voice of Heshem herself thundered through her head, charging her with the defense of the pact. These days, Taylor juggles her college studies and a late night job with doing her duties to guard the sanctity of the dimensional barriers. Her attempt at keeping a secret identity is made more difficult by the transformation to her alter ego that occurs when the Phantom is needed. [u][b]Personality & Motivation[/b][/u]: Taylor is responsible in either persona. She really is the sort of person that her Great Uncle could trust to take care of that relic simply because she was asked to. She's still too young to see the world in shades of grey and that outlook is what makes her really quite good as an interdimensional police agent. As Phantom, she's the bouncer to Gateway's doorkeeper. She spends her costumed time finding and returning things that don't belong in their dimension. That's not to say that she's blindly devoted to the duties of her work. She's a bright young lady and can tell the difference between an Olympian that's setting up their own cozy little cult and a poor refugee but in either case she's going to find them a more appropriate local for their life. [b][u]Powers & Tactics[/u][/b]: The Eye has pulled Taylor Chun out of synch with this dimension. As a creature of all worlds and none, she is as likely to be ephemeral as solid and moves between the dimensions like a child would run through the rooms of the house. Her very body is the gateway to the holding dimension that she uses to transport creatures and objects back to where they once belonged and riding within the Phantom is an odd and distressing experience for even the most jaded. In additon to her odd and innate abilities, Phantom is an accomplished mage. She uses a dark crackling magic without either word or gesture to knock the more combatant individuals low before wrapping them in the ragged edges of her eldritch cape. [u][b]Complications[/b][/u]: [b]Secret Identity[/b]: Although she's now out to her parents and siblings, Taylor still does her best to keep 'Taylor Chun' and 'Phantom' as disperate as possible. And although Taylor's life has certainly gotten complicated, that doesn't change the fact that Phantom is not 'out' but to a select few. [b]Married to the Enemy[/b]: No matter how you slice it, marrying a vampire has consequences. Marrying a vampire who is not just any vampire, but the current king of the Freedom City vampires who moonlights as a masked vigalante is a whole 'nother level. Then you add starting a family to the mix, and things really start to ramp up. And Taylor's always been such a smart girl. [b]Responsibilites[/b]: (Interdimensional Guardian, Knights, Family, Husband) Taylor has a mandated responsibility to do her duties and while Heshem is not one to micromanage, the failure to use her gifts as required by the entity would likely have dire consequences. In addition, she's got multiple forces that demand a certain level of loyalty. Unfortunately, they're not always on the same side of any given issue [u][b]Stats[/b][/u]: (0+0+10+8+10+4=32pp) [b]Str[/b]: 10 (+0) [b]Dex[/b]: 10 (+0) [b]Con[/b]: 20 (+5) [b]Int[/b]: 18 (+4) [b]Wis[/b]: 20 (+5) [b]Cha[/b]: 14 (+2) [u][b]Combat[/b][/u]: (16+8=24pp) [b]Attack[/b]: +8, +10 Blast/Stun, +10 Telekinesis [b]Grapple[/b]: +8, +22 Telekinesis [b]Defense[/b]: +4/+7, +2 Flat-Footed [b]Knockback[/b]: -0, -10 Force Field [b]Initiative[/b]: +0 [u][b]Saves[/b][/u]: (2+0+4=6pp) [b]Toughness[/b]: +17 (Impervious 10), +5 w/o Force Field [b]Fort[/b]: +7 (+5 Con, +2) [b]Reflex[/b]: +0 (+0 Dex, +0) [b]Will[/b]: +10 (+5 Wis, +4) [u][b]Skills[/b][/u]: (60r = 15pp) Concentration 10 (+15) Intimidate 2 (+4) Knowledge (Arcane Lore) 16 (+20) Knowledge (History) 6 (+10) Notice 10 (+15) Search 11 (+15) Sense Motive 5 (+10) [u][b]Feats[/b][/u]: (11pp) Benefit (Wealth) Defensive Roll x 3 Equipment 3 (Points in joint HQ w/ Avenger) Fearless Quick Change 2 Ritualist [u][b]Powers[/b][/u]: (3+25+11+45+7+3+9=103pp) [b]Comprehend 3[/b] (Training, Languages (Speak One/Understand All/Read & Write), Drawback: Only Earth Languages, Power Feat: Innate) [3] [b]Insubstantial 4[/b] (Affected by Fire; Extra: Action: Reactive) (PF: Alternate Power) [25pp] AP: [b]Force Field 12 [/b](Extra: Impervious 10, PF: Selective, Subtle) {24} [b]Immunity 11[/b] (Aging, Life Support, Starvation/Thirst) [11 pp] [b]Array 18[/b] (Magic; 36 pp; PF: Alternate Power x 9) [45pp] [u][b]BE[/b][/u]: [b]Blast 11[/b] (Eldritch Blast; Extra: Affects Corporeal, PF: Accurate 1, Affect Insubstantial x 2) {36} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Comprehend 8 [/b](Animals 2, Codes 1, Languages 4, Spirits 1; Extra: Affects Others, Area/Burst) {32} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Damage 11[/b] (Eldritch Burst; Extra: Affects Corporeal, Area/Burst [General], Selective; Flaw:Action/Full; Power Feat: Affect Insubstantial 2) {35} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Super Senses 30 [/b](Detect Magic: Ranged, (Acute, Analytical, Accurate, Radius, Tracking (3), Extended (5)), Detect Dimensional: Ranged, (Acute, Analytical, Accurate, Radius, Tracking (3), Extended (5))) {30} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Dimensional Pocket 6[/b] (500,000 lbs; Extra: Continuous, PF: Progression x 6) {36} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]ESP 9[/b] (20,000 miles, Sight/Hearing; Extra: Duration/Sustained, Flaw: Standard Action; PF: Dimensional, Rapid x7, Subtle) {36} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Nullify Field 9[/b] (40 Feet) (All Powers; Extra: Area: General: Burst, Duration/Concentration; Flaws:Range: Touch; Drawbacks: Only Magical and Dimenionsional Descriptors -1) {35} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Stun 11[/b] (Extras: Affects Corporeal, Ranged; Flaws: Action/Full; PF: Accurate x 1, Affect Insubstantial x 2) {36} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Telekinesis 15[/b] (Str 75; PF: Accurate, Precise, Indirect, Affects Insubstantial x 2) {35} [u][b]AP[/b][/u]: [b]Teleport 10[/b] (200,000 miles; Extra: Accurate PF: Change Velocity, Easy, Progression x 4 [x20 mass] {36} [b]Super Movement 3[/b] (Dimensional 3) (PF: Alternate Power) [7 pp] [u][b]AP[/b][/u]:[b]Flight 3[/b] (50 MPH) [6pp] [b]Super Senses 3[/b] (Dimensional Awareness, Magical Awareness) [3 pp] [b]Regeneration 12[/b] (Bruised 1/round, Injured 1/round, Staggered 1/20 Minutes, Disabled 1/5 Hours, Resurrection 1/week (unless burned)) (PFs: Regrowth) [9 pp] [u][b]Drawbacks[/b][/u]: (+3pp) Vulnerable (moderate/uncommon: fire) (+3pp) [u][b]DC Block[/b][/u]: ATTACK --- RANGE --- SAVE --- TYPE Unarmed --- Melee --- DC15/Toughness (Staged) --- Bruise/Injury (Magic) Blast 11 --- 26/Toughness (Staged) --- Bruise/Injury Dimensional Pocket 6 --- Melee --- 16/Reflex --- Special Nullify (Dimensional) 8 --- Melee/Area Burst --- 18/Will --- Special Stun 11 --- Ranged --- 21/Will (Staged) --- Daze/Stun/Unconscious Telekinesis (Thrown Object) 15 --- 30/Toughness (Staged) --- Bruise/Injury [u][b]Costs[/b][/u]: Abilities (32) + Combat (24) + Saves (6) + Skills (15) + Feats (11) + Powers (103) - Drawbacks (+3) = 188/188 PP

"Mike," Alex began in an affectionately exasperated tone. She spread her hands out in front of her, palms up. Her fingers were fine boned and long, the slender hands pale with a redhead's blue-white skintone. Fishbelly white as Alex had said laughingly more than once. So white she glowed. Of course, now she really did glow. Wiggling her fingertips, she set the psionic barrier over her skin sparkling with movement, "I'm still glowy. I may always be glowy. I'm not going to lie about who I am or what I can do. Therapy is all about helping people come to terms with themselves and I can't do that if they don't trust me. Sure, I could hide my abilities but I think it would be wrong and, if it was revealed to my future patients, very damaging. It would undo all that work wondering if I just fixed them."

"Locally," she replied, answering his unasked question, "They have the best ties to Claremont and it'll be easiest to get everything straightened out. I have a lot I want to do, so that's not too surprising. I want to get psychiatric credentials, and do the therapist lisencing. I'm debating seeing if I can work with the government to help locate missing people." She shrugged, a little embarassed at her ramblings. "I'm hoping that being on file as it were won't cause problems. Being 'out' is probably going to be hard enough."

Alex flashed a thumbs up and gave everyone her usual gamine grin. "Okay, letsee if I can give everyone my best Scarab impression! Hmm, now letsee, if I was Alexander Rhoades, I'd start by... hiding from the rest of you!" With a little salute, Alex put her mind to bending the light around her and fuddling their senses to vanish. Apparently, Alex had decided to take the scenario to heart down to copying her mentor's fighting habits.

"I think you're right on becoming a cop. Plus, all too often, it isn't good guys versus bad just a lot of desperate people. I think your powers would be more help and less problematic in the fire department. There's a lot more uses for your powers in those situations. Especially if you took like an emt course as well. And that would come in useful for heroing too." Alex enthused brightly at him, obviously having put thought into it as well. She didn't like to press but it was actually rare that she didn't have an opinion. Far more often she was merely keeping her opinions to herself. Alex beamed at him, "Plus, then I could have a hunky fireman for my boyfriend. Added bonus."

Alex pulled her soda closer, her wide eyes intent on Mike's face. She pursed her lips at that comment but nodded her agreement. "I think that for the work you want to do its probably not neccessary and I don't think it would give you any more emotional growth and socialization than you've gotten from Claremont. Probably less." She paused to sip her soda, her gaze dropping down to the table as she thought for a few moments before asking in what seemed like a nonsequitor or at least a conversational leap althought it made sense to Alex, "So, cop or fireman?" The fact that he hadn't said either of those aloud seemed to escape Alex.

She laughed and ducked her head good naturedly under his hand. Alex haphazardly brushed a hand through her red curls to straighten them, "I'm off then, and I'm taking all my good advice with me." She laughed and with the beaming smile that flight always put on her face, launched herself skyward, leaving a glittering, zigzagging energy trail behind her.

"Phantom," The cloaked figure provided with a touch of impatience to her tone. "Although I am also known in some circles as the Chosen of Heshem. I guard the barriers between the worlds." Not for the first time, Phantom rather thought that sounded a good deal more glamorous than it actually was. Biting back a sigh at the presence of an audience that would no doubt slow down this morning's interview, Phantom sternly reminded herself that a good half of these were her friends and that none of them had the understanding of interdimensional politics that she did. "Because the choice to send an envoy was no doubt made with as much gravity and debate as the choice to withdraw over two thousand years ago." Phantom provided in a less combative tone as she provided part of the Angel's responses, "And it was no doubt influenced by many of those events. This is not the first time the Angeloi have aided Prime, just the first official delegation which, as they don't try to wriggle around the Pact like other Outsiders do, also takes no small amount of effort to be managed. To put it in mundane terms, they had to get a visa approved rather than sneak in when the border guard wasn't looking. The Angeloi don't do that. For which I have no small measure of appreciation, I might add." The last was directed at the angel himself.