Electra

Fleur looked stunned for a moment, then put on a happy face for the benefit of tenants and guests alike. "Wow, what a wonderful surprise!" she exclaimed. "I'm sure we'll get something figured out by the time your baby comes, to make sure he or she has citizenship on the appropriate world and in the appropriate country. Lucy will help, she knows all about that sort of thing, and what she doesn't know, she can find out." The look she gave the attorney was slightly pleading; Fleur was obviously out of her depth when it came to navigating these tricky bureaucratic waters on behalf of people who weren't exactly easy to satisfy. But people who weren't comfortable with superheroes most certainly couldn't stay on Sanctuary for the long term.

Holly shrugged, studying both her babysitters with slightly narrowed eyes. "It's okay," she told them with a shrug. From the look of things, she had picked all the pineapples off her slice of pizza and eaten them first, and was now engaged in the same process with her ham. "Pizza in California was way better. There was like really good cheese, and the pineapple was fresh instead of from cans. You guys aren't going to start yelling at each other again, right?" she demanded of both equally. "You're all okay and stuff now?" The tone of her voice suggested that the answer had better be an unequivocal "yes."

Hologram commands Antibody 3 to attack Antibody 1, then will direct an Enhanced Mental Blow at the Eye in the Sky, that's a DC 27 Will Save.

"Teleporters are tough to beat," Paige agreed with a nod, "especially when they know the territory. I've worked with a few in the past, and when they're on their own turf, even Richard can't keep up. Dou you find it easier to jump to places you've been before, or do you have an esper power built in that lets you look ahead? I've known people who do it both ways." She put a scoop of salad onto Holly's plate, then nudged the bowl suggestively in Will's direction as well. "Teleportation powers probably make you a heck of a fielder in softball, even if they can't help you run the bases. I've heard tell that Nicholson is going to put on a superpowered field day sometime this summer for the whole community, you should come. It'll be fun, letting the kiddos see what they can do for fun with their powers when they grow up."

Wander let Monsoon have her moment of glory, figuring that any trouble the new heroine got herself into could be smoothed out later by her boyfriend or her embassy or some combination of the two. Erin was tired even though it wasn't very late, and she was ready to go home even though everything there was still weird and unsettled. But if she went home too early, it might make Trevor worried that there was still crime afoot, and that wasn't a worry he needed piled on top of everything else. So she sat on a waist-high retaining wall and sipped her coffee, occasionally exchanging a few words with one of the cops or technicians, even signing an autograph for one excited college-age fan who she assumed probably had just never met a superhero before. Finally Nina was finished with her report as well, and the cops hauled away the crooks and the van full of stolen loot and diabolical technology, leaving the heroines to the rest of their evening. "You good?" Wander asked neutrally.

"That's definitely not good," Gina agreed with a little gulp, looking out at the struggle. "Let me see if I can get hold of him, try and calm things down a little. You're definitely not a computer program, but I suspect he is, and I'm real good with computer programs." Withdrawing most of her attention from her Cyberknife avatar, she regrouped and sent herself through the laptop's wifi connection and her own power, reaching out for the malignant program in its robotic shell. When she found it, she began to wrap herself around it, tendril by tendril, just as it was wrapped around Terrifica, and insinuated herself inside it, murmuring, "go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep" as she attempted to shut down the program from the inside.

Erin fell back a couple of steps as they entered the trophy room, letting Trevor step forward alone into the large room filled with a lifetime's treasures. Trevor's trophies were in here as well, set along the near wall that was all she usually visited when she came in here. Sometimes she liked to see the rail gun Trevor had made or the chestplate she'd punched through, just to make sure that her own destiny hadn't been some kind of absurd dream. But most of the room was full of the original Midnight, dozens or maybe hundreds of pieces. Some of them really belonged in museums rather than locked away down here, but she wasn't about to suggest that, not right now at least. Even from yards away, her sensitive ears picked up the exchange between Trevor and the security system, and the thickening in his voice. She went to him then, standing behind him and putting a hand on his shoulder for a reassuring squeeze. "He wanted it all to be yours," she murmured. "He always planned ahead."

Wander Category 5 Midnight Elegy Fleur de Joie Southern Hospitality Interceptors: Mia The Ashes of This World Miss Americana Feel It In My Bones The Misery of Knowledge Hologram Incursion: Mind Over Matter Family Food Child Psi-Cology (as Holly Cline) Site Service Continuing Work on Guidebook Maintenance work to Downtown and North Freedom forums, archiving OOC threads, sorting, tagging and moving vignettes, locking old threads in all subforums

"You're not even a season-ender," Paige agreed derisively."You're the old villain who gets trotted out once just to finish them off once and for all, to make sure the audience is nice and hyped up for when sweeps start. God knows you couldn't carry a movie with a bucket. We tried to be nice, tried to take your age and senility into account, but good god, woman. You are so incredibly washed up, it's a miracle you aren't on TV at 3am with some Billy Mays wannabe shilling the soap he used. You will never, ever, ever be anybody important again." With that, she unleashed a blast of psychic power, not to control this time, but just to wound. Nobody else got to brandish knives at Paige Cline's husband and get away with it.

Miss Americana sat down in the nearest empty seat on the bridge, face and body immediately going slack while losing none of their nearly eerie perfection. At the same moment, Cyberknife raced through the systems of the Horizon, nothing but a blur of data as she gathered up speed and nerve before grabbing a phantom breath and launching herself into the void. Far, far, far, such a very long way, longer than she'd ever tried to go before. She'd known the theoretical limits of her own power already, from pinging satellites and spacecraft when her abilities had been new and endlessly fascinating, but this was another step entirely. It seemed to take forever, nanoseconds dragging like hours as she streamed through the vast emptiness of two hundred thousand miles of vacuum. She began to wonder if she was going to make it, if she could make it back, when suddenly she was in another system, an alien, hostile system, but at least something that was solid enough to hold onto. Cyberknife thought she could probably break into their system if she tried, but maybe it would be easier to brute force a solution. Grabbing the programming of the nearest nanite, she cracked it open in intangible hands and studied it, then deliberately altered it. No longer did it want to devour the Gorgon, instead its horrible hunger was for its brethren. She patched it back together and lifted it in cupped "hands" "Fly, be free," she told it, "and tell all your friends what you've learned. They'll love it."

"Great," Fleur muttered, staring at the portal with a sort of weary dismay. Her body was already aching, her mind and her powers tired from forcing plants into this most unnatural of environments. Without sunlight, she'd need food and sleep soon, neither of which seemed likely to be forthcoming. "This is such a bad idea. I miss beautifying parks." With a wave of her hand, she commanded her plants to swallow up their captives, securing them with the other Antibodies in her dimensional otherspace. She'd decide what to do with them later. She gathered up the now-unencumbered vines and runners around herself like a living carpet, then walked through the portal with as much dignity and bravery as she could muster while trying to duck at the same time.

"I think Dragonfly's got it taken care of," Stesha told Chris with equanimity, watching the engineer take off for the rooftops. "I think maybe we should go on and get back inside. People are going to start getting hungry soon, I'll help you finish setting out all the food you brought." She headed back into the school and paused for a moment where Ammy and Eden were attempting to color on adjacent pages of a coloring book. "Maamaaa!" Ammy whined, getting up and running over as soon as she caught sight of Stesha. "Eden keeps coloring on my page even when I tell her not to! It's all ruined!" She pointed a dramatic j'accuse finger towards her small playmate, who seemed entirely unbothered. "I'm sure she doesn't mean to ruin your coloring," Stesha soothed, lifting Ammy to her hip and kissing her on the forehead. "Remember, she's littler than you and she doesn't know how to play the way you and the kids at the creche do. You have to be very understanding." She chuckled at Ammy's continued mutinous look. "How about you stop coloring for awhile and you can help me with the food? I think Mr. Geckoman brought us some cookies..." That was enough to have the frown disappearing. "Cookies!" Ammy crowed, squirming to get down. "I'm so hungry!" As Ammy ran for the table, Stesha looked over to Gina. "Everything still going okay in here?"

Erin nodded and took Trevor's hand, looking out the window with him as Redbird turned the car towards home. It wasn't a long drive, but it was a very familiar one, wending through the spacious tree-lined boulevards of North Bay, most of the houses set so far back as to be barely visible, so that it was almost like driving through a walled park. The drive felt undeniably different today, though. Everything was different, a little off, as though they'd slipped through a dimensional barrier into an alternate universe that was incredibly close except for one glaring detail. She didn't know what to say that might helps, so she stayed quiet, and Redbird only spoke when they approached the garage, to ask if they wanted to go all the way in the car. "Yes, take us on down," Erin told her. The black car pulled into the garage and onto the lift concealed in the floor. As soon as it parked, the lift began to lower, dropping past the several garage levels where the Hunter car collection was stored, then deeper yet, into a dark tunnel that always made Erin feel uneasy and claustrophobic for the few moments before they touched down on the floor of the Midnight Manor. Redbird pulled forward and parked, letting the lift rise soundlessly back to the surface without them. "Turn on all the lights, would you?" Erin asked Redbird as she opened her door and got out of the car. "And get the displays going in the trophy room, please."

Wander cursed as the mole-slug lurched forward toward Roulette and Eclipse, jamming her bat into the thing's tough skin to keep her balance. There was nothing she could've done to stop the attack, the wretched thing was supposed to be turning on her, not them! "That's great, Redbird!" she told the motorcycle. "Fly up and use your lights and comms to show them where to hit." She grabbed hold of her radio, fumbling it for a moment with a hand slippery with all kinds of unpleasant things, then thumbed it on. "Hey guys, my motorcycle has figured out some weak points on that tower. She's gonna show you where they're at so you can hit them. Now get the hell out of here!"

Miss A will attempt to use her Transform power to turn the nanites "Devour the Gorgon and many other things as well" program to "devour other nanites and Communion technology." She rolls and fails, spends an HP, gets a 24 on the reroll.

"That's too dangerous!" Wander yelled back, shaking some of the mole-slug goo off her silver bat. "It eats people, and it's got like five mouths! We can't be sure of controlling it! All of you, get going and get that array blown up! I've got this!" As if to prove it, she leapt from the mole-slug's topmost head and skidded down the slick column of its back, driving her bat into one of its smaller heads with a series of punishing blows that were nearly too fast for the eye to follow. The creature shrieked again, thrashing about as ichor spewed from the damaged head, but Wander hung on with the skill of a trained acrobat. "I'll catch up with you!"

Wander is going to make another acrobatic bluff check against the mole slug as her move action, DC 27 to resist her skill mastery She is also going to attempt to beat holy hell out of the mole slug again, because it could use it. Full power attack. She gets a 20, so that's DC 32 plus autofire.

"We don't know enough about either side to draw informed conclusions," Fleur told Cerulean placatingly. "And unless we see lives actually in danger, getting involved with the politics and structure of another universe is very tricky business. Especially since we can't really stay to see things through and make sure any interference doesn't have consequences we weren't expecting." She turned to the visitors. "We won't help either of you against the others, we will try and help your people survive long enough to work out your own destinies. And we'll be careful," she assured Dragonfly. "Any sign of hostility from either side and we'll be gone. Now I need to line up a radiation suit, and one for Cerulean as well, and put together a supply kit. Cerulean, do you want to call the school and tell them what you're doing in case this takes a little while?" She gave Vigil and Artoo a polite smile, ignoring the continued bickering. "And the two of you, hungry, thirsty? In need of a recharge?" she asked.

Hologram The Hardest Job In The World “Oh Beth, they're precious! They both look just like you, too. And they're getting so big!” Paige passed the cell phone back to Beth Walton-Wright and picked up another box of cake mix. “Seeing any signs of walking yet?” “Crawling like mad,” Beth, better known as Lady Liberty, replied with a grin, tucking her phone full of baby pictures away. “No walking yet, but the doctor says it'll probably be early. They're both stronger than normal for their age, more alert, more perceptive. And I swear I saw Mary trying to fly, just for a second, when she fell off the couch last week.” She passed a carton of eggs to Paige, then hefted her own rolling pin and began to flatten a heroic-sized pile of cookie dough. “Those early powers, they'll surprise you!” Kayla put in from her spot by the oven, nodding with wisdom borne from hard experience. Kayla hadn't gone out as her alter-ego Frostflame much since her kids were born, but they'd both inherited her elemental resistance and a slightly alarming tendency to burst into flames. Paige had taken Holly over for a playgroup at their house earlier in the year and noticed with a bit of wonder how many things in a home could be fireproofed. “Though at least you had reason to suspect it was coming.” “It's awfully nice of you to help prep the bake sale tonight,” Paige told Beth, even as she measured milk and chocolate pudding mix into her cake. “The school needs more boosters.” “I want to get an early start,” Beth joked, “the girls' names have been on the enrollment list since the ink was dry on their birth certificates. I'd love to see them be able to start a preschool early-intervention program sometime soon. Besides, after the day I had with this song wave, I needed a sanity break.” “I'd just like to take the opportunity to remind everyone that any songs sung today are firmly in “let us never speak of this again” territory,” Kayla announced. “And that includes if we get stuck inside a Happy Baking Song montage.” Everyone paused for a moment, breath bated, but no music started. “Christina said we might be only a year or two away from preschool at the last board meeting,” Dipalesa chimed in, her face intent as she frosted an intricate gingerbread cookie. “That would be very good. Thuto and I have been talking about having another child once our residency is sorted, but if he'll be another infant strongman, I'd like a bit more help this time!” That sentiment drew understanding laughter from all the women. Paige knew Dipalesa mostly from volunteer afternoons at school, but she understood enough to know that the decision to leave South Africa, where they'd been established superheroes, hadn't been easy for her or her husband. As Lebona and Keromang, the one who sees and the one who was sent, they'd been doing important work, but an uncontrollably strong child who couldn't sleep for all the information pouring into his senses had sent them halfway around the world for help. “The earlier, the better,” Paige agreed. “I feel lucky that Holly didn't start really powering up till she was eight, but I wonder if it might not have been so traumatic if she'd already been getting training.” She poured the cake batter into a greased bundt mold, then paused, cocking her head. “Did anybody else hear something?” It was so faint, she couldn't really tell if it was something aloud or a vibration in her mind. Beth put down her cookie cutters and listened as well, but it was Dipalesa who nodded. “There is something in the south wing, something large and moving quickly. The alarm system is breached, but it's only beeping, I believe something is wrong with it.” “Who the hell would break in here?” Kayla demanded, yanking open the oven with a bit more force than necessary to remove a tray of brownies with her bare hands. Already her skin was coating with the rime of flame-retardant frost that kept her safe while she was working. “Some villains are just not very smart,” Paige said with a sigh, wiping her hands on a paper towel. “Bu whoever it is probably didn't expect anyone to be here tonight.” “Well,” said Beth, looking to the others. “shall we show them the error of their ways?” In moments, the foursome had stripped off gloves and aprons, exchanging them for gauntlets, morphic molecules, and a nimbus of fire and light. With Lady Liberty in the lead, they hurried down the corridor towards the school's science wing, where an increasingly audible commotion was taking place. They caught up to the intruder outside the chemistry supply closet, which he was attempting to rip from its reinforced hinges. He was an ugly one, Paige decided, more than seven feet tall, with a face as flat as old beer and a distinct aroma of body odor and desperation. He noticed them coming from yards away and turned to face them. “FLEE THE FURY OF THE PSYCHONAUT!” he roared at them. “I WILL HAVE WHAT I COME FOR AND YOU SHALL ESCAPE WITH YOUR PUNY LIVES!” Beth folded her arms and studied him. “Yeah, I don't think we can do that. We're big boosters of the school, you know. Our kids go here, or they will.” “WRETCHED WOMAN, SHUT YOUR MOUTH!” the Psychonaut roared, with breath that was truly fetid. “TO EVEN FIGHT YOU IS BENEATH ME, YOU REEK OF THE KITCHEN AND OF SERVITUDE.” “Better than what you reek of,” Kayla opined, waving a hand in front of her nose. “And we're nobody's servants.” “We are mothers,” Dipalesa agreed with a firm nod. “And you are in no way equipped to face our wrath.” Paige looked at her companions, met their gazes, and then suddenly the music was starting up, a fast guitar beat, perfect for a little violence. As the women spread out, they began to sing together. You crashed yourself into our school cause you've a troubled mind, You thought you'd scare us but instead you will just waste our time! We've battled lice, head colds, faced bullies, baths and poo, There's really nothing you can do, yeah! Long tongues of flame began to leap from Frostflame's hands, chasing the villain back from the door a few steps, even as Hologram's subtle pychic nudges began to unbalance him. He looked around uncertainly. “WHY ARE YOU SINGING?” We've watched you storm in here and act like a buffoon, Nothing says bake sale like some jumped-up supervillain goon. We're gonna stop you, cause we're here to defend, But maybe you'll buy some pies at the end? Lady Liberty drove in then with an uppercut to the Psychonaut's face, sending him sprawling backwards several steps. Keromang was suddenly there behind him, giving him another hard shove to unbalance him further, then she was back with the others, just in time for the chorus! If we're all heroes, then can you just call us super-mom? We'll bake some cookie bars, then kick your ass with perfect aplomb! The kids are tucked in snug and nothing will stop this fight, Mommy's night! Kayla and Paige both burst into laughter and fell out of the song for a few beats, but the pull of the music and the draw of the fight were insistent. The Psychonaut pushed himself back to his feet. The choral singing continued. We don't look strong but we're not weak, All of our kids are so unique, We take for granted having super-powered friends around! You swaggered in, full speed ahead, We're heroes here or you'd be dead, We'll beat you up to keep our children truly safe and sound! By now, Lady Liberty's relentless barrage had the Psychonaut almost pressed to the nearest exit door, looking much less confident than he had a few minutes ago. Frostfire began welding the lab door shut for safekeeping while the others helped along with the music. If we're all heroes, then can you just call us super-mom? We'll drive the carpool first, then go to work and defuse a bomb! We fight for justice, good, and knowing your left from your right, Mommy's night! If we're all heroes, then can you just call us super-mom? We'll save the universe, and we'll be there to chaperone prom! We hold the future and the future is super-bright, Mommy's night! One last punch, and the Psychonaut was through the door and on the school's pretty lawn, scrabbling to his feet before running away. Beth sighed. “I suppose I'd better go after him,” she finally admitted. “Can't have somebody like that running loose. We'll do this again sometime, right?” “Oh, absolutely,” Paige agreed. “But next time, way more videos.” (Music Source: Kryptonite, by Three Doors Down, from the album The Better Life, 2000)

"I'm not so sure about that," Fleur replied dubiously, "the last time we went through a portal into an enemy territory, everything ended up really weird. Even if we did all live to tell the tale." Nevertheless, she obiligingly collapsed her portal, the vines falling from their places and instead moving to snake around the remaining Antibodies in the room. A few of them were starting to wise up and got away, but within a few seconds she had eight neat packages of captured antibody waiting to be dealt with. "If we go, are we gonna be able to come back easily? Or at all?"

Miss A is going to attempt to datalink Bad Joseph. She rolls a 24.

Paige is gonna try the enhanced mental blast this time on Silver Scream, see if she can get past that nasty will save of hers! Perception range, DC 27 Will Save.

Stesha followed her within a couple of minutes, a sleepy Amaryllis settled comfortably on her hip and a good tip on the table. She pulled cash from a pretty floral-patterned purse to settle the bill, then collected her bag of bread. "Everything was delicious, your operation here is really top-notch," she told Maybelle sincerely. "I hope you get the reputation you deserve, except then it might be so busy I can't get a seat for dinner anymore." She laughed. "Guess that's just a risk I'll have to live with. But please do give me a call if there's ever anything I can help you out with. I know how it is being new to town."

"Oh, all kinds of fun games," Paige assured Emma, making sure her best TV smile was still in place. "I know they have recess twice a day, and there's playground equipment with swings, a slide, and a climbing tower. You'll also get to have art time, music time, and computer time, plus you'll learn all kinds of exciting new things. You'll start learning to add and subtract numbers, and how to read stories from books!" She took a breath. "It sounds like Bad Emma might be a little bit scary. Does Bad Emma ever make you do things you don't want to do? Things you're afraid might get you into trouble?"

Fleur is very unsure about this whole going through the portal business, but she will back Velocity's play. She's going to drop her plant portal, switch her array, and hit as many of the antibodies as she can with her shapeable area snare.