Gizmo

Travis' grunt was the hollow, brittle shell of a chuckle. "To the point. Good." Gesturing with his cane, the aged man of mystery led the group to a grandfather clock at the far end of the foyer. Opening the glass door that covered its face, he moved both the minute and second hands counterclockwise to point directly upward. With a click, the entire clock depressed into the floor slightly, and the section of the wall it was resting against slid away, revealing a dimly lit staircase. He was about to start downward when Trevor coughed lightly and cast a glance in Mark's direction, shrugging all but imperceptibly at his grandfather's cocked eyebrow. With a level look in the Lucas' direction, the elder Hunter intoned gravelly, "Welcome... to the Midnight Manor." Down the passageway, they enter a cavernous chamber, smooth, machined rock creating a cool sense of durability. The clock guarded door hissed shut behind them, followed by a trio of metallic irises. On the far side of the Manor sat row after row of matte black vehicles, some partially disassembled or covered by tarps, with further, rougher passageways leading further on. Closer by, an entire wall of old, tube style screens displayed every angle of the estate up above and several parts of the city at large. Trevor quickly moved past the others to man the brass and steel control panels, directing the cameras back and forth in search of immediate threats.

Jill looked about the area Stesha had taken them to, reflexive taking a few staggering steps backward as she placed one hand to her mouth. "Dios... it's all just..." Trailing off, she stood silently for a long, stunned moment before the green haired heroine directed her attention to the ailing trees. "Uh, yeah, alright. I guess I'll just, erm." Raising a softly glowing hand, she placed in gingerly on the tree's trunk, and closed her eyes in concentration.

Trevor didn't bother walking too far from Erin and the platform once Martha appeared; visits to the Lucas residence always has a surreal undertone which made the hair on the back of his neck stand up, to say nothing of the minute wisps of midnight mist. "Should keep moving," he suggested softly with a polite nod to Mark's mother. One prodigious leap fueled trip later, the group set down on the lawn of the Hunter Estate. Travis Hunter was already standing in the double doorway, black turtleneck and slacks hanging on a wizened form who's slight hunch couldn't entirely hide the powerful build he's once possessed. Plain cane supporting him in one hand, the other stroked his neatly trimmed goatee as he squinted out at the new arrivals from behind wire framed spectacles. "Get inside, then, you lot. Quickly." Leading the others into the mansion's large foyer, Trevor turned to his grandfather. "This is Mark, Jimmy's grandson, and his mother, Martha." He indicated the Lucases with a brief gesture. "And this..." "Erin." Travis interrupted, leveling a deadpan expression at the auburn haired girl. "Reputation proceeds you, young lady." He gave his protegee a sidelong glance that may have contained the slightest inkling of a smirk. "Does remind me of Donna."

The coltish teenager considered the question carefully, absently brushing her dyed bangs out of her eyes. "Well, there's lots of things to look for. Discolouration, awkward angles, uh... unusual pungent discharge?" Jill shrugged, not entirely sure what Stesha expected her to say. "I mean, it's easier with people, they'll generally say something like, 'ouch, I'm vomiting blood everywhere,' which gives you a place to start looking." Brow furrowing, she paused before adding. "Once I'm actually working, though... I guess there's a sort of feel to it?"

"Sure," Jack nodded agreeably at Gaian Knight's explanation, "it happens." His sister gave him a flat look. "What." He simply shrugged in reply. "We hang out with a cowboy from another dimension and a tiny magic pixie girl. It happens." Turning back to their new friend, he idly scratched the stubble on his exposed chin. "Well, duh, it's not going to dull or chip if you don't use it. Tch, look, you want to hold it like this, see?" Swinging to stand parallel to Gaian Knight, he adopted a loose fighting stance and mimed a grip on a hilt.

Midnight seemed to fade into the shadows even before the waves of inky mist began rolling off of his body, thickened by the damp of the river water. The first of the guards barely had time to register that the dimness of the cave was deepening before a brutal right hook brought him down. The darkness was complete and total as the robed figure sitting on the cave floor joined his peer in unconsciousness as a second dull thud sounded in the cloud.

Trevor shot Mark a grateful look as Erin weighed the best course of action. Confident as he was in his grandfather's ability to defend himself, even at his advanced age, after the incident with Death Head and the kidnappings, he knew he'd feel considerably better once the manor was secure; most of its systems had been installed decades ago. After his part in Rick Lucas' departure, he felt a certain obligation toward the isolated Martha as well. He was rattled enough by Erin's story to seriously doubt his own judgment, but both the rational and emotional sides of his reasoning wanted to keep her as far away from the thick of this particular chaos as possible.

Eh, that'll do for now. Initiative. (1d20+3=18) Oh, uh, okay then. Midnight II (again) Standard Action: Blessed Silver Knuckles Power Attack 5. (1d20+10=17) Is that enough to hit the sitting guard? Follow up question: the zombies are mindless and therefore immune to Intimidate, right?

Current Gadget arrangement is: Corrosion 3 (poisoned stiletto blades; Extra: Secondary Effect [Drain Toughness]; Flaw: Limited [Drains Living Targets Only]; Power Feat: Mighty) [10PP] Also, The Blank is currently making a DC 30 Intimidate check with Skill Mastery. Now, technically Thrash isn't a PC or Fearless, but I'm just mentioning it give an impression of how scary he just sorta is. Make of it what you will.

It was impossible to tell with the pristine white mask covering his face, but Thrash got the distinct impression that The Blank was smirking as him as he paused his unhurried saunter toward the building Hex has indicated to tuck the sonic cannon back into his jacket. "You're right, of course. What an absolute shame that is. What could I have been thinking?" Making a show of fussily straightening the cuffs of his jacket, the well dressed young man flicked his wrists casually, causing a pair of gleaming stiletto blades to pop out from each sleeve. "This is the part where you get out of my way, incidentally," he added airily, not making any overt move against Thrash as he finished seeing to his attire.

Midnight II Free Action: Fill the guard chamber with midnight mist. Move Action: Move to the standing guard using Auto Stealth 29 w/ Skill Mastery. Standard Action: Blessed Silver Knuckles Power Attack 5. (1d20+10=22) That's be DC 15 + 3 + 3 Strength + 2 Sneak Attack + 5 Power Attack = 28. Let me know how that goes.

Grinning, Jack punched Colt in the shoulder. "Man, you thought you even had to ask? Of course." Folding his arms, the swordsman leaned back against the wall and regarded his friend, head cocked slightly to the side and expression quietly thoughtful. "So, you're really serious about this, huh? It's not like a 'let's get engaged 'cause we're already living together anyway' sorta deal?"

Initiative time?

"Pfft, like you weren't just going to make a 'ball' joke," Ellie pursed her lips at Eli, unimpressed. She did raise one eyebrow when he pulled out his textbook however, and wandered over to look over his shoulder. "Wait, you're actually in college?" "Hrm? Uh, yeah, sure Bill," the elder sibling, indicating for the cowboy to lead the way and following him out into the hall, his expression a mix of mild concern and interest. "What's up?" Vince's avatar sniffed as he appeared on the television screen while the film was being cued. He could have simply streamed it there himself, but there were certain rituals to be observed. "I'll have you know the King of all Monsters performed with all the passion and swagger of a young Patrick Stewart."

"Huh, rock restraints. That's handy," Jill commented, lifting her left hand as a virulent green glow surrounded it. "I was just going to make him to sick to move without throwing up all over the place." "Because classy is how we roll," Jack chimed in cracking his neck in a relaxed manner as he moved to join them, te blazing rapier evaporating from his hand. Addressing Gaian Knight, he contined, "Don't sweat it. Somebody pulls something in the West End, they have to deal with us." He punctuated each word by tapping the captured criminal on the forehead. "So, what's the deal with the sword, if you don't use it?"

Jill raised her hands in front of her, shaking them back and forth in a mild panic. "What? No! No no no, I just- I snark. It's a thing. Deeply genetic." Inwardly the coltish girl groaned, reprimanding herself for not only offending her new acquaintance but coming across as a total super-newbie. "Seriously, this is like the longest conversation I've had with anyone here since the semester started." Leaning back in her seat, she gave Eve and awkward, sidelong glance. "So... sorry, this is probably super rude, but you only talk, y'know, telepathically?"

Jill's eyebrows shot up a bit reflexively. "Oh! Uh, sure. You can call me... Jill." She gave her teacher a chagrined shrug. "Sorry. The secret identity thing is sort of a big deal for my family and all, so." Stepping out into the larger wood, she turned slowly around, staring upward at the tops of the trees and trying to take it all in at once. "Woah. That's... a lot of plants, alright."

Blaise backflipped over the blash of lightning, leaping from the table even as the electric blue energy being began to turn. "Dunno, Geckie, I'm pretty sure he wants to fight us!" A fine, metallic cord shot forth from the bracer concealed in her jacket's sleeve, latching onto the edge of the hole where the cafe's door had been moments before, then immediately retracted, sending the acrobatic swordswoman into a graceful swing out of the building and up into the air outside, catching up with a stunned Network as he viewed the city around him. Landing on the top of a hovering billboard nearby, Blaise placed a thumb and finger in her mouth a whistled shrilly. "Hey, feeb, we're talkin' here!"

Alrighty then, she'll make another move action to get up there, then, and make a Sense Motive check. (1d20+15=34) What does that tell her about Network's intent?

One of Jill's eyes squinted while the opposite eyebrow raised in a look of bemusement. "Aaand you're talking in my head." The taller girl's cheeks coloured slightly as her expression turned chagrined. "Er, sorry. Still getting used to... stuff like that." Shaking the proffered hand, she offered Eve a wry smile. "It's like, I'm sitting in class and listening about the Civil War and then I'm all, 'oh hey, that guy is moving his pencil with his mind and that girl's head is on fire and she's totally cool with it'. Doo doo doop."

A long chord appeared in Trevor's slender neck as he resisted mightily the urge to clamp a hand over Mark's mouth. The situation was rapidly spiraling away from any chance for damage control, and they obviously needed to act quickly if his teammate's assessment was right. Stepping forward, he placed both hands on Erin's shoulders. "Listen to me. This isn't what happened on your world; these things were dead and buried." He looked intently into her eves, unblinking. "If it's even a fraction the same, we need you here, protecting the weaker students and talking us through this over the comlinks. You're in charge. Can you do that?"

Sprinting in the same direction Erin had leapt, Trevor managed to catch up as she and Mark came down in a fairly steep arc. At their friend's earnest words there was a moment of stunned silence, broken by the resounding sound of Trevor slapping his palm into his face with a broad grimace. "Dammit, Mark." He turned immediately to Erin without explaining his frustration. "You do not have to be in on this. It's probably just Medea or some other idiot; Mark and I can mop up."

Trevor responded by taking a running start before falling backward and sliding with surprising ease under the car, demonstrating both an acrobatic grace and a knack for disappearing abruptly from view. His secondary mutation allowed him to perceive the underside of the vehicle in sharp detail, and a series of metallic noises emerged as he intently examined its workings. "Good parts, definitely. Hmm? Oh, that's clever... This here is going to cost you some speed, and this, let's see... ah, over here, alright." Long, thin fingers reappeared along the car's bumper moments before Trevor hauled himself back into view, his legs still under the car as he addressed Liz solemnly. "This is good work."

Looking upward for a moment, Trevor tiled his head back down, covering his eyes with one hand and letting out an exasperated breath. "Dammit, Mark..." The probability controller's timing, as ever, remained extraordinary. Looking over to Erin, the lean young man shrugged apologetically. "You'd better catch him; he... wow, he really got himself pretty high up there this time. Listen, once we're done with whatever this is, if you need to..."

"Uh, hey," Jill greeted the petite, white haired girl with a minute wave from the elbow before sauntering into the room with her thumbs hooked into the belt loops of her faded jeans, the collection of overlapping bangles about her wrist clattering lightly as they settled. She wore a light grey fitted vest over and oversized dress shirt, the sleeves rolled up past her elbows. Sitting down heavily into the proffered seat she looked about the mostly empty room before turning back to her diminutive companion. "I'm Jill. Place is, ah, quieter than I was expecting."