Raveled

Starlight glanced all around her, resisting the urge to grow to put herself on the same eye level as the invaders, but she suppressed it. Obviously these creatures felt threatened by her; she didn't want to give them any reason to wreck havoc on the city below. Instead she stood her ground before them, crossing her arms and staring down the aliens one by one. "Well. I'm here. What did you want to say to me, again?"

The fight seemed to be turning against the Mayombe. Cottonmouth was writhing in pain and Lady Mamba had taken a nasty boot to her kidney from the hooded cowl. Dahlia had seen her small army of cultists fall with almost contemptuous ease from the young telekinetic, and then the woman shrugged off her strongest mental attack. The young sorceress stepped back into the warehouse, fear flickering over her face. She raised her hands -- and fog raised with them, the air growing gray and thick around her. "You shall not capture me, hero," she spat. "I will rise again, and the Mayombe with me!" After a moment Dahlia was completely obscured from sight, and then the heroes could clearly hear the sound of retreating feet

Dahlia! ... Is going to flee like the scaredy cat she is. Dropping Obscure 3 on the doorway and vanishing into the building. Initiative 23 Glow -- Uninjured -- HPx3 22/+8 Crow -- Uninjured -- HPx2 22/+7 Lady Mamba -- Staggered + Dazed (Crow) -- GM 22/+2 El Heraldo -- Uninjured -- HPx4 10 Dhalia -- Uninjured -- GM 5 Cottonmouth -- Bruisex3, Dazed (Crow) -- GM Cottonmouth can't Interpose for Mamba if he's Dazed! Glow's up next. Scuffles, if you want to Glow could probably fly through the fog in two move actions.

"Very well, then. Ms. Hawthorne, prepare to take Synth on board the alien ship. I think you should be able to tell when it needs to happen." With that Starlight turned and walked out of the room. She quickly made her way out of the building entirely. She glanced up to where the alien ship seemed to fill the sky. Part of her was apprehensive about possibly putting herself in the hands of her enemies, but in truth she had done much more dangerous stunts before; and she knew that Synth would be there to help her in the background, so that made things easier. Starlight lifted off and flew towards the alien ship, spreading her arms so they could see that she wasn't attacking. She stopped before the nose of the vessel and stared it down. "Well," she said. "Here I am. What will you do now?"

Cottonmouth's Toughness save, vs DC 24. (1d20+6=23) Bruise x3 Cottonmouth's opposed Grapple check vs. 24. (1d20+20=29) And no go on the grapple.

Cottonmouth's Fort save, vs DC 16. (1d20+8=10) Dazed + Bruise. Dazed, so he can't Interpose! Lady Mamba's Toughness save, vs DC 27. (1d20+10=14) That would be Staggered + Dazed. Mamba's out of it, so El Heraldo will have the next action.

Ironclad ran her hands over the recumbent, shaking boy, her own sensorium probing him and bringing up all the information she could desire -- but she just didn't know what to make of it. She was so used to knowing everything about a situation, but here all her technical know-how was worthless. She could rebuild a servo motor in her head, but she couldn't decipher what was going on with this poor boy. Ironclad shook herself out of the self-indulgent funk. There was no time to feel sorry about herself, she had to save this boy! She considered picking him up, but usually with seizure victims that could lead to bad things. The only other option was the bring the medical personnel to the boy! She stood up and nodded to the teens, then to Voltage. "I'm going to get help. Stay here and... keep control of the situation, Voltage." With that she blasted into the sky, arcing towards the Freedom Medical Center.

"Using power generated from the portal to maintain the portal? How did you ever come up with a system so over-elaborate and dependent on everything to just so?" She shook her head and mentally called up her suit's schematics. "I suppose I could increase the matter-antimatter reaction. The event horizon is sustaining itself nicely in this environment, it shouldn't be a problem to increase power. I'd have to reroute the radiation shielding for extra control over the black hole, though, but I think Supercape would do fine for protecting us from any of the fallout." She paused and added, "Of course I'd need a ride home afterwards."

Ironclad actually has no ranks in Medicine, but with Jack of All Trades she can roll straight Int anyway. Ironclad's Medicine check. (1d20+5=10)

Ironclad cut through the sky, her circle over the city gradually pulling in on itself. She was nearing what she thought was the epicenter of the pulse when she noticed a black figure with silver or gray highlights on it. She zoomed in for a closer look and was surprised to recognize Voltage! She was about to open a line of communication with the other technopathic hero when her sensorium drew her attention to a knot of young people on the ground far below. They were standing there, watching the pair of heroes; then one screamed and fell to the ground, apparently in the grip of a seizure. Ironclad landed and gestured for the young people to stand back. "Please, give him some air. Do you know if this young man has a history of epilepsy?" Even as she talked she knelt down next to him; she didn't know much about medicine, but she knew some first aid and had to determine if it was better to treat him here and wait the fit out or risk taking him to a hospital.

"I believe myself and Revenant should be sufficient," Starlight averred. "I am not unable to disguise myself, and if the fake Penitent should attack I'm sure we can drive it off; it has never attacked a superheroic opponent yet, and we are not -- or will not -- be obvious in our use of powers, so we should be able to overwhelm it. In the meantime," she continued, "you two might want to check up on the families of the two dead victims. I do have wonder why he only chose to kill two of the victims, though."

"Let us start with some of the older cases," Starlight suggested. "I think I could learn something from Officer Edelstien. He was the first victim of our imposter to escape with his life; maybe he did something different or exploited some weakness." She looked around at the assembled superheroes. "I do not intend to approach him 'in-costume' as it were, but I would not turn down some assistance."

Mooks cannot make those saves even by rolling 20, so they are down. Crow is up.

Cottonmouth twisted his heavily-muscled body with disturbing, sinuous ease and evaded the colorfully-costumed hero's grab. "Wressstling with a sssnake is a bad idea," the bodyguard hissed. "You're bound to get bit!" The sharp head snapped forward and two large fangs, each as long as El Heraldo's thumb, punctured the meat of his arm. Cottonmouth retreated and circled around to be between Mamba and Crow again, but the hero of Puerto Rico could already feel the snake-man's poison moving through his veins. Dahlia, meanwhile, led the charge from the rear with the two remaining cultists. They drew wickedly curved daggers and looked to protect the priestess' flanks, while she sketched arcane patterns in the air. Her pupils shifted to yellowed slits as her gaze settled on Glow. "Beware, young hero," she hissed. "The power I throw at you is ten thousand years old. Tremble in terror at my feet, and I will at least grant you a swift death!"

The two upright cultists will Aid Dahlia, attempting to boost her Def. Cultists' Aid action, vs DC 10. (1d20+2=13, 1d20+2=19) Okay, so she gets a +4 Def for the next round. Dahlia herself will follow that up with Emotion Control (Despair) on Glow. That hits automatically, so I need a DC 17 Will save, please. Cottonmouth will take the opportunity to Stun El Heraldo with his venom. Cottonmouth's melee attack checks, vs El Heraldo's Def. DC 18 Fort. (1d20+12=15) So I need saves from Glow and El Heraldo. After that, Glow is (probably!) up again. Initiative 23 Glow -- Uninjured -- HPx3 22/+8 Crow -- Uninjured -- HPx2 22/+7 Lady Mamba -- Uninjured -- GM 22/+2 El Heraldo -- Uninjured -- HPx5 12 Cultist 1 -- Uninjured -- Minion 12 Cultist 2 -- Uninjured -- Minion 10 Dhalia -- Uninjured -- GM 5 Cottonmouth -- Bruisex1 -- GM Cottonmouth is still Interposing for Lady Mamba.

Player Name: Raveled Character Name: Critical Power Level: 8/10 (150/150 PP) Trade-Offs: +2 ATT/-2 DC Unspent Power Points: 0 Progress To Bronze Status: 0/30 In Brief: An alien experiment, roaming the wide cosmos in search of adventure and romance. Alternate Identity: Adam Frei, Adem, GELF D-52 Identity: Secret Birthplace: Space! Occupation: Adventurer Affiliations: None Family: Multiple other GELFs, all estranged Description: Age: 25 (DoB: September 1990) Gender: Male Ethnicity: Genetically Engineered Life Form Height: 5' 9" Weight: 170 lbs Eyes: Green/Changeable Hair: Green/Dirty blonde/Changeable Adem is a slim humanoid with green skin and short, dark fur all over his body, a thin, almost emaciated frame, large hands, and prehensile feet and tail. His face is round and he's usually smiling, and his green eyes always seem to be sparkling with a secret laugh. His suit is skintight, and darkly colored with stripes that compliment his fur color going up his limbs. Inlaid on the arms are the controls for the morphological induction grid, which can cloak him and his clothes in hard-light holograms, to let him blend into any situation. On one wrist he wears the silvery, angular form of a digi-vault, a useful tool that lets him carry his battlestaff wherever he is. On Earth, Adem usually moves around as Adam Frei, a slim man with pale skin, green eyes, and dirty blond hair left to grow long. His chin always seems to have a few days' stubble on it, enough to seem rugged without being unruly. He is always careful to wear clothes that blend into any social function he finds himself in while being more perfectly cut and tailored than anyone else's outfit. If at all possible, he goes barefoot. Power Descriptions: D-52 was designed to be an organism with enhanced luck. Happenstance goes in his direction, and he can apply subtle psychic pressure to force the odds to go against his enemies. In addition to that, all GELFs have enhanced physical abilities. Lastly, Critical is armed with an arsenal of tricks he's assembled, foremost among them is the Digi-vault that can summon his battlestaff from nowhere at all. History: Out in the wide, wide galaxy there are infinite tastes and almost anything is for sale. Lanistia has grown fat and wealthy from providing some of the highest-rated entertainment in the galaxy, but his wealth was always rooted in blood sport. Often decried in the Lor Republic but never actually banned, and widely popular in the Stellar Khanate before the rise of the Communion, Lanistia took people from all social levels, from all walks of life, and pitted them against each other and fearsome beasts and even exotic environments for the amusement and cheers of the crowds at home. A successful gladiator could make a lot of money, and gambling is no small part of it. Of course the house always has an edge, and Lanistia has his GELFs. While GELFs all start from the same genetic base, there's an intentional X-factor in their construction that leads each one to be subtly different. That, combined with careful management from Lanista's stable of bureaucrats, meant that any up-and-coming gladiator who refused to sign an (exploitative, lifelong) contract very quickly found themselves up against a fight that they could not win, and the house got another champion up their sleeve. Adem was born into this hard life as another one of Lanistia's vat-grown assassins. The young GELF was a disappointment at first, with no flashy gimmicks or obvious extraordinary abilities. What he did have was a natural charisma and an entertainer's sense of timing. As well, he proved able to handle threats far above his experience or apparent ability; he fought many nail-biter upsets that made Lanistia even richer. He found himself in the role of a favorite pet, feted but kept on a short leash. Adem chafed at this, like he chafed under any restriction, and he looked hard for a way out. In retrospect, it's not surprising that it came from a lucky break. Adem was being paraded about the Republic as part of Lanistia's push to other markets, visiting different worlds and speaking on behalf of Lanistia Enterprises (always with a handler in close proximity). He was at a party on a Lor space station; he picked up a cute Lor executive and the pair retired to her personal shuttle for some 'private talks.' He convinced her to undock the shuttle and set it orbiting the system's sun, and once she was asleep he piloted the spacecraft to a neutral spaceport. He made sure that the executive wasn't harmed and able to return to the station and LE's bureaucrats, but he wasn't about to go back to his old life of servitude. With a whole galaxy in front of him and a whole army of bounty hunters in his wake, Adem is always on the move. He never stays in one place long and always dives feet-first into the most exciting scene around. He's had quite a few exploits and it always on the look-out for the next. Personality & Motivation: Adem is a free-spirited individual, always focused on the moment and how he can wring maximum enjoyment from it rather than planning for the future. He's not malicious, he just prefers to enjoy what he has now rather than what he could have in the future. This includes flirting with just about any self-willed creature who enters his line of sight. Adem is a performer, and never happier then when he can show off his athleticism, his good looks, or his quick wit. If there is one thing Adem is truly passionate about, it is freedom and liberty. He has been a slave, been a commodity who only existed to fight and die at the pleasure of others; he cannot and will not sit by when those with power use it to crush or subdue others. Powers & Tactics: Adem is a performer and his fighting style shows it, with lots of flashy flips and glib jabs at his opponents. He'll normally pick the flashiest, or angriest, or simply the best-looking combatant around and engage them directly, with words as much as with his battlestaff. He usually doesn't hold a grudge in a fight, and is more than happy to end it on mutual, neutral terms. One thing that he doesn't do well, though, is running -- he claims that it "doesn't make a very good story for the hero to retreat!" Complications: Karmic Rubberband Adem has wildly varying luck. When things go right, they go very, very right, and when things go wrong it is spectacular. Wanted GELF Adem is a runaway slave from one of the richest men in the galaxy, and his genetics could grant preternatural luck to anyone. He always has to be on the lookout for people trying to capture him. Man on the Move Adam Frei has no fixed address, and relies upon the kindness of strangers to not be sleeping on the street. Not From This Planet Adem was born far, far away from Earth. Earth culture and Earth customs are strange to him; while he's assimilated well enough not to raise too much suspicion, he could still commit a faux pas. Green-skinned Alien Adem has an alien machine that helps disguise his non-human features, but if something happens to the disguise it would be very difficult for him to hide. Shiver Shiver Adem has no body fat; cold environments are even less pleasant for him than they would be other people. "I call it improvising!" Adem lives in the now, and that means he can go off a plan pretty easily. Abilities: 4 + 10 + 8 + 0 + 2 + 10 = 34 PP Strength: 14 (+2) Dexterity: 20 (+5) Constitution: 18 (+4) Intelligence: 10 (+0) Wisdom: 12 (+1) Charisma: 20 (+5) Combat: 8 + 8 = 16 PP Initiative: +5 Attack: +4 Melee, +4 Ranged, +10 Battler Array Grapple: +5/+8 Defense: +8 (+4 Base, +4 Dodge Focus), +2 Flat-Footed Knockback: -4 Saving Throws: 4 + 5 + 6 = 17 PP Toughness: +8 (+4 Con, +4 Defensive Roll) Fortitude: +8 (+4 Con, +4) Reflex: +10 (+5 Dex, +5) Will: +6 (+1 Wis, +6) Skills: 60 R = 15 PP Bluff 12 (+17) Diplomacy 10 (+15) Disguise 0 (+5/+20With Morph) Handle Animal 5 (+10) Medicine 5 (+5) Perform (Dance) 5 (+10) Notice 11 (+12) Sleight of Hand 12 (+15) Feats: 10 PP Ambidexterity Defensive Roll 2 Dodge Focus 4 Evasion Taunt Powers: 4 + 31 + 12 + 12 + 1 + 1 = 61 PP Additional Limb 3 (3; prehensile feet [2] & tail [1], Feat: Innate) [4 PP] Container (Genetic, Luck) (Born Lucky) [31 PP] Enhanced Skills 11 (Acrobatics 12 (+17), Escape Artist 12 (+17), Sense Motive 8 (+9), Stealth 12 (+17)) [11 PP] Enhanced Feats 2 (Acrobatic Bluff, Uncanny Dodge (Auditory)) [12 PP] Luck Control 2 (Give HP to others, force rerolls, Feats: Luck 2) (May the Odds...) [8 PP] Device 4 (20 PP, Easy to Lose) (Alien, Digital, Technology) (Battlestaff) [12 PP] Battler Array (12 PP, Feats: Accurate 3, Alternate Power 5) [20 PP] BE: Damage 4 (Extra: Autofire [6], Feats: Improved Critical, Mighty) (Multi-strike) [12/12] AP: Damage 4 (Extra: Area/Burst [Targeted], Feats: Improved Critical, Mighty) (Crowd Surfing) [12/12] AP: Damage 6 (Extra: Range/Ranged) (Blast) [12/12] AP: Damage 6 (Extra: Area/Cone [Targeted]) (Multi-blast) [12/12] AP: Dazzle 6 (Visual) (Eye Blast) [12/12] AP: Stun 6 (Head Strike) [12/12] Device 3 (15 PP, Hard to Lose) (Exploration Suit) [12 PP] Comprehend 3 (Understand & read all languages, speak and one language at a time) (Universal Translator) [6 PP] Dimensional Pocket 1 (100 lbs, Flaw: Feedback) (Digi-vault) [1 PP] Morph 3 (Any Humanoid, +15, Feats: Quick Change 2) (Morphological Induction Grid) [8 PP] Leap 1 (x2, move action) [1 PP] Speed 1 (10 MPH) [1 PP] Drawbacks: -3 = -3 PP Vulnerability (Cold, Moderate [DC x 0.5]) [-3 PP] DC Block ATTACK RANGE SAVE EFFECT Unarmed Touch DC 17 Toughness Damage (Physical) Multi-Strike Touch DC 21+Autofire Toughness (Staged) Damage (Physical) Crowd Surfing Touch (Burst, 20 ft radius) DC 21 Toughness (Staged) Damage (Physical) Blast Ranged DC 21 Toughness (Staged) Damage (Energy) Multi-blast Touch (Cone, 40 ft long) DC 21 Touhness (Staged) Damage (Energy) Eye Strike Ranged DC 16 Reflex/DC 16 Fortitude Blinded Head Strike Touch DC 16 Fortitude (Staged) Dazed/Stunned/Unconcious Totals: Abilities (34) + Combat (16) + Saving Throws (17) + Skills (15) + Feats (10) + Powers (61) - Drawbacks (3) = 150/150 Power Points

The heroes hit hard and fast. Glow's telekinetic wave knocked the cultists about like ninepins, but they were packed so tightly that most of the energy was expended on the front ranks. They fall back onto the ones behind them, and so forth until the entire group had tumbled. Dahlia, though, saw it coming and managed to step back from the wave, tsking as she stepped forward over fallen bodies. "Get up, you lazy louts!" She lashed out at the groaning, fallen cultists "Get on your feet and fight! Like you're supposed to!" One or two staggered to their feet under her verbal assault, but the majority were out of the fight. Crow's crackling ball of necromantic energy sped down the pier and homed in on Lady Mamba, but at the last moment Cottonmouth dove in front of the sphere, taking the hit himself. He cringed and twitched as several of his scales turned black and brittle, apparently the remnant of an attack by... an ice-wielding foe? A shadow-beast, maybe? In either case, Lady Mamba reacted almost as if it was an attack on her own person. "You two-bit rune-slinger," she screeched, raising her hands about her head. "How dare you cast magics at my baby!!" A torrent of water lifted itself from the bay and slammed into Crow, its sheer mass almost overwhelming the young hero.

And like the good son he is, Cottonmouth dives in there to take the hit! Cottonmouth's Fort save, vs DC 21. (1d20+8=20) Bruise. Lady Mamba doesn't like kids beating up on her kids! She'll do a Water Blast at Crow. Lady Mamba's ranged attack roll vs. Crow's Def. DC 25 Tou. (1d20+10=30) Owch. Let's go for the free Stunt, shall we? Trip 10 (Feat:Knockback 9, Improved Throw) So that's a DC 25 Tou save for Crow and a DC 20 Strength/Acrobatics check (pick the worst modifier) or be prone and thrown.

Let's say that it hits the cultists, but it's out of steam by the time it reaches Dahlia. Cultists' Toughness saves, vs DC 21. (1d20+2=13, 1d20+2=21, 1d20+2=13, 1d20+2=11, 1d20+2=10, 1d20+2=11, 1d20+2=5, 1d20+2=5, 1d20+2=3, 1d20+2=21) So that's all but two down. Nice going, Glow! Crow's up next.

... And now I'm imagining a lonely island somewhere where the natives build cargo cult effigies to the blond-hair demigod with the magic wand who walk around clad in a white robe and seduces the islander women...

Glowstar glanced at the gaggle of heroes. "Both, kind of," he said. "We kind of ran into a group of gangsters that, well, did what you do. Or used to, anyway. They injected themselves with... something." Brian had never very interested in science and how his hands grasped at the air, almost as if he was trying to pull images of the fight out of the ether. "Something that made them into shark-man hybrids. We managed to down them without much trouble, but if there's a new drug out there that turns people into sharks... well, there's a short list of folks with a history of that, you know?"

Across the city, Jessica Parker was sitting in on a conference being hosted at the Lab. The massive glass-faced laboratory, much likened to a 1960s-conception of a spacecraft in the media, was a natural meeting point for the brightest minds in the city and this week it was hosting talks centered around the next-generation of medical and biotechnology. It wasn't exactly the young genius' area of interest, but this presentation on artificial blood vessels touched on nanotech a great deal and that was something was was interested in. So she had snuck into the presentation and sat in the back, making notes, until a pulse of sound ripped through her head, causing her vision to distort briefly and made her feel like someone had just shoved an ice pick in her eye. She cried out and grabbed her face, causing the presentation to come to a screeching halt. After a moment the sensation passed and she looked up to saw everyone watching her. She quickly realized that in fact her abhuman brain was the only one that had picked up the disturbance. Jessica made her muttered excuses and fled the conference chamber. Half an hour later Ironclad was circling the sky over western Freedom. The young genius had tried to zero in on the signal, but it kept eluding her. She had found the best way to find it was to wait for the pulses, and try to determine which part of her head hurt the most afterwards. Navigating by headache hadn't left her in the best of moods, and so the part of her mind not dissecting the problem was coming up with new and inventive torments for whoever was behind it all.

Three cheers for the DokBoss! Hip hip!

Jock from hell! :argh:

Starlight Edited by AA :arrow: Starlight is putting 3 PP into Skills this month. 5 ranks of Perform (Singing), 5 ranks of Perform (Piano), 2 ranks of Concentration.