Raveled

I was thinking at least Wealth 2. If we're all in, that's six and that's really enough for me.

It's a new month and Ironclad need some posts, so I propose a thread where some of Freedom's wealthier citizens throw a charity dinner for those affected by the Gorgon's recent attack. I tried to get a thread like this going before but it never got off the ground, and here's a great chance to try it again! Anyone up for this?

Brian watched Gwen's face as she talked about her family and he felt a pang in his heart. He knew how hard it was to live away from one's family; he almost couldn't bear to think about where his mother might be or what might have happened to her in the time since he'd seen her last. He could well imagine how hard it was for Gwen to live away from the people she loved. He reached over and squeezed her hand, comforting her wordlessly for a moment. As he cut into his food, he replied to comment about speaking a foriegn language. "I've never really tried to learn a different language," he admitted. "Hah, if I do well in biology this semester, feel like tutoring me in Spanish, instead? We can have sappy talks in front of everyone else and they'd never know!"

Brian was a little nervous about walking through a store so dedicated to... pink. It wasn't a place where he felt comfortable, but if it meant finding a nice gift for Gwen he'd endure it. As Etain took one wall, he examined another. There were dozens, maybe a hundred different designs of hair clips, most following a theme; eyes or butterflies or popular stars. He stopped before one line designed to look like flowers. He took a few down from the wall and walked over to where his classmate was still browsing and held them out for inspection. "What do you think of these," he asked. "They look like flowers and, well, Gwen is the one who put that greenhouse together."

Starlight slowly came back to her senses, taking in the scene quickly. She ducked back inside and set the TV down gently -- unnecessary perhaps, but she was feeling distinct guilt from what she had done on her rampage. She worked so hard to help people, but just a little slip up like this one and she had turned into the sort of monster she normally fought! The heroine squashed such thoughts. There wasn't time for her to wallow in self-pity, she needed to find the occupants of the apartment, and now speed really was of the essence! If the cops knew there was a Grue up on this floor, they wouldn't hesitate to call in heavier firepower and cordon off the building. She prowled through the devastated apartment, wincing each time she came upon another scene of destruction. "Hello," she called out, hoping for a response. "Is anyone in here?"

Brian looked through Gwen's photobook, soaking each one up. It was hard to tell whether was that interested in Gwen's life or if his own picture had reminded him of how much he missed his family. By the time he sat back in his own chair the server had reappeared with their food. "That's really amazing," he said, unfolding his napkin and spreading it on his lap. "I don't know anyone with a family that cool, Gwen. I really hope I can meet some of them some day."

Brian leaned over the table, studying the picture in Gwen's hand. "That's really cool," he said. He dug out his wallet and carefully extracted a folded photograph. It was a group shot; a younger and blonder Brian dressed in football pads and a jersey, in between two adults. The man on the left was gangling and pale, with a prominent Adam's apple and a shock of butter-yellow hair on his head; he was cheering and had his hands in the air, clearly excited. On the right was a lean woman with prominent African features, including skin so black it was almost blue. She had her arm around Brian and was smiling widely, her bright teeth a contrast against her skin. Her hair was similarly dark and pulled back into a braid. "My dad," Brian said unnecessarily, pointing at the figures, "and my mom. This was just after the J-V football team went to state. We, uh, lost, but this picture was taken at halftime, so." He waited for Gwen to hand the picture back and then carefully put it back into his wallet. He rubbed his chin for a moment before offering, "You could meet my dad, I guess. If you wanted to."

Myr's up!

Brian flew the pair of them to the restaurant in the West End, setting down a few blocks away so they could walk over normally. Headmaster Summers could be really insistent on keeping the use of powers on the down-low, and the young man didn't consider it a great sacrifice to walk a few blocks with her. Once inside Tia Marta's they were seated promptly -- Brian hadn't been lying about the reservations -- and he began to puzzle through the menu. Only to drop it and stare at Gwen rattle off a string of perfect Spanish without pause. When she turned to him, he had a bemused grin on his face that he quickly tried to hide with his menu. "Sorry, sorry. I just... I forget how well-traveled you are." He cleared his throat and addressed the server. "I'll have a tapa... ah, tapa aioli, with the chicken. And a coke to drink." He folded the menu and put it down, looking at Gwen across the table. "You really are full of surprises."

Brian felt Gwen's small hand slip into his and gripped it, perhaps a bit tighter than was strictly necessary. "It... it was kind of bad at times." His mind flashed through the last few weeks; all-night patrols, intensive training in his 'off-hours,' all culminating in a fight with a former alumnus that he'd been unconscious for half of. It wasn't an experience he wanted to relive anytime soon. He shook the gloomy feelings off and flashed a smile at Gwen. "That's in the past, though." He raised her hand and kissed her knuckles, then drew her closer and kissed her on the lips. "I promise, tonight is all about you."

Glowstar hung in the air for a moment, considering his next move. "Big ol' blast," he said, half to himself. "Right, okay. Here we go!" The young hero brought his hands close together, focusing his energies inward and summoning a sphere of red, crackling energies. "Wisp," he shouted over the rising sound, "I'm going to hit him and see if I can't disrupt that shield of his. Then you get in there and hit him, okay?" He matched words to action, tossing the ball of energy like a fastball and striking the bound Mega square in his back. The bound herald yelled in pain and frustration, and for a moment the energies pouring off of him flickered and faltered.

Brian felt a little safer as Etain steered him away from the high-end jewelry stores. It wasn't that he wasn't willing to spend that kind of money, it was simply that he wasn't sure if he had that kind of money. Her question forced him to think for a bit before he answered. "Usually, I think she wears outdoorsy clothes. Long pants, long shirts, and the like. I don't think I've ever seen her in a dress," he added. "She usually lets her hair go unbound, though, so she must be pretty proud of it. Right?" Female psychology was something Brian had no expertise in, and if Etain had some insight into how Gwen might think he wasn't going to turn it down.

Brian thought of a slow dance with Gwen, holding her close and swaying together was the music played... He blushed and glanced to the side as he took a couple of quick steps forward so he was abreast with her again. "No dancing, sorry. At least, none planned. But I've got some reservations at a restaurant, and then movie tickets. After that, I figured we'd head over to the Boardwalk." As dates went it was fairly conventional, but Brian wanted to play it safe tonight.

Starlight's successive Will saves, vs DC 20. (1d20+8=27, 1d20+8=23, 1d20+8=9, 1d20+8=14, 1d20+8=17) Hah. Seems like I didn't need quite that many.

Whelp. If Q's happy with it, then I guess we can go with the Irregulars Minus One. Everyone, get to working on those PL 6 versions.

So is Flora going to try and interact with Steelshanks? That's going to require some rolling.

So if we're all adding to Wisp's blow, that's 13 + 2 +2 = rank 17, or Toughness DC 32. Whew. Cosmicstar's Toughness save, vs DC 32. (1d20+15=19) He's... not out yet. Staggered + Dazed, but not done for. Alright everyone, post your actions in order.

Go ahead and post Arcturus 'porting over to the Necromancer, if that's your plan.

Starlight DONE BY AA :arrow: Removing a note on her weight; it was from a previous version with Density. :arrow: Boosting Wisdom by 2. :arrow: Boosting Will Save by 1. :arrow: Replacing Flight with Teleport. Dropping another PP into that power.

Glowstar DONE BY AA :arrow: Two pts of base Def. Refiguring flat-footed, etc. :arrow: Pretty much entirely rebuilding his Terminus Energy Array. Giving him some Glowy Power back.

We are officially out of combat. Feel free to make a post having your PC corral the surrendered/unconscious bad guys, or searching the crates, or whatever seems appropriate.

The battlesuited figure tried to stand strong in the face of the angel's words, but that facade didn't last long. With a mechanical growl, his jets gave out an extra burst of power. "You haven't seen the last of us," he promised. "You'll rue the day you crossed Section 13!" With that he blasted off into the sky, faster than the eye could follow. Back on the ground, the lone gunman left standing glanced around and tossed down his weapon, folding his hands on top of his head and waiting. Cobalt Templar's blow caught the pyrokinetic across the bridge of the nose, throwing her several feet away. When she didn't get up again, the arachnid hybrid stalked over and kicked her once, before jumping up to the top of a stack of crates. On the bridge, the Professor seemed to intuit the controls very quickly and brought the vessel to a quick halt; now he was searching for the button to lower the anchors. Glowstar disappeared into the wheelhouse for a moment before reappearing and zooming down to the deck, landing near Cobalt Templar. He handed the older Claremonter a clipboard with a long list of numbers and names on it; after a minute he realized it was a copy of the ship's manifest, and the long serial numbers must refer to the crates in some way. "I don't see anything here labeled 'experimental animal hybrids,'" Glowstar said. "I guess we'll still be doing this by hand." Even as the fight seemed to be ended, the heroes could hear sirens coming in from the mainland -- and could see boats with flashing lights angling in from the Centery Narrows.

Ironclad's gonna hit 'em, and him 'em hard! Ironclad's melee attack check w/ full All-Out Attack and full Power Attack, vs elephant's Def. DC 30 (1d20+10=11) Oh, you have got to be kidding me...

If we're going to make this an Irregulars thing, I'm going to hold off on it until Quinn's done with his hiatus.

Brian felt a weight in his chest lift when Gwen accepted his gift wholeheartedly. A gift from her surprised him, but not in a bad way. "It looks great, Gwen," he said, raising the necklace to his throat -- only to remember he was wearing a turtleneck. The young man stood there for a moment, turning the gift over in his hand, wondering what to do with it. He didn't want to stuff it in his pocket or leave it on his dresser and maybe forget it... Brian snapped his fingers and grinned. He pulled back his left sleeve and wrapped the necklace twice around his wrist, fixing it there. He put his arm around Gwen's shoulder as they walked down the stairs, his hand idly stroking down her back. He frowned and slowed for a step, checking out her back more carefully. "You... cut your hair," he said, sounding almost puzzled.