Fox

Dragonfly paused, and then snorted, turning back to her work. "...not that simple," she added, largely to herself as she worked. "Many reasons. Good person, thrills, revenge. Redemption. Penance. Too many options...actions speak louder." Shaking her head, she reached out to dig around her shelves for a couple more parts. clear thoughts - task at hand more important - violin for later

"Mm. Don't know your histories. Will have to take your word for it. Reasons...." She paused, tilting her head and staring off at nothing for a moment. "Can't...apply my own experiences. Have my own reasons to do what I do. In general....mm. Trauma or obsession aren't required for hero work. Suspect....suspect you're just good people. Sounds silly. Probably true, though. You're skilled, got powers - chance, circumstance, don't know in your case - and had options. Pretending you had no powers would be difficult. Villainy isn't wise...and requires certain mindsets." She shrugged, glancing at Silhouette through her large, opaque-looking goggles. "Hero work lets you help good people. Or hurt bad people. Subtle difference...mm. Or just the thrill. Or any other reasons. Heroes seem...diverse. Many reasons. Most of them good. Why is less important than what you do."

Dragonfly glanced up, peering through her goggles at the scattered, half-functioning computers and laptops and keyboards around the warehouse. no - broken - broken - trapped - broken - absolutely not - personal files - not on the internet - would tear a hole in space - would tear a hole in the user - broken - mm She absently used a screwdriver to wave toward a spiral staircase in the back corner of the kitchen, which was tucked away under a second story that took up a third or so of the upper warehouse on this end. Half of it was walled off like a proper room - probably a bedroom - while the half the staircase led to was open to the rest of the building, just a sturdy metal railing keeping people from falling off the edge and down onto the workshop. "Up, near the couch. Should be turned on already. Touch my games and I test that," she pointed at a bulky hand-held device with a screen for the user but no apparent barrel or weaponry attached, "on you," now pointing the screwdriver at Creature. actually - would be interesting - useful field test - unknown effects on a shapeshifter - ethics - shame

Dragonfly's an awful liar with no family, and when she attends theater she actually attends theater - anything I added at the moment would be bland filler. Carry on!

Dragonfly didn't seem to have much to add to that, bent over the unfinished device and carefully screwing the half-finished circuitry into the base. family - probably nice - can't say - leave that advice up to Silhouette - wiser mind - better experience sounds like She started digging around in nearby shelves again, scowling as she came up with an assortment of cell phones that just wouldn't do. Too big, too small, too thick.... hiring would be a good cover - superhero-owned business? - mm - can't help there - gives me ideas though - record for later

....feh, you're right. Thank you. This is why I shouldn't try to build stunts when I'm tired. I also got the pp total at the end of the line wrong (though, Selective aside, it was still valid), because math is the longtime enemy of a tired brain. Rebuilding it as a retcon: Damage 7 (beamspam; Extras: Area [Cone, Targeted], Selective Attack, Flaws: Distracting, Feats: Precise) [15/16pp] Same effect. I could have just taken off the Selective from above, but sadly Dragonfly wouldn't. For my lack of attention, she'll be without her (substantial) dodge bonus until her next turn. That'll teach me to watch my feats, extras, and math a little better!

"Mm. Misunderstanding. My fault....communication mishap." Turning her goggle-obscured head to glance at her notes on a nearby dry-erase board, she muttered some numbers under her breath and turned her attention back down to the device that was starting to resemble a watch face. "Didn't doubt, so much as lacked information. Don't know your parents, don't know parents in general. Honestly do not know whether or not parents would accept admission of heroism. Would need more data." or more parents - poor chance She lit the little soldering iron again, getting back to work on the wiring and circuitry. "Study is a good idea. Keeps you from compounding your issues. If you must lie about how you spend your time, best to show that you did so responsibly when the lie is exposed. More practical, less damaging. May not turn out so bad in the end. Any parents who live here may be familiar with 'crazy'."

"I don't suppose we can talk about this," Gaian Knight offered. "This was an awfully public place to cause trouble. If you keep wrecking up the zoo it's not going to look so good for you when the police get here...." Even as he tried diplomacy, though, he reached out with one glowing hand and moved the earth. Nothing violent - no one had gotten hurt yet, that he knew of - but vine-like growths of stone tunneled out of the ground under Striker, reaching upward to seek out his limbs and head like a thing alive. "I'm pretty sure the police would look kindly on...y'know, surrender. If you'd just hold still." Not that I'm nearly that lucky. Well, it's worth a try, anyway...a guy can always hope.

Time to do stupid things because GK's too reasonable. Non-violent solution, woo! Ranged Attack Roll vs. Striker (Snare) (1d20 + 11=19) A little low, but not worth rerolling. If it hits, that's a DC21 Reflex save. Failure means Striker's entangled and anchored; failure by 5 or more means he's bound helpless. Bound helpless, just for fun, will have some sensory obscurement too why not: all senses but auditory blocked, and mouth (of course) left uncovered.

Cursing, Dragonfly quickly brought up her defenses - a twisted, distorted outline appeared about an inch around her profile, and a little light or two flickered on inside her gauntlets. force field - shield - support - suboptimal range calculating.... Putting a hand up to either side, reality folded inward around her...and she disappeared, reappearing in a similar and simultaneous fold about fifty feet from the action. Both gauntlets were glowing neon blue at the seams and glass as she turned a critical, combat-ready eye on the mob. She was thankful, this time, to have an operational visor; this was, she observed as her headgear helpfully painted little notes onto her HUD for each new calculation, quite a lot of targets to try to track by memory. even with perfect memory - focus - limiters off - charge complete Bringing her visibly distorted hands together, the young inventor formed a twisted rift that hurt to look at and unleashed a mass of graceful, arcing lance-like distortions at Dead Head's mosh pit, each glowing a subtle blue as they curved through space to their assigned target. wish I was better at quips - 'chew on this'?

Power stunt time! Mwahahahahaha. Dragonfly has a burning need...for justice. Spending an HP to get the following off the spacial array on her gauntlets: Damage 7 (beamspam; Extras: Area [Cone, Targeted], Feats: Precise, Selective) [14/14pp] Free action: Bring up her Force Field and prime her Shield. I really should have done this before combat started. Move action: Teleport up to, say, 50ft from the zombies. That area attack is a cone whose far end is 70ft wide and 35ft tall; her goal is to fit as many zombies and/or cultists as possible into it, especially the groups mobbing on Dead Head (he may be a walking corpse, but he's a tactically important ally!). Selective will keep him safe, Precise keeps her from eating a penalty on the attack. I have no idea if non-zombie, non-cultist enemies fit in that area...that's up to how you have the fight laid out, I guess! Standard action: Ranged Attack Roll vs. Targets in Area (Targeted Area Blast [cone], Master Plan) (1d20 + 8 + 3=20) That'll do. Yes, I could have made it a general area attack, but it wouldn't make sense for the effect she's pulling off. Danged fluff..... That's a DC22 Toughness save vs. damage for any baddie caught in the area with +10 defense or less.

Dragonfly shook her head, pulling her hair back and out of her way as she - very quickly, without turning around to expose her face - swapped her visor out for some shaded goggles. "Not a very good liar. Socially...maladapted. Poor social exposure, no formal schooling. Little experience with parents, for that matter. Can't really help you there. Still advise lying as little as possible, if possible. Avoid complications." She dug out a tool that was almost an undersized welder rather than a proper soldering iron, lighting it up and started a rapid series of little touches on the disassembled parts. "Should be proud of what you do, if you help people. Too little of it. Too many people who've spent time making the world a worse place. Don't know if parents would understand that."

Summary, for my benefit if no one else's ('cos I have an awful time keeping track of these things): 25 - Lupine - uninjured 22 - Sir Doctor Gorad Komrade Esquire - uninjured 18 - Gaian Knight - uninjured, 2HP 14 - Robin Cross - uninjured, 1HP 9 - Nick Cimitiere - uninjured, 2HP 5 - Striker - uninjured

Dragonfly was assembling tools, now - one of them quite literally, piecing it together from a mish-mash of other lesser parts. She'd kept half an ear on the ongoing conversation, half out of curiosity and half out of habitual paranoia when other people were in her warehouse. "Not sure I'd be a very good teacher," she admitted over her shoulder, wiping grease off some wire. "Social skills. Patience...mm. Little experience. Parents...." She paused, looking up and nothing and tilting her head. "...little experience there, too." Her hands went back to work. "Suppose I'd recommend keeping lying to as little as possible. Silhouette seems wise on these things. Worth listening to. Suspect it's good advice."

Side note - maybe should've been more clear. Or I'm being paranoid, heh. Anyway: I'm not snubbing your post, Dragonfly just really doesn't want to talk about money. She's decently well-off (for now) and wouldn't charge for a project this 'simple.' So, with her mighty powers of nonexistent social skills, she's figured that if she doesn't talk about it, maybe it'll get forgotten.

Dragonfly grumped, already digging around on her shelves for bits and parts. "Let me know if you want the better one some day. More reliable. Could probably build it a worthy battery...mm." fine - take the easy way - less fun - maybe make the other one for him anyway - later - too many projects Behind her back the computer brought Wolfguy back up onto the main screen - apparently she'd either found a digital copy or recorded the whole thing off the VCR before shutting it down. Most of the screens spread out around the warehouse, in fact, had lit up with the movie, complete with a scattering of speakers for something approaching surround-sound. If that had taken any effort or attention to set up it didn't show: Dragonfly was in full-on inventor mode, muttering to herself and dragging a marker board over by her workbench, sketching out circuit diagrams with one hand and laying parts out on the table with the other. cell phone - missing the speaker will have to do - pda camera memory center usb salvageable - battery battery too small even for entropy drive not enough vertical space lithium? should have something appropriate won't hold much charge when activated but should last to maintain flash memory - remember to provide cables sure he has a computer should ask probably have a spare one around here somewhere on his own for converting tape to digital

Initiative Roll (1d20 + 6=13) You fail me, dice. Ah well. Reminder: Master Plan bonus will kick in immediately for whomever wins initiative. +3 to your skill checks and attack rolls.

As a reminder, the Master Plan bonus will start at +3. I'll try to keep track of where it is as things go along. As a retcon (IC post edited), it'll go into effect the moment actual fighting starts.

"Mm," Dragonfly added, apparently vouching for Ironclad. She sent a silent text-only thank you to her armor-wearing friend, quickly finishing her view of the warehouse thanks to the 'borrowed' nightvision. interesting - really ought to put it on the visor - never enough time Finally satisfied, she made her way back to the group just in time to see Push start to pick the lock...and to foil his attempt to get Ironclad to stand off to the side. As the scarf-wearing B&E artist did his thing she quickly shared her observations with the class - most of it was clipped and vaguely-incomprehensible statistics and reaction-modeling mumbo-jumbo, but she caught herself in time and, sighing, pared it down to some slightly more useful data and predictions, along with the usual warning that the plan itself changed things; when it went into action it wouldn't be good for more than a few moments. "Hopefully enough to...mm. 'Turn the tide.'" ridiculous claim - tides typically very powerful, stubborn "But hopefully enough." Scowling, she pulled her hair back out of her face again. worth a fight just to be out of the rain

Dragonfly snorted. "Pay me? Pay me. For--" She rolled her eyes, waving a hand at the screen...which was already featuring a sort of virtual blueprint, already filling out with complex designs and schematics. After just a handful of minutes it held two designs, both of them small, wrist-mounted screens. She shrugged, leaning back against her workbench and gesturing. "Not rocket science, brain surgery. One," she pointed it out on the screen, rotating the design, "very simple. Could be programmed with a single short video clip to play...power source likely unstable. Unfortunate power concerns on a design that small. Wouldn't give it more than a day or two without charging. Would take maybe an hour to throw together." "Two," she pointed out the other, giving it the same treatment - it seemed a little more complex, containing a great deal of what looked like custom circuitry work. "Somewhat more involved...more flexible. Reads off a memory card. Better power source, higher drain...evens out. Would want to know how easy you want it to be to take off. Still easy, more time-intensive to build...maybe two, three days." She shrugged. "Custom circuits, many small soldering jobs. Not that long. Have a platform I've been building off and on for months. Wrist-mounted video player isn't much of a challenge."

"The scientist," Dragonfly scowled, "deserves to be in jail more than he does. But, good news: has no idea how this stuff was made. He doesn't, I mean." She gestured in the general direction of the flesh sculpture. She sighed, stretching a bit and rubbing the back of her neck. "...long day. Feels longer. More work to do, compile reports, deliver evidence...preferably avoid police when they get here. I...thank you? Both. We accomplished a lot, couldn't have done it without the whole group. If you ever need anything...let me know."

Information given was from chat, which sadly I don't have a quotation for because I forgot to copy it before I closed the window. So it goes.

'before' I get distracted - right - as opposed to distracting me with questions Dragonfly frowned a bit, finally glancing away from the window to reply. "The zom...Dead Head covered most of it. Simple warehouse. Ten, twenty people. One obvious leader. Fire pit. Two larger figures, probably bodyguar--mm." She'd turned back to the window as she recounted, and tilted her head. "Gone now. Curious." She pulled her hair back again, sighing. "'Arsenal' is not a toy. I do not play with it." much "Combat-oriented. Protection, offense, utility. Not that interesting. Surely others have better information to share. More enlightening, useful."

Dragonfly didn't really turn around from her task, though she did quietly reply. "Planning...analyzing. Reducing, running statistics, crun...never mind." She sighed, waving a hand, though she still didn't turn away from the window. "Finding ways to give us an advantage, if it goes bad. Which it does. Always. Need to put nightvision on my visor...would make things easier. Infravision helps." "Commlink, too," she observed, mostly to herself. "Can pick up radio waves, though. Will be able to listen. Possibly piggyback on someone else's comm if I'm close enough."

Assumptions check before I post, since you'll be the one using it (and possibly GMing its use?): A little video screen like that would either be a single pp (a video camera's just 2/5ths of a pp; cell phones or PDAs (which are capable of the job) are 1/5th a pp; I figure the remaining ep would be eaten by making it so small, leaving a 1pp invention that's basically Feature (plays video off memory cards). That's a design check she could make in 4.5 seconds, and a construction check she could make in about an hour, no chance of failure on either check. or It could be considered buying the Limit off his Shapeshift, however temporarily. That's something like 13pp, probably inside a Device for the discount - say 9 to 12pp. That's 2.7 to 7.2 minutes to design, 18 to 48 hours to build. Assuming, naturally, that they actually want her to build the thing.