KnightDisciple

Initiative Order Dragonfly (25): Uninjured, 5HP Empousa (25): Uninjured, -HP Arachne (25): Uninjured, -HP Hekatoncheire (21): Uninjured, -HP Bee-Keeper (13): Uninjured, 4HP Kobalos (6): Uninjured, -HP Fenris (5): Uninjured, 1HP Ironclad (4): Uninjured, 4HP So, Empousa's up first. She...well, neither group can see her yet. She's not blowing anything up or tearing anything down. We'll skip her. Arachne doesn't like that Dragonfly's not playing nice! Move Action: Manuever behind Dragonfly, but not right behind her (aka Move Action required to get into Melee distance) Standard Action: Mind Blast! 23 is just enough. DC 25 Toughness Save, Psionic Descriptor if that matters. Next up is Hekatoncheire. He's gonna follow orders! Move Action: Get up in Fenris's grill. Standard Action: ALL THE FISTS (aka Melee Attack) 26. That beats Fenris's Defense by 6, so +3 to his Damage, so...DC 23 Toughness Save. Fenris Toughness Save: 14. I would really rather not get Dazed and Bruised when this guy can keep piling it on. HP Reroll, and my minimum result is 24, so Saved. Bee-Keeper is up; Give me a moment to make IC GM post.

Since you're Surging, instead of awarding an HP, I'll just say you don't have to worry about Fatigued next round. Skips the middleman, as it were. Go ahead and narrate the Laser Cannon being wrecked. It won't blow up, though some of the VES's on it are going to implode (sound like a large firecracker going off), and sparks will fly. The assembly system itself is basically untouched.

Initiative Order Dragonfly (25): Uninjured, 5HP Empousa (25): Uninjured, -HP Arachne (25): Uninjured, -HP Hekatoncheire (21): Uninjured, -HP Bee-Keeper (13): Uninjured, 4HP Kobalos (6): Uninjured, -HP Fenris (5): Uninjured, 1HP Ironclad (4): Uninjured, 4HP I'll say Dragonfly is up!

Sorry if it was unclear. 1.)She ran down the person-ish sized hallway *opposite* you guys, *not* the tunnels to the airport. 2.)There are 3 major passageways (1 to airport if your sense of direction is right, which it is; 2 to...somewhere!), and you can see one or two other elevator or stairway doors. 3.)The warehouse is 200 yards wide and 300 yards long. You are at one end and Empousa is at the other, lengthwise. You're over to one side, not far from where the open "cargo lane" is, and only about 50 yards from the tunnel to the airport. 4.)You could. If you did that this turn as part of not chasing her, that of course helps award an HP. Signal might be fuzzy though! :twisted:

Right then! First, Everybody roll Initiative. I shall go ahead and do so. Empousa: 25 Kobalos: 6 Hekatoncheire: 21 Arachne: 25 Fenris: 5. WELP. Initiative Order Empousa (25): Uninjured, -HP Arachne (25): Uninjured, -HP Hekatoncheire (21): Uninjured, -HP --Bee-Keeper (??): Uninjured, ??HP --Dragonfly (??): Uninjured, ??HP --Ironclad (??): Uninjured, ??HP Kobalos (6): Uninjured, -HP Fenris (5): Uninjured, 1HP Please tell me your typical starting HP counts when you post your iniative. Then state any Complications you are invoking or have invoked (I think DF at least gets one), and I will (as applicable) award an HP. That way we know everyone's HP count. If Dragonfly chooses to spend a turn either trying to "talk down" Arachne, or alternatively standing there scanning the room, she gets an HP. Arachne will not enter combat proper until attacked. Until she is attacked, the construction process will continue. If Bee-Keeper or Ironclad take a turn to explore the warehouse, disable train car, or otherwise do something interesting besides just "chase the lady down the hall" (which you can do too!), they get an HP. If you choose to disable the train car, just write that you do, it's nothing special. I won't move things until we have rolls. :D

GM Post After Ironclad helped Bee-Keeper clear the last of the drones out of immediate sight, they found themselves riding down the elevator in peace. Other than the slightly worrisome rattling of the rather battered elevator car. Finally, it seemed to increase speed about the time they heard what sounded like the cables snapping....Only for them to land about 10 seconds later after picking up almost no extra speed. The car crumpled in a bit, but was essentially intact; the doors blew outward about halfway, easily shoved aside by their enhanced muscles of science! What they found beyond was....a somewhat larger warehouse area, with what looked like automated forklifts and other such drones moving about. Off to their right about 50 yards there was a large rectangular tunnel that, if they judged things right, led off to the airport. There was a large lane along that side of the warehouse that was completely free of obstruction; probably a cargo moving area. Half the tunnel seemed set up to allow regular truck or car traffic, one lane each way. The other half sported an extra-wide set of train tracks, with a large gleaming flatbed car sitting there prepared right now. The flatbed itself was empty, but a couple of loading drones stood on standby next to it. It seemed like Fenris's optimism was likely correct, at least for the moment. At the far end of the warehouse was a pair of tunnels; one clearly designed for cargo moving back and forth, and the other, smaller tunnel designed for those no more than twice the size of an average human to move back and forth through on foot. The former tunnel was blocked. The latter tunnel had a now-familiar purple-haired woman standing in front of it. Except that instead of the casual business wear she'd had when Ironclad had last seen her, she was now protected by thick purple and black armor plating, with only her head still exposed. She seemed to be waiting for them...Which might explain why she ran off down the hallway when she spotted the two armored heroes at the other end of the warehouse! ********************************************************************************************************** The stairway was empty and lifeless. The most challenging thing was when Fenris and Dragonfly had gone down about 3 stories (with no doors nearby) and encountered a section of the stairs that had seemingly vanished, perhaps retracted into the walls. The last 2 stories of stairway were just a vertical concrete box with a single person-sized door at the bottom. Fenris studied the situation for a moment before jumping toward the wall opposite his current position, vanishing for a split second before reappearing clinging to the wall, then vanishing again. He repeated the vanish-cling pattern a couple of times before dropping to the floor. Dragonfly herself could of course simply fly down. Fenris opened the door... To find a dark, metallic workshop awaiting them. The centerpiece was clearly an auto-assembly mechanism, and it was there that the SUV-sized cylinder was being assembled. Over to one side, waldos were gently lifting an oval that, after a moment, was identifiable as the lens design stolen from Dragonfly. They weren't too late. In front of them stood a glowing green and white figure, arms crossed behind her back, head tilted to one side as she studied them entering the room. "Your involvement was...anticipated, but not expected so soon. It is clear we will need to enhance our security protocols next time. Hekatoncheire, please stop them from interfering." From the shadows near the other side of the room stepped a large, menacing figure painted in dark colors. Its multiple arms slowly flexed their fists one by one. "Directive noted. Engaging." It began a slow advance toward the heroes...

Magnus managed not to sigh in frustration. "Perhaps the elevator is a subtle form of torture for invaders. I'll have to use some stairs." He was just about to look for some when Dragonfly came down into the lobby. He nodded at her curt words. "Okay, Bee-Keeper, Ironclad, stick together. Dragonfly and I are going to hit them from another spot. There's only four of us, but with what we've encountered so far, we may be able to box them in completely. Right now we have to assume we're here soon enough; the thefts weren't even an hour ago, so they may not be finished producing yet." With that, the two grey-clad heroes proceeded to one of the hidden stairwells Dragonfly had found on a map. They were stopped for a moment trying to figure out a way to enter, until finally Fenris shrugged. "You know what, forget it, I'm just going to buy this place anyways and get it thoroughly repaired." At which point he flattened his hand, charged the fingertip claws with electrical energy, and plunged them straight into what turned out to be a reinforced steel door. A door that sparked and melted, charring the (apparently not drywall) walls and tiled floor. After a moment of securing his handhold, the wolf-themed man planted his feet wide and spoke up. "Might want to back up a bit, Dragonfly. This door may pop off easier than I was anticipating." With a metallic groan from the door, he slowly but surely pulled it free from its hinges and locks, until suddenly it ripped free. He'd been anticipating such a change, though, and instead of getting smacked with the door, Fenris smoothly moved it in an arc that had it scraping the ceiling for a moment before slamming to the ground behind him as he released his grip. He took a moment to brush some of the dust from his shoulders before quipping in a surprisingly light-hearted tone. "I really hope they have more than just a giant awesome wine cellar down there, because boy would that be embarrassing. Anyways, if you would be so kind as to cover my six, milady." With that, he charged both PPCs, kept them pointed forward, and headed into the stairs.

"Understood. I'll let Fleur de Joie know what to expect. And you're right. about the people." He took off, moving slowly at first. "I'll try to work the press as much as I can; it sounds like Freedom Hall has at least somewhat calmed down, so I'll swing by there and do my typical thing. Let me know if you happen to catch wind of a good press opportunity I can hit up." He gave a tight smile as he picked up speed in his impromptu patrol. "And give me a shout if something goes down there at HAX. I move pretty quick, and you brainiacs are our best hope right now. No need to make you worry about fighting looters or opportunistic villains. Stay safe, Cyberknife." The line fell quiet; it was "inactive", wherein if Gina spoke up it'd relay the message, but she wouldn't be receiving constant feed (meaning she wouldn't have to put up with grunts and wind and so forth).

Fenris looked around at his now-empty lobby, dusting his gauntleted hands against each other. "I think all the civilians have left. People in this town learn to run fast when this sort of thing goes down, it appears. I'm also not spotting any more drones. Haven't spotted any units with increased capabilities, or super-human individuals." He stomped through the hallways of the smaller of the two office buildings, finding....nothing. Then Bee-Keeper reported he was going down an elevator after the source of the security drones! "Wait! Bee-Keeper, at least let Ironclad back you up! We don't know what's down there!" He growled as he realized it was pointless. With a flicker of thought, he had a private channel open with Dragonfly. "If possible we need to link up and head further down. We can't let him get too far ahead without backup. I haven't been in their system; did you find any routes below-ground, as I assume that's where the real target is?"

Gabriel absently reached over and gave the elevator button one firm press, to emphasize Emerson's efforts. He then gave the dutiful robot a pat on the head as the elevator finally opened, and he gave the gurney one last shove into the over-sized metal box. He held the door for Emerson before giving the robot first a jaunty salute, and then a thumbs-up. He turned and headed for the door, speaking as he walked. "Cybernknife. My apologies. I'm...I'm sorry." He paused at the door, feeling helpless, his shoulders slumping a bit. "I'm just a call away, okay? If anything goes down here and it's too hot for you and whoever else is here to handle, you call me, and you've got the Wrath of God on speed dial. Do you want me to wait and help subdue the one Fleur's bringing, or leave right this moment?" He went outside to await her answer, his back to the glass and his eyes on the streets.

Only a moment after Emerson came to the gurney, Gabriel stood straight and turned around. "Here little guy, let me help. You steer, I push." With that, he planted his feet and began pushing the robot-laden gurney toward the elevator, straining but managing it in no small part thanks to it being on wheels. As he moved the burden, he kept speaking with Gina. "I...I guess "I'm sorry" doesn't really do much, does it? Can't cover over whatever it is. Wish it could. Like helping people, especially if it doesn't involve knocking other people unconscious. It's refreshing. I...I can respect that you have reasons. I'll do my best today to not push you too far." His voice became a bit firmer, like someone encouraging a friend who was on the last leg of a marathon race. "But right now we're stretched thin. You're one of our best resources on robots in the city. No, in the world. Maybe you can't fly and shoot lasers, but your brain can figure out where they came from, how the work, and even more importantly, how you're going to go get them. I believe in you, Miss Americana. I believe you can do this. Not for yourself. For Steve. For the other victims. For this city. This planet. I know, with every fiber of my being, you have the courage to do what needs to be done today, and to face at least a tiny fraction of your fears. I believe in you. Believe in yourself."

GM Post It didn't take Ironclad overly long to finish clearing the upper half of her building, be it of fleeing civilians or of hostile robots. She had a few moments before trying to link up with the others, and there were a lot of computers around. If she took the time, she could probably poke around and discover at least some information. There was no further sign of the purple-haired woman that she could see, though. ****************************************************************************************************************** Dragonfly's section was also cleared out of both hostiles and civilians. If there was a telepath of some sort, they were either very good at hiding, or had moved somewhere else in the complex. Dragonfly massaged the computer systems enough that a fair bit of data started coming out. Nothing truly secretive; no plans for "Killer Laser Cannnons" or the like, but she did find more specifics on the building layout. It looked like the underground complex had only a few entrances. One elevator in each of the main part of the buildings led down, the cargo elevator in the above-ground warehouse could reach that space, and a couple of hidden stairwells also allowed entrance. It sounded like Bee-Keeper had discovered the cargo elevator at least. Hard to say what the others were finding.... ****************************************************************************************************************** The large metal box that passed for a cargo elevator began moving down slowly, oh so slowly. But it seemed sturdy and smooth; likely it was meant to transport materials that weren't always receptive to rapid movement up and down. Of course, that didn't seem to stop someone from cutting through the ceiling and floor. And by "someone" we mean "a couple more security drones sporting cutting torches and smaller laser weapons". Thankfully only 2 or 3 could really get in at a time, and perhaps double that were clinging to the top and bottom of the elevator car. But still, something to consider! And meanwhile, those same eyes watched from further up the elevator shaft...

Gabriel took a moment to respond to Fleur, while he totally held the gurney in place and did not in any way rest against it because he was tired. 'Bring to HAX. 2 potted trees out front. We'll figure out how to disable when it's here.' He tucked away the phone and spoke again into the commlink. "Okay, she said she's got to take care of some medical emergencies then she'll be here. She also said we should be prepared to put out a fire, or otherwise fireproof our capture method. I'm guessing some of these bots have blown up?" He paused, not moving from his spot for a moment. His eyes drifted toward the huge reception desk, but he didn't move. When he spoke again, his voice was quieter, and sounded concerned and sympathetic. "Are you okay, Miss A? I'm sure this day has been worse for you than me. You're not hurt or anything, are you? I'm not...I didn't do something to make you afraid of me, or not trust me, did I?" He sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Listen to that. It shouldn't be so easy for us to question our trust...Whoever did this, they want us messed up like this. Whatever help you need, to get Steve and the others back, you've got it from me. Whatever it takes." Reading between the lines, it seemed like he knew Gina was hiding under the desk, but for the moment wasn't going to explicitly call her out on it or go poking at her. But neither was he budging from his current spot.

Gabriel OVERTHROW in Freedom Hall!: 2 IC Posts Sanctuary: Panacea: 6 IC Posts These Chains On Me: 12 IC Posts Beenevolent Benediction: 8 IC Posts Even Angels Fall: 10 IC Posts Total: 38 Cobalt Templar Bumble Rumble: 9 IC Posts Counterfeit Medications: 9 IC Posts Total: 18 Fenris Chaos, Steel, and Wolves: 11 IC Posts Total: 11 GM Posts Chaos, Steel, and Wolves: 2 GM Post Total: 2 All GM Posts go to Fenris All totals as of 12:38 PM Jan 31st CST.

"Gotcha. Oof, this thing's heavy even on wheels." The (honestly sorta cute) robot with the long arms opened the door as Gabriel (now by himself as the orderly dashed back to the helicopter, which quickly lifted off) heaved the gurney up the ramp and through the door. He had a better go of it once inside, only resting once outside the elevator. "I don't know of any other-Wait, hang on." He kept the line open as he pulled out his secure cell phone. His eyes widened, then narrowed. He really, really wanted to hurt whoever was going about kidnapping friends new and old. "I've got Fleur de Joie saying she's got a live Bot, copying the Bee-Keeper, in one of her dimensional pockets. You want her to bring it here? I'm not sure how we'd take it down without frying it, though..." Just a sec, Fleur. Might have a place, but checking if they're ready and secure for it.

Big Bad Corbin January 15, 2013 (Day of Wrath) Cobalt Templar desperately wanted to punch something. Or someone. He wasn’t really super-picky. Between one of his best friends going crazy (because she was now a robot), another friend clearly going through emotional turmoil that manifested in him (somewhat rightly) being short with Corbin, the stress of worry about another Terminus invasion, and having a subway station fall on him, he was feeling a bit out of sorts. It wasn’t quite “stir-crazyâ€, but it was definitely “itching to do somethingâ€. Two things happened in quick succession. He got a semi-automated message over Freedom League channels that detailed the location of several “control boxes†that were sending signals to some of the other impersonator robots running around the city. And less than a minute later, he stumbled on a wide-band signal from the Star Squad requesting backup, reinforcements, or any sort of aid as they assaulted one of these “control boxesâ€. Apparently they were keeping the Foundry bots guarding it penned in, but due to the deployment of heavier combat units, they weren’t breaking through. It was a stalemate that could quickly turn ugly. CT nodded his head with resolve and keyed up Midnight on his earpiece. “Midnight. Cobalt Templar. Moving to support Star Squad taking out control box. Location is-†He rattled off the address he’d heard a moment ago on the radio. “Will report when done.†He switched to the Star Squad frequency. “Star Squad, this is Cobalt Templar. I am moving in to aid and support. I will be dropping from above. Can’t miss me. Please watch my back. Hold the line, gentlemen!†As he talked and accelerated through the air, his uniform almost unconsciously altered itself. His already-bulky form was further built up as “metal†plates formed and shifted around him, until finally he was clad in bulky, ornate armor that had small “booster jets†on the back of his shoulders and calves. One arm bore a bulky double-barreled firearm, the other grasped a glowing sword wreathed in ethereal flame. He ascended for a brief moment, before suddenly arcing into a vertical dive, aimed right between two of the smaller warbots. Before the metal warriors noticed him, he’d already crushed one under his feet and torn the other one in two with his sword. He looked directly at the fortified Control Box, raising his arms in the air and yelling. “Come face me, Foundry! Come at me, one at a time or all at once! I WILL BURN YOU TO ASH EITHER WAY!†With that, he sent a burst of fiery bullets into a small group of approaching combat drones, which were all promptly shredded, much of their center mass turning to metallic ash. Another group tried to flank him, and were also riddled with holes. A larger “anti-hero†unit slammed to the ground in front of him, raising a large energy cannon. Inside his helmet, Templar just smirked. In a blur he raced forward and cut the cannon in twain, before slicing the robot’s head from its shoulders. He leapt through the air to land on the back of another large unit, driving his sword in to open its back up before sending a burst from his arm cannon into its mechanisms. So it continued for several minutes, the Star Squad on site slowly tightening their cordon as Cobalt Templar tore through more and more robots, almost like a man possessed. Slowly the metal tide slackened, until finally it seemed it was over. By this point Templar was breathing a bit heavily, but was feeling a lot better and more clear-headed. He slung the sword-construct on his back, walking over to the line of Star Squad members, stopping a few feet away and snapping off a quick salute. His angular helmet folded away to reveal his domino-masked visage, a slight sheen of sweat present, while a huge grin split his face. “Appreciate the backup, guys! Sorry to maybe sorta steal your thunder, but I needed to blow off some steam. Anyways, I guess if you’ve got some demo guys, I can go in with you and help clear out any-†One of the armored men pointed behind CT even as the Squad dove for cover. “Look out!†Templar blinked and turned, his eyes widening as the helmet snapped back into place and the sword entered his hand again. He was airborne within 2 seconds of the warning. It was 1 second too late. A beam of energy as big around as the totally-not-a-half-giant hero was tall slammed him into, and then through, the pavement. He was pushed 3 feet down, entering a crude mix of gravel and dirt that was quickly turned to glass. The building-sized robot that had unfolded from around the now-smaller Control Tower impassively poured firepower down for a full 30 seconds. When it finished, the mine-crater was filled with smoke and ash, and for a moment the Star Squad sniper team couldn’t see Cobalt Templar at all. Finally the spotted him, crouched in the middle of the crater, his identity and dignity barely shrouded by the clouds surrounding him. His entire skin looked red and raw, like a whole-body sunburn. Slowly, blue energy trickled along his body from his right hand, finally leaving him in loose blue pants and a domino mask, standing defiant in the crater looking up at the large robot. “That stung. Now I’m mad.†Without a warning, he was suddenly embedded knee-deep and foot-first in the energy cannon. Even as it overloaded, he was on the opposite arm, punching his way through the machine’s forearm before it could deploy and energize the over-sized claws. Another blur of motion saw him gripping one of the machine’s 4 eyes and ripping it out, crushing it against another eye to leave it half-blind. The robot started to flail at itself, moves that CT calmly wove around. He planted himself high on the machine’s back, where it couldn’t reach him. Rearing back with both arms, he punched down, creating handholds. He then took a few leisurely moments to tear open the upper back of the robot, exposing three central support columns running down its back. He grasped the center one with both hands, and pulled. After moments of groaning metal and sparking wires, he managed to pry one of the giant robot’s spines loose, forming a stiff flail of metal and ceramics as big as a telephone pole. A flail he proceeded to use to beat the giant robot into a pile of scrap with. While most of the Star Squad had simply watched and tried not to be noticed, a few of the more veteran members who had seen stuff a lot crazier than this simply ran by the over-sized fight and planted charges on the Control Tower. Any drones that got in their way were taken out with extreme precision and prejudice. So it was that just as the last bits of the giant robot fell to the ground, the 6 members of the Star Squad casually walked up next to Cobalt Templar (who had landed to inspect his handiwork) With a nod, they began walking toward the other Star Squad members, as well as a couple of news crews that had gathered. The somewhat exhausted CT, who was still wearing nothing but what appeared to be martial arts pants and a domino mask and sporting what looked like a Grade A Bad Sunburn paid them no mind. When they reached a certain point, the large hero nodded to the senior Star Squad member next to him, who triggered the charges on the Tower. So it was that the 7 of them were filmed and photoed calmly walking toward the camera, an exploding, collapsing, burning Control Tower highlighting the pile of scrap that had once been a high-end Foundry Combat Mech. After a couple questions had been answered with the Squad, Templar dashed off once more into the sky, briefly activating his comm link to Midnight. “Control Tower neutralized. No human casualties. Swinging by my residence to get some new pants. Call me if you need me.†With that, he “hung up†and hurried on to his home. Where he had non-construct pants and clothing. He really didn’t want to flash someone if his concentration slipped.

Not long after Mara had gone back inside, the sound of a helicopter filtered over the surrounding buildings (and the sounds of chaos on the streets). Less than a minute later, a helicopter clearly marked as a medical transport came weaving in, making a couple circling passes to assess the ground. Finally it settled for an area in the parking lot that was empty and just large enough and started descending. Just as it started its descent, Gabriel flew into view, making a couple of circles of his own before landing a bit further out than the helicopter. He then trotted along to the just-opening rear door, where an orderly was grunting a bit as he dragged out a gurney with the fried Harrier-copy on it, wrapped in an extra-large body bag to avoid panic from random passerby (of which there were few). Gabriel lent a hand, and soon they were headed toward the front door. Gabriel tapped his commlink, calling up Miss Americana again. "Sorry for the wait, ma'am. Looks like you held the fort down fine, though. In case you missed it, we're bringing the package in now. Should be at the front door in a few moments, if someone could unlock it for us." Much of his calm had returned, and his accent was less noticeable now, though not entirely gone.

Blackstone Prison Blues January 15th, 2013 (Day of Wrath) Gabriel had just conferred with the one remaining guard in the hallway for a moment. Things were looking a bit bleak. Apparently Blackstone had enough power to lock the doors, at least. But the guards needed to know he was available, and he needed to contact some other heroes for help. He couldn’t do this alone, after all! So he closed his eyes and subtly shifted his powers, spreading his attention to the prison first, focusing on the staff. “Blackstone staff, this is the hero Gabriel. The threat to the reactor is neutralized. The reactor seemed damage but generally stable; I would recommend a repair team get there ASAP. I also request an infirmary team. We...have two bodies that need recovered. And one...well, it’s hard to describe, but you’ll need a couple guys to get it lifted. You’ll know it when you see it; set it aside so we can get it to some of the science-types on the outside. I’m going to request backup now.†His hearing shifted further, encompassing much of the city. But before he could talk, he became confused at the panic or confusion he was hearing, with a couple of voices sounding...angry? His control slipped, and suddenly he heard all the voices in Freedom City. And he nearly collapsed weeping as he heard his adopted home tearing itself apart. Cries of pain, of loss, of fear, rang from every corner. Shouts of anger, hatred, and raw violence echoed from the walls. Worst of all were the voices that suddenly stopped, cries that were silenced. He knew what all of it meant. His adopted home was in crisis, and there was absolutely nothing he could do. Not until he’d taken care of the hundreds of dangerous prisoners between him and the Outside, anyways. He stood, only a single tear falling against the stone floor. His spear was once more in hand as he strode to the stairs, not even looking back. He was at least on the bottom prison floor, so he knew his back was to comparatively safe space as he floated up the stairs like an avenging angel, his face expressionless and as hard as steel. He radiated an aura of utter calm and control, which somehow conveyed more menace than his typical booming speeches of condemnation. It took less than a minute for two thugs who looked to be jacked on super-steroids to charge him. Sonic blasts to their groins followed by blows to the back of the necks felled them with little trouble. The men who followed them were smaller, and simply felled like trees when sound slammed into them. For the next couple of minutes, “small time†thugs and dumb bruisers charged him, all receiving similar treatment. He never spent more than a few seconds on any target; he felt the race against the clock. Any guards he encountered were acknowledge and directed to unconscious thugs. Where clusters of guards were pinned by powered prisoners, Gabriel broke the siege to give them that critical chance for a breakout. Everywhere he went, rioting prisoners fell like wheat before a combine, and guards rushed in to restore order. By the time he was halfway up the prison, Gabriel had a sizable force of guards moving with him. They worked seamlessly together, the trials of the riot forging them into a smooth, coherent force. Gabriel was the metaphorical point of the spear, but the guards gave his presence weight. Had he been alone, it likely would have been a different story. Of course, there were times even the experienced and powerful hero had trouble. The speedster who had raced up from behind the group and knocked out two guards had been troublesome; it was only thanks to Gabriel quickly deafening him (thankfully the guards had ear protection) that the criminal mis-stepped and presented a target to be knocked out. The man who could negate superpowers, followed by a couple of what appeared to be high-end martial artists, had been a challenge. He’d had to knock the attackers out while absorbing a couple hits on his armor (a bit of a surprise to them, but if there was one thing Gabriel knew it was how to take his licks and keep going!). The power-negator was less sturdy still. He was in the middle of fighting a couple of super-acrobats bouncing all over the place when he took a call on his comlink; he slapped the receiver (that miraculously still worked), but had to concentrate on “surviving†for a few moments. Finally he spoke up for a few moments. "I would love to chat but-" Suddenly another prisoner jumped out of a hiding place, his eyes blazing with red energy. He’d sewed a bunch of X’s and T’s into his uniform, and was jabbering about “intersectionsâ€, “Terminusâ€, “Futureâ€, and things Gabriel couldn’t comprehend. His eye beams took a couple of small divots out of the surrounding rock of the prison, but just refracted harmlessly off of Gabriel’s breastplate. "-kinda busy. Give me five minutes tops, I'll call back. Have a prison to pacify." He slapped the comm unit again, not wanting to break it. Since his next move was to take a deep breath and unleash a scream worthy of a banshee. The two acrobats and Mr. Eyebeams were slammed against the far wall, falling unconscious almost immediately. Gabriel just rubbed his throat and continued up the stairs. It took him 7 minutes to make it to the top, where he was told that 90% of the prisoners were locked up or knocked out, and the rest were being contained by the guard force (who thankfully had just gotten reinforcements). Gabriel nodded and spoke quickly. “I need to go check something with the infirmary, and then I’ll be on my way.†With a whoosh of air, he was down the halls and at the infirmary, which, while not idle, was by no means overflowing. A few moments of talking got him a raised eyebrow and an empty bodybag. A few more moments had him slipping down the stairs into the reactor room. The guards were gone, though the rest of the mess remained; the “Terminator†that had impersonated Steve was also gone, scrapes on the floor showing where it had been dragged before being lifted onto some kind of cart. He’d seen it wrapped up and over on one side in the Infirmary. No one had found the “body†of Miss Americana, tucked away in a pose not unlike the ancient mummies. Gabriel was calm and efficient as he moved the much lighter gynoid form into the bag, zipping it up and carefully lifting it into his arms, still surprised at how light it was. With one last glance at the now-patched reactor, he disappeared in a burst of speed, making it to the front door in a few seconds, checking out with a few quick words that reassured the guard it was not a prisoner, but instead some evidence related to the events in the reactor room, and emphasizing that discretion was key. After that, he took to the air, his pace quickly slowing over the Bay. He needed to make a call...

Bee-Keeper: Ironclad: Dragonfly: Everyone: -The flow of drones will slowly trickle down; they likely have a large supply, but not a super-factory of them. -There are ways down, but they require checks to find. -Everyone's still kind of scattered; the two buildings are about a half-block apart, and the larger is three floors higher and a hundred or so feet extra on each side than the smaller building. Let me know if there's something specific you try to do with the computers or whatnot.

CT stopped before he said another word, Midnight's tone giving him a clear warning. His jaw snapped shut, and the flicker of irritation was replaced with clear concern, concern that Midnight could read. The message was clear: "I'm here to help however you need it.". He nodded as he was given his orders. He straightened up and snapped off a quick salute with a small smirk. "Roger that. Going on overwatch. Yell if you need something. I'll report if I run across something." With that, Cobalt Templar bent his knees slightly before rocketing into the air, leaving a short trail of fire, and more glassed earth beneath him. He was quickly higher than average sight could easily pick out as anything more than a flash of dark blue against the sky.

There was a brief sound of air rushing by almost impossibly fast, and then what sounded like a knock at a door. "Thanks for the directions. Found it without too much trouble. Oh, nice robot. Here you go Mr. Roboto. Um, everything should be in order and-ah, okay, door closed, gotcha." He gave a quick "hmmm" of thought. "Give me a minute, I'll get transport arranged for the Robo-Harrier. I'll be flying shotgun on it. It's a nasty day out there..." He briefly ended the call, but was back within 90 seconds. "There, I'm headed back to Blackstone, meeting the chopper in the air. We should be on-site within...less than 5 minutes. And you're welcome. About the whole "understanding and covering". I figure you have reasons for what you do. As for the prison, no big. The doors were locked, so it's not like they were all running out. So really all you did was lock them in there with me. Gonna be a lot of headaches in the morning. Needed the adrenaline and stress relief. Anyways, I'll be available via comm, but flying escort on the chopper. We'll be there soon. Yell if something goes pear-shaped." The line went inactive for the time being as Gabriel met the just-lifting-off chopper in the air and started their flight to HAX.

Fenris sighed and crossed his arms as panicked employees all but streamed out of the building around him. "Part of me feels like this wasn't the best approach. Oh well, no time to dawdle." He uncrossed his arms and started gently making his way through the press of humanity, finally making his way to the elevator banks. He pondered trying to call one when he heard an odd whine behind himself. He turned, and there was a single infiltrator, perhaps one of the receptionists, and a half-dozen blatantly robotic security drones with high-energy rifles. "Wow, and here I thought I would be sticking out the most as a robot wolf. Between that fold-away arm and those wacky guns, you guys could try out for a Star Trek movie!" The apparently hated Star Trek, because that was the moment a barrage of energy beams lanced toward the armored hero, who took most of them head-on, and dodged a couple. "Okay, that's all the excuse I needed, guys!" And with that, two drones were re-arranged into a scattering of parts on the floor as Fenris unleashed twin PPC blasts. The infiltrator turned and dashed off (probably to join reinforcements) as Fenris suddenly appeared between two more security drones and swiped their power cores out with his clawed hands. "This is going to be some great stress relief."

Feel free to make another round of robot-wrecking posts. No rolls needed yet. We'll get the next stage moving after that. Feel free to move about the buildings; you can give me some K: Tech, K: Business, Computers, and/or Notice rolls if you desire and I'll give you all something to ponder!

GM Post As Ironclad made short work of the meatbag-looking infiltrator units on the upper office floor, a couple of actual meatbag humans ran screaming down the hall, heading for the fire escape. Apparently the Foundry had hired at least a couple of real humans, presumably to keep local labor laws pacified or some such. Still, while the arm cannon blasts were annoying and scratched her paint, it was pretty clear they weren't really up to the task of taking down such an advanced enemy. Which made the purple-haired woman who stood there for several moments just staring as she approached all the more odd. "You are...earlier than anticipated." And then she was off like a rocket, down the hall and around a corner while another 4 infiltrator drones dove at Ironclad in a blatant delaying action. An action that worked, because there was no trace of the woman when Jessica finally caught up to where she'd gone off to... ********************************************************************************************************************************************* The small above-ground warehouse attached to the back of the larger "office building" was at least partially staffed with real people, though they seemed oddly calm in the face of danger. Brainwashing? Hard to tell. But the combat security drones were obviously a larger concern! There seemed to be a lot of them, but none of them were particularly "beefy", and the rifles they had were pretty basic energy weapons. They went down quickly as he blasted, but there seemed to be a large supply that wasn't draining just yet. The warehouse itself was filled with plastic-and-metal packing crates with a snappy company logo on them, the usual pieces of heavy machinery to move the crates, and a bunch of moving or broken robots. And up in a corner, well out of the Bee-Keeper's sight, a pair of eyes narrowed behind reflective lenses... ********************************************************************************************************************************************* Dragonfly's entrance didn't produce as much fanfare, and so only a couple of infiltrators and security drones showed up. But the scene quickly degraded as the scattering of human employees took up the cry of panic now lacing through both buildings. There were probably going to be at least a half-dozen calls to the police in the next few minutes, but for the time being it was just robots to deal with. In fact, she seemingly made short work of the security force nearby; her section of the building was emptier, and thus was now empty of anyone but her. And some busted robots. Her search of the floor would show nothing in particular, and the network was seemingly locked down already due to their rather noticeable presence. So tight security, but nothing too flashy besides the robots. Out of the corner of her eye, though, she might catch a wisp of green light, and a faint sense of the breeze in the back of her mind....

"Right, sorry. Just...kind of crashing from an adrenaline high. Glad to hear you're alive." He was silent for a few moments at her question, before answering with hints of both confusion and frustration. "He was a robot. Like...he was like one of those Terminators. From the movies. He had the armor. Then fleshy bits. And then, where that was...burned away...I saw some sort of metal endoskeleton or something. He-it-was just...fried. Done for. It's in the infirmary at Blackstone; there was no way I could carry it around too, and I figured them finding out it wasn't the real Harrier won't totally hurt our rep. There might still be questions, but not the same kind of questions at least. I told them to keep it ready to move; I figured you, or somebody tech-y, would want to poke at it. Things are calm enough you could have them take it somewhere, or get it, or someone else get it, and you'd be fine." He paused for a moment, then spoke again, a bit embarrassed. "What should I do with, uh, your robot?"