KnightDisciple

This should be fun. 14. :?

Gabriel is a native-born Irishman dating a native-born Russian woman who works for UNISON at the Freedom League. This seems right up his alley, including the "delicate situation" part.

"I'm a one-man-army with Foosball, but I'm only okay with pool." Corbin looked over toward Erin with a raised eyebrow. He'd almost moved to demonstrate, but decided he was comfortable where he was for the moment. If his friend asked to play, he supposed he would. "I was better with Foosball at one point, but my telekinesis isn't quite as good as it was before the plane incident."

DC 20 Reflex, then DC 20/15 Reflex, right. Save 1 is 13 But Save 2 is 21 Barely made it!

Cobalt Templar In Another Life: 3 IC Posts A Briefing With Friends: 10 IC Posts Vault Construction 101: 1 IC Post Mile in My Shoes: 2 IC Posts Wellness Wishes: 18 IC Posts Total: 34 IC Posts Gabriel Sanctuary: Panacea: 7 IC Posts The Devil Shovels Coal: 3 IC Posts The Two Sides of a Coin: 6 IC Posts Street Sharks: 1 IC Post Total: 17 IC Posts

Right then, let's see... 30 on the dot. He's unhurt, Nick is up. EDIT: Scratch all of that, he's got a Bruise. Initiative Roster: 1.)Midnight (23): Unhurt, 4 HP 2.)Nick Cimitiere (14): 2 Bruise, 4 HP 3.)Orange Ring Bearer (11): Bruised 1, Staggered, Shaken, and Dazed, 0 HP 4.)Cobalt Templar (9): 1 Bruise, 4 HP

Corbin watched carefully from the water, trying to remain as unnoticeable as possible. His eyes and ears just poked up, and the rest of him was hidden. He raised an eyebrow at the scene, starting to put together the fact that Argo's "locked-in" powers had apparently been jumbled around. Then the started really brawling, yelling about what they thought the Bauble was. Then Trap Door lost his grip and the Bauble went flying! Cobalt Templar's eyes widened, and he rose up out of the ground, shifting into invisibility, reaching out with what telekinesis this form had to try and grab the Bauble. At the same time, he sent a mental shout over the telepathic link to the team. --They're fighting, and they just dropped the Bauble! I'm going for it!--

Okay, basically, Corbin will take the actions necessary to move over to the Bauble and...I guess grab it with his TK, and start moving back to the water. He's going to stay phased into the ground as much as possible. EDIT: Let me know what, if any rolls need to happen. I'll add them to the thread and edit the IC as necessary. EDIT2: Also, he's totes invisible. Because ghost powers. :o

<No, you didn't "ruin everything". It's just...> He collects his thoughts for the moment before continuing. <It was awkward and unexpected. And...I'm not sure I'm truthfully ready to answer the question. But don't beat yourself up too much; at least somewhat, it's another one of our weird, human, quirky traditions/cultural things. The important part is we're not going to let the distance keep us apart in the ways that matter. Let's just focus on that. They might think you're crazy, but they probably think I'm crazy, too. After all, I could be a super-successful businessman, but I'm going to make a career out of digging up vases in the dirt. Let's just move forward. If they bring it up, we don't lie to them, but if we want to just keep on enjoying a day off, let's do that.> He leaned over to kiss her cheek. <Even if you are a crazy alien with no idea about anything, you're still my crazy alien girlfriend. Just...> He gave a melodramatic roll of his eyes. <Let's not tell either of our parents. I can already hear the "I Told You So" from here.> With that, he walked with her toward the rec room, carrying whatever she hadn't grabbed, having casually placed the various items on a tray of solid blue flames.

Corbin nods slowly. "No, I think I see what you're saying. Sounds like you want, and could use, a break from focusing quite as much on 'hero stuff', and this trip will let you do something productive, get a vacation from regular work, and get away from the hero show for a bit. Sounds like it will be good for you. So long as you don't rush your, ah, self-repair because you wanna get on the road." The last bit was said mostly in jest, but there was a bit of seriousness to his tone; Corbin clearly figured Jessica might push herself too far too soon if she wasn't occasionally given a gentle reminder.

"You can always poke holes in their strategies, Trevor. Just in case you ever feel like becoming a football coach in a couple decades." Corbin gave the somber young man a big, teasing grin as he gave Quo-Dis a light (for them) squeeze before gently extricating himself and pulling out his cell phone. "I'll call now. One cheese and one pepporoni okay with you guys? And yeah, we've got plenty of soda and chips in the kitchen." He paused before dialing, waiting for any objections. If there were none, he'd make a quick call to the pizza place before hanging up with a nod. "They said about 40 minutes. Anyways, Erin's right; there's a preseason game with the Heroes and the Jets. It starts in..." He poked at his smartphone for a moment. "15 minutes. Want to go pick out your spots on the couch now? Or we could poke about the rec room for a bit."

"I'm pretty trusting, and willing to help, but I think for tonight we'll stick with my code name. I have people I'd prefer stay out of harm's way." Gabriel rose, easily visible even in the wet gloom that was hanging over the city. He started to accelerate, but made sure to never go faster than Bram could keep up with. He stayed close enough to make conversation possible, though they had to nearly yell to be heard. They went high enough Bram wouldn't immediately be able to tell their street location, but it was clear they moved into Southside, not too far from Freedom College by the end. They landed on a small balcony, Gabriel quickly opening the door and hurrying in. He gestured for Bram to follow. "Hang there a moment, I'll get you a couple towels so you don't soak everything." He ducked into another room, and was out in less than a minute, strangely dry. He tossed a couple of towels to Bram, dropping a pillow and blanket at the couch. "So. Um. You can crash here tonight, and I'm okay if you swing by once in a while in the future. But like I said, can't afford to get the landlord mad at me." He gave a helpless shrug. "But I'll see if I can't maybe shake some trees, enough that we can get you a place to sleep that's your own."

"Nothing wrong with friends making you work your brain. Good to keep you on your toes. If you're getting restless about doing things, start making a list. Write them down. Plan them out. Productive, keeps you busy." He blinked at her statement and almost non-sequitur question. "I...guess? I mean, it's not my number one wish, but it would be fun. Assuming we're talking "drive around and see the sights" instead of "fly from coast to coast ASAP". I guess I wanted to travel to the Med area a bit more...Why do you ask?"

"I can see how it would be an unpleasant surprise. It's...a difficult thing to ponder, no matter how you look at it." He nodded as she opined about the lives of heroes. "Yes. They do." His words had the weight of experience behind them, but he didn't seem ready to elaborate. "Stop them? Yes. It'd be hard, but I could do it. Kill them? I...I don't know. I'm afraid to contemplate a situation where I would have to use lethal force against a former friend. But if I did, I'm not sure I could face myself, let along their family. I'd probably have to make enough paintings to build a house with to clear my head. I don't know if I could bring myself to ring-sling again if that happened."

"Hm. If you ever need help with that, let me know. I'll give you a couple ways to contact me, though if nothing else, you can talk to the Freedom League. I'll vouch for you being a valid contact." He glanced around the street for a moment. "Can you fly, or teleport, or jump really high, or anything along those lines? I'd rather not just walk up to my apartment building like this. Too many questions. As for help, well, maybe I can see about pulling in some favors. Getting you...something. Not an army, but a roof to sleep under at least, you know? I can offer you my couch for the night or two, but I don't have a spare bedroom, and the landlord would probably not like me renting out the couch long-term."

Corbin sighed, rolling his answers around in his head for a moment before responding. "Jessica...I have to be honest. Most soldiers don't go looking for "fair fights". Fair fights are for honor duels and sports competitions. Whatever our opinions on the idea of war in general, it's commonly accepted that you bring whatever advantages you can to bear. Would it have been better if he'd killed them with a regular rifle? War is an ugly thing. Men, and women, do ugly things in war. To paraphrase one General Patton, though, a soldier's job in war is not to die for his country, but to make the other side die for theirs." He closed his eyes for a moment, took a calming breath, then opened them to look Jessica directly in the eye as he answered her question. "I've had to answer that question once already. A bit over a year ago, amongst all the other things I had to deal with, I faced another version of Quo-Dis. One corrupted by the Terminus so thoroughly that she wasn't even properly alive; a sort of Terminus zombie, I guess. You know what I did?" He gives a bitter laugh. "I devolved into a gibbering, crying wreck of a human being, trying to run away while my friends fought for their lives, my very powers crumbling around my body as fear took hold of my heart. I managed to get myself together enough to heal a friend, but it was a near thing. Ever since then...I've had some nightmares. But I've also forced myself to consider the idea of fighting my friends, or some version of them. There are plenty of worlds out there where none of us are very nice..." His mind strayed to Inquisitor Hughes, and the terrible things he likely did in the terrible place he came from. "I think I could. But...what do you mean by "all the way"?"

I'll let Wail go first before me.

Corbin was a bit shocked by what he said, though certainly the time portals had been erratic in how they ended up working. "I...I can't say that I have. I've learned a thing or two about some friends, but it's been more the sort of thing that gives you a richer perspective. For what it's worth, I'm sorry about learning what you did. Can I ask what brought you to fight with him?"

"Hm. That's certainly one way to go about getting super-powers. I just talked to an archangel for a bit, then got my latent meta-genes activated. Your story makes mine sound a little...bland." A slight smile worked its way onto Gabriel's face, though it faded when Bram explained his rather poor living situation. "Yes. I truly apologize for the misunderstanding. It's just...I have the scars to prove I need to be exceedingly careful when Fallen Ones are involved. As for the girl, for that, I am even sorrier. Is...do you think there's a hope we could rescue her one day? Did she do this willingly, or was the matter...forced?" He takes a step closer, not closing the distance too much, all too aware of the veritable smorgasbord of holy symbols and angelic words scrawled across his current outfit. "The ones who helped you, helped these souls...did they give you any contacts? Support network, that sort of thing? What about buildings purchased by a church, but not set up as one? Would those kill you?" He glances upward. "I'm sure you don't care about the rain too much, but...do you need a place to stay tonight?"

"And in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season. And its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers." Gabriel finished the quote solemnly. He considered Bram for several long moments before silently willing his spear to contract into its ring form. He didn't move from the spot for the moment. "Would you mind terribly explaining what you are, then? If you're not a demon, that is." He crossed his arms over his chest, his expression neutral, as he waited for an answer.

Gabriel had lost train of sight on the demon-man for a moment, as he'd shifted a bit so he wasn't spotted (not like his outfit was naturally stealthy, most people just didn't look up), so he only heard the shout of surprise and the beginning of the chase. He flew out and quickly matched the running pace of the two, his face slowly shifting from curiosity to determination. He began lowering his altitude, and ended up touching to the ground just as the civilian brandished a cross as the being, who was repulsed by it. Seemed a sealed deal. "I don't care who summoned you or sent you. Back away from the man now, and this might resolve peacefully, Fallen One." His voice carried an air of authority, and he stood there, coat flapping in the breeze and shining armor catching what little light there was. His spear was out, held at one side but clearly ready to snap out at a moment's notice. All over his outfit were crosses and symbols, most in language not seen on mortal Earth, not typically anyways.

"I've gotten short glimpses of my future. Once, back about two years ago when all those time portals went crazy all over the city. And once a bit over a year ago. The second time...put things in perspective. They gave me hope, among other things." 'Like the fear of dying in nuclear fire thanks to Hiroshima Shadow...' "Besides. Being a superhero means, quite honestly, staring death in the face on a somewhat regular basis, right? Seems like that makes us look at the bigger picture more often. But, you're right. I guess everything did help me grow at least a bit."

Fair enough. He's got other options too, though. A couple notes: 1.)His attack isn't "psychic", really, it's sonic. 2.)Those reactions seem less despair-y and more...fear-y? Like, if I'd used EC: Fear, it'd feel a better fit? Dunno. Eh. Whatevs. :D

"Honestly? Partly because the classes are actually kind of fun. I'm not a wiz like my folks, but I've got a decent head for business. And like I said, I don't mind the idea of doing investing or something on the side. Keeps the brain juices flowing. Partly...well, I mentioned a recession, but part of it is me hedging my bets for the future. What if this ring makes me near-immortal? What if in 20 years I get fed up with the history research world and want to do something different? What if I apply for a position as head of a museum? Any of those situations would be ones where having at least an undergraduate, if not Masters, in Business could help me out in some way or another. To be blunt, the cost isn't an issue. Time is to a degree, but I like the school environment, so 5 years instead of 4 doesn't scare me. Though I think I can knock out the classes fast enough to keep it at 4. But at the moment, I don't plan on going into the "family business", as much as there's the concept of such a thing. My folks work in big companies, but they didn't found them, so there's a less personal stake."

Keep in mind, that AOE is Shapeable. So he can finesse it around things and people he doesn't want to hit. ;)