KnightDisciple

Hm. Move Action: Charge: +2 Attack, -2 Defense. Move up next to the punk. Standard Action: Smack him with the Taser. Which is part of the Charge, but still. 18. Looks like that doesn't hit (sheet seems to indicate he has 24 Defense) Hero Point to reroll! 18 again, but with the reroll bonus it's 28, which is enough. Stun 7 attack.

Cobalt Templar moved when Edge told him to; in Young Freedom, you learned to pay attention when Edge warned you to get out of the way. He let a satisfied grin as the blast struck home on Eddie, and seemed to actually do something (unlike his own blow). HIs grin burst into a full smile as Wander took Eddie to sleepy-time-land in a single blow with her bat. "Hah! Nice hit!" Only then, with the threat gone, did his fiery covering begin to fade to normalcy. He popped his neck as he looked around, walking over to Cobalt Ranger and offering him a half-smile and a hand to stand up. "Well, could have gone better, but definitely could have gone worse."

Gabriel blinked, then frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. "And? You have a problem with that? After all, less than a week ago, I saw just what havoc the Fae can wreak upon our world. I saw how they hatch plots that span years, decades even, which bring many to harm of one kind or another. And today, I saw little evidence that their overall culture doesn't encourage the exact same thing. You'll forgive me if I'm not an admirer." He looked at the group as a whole. "I'm ready to leave as soon as physically possible."

Gabriel goes on 21.

The boy in blue had been relaxing in midair, floating as if he was sitting on something. He held his plate in one hand, and his burger in the other; he was already halfway through the wonderful slice of beefy heaven, despite trying to savor it. 'I hope he cooked extras.' At Jessica's question, he turned himself a bit in midair, which gave him time to think of an answer. He stopped taking bites of his burger, setting it on the plate, which floated itself to one side. "Hm. Excited, scared, nervous. All of the above. I mean, it'll be cool to be a senior, be kind of "top dog". Scared because after that, it's college, then "the real world". Plus, I'm on Young Freedom these days. I think they're going to have me and Sage kind of spearheading the whole thing. So that's an equal mix of all three. I mean, I'm still kinda new to the hero thing, you know?" He took a nervous bite of his burger, visibly thinking over the whole matter.

Fenris stood up, cursing inside his mind, and a bit under his breath. Having several languages made it all the more versatile in its application... "Damn! I have to head back a couple cars, make sure my companions are safe!" With that, he dashed from the room. Of course, his real goal was to get to his armor. As he dashed back through the cars towards the back, he ducked past various passengers, ignoring questions about what was going on. Finally, he reached the car where he'd stored the suit. "Pardon me folks." He jogged into the corner and typed in the code to get the armor started up and running, while simultaneously activating his undersuit and tossing off his borrowed clothes. In perhaps 15 seconds, he was already starting to seal the armor around himself. "Just a moment more, and I'll hop out there. No reason to let people get killed just to stay on the down-low."

"That's a good first step, yes. Is there anything else, beyond the whole "how did she get in the cell" part?" Gabriel paced a bit as he thought, tapping his chin and speaking as thoughts came to him. "Perhaps we could have one of those police sketch artists help you generate a picture of the man who came into your cell? If such a person is spotted again, it would help bear out the truth of your words. Hm. What about getting some of the heroes with mental gifts involved? Could they perhaps present evidence of his innocence of the deed? Or is that too far-fetched? Then again, is anything far-fetched in the pursuit of truth?" He was practically talking to himself now; the whole situation clearly had him feeling a bit befuddled.

"There's a rare event. A woman telling me I'm right with no reservations. I'll have to remember that." He blinked at the English accent comment. He normally had excellent control over his voice, especially in costume, such that he had no real discernible accent. 'She's right. I did sound like a bloody Brit there. Glad my parents didn't hear me. Dad would be mortified.' He shook his head, and when he next spoke, it was in a light Irish accent, one that seemed utterly natural (though it wasn't quite as thick as his true natural accent). There was a large grin threatening to split his face. "I suppose I'll spare everyone my horrible attempt at an English accent. As for showing me up, my dear? I daresay I'd enjoy seeing that happen." He followed her, pausing as she did to get his own microphone affixed. No reason to burn the energy to get heard without one.

The sudden frenzy of activity had somewhat left Cobalt Templar in the dust. Oh, he could keep track of what was going on, and certainly could defend himself (not that he'd really been attacked yet). But it took him a moment to really get synched up. When he did, his face gradually grew into a frown. Then a scowl. 'This guy is going to destroy this whole place because his girl left him? He's going to help destroy all of existence because he's having an existential crisis? He's mind-controlling his fellow heroes because he's mad at some guy? He's part of the reason everyone died?' Suddenly, Corbin was airborne. Perhaps 10 feet into his arc over the knocked-over Radio Freedom, as well as his fellow heroes, he burst into flame. No, that wasn't entirely accurate. It was almost like he became flame. Cobalt Templar's whole body was covered in wild blue fire, with bits of maroon (the same shade as his typical costume's accents) roiling around. His cape, already tattered, became a sheet of dark red flame. His eyes burned almost white, such was their intensity. He let out a silent battlecry as he landed and brought both of his fists down on Breakdown's left shoulder, hoping to leave him reeling.

Magda and Bernhard continued to sit there, happily watching their daughter display more energy than she had in most of her life. For her part, Eira was incredibly well behaving, boundless energy or no. Meanwhile, Magnus crooked an eyebrow and gestured for Miss A to follow him to the opposite corner of the room, for privacy. "We'll give Magda and Bernhard another minute or two. What did we need to discuss?" He seems confused, but it's likely because stress and exhaustion, combined with the thrill of having "completed the mission", have blanked his mind on anything that was to occur afterwards.

Gabriel took an involuntary step back as the door opened a bit forcefully. 'She's in a mood for sure. Hopefully I can calm her down. Seems like nerves.' Almost instantly, he gave her a soft, charming smile. He raised his hands in a calming, placating gesture. "Hey now. Take another couple of deep breaths. It's alright if you're nervous. I'd wager your recent announcement has generated a fair bit of stress. But I imagine it will pay off in the positive. Just like today will probably stress us both out, but will be worth it in the end. If it helps, keep telling yourself I'm still on your side, even if we end up disagreeing here and there." He gave her a conspiratorial wink, then a very quick, mostly objective once-over. "You look more than "alright", my dear. I daresay you you "smashing", as the English might say." He managed not to chuckle at giving her a measly English compliment.

Gabriel had been somewhat surprised by the television station's request. 'Still. It should work out for the best. I have a feeling I'm going to play "middle ground" here; Equinox is sincere, but a bit headstrong at times. And this other guy; I haven't heard a whole bunch about him, but what I have heard leaves me a bit frustrated. Painting a bad image on the Church much, pal? This should be "interesting", in every sense of the word.' He looked around his dressing room. Seemed a bit pointless; his costume and mask covered so much the makeup tech had thrown her hands into the air and walked out, and there wasn't any need to change outfits. So he stood up and walked out of the room. After a moment, he nodded and walked down the hall a short ways to Siobhan's room. Stopping outside, he gently knocked, even as he used his incredible gift with sound to speak to her directly. "Hey, Siobhan, you alright in there? Not too nervous, I hope. You ready for this?"

CT should be next in Init, so I'll go ahead and post here and hold back on IC, just in case we've got a twist going on. Move Action: Full Speed at Disco Breakdown! I'll say I can't Charge, since there's a few people scattered around. But Flight means never having to say "Could you move, please?"! Free Action: Switching the Fires of Judgement array to Strike 6 (Extras: Penetrating [5], Feats: Mighty) (the fluff manifestation may sound more Aura-ish, but that'll be fluff only; it's basically pumping up his physical hits only) Standard Action: Melee Attack with Strike All-Out Attack 2: Defense now +3, Attack now +11 Power Attack 2: Attack now +9, Strike Toughness DC now 26 19 isn't great, but since he's Stunned, I believe Eddie is flat-footed, and thus has Defense 14. That will be a DC 26 Toughness Save.

I think Fenris/Baron Katastroff would be all over this. Anything to help his PR!

Cobalt Ranger was right! Eddie IS a jerk! :evil: 13. Ugh. Ah well.

Gabriel narrowed his eyes slightly as the Winter Queen stepped into the room. He listened through her speech, unconvinced of the superiority of either side of the divide in the Fae Realms. 'It figures she'd save Grimalkin for a chance to be remembered. Hn. Better play nice, at least for now.' He cleared his throat and took a step forward, giving an exceedingly formal bow and a shining smile at the Queen. "To elaborate on my noble companion's words, Oh Glorious Queen, this Lady had sent several of her servants, lesser ladies in their own right, to our world. There, they had ensorceled several unknowing mortal men. Not only did they seduce them under false pretenses, they seemingly were taking blood, and possibly energy from them. Then, these men were driven to artificial despair, to the point of suicide. Meanwhile, these lesser ladies were performing a ceremony meant to empower their Lady. Presumably she would use this power against you and yours. Upsetting the current order. And while you seem a most benevolent leader, her apparent madness could spell hard times for our Realm. And while I understand your perspective on the fate of these men may be different then ours, you must realize we would of course object to someone that drove them to such dangerous feats as they were undertaking. It put others in danger as well as themselves. Thus, we sought out first the servants, then the master, to prevent further such dangers. If by some chance our efforts have caused larger troubles in your courts, we most humbly apologize."

Gonna go ahead and roll a Bluff Check, since a fair bit of what Gabe's saying has false sincerity layered over it. Rolling Bluff with Attractive played in, since he's turning on the charm. 42, the Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything.

Magnus walked back into view just as Eira was letting Sharl into her room. The little girl gave a squeal that made her parents wince and laugh in the same breath, while the Baron merely gave a wry chuckle and a shake of his head. Eira herself was busy hugging the bear tightly with one arm, while her other hand grasped the chocolate box as she dashed over to a nearby table, putting the sweets down to give the bear a two-armed hug. Magnus stepped up to stand next to Miss Americana, and spoke up softly. "Looks like your virtual room is exceeding expectations. This is perhaps our best-case scenario, I think." Eira had shifted gears, and had already eaten two chocolates. Magda spoke up, suddenly showing a bit of sternness. Some habits die hard, virtual existence or no. Eira sheepishly nodded and turned to face Sharl, a bit of chocolate smearing one side of her mouth. Magnus just laughed at it all. It was a laugh overflowing with joy and relief.

Cobalt Templar intercepted one of the burgers on a plate with his own firey telekinesis. He brought it to his own two hands just as he arrived at the condiment table. Slapping some mayo and mustard on it, he took a moment to take a deep breath, inhaling the delicious scent. "Man, this is the stuff. My compliments to the chef!" He gave Blake and Jessica a cheeky grin, a giant hand appearing to wag a finger at them in an over-exaggerated manner. "Now now, no making out during mealtime you two! Wouldn't want to get a cramp, would you?"

Gabriel hovered thoughtfully for several moments, before absently firing a couple of blasts at the crystal orb, first weakening, then destroying it. He turned to look at Push. "See you back at the city." With that, Gabriel shot into the air, rising to a height of almost a thousand feet, casting his gaze across the land for almost a minute. Then he gracefully turned around and dove towards the ground, picking up speed until he set off a sonic boom as he started moving faster than sound. Eventually, he was hovering a few dozen yards above the human battle lines. He stayed there, acting as a surprisingly silent sentry as more troops filtered back into the city. He glanced out over the scattered heroes from Freedom City. He concentrated, and suddenly they could all hear his voice in their ear. "I can't hear you back, but I just wanted to say good job everyone. We should probably meet up to compare notes, though."

Baron Katastrof stood there, weeping silent tears of joy that easily matched Magda and Bernhard. He stepped forward, reaching one hand towards the video screen, giving the little girl who was now the Ghost In The Machine a huge smile. <Why little Eira, you do look so much better now! Fear not! You shall soon be riding ponies and eating ice cream fit for queens! Or at least a young baroness. I'm sure you and Mister Sharl will have plenty of fun. Now, I just need to take care of some boring paperwork, and then I'll sit down with your parents and talk for a bit, okay?> When the little girl nodded, he smiled again before stepping through a soundproof curtain that had sprung up. On the other side was the bed with the mortal shell of Eira. The vital signs were already weakening; they'd performed the operation just in time. Or was that the only reason? Magnus frowned a bit as he looked at a couple of monitors, before moving to a computer console. Some hurried typing later, and he was pondering the results. 'Hn. Seems like the upload did something more; her brain activity is way less than what it ought to be even for these vitals and the medical coma. Almost like...it's an empty shell.' He looked up, frowning. With a sigh, he walked over to the body and delivered one final kiss to her forehead. Then he nodded to the medical techs present. They went to work; a much larger than normal dose of morphine flowed through the drip, as well as a couple of other complimentary chemicals. Monitors and devices that aided her functiosn were gently powered down. Slowly, the little body breathed slower and slower, until it stopped. Magnus clenched his eyes shut for a moment, before turning his fierce gaze on the techs. <You know what must be done. Take it to the plot of land I have told you of. If I hear of anything being bungled, you'll never find a job in Sweden again.> With that, he turned to the computer console. He was about to type, when he paused. Laying one hand on the screen, he closed his eyes and concentrated. On on of Miss A's discrete monitors, and on the display in Dragonfly's helmet, they'll receive a short text message from the Baron. The secondary task is done. I will be over there in just a minute. Thank you again.

GM It was about two minutes later when digital Eira first began to stir on her bed. She twiched, then started to shift around. Eventually, she stretched out and sat up, rubbing at her eyes. A moment's shock later, she was staring at hands and arms that had no wires or needles. Then a body that lacked such things entirely. A bed wider than three feet, and a room decorated in something other than stark white, greeted her further explorations. Slowly, she took it all in, then laughed in the way only happy children can. She slid to the edge of the bed, and was quickly standing on the floor. Only then did she look up at the "video screens" that displayed her family and her heroes. She ran up to them and put a hand on each of the two screens, a grin on her face. Magda and Bernhard were crying tears of joy as their hands reached up to touch the video screen they see their daughter in. Huge smiles light both their faces. Magda spoke first. Eira nodded and grinned. Bernhard barely managed to speak, such was his joy and relief.

Fenris jerked in surprise at Dragonfly's comment. "Wait, broadcasting my thoughts over radio?" ~Wait, broadcasting my thoughts over radio?~ He blinked, and realized his own suit was catching the transmission as well. "I'll be there soon." ~I'll be there soon.~ He turned and flashed down the hall, quickly entering the elevator and disappearing downstairs. He still had to get this armor off. ************************************************************* Less than five minutes later, Baron Katastroff walked into the room where Eira's procedure was being done, looking only mildly ruffled. He glanced at Dragonfly and gave her a look that practically screamed "don't tell anyone, please". "How is it coming along?" Dragonfly's suit picked up no extraneous transmissions; clearly the Baron had at least somewhat better control over himself already.

For several long, tense moments, Fenris just kept growling. Then, his grip slackened. He let go of Katkvinna, who collapsed in a crumpled heap, fear evident in her eyes. Before Dragonfly could react, Fenris shot her at near point-blank range. But it was obvious in a moment the woman was alive; it's just that now she was unconscious. Fenris himself walked a few feet down the hall, growling and flexing his hands. At the same time, Dragonfly's suit started picking up a signal. If she traced it, she'd find it was coming from Fenris, somehow. ~Oh Lord. Eira. This isn't about the hospital. It's about here. Damn it Katastroff, FOCUS!~ He slowly, almost painfully turned around. His demeanor suggested he didn't realize he'd broadcast those words. "I apologize for my behavior. I was..." ~Worried about my cousin!~ "In a frustrated state of mind. I do not believe I have ever had this problem before. I thank you for correcting me. If you will excuse me, I must go." ~Thank goodness my lab is in the basement.~ "I will need to repair my armor. I will contact the Baron Katastroff; he was in a security center, and knew I was in-country for one of my occasional patrols here in Sweden, so he called me in to aid things."

Cobalt Templar had calmed soon after being introduced to the "funky" Radio Freedom. It seemed that much of his frustrated reaction had been born from the stress of the last day. When Cobalt Ranger conjured platforms for both teams, Cobalt Templar silently flew up next to his funkadelic copy, energy silently flowing out from his ring to reinforce and expand his universal brother's constructs. They gave each other a silent nod before taking to the sky. Perhaps a minute into the flight, Cobalt Templar spoke up, just loud enough to be heard by Cobalt Ranger. "I'm sorry." "What for, partner?" "How I reacted. You didn't deserve that, none of you did. I mean, yeah, your style's not my style. But that's no reason to ask if this place is Hell. I just came from Hell on earth. This place is nothing like it." "Whaddaya mean, "Hell on Earth"?" "A world where the Nazis won, including taking over America. It was...it was really bad." "Heavy stuff." "Hn. So, how are mom and dad?" CR blinked, and if not for CT's support of his constructs, the other team members would have noticed the platforms flicker. As it was, it was like nothing happened. CT raised an eyebrow under his helmet. "Goofy cowboy costume and accent aside, you're pretty clearly me. I'll go first; in my world, they're both really well off. But it's all hard work; investing and business skills. Dad's Chief Human Resources Officer of Rath and Stromberg Investments, and Mom is Chief Analytics Officer at the Rhodes Foundation. They stay busy, but they really like it. We've had our friction, mostly over me wanting to go into archeology, but we're still a family." CT looked to CR, who stayed silent for almost a minute. His gaze was faraway, and the Corbin from Earth Prime knew somehow that his double was thinking very carefully about his response. "Mom never made it that far in the business world; she just couldn't take how bad some of the people she worked with were. People either didn't take her seriously at all, or read too much into things when she was firm. She got sick of it, sent in her 2 weeks, and settled for careful investing via computers. Dad tries to do what he can, but it frustrates her. "Dad...he's still in business, but he ended up making his own. He actually owns several ranches back out in the Midwest. He says the ranching industry still has honest men who work hard. Unlike 90% of the people he seemed to encounter in companies here and in St. Louis. But none of that really matters, not to most people here." As he spoke CR's exaggerated drawl had lessened, until it was barely noticeable. Now, he gave a bitter laugh. "No, we're white folk from the Midwest with a bit of extra money. That makes us "squares", "corporate fat cats", "evil money-lovers", and a lot of less flattering words. All because we happen to be successful. Despite the fact we're decent, hardworking people. They think being a business executive takes no work. That it's all about pointless meetings and drinking whiskey. Well, they ought to do my dad's job for a day, and see how "easy" it is. That man taught me everything I know about hard work and respecting your fellow man, no matter what. He taught me that, in the workplace, most things people freak out about don't matter. Skin color? Who cares. What they do in the bedroom? Everyone has their own views, but if you keep that stuff out of the workplace, he doesn't care. Same with religion and philosophy; you're at work to work. Don't get pushy, and you're fine. But hey, let's call him a scumbag corporate elitist. Because, you know, that's totally fair." CR gritted his teeth at that thought, and the thoughts that came next. "It didn't get any better after this ring fell into my bedroom one night, and I was at Claremont within a week. If anything, it was worse. I mean, superheroes gotta stay cool, right? Gotta stick with the times. So everyone there was sporting the latest trends in opinions. I broke five noses, three hands, and one forearm my first month here; all because of the things people said about Mom. Nightlife and Wonder broke up a couple of those fights." He shrugged. "So, I put on a mask. I turned myself into a hip cowboy who didn't jive with his square parents. At least, when I was at school that's what I was. I made people think I only cared about being a funky hero and that transcendental art stuff. I listened to disco music and funk all the time. I made it sound like my parents and I fought all the time, with me being the hip cat who stood up for the little man. "All lies. In my dorm room, I listen to Beethoven, Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, and that sort of thing. I prefer more classical art, especially paintings. My parents and I get along fine. Oh, and I-" CT butted in for him. "You love history." "More American history, especially 'The Old West', but yeah. Something just feels right about it." "I know. For what it's worth, I hope your team appreciates the real you." "Trevor, Erin, and Eve do. They've been a big help. Mark's good, but..." "He's Mark." "Yeah. And Eddie's a huge jerk."