KnightDisciple

Gabriel had seen the portal just as soon as the others, and the steaming corpse of some fiend's concept of a mosquito as well. He leaned on his suddenly-present spear, rubbing at the bridge of his nose under his helmet for a moment, while muttering a few choice words of his own. The sort you learn from your mother but don't repeat in front of her. On the one hand, giant demon mosquitoes were not the stealthiest creatures, to be sure. On another hand, giant demon mosquitoes. This was not a great day. Plus there was the game of suspicion and denial... He shook his head, having heard most of the conversation and deciding to speak up. "What if I try to listen in for anything odd? Or, if we check the forest out here, listen for anyone at all? I can't hear everything, but if they're incanting a spell or something like that, I might be able to catch it. That, or cursing those wretched do-gooders or whatnot."

He won't have an aura, but other suggestions are more than welcome!

Still pondering the ideas Ari, but thank you for the input. At this point, the only things left are his Hero Name, and going back over his transformed state's appearance, mostly the minor details about it. Again, open to suggestion on these fronts and others.

So, trying to get this guy cracked out before the Big Event if possible. One thing that's still a sticking point is his Hero Name. I just can't find anything that grabs me. A couple of minor ideas, either myself or others: -Monkey Prince -Heaven Sage -Sun Walker A slightly fancier idea I had: -Celestial Savant, Exceedingly Prime Warrior It’s a bit wordy, but he’d probably go by just “Celestial Savant†or “Savant†most times. It’s a play off of “Great Sage, Equal of Heaven†and “Victorious Fighting Buddhaâ€.

Right. -Math Errors fixed. I hope. -Added Selective to her Communications power. -Designated "Ultima Thule" as her native tongue; I figure they have some offshoot language of their own. -Spent 1 more PP to give her 4 ranks of Sense Motive, and also round her up to 225 PP even.

Arcane Lore: 16. Theology and Philosophy: 20.

Gabriel took one step forward, his most winning smile on his face as he gave the Queen a respectful bow. If anyone was an expert on such things, they'd note it was similar to the one many in the UK might give to the royalty there, albeit a bit shallower. He straightened his posture and spread his hands a bit in a "I come in peace" sort of gesture. His body language and posture radiated respect, if not quite deference, and his whole being seemed to ooze confidence, kindness, respect, and a hope for successful communication. Velocity could tell he was going "full bore", and he was surely bringing his "A Game" with his spoken words. "Your Majesty, I wish to first once again express both my personal thanks, and the thanks of the Freedom League, for your agreement to invite us here to meet and speak with you on this day. As for that object, I confess I am uncertain of its nature, as my gifts lie in disciplines aside from the sciences. But perhaps in a short time, we could meet with some of the crew of the vessel that wait in the area outside? They may know more of this matter, and I'm sure we would be able to convince them to be clear and truthful with us. We do recognize the potential for a grievance here, and wish to do everything we can to help restore your land to its former state of peace. I promise you now, if there was some sort of ulterior motive in the diversion of the flight of the passenger plane, we will bring it to light. But please believe that to our best knowledge, their only purpose for diversion was the safety of the passengers due to the weather in their way. Nothing we have heard suggests an intent to infringe upon your sovereign territory was in the hearts or minds of the crew. Again, though, I pledge to you to assist in assuring the truth is heard and brought to light. Do you find this an agreeable beginning to our talks, Your Majesty?" Gabriel waited expectantly but respectfully, his hands now clasped patiently in front of his person.

Okay, so with his Array tuned to this setting: Alternate Power: Enhanced Charisma 20 (Extras: Linked [Enhanced Skills]) [20PP] + Enhanced Skills 10 (40 Ranks: Bluff 10, Diplomacy 10, Intimidate 10, Gather Information 10 ) [10PP] [20 + 10 = 30PP] And him burning an HP for Ultimate Diplomacy. That is a result of 60 on his Diplomacy check with the Queen. IC post incoming. EDIT: Just had a thought. Sense Motive: 23. This is just to kind of get a sense of her mood and such.

Hoboy this should be fun. Initiative: 20.

Gabriel had spent most of his spare time (such as it was) over the last few weeks making back-and-forth trips to Sanctuary, making good use of his spear's ability to open a portal between the dimensions, or using the Church's portal. Between coordinating various bits of aid and acting as an interpreter for various small issues among the new inhabitants who didn't share language. Exhausting work, but fulfilling. This night, he had actually already finished any schoolwork (the paperwork of a theater professor was perhaps lighter than one of geology), and just a couple hours ago he had finished his coordination of relief efforts for the night. So he had laid himself to rest in the room reserved for his use, and tried to catch some sleep away from the hustle and bustle of a city. Then one of the brothers shook Carson awake. "Brother, there is trouble. Can you not hear?" Carson blinked, running a hand over his face. "What trouble do you-" And then he was on his feet, his eyes suddenly clear as his sharp ears listened. His face went first to shock, then to anger. Then it was simply blank. The air hummed around him as he strode to a nearby basin, splashed water over his face, and wiped it. With but a thought, he was clad in his shining armor once more. "Please prepare the brothers in case something comes here. Or people are injured." It was phrased as request but there was a strong hint of command in his voice. Before the monk who woke him could respond, Gabriel was gone. Instead, he was streaking through the air toward the sound of the screaming, his arms held close to his side, his heavy coat whipping about his person in the breeze about his body. Tonight he made no secret of his presence, though his flight was quiet enough he would not wake any who slept through the screaming.

Tagging! Sorry I didn't see this before today! Busy weekend.

*Sighs* I had a nice point-by point reply typed up and then I closed my window accidentally. Anyway, most of these are just "whoopsie" and I will get them fixed ASAP. The Communications power is actually supposed to be Affects Others. The idea is that normally, Communications lets her talk to anyone, but those folks can only in turn talk to her. So she could send something to 12 people, but those 12 could only ever reply to her, if she just had Communications; they couldn't directly communicate with each other. With Affects Others (and Selective, which I totally should have had in there, that's more of an oversight), my understanding is she can switch it on, and those 12 people can talk to her or each other. She's still the "cell tower", but she's no longer a "switchboard operator", if that makes sense. The basic point is to give her a way to "link up" the team so they can privately communicate ("the team" typically being The Champions out there on the Granola Coast).

Once Trailblazer is fully approved and it's clarified which year she is in she will be added to the roster. All other newer characters added. Cho's new hero name (Rampart) added.

I will endeavor to catch up entries soon. Was busy with stuff not-on-the-forum this weekend. EDIT: s_g, I don't know what grade your character is in, that's something you have to decide yourself.

The silence was made less total still by the occasional sound of nuts being chewed by the student. He also sipped from his water bottle, but sparingly. He seemed to anticipate needing some hydration later. He followed fairly close behind The Guest, matching his pace quite easily. He had raised an eyebrow when he saw just where they were headed, but otherwise didn't comment. He hadn't actually spent much time in the holographic training room. His Boss had something a bit simpler back at Base, but even that was used sparingly. They had only just hit a point where she felt like he could really start branching out in what he learned, and to a degree determine his "specialization". The stop at the zen garden almost surprised him, but Alek just shrugged it off and glanced around, taking in the calming environment, and taking note of the scattered students using the space at the moment.

Gabe switches his array to MAXIMUM DIPLOMANCY. But I will defer to Thevshi before doing an IC post, to preserve the previous posting order, and to see if Velocity wants to soften up the Queen (metaphorically).

Gabriel frowned in the direction their foes had fled, having landed on the ground finally, and leaning a bit against his spear. "They fought pretty well together. What worries me is that I've not heard of any of these folks before. They didn't seem inexperienced, though. So were they trained? Have they recently changed names and costumes? Either way, who organized this group? There are enough questions I'm not really pleased we got so few answers." He sighed and rolled his shoulders, his spear disappearing for the moment. "I'll do a bit of aerial scouting. If people need help coordinating, give me a ring on the earpiece." With that, he was a silver-and-white streak in the sky, quickly beginning a thorough circuit of the area immediately around, and then within, the town.

The one about door portals sounds like a Super Movement (Dimensional Travel [Limited: Doors or similar structures]). Traveling through the spirit world to other doors sounds like a Teleport power, maybe with some flaws about long-distance only, time it takes to travel, something like that. Teleport is easy, and I think there's an existing flaw that says you can't bring passengers. Alternate form is easy, though if she's only PL7 you might be facing an issue of being pretty low PL if she can't transform. Unless the "Combat Form" is actually just swapping around your combat caps, from defense/attack shifted to toughness/damage shifted? Go from a lean and mean acrobatic machine to a big hulking fae brute? Up to you, either way. -The guardian spirits sound like a power or group of powers, perhaps in a Container (which is just a structure that doesn't add cost). The Complication for them sounds pretty solid.

Time Travel Stinks (Hologram, Fast-Forward, Thoughtspeed) June 26, 2014 Cline Household, Freedom City, USA Will had been quiet and withdrawn for a week. Not just "sullen teenager" quiet; this was something more serious. He'd barely talked, and hadn't even gone out on a patrol or a long run or anything; he did enough physical activity to maintain good conditioning, but that was really it. His mother and sister noted that his mental shields, always strong after growing up in a home with psychics, were clenched shut tighter than usual. Any attempts at mental communication were generally rebuffed or left unanswered, and questions about "why" were deflected. Finally, there was an evening where Holly was having a sleepover with friends, friends who lived a good distance away. A little while after the awkwardly quiet dinner Will and his parents shared, the two reformed villains would feel a quiet, almost scared voice come over their mental link. --Mom? Dad? Can...can we talk?-- ~Sure, baby,~ Paige's mental reply came immediately over the link. She'd been giving her eldest some space, careful not to pry when it was obvious he didn't feel like sharing, but it had been difficult. She didn't like seeing her kids in pain, and something was obviously hurting Will. She'd thought it might be some girl at school, in which case she would have to show the chit why one didn't mess with a cub when the mama bear was nearby, but this didn't seem like the aftermath of a fizzled romance either. At least if he was ready to talk, they might find some answers. ~Why don't you come on down to the living room? I'll make us up some cocoa.~ Fast-Forward had been 'patrolling' when Will's call came in - or at least jogging around the neighborhood so fast that he was aware of everything from the height of the blades of grass on every lawn in the Family Complex to the distinct sound of Joan Collier's news program coming from the Jackson house across the street. Maybe he didn't have his wife's mental powers, but he had his own ways of keeping track of his little girl. When Will's voice sounded, though, he was back in the kitchen with Paige by the time the Keurig had finished percolating a cup of cocoa for the boy. ~Bet it's a girl,~ he thought her way as he headed into the living room alongside her as Will came down from his room. ~Maybe one of those martial artists he's been hanging around with...~ The response to his mother's question was slow, hesitant even. --...Yeah. Um. Cocoa. Cocoa's good.-- It was a couple minutes later that the normally-energetic young man trudged down the stairs and shuffled into the kitchen. He looked like a wreck. There were bags under his eyes, his face looked drawn, and his complexion was a bit pale. He wasn't sweaty, and didn't seem to be sniffling from a cold or anything, though his eyes were a bit bloodshot and his nose a bit red, as if wiped with tissue too much in too short a time. All in all, it looked like he'd barely slept and had spent lots of time crying. He took the cup his mother offered and drank it with almost mechanical precision, a long sip that took a good quarter of what was in the cup. Which was probably for the best, since there was a slight shake to his hand as he set it on the counter for a moment. His eyes rolled over the stools over to one side of the counter, before moving to the living room. He blurred, the first time they'd seen him use his speed in a couple of days, and he was sitting on the couch, his cup on the table in front of himself, his knees draw up in front of himself and arms wrapped around his legs. His eyes looked at nothing in particular. It took almost two minutes for him to say anything. --You know what's weird? It's not the sound that keeps sticking with me. It's the smell.-- He finally looks to his parents, his eyes a bit watery, grief evident there in a way no bungled romance could conjure up. --Not just the blood. But the grass. And the gunpowder. And the hot dog stand. And the smoke. And the soda. And the...that...the smell. The one when people...and fire...-- Definitely not a failed romance. Paige left her own cocoa on the counter as she went over to the couch, sitting down next to Will and wrapping an arm around his shoulders. He was tall and broad enough now that it was a little bit awkward, but she managed. "I know, honey," she murmured aloud, and it was true. Not the details of whatever had horrified him, but the look in his eye, and the smell that didn't leave the nostrils. But where the hell had he been, to learn something like that firsthand? Surely the school wouldn't put him in that kind of situation. "Can you tell us about it?" Will took a deep breath. It started shaky, but steadied out. He went back to staring at a spot on the wall. "Started a week ago. I was out on a patrol with Errant and Cho. Nothing major, right? Just bust up a little group of thugs. Then freaking Downtime shows up. So stupid me, I charge in, try to get him cocky like you guys taught me, then put him in the corner. Then...some sorta freaky lightshow happens and suddenly it's not night, it's day, and I'm not in downtown Freedom City, I'm on some mountain. Well, not just some mountain." He closed his eyes for a moment. "It was Devil's Peak." He opened his eyes again, and looked at his parents. "And it was the same day, June 19...but 33 years ago." Their memories of the day might be a bit fuzzy but it shouldn't take them much to connect those dots. Wait, he saw us - for very personal reasons, Richard knew exactly what had happened on that day, at least his personal part of the story that he could remember once he'd come down. He'd done a lot of thinking about that time, and Paige, during his time in jail not long afterwards. But that couldn't be what was on Will's mind. He looked at Paige, his brain in overdrive, and said out loud. "Capetown. Jesus!" He jumped to his feet, pacing the floor. "How could that, that school just let this happen to you? They know you come from time-traveler stock, they should have a monitor on you! And call us if you just disappear for who knows how long! What the hell is the matter with Summers and his people?" "Richard, stop," Paige cut in, her voice quiet but firm. "That isn't helping." She turned to look at Will, cupping his cheek with one hand as she studied his face. "You went to Capetown with your friends?" she asked him, keeping any condemnation of anyone out of her tone. It wasn't that she didn't agree with Richard, but that was an entirely separate conversation. "What happened? What did you see? Were you hurt?" Will shook his head at his father's outburst. "It was just supposed to be a quick gang bust. Surveillance as much as anything. I mean, that's not "safe" I guess, but in our line of work, it's pretty simple. We had a plan to contact Summers and everything. Heck, it wasn't even a sure thing anyone from the Crime League was going to show up! Then all that showed up was Downtime and a teleporter. I got cocky. Thought we could take them. I mean, Errant's a pretty solid guy in a fight, I figured I was pretty awesome, and Cho could probably take a tank or something, I dunno. But we barely even got started when some sort of lightning storm or something linked me, Downtime, and the 'porter. The three of us kids got separated, scattered. I was still getting my bearings when Cho got picked up by...by Gramma." By which he of course meant Anna Cline, having never known his mother's mother. "Of course, right about that time I found a newspaper with the date on it, and I remembered what you'd told me. How bad it was. I pretty much flipped out, ran up on a rooftop...And then Jade flippin' Harper tries to stab me. We fought for a few seconds, then she gave me some spiel, and I agreed just so she didn't try to hamstring me and leave me for the Jet Patrol." Will reached for his cocoa and took a sip. He seemed almost eeriely calm now; perhaps going through the events like this was helping him process a bit? "Basically, all three of us kids from here and now got brought to Gramma's little cabin thing at the fancy hotel. Dad, you were there, and frankly, you were kind of a jerk. And enough of a lesson on drugs I'm never touching them." Some small relief, at least. "I was panicking to the other two about how bad things would get, and then...Aunt Paulette came into the cabin." He turned to his mother and gave her an unreadable look, pausing for a few moments in his storytelling. Paige's cheeks had colored a little when she realized exactly where and when her son had managed to drop in on his parents' lives, but the embarrassment was quickly swallowed up by countless other conflicting emotions. "Yes," she finally managed. "My father brought all of us to the convention that year, said it would be good exposure and an opportunity to... network." Her eyes slid toward Richard for a moment before she caught herself. "It surprises me that she'd have gone to the Clines' place that day, they weren't exactly friends. What was she doing there?" "She...she must have had guard duty that week. That would make sense. Roman was smart, see, he made sure there was a real team on guard at all times - even if they didn't know each other. If the League picked up on time travelers, they'd have sent Ma to go pick them up, with psychics like Paulette doing the brainscanning, and somebody like Jade Harper for backup if they turned out to be crazy. At least until then." He was unaccustomedly quiet, pouring his memories back in time, before he admitted, "I don't remember anything about that morning or that afternoon, not really." He certainly remembered that evening, but it was nothing he was going to discuss with his son - or even think about with him there. "It was thirty years ago and I had a lot of other stuff on my mind. There were always people coming and going out of our place, anyway, Ma was like the denmother for every skell in the League who was worth anything." "Considering how high you were I'm surprised you remember that week, dad." There's a streak of bitterness in Will's voice, and a grimace on his face, before he shakes his head and relaxes his expression. "Sorry. That wasn't...it's just, first thing I saw of you, you were rolling joints and talking about how Gramma bought you "good" drugs, and complaining about us harshing your style." He gave each of them a somewhat significant look that had just a trace of sarcasm. Suffice to say, Will wasn't going to pry but he wasn't stupid and he could do the requisite "math". "Aunt Paulette was kind of checking up on us, yeah. Gramma was zipping in and out. Then Harper came in. How she was the one they turned to if things got crazy...gah. That lady was pure crazy on her own." A shiver rolled down his back. "She came in and started insulting Paulette and implying she was, ugh, trying to "breed" with us. I think Paulette figured out who I was. Or...got a name, anyways. She was probably distracted by Cho getting so worked up by the family party line that she was starting to threaten to kill Paulette. I kept having to try and keep Cho calm and Elias focused, it was a mess." His frustration at being "the responsible one" was clear. "And then Gramma showed up and said it was "about to go down", and the part of my brain that had been screaming to run away just got ignored and I said I'd go with her because of course I would why wouldn't I help watch my own grandmother's back? So I suddenly decided to run toward the fight. I guess I thought I could make a difference." His face was mournful now, and he reached again for the cocoa cup. It was good that it was over half empty; Will's hand had a shake to it, but not enough to spill what remained. He paused with the cup held now in both hands, hovering just in front of his mouth. "I was wrong." He took a long sip. "Your dad and I were very different people thirty years ago," Paige said, even as she gave the cup a subtle telekinetic nudge to hold it steady. "There's a lot that went into it, the homes we grew up in, the role models we had, but it doesn't really matter right now. You saw the boy he used to be, not the man he is now. Though if you met Gramma back then, you may have some idea of why he wasn't terribly responsible in those days." She stroked Will's hair, like he was five years old again and they were reading a bedtime story, and thought about what to say next. "Going to the past is strange, and difficult. Depending on how you go back, you may not be able to affect anything at all, but even in the best of circumstances, the timeline tends to be resistant to change. You have a good heart, and it's important that you tried, but some things just have to happen the way they happened. And that's very hard to have to witness." "You mean Dad's responsible now?" Will's smile at his own joke didn't really reach his eyes, but it was clear he was at least trying. He finished his cup and set it down, his hand steady for the moment. He didn't seem to have noticed his mother's aid in keeping it from sloshing earlier. "Well I wasn't going to try and stop the fight, right? I figured, hey, watch Gramma's back, get the civilians clear, let them hash it out. I thought it'd be a big super-brawl, but...it was Gramma, Harper, and the three of us kids. Versus the Jet Patrol. No, sorry, ahead of myself. So us three kids and Gramma and Harper go to the park. Harper's messing with cops and civilians. I start trying to get them clear, then Cho..." Will fought down visible anger on his features. "Instead of trying to help with evacuation, she tried to get the Crime League and the Jet Patrol to both face her! If she wasn't superhumanly tough, she'd be dead! Harper tried to rip her throat out with one of those knives! But before they could get into it proper the Patrol showed up and a fight broke out. I was running around either trying to keep Elias and Cho safe, or trying to get civilians out of the way. And then Harper shoves a knife through the neck of one of the Patrol members. And I...well, I managed to help her not die, at least. I'm still not sure how I did it, exactly. That was when things went bad. Bullets were going everywhere. Their mage was throwing fire around so much it started hitting bystanders. People were still too close to the fight!" Tears flowed down Will's face, and he gripped his legs even tighter to his chest. "So it's all burning, and people are burning! Then some cop tried to shoot me in the face! And things were blowing up! And then Cho did something with her powers, she was hurt or scared or something, and it freaked out the Patrol members who were still in the fight. They just...they went crazy! Bullets and missiles and magic and everything just flew everywhere! I...you guys talk, a little bit, about how bad the 90s were, and what the Terminus Invasion was like. But...just hearing that, and being in the middle of a field of people screaming and dying. It was...ugh." For just a moment he almost looked ill, but it passed quickly. "And then the mage and the armored guy flew off and just...exploded. And there was more death..." By this point Will's face was thoroughly wet with tears, and he stared at the wall, not daring to meet the eyes of his parents. Richard stopped his pacing and went over to put his arms around his son, hugging him tight like he was a little boy who'd just had a bad dream instead of a skinny young man just a few inches shorter than his father. He wasn't sure what to say then, so after a few moments he let him go. "I know it doesn't feel this way, son, but that was thirty years ago, and it was, it is, ancient history. Believe me, I've been back to see some pretty rough stuff, and sometimes there's not anything you can do to keep yourself alive. We are so proud of you that you saved yourself, and your friends, and as many of those people as you could." He backed off, his mind cast back thirty years in the past. "We saw the column of smoke the next morning, after the party." Well, their particular version of the party, which had gone on most of the night. "When I got back to our cabin at the hotel, your gramma was just...sitting at the table, drinking. She smiled when I came in, even though her face was red and there was still soot in her hair, and she said 'Hey, boy, let's go back to America for a while, huh? Africa's no fun anymore.'" "It's not like I wanted to stop the fight! I knew that wouldn't work. I just wanted to get people away from the fight. But it didn't work. And...I guess...when the moment came, part of me wouldn't let me let my grandmother go off to face those folks with just herself and that crazy Harper chick." He snorted in morbid amusement. "Though I'm pretty sure Gramma could have taken the whole Patrol herself. She was as fast as you are, Dad." He sighed then. "We showed up back here just a few minutes after we left, I think. It was like we'd been in...a bad dream, or something." His head rested against his knees as he shuddered a bit, fighting off the terror and revulsion reliving these all-too-fresh memories brought up. "I just...I wanted to be a hero." "You are a hero," Paige assured him, subtly layering the words with layers of psychic reassurance. "You have a beautiful and heroic heart, and you're the best of us when it comes to being naturally inclined to do the right thing. Going to Claremont is teaching you skills and tactics, but you already know how to be a hero." She sighed. "But one thing you learn eventually is that being a hero doesn't mean you're always going to save the day. Sometimes you'll be too late, or you'll come off worse in a fight, or you'll get there and realize everything has spun so far out of control that you don't even know where to start helping. Terrible things are going to happen to people, maybe people you care about, and you'll look back and wonder if there was something you could've done differently, someplace that you screwed up. And maybe there is, and you learn from it and do better next time. But sometimes there isn't. Sometimes you can do everything right, and things still go wrong." She closed her eyes for a moment, took a deep breath. Paige took Will's cup from him and set it aside, then took his hands. "It's normal to grieve, and to wonder, and to have nightmares and bad days afterwards. But when you're a hero, the only thing you can do is to look forward and keep going in spite of that, with the faith that it's going to get better in time." Will nodded weakly at his mother's encouragement, his own hand gripping hers firmly. He closed his eyes and took a few calming breaths, his body easing up at least a bit. "Yeah. It's just...it's nothing like what we really prepared for, you know? Most villains today, they...well, they don't "play nice" like you guys seemed to back in the day, or live quite by a "code" like Gramma, but they aren't murder-hobos. Those guys claimed to be heroes but...geez. I mean, I've seen guys toting high-tech fancy-schmancy guns, that Voorwhatever guy was just spraying machine guns everywhere." He shook his head in disbelief and disgust. "And, like, that cop who tried to shoot me. I just...ugh. I think that one gives me almost as many nightmares as the bodies. Just...no, you're right mom. I do need to keep going, and I will. It's just...it's hard to even see which steps to take right now. My brain is all jumble-y and stuff." For his part, Richard regarded being shot at by the cops as frankly something of a badge of honor - but that was a conversation to have with Will when the boy was a little less traumatized by what he'd seen. "You've been lucky, Will," he said after a moment's reflection that covered a near-lifetime of memories. "For the last twenty-something years, people in the US and most other countries have given a damn: the people usually try to do what's right, and costumed superheroes have actually deserved the name. For most of my life, and your mom's life, that wasn't always true. Part of why we raised you why we did, in the Winnebago and in LA, is so you'd have the skills you need if things ever go back to the way they were." He shot a glance at Paige and added, "Not that we think that's likely to happen! But now you know a little bit of why we did that. The world can be an ugly place sometimes." Will gave his father an almost-smile and a nod. "Yeah. I guess part of me had processed that knowledge, but...I didn't know it, you know? Facts without experience. and...yeah. I know you wanted me to be able to stand on my own. If things ever got really bad. But...I don't think they will. Still. Maybe I'll at least be able to handle wacky time travel better." Now he's got a small, genuine smile on his face. "And just remember, we're always here for you." Paige pulled her son into a one-armed hug, resting her cheek against his shoulder. Used to be she could rest it against his hair, when had he gotten so tall, anyway? "Even if your father has to run us through time and space to come pick you up." She ruffled his hair, sensing him starting to relax. "Now, your sister's gone for the night, so how about we pop some popcorn and watch a movie with swear words in it?" she suggested playfully. "Now the only question is if they'll say-" He stopped talking and reddened a bit. "Um. You guys won't ground me if I maybe cussed a bit in the past, will you? Even if it's words I heard you guys use when you were mad and thought I was in bed?" Teenager, six-year-old, who can tell the difference when they're scared of consequences? "Boy, you're a superhero. You're allowed to use some goddamn swearwords from time to time. There's nothing you could say that would shock us." Richard, relaxing, punched his son lightly on the shoulder. Geez, how did this kid get to be so big? he thought to Paige. "Just not around your sister, we don't want her repeating any of that at school. C'mon," he suggested, "let's watch that thing with that guy with the eyebrows, the one you think your mom and I haven't seen."

To emphasize this point, his daughter, Raven II, is soon to become the headmaster at least part of the time, meaning that effectively you've got 2 Batmen running around, with their student (aka Robin/The-Batman-To-Be) also dashing about.

Thoughtspeed >Welcome to Earth >Can't Change Time >Back In The Day >Underwyrmed >A Little Friendly Competition >Triple Vignette with Fast-Forward and Hologram Cobalt Templar >Night Rings >A Cold Reception Nevermore >Braving the Lair >Tales from the FCPD: Dirty Money >Heavy Decisions >Next-Gen: Almost Heroes >Actions Speak >Apex Predators Gabriel (All Posts go to Nevermore, unless they would round out Thoughtspeed or CT's counts to the next PP tier) >First Contact >Firestorm >Mission of Mercy

Gabriel just smiled at Jay as she spoke up. "Of course, it would be my pleasure. I'll let you know what they're speaking, too, so that we can hopefully get some translators in here. As I said, I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner, but the brothers are getting the first of the aid packets put together now, so those will be out here shortly." With a bow and a smile to all present, Gabriel turned and moved in the direction Blue Jay had indicated, greeting anyone he met with a warm smile and a hello, while also asking around for the location of those who could not be understood by most or any of those present. Once given a direction, he would move toward that person or people. With his powers of communication, figuring out not only what was going on but what language they spoke would be comparatively easy.

Cobalt Templar reflexively snapped to something close to military attention for a long moment, before his eyes drifted down to the disk quivering in his construct. He blinked, tiny blue flames (or were they eyes still?) winking on and off as he did, until suddenly the backpack and firing assembly just weren't there any more. A small blue hand of fire caught the disk and carried it over to Trevor once again, gently laying it down on the console in front of the stoic crime-fighter. And then without a word Cobalt Templar was airborne, tracing a wide holding pattern over their area. Clearly on self-designated overwatch once again. But everyone could tell he was watching the whole proceeding like a hawk (albeit one of a size with most professional football players or wrestlers), ready to slam into the strange parka-wearing being at the first sign of trouble.

Without taking his eyes off the other being, Cobalt Templar gestured with one hand, and another hand of etheral blue flame reached down and picked up the priceless artifact-weapon, bringing it up to a pocket hidden under fire-forged armor that was quickly sealed away. "Well you get some faint thanks for finding it and then giving it up. How about this. You give us that shiny rock around your neck, and then we consider taking you to the pool. You ask your one question of the pool, then we take you away, and take the stone away somewhere else. Just one thing: Who is this "they" you are so worried about coming for this Night Stone?"

*Pokes thread*