KnightDisciple

Cobalt Templar sat directly across from Stratos, apparently striving for a patient and understanding expression. When he had a moment, he spoke. "Before we go any further, Doctor, I wish to apologize for my rash and thoughtless comment earlier in our...disagreement. I did not realize it was you, but rather had thought you were either Zeus, or some entity of a nature similar to said being who was trying to co-opt the name. Had I realized it was you, I would not have chosen those words." He would have used something more like "stop there Stratos", but that was just assumed in this business. "And I'm not here to laugh at you. While I do think you need help, I don't take it as a laughing matter. And as for Blackstar, I never took him to be so much of a learned man as one with raw power. I do understand the concern with replacement robots; I have direct experience with how...unsettling that can be. I would perhaps have looked for something besides an electrocution for a test, but perhaps that's a matter of style..." He paused, mulling his next words. "Do you think Blackstar will try to usurp your place? In the League, I mean. None of the rest can truly replace you, but of them, he seems the sort who thinks he ought to be in charge, at least. But will the others stand for it?"

(GM Post) At first, the room was quiet and still. Empty of anything but the desk, chair, and laptop, which was glowing softly with the light of a screensaver. Until either their presence, a quirk in the electrons, or perhaps an unconscious "poke" from one of the technopaths shook the computer awake. For a moment it just sat at a desktop display, before a black screen with green letters came on for a moment. That was all for a good 45 seconds... And then it began to play a >series of videos. The heroes would be able to pause, stop, and rewind. But after a time the system would gently force it to continue. As if it wanted or needed them to watch it all.

Private Lab, Basements, Castle Katastrof, Katastrof Valley, Sweden October 10, 2013 No one is in the lab when the camera fully activates. No motion is detected. Except for the motion of the computer screen as numbers, diagrams, and symbols flow across it at incredible speeds. This goes on for several minutes, with some of the screens lingering on the plans for the Curator Drones, the Fenris armors, and the newest nanotech designs. But other systems were seen briefly too. It was perhaps 30 minutes into this display that the door to the lab began to open and everything went still. The Baron walked in, a puzzled look on his face as he cast his gaze about. "I was sure I got a funny feeling off the firewalls..." He scowled at the screens, a wave of his hand activating them, which just displayed an empty desktop with nothing in particular displayed. He stared for a moment, then sighed and shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "Not enough sleep, too much coffee, too many solo workdays. Ought to make a tour of the facilities in the country. Yes, note to self, tour the labs and headquarters buildings. Hm. Perhaps if I do it right I can get to the place going over the Curator drones in about a month. Yes, that's an excellent idea. Excellent indeed." Muttering to himself as much as into the voice notes app on his phone, the Baron wandered out into the hall, the door closing and locking behind him. Perhaps 75 seconds passed before the screens shot to life once more. The video recording, meanwhile, has a lock icon in one corner, indicating it is encrypted. Perhaps an hour later, everything calmed down, the screens fading away to blackness once again. Before briefly flaring up a simple symbol made of 3 dots, the darkness quickly overtaking the displays again.

Won't be around much today or tomorrow. Social activity, parties, gaming, church, etc.

Mostly fleshed out now. Version 0.6 or so I'd say. (spoilered to make scrolling easier)

"I thought I had an idea of what kinds of gnarly things I'd find in a back alley when I first came to this city." Gabriel snorts and shakes his head. "Boy was I wrong. A party like this is great because if anything is "weird", it's a harmless weird. Instead of face-eating demons or back-stabbing fae or laser-spewing gangsters." Gabriel sobered a bit at the shop talk, nodding absentmindedly. "I think they're hearing rumors you, me, and the other folks who watch Southside are "away". And while I have gone on some rather interesting trips, some of which you've been on, and I do spend some time in seclusion elsewhere, it's not enough that I won't catch every rumor on the street anyways. Most of the folks down in Southside are good, honest folks, and seem to dislike the...intruders. A lot of the less savory elements that have been in that area for a while are quieting down, and they don't like people "muscling in". Gotta love territory fights making things easier. And yeah. Right now it's just a trickle; left alone it might become a flood." He grinned at the helm comment. "Just like in fashion and acting, accessorizing is key in heroics." Gabriel reached his free hand out to shake Foreshadow's. Some back part of his brain said "familiar", but he dismissed it. They wore masks for a reason! He was smart enough to know this wasn't the first Foreshadow, but as far as he was concerned it didn't matter either way. And it kept the criminals guessing. "We try to go where we're needed. Sometimes that's the back alleys and warehouses of Southside. Sometimes it's the world of the Fae. And the name's Gabriel. We haven't met, but I've heard of your work, Foreshadow. Extremely impressed, and more than a bit humbled. Reputation's almost everything in this business and you've got quite the rep." Gabriel's smile indicated the reputation was all good. Well, from the hero perspective. Criminals probably had less kind things to say but no one really paid that any heed.

There had been a bit of a rush for the food, but the space provided was large, and heroes tended to be polite. When they got to the tables, Gabriel was thoughtful enough to hand Cannonade an empty plate along with some silverware and a couple of napkins. "You're on your own for the actual food and your drink, though." He gave a grin before starting to load up his own plate. Lots of meat and carbs, though a sprinkling of semi-healthy stuff. "Gotta keep up the energy...anyways. Heard about you busting the chops of a bunch of gun-runners down in Southside. I swear, they're like weeds! I just took down three separate groups of them last month. At least the folks down there have you and me looking after them, right?" He smirked and tapped his helmet, producing a metallic "ping". "Guys with our impeccable taste in headgear gotta back each other up."

William nodded. At super-speed at first, but then he reigned it in a bit. "So teams happen but aren't forced. That's cool. Guess that makes thing more organic or something. Probably best teachers don't make us patrol in forced groups. Might get awkward." He lapses silent for a moment before continuing. "You mention hand-to-hand classes, and I'd totally like to take some, maybe you could give me pointers, but do we have any folks here who know how to use swords and stuff? Because that's what I want more lessons on! You know why?" He rushes out ahead of the group and turns around, walking backwards. There's a flicker, and suddenly dark green light flows out of his hands and solidifies into twin blades. "I can make swords. With my brain! Isn't that totally cool?" He's clearly very impressed with himself, and proceeds to do a couple flourishes with the blades. For all that he's blatantly a hormonal 16-year-old boy showing off to a pretty girl he wants to impress, it's clear to Mali that he has at least some measure of skill with his mind-blades. Now they just have to hope he doesn't run backwards into someone.

William was a 16-year old self-assured speedster, but he wasn't completely stupid. He could tell that going full-speed-ahead wouldn't work here. So half-speed-ahead it was! He gave Mali another smile, more subdued this time. "Yeah. Let's check this place out!" He resisted the urge to try and follow his father; he just didn't have the speed to do such a thorough survey. "What kind of superpower classes are there here? I mean, we get all the standard boring school classes, but what about the awesome stuff? Do we get set up on super-teams by the teachers or something? Sent on hero patrol?" The last question's not one to ease a parent's mind! "How long have you been coming here, Mali?"

Rolling that tuna! Knowledge (Arcane Lore): 14. Knowledge (History): 11. Notice: 13.

The Baron frowned, before his face fell a bit. "Unless this is a two-for-one deal for them. What if there's something in the ruins they want, and they're also stealing all our tech at the same time? Who knows what sort of strange ancient thing is down there..." He trailed off as the craft started moving in to the shore where they were, before swearing in Swedish. "We've got a presumably-hostile craft incoming. We're pulling back, now." With a thought he muted his microphone and turned to the students, his voice ringing out clearly and authoritatively. "Right then everyone, back to the bunkhouse. Now. No delays." He gave the adults a significant look that communicated the urgency of the situation. Now if he could just find a place to change.

Notice Check: 18. Disgustingly average. Like a peasant.

Private Lab, Basements, Castle Katastrof, Katastrof Valley, Sweden July 15, 2013 Today the Baron was studying a set of schematics of his armor, tapping his chin in thought. "It strikes me that it could be useful to allow some level of autonomous operation in my suits. Perhaps linked to my existing abilities with machines? The question isn't so much the communication; I could rig that up through my palmtop. No, the issue is in the armor having sufficient smoothness in its motive process without a physical body backing up the mental commands. Two options present themselves." As always, schematics seem to flow onto the screens. "One is to set up completely distinct "suits" that are actually based on a solid metal frame. The advantage is that they will likely be a bit more robust, and definitely easier to build. The downside is that if the transmission system breaks down, I couldn't call them onto my person to take over manually. The other, ultimately more enticing option, is to create a small "reservoir" on the back to hold a supply of Computronium nanites that can filter into the suit to provide a solid framework. This would also allow said frame to carry some basic commands if I am incapacitated. And if I decided to don the suit, it's just a few moments and the nanites are stored, and I am once again wearing the suit. Even better, I could likely re-task them to carry out repairs, or, in a desperate situation, perhaps rig up some sort of temporary device on or in the armor for an unforeseen situation. Though on that front I may try to create a few modules I could use to quickly augment the suit; my unique mode of transportation ensures I could quickly mount said modules with minimal interruption in operation. Either way, the firewalls in the suit's system would need to be near-legendary. The last thing I want is this technology falling into the control of some other individual or group. While not the most potent in and of itself, between the nanites, if I go that route, and the motive systems, it could be quite disastrous."

Private Lab, Basements, Castle Katastrof, Katastrof Valley, Sweden June 21, 2013 Magnus all but ran into the same lab room as before, the door locking behind him and all the computers and screens whirring to life even as he sat down. His face was filled with near-manic glee. He was all but laughing. "I can't believe I didn't realize the solution sooner! I was working with mundane materials! Base metals from just our ball, using only the brilliant science and metallurgy I conjured up with my own two hands and one brain! I never considered inspiration from the stars!" He typed at near-lightning speed, diagrams flowing onto the monitors very rapidly. "Reports from the teenage heroes who confronted the physical vessel of the Curator indicated it damaged the Centurion's Sanctum with large "tentacles" made of Computronium. But when myself and a host of other scientific experts were there, only the stumps of said "limbs" were present. Why, we asked? The answer was: nanotechnology! It turns out that what was originally observed to be "solid" Computronium was, in fact, a mass of nanites! This allowed the interface with the Sanctum computer systems, and this was why said "tentacles" seemed to dissolve after the deactivation of the vessel! The entire thing was just a bunch of nanomachines holding a single larger shape! What's critical here is the size of the individual nanomachines we recovered!" The screen now displays two pictures. One is of a device that seems both advanced and crude; clearly tiny and self-mobile, but with many distinctive small parts. The other is a much more streamlined device, one that seems to actually change a bit each passing second. It's also one-third the size of the other device. "The nanites used by the Curator seem to actually be composed of a "core" of a few pristine molecules of Neo-Silver for power storage and reception, with the rest being molecules of Computronium that can re-arrange themselves to fit a particular signal! I sadly don't have the advanced capability to create the equivalent, but I think I can make something close for now, a sort of "in-between" stage. If so, it could prove an incredible boon for short and long term medical care! You could shore up holes in the cardiovascular system, re-inflate collapsed lungs, rebuild atrophied muscles, and so much more!" A third designs, halfway between the sizes of the other two, starts to take shape on the screen, though it's a much rougher schematic at the moment. Seemingly unbidden, the camera shifts focus slightly, zooming in on this new design.

At this moment she cannot detect any organic life signs, but she can clearly tell the signal stops about 50 feet further down the hall. Its range is greater behind them, but not much greater out to the sides. EDIT: Have an HP for it not working despite the Penetrates Concealment! I mean, not that you're going to need a giant stack of Hero Points. No sir. >_>

"Considering the Indigo Ring was supposed to grant powers related to the mind? You're right, it's quite possible it was...hm." Corbin's frown deepened. "Obviously it didn't take bank numbers or the like. So it was searching for something else...perhaps their more generic memories of the area? The appearances do strongly suggest there's some sort of search pattern going on, rather than a simple A to B journey. But they're still moving along a path..." Corbin looked to the woman who was somewhere between "mentor" and "peer". "Tia, do you have any local legends about artifacts in the area? Especially items that would relate to light, darkness, or the mind? Perhaps something that was taken on a journey of some sort?"

Will had had decidedly mixed feelings about coming to Claremont. On the one hand, superhero school! But he would know no one, and who knows what "superhero school" really meant these days. Any misgivings left his mind when he was introduced to Mali. But, William Cline had his manners. He first greeted the Vice-Principal, briefly shaking her hand. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Dugan. Thanks bunches for setting up the tour; way more awesome than some boring tests in that little office. It didn't even have a window!" He then turns to Mali and gives her a thousand-watt smile (or at least, that's what it looks like in his mind, the actual charm level may vary). "Miss Benjawan, it is my inestimable pleasure to make your acquaintance." He made sure to smile for the camera; always good to practice getting good shots in. He reached over and patted his precocious sister on the head as she complained, a more natural smile on his face. "Well, your school's pretty awesome too, squirt. But you know me; I gotta run around all the time anyways, so I might as well run back and forth to class and my room, right?"

For an example of how this could look, check out my signature link to Thoughtspeed. He has several Containers for his powers, because a.) it's handy, and b.) I'm a bit obsessive about organizing that stuff.

Gabriel saw Cannonade walk in and went over almost right away. He offered the other man a smile and a handshake. "If the party's not over you're not late! Glad to see you here, Cannonade. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you as well! You actually got here right at the perfect time! Fleur just opened up the food for us, so I hope you came hungry!" The man inspired by an archangel seemed to think for a moment before starting to head that way himself. "I'm a bit hungry myself, anyways, so we can walk and talk if you'd like. Plenty of other folks here enjoying the party, feel free to mingle!"

"I'll take you at your word, Miss Maxima!" When she mentions food, he takes a moment to point her in the right direction. "There are a couple of small side rooms that normally serve as meeting rooms over there. Tonight that's where the caterers are with the whole host of foods. If it matters, we have vegan, kosher, and halal options. As for missing you in a crowd, I have a feeling a lot of us are going to stand out rather nicely in a crowd." Says the man wearing silver metal armor and a white leather coat with a Santa hat on his helmet. Gabriel blinked, and took a quick look around. He pointed to a corner of the main area. "Those chairs are anchored to the wall, and my understanding is they're rated for those with higher-than-normal body density and the like. Hopefully that should accommodate you." After that final bit of advice, Gabriel himself wandered into the slowly-growing crowd, looking to greet and mingle a bit more.

The Baron held up a finger to the Agent, speaking into his headset for a moment. "Other than the hack, nothing is happening on the surface. I'm having the students disengage and go toward the village or the vehicles, as a precaution. Beyond that, I'm watching someone act like our firewalls aren't there, and I don't know about you but it is kind of annoying. I'm getting a bit tired of being hacked." Both tech titans had been compromised a while ago, by the Foundry. A sudden thought occurred to the Swedish man, and he paled (no mean feat for his complexion). "You don't think it's the same group compromising us, do you?" As he spoke, the Baron pulled out his collapsible tablet PC from its holster and opened it, rapidly typing a message to the Agent in the notepad.

"Velocity really stepped up with the planning an execution, but Doctor Metropolis and Fleur de Joie also helped a lot. It was completely a team effort. As for 'off-limits', the downstairs here, the museum, and a couple of the smaller and larger side rooms are kind of the 'party area'. Some of the more sensitive upstairs stuff is locked down. Unless you tore through a wall or something-" Which seemed entirely possible with her build. "-You don't have anything to worry about. If you're not supposed to get in an area, the door just won't open for you. We made sure there were extra signs up for directions, too. Took me a month to get used to the layout here. If you're really keen on looking at some of the more operation-geared parts, we could see about a small tour for some folks later on. At the moment we're all a bit busy with the meet and greet." Gabriel had nodded and/or waved to other heroes he knew as they entered while he conversed with the heroine who could probably dribble him like a basketball.

Gabriel slowly walked over to one side of the hall, making sure they weren't in a lane of foot traffic. It seemed an unconscious gesture, meant to ensure easy entrance and movement for others. "It's nice to meet you, Maxima. As for knowing people here, well, that's the point of the party, isn't it? To "meet and greet" as some might say. Besides, even I don't know everyone here at the party, just the folks I work with somewhat regularly." He raised an eyebrow at her nerves, but smiled warmly. "I was scared stiff when I arrived for the first time as well. Then to have to actually interview, almost like a job? Even more intimidating! I think this is a lot better. This is just food, fun, and friends."

Only 2 formatting suggestions pop out. 1.) For your Stats, write them like this: Strength: 14/12 (+2/+1) Dexterity: 24/18 (+7/+4) Constitution: 16/14 (+3/+2) Intelligence: 16 (+3) Wisdom: 14 (+2) Charisma: 14 (+2) In this, the first number is the enhanced/highest score, while the second/last number is the natural score you buy with points in Abilities (as opposed to Powers). 2.) With the Power Names (Feline Power, Shadowjump, etc), take the flavor name and put it at the end, perhaps like this: Teleport 4 (9 PP Array, Feats: Alternate Power 1) [10 PP] (Mutation) ("Shadowjump")

To clarify, the "message" in the IC is coming over Datalink. In case there's any confusion.