Ari

Happy birthday TiffanyKorta. May all you hope come to pass and all you fear never be. I hope you see many happy returns to this day.

As GM I demand a reroll. Have a free HP for that purpose.

Round 4 Tsunami: Bruise(x1), 2HP Blodeuwedd: Bruise 2, 2HP Serpents(x4): Bruise(2x1, 1x2), Dazed(2), Staggered(1x1), Unharmed(x2)-GM Subito's Initiative: 9. Next round he goes after the two girls, before the Serpents.

"Don't worry, Mr. Willis! We won't so much as give anything a left cross unless it's absolutely necessary!" El Heraldo gave the man an enthusiastic thumbs-up before setting off into the enclosure, the Bandera slung over one shoulder with flag furled. As he marched in he added over his shoulder "Me and Why-Bee can heal stuff too, Your animals should be safe as Fort Knox with us." He was in good spirits, until they had to walk across the thick mud and noisome water. Heraldo grimaced in disgust as he felt the muck seep around his boots 'Argh. Yuck. Blegh...hey, Dama, can I fly, please? Will it benefit anyone but you? Uh...not really? Then no. But Dama Azul! If I fly, then everyone afflicted by Madame Malaise will be better defended! I can better bring Victory to the forces of Justice! It would be a dire thing if I remained earth-bound! It would be a worse thing if you lost your powers from selfishness. No. And shush. That is a stupid rule. It's gonna get me killed one of these days. You don't hear about Lady Liberty losing her powers because she didn't feel like walking to Freedom Hall, or dying because she was the only one fighting some bad guy, or, I dunno, catching some gross disease because her Spirit was a JERK and wouldn't let her fly! The Spirit of Liberty loses its power when bound by evil. You are comparatively lucky. Blagh, fine. You're not gonna weaken on that, so I'll drop it. But we're having a talk after this is over!' Engrossed in the mental debate, the patriotic young paragon didn't pay enough attention to their surroundings to see much that was going on, and it made what little information he knew about animals go far away into the hinterlands of his broodings. The colorfully costumed young man cut an odd figure, even next to the walking Union Jack that was Young Britannia. "Britannia, are there mosquitoes in England?" he asked, swatting several away from his face hot and sweaty face "'Cause if so, I'm thinkin' they might be a sign God doesn't like us too much. Think Malaise really will show up? " he added in a lower register.

For a heart-stopping moment, Roi dithered in place, head whipping back and forth as he struggled to make sense of what he could possibly do. They were caught between the hammer of policemen, and the anvil of the captain. The man would never help them, he was sure, unless Agnes...no, no, better not to think like that. What could he do? Attack? Attack the police? That was the worst thing they could do right now, it would compound their guilt! Barge into the captain's room? That would just make things worse. Hide the two of them? They might be able to sneak out, but that would also just make them look suspicious, and possessed of inhuman powers. Try to explain everything? Why would they listen? The last thing Roi wanted right then was to have to make a decision. However, some of his impulses were stronger than that, and being so comfortably nestled next to the lovely singer emboldened him like all too many young men before him had been, made foolish by the hope they could impress a beautiful woman. "Bonshoir, mon Captain" he said with a convivial grin "I was one of your passengers, vous rappeler? The tailor, who mended your, ah, jacket? I've, um" he made an exaggerated glance at his companion "I've forgotten something in my cabin, and I can't remember where it was. Can I see the guest list, please?"

'She could've just said "no". Is that so hard for Americans?' Osprey thought with a wry twist of his face. He had waited until he was shrouded in darkness to do that, though. As they arrived at the meeting place of the gang he had something else to ponder. "Ornate for a gang symbol" he commented aloud, giving a quick nod at the tattoos "Hidden meanin'? We'll find out in a minute I guess." he chuckled quietly, stepping back as he added "I'll stay in reserve, watch things from the roof. Yell if you need me." So saying he began to quickly and carefully make his way up the nearby wall, trusting the tech genius lad and Foreshadow wouldn't need much help for this part of the investigation. 'If not, then we are in bad straits. Just a few questions and we can be on our way...' with a last scrabble, he rolled over the lip of the roof and slid noiselessly over the edge watching the law, his goggled eyes glaring down at the scene, crouched like his namesake lying in wait, his cape swathed at his sides.

GM Listening carefully and with rapt attention, their hostess moved only to briefly nod as each small fact of the case was laid before her. When Blodeuwedd was through she sighed and rubbed her eyes "Thank you for telling me. I wouldn't have wanted to find out tomorrow, or next week. Whoever did this will be trying to cover their tracks as quick as they can." Leaning back in her chair deeply enough that her face was partially in shadow, Elaine regarded the fire for a moment longer, and spoke low and quickly "Everything points to that knight. I thought she seemed off from the first. Slipping away from any possible comrades, not even showing their face at the City Hall to pledge themselves to the mayor. Using a shadow-touched dagger. Killing an old creature who did him not the least evil." her eyes hardened "They're no true knight, they're a base, slinking free lance. And they can't be an elf, because no young lord or lady would dare leave Faerie without ten bells on the harness and a surcoat more splendid than the rainbow. Black armor? Never." Tapping long fingers on the armrests of the red chair, she asked carefully "'Stay out of the forest'...perhaps there is something in Wharton they don't want you to know about? There might, that is to say, I do not know, but have heard that there might be some passages to a sort of half-way world between yours and mine. Lets see, what about the other clues...the bit about windows doesn't seem much help, and the horse would only be useful after you find them. And now I think about it, why kill Mr. Boulder at all? If he knew something, why not just kidnap him? That way you would have even less to work with." Suddenly the crackling shadows reached for the ceiling in long spears, and she darted forward from her chair and gripped both their hands in hers, the stately woman's fingers like steel. In a soft voice she said "Please, Welshwoman, Crow, find who did this. And if it's not too much trouble, bring them to me."

GM Graft It wasn't very long before Graft spotted a hole in their routes. With that kid gone, they were wholly blind on the northeastern section of the streets facing their warehouse, and the other guards(mostly well-disguised as insolent layabouts) were evidently used enough to his being there that they didn't so much as bother to check. On the corner of the building was a side door, leading into one of the rooms adjacent to the main garage-like cavern. There he could easily strike from surprise. Had he happened to look up at the sky right about then, he would have been stunned at the distant sight of a galleon under full sail hurtling through the air towards the scene... Stormbreaker "Unidentified life-form, cap'n!" announced the same science officer, who was by now looking almost unhealthily excited "Protean, by the look of it, strong too, I've never seen this...hold on" its voice changed sharply from glee to unease "looks rather like a Grue specimen we encountered a while ago, back around Quintillion X you know that one that was, er, wearing that poor fellow underneath? Well there's a human in there. Somehow...compelling..." "I'll keep an eye out for another ship" it muttered, putting word into action as another eye emerged from its head and fixed on the appropriate screen.

GM At first the place seemed just like Riverside. Just on a dismal day. There were the shops and small offices, the curving street with its excellent view of both the Great Bay and the stately Riverside Park. The skyline looked about right, and the people looked more less like the bright, happy folks she'd seen a little while ago. The differences though, they started small and quickly came to overshadow everything that had felt familiar. The shops were all right, except for the painted-over anti gay-slur graffiti that most of the more risque bookstores and toy stores had, the cracked glass, the dirty alleys, and the offices all looked just a little rundown and seedier than before. As she passed the people, they gave her a wide berth and their smiles became much more fixed, and something like fear was in their eyes. On closer inspection many of them also seemed to be weary, their faces worn with stress and their bright clothes almost desperate. They edged away from her and averted their eyes from the light in her hand. As she looked, Young Britannia saw that the skyline was...less. There were fewer buildings than usual, and many of them looked either old and unkempt or new with harsh, glitzy lines. The homeless and beggars were on just about every street, nobody giving them a second glance as they hurried past. Riverside Park was murky and forbidding, with high tangled trees, almost like somebody had transplanted part of Wharton Forest onto the peninsula. The sky was dark. The blue a flat, muted gray with only the slightest hint of blue, like color had been leached from it. Clouds rolled over the city in huge oppressive bulwarks, throttling the sun into a pale shadow of itself. As she approached to two young men who darted against each other when they caught sight of the costumed heroine, one of them, the more elegant and darker of the pair, hesitantly asked her "Uh...hey. Um...are you with the Chessmen or some s***? Just askin'!" he added, jerking away and holding up his hands with a pathetically placating grin.

Shimmering with unearthly heat, the sword barely missed her target, instead cutting a divot out of the wall next to its head. Backpedaling with surprising grace for something encumbered by armor and swathed in heavy robes, the creature rejoined its comrades in the wall formation, eyes glinting with determination never to let them past! Just then, the earth trembled, just a fraction. Tsunami felt it strongest but from the faint burst of dust and slosh of water from a nearby ledge everyone could tell it wasn't their imagination. The Serpent Queen's eyes widened behind her fiery shield, and she began hurriedly dragging Subito away with her despite his struggles, her voice beginning in a whisper "The mountain growsss impatient...I never thought it wasss ssso insssatiable. Viracocha!" she cried all of a sudden, raising the claw holding the orb up to a pale ray shining from the open roof that grew brighter and fiercer before their eyes, wisps of flame curling around her feet as she exclaimed "<Viracocha...give me your speed!>" With a roar the fire burst out and surrounded her body and that of her captive, wings forming that swept her down the corridor in a cataclysm of noise and heat, racing out of the palace with a trail like a booster rocket! The flames exploded around the heroines and their enemies, the shock and concussive force smashing one bodily against the wall, setting alight two more, and only the last desperately slamming itself down onto the ground escaped the onslaught! Outside, the Queen and Subito landed, the Serpent panting with surprise and glee that stamped itself on her monstrous head, for a few seconds not paying as much heed as she should have. That was all the chance the young man needed, as he leaped out of her grip and strained with all his might against the metal chains on his arms, face reddening as it groaned and stretched...until with a crack that echoed in the mountain air the shackles tore apart! He dropped to one knee, gasping but looking at his captor with a defiant gleam in his eye. "Break that collar, boy, if you are so mighty. Or burn here before I drag you there" she pointed at the now-smoking caldera "I need only a living victim...not a whole one!"

A miss. The Serpent Queen decides to alter the battleground. Using the orb she flies off towards the far exit, trailing fire that roars through the corridor. DC18 Reflex saves to avoid or diminish the DC23 Toughness save. The Fangs of Yig get a 19, a 13, a 10 and a 25. Their Toughness rolls: 13, 15, 26. And 17. One's Staggered and Dazed, two are Dazed and Bruised, and one is unharmed. Outside, Subito tries again to break free, inflicting a DC20 Toughness save on the bonds(not mystic, that is a mistake): 10. They are Disabled, and thus he is more or less freed. Except for the lock on his powers, of course.

Sure. Notice 18. Life Sciences 3.

Supercape, I'm actually perfectly fine with the idea of Tylluan just being a total out-of-nowhere random event that comes and goes by his own weird whims. That and I'm not really sure he could really do much worth doing right now. The thread's supposed to get the team together, after all, and tangents are nobody's friend in these kinds of stories. He works pretty well as an initial example of the kind of craziness they can expect, the stuff that badly complicates rather simple cases like this. And yeah what about Big Nelson?

Player Name: Arichamus Character Name: Kortex Khan Power Level: 11 (170/170PP) Trade-Offs: +5 Defense/ -5 Toughness Unspent Power Points: 0 In Brief: Sour princely seeker of dissent and rebellion in the Stellar Khanate. Son of Mind and Soul. Abilities: 0 + 0 + 0 + 18 + 14 + 6 = 38PP Strength: 10 (+0) Dexterity: 10 (+0) Constitution: 10 (+0) Intelligence: 28 (+9) Wisdom: 24 (+7) Charisma: 16 (+3) Combat: 16 + 10 = 26PP Initiative: +9 Attack: +8 Melee, +11 Ranged Grapple: +8 Defense: +16 (+5 Base, +11 Dodge Focus), +2 Flat-Footed Knockback: -3 Saving Throws: 4 + 5 + 8 = 17PP Toughness: +6 (+0 Con, +2 Defensive Roll, +4 Force Field, +4/0 Impervious) Fortitude: +4 (+0 Con, +4) Reflex: +5 (+0 Dex, +5) Will: +15 (+7 Wis, +8) Skills: 76R = 19PP Bluff 9 (+12) Concentration 11 (+18) Intimidate 9 (+12) Languages 2(Lor Galactic Standard, Grue, Zultasian(Native)) Knowledge(Arcane Lore) 6 (+15) Knowledge(Civics) 5 (+14) Knowledge(Galactic Lore) 6 (+15) Knowledge(Tactics) 11 (+20) Knowledge(Technology) 4 (+13) Pilot 10 (+10) Notice 3 (+10) Sense Motive 9 (+16) Feats: 23PP Attack Focus(Ranged) 3 Defensive Roll Dodge Focus 11 Equipment 5 (25PP) Master Plan Ritualist Skill Mastery(Knowledge(Arcane Lore), Knowledge(Tactics), Pilot, Sense Motive) Second Chance(Concentration Checks) Speed of Thought Powers: 16 + 36 + 3 + 11 = 66PP Device 4(20PP Device; Hard-to-Lose)[16PP] Datalink 8(2,500ft., Mental Senses; Flaws: Action(Standard))[4PP] Force Field 4(Extras: Impervious 4)[8PP] Immunity 9(Life Support)[9PP] Mind of Stars Array 15(30PP Array, Feats: Alternate Power 6)[36PP] Base Power: Mind Reading 11(Extras: Area(Burst), Selective; Power Feats: Subtle; Flaws: Action(Full-Round), Distracting)[12PP] + ESP 18(Anywhere in the same galaxy, Visual Senses, Mental Senses; Flaws: Action(Full-Round), Distracting, Feedback)[18PP] =[30PP] AP: Communication 18(Anywhere in the same galaxy, Mental(Psychic); Extras: Area(; Flaws: Distracting; Power Feats: Selective)[19PP] + Comprehend 5(Languages: Read, Speak all(one at a time), Understand all, Spirits; Extras: Affect Others, Area; Flaws: Duration(Sustained), Requires Check(Concentration, DC15); Power Feats: Selective)[11PP] = 30PP AP: Emotion Control 14(Extras: Area(Burst), Range(Perception), Selective Attack; Flaws: Action(Full-Round), Distracting, Tiring; Power Feats: Mind Blank, Subtle)[30PP] AP: Mental Blast 11(Flaws: Distracting, Tiring; Feats: Knockback 4(DMG 15), Sedation, Subtle, Split Attack 2)[30PP] AP: Mental Transform 10(Alter memories and recollections; Extras: Duration(Continuous), Range(Perception); Flaws: Distracting)[30PP] AP: Mind Control 10(Extras: Area(Burst), Effortless, Selective Attack; Flaws: Action(Full-Round), Distracting)[30PP] AP: Paralyze 11(Extras: Range 2(Perception); Flaws: Action (Full-Round), Distracting; Power Feats: Knockback 4(DMG15), Slow Fade 4(Check every 5 minutes)[30PP] Quickness 3(Mental Tasks only; x10)[3PP] Super-Senses 11(Mental Senses: Accurate, Acute, Analytical, Extended 1, Counters Illusion, Radius, Rapid 2(x100))[11PP] DC Block ATTACK RANGE SAVE EFFECT Blaster Cannons Ranged DC25 Toughness (Staged) Damage(Physical) Blaster pistol Ranged DC20 Toughness (Staged) Damage(Physical) Emotion Control Perception DC24 Will Emotion Changed Mental Blast Perception DC26 Will Damage (Mental) Mental Transform Perception DC20 Will Memories Altered Mind Reading Perception DC1d20+11 vs. Will Mind Read Paralyze Perception DC21 Fortitude (Staged) Paralyzed/Slowed Totals: Abilities (38) + Combat (36) + Saving Throws (17) + Skills (19) + Feats (12) + Powers (66) - Drawbacks (0) = 185/185 Power Points As with the rest, Kortex Khan is assumed to have whatever Equipment or Minions he needs for a given enterprise. His preferred craft when not using the Mindship is a small fighter at around PL10, and his weapons average around PL4. He's not a frontline fighter by any means.

GM The young man seemed to shrink up inside himself, looking away bitterly "Yeah but...look, you won't tell anyone? Mom doesn't care where the grocery money comes from, but she pro'lly will if she finds out I was some hood..." What he did know came quickly to light: in about fifteen minutes a small boat would arrive that would carry the contents of the truck somewhere down the coast, part of a lengthy relay. Whatever was in the boxes was apparently a closely-guarded secret, to the point where even his boss and the driver didn't know. But it was very, very dangerous. However, that meant that they would be that much quicker to consider giving up before something bad happened to them, too. "...An' there's a weak spot in the shield around the truck, me and the guys used to drop crates on it for fun on night shifts. Right by the driver's door. Uh..." he looked down "Can I go now?"

DC20 Notice rolls, please. Each of them feels, for a fleeting few seconds, something amiss, but it's hard to put the finger on what's wrong.

GM Rojas was taking a sip of water when Kimber spoke, and nearly choked as she spluttered with laughter, hastily swooping her head away from the map to keep it dry. Recovering slowly, she turned back and said with the odd flicker of a grin "Actually, Indira, from what I've read there was something important about the Caliph's ring. At least symbolically. You see, in the old days rings that a ruler wore would be rare, prized possessions, and when Abd-ar-Rahman was named the former Caliph's successor, the Emir Abdullah gave him his ancestral ring. Abdullah had several children to choose from yet passed over them all to a grandson, so this was a weighty gesture, to say the least. And that's a fair point Corbin, could certainly be that's what the idea in the story was; the ring as a symbol of the past or his ancestors or right to rule and letting the water work its magic. Authority in fairy tales is odd." "And don't ask me about English grammar" she added with a slightly pained expression "I...still get confused sometimes. And I am older than all of you combined. As for locations...north of here?" Tia shrugged with an apologetic look, raising her voice to speak over the din "Between two rivers at the rise of the Moon" is as good as I have from an older source. I was planning on just heading into one of the park's river valleys with more than average ghost stories. Our presence" her dark eyes caught Corbin's for a moment "and the Blue Ring's might get its attention. Or we just might catch them in the act." She leaned back in her chair, flicking some of the more extraneous folds of the map closed "You already have a place to stay, I'm guessing?"

GM Hissing with frustrated hunger, the shadows' coils had lashed out only to be turned by the shield of light that bound around Young Britannia, their limbs flung back with muted shrieks like something from far away in a tunnel. Thus repelled, one of them drew back and shifted a wavering hand into a blade, using it to carve through the sky itself and open a black gash in the air, blackness roiling in impenetrable depths. It was distracted, though, and a distracted enemy was a weakened enemy, and the Light never shunned a chance to destroy the darkness! Agnus's bolt of light smashed through it, the creature's dying wail of surprise and pain warping crazily as it was hurled into the portal. Then things got a little weird. As the mingled power of Light and Shadow met the blackness of the Schattenwelt. an explosion of power burst from it, a white blaze slashed with the waves of black that curled around the primal combatants and dragged them into the portal, the power of Light burning the shadows as the Shadow tore at the very roots of Young Britannia's power like a forest of hooks. All was black, inky, cold, but the champion of Freedom could sense that somehow she was traveling, sheathed in a dying ember of cold, pure whiteness smothered out of sight in the oppressive cold and silence broken only by faint whispers and the feeling of hateful eyes. How long this was Agnus couldn't say, but just as the power was starting to flicker away...she burst out of the dimension of darkness, and slammed headfirst onto a flat plane of hard asphalt. All around her were the familiar buildings of Riverside, though they were off in a way that wasn't immediately obvious. It was rough, had cut her cheek, and was grimy and cold, but after the eerie depths of Shadow's Stronghold it was a blessed relief. The sky was cloudy, sirens wailed in the distance, and she could tell at once that something was wrong. The Light's presence was...weak.

DC30 TOU save: 15. They are out! And now for the GM Fiat. Have a Hero Point Tiff.

GM Elias could not. It was more than the sensory confusion caused by the chocolate, something hung in the air, like an invisible gauze that warped and twisted like sound in a fog. It had definitely not been there even twenty seconds ago. In only about fifteen more minutes, counting the wait for the road to be cleared and the people ahead to reclaim their vehicles(bringing many a despairing cry of "My car!" to their ears, though most of them were quickly followed by "...Oh thank god, that came off pretty easy...") they had arrived at the parking lot, Pao calling out in relief "Alright people, we're here! Sorry for the trouble Ambassador Okoro" he added with a wry glance to her as they approached the wrought-iron gates of Claremont Academy. The Dakanan national flag(A gold-green-red tricolor emblazoned with the roaring head of a white lion) hung over the arch leading into the main quad, and a small lineup of the faculty and the other international students stood under it to formally welcome Aidah to the school. Seeing the vehicle pull up most of them set out at once to meet the new arrivals. "Hey there, welcome to Freedom!" rang through the air. Some of the politer students added the 'City' part and the hope that the party had had a fine trip. The African delegation disembarked with a grateful smile to their student defenders, and their stately leader shook Mr. Pao's hand warmly "Never fear, I shall echo Lady Sesay: if that is what even half the days here are like, I look forward to my stay in Freedom! Thank you for driving us, by the way, I enjoyed the route very much." Turning to the tight-lipped telepath and artful agent, she smiled and inclined her head "My thanks to you as well, you are a credit to the school, I trust you and Aidah will have plenty of time to get better acquainted. She could use the friends," she added candidly and with lowered voice "especially ones who try to keep her in line like you do. Her mother and father are strict, but..that does not always work with the wayward. Best of luck, and keep an eye out for that woman, whoever she was. Good day to you!"

'Well, it would be pretty bad if the city's law enforcement didn't know about the latest criminal trends,' Alden thought to himself 'especially given how...explosive some of them can get'. He nodded slightly to the detective in a minute gesture of understanding, wondering uneasily if the strange sensation of a ghostly presence was just the result of spending so long in a place as simultaneously peaceful and crime-stricken as Freedom City, and frequently coming face-to-face with the deaths that(he'd heard) often resulted from the mix. He struggled not to roll his eyes 'In fact, maybe it's all just an overactive imagination...no, doesn't change. Something's off, won't learn what around her' He chimed in after Archer's last weary words "I'd ask if we could tag along...but I'm not the one to do that. New to the town." With that said he kept quiet, though he did glance at Net Fly in surprise when the young man casually mentioned searching the internet and tapped something on his suit. Alden knew that incredibly small and light devices could access the wireless internet these days, but it honestly had not occurred to him that such light-weight outfit could do that reliably. 'I am, perhaps, not so well-versed in tech as I ought to be. Need to brush up there. Not going to let Synapse be the sole word on that subject.' "Lead on" he added placidly "we'll give those drug-running birds a nasty surprise..."

Graft realizes that the kid does not actually seem to know any of this. It's like he's stringing together phrases he's heard before to sound like he knows what he's talking about.

GM The man yelped in surprise, but by that point shouting was useless and he knew it. Dangling in front of a green insectile monster, he was clearly years younger than Tyrone, probably just a little more than sixteen, the boy nonetheless managed a desperate sneer and said "It's out of your reach, buddy. The only way you can get to the switch is if you can get to the driver, and no way can you do that. They'll see you coming and shoot you down!" "And don't bother trying to get me to do it, I'm protected" he added proudly "just give me a hard pinch and everyone down there will know it. And even if you do manage to figure some way around that, that field's a solid wall for anyone without the right DNA! You'll break that truck before you get through!" The helpless thug smiled with shaky confidence.

Comrade thug gets a 5. Disarmed.

Well it isn't odd that they're jackasses, just that they're mostly the same kind. That'll get old. If you wish I'll change mine and so not be quite so hypocritical as I am right now.