Ari

And now Greenscale Attacks the Pinned Subito. It hits automatically, with a DC20 TOU save for him: 8! Staggered and Dazed. Greenscale can do that again, with another DC20 TOU save: 8 again. You know, ordinarily that would suit me fine, but not right now. Rerolling that(Subito is at 3HP): 23. Wowzers. Okay then, his Daze passes. Greenscale tries for a Chokehold. Subito's DC15 Fortitude save: 16. He attempts to escape the Pin: 26. Greenscale's Opposed roll: 22. He is freed. Round is: Greenscale: Unharmed-GM Subito: Staggered, 3HP Greenscale has had it with this wrestling thing and tries for an Attack: 29. Subito tries to withstand that with a 24. He is Bruised and Dazed. Greeny attacks again. 17. Miss. Subito counterattacks with an Accurate Attack(+3 Attack -3 Damage): 31. -2 from, fighting underwater makes 29, still hits. DC20 TOU save: 15. Bruised and Dazed.

GM With a sudden whirl, the dark mass overcame him. The air he breathed stank and clung to his throat, burning as Asad felt the mutagen particles try and burrow into him, to spread through through the man's body and invade his every cell, striving blindly to obey its carefully-machinated edict. A stray strand of hair swung before his eyes, and suddenly turned a loathsome, luminous white before twisting off his head and squirming away into the depths. At last Amir reached the innermost point of the purplish cloud. The pain was receding, but in its place was a worrying deadness and calm. His super-tough body was probably absorbing the agent's energy and thus any power it had, but things being what they were this was hardly a surety. Everything was darkness, roiling emptiness. Nothing remained but to do what he was set on. And see if this miasma was everything he had been told.

GM "Exactly." replied the crisply accented voice of Dupont as the spare man marched into view. He was dressed in his usual dark grey and cold blue suit, black hair and thick mustache bristling in the pale sun and his blue eyes narrowed. Under one arm he carred a small package supporting several sheets of paper. Pausing as he reached the quartet he looked them over "Antoinette, Elias, Michael, Samantha...good." Nodding shortly, he retrieved the pages and began sorting through them, thin fingers darting to and fro as he went on "I had hoped to get here before your fifth member, Amanda Green, arrived. The purpose of this 'extracurricular whatchacallit' as Michael terms it is intended for her benefit. Yours as well, of course" he added with a brief glance up at the students "but hers primarily. According to her instructors she is even more socially awkward and uneasy around people than most with her sort of abilities. In the path of life we aim to prepare your for it will often be not only necessary but vital that you work with people because you must rather than because you like them or want to; early exposure to the sorts of extreme personalities, differing worldviews and philosophical stances can only help acclimate you to this idea more speedily." He handed the pages around, two blue sheets stapled together(though the students also found the tell-tale marks of Atom-grade bonding sites) and with two dense blocks of text separated by several empty lines. Taped to each front sheet was a button-sized device. "The exercise is as follows," Dupont continued, leaning against one of the nearby trees and watching the paths like a hawk "you and Amanda will make their way to Southside and investigate a recent outbreak of bizarre thefts, which eyewitnesses claim were carried out by large robotic chessmen. Somehow." Dupont suppressed his evident desire to roll his eyes, instead shifting to lean his other shoulder against the foliage. "After observing the thief's pattern this month-" he paused and clarified rapidly "the robots gave no sign of any sort of artificial intelligence, they acted as though following pre-programmed instructions, so we believe one mastermind is all who's behind this. Anyway, the thief strikes around this time each Monday, give or take an hour or so. if you can, either draw out the controller from hiding or follow the machines back to their lair. I am sure you will know best how to handle a machine-controller, so I won't tell you your business...except to say this: it doesn't matter how quickly or how efficiently you act on your own, but if you can work as a group to defang and defeat this threat, and do it well, it will be a concrete sign to us that you are improving in more ways than just raw skill and power." The instructor stepped away from the tree, watching one of the other students fly unsteadily over the quad, wings scattering glittering motes as he weaved above them. "If by some unimaginable circumstance you find yourselves losing, those little buttons will instantly transport you out of whatever peril you've been trapped in, and the beacons will let the authorities clean up after you. Yes Samantha, I know you can teleport, but we want all of you out at once."

The light reflecting off the dead man's paling skin did funny things. For one, it gave the corpse an almost luminous air, like the two were gathered before the body of somebody wholly unlike the man Hatchet had been just hours ago. The frozen eyes made Roi feel also like he was being weighed on some invisible scale, making fumbling hands even clumsier. For another it made the cheap matchbook paint feel even shabbier than it was. That didn't do anything for the words it carried though. Roi was briefly unable to speak when he realized what they said(taking a moment to puzzle over the word 'Dawn'), as it cast everything that had happened recently in an even worse light. What had Hatchet been doing in France? Why had he come back now of all times? Agnes had said that her love had died only a short time ago, was there something more going on with these 'made men' than mere greed and selfish evil? What was Handsome Jack after? Mind whirling with uncertainty, the slender young man at last managed to look up at Agnes and say "That is the boat I came to America on. What would he write that on a matchbook?" he asked in bafflement, examining the thin cover "A reminder of something?"

It was hard to remain at the right level of aloof and implacable when confronting somebody in their own fortress, reminded by the simple force of another's will that you are(at the moment) just some weirdo in a costume. 'Lighting's wrong for any kind of "I am the night" act, besides if I try and make him nervous, can't know how he'll react but it won't be good' Osprey thought behind his emotionless mask, eyes flicking about the room for possible ambush points. There were a few, but none looked likely or occupied. Bullet Tony was expecting him after all. "Not stupid, Bullet, just optimistic" came his soft reply, the vigilante gliding over to the table and halting across from the gangster "You sent some lads down to get Max powder into the docks. Working for a chap named 'Big' Nelson I hear" he cocked his head suddenly, which looked very unnatural on a human "Don't suppose you'd care to explain why? Tell me about what Nelson's game is, I might just let you off this once and let bygones be bygones. Keep mum..." he shrugged, his cape flowing about him. "Mind if I sit?" Osprey added mildly, gesturing to a free chair.

For the sake of continuation, basically what's needed here is either Gather Info, using Mind Reading to catch any hints of the name Aquarius(supervillains and their lackeys tend to think oddly like that), or whatever else you think most useful.

Additional team name suggestions: the Secret Alliance, the Unknown Saviors, the Samaritans, the Secret Society(of Justice/Freedom/Truth), the Ghosts, the Spectres, the Wraiths, the Raptors, the Hawks, the Talons, MASK, SOTERES(cheating because I already used saviors, but the Greek and being an acronym distinguish it), SAUVEURS, the Empathy Enclave, the Silent, the Grey Guard, Vox Populii, Squad Dark, the Black Knights, the Watchwomen, the Justice Force.

GM There was a meaningful pause after the two explained what had gone down in the theatre. "Well, I'll take your word for it" said the captain, lifting his hat to rub his forehead wearily "if Mz. Beaudrie doesn't make any complaints I won't hold the damages against you." He smiled "Not that we would otherwise, thanks to you both. Could have been ugly." Marching over to the opera house's patron, still silently embracing Mary with her head on the younger woman's shoulder, the captain knelt down and said quietly "' Scuse me? Celeste Beaudrie? I'm FCPD Captain Matthews, I need to take your statement about what happened here and-" "What happened?" Celeste disentangled herself from the pianist's arms and got unsteadily to her feet, glaring at the captain furiously as she crossed her arms and began "I'll tell you what happened young man! A mighty struggle for the soul of an innocent! A titanic battle where strangers took it upon themselves to rescue my Mary" she fondly lifted the shaking girl up and supported her on her arm "for no reason other than it was right! I saw-" "I don't doubt it Mz." Matthews cut in, visibly nervous "but if we could start at the beginning-" "I saw a clash between otherworldly evil and human kindness, captain, and kindness won! I saw..." Celeste went on like that for a while, but she slipped in enough chronological notes for the captain get an accurate picture, forgave Pitch and Riff entirely for the "Slight discoloration of the carpet" and saw them out, thanking them profusely as the just-arrived reporters from the smaller papers and news shows surged up the steps to meet them, begging for a chance to hear what had gone on inside. Around the Opera House for almost a block a cluster of Freedonians(many of whom had been their audience!) raised a hearty cheer, praising the duo to the skies for their quick action! Meanwhile... The last shreds of the Infernal Instrument spattered to the ground. Lord Raucous, the Father of Noise and Havoc, sat in the Hellish mire that coated the surround landscape of spires and skewed houses. Even in the demon-city of Dis there was filth, but that didn't bother the beasts of corruption. His clanging, rustling thoughts were far above, where the humans lived with their bright souls surrounded by the wracking songs of Heaven, and one soul he had glimpsed that was darker, with a demon's voice so close to it... "I shall return" he said, and with a screech of claws on iron he unfurled his wings and dove into the abyss; he would gather strength, and watch, and wait. THE END

Note: the system Gizmo is referring to is 13th Age.

And lo, the echoes of Raveled's lightning-fast keystrokes did cease! Seriously, I hope all goes well Raveled. Moving into a place of your own is a good experience and a one-of-a-kind milestone.

'You only make one first impression' Alden thought to himself, resisting the urge to smile in relief. His ploy had worked, but now he had another obstacle between him and Tony. Sizing the fellow up, Osprey remained at ease, his arms tucked under the folds of his cape, giving every impression that he was in total control of whatever was about to happen. The guy was big, too big for intimidation to work properly, most likely used to that tack anyhow. He'd need to wait for a good opening, something like... 'There it is, perfect' Leaning forward on the bar Osprey remained impassive, his voice low and quiet as he replied "And that's just what I want. I'm here to make friends, not enemies," 'If I can help it' "so how about you ring up your boss, tell him the Osprey wants to make sure things stay civil, and wants to have a quick talk to smooth things over." He smiled, almost humanly "Could you do that?"

Very well, then he shall start by putting the spook-moves on the bartender. Diplomacy roll to try and convince the barkeep he should be allowed up: 28. I'm really starting to get nervous here.

Yes, he's just going into the dangerous bar alone dressed as the hated vigilante Osprey. The kind of thing that gets real people beaten unconscious is his first plan! A straight-up Charisma check? Sure thing: A result of 21! Now I am just getting nervous. That fiend Invisible Castle has got to be plotting something.

Watching from a nearby slick rooftop above the bar, Osprey suppressed a murmur of distaste at the brawl. This wasn't the time, and barely the place, for casting judgements. When people could afford little enough as it was being surprised at what they turned to for distractions was a bad idea. 'Besides,' he reflected, as a deft movement sent him tumbling off the roof and leaping from wall to wall on his way to the ground 'it's not as if a place like Dog's Tail attracts the best and the brightest of our generation' Sparing hardly a glance at the loser of the fight as he landed, Osprey briskly started on his standard theatrics. Passing like a wraith under the front window, he paused at the peeling door just long enough for the tell-tale scrape of chairs and stools to fade, and then opened the it. Pausing in the doorway for a moment, gathering the eyes of the patrons as he surveyed the smokey room he seemed to fill the frame, and with a little turn of his head caught the lights so that his eyes seemed to glow of their own power. Then, with an easiness and relaxed air that was almost totally unaffected despite the high likelihood of illegal guns hidden in the crowd, he walked slowly up to the bar, fixed his cold eyes on the bartender and said with a deep voice "Evening. I'd like a little chat with Tony. Some of his boys crossed my path and I'd like to see to it that doesn't happen again."

Stifling a grin at Rene's now-familiar diatribes, Marceau nodded and rose to his feet "I'm with this old sack of misery, let's go." Taking a last drink of his beer, he wiped his lips immaculate and set the mug a discreet distance from the bartenders, nodding quickly and telling them with a smile "Thank you! Most excellent, I must come here again." Turning to Detective Kapoor he offered his uncovered hand "Detective, thank you for your kind welcome, I wish you luck and God's favor in keeping things peaceful here. If ever you require assistance," he added courteously, "the House of Cards will be glad to help. Now then!" he swung to face Agnus again, eyes alight "I believe we were going somewhere?" Truth be told he would have been perfectly happy if Gallia had somehow showed up in Whitby, but the circumstances being what they were? He was just happy for the brief respite. Marceau felt it put the larger things in proper perspective.

Turning an eye on the shade Temperance was battling, Nochehuatl gave a bark of hatred and lunged forward, nails digging into the Atlantean marble as he charged across the space and splintering as he landed beside his enemy. Using the momentum, he ducked a little as he sent a spined fist crashing towards the Depthshade's lean and vulnerable neck! "If your ladyship would try and disperse the water," the old soldier growled "that would give us some much-needed respite! Take my Conch if you need it, I won't" he added with a fanged grin. Despite the circumstances he was a little more relaxed than he had been, at least stopping invaders from brutalizing Atlantis was something he had some experience with, if nothing that any of that race would remember without darkening faces.

With a peal like thunder the crystal broke, spilling a black liquid onto the creature's back that hissed and smoked. Roaring in pain the Tennyson Monster staggered and reared anew, and with a horrible twist of its neck swung it to bring its face in view of Blodeuwedd, eyes taller than her like depthless pools staring in pain and shock at the sword in her hand. "The-the Burning Fang? But I came across the sea, how could it reach me here?" it whimpered, only to then catch sight of the liquid pouring out, and the eyes grew even bigger "No! If all of that goes from the crystal, I die! Please, O mighty warriors of the new age" it cried, falling onto its knees with a ponderous shudder, its head twisting back into place "Let me live, and I shall return to my home on the island, and never rise to threaten the land again! I swear it by the Hill of Happanuk" it declared with an elephantine trumpeting, head ducking into the water with a massive splash that drew a gasp and applause from the Freedonians watching from the shore Pausing uncertainly above the beast, Heraldo looked from the bowing Monster to Blodeuwedd, slowly sheathing the Bandera on his back. "I want to trust you, but we have to be sure, we can't just give you your freedom, you know?" Dropping through the air into the lake he gently lifted the beast's head so he could look into its eyes. "Blodeu, if we take his life won't we be takin' away his freedom and any chance he's got for peace? I think we oughta let him go." Desperate hope flared to life in the Tennyson Monster's face, which would have been subtle if it was half its size.

After a few seconds the boy shook his head, closing his eyes against the glitter and glare that danced on the water and distracted from anything the pool hid. Muttering irritably Subito shook off his clothes, piling them on the drier part of the bank under a tree. Taking a moment to stretch his muscular limbs and powerful back before heading into the pool, he stretched his toes in the sand, enjoying the feeling of the sun on his tanned skin before walking confidently into the water with hearty splashes, and thanks to his mystic patron he didn't need to spend any time acclimating himself to the startlingly-cold pond. Wading out until his head no longer stood above the surface, Subito took a slow breath and dove, crashing into a new, quiet world of green mist dappled with sunlight, the only sound in the water his own breathing, and a soft rustle of something heavy dragging across the sand. Suddenly uneasy, the Puerto Rican teen glanced about, searching for what was making the disquieting noise that was so familiar... Greenscale lifted his bulk out of the soft mud of his lair, a massive python easily twice as long as the boy was tall and thicker than his legs, cold yellow eyes fixed on its raucous prey and a body as green as the forest slithering almost noiselessly towards it. However long it had slept in the pool, lashing out at whoever had dared set foot in the water or even take a drink, none could say. But it had awoken now filled with an evil cunning, and Greenscale was now very hungry. Subito caught sight of the beast looming out of the gloom just before the snake lunged forward, darting past the Herald and looping around to pin his arms to his sides with coils like steel! Another loop seized him around the thighs, and his feet were deftly caught mere seconds later! Nearly panicking as he felt the strength crushing him, the muscular teen thrashed about wildly before he managed to recover his wits and try to coordinate his limbs, but by then it was too late. The reptile's head drifted out of the murk to peer into the boy's burning hazel eyes. It leaned closer, until Subito could feel the water moving as its tongue flickered, and it whispered "The Master of Chains bids you welcome. Struggle not, I will merely take you from here and remove you to your own world. You cannot best me, mortal." To add to this threat, it opened its jaws wide enough for its long fangs to emerge. Keeping his muscles tensed to force some slack in the serpent's powerful hold, Subito replied "Not thanks! I'm not backin' down for you or any other monster, Greeny, now let go or I'll bust out, beat you senseless an' tie you in knots!"

GM The psychic web reverberated with Errant's attack, and even before the bizarre chocolate-controlling woman started to reel Elias could sense the red-hot flash of pain as her synapses overloaded. Staggering backwards, the Chocolateer let out a strangled cry and nearly fell off the pickup she had unwisely chosen, just managing to catch herself in time and collapse onto one knee, clutching her behatted head with a whimper. Sunbeam nearly burst with indignation as she glared at Errant "You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, we might have stopped this quite quickly!" waving the matter aside with one manicured hand, the Dakanan girl turned her irritated attention to the slowly recovering chocolate monster, aiming a fusillade of solar light and fire down on it that tore holes through the weakening confectionery beast! "What kind of chocolate is this?" she wondered aloud, bobbing lower to get a closer look at the bubbling, smoking Godiva golem "Some sort of high-density nanotubes?" "It's filled with what every girl dreams of!" the Chocolateer answered, stumbling to her feet with a shaky grin just in time to evade Blodeuwedd's rapid series of blows. Taking a punch to the sternum she gasped in shock, winced and snapped at the Welsh agent "Alright, already, I give up!" raising her hands she looked up peevishly at the girl, then suddenly jumped forward in flash of red and steel, a sword seeming to fly into her hand and slice towards the Claremont student! Sunbeam looked shocked, putting her hands on her hips and shouting furiously "But you said you were surrendering! You lying coward!" The Chocolateer rolled her eyes "Yes your ladyship, scathing, I lied to you. What are you, five years old?" "Sixteen!" came the Dakanan noblewoman's answer, Sunbeam practically aflame with rage "And you'll pay for this indolence! Errant, see if you can take control of that chocolate thing, turn her own weapon against her. Let us see how she deals with a true challenge!" she added, a cheeky grin spreading across her face.

DC19 TOU save: 19. No damage. She then launches a counter-strike, using Bluff to Feint and try to get Blodeuwedd to lose her Dodge Bonus: 15. And the Attack roll: 25. If that should hit, AA DC23 Toughness save will result. Errant is up!

Greenscale's Initiative: 26. Attack roll: 24 That hits. Grapple roll: 26. Subito's attempt to escape the Grapple: 15. Nope.

Happy birthday Darksider24! Rock their socks off! Hope you are well, not sick, and that you see many happy returns to this day. :toot:

King of Suits 1 IC post(2 non-canon posts). 1 IC post. Heraldo 1 IC post. 3 IC posts. 2 IC posts. 1 IC post. Osprey 5 IC posts. Red Moon No posts this month. Wave-Eye 1 IC post. GM Please give all earned PP to King of Suits. 1+1+4+1+1+3+1= 12 GM posts. 1 GM post. 1 GM post. 4 GM posts. 1 GM post. 1 GM post. 3 GM posts. 1 GM post.

Still next to the Depthshade, so trying to attack it again. Power Attack(-4 Attack, +4 Damage): 19! A hit for a DC26 Toughness save.