Ari

On the other hand, the King of Suits was profoundly relieved at Beatrice's re-emergence. <"You have been fighting us, miss!"> Marceau called over to her with a warm and encouraging smile <"Do not be alarmed, you have not hurt anybody, and it would not be your fault if you had! Tell us"> he went on with an earnest look, the vigilante walking closer to the bound woman <"Do you know about a spirit who calls herself 'Gallia'? She has some hold over you, and is trying to get revenge for something far in the past."> Looking imploringly up at the young lady he said earnestly <"Please! Do not discard a single detail. A chance word you heard in a dream, a strange book, touching that magnificent portrait, anything at all. It might let us free you from this accursed Gallia! She knew the name 'Jeanne', does that ring any bells?">

A profoundly good plan. I still think you and Thevshi should talk some things over about it, I bet you could make something pretty grand! That's a pretty neat tack. Curious what pantheon gets their member shanghaied into service. In keeping with the supposed theme of the setting, I would vote for some Greek deity. Regarding SHADOW, I'd definitely want to see something done with those guys. They work well for most heroes to oppose, and can strike pretty much anywhere and have a myriad of goals to thwart. Of course even their heavier forces could get smashed up pretty well by a lot of the heroes on here, so making sure that thwarting the plot takes precedence over just beating up all the SHADOW goons would probably be important. Totally on board with that.

Taken by complete surprise by the sudden appearance of Kazra, Subito jumped several feet backwards with a yelp, stumbling against a nearby stump and nearly crashing to the dry jungle floor. Looking suspiciously at the young jungle girl, Subito crossed his muscular arms and considered what she'd said. While he thought it over, he listened to what his schoolmates thought of her offer, nodding shortly in agreement and walking back over to them. Frowning at Kazra he said "Cerys is right, we can't just take you along 'cause you show up outta nowhere and say you know the way. We don't know the way around here, nah," the stocky boy added, sticking his hands into his pockets "but we ain't exactly helpless either. You know how to avoid the real dangerous places? We can deal with the most dangerous stuff this place can throw at us, no problem. You won't have to worry 'bout us letting your people down." he declared with a confident grin. Squatting down a little so he was more on Kazra's level, he smiled warmly and said "But hey, mebbe there's somethin' goin'' on we don't know about here." Glancing over at Giang the young paragon frowned again "If you guys are okay with it, I can probably fly her back." his eyes flicked over to Cerys "'Course, I'm not really that stealthy, might have to just walk her back to her folks."

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad" Heraldo grumbled, easily stopping the woman as she briefly glowed with power and tried to muscle herself free. Swinging a powerful fist into her sternum he thoroughly winded the would-be customer of the occult, and dumped her momentarily unconscious form unceremoniously onto the snowy asphalt. Dusting off his hands he nodded to the dealer, saying "Good work Warp! Now," he glanced at the two they had brought down "What d'you say we do with these jokers? That dimensional thing you did with the truck?" he turned his gaze to the windy alley where the others had fled "Or is that a bad idea due to the plethora of weaponry it now contains? I suppose a roof would be as good as any, but if they can fly or whatever..." he shrugged. "If you want, I'll take care of these guys while you start stoppin' those others from escaping. Let me check if they're still running or if they've stopped somewhere." he paused and tilted his head, the hat on it blowing in the sharp winter wind, at where the fleeing gangsters had gone.

Mage switches to her Enhanced and Super-STR AP, attempts to break free: 32., Heraldo opposes: 40. Nope. Full-round action by EH to perform the Coup de Grâce on Mage. We're out of rounds for now. +1 HP to Warp for the snazzy trick with the truck.

Both see that there are no obviously-placed or subtly-placed cameras. Stealth rolls for us to move forward without being caught. KoS takes ten with Skill Mastery, result of 25.

Well since that's obviously Beatrice having seized control for the time being, King of Suits will explain the situation to the unfortunate young woman, trying to find out how this possession dealy started. Free Action to talk. Move Action to try and persuade her not to conceal anything(Diplomacy roll, just imagine him dancing interpretively as he talks: 11. Curse your unfunky bones, Marceau), and Standard Action to layer on some more of the Snare(once again up to +9).

'The Ace of Spades?!' Agnes' luck with responses held. Roi's vague and hasty assumption of something belonging to the poker face family totally failed to conceal his shock and simultaneous eagerness. Looking away from the lounging singer for more than one reason, and staring at the bar and the cards the lean tailor said with affected nonchalance "Is..is that so? Curious. I would have thought the American police would be better at keeping murder weapons out of the hands of their owners." He smiled shakily, an expression which vanished as things clicked into place. Her tone, the fact she knew what the card looking like... Turning to face Agnes he surveyed her for a moment, then flicked his strange blue eyes at Hatchet. Turning back to Agnes he asked quietly, in a voice tinged with very real sympathy "I am sorry. Who did he-" the wiry man bit his lip as he gathered his nerve "Who was it?" 'At least I now know what it does. Cold comfort.'

"She is pretty badass!" agreed the burly boy, taking another sip as he smiled fondly. Looking back up he wondered idly about something that was starting to gnaw at him. 'We don't really talk about much...nothing either of us are really interested in...' he frowned at nothing, then suddenly lit up, soft hazel eyes gleaming with inspiration 'I know! I'll ask her out! On, like, a date! Then we can talk about anything!' Grinning at Mali he said "Glad t'hear you both get along so well, Tiger. When she started out here, she didn't really have too many friends, y'know? I know what that's like, transferrin' to a new school and not knowin' anyone there." Taking another large bite out of his meatloaf, the strongly-built teen leaned on the table, adding around his mouthful as he chewed "Thanks Tiger, meetin' new people isn't somethin' I get t'do every day. Anythin' you wanna know about me?" he asked with a casual grin.

Notice roll for EH: 23.

Thank you for the kind words, Dr. Archeville! Really I ought to have tried to start something like this earlier. When I start these, I'll be glad to have you aboard. Excellent points KnightDisciple, and indeed AvengerAssembled's Oddballs thread is a treasure-trove of plot hooks, story ideas and general inspiration. His hero/villain write-ups for various nations is a great springboard for possible European adventures. What kinds of stories have you been considering for Ireland, or Europe in general? Additionally, I'm now very interested in some kind of Ring/Stone storyline. Who's to say the next bearer of the Night Stone can't also get her hands on the Indigo Ring(besides those Power Level budget restrictions >.>)? Aoiroo, Silhouette would most certainly be a good fit for the King Cole plot. I won't spoil my hopes for it, but the difference between her thinking and Conundrum's is bound to be pretty entertaining! About the Changeling Evil Twin or Polar Opposite thing...one way to look at it could be Etain's origin. She's a human girl raised in the baroque and twisted world of fairies, and who has learned how to use their glamour art. What about a fairy taken to Earth by some wizard, who through a supreme effort of will and devoted study managed to learn human magic? Now they're a warped aberration, cold an analytical while at the same time brimming with new-found imagination. Admittedly my own treatments of the Fey and their world has not exactly been inspired, but that seems like a pretty solid base. Raveled, if you want I would be glad to have Wave-Eye be part of that again. How do you aim on getting the band together, this time around? (Minor note: what I want from this is to hear and talk about what story ideas we have. I'm flattered my outlines have such interest, and I'll definitely have to follow up on them now, but any suggestions, alternate interpretations or ideas of how to improve or deepen the base premise is what I desire)

Rolling his eyes at Adamas' gentle correction, Heraldo nudged the taller boy and replied "Look Adamas, let's just be happy we won, alright? And besides," he added to Grace "since me and him beat that one up so bad, I bet Apep'll send more, and they'll be even easier to see n'stop before they hurt anybody than that guy!" Subito grinned cheerily at the old woman, positive that his logic was ironclad. His attitude of relaxed confidence quickly gave way to horror and pity though, when Sekhem explained in brief what had happened to the Hand during all those years. Looking horrified at the mere idea of being alone and imprisoned for so long, he stared glumly at the ground for a few moments, with no idea what to say to that. At last he ventured "That's horrible, Mrs. Sobczak. At least she's free now." 'Well yes, freedom is demonstrably better than imprisonment and being brutalized Well what else is there to say about that? Nothing, but saying the obvious isn't better than saying nothing' Grace's laugh got an answering grin from the young paragon, who took off his hat and glanced back up "I'm just imagining you fighting that thing now ma'am, and it's a pretty awesome image!" he said with a short, loud laugh. Turning to Darren he said "I've got about enough to hit that page limit, pro'lly more. You?"

GM "Yeah kid" Grace told Heraldo with a wry smile "Don't get cocky just because you beat one, and might I remind you of the considerable help you had." beaming sunnily at Darren she went on to the diamond-making teen "Thank you very much for your help Darren. The EMTs say she should recover by the end of next month at the latest. She's been through a lot" Grace shook her head sadly as she led the pair a little distance from the ambulance, frozen grass crackling under their various footwear "According to her she was being held prisoner by her..patron for the last couple of decades. It seems Apep had finally had enough of her failure to capture the Sekhem from me and wanted to make an example of her to his other servants. She escaped only a few hours ago, by blind luck. A small rift between our worlds was opened due to some kind of stirring in the world of light, and it tore only a few feet from her. She made a shell around herself, and jumped. The hospital will keep a close eye on her, make sure she doesn't get captured without their knowing" The retired heroine glanced around as the ambulance drove away, waving thankfully at the medics as they rumbled out of sight. "So," the short old woman smiled kindly at the pair "how much material do you think you have for the report? I'm sorry I didn't join you boys in the fight, might have made this day even more memorable, and your schoolwork that much more bearable!" she added with her faint laugh.

GM Quick as a flash the figure that could only be Hunter leaped down before Catalyst's thermal imaging, drawing a large and heavy pistol from under his coat and blasting away at where the card seemed to have come from. In a heavy Russian accent the man thundered "You won't take them from me! They are mine!" the stark acoustics making his voice seem to come from the walls themselves. The shots from his pistol sent shards of concrete sailing through the air, and Hunter got back to his feet, crouched and backing away from the wall and to his right away from the pair. His gaze was fixed on where he thought the attack was from.

"Oh, I get that part Blodeu." Subito assured the girl with a carefree smile "That was one of the first things you told me at that club, and by now I understand totally what you meant." taking a deeper sip of wine with another slow close of his eyes in relish, he added "It's kind of like how a lot of supers do it with their hero names and stuff, you know? When they've got the costume on, a lot of 'em are pretty much different people." He laughed openly at Blodeuwedd's story about the Arianrhod, although he was feeling a little uneasy at what might happen when she was asked to go see the Fey "Well, since I'm an associate of the Order, does that mean I can come too? Maybe in case you need a spare pillow or something?" he asked with an exaggeratedly coy look, holding the side of his curly head in a powerful hand. With a cheery grin he added "I bet you'll do great Ellis! She won't know what hit her when you walk in the room." Subito told his girlfriend with profound certainty, undoing the top button of his shirt, which was starting to be a little constrained in the warm restaurant.

Hits. DC18 Tou save for Dealer: 14. He's down. EDIT: Actually, Warp's using the Martial Arts Strike, so DC17 Fortitude save: 20. Surprising. DC22 TOU save is the same. He's down.

Backflipping out of the path of the chains erupting from the parking lot, it took the muscular boy a few seconds to recover himself 'Holy-! Didn't expect that! Expect the unexpected, do not presume to know everything about your enemy I know I know'. Glaring after the fleeing woman, Heraldo snapped "Be bound by the arms of Puerto Rico!" so saying he flung himself through the air, slammed into the ground next to her and swung his arms tightly around her biceps and chest, holding her in a grip of steel. Glaring furiously at the back of her neck, the spirit-bearer's mind raced with questions. 'Bal'Hemoth? Everything he forged in the last three months? Are these guys some kinda weirdo cult or something? Signs point to that being so' He set himself squarely, glancing over his captive's shoulder at the alleyway where the others had gone "Let's get these done and go after the others, Warp! We can't let them escape justice!" a sudden realization of how that sounded, he added sheepishly "Look, I...you know what I mean!" he blushed furiously, restraining the comparatively frail older woman with grumpy ease.

GM "Be bound by Bal'Hemoth's iron hands!" With a snap of power, the magician threw one hand in the air and flung something at Heraldo, something that burst out of the ground in a mass of glowing yellow chains and started trying to wind around him, each link bearing the shape of a skull. Only an incredible burst of agility saved the young paragon from being clapped in mystical irons! Swearing under her breath, the woman turned and dashed off through the snow, slowed by her heavy boots and the crisp snow. Glancing at Warp with an expression of quiet terror, the dealer quickly jumped away and shot at the glowing boy, the gun blasting out a lance of purple energy that whizzed over Subito's shoulder and exploded off of the nearby grocery store in a puff of smoke, leaving an ugly smear in the wall. "That was everything I had forged in three months" the dealer muttered, a dark thickset and heavily-bearded man with thick black hair and a trucker's cap pulled over it. Looking sharply at Warp, he started edging away, the gun at the ready.

Mage's turn. She strikes at the person who didn't just make their truck disappear. Snare attack on El Heraldo: 26. Hits. DC15 Reflex save for him: 25. Uh. She moves off in the direction the others went. Dealer's turn! He shoots Heraldo with a magic gun. Attack roll: 16. Misses. Moves over in the same direction. Heraldo flies over and attempts to Grapple the fleeing Mage: 12. You're a wonder Subito. Reroll(3HP): 28. Grapple roll: 35. She can't make that. Round 2. Warp is up.

DC25 Sense Motive roll: 20. Marceau is taken in to the full!

Looking sharply at the hallway as it was revealed, the King of Suits drew one of his less explosive cards from his belt and stalked quietly over to the doorway, pressing his back against it and peering inside. To Crusader he suggested "As you have a shield, why don't you go first while I keep you covered? Don't worry" he added with a grin that flashed in the sunlight "I have impeccable aim." "First order of business, find some soldier on their own, and find out from them where Green's computers are kept. We can't let this drag on too long while we scour every nook and cranny." While he spoke Marceau also kept a sharp eye out for cameras, of any size or placement.

GM "The Russians have our full cooperation in this." Director Powers told Young Britannia with a a dry look "So long as any secrets of theirs in that base are buried for good after you leave. As a token of their support, they've sent a special guest. A nuclear physicist named Aleksander Solokov, who should be arriving..." Harry glanced casually at his watch seconds before a gentle knock sounded against the sleek white-red door, at which he looked up with a look of triumph "...now. Open" he added to the doors, which obliged with a soft whisper of metal as they slid in their grooves, revealing a tall, subdued middle-aged man with longish black hair, a thick pair of glasses over dark eyes, handsome features and a polite smile. Casually attired in a classically professorial manner, the man seemed much at ease as he glanced around the room and said with a slight Russian accent "Aha! I was beginning to worry I had come to the wrong door. I am Dr. Aleksander Solokov. A pleasure to meet you all, I hope I shall be able to help win this day with my own modest talents." he said with a warm grin, taking a spare seat nearby Young Britannia and Omen, and relaxing with his hands folded composedly on the bright table. "Dr. Solokov is also the respected nuclear-powered Russian super known as Protonik" Harry Powers said with his eyebrow raised at the older man, who looked a little self-conscious "Unless you got Bogatyr, Blazing Star or Comrade Frost himself, you couldn't have a better babysitter in this mission." "Speaking of which, back to the mission briefing" he gestured to the displayed ship and base "The most important thing here is to get Malory, all else is secondary. He's most likely," the director of AEGIS paced nearer the screen, tapping the button to proceed through the slides "to be on the bottom levels and near the lower exit hatches. They're Cold War-era steel and can be sealed from the outside without much trouble. Though if any of you are fast enough or can, say, teleport," he glanced at Starlight in particular "I would advise activating the emergency lockdown for those levels first, make it harder for him to get out manually." with a sharp clik the next slide appeared, this time a photograph of a container that held the vicious Proteus mutagen. Looking at it darkly with his one eye, the hard-muscled leader of AEGIS went on "Disregarding Malory's own mutative and mimicking abilities, it's a certainty you'll end up facing some of his victims, who are entirely unpredictable. By our count he had enough to give at least ten people powers, the crew of the boat being around thirty or so and the known maximum personnel capacity for the undersea base is twenty. We'll be giving everyone who wants a small supply of the cure so you can make them safe to transport and treat fully. Engagement is of course at your discretion, if you can get them to take the stuff voluntarily so much the better." A dizzying array of headshots showing young men and women flowed onto the screen "Last we checked, which according to my intelligence reports was two days ago, the rest shouldn't be much of a problem. Basic training and weapons, nothing that would really hurt Overthrow to lose I'm afraid." A cutout of the base's layout appeared on the screen, each level lighting up as Powers spoke and gestured to it "First level: mostly open space, an unloading area for shipments from the surface and an entry-exit point. From there you can take a flight of stairs down to the second level, which is where most of the facility controls are and the lion's share of the storage space. It's mostly confined corridors and storage rooms, with the habitat and structure controls at the center. Going down from there, level three is where the living happened; dormitories, a rec room, library, food stores, baths and kitchen. Confined corridors but a few open rooms here here and there." Pointing to the pertinent regions of the red and white map, Powers proceeded to the last two floors "Fourth is the main laboratory level, a small garden for supplemental plants, lots of space devoted for keeping samples of local plant and animal life, and a crude but functional machine that gets oxygen out of the surrounding water." "It was not easy to build, or inexpensive" Dr. Solokov noted, looking at the digital blueprints with a pensive expression "I dare say, doctor" replied Powers with a curt nod "and it still works, so take pride in your friends' skill there. Anyway, that brings us to the fifth and final level. It's almost entirely open, and was designed as a chemical lab for testing compounds that would make life in the ocean more, well, livable" he shrugged, the display gently rotating as it revealed the stark square rooms "It's also where the medical equipment and base hospital was, and I'd lay pretty good odds that Mister Motley's found a nice new home there. Each level has at least one exit out into the sea past an airlock, and can access the store rooms on the second level." He turned to the heroes, taking a sip of water from a glass that slid out of the table. Nodding to them, he asked "Any further questions? If not, we'll go right on to the freighter."

"Yeah, I thought you were a red person" Subito admitted with a relaxed smile. Taking a heaping spoonful of peas he said thoughtfully, chin on his hand and hazel eyes turned to the ceiling "I like gold! Really bold color, I love how it looks on shirts and stuff." sitting back he added "I've been camping in Wharton, SO fun!" Subito suddenly raised an eyebrow "What do you think of Cerys, by the way?"

Beginning to race towards the snake, Heraldo stopped with a rush of chill air as it vanished through the hole between worlds. Staring after it for a few seconds, surprised by an enemy actually retreating, Heraldo's face lit up and he threw his Banner into the air, giving a whoop of triumph and catching it on its way down. Soaring over to Adamas the powerfully-built young paragon said gleefully "That was awesome! Great job Darren!" he added warmly, giving the other boy a quick hug, swinging an arm around his shoulder and leading them both back to the ground, keeping up a brisk chatter all the way down. "Aw man, did ya see how it tore open when those diamond spear thingies went through? Kickass! You know, I've been thinkin' about trying to figure out some kind of way to blast bad guys with spirit power. Just about all my classmates can shoot stuff. You met Serge? Tall blond guy, kinda skinny? He shoots soundwaves! Out of an amp." he shook his head with a broad grin, landing neatly on the front lawn and sliding his arm(with an odd reluctance) off Adamas' shoulders so he could bow to Grace. Taking off his hat with a swoop, the stocky teen bowed and grinned up at the former heroine as he got back up "We did it! Apep won't bother that guy again Mrs. Sobczak!" Heraldo declared with total confidence.

GM The more experienced members of the party quickly located the source of this mysterious feeling directly above them in the sprawling canopy. Subito was, naturally, oblivious. Whatever it was must have realized it had been detected, as a faint rustle sounded above the four teen heroes, the faint sound of something clambering down gradually drawing neaer, until with an explosion of foliage Kazra landed in front of them, an adult's spear, bow and quiver filled with fine arrows on her back. Looking defiantly up at the Claremont students she said "You don't know the land, and I know this jungle as well as anyone!" she smiled confidently before adding, with a slightly unsure look "Uhm...except my father, mother and their chief hunters, I suppose. But you" she gestured around at the standing trees "you definitely need help! You might walk into quicksand or-or something! Besides," she shouldered the spear with a grin "I know the best trails around here, and where the herds move! We can move unseen and unheard by anybody." An excited edge came into her voice "And you can tell me all about where you come, from, right? Nobody ever tells me about it, not even my sister when she visits. She just tells me queer stories about what's happened at her school, like when that boy attacked a party she went to." she glared briefly at her feet before looking back up the picture of eager voluntarism.