Ari

GM Arcturus: "Indeed I will live to regret this, young man" Waker replied coldly, his former fright clearly having been only superficial "I will regret not training a better guard worm! But a few pounds of you should suffice as a reward for good behavior" he snapped, removing his heavy grey coat and tossing it into a corner of the room. Stamping his left foot on the floor appeared to dispel the last shreds of the illusory fleet. With a crackle, magic power seemed to surge from out of him to turn into a nearly opaque field around the two "Defend yourself! I doubt that bear's form of yours will avail you though, it is as naught against my mystic might, rune-maker!" he thundered, leaping to nearly the other end of the room, crouched and causing slight jolts of lightning to crackle through the air. From up above an irritated voice was barely heard "What's going on down their, Waker?" In a moment Waker was at the foot of the spiral stairs leading up to the third floor, calling up sweetly "Nothing, your majesty!" he signed furiously to Arcturus not to speak as he took up a combat stance again.

Subito skidded to a halt as he reached the small enclosed corner of the museum, where a selection of deep-water coral gleamed wetly behind their cases, their water tastefully dimmed to give visitors an idea of the darkness these fantastic creations dwelt in. Barely even panting from the sudden exertion, Subito flung up one hand, placed his other hand over his heart and thought fiercely Oh Blue Dame, I need your power to destroy that ghost skeleton thi- he paused and admitted I have no idea what that is. Can you help me fight it? A faintly amused voice answered It is granted and in a moment, Subito Sondo was transformed into the glowing and dashing figure of El Heraldo! With a tap of a booted foot, he took to the air in a blaze of golden light, a flag waving in a gilded fog about him. Slipping back onto the main hall, he gave every impression of having come from somewhere else entirely, soaring straight for the shark with a cry of "Attack visiting students, will you?! I'll teach you some manners you fatuous fish!" and swung a powerful right hook at the shark's skeletal body. Sadly, he wasn't expecting it to shrug off his attacks nearly so blithely as it did. A sharp jarring sensation ran up the bones of his arm from the futile impact. Oh, come on! he raged internally How the blazes did that not even dent it?!

Heraldo will use a Free Action to transform into his rather more stronger self. Thus equipped, he shall fly over to the skeleton shark and Aid Saiph's next Attack. Attack roll vs DC10: 25. EDIT: Actually never mind, he'll just hit it. Attack roll: 17 EDIT: And because I forgot for some reason..DC24 TOU save.

Will check(-2 for Shaken condition): 29. Unforeseen.

Why not? +2 circumstance bonus.

"There are uncourted fae, or however you call it?" asked Subito with obvious curiosity "How does that work? I don't know much about fae types," he admitted with a sheepish glance at Morgan "but I do know that living without the protection of a larger society and the support network of a civilization can get pretty difficult" he considered this for a few seconds "Are there lots of mini-factions too? I was under the impression that fae lived in a pretty 'either-or' sort of world, where the courts have this monopoly of power he shrugged, the familiar sensation that he was listening to a conversation he had little to input nagging at him "I suppose I anthropomorphized them a little bit. Do they even have or need governments and production systems?"

Subito sat through the rest of the event in relative quiet, partially because he was quite enjoying the evening, and partially because he was awed by the rapid, powerful displays of his schoolmates(not to mention chagrined at his own ineffectiveness). As the movie night proceeded, he muttered to Chloe and Luke "Sorry about that, there really are times where Claremonters go places and do things without anything weird happening. It just seems to be so..random on whether something happens or not. Hope it didn't spoil your evening?" He found himself more and more intrigued as the night went on by the general 'tells', usually hidden skillfully, that gave the game away as a movie. A bobbing boom microphone, a forgotten line in a take, a miniature placed accidentally next to a real object, destroying the illusion. These and more sent him on a long internal tangent about other 'hidden' and illusory things in life. Like how the movie projector gave the illusion of the screen being the source of the lights that made up the movie, and not a bright light shining through film aimed at a blank sheet on a wall. He tried to explicate these thoughts to Serge, but they came out rather garbled and not at all as interesting as he had hoped. "Hey Surge, did you see how that matte painting's edge was in the frame for that scene? Well, I was thinking about how usually you don't notice that, like how you don't notice the fact that the sound is coming from those speakers, and the lights are from that light back there. Makes you think, huh?"

Marceau nodded emphatically, and after listening to the chant, repeated it with exacting diction. He had little idea what the words meant, but he guessed that as long as they were spoken, the demon would be at least one step closer to being sealed away. "Ostium clauditur ostium clausum est, Adaperire Adaperire!" he recited, hoping you didn't need to know what magic words meant, so long as you said them right. As he was largely in the dark about this whole issue(a sore spot for him that he doubted would be assuaged by getting rid of Gallu) he saw Frederick's distress almost immediately. Clapping him on the shoulder he murmured <"Be strong Frederick. Soon this will all be finished, and you will have more ahead of you then ever was before!">

"In the depths, hm? I hoped it would not be so, but the food is better deeper down after all" he shrugged philosophically "It will be a tedious trip swimming down to meet it, and I suppose I could stand the conversation. Tell me, Skull Face" he asked casually as he slithered down into the blacker depths of the sea just a few hundred meters from Freedom "What can you tell me about yourself? You seem a brisk, unflappable sort considering you are barred from much of what you knew and did in the the world. How do you remain so..happy?" Wave-Eye looked inquiringly at his decapitated comrade. "I am used to people growing ever more bitter at far smaller injuries than losing almost their entire body and living on as a head. A lost arm, an eye or two, busted tails and even one fellow losing his..." he trailed off as the memory of dimly-seen bloodshed in his youth stirred. Clearing his throat he finished "So..how is that?"

GM Heqanefer nodded weakly, and recited a prayer for the soul of the dead king, which drew the fallen mummy to his feet. As the words were chanted, Hed-Ra retrieved his sarcophagus and, in a trance, lay down in it and assumed his original position. The lid moved back to cover the dead king, and a faint sound of gasping breath signaled the second departure of Hed-Ra of the Ninth Dynasty of Egypt from this world. The police arrived quickly afterwards to secure Heqanefer, who to his credit didn't try to escape the moment he was let go into the care of the AEGIS agents who had arrived. He surrendered the Ankh willingly and after being fitted with power cuffs was moved quickly and peacefully into the AEGIS transport. The commanding officer spoke with the woman who ran the theater, and was overheard by Subito(who had relinquished his power rather sheepishly once the fight was over). "Sorry to say ma'am, I doubt he'll be held for long" "Why's that? He attacked this place wholly unprovoked!" "Indeed ma'am, but he didn't really DO anything, did he? Those kids you mentioned, they stopped him pretty quickly after all. Minor damage to the seating, kind of dirtied the screen, mostly it was intent. People like him, they really want to hurt people, and I don't doubt he would have if given half the chance, but intent won't count for a whole lot yet as we need to find out more about who he actually is" "Hm. He will answer for this, won't he" "...Safe to say yes, he will ma'am" "Thank you officer, good night, and my regards for your quick arrival" "No problem ma'am! Thank you for calling. Alright AEGIS, let's head out!" Meanwhile, the next movie in the serial was beginning. The event had been moved to a different room(cleaning in the theater the fight had taken place in was still under way), and the crowd had returned to see the rest of the festival. The successor to the Chinese mummy picture was a fantasy epic about the mythical continent of Lemuria, saved from being good by a badly clashing score, poorly-done special effects and a frequent use of internal monologues in the middle of battles to establish each characters' thoughts. The snowball fight in what had been a desert two seconds ago was pretty inexplicable too.

Going to rule Combat Over. Will save(-4 because seriously): 4. He folds.

GM Glow: Kristin heard the resounding thuds as the OVERTHROW agents stormed into the room she had just vacated, cries of horror at the sight of their battered comrades distorted in truly freakish ways by their voice modulators. It didn't take them long to see the fallen ventilation shaft grate and jump to the obvious(to them) conclusion that the attacker had headed directly for the most vulnerable part of the compound. As they raced to intercept the intruder, one of them made sure to turn up the thermostat. The passageway system was well-lit, simply-designed and laid out, and had not a swerve to it. Clearly it was meant to be actually used by people besides intruders. Arcturus: Waker was..frightened. He didn't overreact over the transformation and Macrus' threat, but he did back away and looked nervous. "Why ever would I want to do that?" he asked in bafflement "It is only a thousand or so ungifted humans, what harm is there in making an example of them?" he dispelled the bobbing representations of the vessels currently at his mercy "I could kill them in open battle, if you would prefer that, but that would turn a great deal of this island's forestry into desert, and I would prefer not to dirty my home with the blood of inferiors" despite his words, it was clear that he was currently puzzling over how to dispose of Arcturus rather than risk having him as an open threat, and would most likely soon reach a lethal conclusion.

"That's great!" exclaimed Subito happily, beaming at Cerys "Welsh are pretty awesome, it's a pleasure to meet you Cerys. Sorry you met Morgan like this," he added seriously "But it seems like a terrible fate is upon him for so many of his first impressions with new students to be like this" he swung himself into a standing position to be more on her eye level, looking like a sailor in the cross-trees(if sailors wore blue headbands and yellow athletic shirts with blue shorts). "If you don't mind me asking..what's a 'Twylyth Teg'? Woods fairy?"

I'ma use the Corrupt Sorcerer archetype from the Core for this. Using Will Save: 27. Arcturus has given him serious pause.

GM That seemed to be the only real obstacle to entry of the secret lair. Apparently the ninjas hadn't thought they would need anything more to bar the way into their hideout, which considering their location marked them as either naive, overly confident in their abilities, or simply unused to the idea of NOT being the stealthiest guys in town. The wail of sirens heralding emergency vehicles resounded in the distance, quickly becoming clearer and louder. Their quick response was rather lost on many of the bank patrons, who thought them rather tardy compared to the heroes. Their assistance was regardless warmly welcomed, and the perpetrators and those lightly wounded were taken into medical or legal custody as their case required. The police and EMTs took one look at the heroes crammed in the tunnel and wisely kept from asking questions, merely calling over encouragement as they went about their duties. Soon the bank was empty of the ninjas, and it was as if they had never been; besides the scorch marks, divots in the floor from swords and the dents in the walls where some had been sent flying.

Heraldo heard Glow's exhortation clearly above the rising wind, and he understood fully the logic behind it. But it was a serious effort on his part to release Diamond and make sure the yacht wouldn't end up bashing itself against the larger ship, which would have likely been a catastrophe no matter which was more harmed by it. He took the time to remove the propeller from the yacht though. He still didn't trust Diamond or his crew, and knew also that the man couldn't go far without them in a storm. With a sharp "Don't go anywhere" he returned to the larger ship. Catching up to Glow he asked "Should I try and push this thing closer to shore? Even a little might help us keep from getting lost at sea" he glanced at the guards "Also we should probably imprison these guys and their commanders on the bridge, especially the captain"

Going to go with Intimidate to save against the Roar, +12 with Inspire: 18, Drat. Going to high-tail it for the secluded position so he can change in relative privacy. Taking a turn to Move All-Out so he can reach it.

GM The ceiling was effectively unbreakable to Ironclad. It's surface was smooth enough to keep even the slightest hand-hold from being made, and some kind of force-field deflected and dissipated the force of her blows. The energy buildup continued unabated, with the alert requesting proof of identification that Ironclad really DID work on the research ship, evidently unaware of the stationary and terrestrial nature of its habitat. In the eye of the facility... "Oh! My work, yes" the creature looked almost..shifty? "S-surely the Lor told you how I was placed here by the Preservers eons ago? Yes, I come from another universe, and I ended up in this one quite by accident" warming up to the telling of his tale it continued "As this dimension doesn't have the right material and chemical setup for my kind to live unaided, I nearly perished before being found by the seeders of life. In exchange for them giving me this place to live I work on new energy sources for them, and I sadly have been quite isolated from the rest of the galaxy, though I have perfect control over this place, and have since time out of mind" it blinked and flickered at Quintessence's pointing out how it and the knowledge it had were intrinsically valuable. "As it happens," it said eagerly, with the tell-tale marks of someone who liked getting attention for their work perhaps in excess of their skill in it "I've been working on fabricating this new kind of energy I encountered while stabilizing a dimensional rift several rotations ago. Take a look at this!" with that, the creature pulled aside a few of the tubes, revealing something to Quintessence that would have frozen the blood of a stronger man: a softly glowing portal to the Terminus!

The King of Suits examined the area before them. "I would stake a lot that there's an electric eye somewhere around the door. It would probably be set to trigger in case of larger objects, like those swords" he nodded to the ninja blades over Spitfire's shoulder "and not small stuff like that card I threw. This would be Voltage's area of expertise, I believe"

Building Protonik ((14:37:52) Ecalsneerg: Or use Drain Radiation linked to Boost Strength? ) So yes. Protonik, the Russian man submerged in a tank of heavy water who emerged with the strength to fight on behalf of the everyday against the dangers of tomorrow. He technically lives in the Meta-4 universe, which the site name hints this doesn't take place in, but I thought it would be fun to try and draw up a Freedom City analogue for the guy. Seeing as the Centurion already operates as the Superman of the Freedom City Universe, I decided to make him a PL12 instead of a PL15 like his Meta-4 alternate universe counterpart Neutronik(who is apparently used as a baseline for the 'real' Protonik in Meta-4 adventures). Obviously his heroics history will differ from his Meta-4 self, but I intend the changes to his persona to be slight at most. Edit March 2012: Bumped him up to PL13. Player Name: Arichamus Character Name: Protonik Power Level: 13 195/195PP Trade-Offs: -2 Defense/ +2 Toughness, -2 Attack/+2 Damage Unspent Power Points: 0 In Brief: Nuclear-powered Russian champion of the common man. Alternate Identity: Aleksander Solokov, the Proletarian. Identity: Public Birthplace: Irkutsk, Russia. Occupation: Nuclear fission physicist, superhero. Affiliations: Russia, nuclear power, Family: No direct relatives living. Description: Age: 49 DOB: 1963, June 7th Apparent Age: N/A Gender: Male Ethnicity: North Russian Height: 6' 2" Weight: 184 Lbs. Eyes: Green Hair: Black Protonik is a muscular, tall and handsomely-weathered man, with a gentle face lined by care and worry, and not a little sadness. He wears a simple brown-and-white form-fitting spandex article; with a golden segmented 'Y' emblazoned on a brown triangle over his costume's chest, a brown and golden belt, a majestic white cape, and brown boots and gloves rimmed with white piping. His hair is long, black and streaked with slight grays, and his startling green eyes stand in contrast to his lightly tanned skin. He's a man bursting with energy and kindness, with a smile for anyone. His voice is a soft baritone tinged with a Siberian accent. Aleksander Solokov, conversely, is a stooped nuclear scientist with a withdrawn and quiet nature, thick glasses and a rather solemn mien partially on account of his long history with the Soviet Union's nuclear program. A quiet, nondescript sort of guy who blends in well with the crowd. Power Descriptions: Protonik is infused with nuclear power by his very soul, and manifests it as a soft green glow when using his powers, especially his ability to fire nuclear lasers from his eyes, and breath radiation that seals wounds and repairs damage on the atomic level to the body from his mouth. History: Aleksander Solokov was born in the far northern city of irkutsk, a place with a long history as a site for transporting those who fell under the wrath of the old Czars. His parents, factory workers Artur and Isidora Solokov, were both loyal to the Soviet Union, and did their best to instill similar patriotism in their son. To their credit, Aleksander soon showed himself to be an exemplary young man; quick-witted, even-headed and brave, he soon made a name for himself with regards to his scholarly aptitude, especially the study of nuclear physics, once he had reached the level needed to approach the subject. Graduating to the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology in 1976, he gladly accepted a job as a nuclear physicist for the development of civic power plants, a job that while initially thrilling soon became a partial terror, due in no small part to his discovery of the heavy emphasis on nuclear weapons research in Russia. Soon the wonders and miracles he had thought would follow the development of nuclear power all but turned before his eyes into a death sentence for all humanity. It was with a feeling of transcendent relief and joy that he discovered a new method of unlocking the power of the atom. He discovered, working closely with the psychic Illumination, one of the few native-born Russian heroes who weren't prone to wandering out into the wilderness to defeat monsters, that if properly infused with psionic energy, it was possible to split the atom with a thought. After two years, he and Illumination (along with another psychic later revealed to be a Grue infiltrator) had all but perfected the process and were ready to demonstrate its efficacy, a relief to Aleksander's ties in the government, who were down to their last reserves stalling the officials desperate for a quick fix for the manifold problems afflicting the Union. In June 1978, the necessary equipment, including a vat of heavy water, was carefully moved to the Kola Peninsula, and was lowered with great care by powers from Vladivostok into one of the boreholes that had been drilled there. The SG-3 borehole, at around 12, 260 metres(40,230ft.) deep, it had been practically tailor-made for the experiment, which Aleksander and his associates wished to make as non-threatening to surface life as possible. That they would be perilously close to a possible nuclear explosion was considered an acceptable risk by all the participants. At 6.43 P.M., June 23rd, Aleksander Solokov was lowered into the tank of psionically-charged heavy water. Fifteen seconds afterwards, a column of nuclear fire blasted out of the borehole, reaching a height of five-hundred feet above the ground before dissipating as quickly as it had coalesced. To the shocked eyes of the crew, the dozens of scientists, engineers, platoon of soldiers and the powers who had taken the equipment to its resting place, the young physicist arose out of the borehole, glowing a vivid emerald color, a smiling mouth shining with a healing nuclear light, and a pair of smouldering eyes from which the unleashed power of the atom had surged. For a short time Aleksander reveled in his new power, good-naturedly calling himself 'The Proletarian', in reference to his still-humble parents(to whose well-being a substantial amount of his wages goes to), who he wished to honor through good works; his earnestly selfless personality and rather unusual powerset, along with the tacit approval of the scientist-hero by the government, gave him an amazing amount of leeway in how he could use his powers. The dissolution of the U.S.S.R. a little more than a decade after he had begun his heroic career meant that he was soon forced to focus on keeping his normal life together instead of going around righting wrongs. The Terminus invasion in 1993 brought him into the public eye once again, when Omegadrones poured into the world, including the city of Buynaksk on the western shore of the Caspian Sea, sent there to obtain a powerful and ancient weapon sunk into the sea. In a furious battle that lit up the sky for dozens of miles around, the nuclear physicist who had managed to completely conceal his true nature in the quiet town turned the invading force into a softly glowing pile of shattered metal and bodies, and rocketed off to join the fight throughout the desperate crisis Omega had forced upon the world. He wasn't in Freedom City when the Centurion struck the blow that cracked open the extradimensional tyrant's armor(Annihilists in Chile saw to that), but he managed to attend the funeral of the man who had partially inspired his own attempt at heroics, and met many other heroes who were glad to have the powerful Russian on their side. He became firm friends with most of the Freedom League over the years after the Invasion, and has become a well-respected source of information on the European 'powers' scene, especially young metas who needed instruction in using their abilities. For all that, he mostly keeps to his homeland, soaring through the Russian skies looking for peril, often accompanied by young powers he instructs. Personality & Motivation: Aleksander is an honest, kindly man in or out of costume. He devotes himself rigorously to the upholding of the rights and privileges he believes all humanity ought to have, holding the view that the law exists to support rather than limit freedoms, something he kept to himself for many years and is happy now to say openly. For all that he remains tinged with sadness from the long weary years he's seen of the dull side of evil, which he's found far more durable effect on the world, much more pernicious than the flashier supervllainy he vastly prefers combating. Powers & Tactics: Protonik prefers to come hurtling out of the sky into an opponent, slamming his body into theirs as hard as he can to set the mood for the rest of the battle. If taken by surprise himself, he will attempt to keep more powerful close-range opponents at bay and close the distance with ranged fighters. If needed, he quickly assumes the roll of a combat medic, healing injured allies(and if their hurts are great enough, enemies too). He tends to use his Nuclear Vision as his sole ranged option, his power to split the atom something he keeps close to the vest and tightly-controlled, rarely using it unless surrounded by enemies and with not a single ally within its range. Abilities: 10 + 2 + 8 + 6 + 2 + 8 = 36PP Strength: 40/20 (+15/+5) Dexterity: 12 (+1) Constitution: 18 (+4) Intelligence: 18 (+4) Wisdom: 12 (+1) Charisma: 16 (+3) Combat: 18 + 12 = 30PP Initiative: +13 Attack: +11 Melee, Nuclear-Vision and Atom Splitting +9 Base Grapple: +16/32 w/Super-STR and Enhanced STR Defense: +11 (+6 Base, +5 Dodge Focus), +3 Flat-Footed Knockback: -7 Saving Throws: 9 + 4 + 9 = 21PP Toughness: +15 (+4 Con, +11 Protection) Fortitude: +13 (+4 Con, +9) Reflex: +5 (+1 Dex, +4) Will: +11 (+2 Wis, +9) Skills: 48R = 12PP Computers 5 (+7) Diplomacy 10 (+14) Drive 1 (+2) Knowledge(Current Events) 5 (+6) Knowledge(Physical Sciences) 15 (+17) Language 2 (English, French, Russian[Native]) Sense Motive 10 (+11) Feats: 14PP Attack Focus(Melee) 1 All-Out Attack Dodge Focus 5 Elusive Target Fearless Improved Initiative 3 Power Attack Precise Shot Powers: 14 + 14 + 43 + 11 = 82PP Flight 8(2500mph)[14PP] Immunity 14(Life Support, Radiation Powers(Damage)) Nuclear Power Array 18(36PP Array, Power Feats: Alternate Power 5)[41PP] BP: Blast 15(Feats: Accurate, Affects Insubstantial 2, Homing 1, Ricochet, Split Attack)[36PP] Nuclear-Vision AP: Blast 15(Extras: Area(Burst, 1075ft.); Flaws: Tiring; Feats: Accurate, Incurable, Progression(Area)x3[1000ft.), Selective)[36PP] Splitting the Atom AP: Enhanced Strength 20(Extra: linked(with Super-Strength)[14PP]+Super-Strength 6(Effective STR: 70(400 tons Max. Load); Extra: Linked(with Enhanced Strength), Feats: Groundstrike(400ft.), Shockwave(400ft.), Super-Breath(L&W= 400ft., DC=35), Thunderclap(60ft.)[24PP][36PP] AP: Healing 15(Extras: Energizing)[30PP]Healing Nuclear-Rays AP: Nauseate 15[30PP] Radiation's Touch AP: Nullify 18(Radiation Powers(All at Once)[36PP} Commander of the Atom Protection 11[11PP] Drawbacks: (-0) + (-0) = -0PP None. DC Block ATTACK RANGE SAVE EFFECT Unarmed Touch DC30/20 Toughness(Staged)Damage(Physical) Nuclear-Vision Ranged DC30 Toughness(Staged) Damage(Energy) Radiation's Touch Touch DC25 Fortitude Nauseated Splitting Atom Ranged(Area) DC30 Toughness(Staged) Damage(Energy) Totals: Abilities (36) + Combat (30) + Saving Throws (21) + Skills (12) + Feats (14) + Powers (82) - Drawbacks (0) = 195/195PP Power Points

GM Arcturus: "Indeed, a valid question young man" answered Waker, rubbing his hands together and sorting out the symbols into a vaguely familiar pattern. "The armada is headed by an old friend and enemy of mine, who is coming in force to secure the young captive from me, the rightful ruler of these lands by virtue of my standing with lord Ghorammuz. The Red Aurochs couldn't get his Lordship to shift a thimble! By destroying his fleet around him" he continued, spinning small threads of lightning around the slowly coalescing forms of strange galleons that rocked on an invisible ocean"I will both preserve my own life and make him reconsider the claim to the throne he makes for himself and his son. He can muster a thousand men? I can call up storms that shatter navies and have the Dragon of the Earth devour his land-borne troops". The ships appeared at first in ones and twos, but soon began to multiply until there were roughly eighty or so ships littering the floor.

GM The clattering weapons skittered across the door for only a few seconds before a large blade slammed down on them from a few inches in front of the door. Leaving the now bent and dented swords on the floor, the heavy blade began to ascend before slamming down again twice. This done, it calmly returned to the ceiling from whence it had come. If Voltage moved the swords against the door again, the blade returned to do its harsh work on them.

The Herald had had world enough and time to regret extending his hearing. He could hear strange whispers and soft clinks that he couldn't identify or place the location of no matter how hard he'd tried. It was with a feeling of vast relief that the two Claremonters found themselves at the computer box. In the agonizing minutes that Serge needed to figure out the strange placement of the mainframe, he strove to keep from imagining horrible metal monsters sliding into view, arms made of knives and fingers of curling screws, and a buzz-saw where the head ought to be. When Net Fly told him they would have to go even deeper into the complex he almost groaned, but caught himself in time and put a brave face on it. I encouraged him to look further into this damned place he reminded himself sternly and I am a coward and hypocrite if I won't stick this to the end! Nodding firmly he grinned at his friend "Must not have wanted just any old Joe to get at their secret files, huh? I really wonder what happened here now" he saluted smartly "Lead on! I'll do my best to keep a listen out, as usual" he resumed his usual few feet off the ground, gleaming in the dark room "You reckon we'll have to fight anything here?" he asked as he followed Net Fly through the winding stairs and passageways.

GM Isokratos was an excellent shot, a former mercenary archer in the armies of Carthage, and the arrow went straight for the laboriously-erected black monolith that symbolized the end of the racetrack, which was handy because there was otherwise little way to know if this patch of rock-strewn terrain was the right place, or that. As Jubatus downshifted to the world's default tempo a couple of clock-seconds before the astonished eyes of the Sicilian, several things happened at once. A roar sounded from the earth, followed by a shaking like the world having a case of the shivers and the goal stone collapsing to earth. A sudden, pregnant hush cut through the quivering ground, and Isokratos looked up, beginning a cry of "Lord Hephaestus, hav-" *WHAAAAAAKOOOOOOOOM!* A billowing cloud of smoke and dust roiled up from the top of Mt. Etna, followed by a rain of crashing black, smoking rock. This might have been the end of them all(except Jay) if Martin hadn't activated the Channeler in time, tossing several tons of increasingly molten rock into the sea of a latter-day Tethys several universes over, and braining a sluggish sea monster several hundred feet in length. The Greeks and the two time tourists stared up at the smoking pillar of fire and cloud above them, and at the lava spilling out from the blasted top of the imposing mountain. Isokratos turned to Martin, screaming "Let us get out of here! We have to evacuate the city, this is a catastrophe!" with that he turned and ran to catch his rearing, wailing horse, who he quickly(if rather cruelly) tamed and sent racing for Aetna. Martin stared at the erupting mountain, then at Jay, then at Aetna, then at the sky, then at Jay again. Shouting to be heard over the volcano he yelled "Mister Xavier! We have to help these people! I'll try and send most of the lava somewhere else, how about you go round up these people's livestock and we give them some time to escape?"

The King of Suits glanced nervously back as he followed the other two. He had no doubt that both of them were quite competent, but he was deeply worried nonetheless. For all any of them knew there was a maze of traps just past that door... He listened with interest at the discussion on Synth's prospects as a circus performer. While he had little actual idea of what American circuses were, he did know they often required a great deal of agility and strong nerves in their performers, both things Synth seemed to have in spades. When they reached the door he asked bluntly "So..who will open it? I'd volunteer but" he shrugged at the narrow tunnel. Stopping suddenly he looked back and asked "Uh..do you want me to go fetch Voltage? I think he is back at the surveillance room"