Thunder King

John slammed Vassily's head into the dash board one more time and was relieved to see him pass out. While Georgy was distracted, John reached out and slammed his fist into the side of his head, causing him too to slump in the seat. John opened the door of the SUV and climbed out, running towards Jane in her car, hoping she was okay. He cursed his punchy reflex. He second guessed his decision to jump in with the men, but as it was they could only just escape. "Damnit, please be okay." He said, running towards the car.

13 to blindside Georgy while he's recovering after knocking out Vassily

John is going to try and knock Vassily out while he's dizzy before switching to Georgy. 20

23 that works

John managed to escape Vassily's grasp, pulling back. He growled in frustration and reached forward, slamming his head against the dashboard. He didn't want to kill the man, but he needed him to stop trying to kill Jane, and him. Stop killing people in general if he could. He wasn't sure how he was putting up such a fight, but he was just about tired of him.

Punching him again, trying to knock him out; 23

20 on grapple

John barely avoided getting shot. He was a sitting duck a more literal metaphor than usual considering how he got on top of the vehicle. He was having a hell of a day. He swung over to the driver's side and, in one motion, kicked the driver's side window seat in and slid inside. He landed in the seat and reached over, punching Vassily in the side of the head.

Okay, toughness save; 17 Reflex save; 26 Could not have gone better Okay, going to attempt to roll an acrobatics check to break into the vehicle's driver's side back seat window as per chat; 24 Vassily is unarmed, but the strangler is driving, so I think he'll pop Vassily first. Driving and shooting are tough to do at the same time 18 IF that his, it's a DC23 TOU save for the big guy.

John was tired of being chased and attacked, and Jane needed to get to safety. He hit the accelerator and got them ahead of the Strangler and his friend. He looked over to Jane. "Slide your foot over here." He instructed. "Jump into this side as soon as I'm gone." He knew he looked insane, didn't matter. This was not going to continue. He popped the door open and rolled out. That hurt, but he was mostly okay. The SUV took off away from him, but John trusted that he could be faster. He ran as fast as he could, catching up to the SUV in a hurry. Then, with a mighty leap he landed on top of it. His tattered coat billowed in the wind as he clutched the top of the SUV.

Okay, crazy time. Going to do a drive check to make sure he can get ahead of his pursuers; 22 Not bad Then he's going to make sure Jane has control of the car and dive out of the car to let their pursuers get ahead of them. Then, I'm going to use Extra Effort to boost his speed to speed 5 (using an HP for extra effort) and climbing on the back of their car to stop them.

"Not exactly." John said as he drove. "I do have cash, though. There are dozens of motels in and around Bedlam. We could hide out in one. Lots of them take cash." He considered. If they parked somewhere quiet, they could stay the night, Blowfish would hear back in the morning, but by then, the heat would be off, or at least he hoped. Having been living off the grid for so long, John had acquired a few tricks of the trade. "Discreet, quiet, gather our thoughts and stay under the radar. Blowfish isn't the biggest guy in Bedlam." He realized what she might think he was suggesting, but he really didn't care. Whatever it took. He could sleep in a chair by the door all night. He'd slept in worse conditions.

John cursed, loudly. He was glad the car hadn't been idle for long. It revved to life quickly. It was a solid car, which was lucky for them. He'd need it to move. He recalled, vaguely, his police training. Skills he hadn't used in years. Still, he remembered just enough of it to help him. Regardless, this was a rough night, and was only going to get worse.

I know I don't need it just yet, but I know I will, so I'm burning an HP on beginner's luck for the drive skill, which combined with his dex modifier gives him a total drive modifier of +9. 27 Well that's useful. As soon as I need it, of course.

John growled and glared at them. "I'm having a bad night, boys. We're the wrong targets." His voice was low and harsh. He wasn't an especially tall man, but he had broad shoulders and a tattered old coat. There was no fear in his voice, nor in his mannerisms. The look in his eyes was hard, unforgiving, dangerous. Muggers weren't predators, they were scavengers. Like any scavenger, they were only interested in an easy meal, not a fight. They wisely backed up and left.

John is going to try to scare the punks off first; 17 Might not work, but worth the effort.

"I think we have all we need here." He said, looking around. "I should have just carried you here." They couldn't leave her car, but, that's when he got an idea. "I could change my face, you could stay low. If they don't know which car is yours they wouldn't recognize me and might not come after us." It was a long shot. "The alternative is I just grab you and climb up the buildings, running and jumping so they never spot us on the road. Up to you, but we can't be here if they come back."

Of course, he thought. "Get down." He said in a harsh whisper. This was bad. He wasn't too worried about the standard issue pistols the police carried, wasn't too concerned with handcuffs or arrest, but Jane was a lot more vulnerable. These cops were obviously on the take. He cursed himself. He let Jane talk him into this. They should have simply waited a few more days, let things quiet down. He didn't look like he did before, but that didn't matter much. The coat was obvious to anyone familiar. Blowfish would know the Tattered Man was on his case.

22 Very lucky roll there

"No, just a little bit of focus." He said, stepping towards the dumpster. He took a deep breath. It was disconcerting, uncomfortable. There was no lasting trauma involved, but the emotions were raw and painful to endure. He didn't see visions of peaceful deaths, they were usually desperate, angry, sad. There was a powerful intensity to his visions. Yet, he could endure them. He felt Vanity's shock, her fear, her rage, her sadness. Goergy was cold, indifferent, shockingly lacking in any kind of emotional connection or investment. Yet he knew that was his name, he matched the description. It lasted mere moments. John wavered, for a second. "About five and a half feet tall, wiry." He said. "Russian accent, scar on a bald head." He managed to straighten. "Matches the description you gave me." he said. "Definitely Goergy The Strangler."

John's going to use his postcognition at the dumpster, see if he can see anything. I think for narrative's sake it makes sense to tell me if he sees anything here, and then I'll post it in the IC thread.

John nodded and walked towards the door. "I could carry you." He said offhandedly. "I can move really fast, jump high. But, I suppose there might be a less stressful way." he had to admire her strength. It was a difficult way to be in a place like Bedlam. Knocked down, but hardly beaten. People like that were rare, necessary. It was important to keep that safe.

John nodded. That would end up showing her what he could do. Or at least, make him look really weird for a moment. Still, he could bring her along. He felt that he should. It would be rather weird for her to see, but, he also figured he'd warn her. "I know it doesn't make sense, but I have the ability to tap into areas of death and loss. I can view memories of those who died, or those who killed. It's very weird, and I'm told it's rather disconcerting to watch. I can't make you believe that, but is it that much more unusual than what I've already showed?"

John nodded. That was enough to visit the sight and to see if he could touch her murder, use his strange visions to see if he could get more information. "That's enough to spark." He said. "I can use that information. Five eight to six four, Jesus. Might as well have said he was wearing shoes, boots or sandals." He looked over the evidence. There was enough to get an investigation going, but, Bedlam didn't care. It wasn't going to lose sleep over some strangled girl. Not when palms could be greased and people were on the take, at any rate.

John nodded. "I can try. I can't make any promises, but, we have a pretty good idea who's responsible. He's not going to be a fan of mine over the next few weeks. I'd like to know as much as you can tell me about her, especially about where or how she died, if you know. I can shake a few cages. If I can't nail anything, legally, though, I can at least tell you what I found. We can get justice for Vanity. Even if it's not through the legal system."