Vahnyu

While Shadowblade and the Silver Magus addressed the car-jacked man's issue, Hronos decided that he should further press the agent. "I understand your reservations, Special Agent Harold Vardalos. I trust that your organization has taken proper precautions for the tests that it is conducting, and I have no objections on that matter. However, and regardless of all other circumstances here, there was an attempted murder in these premises. I will have to insist on having your full cooperation in further investigating this incident, and if that requires premission from your superiors, then I would ask that you bring me in contact with them post haste." His tone was even throughout the conversation with Vardalos, but his stance on the matter was clear. The attempted murder may have been an unrelated happenstance to the temporal experiments conducted in this allegedly secret facility, but Hronos would rather err on the side of caution and investigate a random murder, rather than leave a plot that could directly affect the integrity of the space-time continuum.

"Nah, I agree, no need to further split up, at least for the moment." Net Fly said, not having to take long and think about it. "And it's crystal clear that you're spot-on on the subtlety front; these guys are about as subtle as a piano falling straight to your head." And thanks to the super drug, about as strong as one, as well. he added to himself. "Alright, then, let's head on." With that said, Net Fly strolled towards the 4th Street Cuckoos' alleged hideout. Serge noted that he was walking in as carefree way as possible, and wondered if it was a deliberate act of provocation towards the thugs on the front garden on his part. Regardless, as he came into their view, he said "Hey, watchup, fellas? Awfully damp tonight, isn't it?" With the small pleasantries out of the way, he decided to cut a bit further into the chase. "Anyways, the name's Net Fly. My friend Foreshadow here and I came to ask you guys a few questions. Hope you don't mind." Net Fly spoke in a relaxed manner, but he made sure to keep a good eye on all of the residents.

Hronos: 5 Posts total >Godwin's Law (3 Posts) >Stopwatch 3: Collapse (2 Posts) Net Fly: 10 Posts total >Cutting off the Supply (8 Posts) >In the Shadow of Sin (Jade) (2 Posts) GM: 4 Posts total >Devil in the Dark (4 Posts) All GM Posts go to Net Fly.

Not quite true. The idea is that the Knockback feat adds extra knockback to a power that already causes knockback. Trip doesn't cause knockback, on its own, but the Knockback extra makes it so. You can then add Knockback feat ranks to the trip power, provided that you have purchased the knockback extra first. Keep in mind, that Trip is seriously cheap, and that on top of that, it's RANGED by default! A seriously neat power.

Not having enough time to sigh in relief that the officer was back on his feet, Hronos was momentarily taken by surprise from Silver Magus' forthcoming inquiries about himself. After taking a moment, really examining the crimson-caped, armor-clad sorcerer, he could clearly sense that while the man had a thirst for knowledge was unparalleled to any other being the Mechanodynamis might have met, his heart was in the right place. Or, at the very least, no ulterior motive presented itself other than pure scientific pursuit. "That is understood." Hronos finally replied, over the sounding alarms. "I have no express objection to your inquiries. I could also grant you access to the schematics of my constructed stature, if that would also help your inquir-" Hronos was cut off by Harold Vardalos arrival. "-ies... Unfortunately, it would appear that we are currently otherwise preoccupied." Turning at the agent, Hronos added after Shadowblade. "This holds true for myself, as well, Special Agent Harold Vardalos. I am called Hronos. I am a Mechanodynamis and the Holder of the Essence of Time. This man known as Officer Rich Daley suffered a fatal wound prior to our arrival. It is my surmise that I was the one who triggered the latest Temporal Anomaly alarm, as a direct result of my efforts to save the life of Officer Rich Daley." He explained.

It was a good thing that the road to Kissinger's was bereft of trouble. The less distractions the heroes would have to face, the sooner they could put an end to this drug-fueled war. Seeing the gang members at the front, Net Fly could only comment "Seesh, someone's got a tough image to uphold." At Osprey's comment, Net Fly could only shrug. "Hmmm.... Maybe. Well, they ARE the 4th street cuckoos." "Got it." Net Fly nodded in understanding, as Osprey took to climbing the building. Turning to Foreshadow, he asked the more experienced hero. "So, what's the gameplan, Foreshadow? We go through the front door, asking questions and bashing heads in if no satisfactory response occurs? Or through the back door, sneaking around, and poking our noses for evidence?"

Hronos regarded the man for a brief moment. While he was no expert in making medical diagnoses, he could tell that the man had been gravely wounded, perhaps even killed. He had no way to make sure, and more pressingly, no time either. Looking at the two other heroes, Hronos said to them "I have to apologize, but we should postpone introductions for now." His chestplate opened to reveal a purple-colored spherical energy spark, roughly the size of one and a half human heads. The energy started resonating at an accelerated rate, and electricity flew towards the Mechanodynamis' hands, which were positioned in front of the sphere, as if to control it. "You may feel a mild uncomfort, but I assure you that what I am about to do is harmless." With those comforting words, Hronos unleashed the energy that he had been building up. The energy rapidly expanded, covering the entire campus, and causing a temporal paradox that affected everything it engulfed. While leaving the mental experiences of everything it touched unharmed, it deccelerated their temporal velocity, to the point of reversing it, and causing it to revert back in time, seconds first, and then minutes. Hronos kept concentrating, as he tried to undo the guard's untimely fate, but even he knew that he could not bring the guard back to life, if he's already dead.

First things first, Hronos will attempt to use Time Reset, in order to help heal the guard(and everyone else in a 500ft radius), first to Stabilize, then to grand a recovery check with a bonus equal to +4. Healing 4 (Extras: Affects Objects, Area[burst] 500ft radius, Total, Feats: Stabilise, Persistant, Progression[Area] 3, Regrowth)[26PP] (Time Reset) Notice Roll: 1d20+14 → [5,14] = (19)

It had been a wonderful few days for Hronos, or at least, wonderfully quiet days. Whether it was due to the holidays, or mere happenstance, Hronos could count in his hands the number of incidents that had occured this month, and he was ever so thankful for it. Even with the Essence of Time itself on his side, it seemed that as of late, Hronos found less and less opportunities to simply relax and enjoy Earth's civilization. The blue-plated mechanical being floated above his favorite spot, Liberty Park, content on observing the passing people and their cars, reading the giant advertisement boards, and enjoying the performances of various street artists and their audience. It was thus that the ringing of the alarms brought Hronos forcibly out of his tranquil state. Even though the alarms registered just barely, it didn't take long for the Mechanodynamis to locate the source of the commotion, and even less to realise that trouble was abrewing. Whatever is this sound, it would be best for me to go and investigate it. he thought to himself, as he flew towards Wading Street. A few seconds in, the Freedom City University came to full view, and Hronos could now hear the alarms loud and clear enough, and he proceeded to scan the perimeter for the exact trigger of the commotion.

It took Serge no more than 3 minutes to hack into a nearby available computer, run a few search queries, and filter through the feedback for any useful information he could find. Thankfully enough, once activated, the Net Dive harness that his costume had connected to his head, sent signals directly to his brain that acted as a visual aid, and the sensors in his gloves acted as a virtual input device for the interface that his mind was seeing. This allowed Net Fly to mimic the process of working on an actual computer, but to others, it appeared as if he was hitting invisible keys in the air. "Well... at least that's something..." he remarked. Making sure to save some backup files from important sources, Net Fly deactivated the Net Dive, and reported to the group. "The Cuckoos were one of the gangs that emerged during the aftermath of the Terminus Invasion, a decade and a half or two ago. They operated on the Basic Lemings Infrastructure Model of Expendability, which naturally didn't work out for them in the long run. Gang wars happened, they got disolved, the end. Or it would be, but now they're back and meaner than ever before, under the leadership of the son of the former leader. Any guns they don't smuggle, they keep to themselves, so even with Volt being out of the equation, these guys are sure to give us lots of trouble." "... aaaand that's all I found. Supposedly, their base of operations lies on the further East of the Southside, but I couldn't get any solid information about their exact location. The old attendant DID mention Kissinger, though, so I suppose that's as good a place to start looking as any."

GM Post Everyone nodding at once, they all headed inside the building. While on the outside, it seemed to be relatively in one piece, the inside revealed broken furntiture, collapsed mortar and matching holes in the ceiling, and heaps of burned books and notes, full of musty dust. A set of staircases was situated in the back of the room, leading to a second floor with even more destroyed books. It appeared that the fire had claimed most of the archives ages ago, though how it had managed to wipe everything inside the building and not leave a mark outside was anyone's guess. "Alright then." the Captain said, after having her fill of taking in the scenery. "All things considered, this makes things very simple for us. Since most books are destroyed, we won't have to go through the entire Records. Search the entire building for any books, records, archives, notes, whatever, that have survived the disaster, and gather them here." "Let's just hope that we will find what we're looking for." William noted dourly. "Then that should pose no problem, Smithson, seeing as hope" she glanced at Carmen "is all we have, at this point."

Net Fly will try to use Online Research, to find anything of revelance with the 4th Street Cuckoos. Datalink 3 (Radio, 1000 feet, Feats: Cyberspace) Computers 18, taking 10 on the roll (Skill Mastery), for a total of 28

If Hronos had lungs and breathed air, he would have felt his chest rising from sharply inhaling and keeping his breath, as the Caretaker spoke the words 'regret to inform you'. Luckily for the Mechanodynamis, the Caretaker was simply referring to an intruder breaching the sanctity of the Null Zone. Unluckily for him, and quite possibly everyone involved everywhere, the intruder appeared to be none other than the enigmatic multidimensional entity known as Collapse. At the Caretaker's speculation, Hronos took some exception "If one considers the fact that Lord Harrow is directly and intristically connected to the Stopwatch and the Collapse entity, it would not be unreasonable to surmise that the Time Agency brought this situation unto itself. Nevertheless, regardless of who is responsible for our current situation, the fact remains that action must be taken." Turning at John Smith, Hronos said "I apologise for putting you in this position, John Smith. Unless you are willing to put yourself in front of the path of the entity known as Collapse, I would suggest that you find some place to take cover." Taking flight, Hronos headed outside. "As for me, it is my duty to make sure no one inside this station gets harmed." Hronos said, as he clenched his fists. Hronos could only remember one time in his life that he had felt anything close to fear, and back then, he had the support of his fellow Mechanodynames. Right now, he could only wish that he was halfway as fortunate as that time.

"Yeesh. Tough break, detective..." Net Fly remarked sympathetically. "Here's hoping that your interrogation goes smoothly, at least. As for us, we'll make sure to keep in touch with you, let you know if we find anything of use with post haste." When Foreshadow addressed him and Osprey, Net Fly nodded his head in agreement. "Yes, we might as well. Osprey and Foreshadow, correct? It was an honour working with the two of you fine fellows, and I hope that we can get along well for the remainder of this investigation." he commented, extending his hand at the two heroes. Turning around, Net Fly ran a brief check on his suit, making sure that it was operational. It'd been one of superhero life's hard lessons, that even the most advanced equipment could be prone to failure at the most inoportune moments, and the last thing he needed right now was to go into a den of lions, or most likely, hyenas, and suffer from a power suit malfunction. After the brief check up, he pressed a button on his mask, near his ear, activating his vibro-suit's fitted Net-Dive, a system he used to remotely hack into computational equipment. "Before we go, though, lemme check the internet real quick, see if I can find any further information about our friendly neighbourhood gang."

"Hmmm... Is that so?" Net Fly inquired, as soon as Foreshadow informed him of the initiation. "That gang, it wouldn't be the 4th street cuckoos, would it?" he asked, and proceeded to share the information he got about the gang from the elder attendant. "I mean, after laying basically dormant for so many years, I doubt they suddenly amassed enough clout and brains to pull... whatever this is. Probably middle-to-low end peons. Still, it could be worth a look, we might get lucky and work up a trail from there." As he was discussing this with Osprey and Foreshadow, the police arrived, and they were quick to putting a proper sort on the mess the gas station had turned. At least, the human elements of the mess. "Most certainly officer, I'll be happy to oblige." Net Fly responded. "I'm called Net Fly. Word on the street is that some weird new superpower-granting drug has been making rounds around these parts of Freedom, and I decided I should spend some more time here, being on the lookout for any funny business I might stumble upon. And funny business did I find, when I saw one of these crooks shooting lightning out of his fingers, while making general threats at the gas station attendants. Anyways, to keep this short and to the point, I flew down here to give them a proper thrashing, only to find that I had backup from these two gentlemen here. We rescued the employees, took them out of harm's way, then kept the pressure on the three criminals up. One of them hit his head on my fists, the other one apparently had a drug-induced heart failure, and the third one broke down like a boy crying for his mama, if you'll excuse the expression... well, mothers, plurar, it would appear, if my memory doesn't fail me..." Net Fly seemed to have flown on a tagent, as he was wont to do from time to time. Thankfully, it didn't take him long to realise that. "And that's the gist of it."

Even from before he was reactivated, Hronos became aware of the predicament the 5 Mechanodynames had fallen. After the battle with the entity known as Katastrophe, millenias ago, all five of them were severely injured, and scattered throughout the 5 corners of the universe. In fact, from the information Hronos recieved from Thanatos, the Holder of the Essence of Death, it seemed that only Hronos still remained in the universe proper. Thanks to being half-conscious/half-unconscious at the time, Thanatos had managed to communicate with Hronos from the realm he currently resided, the Essence of Death itself, and he had relayed as much information as he possessed. It was thus Hronos' hope that the caretaker would be at least able to provide him with some useful information, perhaps point him in the right direction to look, even. Alas, that would not come to pass. Hronos was disappointed to find out that the knowledge he sought could not be provided to him. Nevertheless, he understood the caretaker's position, and he wasn't gonna press the matter any further. Still, he had one more question to ask. "I understand your position completely, Caretaker. I have but one question to ask of you, if it does not violate your protocol. Can you relay to me whether the other Mechanodynames are well?"

GM Post The Captain took out her Walkie Talkie, and opened it to communicate with the manor. After relaying their new objective, and the staff confirming their situation, the group turned around, and headed towards the village. They kept close to the mansion, and finding the path that connected the mansion, the village, and the port, was an easy task. The trek itself didn't last for more than a quarter of an hour. St. Blaise Village, Village Entrance 10:40 Alex had mentioned the devastation of the village, but the spectacle that welcomed Carmen and her group was still a sight to behold. The few buildings that were still standing were completely wrecked, charred signs hanged on the streets, trees had grown in the middle of the roads. The town had trully been abandoned to the wild. "Well? Where do we start?" The Captain asked the mansion staff. Dennis and Pedro looked unsure at each other. "Beats me. Master Phlegethon usually came here on his own. I don't remember him having an escort here." "Well... that's helpful." She said somberly. William, from the S.S. Gadelica, decided to offer his insight at this point. "Then might as well start with this building there. It's the closest one to us." he said, indicating a building with a sign that read: P*B**C *EC*R*S ARC*I*E ***VICE

While his face didn't show it, Serge was clenching his fists even tighter than before. That rude Akamu fellow seemed to be raring for a beating, if he ever saw one. Shoki didn't appear to be much better. At least, the other student Rudra seemed more... composed. "Tsk... this guy'll never learn how to lighten up." One of the students went, a carefree tone on his voice. He appeared to be of Korean descent, had bleached red hair and sharp features in his face, but he didn't seem as worked up as Akamu and Shoki, or as serious as Rudra. Walking close to Akamu and Shoki, he said "Come on, guys, why are you being such a jerk? If you know you're better than them, then there's no need to taunt them. Honestly, that you feel the need to do so is probably a sign of inadequecy on your parts!" the red haired student grinned a toothy grin at both Akamu and Shoki. One could have sworn that flames were errupting from his eyes as he said those words to the two students. Turning at the captives, however, the red-haired student changed his face back to his more laid-back appearance. "Ah, well, anyways, since we're introducing ourselves, the name's Kang Jin-Ho. You can call me Jin-Ho if you like. Sorry about the others, Lady Shen's trainning courses are exhausting, both physically and mentally, and as a result, they have built a lot of pent up aggression. Don't take it personal, 'swhatImsayin'." He spake dismissively of the others, while shrugging his shoulders. While Serge could appreciate the attitude, he couldn't help but feel that there was something wrong with the picture. Jin-Ho appeared to be WAY too relaxed, given his position. "... As opposed to you, I suppose?" he asked the red-haired student. "Hey, I didn't say the courses aren't hard. It's just that they are only slightly harder than what I'm used to." Whether Jin-Ho was full of it, or telling the truth, Serge couldn't tell. However, it was evident that Jin-Ho was confident in his abilities. "And you must be Serge, eh? Saw your little scuffle with the Headmistress. Considering your predicament, I have to admit, that took guts." Serge laughed uncomfortably. As nice a way of saying he was being stupid as anyone could have mustered. "Anyways, don't worry. It's just gonna be a sparring match. I'll just make sure to make a good show of it, just enough for Lady Shen to be pleased. There's no reason to go all out." Jin-Ho made to go back to the other students. Serge perked his eyebrows at that comment. He's underestimating me. he thought. "You know, Kang Jin-Ho, it appears to me that you don't think I'll give you much trouble, eh?" Jin-Ho, who had turned his back around, stopped. "... Well, let's be honest here, shall we? Of your little group, only Giang has fighting skills worth a damn. You and Subito have powers, and you probably know the basics, but that's it. In a straight up fight, even with your powers, you won't last more than a round." Serge bit his lip. Jin-Ho had a point. Sure, he was given two years worth of courses on various martial arts, as part of his studies in Claremont, but that still didn't compensate for a lifetime worth of studying, like Giang had. And he was definitely compensating for his blindspots with his powers. He DID notice that when Jin-Ho mentioned Giang, his features had turned sharper than when conversing with him. Huh... so unless he deems you worthy of his attention, he has no trouble of being nice to you... "So that's why I'm telling you: Don't get too wound up; It's just a trainning exercise."

Net Fly was thankful for his mask, as it helped him keep his smile to himself. Regardless, whether this was mere bravado or the old man really could take those hoodlums on his own, the masked hero was thankful that he was able to help before anybody got hurt. Truth be told, he was thankful for the other two heroes as well, Osprey and Foreshadow. Huh... Have to remember to check up on their backgrounds, see if they're on the ball, when I get the time. I doubt they were lying, but it always pays to play it safe... "Nevertheless." Net Fly said, a bit louder than he intended, as if trying to grab his own attention from his thoughts, more than anything. "Whatever made them fly sparks all of a sudden is probably bad news for everyone. Your information has at the very least pointed us a direction to start looking, rather than this whole blind flailing and searching thing we've had going on until now." At least, that was the deal with me, anyways... "In any case, let's get you down, and see what the other two heroes have come up with, shall we?" Net Fly grabbed the old man, and hovered back towards the street "Don't worry sir, I'll make sure the ride back will be smooth." He tried to asuage the man. Landing near the station, he walked to the heroes and said "Well, the civilian is up and kickin', so that's one less concern for us. Any progress here?"

None from me, and I think you really hit the nail with that line: If you can't figure anything else to do for complications, then that's definitely your best bet. Experiencing how the game goes firsthand will definitely guide you to not only further customise Shadowblade, but also be more ready to tackle any new characters you might want to try! Good luck on your PC submission!

GM Post Dennis and Pedro looked distant and sorrowful, for a few moments. Taking a deep breath, Dennis said "Yes, miss Canto. Master Acheron drew great inspiration from visiting St. Blaise village. Well... at least, that's how it seemed to me." Pedro added "There's also the woods in the southwest, no? Master frequented that place as well, though I'd be damned if I knew why; The place is filled with nothing but trees." "Perhaps. Still, it wouldn't hurt us to start with the village. I mean, technically speaking, it's closer to our location." "... you're not chickening on us, Dennis, are you?" "Well, look! The forest's empty. We'd be combing for a needle in a haystack, while blindfolded. At least, in the village, there're plenty of easily recognizable referrence points. Plus, less creepy than some empty woods." "Yes... the ghost village that got burned to the ground is less creepy than some trees." Pedro snarked, even though it was apparent that he was only putting a brave face. The Captain decided that they shouldn't let the two of them carry on for too long. "Alright, alright, settle down, you two. Let's leave it to the pro." turning towards the journalist, the Captain went "So, the village or the woods, miss Canto?"

Nodding to Foreshadow in acknowledgment, Net Fly turned and flew towards the rooftop, where he had left the civilian. Seeing the elderly man give Net Fly such a warm and urgent welcome startled Serge for a moment, but he quickly recovered, and he nodded in appreciation, while holding his hands in front of him. "Please, you don't have to thank me, I'm just glad I could be of help." he said, with a slight embarassment in his tone. "Now, we've got the thieves that attacked you rounded up and secure. Would you like me to give you a lift back on the street, while we're waiting for the police to arrive? Or would you rathe-Wait..." Net Fly came to a sudden stop, as something appeared to occur to him "4th street cuckoos?..." he asked the ederly man, his right eyebrow slightly perching up.

GM Post The group nodded, and they formed a tight formation, as they walked throught the backyard and towards the forest. Where there were once trees growing and mingling and creating a thick forest, now an open path appeared before them, with uprooted or otherwise destroyed trees laying at the sides of the path. "Well... Whatever the thing that caused this was, it probably came from this direction. Went, too, if I had to guess." Pedro stated the obvious. William looked at miss Carmen and asked with concern. "This is gonna be a long way, ma'am. We can take breaks every few minutes, but still, are you sure you're up to it? Or should we fall back?" The Captain said nothing, as while she had seen Carmen brave through the hail in the dark before, she wasn't too keen on facing the monster that caused this scene any time soon. Still, she knew that Carmen could go toe-to-toe with whatever might come, and she'd be damned if she didn't assist the brave reporter anyway she could. Tazel, for his part, held completely quiet. Carmen could still feel him perfectly well inside her head, but it was obvious to her that he was somberly hiding his thoughts. Finally, he spoke. "I don't like this, master, one bit. When Demons come and make such huge displays, they don't go playing hide afterwards."

For general advice about complications, I'd recommend >this thread, from Supercape. Here's a personal suggestion for a complication(Though, as always, by no means should you feel compelled to use it if you don't want to) Shadow Step: Shadowblade's teleportation capabilities draw power from the dark(or a reasonable lack of light). Thus, she is able to use her teleportation to it's fullest potential when there's little light around. She can still teleport during the day, or when inside a very bright room, but that puts considerable strain in her powers, causing them to function at half power. //This one puts a thematic spin on her teleportation powers. It almost works like a Limited Flaw(like the one you have for concealment, for example), but it allows for more leeway