ic Violence is Golden

[Exaccus]

"Yeah...magic tends to be really specific might've only worked on bones that had never been broken before hence the target audience...i was made of steel and it still hit me like a kiss from a mack truck...it could be a hardness thing? Like resonance." He mumbled.

 

"Worth a gamble if nothing else, marcus did a thing that that attacked my organs...well what were my organs moments before so bones aren't their only trick."

[Supercape]

GM

 

Pixie squirmed and the thought of organs squirming. Which was quite appropriate. Having your guts put through an arcane wrangler had left Alex fighting flatulence and gastointestinal overactivity for several hours. It was fortunate he did not have a cough at the same time. 

 

"Well what are you suggesting? Want me to take a sledgehammer to your pinkies?" she asked with a grisly cheeky grin. "Sounds like your mistress of bones has quite a few tricks up her sleeve. She knows her spells. You feel up to taking her on?"

[Exaccus]

"She wouldn't be the first magic user ive fought, im gonna go out on a limb and say shes prolly smarter than me and in terms of raw power, stronger." He confessed as he leaned forward with a smile on his face and coffee in his hands.

 

"But i think i have the advantage all the same, my mimicry is all about adaptability you see?" He explained as he examined his hand.

 

"Beneath her magic however she's still human you see? Smart maybe, powerful possibly. Charismatic enough to lead a cult definately but human mentally and physically you see?" He explained "i just need to focus on that i figure, be unexpectable and before they can react take as many down as possible, then change the rules again when they do get it together."

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Well I didn't understand half of what you said, but I think I understand what you said all the same" replied a Quizzical Pixie. "I guess you have some sort of plan up in your head, or at least, feel confident enough that you can make one up on the spot" she said with a smile. 

 

"But it sounds dangerous all the same. I guess the Puzzle Box isn't about being safe though. I'm not sure what it's about, but I'm pretty sure it isn't about being safe!" she said, with an odd peice of pride in her conclusion. 

 

"What are you going to do now?"

Edited July 15, 2018 by Supercape

[Exaccus]

"eh don't worry about it, what i wanna do now is scrounge for information, we know they're at the graveyard so lets find out where abouts they might be on the graveyard and how many of them there are,  but first im going to go find something with a bit of a kick to use on these cultists in the lightning round when i jump out of the shadows." he explained as enthusiastically as he was begining to feel now he had coffee and chocopocalyptic donuts in him.

 

"im figuring ill borrow my dads mini generator's properties and give go for a bit of shock and awe, cover myself up enough to avoid attracting too much attention, you got anything you wanna do or any place you'd like to hit up?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

And so...

 

The Puzzle Pixie did indeed have things to do; namely, scour the internet and the local library. She was away a few hours, but this was her life - solving puzzles. 

 

"Got it!"

 

There was a moderately sized graveyard out of town, just north of Wharton Forest and predictably ripe with myth and legend about native American bones and mysticism. To top it all, the Ceremetarym named "Pleasant Repose" had been visited by Marcus Skulll a few weeks ago, in a publicity stunt, with him recording a rather unpleasant shout metal song just outside, which raised plenty of legal and moral objections. 

 

Alex, for his part, got the distinct impression that the locals had become very paranoid and sensitive...and had organised a rather agressive and over-reflexive neighbourhood watch...

[Exaccus]

"there's some major bad mojo in the residents, he mumbled as he poured over the information he'd gathered from various scraps of information he'd gathered from social network sites and various trip reviews of local establishments.

 

"Set up a pretty flighty neighbourhood watch...not sure if they're for or against whats happening in the graveyard or not though, it could go badly either way ya know?" gesturing vaguely as he poured over his notes and pixies findings.

 

"i think they'll show their hand pretty quickly though if i show up in the neighbour hood, always seems to be the way...Don't suppose i can convince you to sit this one out and ill grab the key for you if i can?" he asked pixie directly, being coy had its time and place and he felt this wasn't it.

[Supercape]

GM

 

Pixie contemplated the matter and then reached over and put her wooly hat on, tight over her ears. "I can't say I blame them. Heavy Metal Shock Singer records a live track outside a graveyard called the Pleasant Repose?" she mused. "With his rather twisted fan base, thats asking for trouble..."

 

"But it means I dont want to get caught with my Pixie ears, thats for sure..."

 

She gave him a firm stare, however. 

 

"I'm not sitting this one out! NO! Its my puzzle box!" she said, angry and...sad?

 

"So, I'm riding with you. Don't worry, you can be my sidekick!" she said happily again. "I can always turn invisible if it gets nasty!"

[Exaccus]

"Well you've more than done your share of the investigating so im cool with it but full disclosure, if this turns into a massive brawl and you're invisible im not gonna have any clue where you are either...so stay behind me in case i have to do something shotgun-like yeah?" he said with a faint smile

 

"Better suit up puzzle pixie! i got some spare biker leathers and a helmet, my brother likes to hitch a ride with me now and again, he's about your size too i reckon. im gonna go get kitted out myself. we'll stop for dinner and wait for night to fall before we move in." his plan was pretty solid he thought anyway.

 

"If things go badly i need you to get outta there and go get help from sargent fields at the precinct , he has a few numbers to call regarding it, i'd give em you but they ain't mine to give." he explained

 

 "whilst i hold em off all heroic like...take my bike if you need to, ill give you the keys once we've parked up." 

[Supercape]

GM

 

And so....

 

Pleasant Repose was, as Pixie said, just north of Wharton forest, and somehow managed to be green and dusty at the same time. It was sparsely populated, not quite a suburb of Freedom CIty, but not quite a town in its own right. It couldn't really decide what it was. A few residences, a few shops, a graveyard, a gas station, and a boarded up beauty Salon that looked like it hadn't seen a ghost let a lone a living person in years, and was ready to fall down at any moment. 

 

Pixie was invisible, and riding on the back of Fax's bike. 

 

"What a dump!" she summised, and quite accurately too...

 

The graveyard itself was fairly peaceful, however. A couple of middle aged men sat chewing gum and looking mean outside, with tins of cheep beer to keep them company. 

[Exaccus]

"Its seen better days, nothing a dedicated workforce couldn't fix or rebuild...shame really." He whispered to pixie as he pulled up in the gas station and began to refill his bike.

 

"Had a long night, drove all over freedom." He explained as the pump whirred and did its work, tapping the last dreggs into the tank.

 

"Want anything whilst im payin slash interrogating the clerk?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

"A Cherrybomb! Lollipop?" asked Pixie, keenly. Cherrybomb! Lollipops were sugars and chemicals and tasted awful and great at the same time. 

 

The man at the Gas station came out and gave Fax a once over, hands in his jeans and chewing, yes, a Cherrybomb! lollipop. He must have been in his early twenties and fairly well blessed with acne. 

 

"Evenin'" he drawled. "Nice bike ya got there. Need a hand with the Gas?" he asked pleasantly, giving the two men over the other side of the street (by the Graveyard) a scowl. "Watch you step with those grumpy old men, partner. They got nothin' to do but pretend they doin' something important..."

[Exaccus]

"Thank ya kindly sir." Facs said as he handed the pump off to the gent, slipping into the southern drawl that he and his mother both employed when visiting her folks reactively to hearing it.

 

"Oh troublemakers huh? Odd place to hang out, they interferin' with folks visitin' their dearly departed?" He asked ernstly as he examined them from where he stood, stoping the clerk at the $20 mark and takin out his wallet.

 

"Ill take 2 of them cherrybomb pops as well too, thank ye."

[Supercape]

GM

 

The attendant dutifully handed over two Cherrybomb! lollipops, almost reluctantly, for the one in his mouth was almost sucked dry, and running out of Cherrybomb! lollipops would most assuredly not do. 

 

"Those guys? Huh, they just got their pants in a twist or something. Some metal head came down last month and recorded a song right outside the graveyard. Now, I ain't exactly a religious man, beg your pardon. But I still believe, in my own way. And this dude was singing some real disrespectful stuff, no matter what almighty lord you believe in, or even if you don't beleive in the almighty at all" he said, seriously. "So people got riled up. Didn't help much when is fans started comin' down to see the place and follow in his footsteps, you see? So some of the locals, with nothin' else to do, started up a militia. Next dude acts all disrepectful prob'ly going get his head cracked open with a baseball bat..." he sighed. 

[Exaccus]

"Ah see, disrespectful as holdin' a kegger outside a graveyard and harrasin' folks." He rumbled "ahm gonna give em a piece of my mind." He stated matter of factly as he slipped the pops to pixie 

 

"Look after yourself now, ya hear" he called over his shoulders as he crossed the street.

 

They were hardly the worst things he'd faced but being on guard was always prudent.

[Supercape]

GM

 

The two Cherrybomb! Lollipops were snatched up by the invisible Pixie. They promptly dissapeared, engulfed by her invisibility. 

 

"Yummy!" said the air. 

 

"Whatcha doin' here, stranger?" said the older man to Fax, who was moderately intoxicated and moderately fat, and had a baseball bat of moderate size. 

 

"We don't wan't no loiterin', see. Best ya just move on. No place to stop, round here...."

[Exaccus]

"Well now, thats a fine howd' ya do to pull on a stranger in a new town, here i was goin'ta strike up a conversation bout what a lovely evenin it is we're havin and all." He said voice thick with mock suprise and insult.

 

"Then again, yobs havin' graveyard keggers ain't no high society shindig Ah guess....so lemme get down ta brass tacs, i am a citizen of the united states party to all the rights and freedoms that such entails and i take great offense to punks tryin' to intimidate me and others outta exercising them." He voice taking a turn for the serious and backed now by the weight o experience from his short but eventful career.

 

"So ya got two options, slink off home like good ol' boys or we can come to terms here and now."

[Supercape]

GM

 

Both men stood up. There nerve was not gone, but neither was it solid. After all, pride was an antidote to fear. One could hardly discard it so friviously. 

 

"Well you got good and bold, son" said the first, older man. He was not aggressive, yet. But he had a certain firmness of conviction. "This here is a sacred place, son. We have been having some problems with kids, you see. Now, maybe you are a regular citizen, all respectful. And maybe you ain't. So, me and Jim here..." he pointed at Jim, who nodded silently in agreement "we got a duty, ya see. We don't want no trouble. Not round here. This was a decent enough place, a month ago, till some satanist used Peaceful Repose in some goddamn publicity stunt. Now, we got to send out a clear message. No more messin' with this here community..."

[Exaccus]

"Hmm...kids huh? One of em happen ta be a blue haired lass?" Gesturing with his hand as an indication.

 

"'Bout yay tall? Cus i have some buisness with the lady, regardin' that self same Mr skulll, who is currently under the care of the police and i was told she liked hanging 'round graveyards."

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Hmmm....sounds like that satanists girlfriend. Damn perverted, if you ask me, wearin blue hair like that. Ain't proper" sniffed the older man. "She didn't seem as bad as that Skull fella, but she didn't seem much good, not niether" he commented. 

 

He took a more suspicious tone now. 

 

"And exactly what business would ya be havin with her? Yer a young fella, driving a motorcycle. Looks like ya got more muscles than brains" he said, holding onto his baseball bat just a bit tighter now. "What exactly is she to you?"

 

 

[Exaccus]

"Now now, no need to go making such grotesque insinuations at me, if you must know...." he began reaching for his helmets visor and clicking it open to reveal his copper contact covered face.

 

"I'm a super hero, working in conjuction with FCPD and that lady is wanted for questioning in relation to two incidents with skulll that left a lot of people hospitalized, broken bones, lascerations that kinda gruesome thing, gotta stop her before she kills someone."

[Supercape]

GM

 

"A goddamn superhero" said the man, not sure if Fax was telling the truth or not. He rubbed the stubble on his chin. "Well, that's some tale, sure. In any case, if you want to arrest that woman then you sure wont find any objection from me and Jim" he said, keen to exert some vengeance, even if it would be vicarious. 

 

"But a Superhero? You don't look like a Superhero....no cape or nothin..." he said. He was no suspicious, exactly, but neither was he persuaded that Fax was indeed a superhero. 

 

"What do you do then? Fly? Breathe Fire?"

[Exaccus]

"Haha, if that ain't the first question i get asked everytime then it'd be "really?" Well i got no problem sharin'"

 

He'd already taken the preventative measure of poking holes in the fingertips of his gloves incase he didn't have time to remove them so his palms faced and let arcing streams cross the distance between them.

 

"I shoot lightning."

[Supercape]

GM

 

This was impressive. A storm of spectacle, a shocker of a display. 

 

A watt of "What?!?!?!"

 

For the two men dropped their tins of beer in surprise. "A goddamn superhero!" they echoed eachother. 

 

"Well how about that!" said the older man, scratching his head. "Well, we ain't going to be gettin' in your way, son. Just you make sure you stay on the right side of decent round here. This is a nice place, with nice folks!" he said, emphasising his loyalty. 

 

With that, the two men stumbled off still mumbling about the extraordinary events.

 

"Zap! You got em!" came an invisible voice just by Alex. 

[Exaccus]

"Yeah, i guess sometimes honesty and respect are more effective than lies and intimidation, maybe i let marcus get to me a bit more than i realized." He sighed lightly as he wrung his coppercoil hands a little.

 

"That salon gives me a weird vibe, if blue and bonecrazy aint in the graveyard i bet they hold up there or somethin." He mumbled as he flipped his visor down again.

 

"Bit late to ask but what do you think bout our plan of attack, pix?"