Avenger Assembled Posted February 18, 2009 Posted February 18, 2009 Avenger seriously considered calling in the others for help before proceeding to the Fens, knowing that it was entirely possible he was about to get in over his head. But he was also acutely conscious of his own vulnerability in this area, taking into account what he was and what a demon might recognize about him. If a demon called him out in front of the others, what exactly could he say to Slamdance? Or, for the love of Pete, Scarab? So he headed alone into the Fens as night fell, keeping half an eye on his watch to make sure he wasn't late for his meeting with the others. Maybe he could get them in on this after all, if the situation provided for itself. Out on the streets, he followed up on the rumors he'd heard, trying to track down the mysterious "hellhounds" of Freedom's worst neighborhood.
N/A Posted February 18, 2009 Posted February 18, 2009 "Nothing. Nothing. I combed every square inch of Freedom City, and she's nowhere to be found. Looks like our bloodthirsty shapeshifter doesn't like to wear the same skin twice." The Scarab stood up, crossed her arms, and paced around the room as she spoke. "Alright, if she isn't a demon, we have two possibilities." "First, she could be a thrill-killer who simply feels empowered by harming others. If that's the case, then given what little we have to go on at the moment, we probably won't find her until she resurfaces to kill again. Which she will." "Second, and the option I think is more likely, is that this was motivated by either profit, revenge, or both. She wanted them to suffer before they died, and she spent enough time stalking the boy to learn how to make the torture psychological as well as physical. That makes me think it was personal. She felt that someone in that house wronged her, and she had to make them pay. She may have also thought of them as standing in her way in some manner, financial or personal. The two could tie in with each other." "So we need to find out who would gain from these killings, either emotionally, financially, or politically." The Scarab stopped pacing, closed her eyes, and pressed her hands against her temples. "I'm going to bring Avenger up to speed on our findings. Or lack thereof." She reached out for his mind, and began sharing. "Avenger, this is The Scarab. Do you have a minute? Here's what we've found so far..."
Avenger Assembled Posted February 18, 2009 Posted February 18, 2009 Avenger replied to Scarab's telepathic message with a sudden, explosive burst of mental profanity! Despite his sharp reaction, though, the connection was still there. A little belatedly, he added _Apologies. Surprised me. Cell, please?_ It was a surprisingly polite tone of voice for Avenger, who was by no means nearly so pleasant in person. Once a phone connection was established, Avenger seemed reluctant to accept Scarab's version of events. "Pursuing a lead in the Fens now. Could use your assistance." A definite pause, and then, "Demons have human skins, Scarab. Have seen it."
Dr Archeville Posted February 18, 2009 Author Posted February 18, 2009 One additional thing anyone doing research with Knowledge/Arcane (which would be Avenger & Scarab) also picks up: the house in Riverside sits on an intersection. Specifically, it sits where two roads intersect nearly perpendicularly, forming a cross ( + ) shape. This specific arrangement is more commonly known as a crossroads*. Crossroads are traditionally associated, particularly among African-American (hoodoo/voudoun) and Brazilian folk traditions, with magical power, particularly conjuration and summoning of assorted spirits, since they are places where things (both physical and abstract) can meet. Avenger realizes this once he gets back to the house. Scarab realizes it as she's dong her ESP search of the city. Know/Pop Culture tells Scarab that crossroads are featured in lots of Blues songs. * with the results you got on the Knowledge checks, feel free to just read the Wiki page.
N/A Posted February 19, 2009 Posted February 19, 2009 Once a phone connection was established, Avenger seemed reluctant to accept Scarab's version of events. "Pursuing a lead in the Fens now. Could use your assistance." A definite pause, and then, "Demons have human skins, Scarab. Have seen it." "Sure thing. Give me the address - We're on our way." The Scarab turns to fly out, then hesitates and turns to Slamdance. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to be presumptuous or inconsiderate. You've been awake for quite a while now. Did you want to stay behind and rest? Or do you have other obligations you need to attend to?" "In any event, I've decided upon reflection that I was being a little too paranoid last night. You seem trustworthy enough." And besides, if I was wrong about you, I can always just erase your memory later. "The exit tunnel is on the very top floor. Just follow the elevator shaft all the way up and take the door on your right. It'll close behind you, and lead you through the sewers to the surface."
Razorback Posted February 20, 2009 Posted February 20, 2009 Sandro looks down at his watch, the first time he's checked in hours. 'I need to get home and make it look like I was there last night. Probably leave him a note saying I had to do something before school. An energy drink might help. And call the school to tell them I'm not going to school. He shakes his head, eyes going wide for a moment. 'This hero thing is more work than I thought.' "I need to make a small... detour before I can continue. It shouldn't take me more than half an hour." With a quick grin and a little tilt of his head he asks "If you can give me a lift into town, it might cut down on the time a little bit. You're quite a bit faster than me." He pauses for a moment, waiting for The Scarab to answer but blurts out "Do we need anything that might help?" before he thinks, and then hopes he didn't come off sounding like a kid. Again.
N/A Posted February 20, 2009 Posted February 20, 2009 The Scarab nods and waves her arm at Slamdance. The two of them start to float through the air. "I can give you a lift up to the surface. Then we part ways. I'm going to aid Avenger directly. You can catch up after you've attended to your other business. Are you planning to move under your own power, or would you like me to call you a cab (my treat)?"
Razorback Posted February 22, 2009 Posted February 22, 2009 "Ok, just to the surface please." Slamdance answers the Golden Hero. He keeps expecting her to wave her hand or make some gesture but, instead, he feels some unseen force pick him up gently as they rush to the surface. "Give me half an hour and do your telepathy thing. I should be back into the downtown area by then." With that, he turns and rushes towards his home in Bayview. 'Dad should be asleep. I just need to go in, mess up my bed a little bit, make it look like I had breakfast and leave a note saying I had some volunteer stuff to do before school. Yeah, that's all.' He gets about a block away before removing his mask and gloves. He takes a quick look around but doesn't notice anything out of the ordinary. Skateboarding the last block up, he does a quick little flip and catches the board midair, walking past the last few houses on his way home. 'Dad's home but the lights are out. This should be fairly easy.' With that, he takes his keys out and as quietly as he can, sneaks into his room. He opens the little safe he has in his drawers, punches in the code and removes everything he has. 'Hopefully, this will be able to get me a phone and Blue Bullz' he thinks to himself, which causes him to yawn. 'And, I've got no time for that.' Quietly moving downstairsto the kitchen, he pours himself a bowl of cereal as he gets some of his dad's energy bars and loads them into his backpack. 'Might be a stackout or something' he thinks to himself as a grabs some fruit and throws into the backpack. He also writes up a note to his dad telling him he got up early to go down to the shelter. 'That should cover everything... except school. I wonder if I could get dark and brooding to call in as my dad? But then he'll know my name. Well, I have a few hours at least to figure this out.' With that he checks the time on his phone. 'Huh. If I hurry I will be early... for being later than the other two.' With that he walks out the door and locks it, walking a little faster than would seem normal. A few blocks away, he looks around and, not seeing anyone, puts his gloves and mask back on as becomes a blur in motion on his way to the meeting point with his two new partners.
Dr Archeville Posted February 26, 2009 Author Posted February 26, 2009 And then the trio met up in the Fens on the night of the 15th (a Monday), per Avenger's request.
Avenger Assembled Posted February 27, 2009 Posted February 27, 2009 Avenger scheduled the meeting for a dark, deserted alley in the middle of the Fens, the rear of a closed porno theater too filthy and seedy even for the bums who live in the Fens. Though he took the time to greet Scarab and Slamdance both upon their arrival, he began speaking with little preamble once they were both there. "Tracking demonic activity. Demon dogs. Need help finding them," he admitted with an unusually deep growl in his voice. "Can't do it alone in time we have. Looking for evidence; demon informants."
N/A Posted February 27, 2009 Posted February 27, 2009 The Scarab's head and shoulders rolled backward, and she hesitated for a moment. "You actually bothered to say 'Hello' before getting down to monosyllabic business. We must be growing on you." "Of course we'll help. I don't really have any informants who travel in those circles. Honestly, most of my 'informants' in any given sector don't even know they're providing me with information. What do we have to go on? Names? Descriptions? Locations? Should I just search this neighborhood for something that looks like a 'hell-hound?'"
Avenger Assembled Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 "Red-black canines, man-sized. No particular human breed. Not mutants." Avenger started pacing, his movements an animated upsurge of energy. "Seen in the streets here, attacking bums on Woodlawn, killing stray dog on Aardman. Apparent underground travel. Apparently sentient. Need to find a sentient demon for interrogation; or demonic entity for tracking."
N/A Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 The Scarab nodded. "I'll see what I can find. I'll be unaware of my immediate surroundings while I do this, and thus, extremely vulnerable. Watch my back." She knelt down on the ground, lowered her head, and placed her hands at her temples. Her entire body glowed with a golden light, and hundreds of spectral duplicates of The Scarab stood up from inside her body in rapid succession, and took off flying in every possible direction. Once they flew a few yards away from her physical body, they faded from sight.
Razorback Posted February 28, 2009 Posted February 28, 2009 Sandro watched as the two interacted. 'Alley behind a porno theatre. Sounds like a bad joke.' Not for the first time he wondered if he was way over his head. 'Demon dogs or hell-hounds or whatever. Do my powers even protect me? And, what kind of connection do they have with Richie's killer? "I'll see what I can find. I'll be unaware of my immediate surroundings while I do this, and thus, extremely vulnerable. Watch my back." Scarab's request brought Sandro out of his head and brought what was unfolding in front of him from some background noise into focus. He watched as she knelt and then was caught off-guard by the... other Scarabs flying away. "I've never... worked with a telepath before. Is this pretty standard?" He asked Avenger. As he waited for an answer, he moved so his back was against the wall and Scarab was in front of him and scanned the area to make sure that they weren't being watched.
Dr Archeville Posted March 1, 2009 Author Posted March 1, 2009 Scarab's spirit selves zip out at the speed of thought, canvassing all of the Fens. She sees it all, even the parts she wishes she didn't, like the sleazy porn theatres, drug dealers, pimps and prostitutes, and all the other human detritus that creeps amongst Freedom City. All of which she knows she could 'fix,' just by thinking about it. At first, she sees nothing immediately suggestive of the supernatural. There is plenty she sees of the lower, baser sides of human life, but these are wholly human failings, no demonic intervention needed. Suddenly, a baleful baying, at the northeastern pat of the Fens -- almost in the Theatre District -- catches her attention. Following the sounds, she soon sees the source: five coal-black mastiff-like beasts, each as big as a full-grown man, with eyes of flame and dark-fanged mouths filled with hellfire, chasing what seems to be a run-of-the-mill homeless man down a dark and abandoned alley. Following close behind them is what is most likely the demon hound's master: an athletic humanoid with the head, claws, and wings of giant vulture, wearing little more than a loincloth. Scarab's keen psychic eyes discern that the humanoid is in fact wearing a (very well-made) costume, that everything about its appearance -- not just the vulture head, claws and wings, but the entire musculature -- are artificial, a full body suit of some kind. One of the hounds jumps ahead of the others, and knocks the prey down. The others quickly catch up and begin to circle. The man is terrified out of his mind, and is more shocked when the vulture-man steps up. Not shocked as in "it's you!," but shock in the "what else is going to attack me today? what did I do to deserve all this?!".
Avenger Assembled Posted March 2, 2009 Posted March 2, 2009 "Standard," growled Avenger, who seemed unduly angry about something. "Need to find the demons. You, you know demons?" He paced the darkened alley as Scarab did her thing, his voice tight and growling as iron pulled along skin. "Made me angry," he admitted.
N/A Posted March 2, 2009 Posted March 2, 2009 "DAMMIT! Found them. Half a dozen fire-breathing dogs as big as horses. Led by someone in a high-tech battlesuit trying desperately to look like a shaman. Either that, or he's wearing someone else's skin, and it's a good fit. They're about to eat someone. Don't bother responding to me, I can't hear you right now. I'll see if I can delay him, buy us some time to catch up." The Scarab focused her attention on the master of the hounds. She visualized a scalpel, slicing open his mind. Then she dug her imaginary fingers into his brain and spread it wide open. STOP! ENOUGH! CALL OFF YOUR DOGS AND RELEASE YOUR QUARRY, OR FACE MY WRATH!!!
Dr Archeville Posted March 3, 2009 Author Posted March 3, 2009 Scarab's psychic selves saw the "Vulture-Man" raise a a taloned hand to his head, and raised his other at the hell hounds. They stopped -- barely -- though the poor man kept whimpering. He did not appear harmed by the assault, though he was looking around quite a bit trying to find the source of the voice he heard. "Where are you?! Come out and show yourself!" It was clear the demon dogs wanted very much to tear the poor man apart. [ Rolls are in OOC thread ]
N/A Posted March 3, 2009 Posted March 3, 2009 I am The Scarab. And I am coming for you. Stand and face me, if you dare. Run, and I will find you. You cannot hide from me. With that, The Scarab broke the mental link and snapped back to her body. Please don't kill him yet. She looked up and turned to her companions. "We have to move. I distracted him, but I don't know how long he'll stay his hand. He's on the edge of the Theatre District. Let's go!" She gestured toward Avenger and Slamdance, scooping her hand through the air. They lifted off the ground, being pulled toward her by some invisible force as she flew up over the rooftops, deeper into The Fens.
Avenger Assembled Posted March 3, 2009 Posted March 3, 2009 Though Avenger was naturally startled to suddenly be on the move, he hung on as they made their hasty flight to find the demon dogs. The sooner they got there, the sooner they could deal with the monsters below. "Drop me down there!" he called to Scarab as they approached, "I can roll with it!"
Razorback Posted March 4, 2009 Posted March 4, 2009 Slamdance was surpised for a moment at being lifted in the air before remembering the sensation. 'A guy could get used to being chauffered around like this.' he thought as they skimmed through the air. After a little bit they started to dip in altitude. 'I should have her drop m...' Sandro thought as he was interrupted by Avenger shouting out: "Drop me down there!" he called to Scarab as they approached, "I can roll with it!" "Me, too" He yelled above the sound of the rushing wind. "I need room to be effective." He then braced himself for the drop, in case there wasn't any warning.
N/A Posted March 5, 2009 Posted March 5, 2009 The Scarab nodded to her companions as they approached the scene. She grinned wryly. "Thank you for traveling with Scarab Airways. Please keep hands and feet inside the field of invisible telekinetic energy until the psychic has come to a complete stop. We hope you enjoyed your flight, and we apologize for the shortage of complimentary peanuts. Happy landings." She released her "grip" on her comrades, letting them plummet to the ground below as she continued to soar toward the last known location of the Vulture-Man. Please don't be dead yet...
N/A Posted March 8, 2009 Posted March 8, 2009 The Scarab's eyes narrowed and a wry grin slowly overtook her face when she saw that the victim was still alive. Our luck hasn't run out completely yet after all. She focused her attention and her will upon the hound closest to the beleagured man. I don't have to overcome the Master if I can turn the Servant against him. Remember what Sun-Tzu told you: A pound of your enemy's food is worth ten of your own. She imagined reaching a giant spectral hand inside the hound's skull, grabbing it's brain, and twisting. TURN UPON YOUR MASTER. HIS FLESH TASTES AS SWEET AS ANY. I AM YOUR MASTER NOW. ATTACK.
Avenger Assembled Posted March 8, 2009 Posted March 8, 2009 Avenger cared little for the crimes of the man in the demon-suit, if that's all he was. The priority was to take him down, fast and hard, so they could find out exactly what he or his hounds knew about the city's demon problem. Casually disappearing into the darkness as if he'd been born there, Avenger reappeared behind the demon-man, wrapping his arm around the man's neck and lifting him high in the air. "I'll break it," he hissed malevolently.
Razorback Posted March 10, 2009 Posted March 10, 2009 As Slamdance felt the invisible grip let go of him, he thought to himself 'I can get there first and cause a diversion'. He hit the ground, hard, trying to roll with fall with small grace. He felt the energy of the impact course through his body, washing away some of his fatigue. He ran past the guy that he assumed was the villian, trying to distract him so his two experienced partners would have a better opening against him.
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