Of Swashes & Buckles (IC)

[JediDalek]

GM Post:

 

Somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean - 06:44 GMT

 

The First Mate stood at attention as the Captain clanked into the submarine's bridge. Even among the general augmentations of the crew, the Captain's bulky, cyborg frame was difficult to mistake as he loomed over the small, cramped bridge space. 

"First Mate! Any sign of our government friends?"

 

"Absolutely none, sir. The patrol vessels lost sight of us not long after submerging. Those agents almost gave us some trouble back there, but we haven't yet met a crew that can handle the Dragon." The First Mate smiled.

 

The Captain laughed and put his arm around the First Mate's shoulder. "Aye, she's a fine vessel. And what's more a fine crew. But things have been getting a little too close for me as of late. The ships of the Atlantic know our name, and have started preparing when we come. I think it's time we returned home and picked up a litte upgrade..."

 

As he said this, the captain dialed the ship's map towards the east coast of the United States. The First Mate gave him a puzzled look.

 

"Freedom City, sir? The Dragon's a fearsome ship, but do you think we're ready to hit a city full of supers?"

 

The captain smiled as he looked at the map. "If all goes as planned, my friend, I don't think we'll have to..."

 

 

****************

 

Freedom City, NJ

North Bay Beach - 15:01 GMT

 

It was a lovely adn, more important to the citizens of Freedom City, uneventful summer day. The heat of the summer brought locals and tourists alike to the beachside for some time in the water. As the sun hit midday, the beach filled with families and friends spreading out towels for picnics, swimming, and general dilly-dallying on the beach, as restaurants accross the street filled up with those wanting to enjoy their afternoon indoors. And among this throng of people, we see our heroes...

[The Sailor]

"Not a bad day so far considering the crowd." Mary thought to herself, looking about, bespoke in her costume as Torpedo Lass. "Only one swimmer caught in a riptide and a couple cramps. Lifeguards were on point today too. Impressed." the nautically-minded heroine thought, munching on some lunch at a bench where she could get a view of happening on the beach, or any incident at the shops. Pickpockets love a busy scene, although seeing the sailor collared wetsuit and red vest of the patriotically colored superheroine was an attention grabber.

 

"Torpedo Lass!" A girl 8 or 9 with her parents done enjoying lunch shouted, with a Torpedo Lass doll she was hugging. Mary knew some companies were using her likeness for product. Although Mary was sure to have in the contracts half the proceeds would be used in promoting water safety across the country backed by the Coast Guard, but seeing the cute, pillow like character melted her heart.

 

"Aww... that's so cute!" Mary said as the little girl ran over.

 

"Can I get an autograph?"

 

"Sure. If your parents don't mind."

 

The girl looked with anticipation to her parents who played along and nodded. Mary pulled out a marker, one of many she uses in her work and signs the collar of the doll. "Having a fun day today?"

 

The girl nodded as Torpedo Lass stood up from signing the doll. Noting the girl had her swimsuit on, Torpedo Lass put her hands on her hips. "So, just remember to follow the directions of your parents, and if you're lost on the beach look for the lifeguards, or me. And be careful in the water." Torpedo Lass said with a smile. "Supposed to be a fun day for everyone, right?"

 

The girl smiled and nodded. "I'll be careful, Torpedo Lass!"

 

The family started heading to the beach, towels and beach gear in hand. The group waving goodbye.

 

"I gotta try to enjoy myself more like that." Mary said, looking to where she had sat what was left of her sandwich... which had been purloined by a Seagull. Some teenagers were laughing about the superheroine getting punked by a bird. One even looked like they were recording the incident on their smartphone.

 

Sighing at her predicament she sat back down on a bench. "Probably the only living thing that could get away with stealing from me" she thought to herself.

 

"Can't blame her though... this is her beach after all, not ours." She thought with a resigned shrug before watching the crowd again, adjusting the collar of her costume she looks about. "Quiet day. I think I might take a dip in a bit and patrol the water..."

Edited June 22, 2016 by The Sailor

[angrydurf]

Kimo had been alone on the bus since it had left the northern stretches of Hanover.  North Bay was not exactly the destination for the bus bound in general, after the two hour commute he was strongly considering just swimming across the bay from the boardwalk next time.  If there was a next time he'd have to hustle or be late.  Signing in at the main lifeguard station and meeting up with his friend who had got him the shift on the decidedly upscale beachfront he certainly was glad he'd made the trip.  The scenery was some of the best he'd seen since coming to freedom city and the shoreline wasn't bad either.  

 

After changing into his lifeguard uniform he tucked his other clothes into his backpack and slung it over a shoulder as he made his way down the beach toward his assigned tower.  Once he arrived he relieved the guard on duty and took up scanning the shore and seas for anything out of the ordinary but given the venue he wasn't expecting an eventful shift and that was just fine with him.  Humming under his breath an old song his grandmother had taught him he grabbed up his float and took to the sands to do a walk through while the sun was still high.

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass was traveling along from where she was sitting to head to the beach to start the wet portion of her patrol, when she comes across Kimo doing a short walk.

 

"Oh... hello there. Hope I've not been too much a bother. At least the beach goers here are starting to get used to seeing me here in uniform." Torpedo Lass said, pulling her goggles over her eyes. She clearly enjoyed being here, was a change of pace getting to know the public. It also helped her to continue to adapt to how things are in 2016. She still blushes from time to time seeing how low-cut skirts are, or seeing the show of skin... although recent worries about skin cancer in the sun have made one pieces for active swimmers a thing. Not that Torpedo Lass in her full body wetsuit was gonna worry about sunburn.

 

"Was having some lunch before goin' back in. I can see with the rescue can you got in hand you're prepping for a dip? I noticed this morning there was a bit of a riptide that's subsided, outside of that there really hasn't been any incidents to report. Just a couple swimmers in the water with cramps I helped get back to shore, and a kid who scraped her knee. Morning shift's been quiet."

 

She holds out her hand. "Mary Masters. Torpedo Lass is the name but... at least with those keeping an eye on things I like to start to get to know the real heroes of the beach here."

 

 

Edited June 25, 2016 by The Sailor

[angrydurf]

He'd been here almost a full year but it still almost startled Kimo how many words mainlanders managed to cram into so little space.  He blinked a few times at the density of information and nodded slowly, "Kay den."  he replied in a slow lilting tone, "Kimo, good to meet ya."  he introduced eyes wandering automatically to the shoreline to continue scanning as he talked to her, "No bother."  he assured her with a smil smile as his gaze fell across her again and he tried to place where he'd seen the patriotically dressed hero before, "I think I saw a poster of you in a bar back home."  he finally nodded with a small smile, "Good to have some backup then, specially if things get wild later."  he said with a laugh as the staid northbay WASP crowd seemed particularly sedate to one accustomed to the summer throngs of Waikiki.

Edited June 23, 2016 by angrydurf

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass blushed almost as bright as the red of her vest. "Sorry for getting chatty... bit nervous to be honest. I get that way sometimes."

 

"I've not gotten a chance to enjoy a beach warm like this... last time I've seen sand like this was decades ago." She said, before blushing. "Oh sorry, long story on that, probably for some other time. Although I wonder how old that poster is back home... Does it have "Buy War Bonds" written somewhere on it?"

 

She grins. "Weird things happen in in the Far Pacific. Between fighting in the Second World War, getting tossed through time to today, spending time in the modern Navy... it's been one heck of a ride so far. Now here I am. I've always been doing the rescue swimmer thing. So this is just something I know I'm good at."

 

She smiled. "I gotta thank you guys for letting me help out."

Edited June 23, 2016 by The Sailor

[angrydurf]

Kimo let out a low rolling laugh and shook his head, "Don't worry 'bout it." he replied with a nod.  He was a little bewildered by the heroines response but then again he'd met his long lost auntie on the beach a few weeks back so who was he to judge.  "Hey we all want the same thing, you not putting anyone out of a job."  he rolled broad shoulders and smiled down at her, "We all want same thing so no harm right?"  he suggested in a slow good natured way. "Might have I think it was only part of the poster, ol wartime stuff like that popular on the islands most times."  he explained with a small homesick sigh, "Anyway you all good bruh."  he reaffirmed and hesitated as he moved to continue his walking patrol as vague invitationt o walk with him if she wished but he could really only sit so long in one spot.

[JediDalek]

Across the beach from the two uniformed figures sat another hero, this one enjoying the weather much less. Danny Randall was not really an "outdoors" person, nor was he a "sports" person. But when the closest thing you have to a friend in the whole city has a volleyball meet, you go along and support him, whether you feel like it or not. 

That said, after the first couple of matches, he didn't really feel much obligation to watch the game. And so he turned to people watching. This would have probably turned boring, too, except for the lady wandering around in some kind of sailor geddup. He could have sworn he'd seen her before, but his mind was getting a WWII vibe, so he wasn't sure. He would have asked her, but she was A. Probably an experienced hero and B. A girl. The two combined were probably the most socially intimidating things possible for Danny. And so he just watched. 

But what was this? Was she talking to Khal-Drogo over there? No... He looked too mellow. "Also that joke was kinda racist..." He thought to himself.

"Heck it..." Danny stood up. "Hey, Tuck! Im'a go get some more drink, you need any?"

This was at least an excuse to get up and do something. He decided to ask for an autograph or something. Between an old-timey super and the lord of Dothrak, at least one of them pry had something more interesting than volleyball going on...

Edited June 25, 2016 by JediDalek

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass grinned. "Agreed." She said, keeping up with Kimo. "Nice day none the less for the beach."

 

She starts putting some air into her vest, and making sure her goggles are down. "My body's pretty dense, luckily this dive vest helps compensate. Gotta handle things like a SCUBA diver when it comes to keeping level in the water." She blushed again. "Sorta embarrassing I can breathe water but still need a Mae West if I wanna keep in position. I'm a better anchor than a buoy."

 

She catches herself on the anachronism. "Sorry, still thinking 1940's. I say Mae West and that always gets a look or two. At least my situation also makes me pretty resilient to bullets."

 

She looked over her shoulder and sees Danny starting to head their way. She turned back to Kimo. "Too bad I'm not into looking stealthy, I think the high-visibility gear's attracting flies... want me to intercept?"

Edited June 25, 2016 by The Sailor

[JediDalek]

Great... Now it looked like they'd noticed him, and the one in the costume was making a face that caused Danny to have highschool flashbacks. 

"Yeesh, man. What am I doing, creeping on my fellow heroes? I have more class than this..."

He stopped. There was a noise... It sounded like... a mortar? A missile? 

"Sweet merciful crap!" Danny could hear whatever it was closing in on a nearby couple, headphones blaring as they laid on the sand. With few options left, he grabbed them both and dove for safety. He used their dazed confusion to cover a quick transformation as he hit the ground, hoping his armor might help shield them from any potential shrapnel.

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass knew the sound that was coming. She heard it a lot back in THE war. "EVERYONE GET CLEAR!!! MOVE!" Torpedo Lass shouted before jumping away at the last moment, covering her head making sure her feet were where the impact and explosion would most likely be.

 

"Terrorists? Possible... crowded beach like this is a juicy target if someone's got a dinghy or a big enough boat could be lobbing shells into the crowd here... but where..." she thought.

 

Torpedo Lass looks over her shoulder towards the water, her goggles down to protect her eyes from any further sand flying about. Her ears still ringing from the shots. In the process she also scanned for any injured beachgoers. Turning about to start heading for the water... crawling by her elbows and knees, a technique she's had to use on a couple pacific islands during World War Two, and in a couple anti-piracy efforts in modern times.

Once she could get into the water, she could engage whoever is attacking on her terms. This was such a good day too...

[angrydurf]

Kimo stared blankly at the hero time forgot for a long moment before it fully registered what she'd been talking about and he let out a small laugh.  Shaking his head he smiled down at her, "Flotation devices eh?"  he joked in kind and glanced at teh beachgoer heading their way, "Probably lookin for another autograph."  he indicated to the hero at his side and was about to add a further clever rejoinder when things started to go very poorly very quickly.

 

As the telltale whistle of artillery bore down Kimo didn't have time to think only to act, a pretty consistent problem for the young man since his powers first manifested.  Planting his feet in the sand as the shells bore down on their position he rolled his shoulders and made a wade sweeping motion over head with both arms the waters of the nearby shore rising to meet his command as a protective wall of seawater flowed into a wide dome protecting as much of hte beach as he could reach under it's protective umbrella.  Holding the pose with some concentration to stave off the power of hte blasts he realized a moment too late that he just out of costume made pretty much the most ostentatious display of power he was capable of.

[JediDalek]

GM Post:

The entire beach held its collective breath as a wave of water swept over the beach, hanging in the air between the beach and the incoming projectiles. The first missile hit the barrier, bouncing off slightly as it rolled harmlessly down the makeshift "waterfall" and back into the sea. Missile number two did much of the same, "sticking" into the side like a fork into a gob of Jell-O before again washing away.

 

Then came the 3rd missile, landing just barely farther than Kimo could extend his barrier. As it made contact with the ground, those nearby dove for cover from the potential explosion... only, there was nothing. The bomb sat there for a moment, before startling the people on the beach with a hiss. One side of the projectile opened, and three men emerged, all bearing obvious cybernetics and looking every inch to be swarthy criminals. One of them began to speak.

 

"Alright, ladies and 'gents! We'll make this nice and simple! Everyone... Eh?"

 

The pirate stopped as he looked around, noticing his invasion force was 6 men short. He looked up to the barrier, and back down, noticing the young man who seemed to be holding it up. 

 

"Grrh... Alright, new plan! We knew we'd deal with Powers eventually. Grab yourselves some hostages, boys!"