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The Adventures of "Fish Guy" (Superhero fiction)


Hermit

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"Not to bring you down, Eel, but I'm in a bit of a panic," He said in a voice so laid back, I'm not sure we agreed on what the term 'panic' meant.

 

OK, that one got me.  (You know my sense of humor is warped, at best)

 

GOAT is probably a little too topical for my personal tastes, but I've played any number of characters who would be more than happy to try and knock some sense into their skulls (or just knock them senseless).

 

I'm also missing writing with you as both a player and a GM.

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I admit to being curious how folks feel about G.O.A.T.

 

I like the concept, but not so much the name (in particular, the full name).  Personally, I'd think if you're going with them considering themselves sacrificial, perhaps LAMB might be a better choice.  Leading America's Many Benefits?  Last American Mighty Bastion?  (It should be obvious that I claim no ability to reverse-engineer acronyms.)

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I like the concept, but not so much the name (in particular, the full name).  Personally, I'd think if you're going with them considering themselves sacrificial, perhaps LAMB might be a better choice.  Leading America's Many Benefits?  Last American Mighty Bastion?  (It should be obvious that I claim no ability to reverse-engineer acronyms.)

 

I thought about LAMB, but honestly, that's a pretty Christian Symbol and while I know there are actual terrorist organizations in that vein, I didn't want to give the wrong impression that it was religious based ideology. 

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OK, that one got me.  (You know my sense of humor is warped, at best)

 

GOAT is probably a little too topical for my personal tastes, but I've played any number of characters who would be more than happy to try and knock some sense into their skulls (or just knock them senseless).

 

I'm also missing writing with you as both a player and a GM.

 

Heh. I'm glad. Ted is probably just a flavor NPC (Then again, who knows, he could be the local arch mage for all how my brain works)

 

I remember some of those characters. 

 

And thank you! I won't lie, Aquatic was in the back of my skull smirking at Eel's troubles

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Superheroes lives abound in coincidence. I'm gonna embrace that

 

Mom talked my ear off when I called my folks the other night. I think it must have been twenty minutes on my aunts and uncles alone, before we moved on to her and dad. I was surprised to find mom and dad were using the internet to watch Costa Sagrado news!

 

No, I wasn't surprised they were interested. They're my parents. I was surprised they managed to do it without calling me. I like to joke that dad's favorite feature about his computer set up was the cupholder. Then again, I do have siblings. Maybe one of them is now tech support?

 

My mother had a few words about that lady on Channel 3, and were she not a woman of faith and propriety, she would have had more to say. It would seem the story of my saving a post office was in the newsfeed, and the mailman on mom and dad's street had commented on it positively. I wondered just how many folks in my old stomping ground were keeping track of me. I had been my hometown's only superhero, though I was hardly the only one in the state.

 

And yes, she wanted me to stay safe and had the routine questions. Did I have an apartment of my own yet? No, but I could stay at the base for a bit, and hoped to have one soon.  Would I go back to college? Probably not. Were the other heroes nice to me? Mostly. Had I made friends? Yeah. Had I found a nice girl? No, mom. You don't just dive in and fish one out of the water, not even in California.

 

Though if the really wanted to help their tourism industry that would be a hell of a marketing lure.

 

The next morning, I arose to find out I was off the hook, at least for now. Dr. Vernon had an old friend visiting the city, some mystic lady she knew from way back when. Frankly, mystics give me the creeps. I don't mean powered by or changed by magic like Pinprick claimed to be. I mean the guys who study it and harness what appear to be real spells. What are they calling on? What's with all the vanishing acts they pull at cryptic moments and that look like, 'they could tell you, but then they'd have to wipe your mind or seal your lips with enchantment'? And how is it they wear more bling than a 1970s-movie pimp, walk around in broad daylight, stop a demonic invasion, and 90% of the population doesn't remember a thing about them?  Hello?

 

Like I said, mystics give me the creeps.

 

One other thing I noticed this morning was that I was stiff, with an ache all over. Holding up federal buildings for nearly a full half hour taxed even my super stamina out and today I was paying the price. I considered a hot shower, probably the best thing for me. But immersion is better than soaking, and I wanted room to move. The last time I'd used the pool I had been in a bad mood. Today, today I was feeling pretty good, and I figured, why use a tub when I can have a real swim? I breathe water. It wasn't like I was going to hit a cramp and drown! I recovered better in immersion.

 

The other day, I hit the pool to make waves, today, I dove in from the ledge as smooth as silk, creating barely a ripple. That's probably why the girl walking on the bottom of the pool didn't see me. I hadn't seen her because, well, she was walking along the bottom of the deep end of the pool!

 

I didn't see leg weights, what I saw was a very pretty Hispanic woman, about my age, maybe a bit younger wearing a one-piece swim suit of cyan blue. While not as buxom as Arctic Fox, nor as tall, I still had to remind my eyes to behave themselves. Her dark hair wafted through the water in a crown of shadowy strands, and her eyes were dark chocolate under long lashes.  Her mouth opened in a little O as she saw me, a bubble of air came out, and then suddenly she was rising!

 

It was as if whatever held her down had decided to take a break. Her body regained buoyancy and she rose from the bottom of the pool with little visible effort, looking like an ascending angel with the way the lights on the ceiling caught her.

 

I heard her take in a sudden rush of air above me, and I realized I had startled her. Well, she had startled me too, but she was in the pool first. The right thing to do, I thought, was apologize.

 

An idea, boyish and immature entered my brain. It was a touch juvenile, a bit arrogant, and completely irresponsible.

 

I did it anyway.

 

I shot up from the pool floor with the speed of a sailfish, breached the surface like I was a dolphin, flipped myself end over end, a good twenty feet over her head letting the momentum carry me to the side of the pool where I twisted to land with one leg out to the side, the other underneath me, and a fist firmly planted to hold me up with the other hand out to the other side.

 

Why do superheroes do three point landings?

 

Because, done right, it is awesome!

 

"Wow," escaped the woman's mouth, one second too soon, she covered it, and a blush bronzed her cheeks further. Her legs were paddling now to keep her head up, and maybe it was me being hopeful, but I swore the toes of her feet were slightly curled right now. Immediately those gorgeous eyes narrowed but she couldn't quite mask her smile, "You always leave the pool that way?"

 

"Only for our most honored guests," I smiled back, and darn it, a slight blush creeped into me as well. I mean, I had just showed off for a girl I didn't even know, but darn if it hadn't been fun.

 

"Uh huh," She slid up to the pool's edge, "So you're the Fish Guy."

 

I groaned, and all the braggadocio just leaked right out of me as my ego was promptly deflated by that phrase, "It's Eel, actually."

 

A wicked bit of a smile escaped her this time, a brilliant flash of teeth for just a moment, and then she eased herself up and out of the pool gracefully, leaving her feet in it as she twisted her head to look over at me, "I know it is. Pinprick said he'd give me fifteen bucks if I called you that if I met you. I wasn't going to, but after that display, I think your pride will survive."

 

"Just trying to impress a pretty girl," I admitted, "Wait, he offered you fifteen bucks?"

"Uh huh," She nodded, "He's kind of a jerk like that sometimes."

 

I sat down next to her, "I noticed, good guy though."

 

"Yeah," She tilted her head still looking at me, "Nice costume."

 

"Yours too," I said gesturing to the lovely one piece.

 

She rolled her eyes, but could not banish her smiles, "You are not what I expected from my Uncle' Tino's description."

 

"Uncle?" I paused, "Wait, you mean you're Valentino's 'little niece'?"

 

"I'm not short," She raised a brow, "Five foot one is not short. I am… vertically petite."

 

I failed to contain my own smile this time, "Not what I mean, ah, it's just he doesn't seem much older than you."

 

"He's not," She shrugged and some loose wet hair behind her ear, "A hand full of years. I'm twenty. You?"

 

"Twenty-two," I said, "And as I'm pretty sure its rude of me to call you Valentino's niece or 'hey you' so…" I let the unformed question hang there.

 

"Ariana," She took my hand and shook it, "Nice to meet you, Eel."

 

"Very nice to meet you, Ariana" I said, "How's your uncle? Any change from last night?"

 

"Yeah, his mama asked if I'd stick around for the night. He's doing fine now, so I thought I'd hit the pool," She confessed then, "It's nice if you can get one this big to yourself."

 

I winced, "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't realize you wanted to be alone and…"

 

"Oh, no, no," She assured me, "that's so not what I meant. It's just the public ones are crowded and expensive, you know? And with college stressing me out, it's nice to have room to do a few laps. I don't mind being with people, but I'm not crazy about crowds. That's all."

 

"I can understand that," And I did, "One nice thing about the ocean, while you're never really alone with all the life and wonder out there, at the same time there is this amazing distance and sense of solitude. It's surreal really when you go out far enough."

 

Ariana looked wistful at that, "I'd like to see that sometime."

 

"I'll take you," I offered with a shrug, "if you want."

 

"You would?" She raised a brow.

 

"Yeah, wet suit and such would be need for you, and a tank, but I'm sure this base has something like that, and I swim really fast and carry you right out into the ocean, no problem. I need to get used to the Pacific anyway. I've only been in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic," I could think of worse fates than playing tour guide to a lovely young woman and maybe checking out seals or coral together.

 

"I…" She rose slowly, "Would like that," And began to walk towards the exit, glancing back at me as she did, "Let me think about it? Sorry, I have to go. College project I can't put off forever, and the other thing."

 

"The other thing?" I couldn't help but ask.

 

She flashed a big smile at me, "I have to get fifteen dollars from Pinprick."

 

I touched my chest, wounded anew, "Ow."

 

She laughed lightly, "Sorry, couldn't help it," She made a few more steps, slipped out, then her head bobbed back into view, "You really don't mind taking me to the ocean and playing tour guide/body guard?"

 

"I really don't," I assured her confidently, "Don't worry, there's nothing in the Ocean I can't handle."

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Not a lot happened in this one. I guess it's more of a bridge to other stuff..

 

"I'm sorry," I said to the landlord, "How much for the closet errr apartment again?"  

 

The apartment before me was, well, it wasn't falling down, but I think the department of corrections board would disapprove of it as being too small for their prisoners, especially as I was sure I'd be sharing with some local insect life. It had a window, one the size of a postage stamp. And the price that had been asked for it was astronomical.

 

Well, by North Carolina standards. And perhaps I was exaggerating the lack of space, but not by much.

 

The landlord didn't find me amusing, "That's a normal price for a prime location like this," He snorted.

 

"The location being facing over a back alley?" I said looking through that postage stamp window.

 

"The location being in the city, redneck," This from a potbellied guy wearing a wife-beater shirt with a beer in his hand. Apparently, my accent topped his wardrobe, at least in his eyes.

 

As much as I hated to admit it, the guy had a point. The hows and whys have of why ninety percent of all villain attacks are in Urban areas as opposed to Suburban and Rural zones have been debated and analyzed for decades by people far smarter and more educated on the subject than me. But the prevailing theory on why cities are the places besieged by super criminals is "because that's where the money is".

 

It's not universal. The small town of Pluck, Kentucky once became besieged by some supervillains for weeks before a group of heroes from Nashville (the Music City Militia) took a road trip to the rescue and put an end to and saved the day. From what I hear, one of the locals even stole a villain's power source. Now she defends Pluck all by herself.  

 

I'm not one for theft, but… good on her.

 

But if I wanted to be close to the action, any action, my best bet was an apartment in the city. Preferably ocean side to play to my strengths, and prices, even blocks away from the ocean,  were outrageous. Same for being down town or uptown; frankly I wasn't sure how folks managed to afford to live in this city at all unless they came into it already middle class or up.

 

That said, this was a bad deal all around, and I didn't like my potential land lord.

 

"Pass," I finally said to the guy, "This is nothing like what you put on your website."

 

"Fine," He snorted, "You know the way out."

 

"yeah, I'll be sure to tip the three-headed dog out front," I shot back and opened the door to leave. A little old lady stared up at me. She had large lensed glasses of round shape that made her look like an owl.

 

"Oh, pardon, ma'am," I said politely.

 

"Is Mr. Bateman in there?" She asked for the Landlord by name.

 

"Yes, yes, it is," I said, "He was just showing me the room. You're welcome to it."

 

"Ha, got one of my own already," She shook her head, "And the door still won't close half the time," She said to the land lord as I moved to the side, "You told me you'd fix it four days ago."

 

"The bum of a handy man quit," The landlord shrugged, "You want to move, Mitzhim? I get paid for the next two months either way. Hope you're not late for tomorrow's rent by the way"

 

"That's Mrs Mitzhim to you, God rest my husband's soul, and what if I get robbed?' She said with a sprinkling of heat.

.

"I'm not responsible for what scumballs do," He snorted.

 

"Actually," I coughed into my hand, "You are. And she doesn't owe you this month's rent."

 

"What's this?" Mrs. Mitzhim asked.

 

"Or any month's rent until the problem is fixed," I continued.

 

"Bullcrap!" He snorted.

 

"No, law crap," I countered, "I may hate this city's prices, but it's got a lot protections, on the books, for tenants and their rights. Until he fixes that, you're off the hook."

 

"Get the hell out of here," Mr Bateman snarled!

 

I grinned and started to slide out only to be caught by Mrs. Mitzhim.

 

"Yes, ma'am?" I inquired, surprised at her action.

 

"You're a nice boy, too nice for this place. I have a grandson. His last roommate sucked…I'd move in with him but the building has no elevator and it's four floors up. It would kill my knees. You interested?"

 

Was I interested? I glanced at the hole this guy told me I should be begging for, "Yes, yes, ma'am, I am."

 

Aaron Mitzhim's apartment was not huge by any stretch. Heck, I could fit both bedrooms in this apartment easily into the room I would have at the base.  But the price was better than anything I could pay on my own, the location was close to the ocean, and I didn't see any roaches.

 

"I can't thank you enough for actually letting me jump the line on this one," I admitted, "This is nice."

 

"No," Aaron said, "It's decent. You've just seen so many run down closets that it looks nice in comparision, but thanks. And don't worry about it, my grandmother vouches for you? That's enough in my book."

 

Aaron was not what I was expecting. The mohawk, nose ring, and vulgar tee shirt just didn't click 'sweet grandson' with me, but you know? That was my hang up.

 

"All I did was point out a few of her legal rights," I shrugged, "And as much to bust that jerk landlord's chops as anything. I didn't like him."

 

"Yeah, I'm getting her out of there one day," His eyes narrowed, "Get enough cash to find her a real home. I'm probably the only punk musician in this town who openly admits to wanting to sell out."

 

Yeah, I was liking Aaron. He as a no BS kind of guy, "I can think of worse reasons for doing so. And no, I don't mind the smaller room. The skylight more than makes up for it," I considered, "I take it you are not going to be a quiet room mate? Musicians have to practice."

 

"I never play in here after midnight," Aaron said as if that was a major concession, "But yeah, I am not going to win any Mr. Popularity votes from the dregs below us. You okay with that?"

 

"I sure am, as long as you're used to incredibly weird hours and abrupt departures with little to no explanation," I said trying to cover the superhero angles, "I value my privacy even if it's not a quiet privacy."

 

"Pay your share on time, respect my privacy in return, and never ever play Vanilla Ice or Justin Beiber near me because I don't want to go to jail," He advised.

 

"I'd snort guano before I'd play either one of them," I crossed my heart in front of him.

 

"Yeah, we'll get along fine," He nodded and offered his hand, "Welcome to your new home, Caleb."

 

We shook on it.

 

"Thanks," I was curious, "What's then name of the band you're in?"

 

"Kennedy Can't Duck," He answered.

 

"Righteous," I said with an utterly straight face. Sure, I had the base, but if I wasn't going to live there then I needed this place. I had lucked out and I knew it. Hell, if he told me the band's name was 'How was the play, Mrs. Lincoln? I would have acted like it was in perfectly good taste.

 

And I didn't mention a little detail like my room-mate's band name to the only member of our team who was old enough to remember JFK when I updated her later that night, "So I took your advice. Thanks for the spare costumes by the way."

 

"Just one would get awfully torn up or smelly after a time," She smiled at me, but something hung in the air, and I began to realize what it was.

"Speaking of costumes, I best get my own on and go patrolling," A chance of getting pummeled by bad guys sounded a lot better than the lecture I had the feeling she had been waiting to deliver. I turned to go do just that.

 

"Caleb Lambert," She said using my full name in that way older people do when they want to bring you up short. Worse thing is it works. What a horrible world we live in where one's name is akin to being grabbed by the scruff off the neck.

 

"Yes, ma'am?" I winced. I hadn't even taken a step, so I really had no choice but to turn at meet her gaze, "Something amiss?"

 

"You know exactly what's amiss," Dr. Vernon frowned, "I told you to leave the building after all the innocents were out.You stubbornly decided your own health and safety were less valuable than a post office and disobeyed me."

 

"Yes, but…"

 

She held up a slim finger, not done yet, "When I invited you onto the team, one thing we agreed on was that I was team leader. Now I understand heroes will be heroes, but we are supposed to risk our lives for the citizenry, not things. You ignored me. Now are you willing to accept my commands or not?"

 

"Yes, doctor," I said with a sigh, "But…"

 

She nodded, a sign to continue and that she was listening.

 

"Honestly, even if I had known it was just a post office I still would have done it," I said, "I think lives might have been lost in the long run if their  mission had been seen as any part of as a success."

 

Dr. Vernon's left I, well, I couldn't be sure, but I think It twitched, "You remind me of Hercules."

 

"The Greek God?" My eyes widened, "You've met him?"

 

An amused look crossed her still lovely face, "I mean the myth. Because you are so eager to hold the weight of the world on your shoulders, someone is going to use that against you one day to get out of something and there you'll be stuck there."

 

"I don't follow how my saving the building relates to …" I guess I trailed off, because she went on.

 

"What we do, what we are, is hard enough without trying to measure every possible outcome of what we do and don't do and trying to social engineer it all. It is one thing to be a role model, it is another to take everything on yourself. People who hate will find an excuse to justify the unjustifiable. Your denying them one avenue just means they'll find another. Yes symbols are powerful things, but you are more valuable than a photo op for justice, and I did not want you on this team to be a martyr for the intangible and as yet non-existent. It is too damn easy in this business to go from "I'd give my life for theirs" to "I'd give my life hoping I can keep the world nice". We are superheroes, not gods. And we have to respect each person's responsibility to rise above or wallow," She had a good voice for speech giving, darn it.

 

I frowned, conceding some points in my head, "You seem …awfully insistent on this whole respecting the common man thing. Not that I disagree, but did you ever…"

 

"Make a mistake when I took my job as role model to mean I knew better than others what they needed," A sad look crossed her face, "Oh honey, I thought you read my book."

 

"Yeah, but your son wasn't your…" I started to say.

 

The woman's neck stiffened at that, as if she was experiencing a stabbing pain. And I supposed she had.

 

"I'm sorry," I said, "I didn't realize it would still hurt after all this time," I said apologetically.

 

 

"That's because you've never been a parent," Dr. Vernon rubbed her eyes, stress, no doubt, "Go switch into your costume. We've got a team meeting about what an old friend told me."

 

"Right," I started to go again.

 

"And Caleb? I may not like that you put bricks and mortar over your own safety, but you did a fine job leveraging the weight until I got there. You are a very smart young man in a lot of ways."

 

Maybe it was just the pinch of sugar after a cup of castor oil, but I smiled at her praise anyway.

 

"Thank you," I said as I continued towards my room in the base, "Not bad for a guy who dropped out of college."

 

I thought I heard her say "Wait, you what now???"

 

But if that's all she said, it was no big deal.

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It seems to me you have a nice balance thus far. 

 

So... it occurs to me that if Eel and Ariana get involved in a relationship, it's Vanentino's fault.  After all, if Eel was already involved with one of the Borlyn sisters...

 

I love it in my games when player characters share NPCs.  It makes the world seem more well-rounded. 

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Okay, at first I thought this would be a smaller post then... suddenly it gruesome

 

Lady Obsidian took center seat at the big table. The crescent shaped piece of furniture was at high shine, and each of the other New Samaritans took their own seats.  The seats weren't marked visibly, but people, even superheroes, are creatures of habit and territory. One could read a lot into the arrangement I suppose. Pinprick was at Lady Obsidian's right hand. Tornado at her left. Right of Pinprick was Arctic Fox. Did she just like Pinprick more than Tornado, or just enjoy more room? Not that chairs were packed next to each other. Maybe she used to sit closer to Lady O herself, but the tension over her boyfriend not getting on the team had driven a literal distance between them as well a social one?

 

Maybe I was over thinking this?

 

There was that brief awkward moment of trying to figure out where I would sit, but given a choice between the ice queen and the fun-loving speedster, well, it was pretty easy. Besides, being on the other side of Tornado would balance the table out. I slid into the chair.

 

"Leather upholstery?" I said as I eased into the chair, "This is a nicely funded team."

 

A hovering tray brought me an iced tea, just like mom used to make, "Very nicely funded, and very hospitable," I added, "Thank you, Mabel."

 

"You're most welcome, Romeo," Mabel chuckled.

 

For a moment, I wondered if …aw crud. Unlike the bathrooms or bedrooms, the pool area wasn't off limits to visual. In fact, leaving that much water open without supervision when kids like Glen visited would be downright negligent. I had showed off to impress Ariana, but Mabel had seen it too.

 

Oh, AI or not, she and I were going to have to talk.

 

"Some of the team's funding comes from my patents," Lady Obsidian said with amusement "And Arctic Fox's family knows investments, but I'd say the bulk of credit goes to Pinprick," She inclined her head to him, "He provided a lot of the initial funding for us to invest and capitalize on in the first place."

 

"You're the rich one?" I couldn't hide my surprise as I looked at Pinprick.

 

"What? The little guy can't make money?" Pinprick said.

 

"Yeah! I hear six-inch-tall guys are great at stockmarkets," Tornado said and gave that 'wait for it grin' before letting it drop, "They're masters of the short sell."

"I will end you like a bad novel," Pinprick warned him before turning to me, "There may have been a bag of gold involved in my origin story. Memories were hazy, but I had quite a lot of coins on me when I came to."

 

My facial expression must have shown how much I didn't trust this story, because Lady Obsidian threw in, "He's not kidding. He had this bag of gold coins, bigger than he is. We invested it for him. And it's worked pretty well."

 

"Glen doesn't know it," Pinprick smiled, "But eventually his ass is going Ivy League."

 

"Yes," Lady Obsidian nodded, "College is very important," And she tilted her head my way, "Very."

 

I squirmed a bit, "So, you had news for us from your mystic friend to share with us?"

 

"There's trouble," Lady Obsidian admitted.

 

"Of course, there's trouble," Pinprick threw up his hands, "Has any mystic ever shown up and delivered good news? It's never 'I have seen the signs, and you know, the crops will be good and your sports teams will be victorious'. It's always 'The portents bode ill, something ancient has awakened, and it hungers' oooooo" He made spooky sounds.

 

"Quit being so dramatic, Pinprick," Arctic Fox rolled her eyes at the archer before turning her gaze back to Lady Obsidian, "So what did she say."

The armored woman paused uncomfortably before saying, "She's read the signs. There's a very old magic that is stirring, and there's a sense of very dark ambition. We should be alert, and concerned."

 

"Called it!" Pinprick declared triumphantly.

 

"Tell me she had more details than that?" I raised a brow, "I mean, mystics give me the creeps sure, but there's got to be more than that."

 

"There is," Lady Obsidian answered, "A few nights ago was a sending, a powerful one, one that engulfed the world."

 

"What's a sending?" Arctic Fox inquired. I was glad she did, because I wasn't sure myself.

 

"Well, understand that when it comes to the occult I'm quite the layman myself," Lady Obsidian explained, "But essentially it's a message cast on the frequency of the spiritual. It can often be a vision so powerful it's immersive. Subjects of a sending may think they're hallucinating, day dreaming or what have you."

"And this one went all over the world?" Tornado inquired, "How come everyone all over the world is clueless about it? I mean, at the very least you'd think hundreds of psychics would be doing the head clutch, phone calls to 911 would be pouring in about what folks saw…so on?"

 

"It depends on the contingencies and requirements wired into the spell according to my good friend Doctor Salem," Lady Obsidian answered, "She says that one can put limitations on who is allowed to key in on the Sending. They don't have to be psychic or mystical… though those might sense something is going on, brushing past them, like she did. The requirements can be things like 'Born under the sign of Leo' or 'Only those with blue eyes', or a mix. Unfortunately, she can't know who it was intended for or the contingencies in place. She only knows what she managed to divine. I gather it's like checking for residue at a crime scene for her, but that's mere speculation on that part."

 

"I always wondered," Tornado said absently, "Why she's Doctor Salem, but you're the one with the multiple degrees and you go by Lady Obsidian. I mean, you're both smart women who deserve titles of respect, but why are you the Lady in the duo?"

 

"Because when she and I were younger, I was the one who wore a slip while super-heroing," The older woman said without missing a beat, "Focus, people. Doctor Salem cast some separate divinations of her own, and she believes there is someone or something important here that might give us insight into who is behind this powerful sending and to what purpose they are working. I know this is a bit outside our bailiwick, but she wouldn't have come to me for help if she thought it would be a waste of time. Something big is brewing."

 

Something was bothering me about this, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. You know that feeling you get when you know you're missing something but can't pin it down but you're sure you'll be kicking yourself hours later? I was having one of those moments.

 

"I can ask Valorous if he knows anything related to this," Arctic Fox suggested, "If it's a really big problem brewing, we might need more muscle."

"We need brains more than muscle," Pinprick said, "At least when it comes to solving mysteries."

 

"He has a brain," Arctic Fox said defensively, "He's knows police procedures and he notices everything."

 

Lady Obsidian was quiet for a second then, "Tell him about this if you like. If it's as grave a threat as Doctor Salem suggests, then it won't do any good leaving him unprepared. One or two non-team members knowing won't hurt. Just have him keep it from the public. We don't want a panic when conspiracy theorists try to pencil in their own narratives on this admittedly blank sheet we've got."

 

Arctic Fox was pleased, "Good, right after this then. Is there anything else?" clearly she was eager to get going.

 

"Ahem, it's your turn to patrol with the N-E-W-B-I-E," Pinprick reminded her.

 

"The Newbie can S-P-E-L-L," I shot a look at him.

 

Arctic Fox shot me a look like she was being asked to wipe the nose of an obnoxious kid brother, "I don't suppose one of you would…"

 

"No can do," Tornado said, "I have a public relations event to get to."

 

"The Swedish twins?" Pinprick grinned.

 

I grumbled, at must as the injustice off it all as anything.

 

"Yes," He admitted with a smile, "Obviously in case of emergency I'll head right out to help whoever."

 

"Pinprick?" Arctic Fox looked at him hopefully.

 

"Haahahahaha…." The little man laughed then, "no."

 

"Oh, come on," She said exasperated, "Tornado is not the only one who might hope for a little romantic time. Surely one of you can take the newb on."

"Feeling a little hurt here," I admitted. I was a big guy.  I wasn't being used to being treated like the nerd at dodgeball team selection, "You guys know I did fight crime and superhero and everything before I met you, right? The city's new to me, but the duty isn't."

 

"You have a point," Lady Obsidian said, "Though the escorts were not meant to hold your hand so much as letting you get used to how each team member worked. The better you know us, the better we coordinate.  Still, as others seem to have something to do, and I need to get some lab time in… sure, keep your ear bug in, and don't be afraid to call me. Okay?"

 

"Sounds good," I smiled, "Any suggestions on where to patrol?"

 

Pinprick considered my question seriously, "Try the north pier near Stern market," He suggested, "Two street gangs, the Northside Leones and the Wardawgs are meeting. Believe it or not, to bury the hatchet… if rumors are right. That's over all good news, but it's also possible someone's itchy trigger finger and bad blood over old scraps might have them decide they just prefer to kill each other. You don't strike me as stealthy, but it is near water so…."

"I'll spy on it and make sure it doesn't go south," I said with a nod.

 

"Good news is, they're nothing you couldn't take in a fight, Fish Guy," He assured me, "switchblades and bullets not exactly a threat to you."

"I'm on it," I looked at Lady Obsidian.

 

"I think we're done for the night," She nodded, "Just everyone, remember to keep your ears open for talk of what might be that sending. It's not a lot to go on, but sometimes we get lucky."

 

Costa Sagrado had some beautiful shores, glorious blue waters beyond them, and was surprisingly clean. Mind you, the pier area was less so but it wasn't so filthy as to make me cringe going through it. There is little worse than breathing water and find out you're sucking down sewage masquerading as a harbor. To this day, I will not discuss New York Harbor. Thank god, this city was different.

 

I came near the meeting sight, and peeked my head out. I have incredible night vision. Light only goes down so far into the ocean and my powers are built for it. So, the two gangs gathering together at this late hour might as well having been having their chat by noon.

 

The Northside Leones had mostly denim jackets with Leonine designs either on the jackets themselves or tattooed on their bodies. They wore a lot of blue and gold. They were a predominantly Mexican American group, but they took any angry young Latino boy into their ranks. Strength in numbers and all that. The Wardawgs were the older gang, at least in this city. They'd been around in one incarnation or another since the 80s. Mostly consisting of equally angry young black poor, they had originally formed for mutual defense against what they saw as a racist local police force and a biased economy. Any halo either gang ever had though had been pretty badly tarnished by their own acts of theft, violence, and drug dealing.

 

They weren't breaking any laws now though. And some of them looked weary to the bone tired as they gazed upon their opposites.

 

"You keep crossing down into Mignola boulevard," the leader of the Wardawgs said, "Yet at the same time you say you want peace."

 

"Some of our gang, we got family of the East part of the street," The leader of the Northside Leones answered after conferring with some in his gang who I assumed were either advisers or the ones with the relatives, "You can't ask us to desert family. You know?"

 

"Yeah, I hear your mother is a pretty tight fit" One Wardawg further back gave a jab.

 

The Northsiders began to curse, some reaching for guns or knives, only to have their leader shout at them in Spanish to chill the hell out. The Wardawg leader turned around to the joker in their crew, "You talking or am I talking? Shut your ass up."

The situation de-escalated, and I took a deep relieved breath.

 

I wasn't alone. Neither one of these gangs wanted a fight now, despite enmity. Kids this young should not be acting like burned out war vets.

"Okay, how about you get East side, we keep the rest," The Wardawg leader said, "Just the East."

 

Some mutters, but grudging nods, "Sounds good."

 

"In exchange, we want use of St. Thomas Bridge without being hassled and…"

 

Even with night vision, I almost missed it. There was a movement above from a rooftop. I had been so busy making sure neither gang started a fight with the other that I hadn't considered a third party! There was no fancy flip and three point landing this time. I jumped out of the water yelling "Look out!" and tried to cover the incoming fire.

 

It was not a single shot.

 

A spray of gunfire came from the rooftop came down on my back and the area around me in a hard steel rain! It didn't so much as scratch my skin, but despite my best efforts, I wasn’t' the only one who got hit. One Wardawg cried out and dropped down as his knee was pierced by the resulting spray. On my other side, the Northside Leone Leader himself cursed as his left arm was tagged.

 

I wondered who the #### was doing this?

 

But it was one of the gangers that knew… "Christ, it's Bloodwatch!"

 

And they panicked. I guess I couldn't blame them. They were not bullet proof, I was. Yet the sheer terror in their eyes as it settled in who was after them startled me. They easily had the man out numbered twenty to one, though he did have the high ground.

 

Instead of organized retreat or counter attack, members of both gangs freaked and each did their own thing. A few tried to use me for cover. Several drew their own weapons and fired at the figure on the roof, but their hand guns didn't have good accuracy at that range and again. Besides, I swear some of them had their hands shaking. Others just plan ran.

 

Now, I've only hunted a few times, but honestly, this had all the marks of a turkeyshoot in the making, and the gangbangers would be playing the part of the feathered ones. Bloodwatch shot on the run, and worse, he shot with accuracy even then, a scarlet blur that fired another burst clipping three more who were trying to get to the end of the pier. They were too far away for me to help!

 

I couldn't shield them all! And for a moment my utter inability to defend them directly almost overwhelmed me. I needed to buy the others time to run.

My eyes spotted a speedboat near the pier. No engine…but for what I had in mind, it wouldn't need one, "Go now!" I said to the gangers, bent down to grab the boat, and threw it at Bloodwatch with such force I sheared a bit off the ledge of the roof as it smashed towards him!

 

Dark vigilante he might be, but that one caught him off guard. A spray of broken boat clipped him and I heard a groan. The gangers came out of their right long enough to realize this was their one chance. Those that could run, ran! Others limped or crawled, and a few, wounded (Or possibly dead already!) lay there.  

 

"Help your friends," I ordered, and to my surprise some gang members already where.

 

"This is Eel at the Pier" I announced to the ear bug, "Bloodwatch is trying to kill them all! Kids have been shot! I need ambulances, please!"

Even as I was doing that, I launched myself up to follow where the boat had been.

 

The beartrap caught my foot. Had I been non-powered, it would have mangled it beyond recognition if it didn't just flat out cut it off.

 

I twisted to get a better look at Bloodwatch. Like you'd expect, his outfit was blood red with black highlights. Color aside, there was a rather military look to what he had on. And where a regular soldier might have a patch showing rank on the shoulders, he instead had Justice's Scales with an Eyeball over them. I could see dark skin under his red tinted visor.

 

"You son of a ##### murderous psycho," I snarled at him, "If you're hoping to hurt me you'll have to do better than this." I wanted his focus on me, not the gang members. I raised my foot up ready to lift the trap and shatter it to prove a point to him.

 

"I believe you," Blood watch said, hand dropping from his gun and to his belt. There was a click!

 

And electricity coursed through my body as if I were golfing in a thunderstorm! There were two sounds besides the zzzzzark of the juice. One was a popping fizz burst sound in my ear where the communicator was. The other was some guy screaming bloody murder in pain.

 

Then I realized the 'some guy' was me!

 

Forcing myself to work through the pain, I shattered the trap and broke the circuit in more ways than one and staggered towards Bloodwatch.

 

"Why are you protecting them?" He spat, "They're murderers, poisoners, and thieves! You save them, you will be responsible when they kill others, you understand that right?"

 

Another burst round caught me square in the chest. Something was different about them? Wait, were these rubber bullets? Odd… he's trying to fry me and then spare me? Maybe he's trying to gauge my limits while at the same time not killing me.

 

Still, since he was feeling chatty, I obliged as I moved through, "It's not our place," I said, "You don't get to decide who is irredeemable and who isn't.  We stop them, we don't kill them!" I tried to grab him.

 

He grabbed my wrist instead and flipped me off the damn roof using my own momentum against me.

 

"Who does then? Some judge who goes 'ooh this one isn't eighteen yet, surely he didn't know what he was doing when he put a bullet to an innocent man's head and pulled the trigger?' Or maybe God? You a believer maybe? Think the skyfairy will sort it all out."

 

I caught myself on the ledge of one window, "As a matter of fact, yeah, I'm a believer more or less. Raised that way at least. I have doubts, but sure, how about we got with letting God decide who lives or dies."

 

I yanked hard and launched myself up to find he already crossed to the other side of the roof ready to shoot some of the downed gangers and make sure he had gotten them.

 

He turned when he saw me and scowled.

 

"Oh, I might believe there's a God. But even if there is," He said, reaching for a grenade and lobbing it at me, "He's not very good at his job. No, I believe in Justice, real justice where the weak don't have to hide from the vicious and strong! I believe that if you see a monster, you don't wait until after it's ravaged a village. You put it down before it can disturb the hair of one innocent child's head!"

 

The grenade exploded in my face, not with force or heat… but with light! I couldn't see! My own eyewear might have dimmed it a bit, but not by much and I was completely blind!

 

"You and your friends make me sick, Eel," Bloodwatch said with contempt, "You save the day but feed the revolving door that let some punk kill someone else the next week. You throw these animals in cages, so they become wilder, more dangerous animals, and then seem surprised they come back stronger and kill or poison even more efficiently. You don't train rabid dogs, Eel. You put them the #### down. Until you learn to do that, you are a placebo fighting a cancer! Me? I'm the scalpel!"

 

I swiped empty air, trying to find out where he was speaking from.

 

"I won't kill you, I don't want to kill you, blind as you are more ways than one," Blood watch said, "I've got a titanium bullet, a one shot. I could put it through your eye and I bet that would take even you out. But if I have hope at all, it's that you'll wake up and realize I'm right. I won't kill you. I Kill the guilty, not the stupid. I am going to finish I started before those ambulances closing can help… and if you don't like the sounds of the shots and screams. Cover your ears, because that's all you can do right now."

 

Nothing! Nothing was clearing!  I still couldn't see! At this rate by the time my eyes did clear he'd have killed off the gunshot victims on the pier.

 

"Screw your hateful zero tolerance bullcrap," I seethed, "Screw your arrogant dismissal of everyone who ever tried to help others reform while you spout off about your own twisted brand of despair you pretend is hope… " I raised both hands, "But mostly? SCREW YOU!"

 

I broke the roof.

 

I hadn't tried the shockwave before now because I knew it would just put a hole in this weak roof. Well, now the target was the roof, and I didn't give a damn!

I heard stone and wood alike break under me and felt myself plummeting as the edges caved in. I heard the clatter and thump of something, or possibly some one, falling nearby. I heard cursing from Bloodwatch. You know what I didn't hear?

 

Gunshots. I didn't hear gunshots.

 

I knew my eyesight had come back when the debris was lifted off me by shimmering fields of energy. Lady Obsidian scooped me out of that mess like I was a batch of vanilla ice cream.

 

"I'm okay," I told her, "I just see so I was worried if I punched I might…."

 

"Knock the debris into an innocent," She nodded, "Don't worry, the only thing hurt was a condemned building and any squatters were gone as soon as the heard of two dangerous gang meetings."

 

"Bloodwatch…" I said sitting up, "he…"

 

"Got away," She said, "Won't be the first time he's slipped one of us, Eel."

 

"And the gang members?" I asked, "Did any of them…"I swallowed, "I think I saw one get shot in the chest."

 

"You got the request for ambulances out before your com was fried," She assured me, "As for if any died? That's…yet to be determined. There are four in critical condition. Four more in Serious. If not for you? They wouldn't that well off. It's out of our hands now but you did well."

 

"It doesn't feel like it," I said, "Not with … he got away, some could die anyway. I should have…"

 

"Weight of the world," She said and I realized she was carrying me in the field away from the scene, and towards the base whether I liked it or not, "I told you that you cannot carry it alone. For such a bright young man, you do not always listen."

 

"Yeah, mom says that's why she went prematurely gray," I muttered.

 

"You should send that poor woman flowers more often," Lady Obsidian observed.

 

She was, of course, right on that one, "If this is just an attempt to take my mind off those guys in the hospital," I chuckled, "You may have to try another tact because it's only partially working."

 

There was a pause as we made our way towards the mall.

 

Finally…

"You know, Eel. There are a lot of good and reputable colleges that offer online courses…"

 

I groaned and thumped my head against the inside of the force bubble.

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It seems to me you have a nice balance thus far. 

 

So... it occurs to me that if Eel and Ariana get involved in a relationship, it's Vanentino's fault.  After all, if Eel was already involved with one of the Borlyn sisters...

 

I love it in my games when player characters share NPCs.  It makes the world seem more well-rounded. 

 

Won't Valentino love that bit of logic? :)

And yes I like that in my games too. It does make the world seem more real and rounded...

it also leads to funny moments

 

"Dude, you're dating my DNPC? not cool man"

 

 

Eel is a HERO after my own heart.   You write an extremely believable story of a Super Hero.

 

Thank you, Kaeto.

 

Bloodwatch is not exactly original as killer vigilantes go. He's competent and dangerous and believes he's in the right.

 

And just as firmly, Eel knows the man is wrong.

 

I wasn't sure how Idealistic Eel aka Fish Guy would be when I started this, but I think he's shaped up to being very much so. I think he's bouncing well off the other team mates so far and allowing them to show more about him and vice versa.

 

For example, I think Lady Obsidian sees a lot in him that has nothing to do with aquatic powers and hopes to sharpen him up without losing any of the strength she sees in him.

And it really really bugs her that such a smart young man dropped out of college ;)

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Still more great stuff, sir. FIsh-G... er, Eel is very much like most of my PC's. I really like him and the rest of the Samaritans.

 

I would absolutely pay $10 for a copy of this novel (after completion, editing, etc.of course).

 

I know this is a novel, not a comic book, but as a visual person I was wondering if/when we'll get to see graphic representations of the main characters?

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Okay, at first I thought this would be a smaller post then... suddenly it gruesome

 

Amusing word-play there.

 

 

 

Something was bothering me about this, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. You know that feeling you get when you know you're missing something but can't pin it down but you're sure you'll be kicking yourself hours later? I was having one of those moments.

 

Yeah, I kinda wanted to reach into the story and smack him upside the head.

 

 

 

"No can do," Tornado said, "I have a public relations event to get to."

 

"The Swedish twins?" Pinprick grinned.

 

Public relations... relations with the public... what's the difference?  :winkgrin:

 

 

 

You know what I didn't hear?

 

Gunshots. I didn't hear gunshots.

 

I like that bit.  Nicely written.

 

Actually, all of it is well written.  But I enjoy clever turns of phrase that communicate important info.  And you have a talent for sprinking those in.  Keep up the good work.

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