csyphrett

Re: Notes from NSU Nightspawn Unlimited, Mark. I'm trying to get my archives down to where my new players can read everything that's happened without having to strain themselves. CES

Day One Jason Ambros worked at the Temple City University Library translating books. He discovered a weird journal and was confronted by Psi Ice and Hexum. He escaped with the book by transforming into nightbane. He researched book as well as he can before returning to the library and talking to Mrs. Keeley, the head librarian. He denied all knowledge. Jason found a map in the journal. An x is over Nebechunezzar Park. He checked with Jim Larraby of the humanities department at school about translating the book. He learned it had 17 languages in its pages. Jason leaves, spotting a flash of light in a bank near TCU. He investigated. He confronted Captain Video believing that he was a more famous villain. Video escaped. Jerry Adams was a student at TCU. He met Cora Lilith. She stated that he was recommended to be her tutor by Dr. Hiram. She gave him an address at 200 Bartholomew Lane. They set a meeting for a study session. Jerry checked with Dr. Hiram via e-mail. He denied knowing her. Jerry checked number and address and found it was in Lazarus Hill, an affluent neighborhood in town. He went to dinner and checked what Hiram's current classes are on. Jerry's apartment was invaded by a Belmont monster hunter. He escaped to St. Thomas, a church near the university. He talked to the priest, and learned the Belmont has a number tattooed to his neck in Chinese. He captured the Belmont and turned him over to the police as a psycho. Simon Poole was having a dinner at the Cross Café, family visiting with in-laws. He was poisoned and loaded into an ambulance. He met Dr. Moto and Nurse at hospital. The problem seemed to be with his DNA. Simon underwent transformation to blood creature and was trapped in a liquid proof tub. Ashlee Summer was at home in an apartment building at the edge of the Catacombs. She heard shots, and police pursuit. She stopped the bad guys, members of the Midnight Wolves street gang. She went back to her apartment, showered, watched television. Her face and name was plastered on the news. Ashlee went to bed. She heard a noise. Wolves break into her place. She escaped, but they trashed her apartment before leading her back to their base. She reported the break-in and the cops give her a lift to the Glory Arms, a flea bag hotel. Ashlee left the hotel for Adam's Rib, the strip club where she worked. She talked to Jake Lowengard, a bouncer at the club, and he agreed to let her stay at his place on the beach. She went there, and cleaned up. Melody Jennings was a doctor partnered with a Dr. Strain, with an office in the Calvin Town part of Temple City. She ran into Harvey Dowd, a PI in her building. She brushed him off. She ran into the villainous Scorpion in the parking lot. Dowd saved her by setting Scorpion on fire. She fled as nightbane self and checked into Beachfront Hilton hotel. She phoned her dad, learned she was adopted. Dowd reappeared and they flew to Nebechunezzar Park on the astral plane. Melody saw the astral tornado for the first time. Melody met Casey Dawson in the park. They talked and she learned that Parsons killed Harvey Dowd while he was trying to save her life as an infant. They talk to Walker Fitch at the All Nite Café. Dawson asked Melody to room at his dojo while he was protecting her. Jessie Rainhawk had a ranch in Macguire, Colorado. She received a note from a Cory Dawson, addressed to her parents who had died in a car accident. She met and battled a Belmont. She fled the ranch, catching a bus to Temple City. She spotted pursuit but felt safe surrounded by people. Jessie arrived in Temple City. She met Moe Shrevnitz, cab driver. He lost her pursuit as he took her to Motel 6 so she could stay for a while.

Re: Awareness.exe I tried to build a power like this years ago. The best thing I could think of was clairvoyance and retrocognition, based on public records, using a computer link to public databases. CES

Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The implication that he's done the same thing multiple times is kind of staggering. Still the return of Dinky Earnshaw and Brautigan and others from other stories was welcome. CES

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 33 Ray Hammet hoped he was doing the right thing. There were plenty of those winged monsters on watch, but it looked like they were calming down. Maybe he could sneak into the invisible castle now. The question of a disguise crossed his mind. Ray kicked the snorer in the head to make sure he didn't wake up at the wrong time. He took the guy's smelly shirt and switched his dirty, flaked, shirt for it. His skin covered his plates again. Hopefully the big things couldn't tell one human from another. Ray walked from the hut, using it for cover as much as possible. The idea was to act like a villager deciding to sneak up to the castle. The main problem with his plan was anticipating what the guards would do. He needed to look like a low priority target next to everything else that had happened so far. Ray smiled as he crossed from one shadow to another until he reached the hut nearest the hill the castle sat on. Here came the hard part. He crept along, bending over double, forcing himself to keep low, and go slow. He reached the hill unchallenged and forced back a laugh of relief. Ray worked his way around the hill until he came to the main gate. A hole had been punched through it by someone. He pulled on the edges, glad the wood came away in his hands without much of a struggle. Silent feet carried him into the courtyard. Ray looked for a door, avoiding what looked like a white patch on the courtyard floor. The rest of the stones were a universal grayish brown. A white patch could mean anything. He decided not to test it and find out. Ray found a door leading into the central keep. Up and to the right was the room he had seen from the air. He didn't know if the way was clear to get up there. The floor had looked wrecked the few seconds he had been able to look at it. On the other hand, he didn't have anything better to do, and couldn't exterminate all the gargoyles by himself. He might as well look to see if he could find steps leading up there. Worse came to worse, he could climb the outside if he had to do it. Ray checked the door, not surprised that it opened to his touch. He entered slowly, hoping he was doing the right thing. Heroes had broken in ahead of him. He didn't hear a fight going on. That usually meant bad news for the good guys. Ray searched the lower level, glad to find the hill of debris that confirmed his guess. He looked for a stairwell, and one presented itself in a column to the left of the collapsed floor. He started climbing, alert for any guards. Ray reached the top. He listened before stepping out on the floor. Low voices talked to each other. He hoped it was somebody he knew. Ray stepped into the hall, not quite activating his transformation. A man in a jumpsuit stood next to a group of wrapped heroes. Something about the free man's profile reminded him of his past. "Stand and be recognized." Ray stood in shadow, ready to step forward and swing an arm, or to dodge back into the stairwell. The free man turned. One eye seemed normal, the other bulged the socket. The narrow face beneath drew down in sharp angles. Then he smiled in recognition. "Ray! Ray Hammet." Mr. Rickert laughed like pebbles falling into water. "I thought you were dead." "Not yet." Ray stepped out in clearer light. "I heard you still worked for the government." "I had to turn in my notice." Rickert's good eye clouded with memory. "Something came up and I had to clear out my office." "I thought you would be a company man until you wound up in the ground." Ray smiled. "I did too." Rickert turned back to the man he had been talking to when Ray interrupted. "I think we have a good chance to end this." "I don't have a problem with that." The tentacles around Phaeton squeezed as he shifted. "Break out the Saint first."

Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Finished the Dark Tower by Stephen King. I don't know what to say. Roland always arriving at the tower and being sent back to save it is harsh punishment, except at the end there's hope that he will fix the mistakes he made the next go round. CES

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 32 Aaron Stark walked the halls of the underground lab, glad that something had gone right. His people and Quick had surprised the techs. That meant their powers and weapons had herded the underlings into takedowns and on site arrests before they could escape. Even Dr. Krueger, the big fish, had been taken with very little violence. The only fly in the ointment was Maker taking off on her own. Stark checked the location she had sent over. His agents in the sky had a view of a skyscraper in Houston. No people in, no people out as far as they could tell from orbit. Stark had the local feds coming to take over for his team, bothered that Maker hadn't radioed back. He didn't know her very well, but she would have at least called Quick with information. He knew she hadn't. His combat rig sifted radio transmissions automatically, even encrypted ones. Stark had to make a combat decision based on limited information. That was something he didn't like to do. Someone had to stay behind to guard the scene, especially the vaults. He decided that Poster Girl would have to do it. Her limited power may, or may not, come in handy. In any case, she could catch up after the place was handed over. Time to round up the troops and get going. "Maker went after someone connected to the lab on her own." Stark told Quick after finding her near the elevator access. "I'm going to post a guard, then go after her." "I'll talk to Reilly and get a step ready." Quick took one last look around for any hidden surprises. "We'll get there as soon as he can aim the beam on us." "Right." Stark started away. "I'll get the others together so we can go." Stark rounded up the members of his team quickly. A check with his lookouts told him that their relief was rolling along a few miles away. "Quick is arranging for us to track down the rest of whomever was involved in this place." Stark checked Houston again. "Poster Girl, I want you to stay behind until our back up gets here. Then I want you to head to Kansas, unless you hear different before then. This place has to be taken care of first. Do not let anyone open those vaults until we get back." "Got it, boss." Poster Girl gave a salute. "I talked to Kevin." Quick appeared at their side. "He's ready." "We're ready too." Stark looked over his team. He didn't like going from one battle to the next, but couldn't think of any options. "Do we have to be outside?" "It'll make it easier." Quick disappeared, leaving a fading image to point the way she had gone. "Let's roll." Stark tried to call Pointer to relay what they were doing. Static replied. That couldn't be good. The School climbed up the elevator shaft and out to the ruined cover house. Quick stood out on the grass. She didn't look happy to the Watcher. A stray transmission told him she was trying to call someone on her network. "What's wrong?" He had a feeling that she was having the same problem he just did, and not liking it. "No one is answering in Kansas." Quick looked around. "I don't know if it's because of that field, or because no one is there to answer. I'm worried." "No one is answering my call either." Watcher aimed his spies at the flat plains of Kansas. "I can't see anything but these winged lizards in the air." "That can't be good." Quick tapped her foot against the ground, wearing a pattern in the grass. "We have to check this other thing out." Stark knew exactly how she felt. "Pointer can handle his end." "I hope you're right." Quick triggered her com. "Kevin, we're ready to go." The now familiar flipping whirled Stark's stomach for a second as his systems paused to reboot. He held his hand up to keep everyone in place. He wanted to be able to see again before he went into a battle. Finally his agents made their connection. He should have expected that. Nothing was really hurt by it, but he would remember next time, if there was a next time. "I'll have to do some recon before we go in." Stark told his team. "I want you guys to spread out and get ready to hit that building right there." He pointed to the black monolith sticking out against the skyline. "Stick with me, Quick." Stark moved to a corner, aligning his sight on the building. "I'll need fast transport if Maker was right." Quick nodded, rubbing her hands together as she followed him.

Re: Ripping off the Late Roger Zelazny... Yes the summoning is teleport other, but also you couldn't teleport someone if you weren't talking to them. Some aspects of the deck reached across shadow. That implies extradimensional movement. CES

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 31 Lord Scriptus frowned. The castle guards should have multiplied enough to handle the possible threats to his world building regime. Instead it sounded like they were in the castle. He should have installed Higgins as his major domo instead of leaving him with Enoch. Time to take a personal hand in matters so he could get on with his real business. Lord Scriptus wrote on the floor to keep the flow moving. Then he wrote on the air. Heroes had invaded his lair. A television screen in the air told him that much. That taught him to rely on gargoyles. He definitely should have brought Higgins with him once he got started. One group was inside the castle, using the wreckage caused by Cowboy as an entrance. The other bunch charged his front door. They didn't seem to have detected the outer wall yet. One thing at a time. Scriptus wrote on the air. Tentacles exploded out of the walls he was watching. The limbs wrapped around the group in the castle. The Saint touched the appendages, bursting them with white light. The Schooler went to help his comrades. The mage made a quick gesture. Stone wrapped around the man in white, locking him in place and away from the semiliving things the writer had summoned. That seemed to take care of the intruders. Scriptus turned his attention to the front gate. Once he dealt with them, he could go back to executing his plan. He should call Enoch and check on the boy. They were too close to foul up after the long effort to secure his training, and the rule of the other world. What could he use that would hold the mighty School and Magistracy? As John Public punched a hole in the gate, he decided the best ways were the tried ways. He could improvise later if he needed to do that. He wrote on the air again. Whirling octopuses dropped on the heroes from above. As soon as they secured a grip, the trapped person in their clutches collapsed as their powers drained away and normal strength didn't equal his spell craft. Luna stood alone. Somehow she had rammed her fingers through the summoned monster and killed it in a lightning flash. He couldn't let that go unanswered. Scriptus wrote on the air. The captives joined their friends out in his hall with a bend of reality. That made Luna pause to plan her next move. That pause turned into a shattering of wood and metal as she punched through the castle's invisible gate and stepped into the revealed courtyard. The writer smiled as he sketched symbol after symbol on air, and in his ongoing ritual. Maybe he had avoided confrontation for too long. He would do something about that when he was done. First he had to deal with his opponent. He watched as spears of lightning rained down in the courtyard. Luna stepped to avoid them as he knew that she would. She stepped on one stone near the middle of the yard. It gave way, sending her down a chute to a room of sludge under the castle. "Let her try to fight her way out of that." Lord Scriptus knew he had bought some time, just not how much. Three teams had shown up on his doorstep. He could expect the Odd Squad next, maybe the Strikers. Then the individuals might show up in their own good time. Hopefully he would get done with his plan before he had to fight the whole planet. Once the balance had tipped far enough, any foe would be forced to deal with the new reality before they could try and deal with him. And he wouldn't be tied down with his spell working then. Lord Scriptus looked over his prisoners. Jerry Silver was eyeballing him. He didn't like that at all. "Something I can do for you?" The writer filled in more slots before they drifted away. "Just wondering how good it will feel to punch you in the face." Silver shifted on the pile, smiling at the magician. "I don't think I have to worry about that any time soon." Scriptus smiled. "All your assistance is captured and I am able to continue. There's nothing you can do to stop me."

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 30 Maker walked through the digital world she had created when she hacked into the security of the secret lab. Switching off alarms and cameras were a snap. Her colleagues seemed to be having an easy time dealing with the scientists and technicians. Changing the vault combinations certainly helped. Maker found phone calls in a stray memory. A few moments of concentration and she knew everyone who called, where they were, and partial records except for one number who always called in. That number had to be the head honcho. Maker turned her tech on the problem, surfing through the communications grids of the world. Node after node revealed false leads along with the one trail she wanted. Focusing her scan allowed her to pick up the scent again and again. No one went to that much trouble if they didn't have something to hide. Maker smiled when the trail stopped cold. "Watcher." Maker waited for the radio to hook up. "I have a lead. I'm putting it in a file to send over where you can find it later. I'm going to track it down if I can." "Take someone with you." Watcher was theoretically in command. He knew he couldn't stop a magistrate short of arresting him, or her. Diplomatic immunity would stop that ploy in a second. "That's okay." Maker gutted Dr. Krueger's records and sent them back to the Tower. "Everyone is busy. Security is shutdown, and the specimen cages are locked. Have a good time." "Be careful." Static marked Watcher's laser gun firing. "This should be an easy takedown." Maker left a shadow to watch out for the School team and Quick before she disconnected. Maker dialed the Tower's Step. The satellite couldn't lock on to the exact location of the phone number. She frowned under the featureless helmet. That was almost the same as the spot in Kansas. Definite connections to the problem made her happy. Maker triggered the beam. The flipping motion left her standing outside of an office building. She looked up, knowing that her quarry must be on the upper floors. Villains tended to do that. Maker decided to enter through the exterior after a quick scan. No sense triggering alarms while she had to make her way through the building. Busting through an outside wall should just be as easy. Her factories built a scanner over her eyes. A beam sliced through the wall, revealing the innards to her computers. She smiled when she found a room that seemed to be an office containing one person in the middle of the floor. That had to be her man. Maker looked for an entrance to keep the violence to a minimum. The man in the office didn't seem like much of a threat physically. A quiet approach should work. Maker ascended to the roof. She landed gently, already changing her finger to a lock disabler. Two turns of the knob and the door popped open without a protest. She slipped inside, calling up the glooper. That should be more than enough until she figured the exact problem. Maker made her way down to the office floor. She liked the way there weren't any personnel around. That made it easier for her to do her job. Maker kicked the door in. She took aim with the glooper. The dancing letters on the floor were enough to confirm her suspicions. "Hands up." Maker advanced into the room. "Higgins!" The man didn't stop writing on the floor. "I need you to see this lady out please." The butler appeared out of thin air. A cloud of sulphur drifted around his feet. The look on his face was a bland dismissal. "You heard the young master." Higgins waved his hand, indicating go in front of me. Maker shot him with the glooper. Two problems for the price of one was not something she had counted on. At least one was down for the moment. Time to switch up. Higgins pulled the white stuff apart with ease. He stood up, fire burning in his eyes. He smiled. Maker shot him with a light gun made from her other arm. Higgins looked down at the hole blown through his torso. Maker shot him again, not liking the fact he was smiling. "That's a very lethal choice of weaponry." Higgins took a breath, letting his body pull itself back together as he walked. "Unexpected from such a lovely lady." "Not lethal enough." Maker aimed for his legs and blew them out from under him. That was a temporary solution based on his ability to regenerate. Time to think of something else. Maker stepped back as Higgins braced himself on his hands, getting his stumps under his body. The laser cannon switched to something his demonic brain didn't understand. The butler looked at it with a raised eyebrow. Maker fired a sphere of energy at the butler. He took it in the chest, sure that it would barely affect him. The bullet boiled him away as it rotated in place. The orb sank to a point and then disappeared. "Where were we?" Maker turned her black hole gun on the sitting man. "Go to sleep." The apprentice made a sign with his hands. Maker dropped to the floor.

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 29 Mr. Rickert grimaced as he read the instruments in the passenger section of the fighter jet he had begged passage on. He had asked the pilot to fly as fast as his baby would go. His efforts brought the Kansas flat lands into sharp relief in a couple of hours after takeoff. A few more minutes and they should be over the center of the problem. "We'll be over target in six minutes." The pilot hadn't spoken the whole trip. His voice seemed to echo louder than Rickert anticipated. "Thank you." Rickert checked his straps again. "As soon as I bail, get out of there." "No problem." The pilot made sure his oxygen mask was secure. "Good luck." Rickert nodded. He had rarely gone in the field the last few years. Mentoring the Markers had brought out his need to look out for others. He hoped they understood why he had to leave them behind. He had risked his own life for a lot of years, first as a soldier, then as an agent. He had started risking it again helping them. They had enough problems being fugitives. He couldn't ask them to fight some menace that didn't have any connection to them. If they wanted to be heroes, they could do that after he was gone. "Two minutes." The announcement sliced through his thoughts, made him reach for the lever. He hoped he wasn't making a mistake. "We are over the drop zone." The pilot brought the plane into a shallow climb to give his passenger that extra room to get clear. Mr. Rickert pulled the release. The canopy blasted apart. Then his seat launched into space, tumbling as it flew from the jet. One hand released the chair buckles as he counted silently, then pulled his ripcord. The parachute filled the sky above him, slowing his fall into a drift with the wind. Mr. Rickert stopped worrying about the pilot getting clear. He had more immediate problems as he descended toward what looked like a battle. If the winged things saw him as he dropped, and decided to take an issue with him dropping in, he would be dead before he hit the ground. One hand pulled the goggles and patch away from his malformed eye. He dropped them as he floated down. He wondered where the others were, if they were still alive. Ray, Mike, and Porter, had all been in the program, had all gotten their grafts. His eye channeled energy. He didn't know how it worked. He didn't care. All that mattered was he could blast away about five times before he collapsed from the pain. All he needed was one, if he blasted the right thing. Mr. Rickert saw something that didn't make sense. A room stood on empty air. He aimed his parachute for it, looking for enemies as he dropped. "I got your back, Mr. R." Andy Chen's outline appeared to his left, standing on the air. "I thought I told you to stay home." Mr. Rickert frowned at his charge. "I think I remember that." "I go where the action is." Andy's line of a mouth smiled like a happy face. "We are going to talk about boundaries and listening." Rickert's face twisted. "Paying attention comes to mind." "We have incoming, Mr. Rickert." Andy glanced down and to his left. "Looks like some guys from the School." "Get us down on land." Rickert pointed to the exposed room. "We might be able to let things slide without getting involved after all." "That wouldn't be any fun." Andy pushed the air in front of him, that pushed the parachute. A few seconds later, Mr. Rickert hid behind a column of stone in a wrecked hallway. Andy hovered beside him, invisible in the dim light. The government super soldiers landed a few feet away.

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 28 Jeff Ashcroft flexed his hands as he watched the B team ship out. He wasn't fond of the idea of scrambled molecules being converted to electrical impulses and sent all over the globe. Visions of the Fly kept dancing through his head. "Last call for Kansas." Kevin Reilly typed in the coordinates on the control panel. "Go ahead, Kevin." John Public straightened his jacket, eyeing the dirt on the front of it. Jeff winced as the glow took him away. A flat plain greeted him after the wink. A partially destroyed house marked the start of a small village that looked a few hundred years out of place. Winged things hovered in the air over a hill at the other end of the village. "It looks like there's only one place to go." Public was at Jeff's side, frowning at the hill. "Let's do this." Jeff pulled one of his imaginary guns to life. "I have a feeling we won't be alone for long." "Here they come." Luna started walking toward the hill. The winged monsters soared to gain altitude, and then swooped down on the group of heroes. The number seemed to double as the gargoyles descended, claws and talons outstretched. They needed the army. Pointer started blasting with his pistols. Triple rose up in the air, firing one of his telekinetic balls. Holo took to the air, blasting with his lasers. Phaeton fired from the ground, conserving his energy for the real battle. The partial air defense blasted some of the gargoyles apart. Then the surviving guards reached for those on the ground, while some tried to overrun the heroes in the air. The heroes couldn't stand against so many of the stone monsters. Luna led the counterattack, breaking any of the gargoyles that came close. Pointer blasted away, moving forward to the castle. John Public began to pull guards down out of the sky, and smashing their heads with his hands. Holo and Triple resorted to blasting anything that looked like a threat in the air. Phaeton waited for stone lizards to get close before expending part of his precious energy on blasting them. Beatnik used the gargoyles as stepping stones to get clear. Puma Sai resorted to punching through stone bodies with his sais. The Saint waited for them to touch his white coat with their claws. They collapsed in a moment of self destruction. "We need cover." Pointer blasted the closest enemy. "There are too many of these things." "They're coming from that hill." Luna sliced through a group with her hand in a rotating blow like a figure skater. "That's their base." "It's also the only place that seems out of place." Public smiled. "A giant hill in the middle of flat country?" "I also sense something going on at the hill." The Saint calmly walked forward, light surrounding him. The gargoyles left him alone now. A few blowing up had taught them to deal with threats they could touch. "Holo, Triple." Ashcroft didn't want to send his air cover away, but felt he had to get at the big cheese. "Get over there and do what you can." The two heroes blasted through the pile up, the triple man using his cannonball to clear a path. They disappeared from view after a few seconds. "Invisible building." Public punched through several of the stone monsters. "We should get the Saint in there." Luna snapped a neck. "They don't seem to bother him." "Any ideas how to get him there." Pointer snapped off a flurry of blasts. "We just sent our only fliers." "Not all of them." Phaeton grabbed the School member. "I'll get them there." The solar hero blasted off through the crowd of monsters. He rocketed through the dark sky, landing on something only he could see. Then they vanished like Holo and Triple. "I say we join them as fast as possible." Public waded through his enemies to get to the front of the fight. "Second that." Pointer blasted a clear area around him. "Break off and roll out." Luna glanced around at the pile of stones surrounding her, before walking toward the hill. Beatnik bounced ahead, and began running toward the hill. Every third step was a prodigious leap across the dirt flat. Puma Sai resorted to slicing around him to get to where he once again had a partner to watch his back. "You guys go ahead." Pointer blasted away, so Puma could catch a breath. "We'll catch up." "You're coming with me." Public picked them up and started sprinting. "Let's go, Luna."

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 27 Aaron Stark checked his facts one last time. The orbital agents had pinned the Missile Man's point of origin within some yards. It wasn't as exact as he hoped, but it was a starting point. The chance that Dr. Krueger waited for news close by made it worth looking around. Krueger's clones had already proved as dangerous as any inanimate object. "Are you guys ready?" Kevin Reilly stood at the control console. The operations officer looked angry to Stark. "Let's go." Stark made sure his equipment was off. He didn't want a random surge to scramble him across the target area in a fine mist. Reilly nodded. Light scrambled the A team's molecules. Stark felt a moment where everything was nothing. Then he stood two feet away from where he had wanted to be. This is something we need. Stark looked at his group. He had selected Poster Girl, Granite, Fortress, Currenta, the Replacement from the School. Quick and Maker were along as back up. He switched on, locating his group on the overhead, and charging his laser beam. The plan had three parts. First, they located the clone factory. The powerhouses led the raid, watching for any experiments which might be released to slow them down. Stark and Maker knew they had to seize the records with their hacking skills before anything was deleted in the second phase. The third phase was clean up, making arrests, making sure nothing was destroyed. It always sounded easy before you went in. "All right, guys." Stark overlaid the flight path on the overhead view. What he got was a house behind a wall, with cameras looking out on the street. He hoped the mechanical sentries hadn't seen their arrival. "That's the place right there." Poster Girl touched the Replacement's black clad arm. The power from Missile Man had already worn off, and the gas Maker used on him prevented her from charging up with a visit to his cell. So her silent friend was the next best thing as far as she was concerned. She flew into the air a few seconds behind him, but both were slower than Quick who jumped the wall, and used her speed powers on the door. She shook it out of the frame in a few seconds. "It's in the pot now." Stark blasted the gate with his laser beam. "We have to get in there and do what we came to do." Currenta flowed across the property, her liquid form slipping through the bent front gate and headed into the open door. Granite and Fortress ran behind her, the giantess already twenty feet tall. The elemental crossed the yard, setting off lasers that hadn't been set off by the speedster. Maker glided to the camera on the corner nearest them. She pointed at it. A small sound of air said that her agent had been sent in to shut down anything that might be dangerous for her, and her allies. All they had to worry about now were the people inside. Fortress reached for the roof of the house, and pulled with her giant hands. The top came off like a pop top. Quick looked up, shook her head at the sound reaching her on the bottom floor. The place looked ordinary to her swift search. Where was the secret elevator? "What's going on, Quick?" Currenta only bothered to make her head more human. "I can't find the stupid door." Quick looked around. "The last one had one to an underground lair." "Let me see what I can do before Fortress wrecks the place." The water woman spread her body out. The puddle reached across the floor, sliding under the baseboards. A pseudopod extended back. "There's a door right here." Quick rushed over to the barren spot, feeling the surface of the wall with her gloved hands. She found a crack in a blink. "I can't get this open." "We can." Poster Girl and the Replacement hovered in the room. "Step clear." Quick backed off. Poster Girl and the Replacement hit the wall. Metal screamed under the impact. An elevator shaft yawned open, no cab in sight. The revealed doors fell down inside the shaft opening. "See you." Poster Girl dove down for the cab at the bottom. "Glory hound." Quick looked down the shaft. Poster Girl smashed through the top of the car, and out through the doors at the bottom. The Replacement shrugged and followed. Splashing water told Quick that Currenta had also descended the shaft. "You're awful slow for someone calling herself Quick." Granite rushed by with thundering steps and jumped down the hole. "Even the rock is talking smack." Quick shook her helmeted head. "I can't believe this." Quick blasted down the tunnel, running on the wall with her incredible speed. She hopped through the hole in the lift's roof, then paused in the hall beyond. The others were heading in different directions, following the branches of the cross corridors locking onto the main entry. The magistrate did a complete search of the building in a couple of seconds before returning. "Everybody's running to the back of the place." Quick pointed in the direction she meant. "I'm going to hold them off until I get some help." Quick returned to the other side of the complex, blind-siding anyone who got in her way. Everyone must be fleeing that way to reach some kind of escape hatch. If she could keep them away from that, the team would have a clean haul. That meant no more clones as far as she was concerned. Fortress shrank to get inside the house, then walked down the steps to the first floor. She spotted the opening in the wall as Watcher ran in from outside. "My power isn't going to help down there." Fortress pointed at the opening. "I want you to grow as tall as you can and wait for a call." Stark jogged over to the opening, found a ladder he could use on the wall. "We might need you to help us round up anybody who makes it to the street." "Will do, boss." Stark started down the ladder, wincing at the sound of breaking timbers overhead. He reached the bottom, telling his helpers to look for anyone in a hurry. Fortress stood out on his display as she looked around. He dropped through the hole behind his team. "Quick said everyone is heading to the other side of the place." Poster Girl hovered to one side, listening. "We were about to herd everyone that way." "I'm going to look for the central command." Watcher blasted a camera in the hall. "Be careful." "A bunch of mad scientists." Granite clumped down the hall. "How hard could this be?" "He means watch out for yourself." Poster Girl took off down the hall.

Re: Secret Identities and Teammates The real question here is: Do you play characters with SID? Sometimes If and when you do play a character with SID, under what circumstances would you have the character reveal his identity to his teammates? Usually under life and death circumstances Do your characters always reveal their SID's to their teammates? no As a GM do you forcibly "out" characters to the other PCs? No. My experience has been the character typically does something in game where the identity becomes known as blowback from his actions such as a suicide attack, so forth. CES

Re: Teen Guardians Nariko 5:20 pm Nariko frowned. "I think they're just overly bound by rules and regulations." She crossed her arms, looking rather annoyed. "And becides...what could they actually *do* to us if we leave town for a while? Arrest us for being noncompliant *victims*? Aren't they supposed to serve *us* instead of the other way around?" "In any case, get some rest." Mr. Miyama headed for the bedroom he shared with her mother. "Tomorrow is bound to be a long day." She nodded and gave her dad a chaste little kiss on the cheek. "Okay. Good night, daddy. See you tomorrow..." For once, Nariko actually went right to sleep instead of tinkering in her workshop until the wee hours of the morning. She wanted to be as mentally sharp as possible for what was to come. Mrs. Miyama came for her early the next morning. Nariko almost *sprang* out of her bed, so enthused was she about getting the adventure started. "Good morning mom!", she said with a grin, "Are we almost ready to leave?" "The team is assembling downstairs." Mrs Miyama smiled. "You should get ready and join them. They are already powering up the devices." Nariko nodded excitedly. "Okay!" Without even pausing to put up her hair (which is *very* unusual for her), she threw on some clothes and ran down to meet up with the team. She *did* make sure that she brought her rather large make-up bag with her, however...so that she could coif herself up *properly* as soon as she had time. Inside the gate room Mr. Miyama and his associates had already donned thier armor and protective gear. Mr. Four nodded as he stood to one side. He seemed in nuetral gear as he watched the proceedings. There were two other women and another man in the form fitting armor, going through preparation motions. "Should I put my suit on now too, father?", asked Nariko as soon as she joined the others. "Yes." Mr. Miyama sat at the controls, typing in instructions. "As soon as everything is ready, we're going." The door to the Astromembrane opened before the group. The universe within rotated as Nariko watched. Tachyon and Pusher 5:00 pm Tachyon shook her head, blonde ponytail bobbing from shoulder to opposing shoulder. "So what the heck are we doing here?" she asked rhetorically, "I mean...school's closed, no one's here, nothing's going on...what..." The accusation died on her tongue. "So...what next?" she asked, sinking to a seated position next to Pusher. "Let's catch up with the others." Pusher looked the area over. "We still have a few days if she is going to strike at the commencement ceremony. Maybe Emp messed her up by calling the police." Tachyon shook her head. "Yeah," she said, "you want a ride or shall we just walk?" She seemed a little put out over this whole situation. "I am working on a Pusher mobile." The kid in black took out his pad. "Let's see if we can catch up with the others. We have a couple of days. Maybe we can set a trap." "Cool," she said, "we can put Hardball in a bikini and chain him to a rock, just like in the movies." "I was thinking of Emp impersonating the good captain." Pusher put the pad away. "He can win her over to the light side with his charm and mind control." Tachyon nodded and turned towards the street. "So--how you want to get there, or just call and have them meet us elsewhere?" "I don't see why not." Pusher looked around. "There's nothing more we can do here." Hardball and Emp 5:00 pm Hardball arrived at the waterfront as the police cars drove away with an old man and his new bodyguards. He knew Emp was around, but didn't know that the mental giant could see him from his rooftop perch. Hardball pulled out his phone and called Emp. "Do you know which boat belongs to the captain?," he asked. EMP looked at his phone as Hardball was calling him almost in sequence with his call to him. "Captain's okay, he's being taken by the police. He's alive and well it looks from my vantage point. Let's go meet up with the others and see if they found any trace of Heartbreaker." Eric swung towards the school. He noticed the other half of his group over towards the entrance to the underground base. Swinging down, he called out and waved "You two see anything at the school?" He smiled over at Patty. "Not to worry. The captain's okay. He's being put into police protection as we speak." She jammed her hands into the back pockets of her jeans--during the interim, she'd pulled jeans and hoodie back on--no point in calling more attention to any of themselves as what was needed. "Good," she said. The blonde looked about. "Where's Hardball?" "He's moving towards the school." Eric took out his phone and texted Hardball the message 'not @ school, base' Eric leaned down, opening the manhole cover "Care to come down while I get changed. Maybe we can head out to grab something to eat at seven-elven before we head home to bed." "I still have a lot to do." Pusher checked his timex. "It's still 5:30. We need to figure out if the girl in the explosion was Devoreaux or not. Any ideas?" Eric stopped moving at the manhole cover and looked over at Pusher. "It wasn't Devorueax, That was planned. If anything that was done so that her name would remain secret, or as secret as a psycho could believe it would be. Not much DNA left on the bodies to test which gives her a rather window to work with." Patty nodded. "I agree--I don't know what she looked like but I only saw two adults..." She shuddered. "Do you think she will assume the other identity?" Pusher thought about it a little more. "Do you think she's a master of changing identities? If she is, she could be any female." "If she is, then we're going to run into more problems, but not many considering what her apparent age would be. Even a master of disguise needs to work with what she has. So we'll see teenaged girls dying and being replaced with someone that will try to act like them. "I'd rather not be paranoid about every person in that school considering she is after Hardball." "That doesn't feel," Patty thought aloud, "like her MO--she doesn't have respect for life, but I have a feeling that if that starts, we'll have pushed her into desperation." Eric looked over at Patty. "If she is a master of disguise though, she wouldn't be limited to just girls either at this age. She could to some degree pretend to be a guy." Another shudder. "So--we're back to square one with nothing to show but bodies." "Not really. Think about it, we've all been regressed to our teen years and she killed her parents. Even if she was a mistress of disguise, she's going to be putting herself into larger problems. She has no 'safe' haven now. No parents to hide with and likely no friends to go to unless she wants to reveal she's alive again. Best bet is that she met up with someone who does have the resources to give her supplies and a place to hide. So what we need to do tomorrow night is find a bar with enough dirty folks to give us the information we need on who that moron is." "Great. Two bad guys--or rather, one bad guy and one stupid twit that's in it only for the sex." She looked at the other two. "Let's face it--she's a female, and a lot of guys will do about anything for a gal that puts out." "That's about the way I figure it." Eric added with a nod before heading down into the base to change. Eric returned a bit later wearing a pair of blue jeans and a T-shirt. "With the captain with the police and being watched 24 hours, likely until Heartbreaker is caught. Heartbreaker couldn't disguise herself as the captain as the first place they'd take the captain is to a hospital to check for explosives on the inside of the human body." He looked over at Pusher "The only way she could get close to the captain now was to disguise herself as a nurse or a police officer. Neither of which would work very well on a high risk case. While I figure we haven't seen the last of her I don't think she's going to be acting much more tonight." Hardball txted back 'Thanx, I cn c that. P.s. R U & Pty free 4 a dble dte with Tanya & Anthony 2nite? If so burger joint ASAP if not txt me' "You're right." Pusher rubbed his face. "What more can she do tonight? No one even knows where the police took him." "That's a good thing," Patty commented "True enough." Eric looked over at Patty after checking his text message "Hey Patty, are you up for a double date? I forgot that I was invited to go to dinner with Anthony and his girlfriend Tanya." He smiled pleasantly to her. "So if you have a moment to spare for some hamburgers we should get going." Patty blinked; that was something she hadn't expected--but nodded. "Okay" she said, "Just need to all and let my folks know, it shouldn't be a problem, as long as I'm in by 9, well, 10." Eric kept his smile and nodded "No problem, I'm sure we'll be back before 10." He placed a hand gently on her cheek "can't have you getting into trouble on my account." The touch caused her hand to shake a little and she looked at him somewhat surprised, but... She called and nattered quickly, then hung up. "Mom said it fine--Dad wasn't home yet, so that's probably a good thing. The blonde frowned and said, "I can't help but think that it would be a good thing for us to know where the Captain's being held--if for no other reason to keep an eye out." "They might be keeping him at the hospital in the uptown area. It has the staff and supplies to help with any medical problem not to mention its pretty close to a police station. Well, about three miles in closeness. So it should be fairly secure." She tucked herself up under his arm, folding the phone back into her back pocket. "Well, that's something for us to research and find out how hard it'd be to find out--if we can do it, then she can, and that would put the Skipper back into danger you know?" With a comfortable nestle against Eric--odd how comfortable that was and why was her damn heart thumping that fast?--Patty gave a general question, "So--when do we link back up, and where, and we still need to figure out a better form of communication than cellphones because sooner or later someone's parents probably mine are going to start asking about all these used minutes." "I'll see what I can cook up. I should be able to get some parts to see about making something decent in the way of group communication. Walkie Talkies should have some of the parts I'll need." He smiled at her as she held herself against him "The Burger Barn isn't to far from here and that's where I believe where supposed to be meeting Anthony and Tanya." "Then let's do this," Patty said. "You gonna be okay?" she addressed Pusher. "I going to follow up on your idea." Pusher put his hands in his jacket pockets, mask hiding his face. "I'll check the hospital. If he is in there, then we should be close at hand in case of trouble." Patty put her arm around Eric for a moment, giving him a little hug, then released him and stepped over to Pusher. "Thank you," she said, going to tiptoe for a moment to kiss his cheek. "If you need us--call, and we'll be there, faster than thought, okay?" Pusher nodded, sinking into the ground, and out of sight. Anthony grabbed a quick shower at the camp to get rid of the day's grime and then set off to the Burger Barn. He could still smell the scent of burned human flesh in his nose, but he hoped that was just psychological. If not the pheromones, Eric put out while around Patty would probably cover it. *O.k. Tony* he said to himself *That's not nice. Shouldn't make fun of the boy's power issues. Having girl's throw themselves at you might be O.k. when they're 18, but when they're 80? Not so much." He chuckled to himself as he entered the Barn to see Tanya already sitting there looking stroppy at him for turning up late. Eric walked in with Patty turning from a bit of gloom to smiles and grins the moment they where inside with other people. Noticing Anthony he walked towards the table with the two of them. "Sorry I'm late. Hope I haven't kept this interesting little gathering waiting too long." Her arm around Eric's waist, Patty gave a small smile at Anthony--and his female companion but said nothing. "Hello." Tanya smiled at the other couple. "I have seen you around school but I don't think we've met. I'm Tanya." "Hi Tanya, I'm Patty. This is Eric." The words bubbled out from Patty's mouth-then she flushed red. "Sorry." "Nice to meet you Tanya, I think we might have met briefly. So I can imagine where all hungry here so what kind of burger would you like Patty?" Eric placed his hand on the base of her back as he spoke, looking over at both Anthony and Tanya. Patty--didn't really jump, but pressed back slightly against his hand, basking in the warmth--then blinked. "um..." "Thanks for inviting us for a double date." He was being polite and civil towards her. At the moment he wasn't sure Anthony really wanted this Tanya getting too emotionally attached to him or not. The whole meeting the friends bit was almost up there with meeting the parents in some circles. "I'm hungry," she decided--then took a deep breath. She'd have to go light or attract more undue attention. "Just the Super Barn Burner, if that's okay," she told Eric. Eric grinned and leaned forward and kissed behind her ear softly. "Okay hon, one super barn burger coming up." He walked away to place an order for two super barn burgers, 1 regular barn burger with cheese, 2 large fries and two drinks. On the way back towards the table he hid the extra super barn burger in his hoody pocket. Figuring Patty was very likely still going to be hungry even when they left. He took a seat next to Patty placing the tray down. He placed her food and cola drink in front of her. "So..now that we've all said our hello's mind if I ask what prompted being asked to attend a double date with the both of you Anthony? I always thought you preferred to keep your dates all to yourself." Eric was putting on a bit more of act of the tough guy simply for the sake of conversation, after all Anthony and him didn't quite work the same social circles in high school he could tell that simply by looking at how the two of them had been dressed and in detention when they arrived. So this was fairly outside the norm. The foursome weren't the only ones from their school. Familiar faces were at some of the other tables around them, talking, going about their businesses. Strange adults, some with their families or significant others, filled the rest of the tables.

Re: SoloUberCampaign:Adventures of the Dark Page 1- It was a hot day in August. School was less than three weeks away for Tavin Bourne. Homestead Place was lined with row houses on either side of the street in the northern part of Washington, DC. Tavin's, the one he shared with his foster father, sat in the middle, gray blue between a brick red and a yellow paint job to make your eyes hurt. An anachronism in gray cotton shirt, loose gray pants, and black slippers walked ahead of Tavin, woven hat on his head. A long cue swung from the base of his skull as he walked. Tavin's neighbors, those that were about, spotted this apparition and muttered, but no one said anything to him. The man walked up the three steps to the small porch on the front of Tavin's residence and knocked quietly. Tavin noted the man walking ahead of him, His grandfather had told him of a time when China had been occupied and the men were forced to wear long cue's of hair to show their obedience, Tavin imagined it for a moment and then shook that thought out of his head, that had been hundreds of years ago, this guy wasn't from then, he was right here and now walking up to his own door. Tavin smiled, the man must be lost. Tavin maintained a safe distance, just in case. One and a three quarters arm lengths just like his father had instructed him and then another 6 inches to be just that much more safe. He had been caught unawares by his fathers ability to move that very space in such a short period of time just a week ago. He then explained to Tavin that every rule had its exceptions, of which his father was one. Pausing time for a half second can be incredibly helpful when your lunging strike is only a half a second in length. He was still nursing the bruise from that lesson, father wasn't easy on him, in fact he never had been. Well anway always treat your elders with respect and help out those in need, as father always said. Tavin said gently "Excuse me sir, may I help you?" as he reached the base of the steps. The man turned, pivoting on his heel, hands still behind his back. The face was broad, wrinkled, belied the black braid of hair. Eyes so brown, the pupils were not there gazed down at the boy. "I'm looking for the time keeper." The voice had lost none of its youth at least. "I had heard that I could find him here." Tavin wondered at the mans words, the timekeeper, obviously he meant his father, hmmm was he home, and should this man be allowed to meet him? Tavin smiled "Well I dont know anything about the timekeeper, it is me and my father in this house. What exactly do you want with this timekeeper anyway, maybe I could help you find him." Tavin wondered who this man was, and what he wanted from his father... and he intended to find out before he got anywhere near the old man. "I'm an old friend." The old Oriental smiled slightly, hands still behind his back. "I have some important news for him. I doubt he is expecting me." Tavin nodded absentmindedly, "well then I guess it wouldn't hurt to let you in eh?" Tavin knew his father would be downstairs in his studio right now and probably didn't hear the bell. He motioned that he would pass the elderly gentleman and went for the door, he listened intently for any movement from the man while he unlocked and opened the door. Tavin opened the door, "Dozo,(japanese for please)" and motioned for the elderly gentleman to enter. He entered right behind him and closed the door. The old man said something in reply, but in a language other than Japanese, or English. Tavin pressed the button to buzz the studio so his father would know someone was here, and it wasn't just him. His father had many of these installed about the house, it was an interesting idea of his a simple switch that no one would suspect would alarmed him while he was in his studio of guests. The microdot cameras took care of the rest. He could see the entirety of the house from his studio. Lately father had been making a good amount of money from his "reproductions" of an ancient master of japanese painting. He said on his website that he was the great great great grandson of the artist, but in reality... he was the same man. The paintings went for much more now than they did then, and it kept them in money quite easily. "Would you care for some tea while you wait?" Tavin motioned for the guest to take a seat in the sitting room. "Or perhaps something a bit stronger?" He had learned well the intricacies of entertaining a guest, and he had the marks to prove it... his father had explained it to him twice and then beat it into him once more. He hadn't forgotten. The old man was fast with a shoot of bamboo to the behind, and it really hurt. He smiled to the older gentleman and awaited his answer. "Milk is good if you have it." The old man inspected the room, as he moved close to center, turning slightly, hands still behind his back. Tavin noticed that he had taken a position where he could reach almost any other point in the room with two strides. Hmm, Tavin thought to himself, we are both on the defensive, I wonder what he is worried about... His thoughts returned to a movie he had seen lately at the theatre where a messenger showed up and right after him a group of "ninja" (hah, they were no ninja) leapt through the windows and attacked. He stepped into the kitchen and almost chuckled to himself, that sort of thing only happened in the movies, not in real life, how silly was he... He got a glass of chilled milk and brought it out to the man, He wondered what was taking father so long. "Here you go sir," Tavin bowed slightly as he handed over the glass of milk and the saucer he had placed it on. He stepped back after the man accepted. "So what brings an old friend to our doorstep?" "Bad news." The old man placed one hand over the top of the cup. Steam began to rise from the milk. "It's always bad news." "I agree, Master Boxer." Tavin's father stepped from the door leading downstairs to his studio. "I'm retired now. What does the council want?" The visitor sipped his warm milk. Outside the windows, the sky had darkened with the coming of a thundercloud. Thunder rolled once, twice, a third time. Then it began to rain. "We believe the third prophecy is about to be enacted, and felt that you should be warned." Master Boxer's eyes had become holes in his face in the dimming light. Three in the afternoon and outside had become a twilight world in a matter of seconds with the drumming of rain and roaring wind. Tavin was confused, third prophecy, master boxer, Council... "Ummm, what exactly is going on? What council, What is the third prophecy and for that matter the first and second prophecies. And finally what does my father have to do with any of this...." "Uh oh yeah, What the heck is going on outside?" "It's raining." Dachi frowned, whether at the revelations, or the intrusion into his retirement. "The rest doesn't matter. I am retired. No more problem solving for me." The window vibrated from something heavier than raindrops smacking into it. Tavin turned and looked at the window, What was tapping at his window? Several small objects pounded the window in a tatoo, BOOM-BOOM-BOOM, before rebounding out of sight in the fenced in back yard. They had looked almost round in the second he had a chance to observe them before they ricochetted away from the glass. Tavin moved over to the window and looked out, at the same time he cast a glance at the two men, "ummm, are you just ignoring me?" "I'm showing our visitor the door." Dachi gestured for the Chinese man to move out without touching him. The window looked out on the fenced back yard. The row houses were abutted to each other, sharing walls and fences. An alley ran on the other side of the fence at the far end of the yard, with a similiar arrangement for the houses on the other street opposite Homestead Place. Frogs squatted in the back yard, looking unhappy in the rain. The red splotchy pattern on their back contrasted with the light green of their bodies and yellow of their eyes. Some of them seemed to be staring at the windows of Tavin's house. Boom. One rebounded off the window in front of Tavin's face. "WHAT THE HELL!" Tavin gasped in suprise. He had not intended for it to come out that loud, "Father, it is literally raining frogs out there! WHAT is going on?" "I don't know." Dachi opened the door for their strange visitor. "I have no interest in getting involved finding out." The old stranger stepped outside. "It is almost time." The Master Boxer looked around. "Take care, time keeper." "Good bye, Master Boxer." Dachi closed the door. Tavin could see a ribbon of sunlight at the horizon. That suggested the storm of frogs was only a temporary thing that would soon be over as the clouds moved toward the ocean. Sounds of impacts still drifted to his ears. "Father, the rain seems to be ending I am going to go outside for a bit." Tavin was out the door but a few moments after "Master Boxer" He went in the same general direction as the man but didn't catch up to him. He then walked past the man and said off the cuff as if to no one, "Meet me around the corner, I want to know what you are talking about." He then hustled off seemingly leaving the old man alone to slowly stumble his way on, once they were around the corner and most probably out of his father's sight, "So tell me what you are talking about Master Boxer" Tavin noticed the man seemed untouched by rain or frog as he passed. He marched down the block, hands behind his back. When he met the boy around the corner, he still seemed dry but there was a constant sound like a bee around him. "We were talking about the predicted end of the world." The old man's face seemed mask-like as he regarded his old companion's foster son. "It pains me that the timekeeper has given up much since last we talked."

Re: xialin showdown page 14- Jade stepped back and said, "What the hell is that and what is going on and for the last time who the hell are you?" "I'm the Ghost King." The hat waved a hand. "This is the end for you two, I'm afraid." Three suits of old fashioned samurai armor assembled themselves out of the floating blob. Their demon fighting masks moved as they howled for blood. One went for Jade, slicing with a fiery blade. One went for Kagome, slicing her before she could draw and shoot. The third leaped behind the fighting, grabbing something out of the wall. With quick, yet graceful movements, Jade blocked the flurry of blows. And with those same quick and graceful movements, she attacked with her own powerful slashes and jabs of her claws and kicked at all three of the demon samurai trying to take them out as fast as she can to give Kagome time to recover and attack. Jade drove the one facing her toward Kagome while she held the other two off to protect the spirit maiden. Kagome was able to wound one with an arrow, but the third gave whatever he recovered from the wall to the Ghost King. "Kill them." The Ghost King turned to leave with his boiling cauldron. "Damn it. We have to hurry and take care of these demons before the Ghost King gets away," said Jade as her claws came down hard on one of the demons. the ghost warrior blocked the clawing, and tried for a kick to Jade's head. Jade blocked the first punch and counterattacked with her own punch, The animated protoplasm staggered back, off balance from the blow. Kagome tried to banish the spirit she had already wounded by shooting it with another arrow. It ducked the missile and kicked her in the head. She flew backwards. Then the third demon attacked, knocking Jade back with a kick to the gut. Jade turned a little as she saw Kagome go flying back and got hit by the other attack, and tried to shake it off and attack the third one in return. The third ghost warrior blocked her punch with his forearm. He spun and struck with the other forearm, driving Jade to her knees, almost stunned.

Re: The Ferret I dont know anything specifically about the Ferret. I seem to remember that he filled the role of Wolverine on that team. CES

Re: [Twisted Game Concept] VG Supers I use him as a watchdog all the time. He's scary as heck. CES

Re: [Twisted Game Concept] VG Supers A team based on Paper Mario has been done for the new circle thread. Chad Reilly has done a lot of fighting game characters/final fantasy characters. I guess you just have to write down what abilities the characters have and build to suit. I like the Nintendo Characters like Link and Mario so I would probably build one of them for such a game. CES

Re: The New Circle Character Name: Mr. Nobody Real Name: Michael Evers Nationality: American Hair/Eye Color: Brown, brown Place of Birth: Santa Barbara Date of Birth: 7/11/32 Height/Mass: 5'8", 145 pounds Cost Characteristic Value 5 STR 15 42 DEX 24 20 CON 20 20 BODY 20 8 INT 18 10 EGO 15 5 PRE 15 0 COM 10 PD 3 ED 4 6 SPD 4 REC 7 END 40 STUN 37 OCV: 8 DCV: 8 OECV: 5 DECV: 5 Phases: 3,6,9,12 Cost Powers and Talents (END) Nobody's body: Clairsentience, sight and hearing groups, 16 x range 50 pts. Blackout (-½), IAF (-½), fragile (-1/4), difficult to obtain new focus (-1/4), only in places the character can reach (-1). 14 pts Telekinesis 20 str, fine manipulation 40 pts. Linked to clairsentience (-½), only to mimic human body (-½), only where clairsentience is manifested (-½), Blackout (-½), IAF (-½), fragile (-1/4), difficult to obtain new focus (-1/4). 10 pts Cost Skills 3 Deduction 12- 3 Criminology 12- 3 Stealth 13- 3 Shadowing 13- 2 Survival 12- 4 WF: common melee weapons, small arms 2 TF: common ground vehicles 3 Combat driving 13- 3 Streetwise 12- 3 Fast draw 13- 3 Lockpicking 13- 3 Interrogation 12- 3 Bribery 12- 3 AK: Southern California 12- 3 KS: Underworld 12- 3 Cryptography 12- 3 Forensic Medicine 12- 3 Paramedics 12- 3 Lightning Reflexes + 2 actions/all actions 4 Benny the Rat 11- 100 Points Disadvantages 20 Watched by Police 11- 15 Secret Identity 10 Rivalry with other detectives 5 Reputation: Hard Bitten Detective 11- 20 Seeks the truth 25 Hunted by the underworld 11- 5 DF: Detective CHA Cost = 116Total Powers Cost = 24 Total Skills Cost = 60 Total Cost = 200__________________ Background Information: Mike Evers grew up in Santa Barbara, spending some time overseas in the Marines before coming home and joining the police. He worked his way up to detective, trying to solve cases without drawing too much attention. Gangsters from Los Angeles had decided to move into the area, preparing to move into points north and reestablishing contacts in Canada for smuggling. Evers was among those fighting the invasion for the city. They shot him while he was on stake out. Mike recovered, feeling that he had been set up by the department. He decided that he should take early retirement and investigate things himself. During the course of this investigation, he found an experimental device stolen from a government lab. This device looked like a pair of glasses. When he wore them, he passed out but could see things happening as if he was there in the room. When he found that he could touch people and things with his other self, Mr. Nobody was born. Quote: "Go ahead and shoot. I'm not really here." Personality: Mike is dedicated to finding out what happened which has made him a single minded adversary to anyone trying to get away with something. His reputation lands him cases the police can't solve, and the mob prefers not to be solved. All in a day's work for the invisible detective. Appearance: Mike is an ordinary guy, that dresses in trenchcoat and a hat like movie detectives. Mr. Nobody is only two spots floating in the air. Powers: Donning the experimental glasses, Mike releases a form of psychokinetic energy that mimics his form while he's passed out. Removing the glasses automatically draws the power back in. Plot Hook 1) Mike Evers was right and somebody in the police department did want him dead, but not for the reasons he thought. The characters are summoned to the informant's death bed. Can they crack a 50 year old mystery with one word as the clue? What is Darling? Plot Hook 2) An assassin has performed some impressive murders from up close. Cameras and security detect movement but not the attacker. A conference has come to town and a suspected target is among the dignitaries. It's time for the heroes to stop Nobody. Plot Hook 3) A detective convention leads to a murder. Who was the victim, the killer, and how to keep dozens of detectives from investigating and muddying up the waters? Those are the first questions the heroes will have to answer. Notes- Mr. Nobody was based on The Missing Man, created by Ditko, published by Pacific Comics, the first home of the Rocketeer, Starslayer, and Captain Liberty.

Re: What does YOUR underground mutant organization do when: Dude, you need to get an axe and grind it on your player's skull. He's going to be nothing but trouble if you don't. Every time you set up an adventure, he will mess it up because he's a ninja princess. CES

This is the recap thread for The Dark; Ben Waddel's solo character. CES

Re: The Magistracy's Legion 26 Ray Hammet's eyes snapped open. Everything hurt. His vision rolled down to look at the hand in front of him. It was covered with cracked bone plates. One of the fingers looked twisted, but he was afraid to move. Ray made sure he could move his head before he tried moving anything else. He had been dropped from a height that should have guaranteed a death at the stop. If his head moved, it might be safe to move around to pull himself together. Of course, his spine might have snapped below his neck and he had problems after all. Ray found he could move his head to look around. He had plowed someone's yard, but it seemed he was on his own. Ray tried moving his arms. Pain shot through his shell. He decided to lay there a little bit longer. Ray stared at his hands as he tried to catch his breath. The plates hung crooked, covered with blood. That one finger refused to move when he tried it. Probably broken. At least he knew he could survive a twenty story fall. Ray heard a crack, felt some pain in his legs. That was good. It meant he could walk when he got to his feet. That meant his body was repairing itself. That meant he could expect to get back up and think of a way to deal with those things. Of course, they probably thought he was dead. The crooked finger Ray had been watching wrenched itself back in place. He tested it with a little twitch. It worked better than the rest of his body. Hammet smiled, realized his jaw was hanging open. He wondered how long it would take to get back to fighting shape. Little crackles sounded liked fireworks as the shell armor snapped back in place. Each burst of sound set a small beam of pain running through the wanderer. It was bursting bubble wrap, then a smack to the head. Ray curled up to ride the pain out. He rested his jaw on his knees, moving it back toward where it should be. It hung loosely, until something grabbed the end and snapped it back in place. That hurt more than any of the other repairs he had suffered through. Ray waited until he wasn't popping like a bowl of Rice Crispies before trying to get back to his feet. He decided that castle had to be the place to go. It was invisible to the outside, but stood there to give the gargoyles a place to roost. The winged beasts seemed to be foot soldiers, so maybe their general squatted inside the building. If only more had been revealed on his quick fly by. Ray found he could crawl short distances. That was the best he could do until the vertigo from standing cleared off. Even then the distance of three regular steps made him wheeze like an animal on its last legs. Still he was moving, and that was better than waiting for the gargoyles to make sure he was dead. Ray hid in a ditch near the end of town. He gasped for air as he watched the enemy soar above him. If they had spotted him, there was not a sign. After a few minutes of rest, he sounded less like a landed fish and more human. Ray wiped the ooze welling from the cracks in his hands on his pants. The bone plates made their own glue to seal the fissures. The first time that happened, Ray thought he was going to turn into some horrible monster. Only he was already a horrible monster. Ray crawled over to a hut. He jammed his fingers into the wall and pulled. Effort allowed him to shove a board out of the way. Another few minutes passed before he could pull himself inside to rest. Ray heard breathing as he lay against the wall. Its regularity and snore quality told him he could take some time and lay there while the gel dried on his armored underskin. As long as he was quiet, it should be okay. An Ewok could kill him now as tired as he felt. The sealant stuck Ray's clothes to his armor as it worked. It hardened into smooth scabs as it dried. He flexed his hand. The finished top layer flaked away from smooth ridges of ivory. Ray stood. A small cloud fell from the cuffs of his clothes. The sleeper coughed, rolled over, then snored his way back to whatever dream he was enjoying. I wish I could sleep like that. Ray went to the door. A careful look told him he needed a plan to get close to the castle. He didn't want to repeat his high fall impact testing. The next time might not leave enough to put back together. He also needed a weapon with some reach. He could pull one of his enemies apart, but not the whole flock at the same time. A Vulcan would be handy, but he would have to settle for anything close at hand. Ray looked around the small area hopefully.

Re: Dumbest thing... I saw a rumor somewhere that it was supposed to be Pete's kids, but when Editorial actually saw the work they changed it to Osborne. Which kind of brings to mind what are these editors thinking when they have a story half finished, then start screaming change it? Why didn't they think of this stuff ahead of time? CES