As the Worm Turns - Once Upon a Time in Texas...

[3SecondCultist]

SCENE - WARDS TRAINING FACILITY
Quake

Peter opened the bout with a quick right jab, followed by a pair of low cross shots. He didn't warn her - he didn't need to. When Milla said that she was ready, he trusted her to be ready.

He trusted her. The words didn't come as a sudden shock. This wasn't an epiphany. He had known for a while how he felt about this girl. She understood a part of him that he had almost forgotten ever existed. With Milla, he could be himself.

Peter had only stated fragments of this truth aloud. He didn't trust himself to be able to give voice to his feelings properly. If he was being honest, he wasn't sure what she would think. She had asked him out, but that didn't necessarily mean she was as serious as he was about this, right?

Get a hold of yourself. You sound like a snivelling child. Focus on what lies ahead of you. Your career, your life. You will join the Protectorate soon. You know that this girl is just a distraction.

Shut up! As though trying to beat the voice into silence, Peter threw his last punch perhaps a bit harder than he should have. He saw Milla stumble, but she retained her balance. Reaching out with one hand, he helped her keep her balance and take a breath. He allowed the gesture to linger, his long fingers tracing little circles into her palm as a silent apology.

That's when he saw Diamondback entering the gym... followed by Rebound. Well then. It was time to play nice.

"Hey there! I'm glad to see you out here, Rebound. Fancy a bout when we're done?"

[Lost Demiurge]

Dead Heads

Ruin's laugh, and the rasping blade, unnerve two of the gunmen who bolt for the back fence of the alley and scramble over it.

One of them is made of sterner stuff, standing tall and aiming a shot at his face. Liche, riding inside his skull, can tone out his laugh without a problem... But this is Ruin, here! The man who put down Hades! He's not even bothering to dodge, either... Something has to be up!

The shot goes wide. If she'd been trying for center of mass, she might've gotten a hit. But the head's a tough target at the best of times, particularly for those with no training in firearms.

Above, Suri vaults into a window on the upper story. She's prepared the ground for just this sort of trouble, she'll be quite hard to catch now...

Dry Wells, Dry Gulch

The militia men back off and let Silver Crusader and Iai go at each other, taking the opportunity to start fleeing the scene. About half of them jump in camo-painted jeeps, and start peeling out at top speed.

When the dust clears, Iai is stumbling back, shaking his head. Well, that'll leave a nasty bruise for a few days.

Silver Crusader is crouched slightly, Indepth's fire raining off his force field, causing it to flicker and hum. Wouldn't take much more to collapse it entirely...

Marshall swears and hits the dirt, as In-depth's fire blocks off his avenue of escape, abandoning his plan of moving out for just survival. One of the snipers who was pinning him takes the opportunity to climb down, and start fleeing.

But it's Faust's comments that seem to have him the most worried. "Hold on a sec there son, no one gave a kill order here! Sure, this is rough, but it ain't a killin' offense, not yet."

And a new voice crackles over the PRT lines. "Actually, it is. On my authority, you are authorized to respond to lethal force with your own. Spare capes unless they escalate, but it's open season for the AMM so long as they're shooting at you." It's Director Walburn. "You understand, Marshall?"

"...I want it on record I'm against this."

"Done."

"All right. You heard the lady, Jen."

"On it. Squad, move out!"

And the PRT troops are entering the fray, heading up the flank while Marshall draws fire, sticking to defensive tactics for now...

But both freeze as they see Intereo float in. "Aw hell." Marshall ducks back behind the car, out of sight, while the PRT troops dig in. Wearily, he fumbles for the call button. "Director, we got us a complication on that kill order. Intereo just took the field. Don't reckon it's on our side, neither..."

PRT Troops

Spoiler

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Body 3, Mind 3, Personality 2,
Backgrounds + Skills: PRT Squad training, Well-equipped, Brave

And in the distance, a funnel cloud starts to form, and a noise like a train roaring through can be heard.

Meanwhile, the men in suits have reached the top of the cliff, and are walking nonchalantly away, unmolested, toward two waiting black sedans...

[Maugan Ra]

Dry wells Dry Gulch

Iai

The mercenary shakes his head, wiping away a thin trickle of blood from a burst lip. He glances around, noting the retreating Militia and the advancing PRT, and frowning at the sight of the funnel cloud in the distance.

Reinforcements. Hmm. Will have to step this up... take Crusader out of the fight, and we'll have enough local superiority to get clear before anyone else arrives.

Decided, he shifts his grip on the swords, holding them pointing downwards like the claws of a mantis.

"Concentrated support please, Indepth." He says calmly, trusting in the Thinker's own abilities to properly analyze what he means and deduce the overall intent. Then he looks to Crusader, smiling slightly as he responds to the dramatic question.

"I suppose it depends on the man. Everyone has his price, Crusader. Mine just happens to be in common currency."

Then he lunges forwards again, a far more aggressive series of attacks this time, intending to put the hero on the back foot with no real way to counter-attack. Crusader might have truly fantastic perception, but there was a limit to how much that would help you when your opponent was simply so much faster.

His swords weaving a glittering pattern of steel in the air, Iai none the less aims for non-lethal damage. Of course, 'non-lethal' could stretch quite a long way when there were troops with medical supplies nearby and a bio-tinker back at the base. If Silver Crusader let a sliced tendon or two slow him down for very long, Iai would be considerably surprised.

Spoiler

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OK, going considerably more heavy on the offensive this time. Two seperate vectors for attack. The first is all my powers - Mover 4 and Striker 5 - combined with the Trained Swordsman advantage to give a total of 10.

The second is my Body trait of 4. I will hold my Mind in reserve to defend against anything that might come at Iai in the immediate future.

And yes, requesting that In-Depth focus fire on Silver Crusader as well. It's not terribly fair, but we're villains, and besides he totally has medical support waiting to get him back on his feet sharpish.

[The_Snark]

Scene - Wards HQ
Diamondback

"Well, the explosions are a bit hard to handle," Diamondback says with a rueful half-smile. "Peter and I can take it, but even we get thrown off-balance. And I'm not talking about bodybuilding, just, uh, knowing how to throw a punch."

"Which could be different for you," she continues, struck by a bit of inspiration, "since you have a breaker power. We'll have to experiment to figure out just how - " She breaks off as she spots Quake and Gunshow together in the ring. Ah. Peter is a friend, sort of, if only by virtue of being the only one she can talk to at school. Gunshow is... friend-ly, let's leave it at that. Worse, it looks like they were having a Moment when she walked in.

She nods carefully to the pair. "Hey."

[Grim ranger]

Scene - Dry Wells, Dry Gulch

Indepth

After careful consideration in his timeless space, the Thinker decides that he may as well close the distance between Iai and himself while he works to support the man up close if needed, and thus begins to walk towards the fight between the two parahumans with the stock of his battle rifle pressed firmly against his shoulder to help with aiming. Multiple shots ring out, aimed at the shoulders and knees of Silver Crusader to cripple the man: they need to wrap things up quickly after all. Returning the used magazine to his belt, Indepth reloads and continues shooting, focused on aiming his teammate by leaving the hero nowhere to dodge and hopefully scoring hits as well.

They'll disable the heroes, let the militia slink off, and collect the money. Just another day at the office. Missions like this are nothing special.

Spoiler: Actions

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Indepth uses his Thinker 7 power and Excellent Marksman backround against Silver Crusader with intent of crippling and taking him out of the fight.

Scene - Wards HQ

Rebound

"...I know how to freaking throw a punch. I practice martial arts" the boy grumbles, rolling his shoulders somewhat as he listens on to come up with further rebuttals. Still, it is quite unlikely that he is weaseling his way out of this, considering he actually LIKES being around Diamondback and would not exactly wish to insult her. So all there is apparently left is making Peter's life difficult.

Well, at least that is a goal he can wholeheartedly get behind.

"Already hitting on the newbie? You should be ashamed of yourself, man" he opens up casually, giving Milla and Peter both an irritatingly smug glance before resuming. "And you know full well you can't lay a finger on me, so why try? I am just here as a favor, really, since someone" he glances at Diamondback "seems to think that I need to work out for...some reason."

[TheFallenOne]

SCENE - BRAD KENT'S APARTMENT

Flux(civilian outfit)

The radio had told him all he needed to know. Perhaps not all he would have liked to know, but as someone once told him, life is no ponyfarm. It sounded rather strange to him. Perhaps the saying doesn't translate well.

"Alright, I'm gonna bounce. It's getting late and I can't take the car." After several beer he would absolutely not under any circumstances get behind the wheel of a car. It would make the following events more difficult and perhaps a little bit embarassing if someone saw him riding a bicycle while in costume, but there was no way to help it. Things just happened with an inconvenient timing.

"What, with another sixpack still left untouched? Perhaps a significant other I should know about?"

"Nah. I'm not dating. Haven't been for a bit now." With no team or obligations he could keep his forrays into Cape life irregular enough to hide them from people close to him if he wanted to. Still, it was a hassle and he didn't feel like taking the risk at this time.

"Really? What about that blond girl I saw you with last week?"

"I said I'm not dating", Corben answered with a sly grin. A flung crown cap bounced off his forehead.

"You're impossible", Brad said while shaking his head, but he too was laughing.

"It just is how it is. You were always the longterm relationship kind of guy between us." Corben finished the bottle and put it down, getting ready to leave.

SCENE - DRY WELLS DRY GULCH

Flux

The sound of gunfire registered before he had any signs of the engagement within the perceptive range of his power. Convenient perhaps, for finding the right direction and getting changed ahead of time, but he always felt... weak, incomplete, when he was this clearly reminded of the limits given to the extend of his Power.

Finding a place to stash the nondescript bike he got ready to change into his costume and cover the rest of the distance on foot. Fighting under the influence would be a new one, but he was excited about it. Perhaps that was the alcohol talking. The regrets usually came the day after. Or the same night if you take it far enough to vomit. What would be the equivalent to that in this metapher, getting a bullet to the chest? Better not find out.

The costume he put on was a skintight black body suit with arrays of overlapping burgundy-colored scales covering most of his body to provide protection, with some padding beneath to absorb blunt impact. Making the scales was easy enough with his power; all he needed to make was a mold, fill in the liquefied material of his choice and solidify again. All left to do was find the ideal balance between a material's weight and hardness and he'd be set.

He was quite displeased when he learned diamond cannot be affected by his power. Diamond doesn't melt, it burns up. Corben was quite miffed he couldn't armor himself in scales of this superhard but still not too heavy material. Not that he would be able to procure enough diamonds without turning to crime - and quite successful crime at that - anyway, but it still hurt. For now he got by with an alloy used in body armor and armored vehicles.

He strapped bottles of various liquids - after he used his Power on the contents that is - to the holster on his back and set off. Still need a better delivery system than basically molotoving people he thought as he drew nearer, but that was a problem to solve another day. He was careful to keep out of sight, unconcerned about getting a good look at what's happening himself. Soon enough he noticed bullets buzzing through the edge of his perception range and adjusted his course. The bullets were flying on curved paths, embedding themselves harmlessly in the ground or concrete walls. Marshall is present. The realization pleased him. Marshall was a fun one to tease and the local Protectorate leader seemed to enjoy their interplay as well. Corben was SURE he once elicited a laugh from Marshall, even though the Hero tried to hide it behind a hastily raised hand.

He found an abandoned structure that would hide him from sight while being close enough to give him a good overview of the battle through his perception bubble. The windows were boarded shut. Perfect. He couldn't see out, they couldn't see in, but that was a lesser disadvantage for him. Someone he assumed to be Marshall, judging from the bullet paths bending around him, was behind evaporating cover and on the defensive it seemed. Flux's Power sadly didn't work on bodies so he couldn't tell if he was hurt, just registering that a body must be there from the soles of the boots and other meltable materials he could sense. At least there was no pool of blood below likely-Marshall. Once blood has exited someone's body his Power works on it.

He had several gunmen aiming on Marshall in his range, but from the bullet paths there must be two more, further away and on an elevated position. Snipers. Would handling those be the most helpful thing he could do, or just thin out the numbers? But not every gun he could sense was firing. A good number of them was getting on top of jeeps and retreating. One of the vehicles left his range before he made his decision. Others didn't. With a moment's concentration he used his Power, turning the engines of the remaining jeeps into sludge.

Spoiler

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Shaker 7 to disable the jeeps.
I used Mind 3, +1 from Sneaky background, to hide.

[sun_tzu]

Dry wells Dry Gulch

Silver Crusader

Another villain, and another villain, and another villain. As if the snipers hadn't been enough. It was a completely unfair fight.

No point in whining about it, though. Most fights the Protectorate got into were unfair in its disfavor. Part of the reasons the world was falling apart was this harsh reality: Villains simply outnumbered heroes by a wide margin. The only reasonable response, Silver Crusader believed, was to work harder, fight harder, commit to heroism harder. If he had been a workaholic before triggering, then acquiring his powers had only pushed him further down that road - most of his waking time was spent either fighting crime, or improving his ability to fight crime. Fighting two capes or more at once? Something he'd spent hundreds of hours training for with other members of the Protectorate.

"Then let my price be a clear conscience," he said as he gazed at Iai.

0.08 seconds later, his left foot began moving. Soon, it made a step to the right, his body rotating, as if he meant to smash his shoulder against Iai. In reality, it was a feint, designed to the villain to commit to an attack in the wrong place - speedster or not, it would be hard for him to change course mid-strike, and Silver Crusader's feet were perfectly positioned to quickly rotate him a bit further away from the assault even as he slammed his right elbow backward, placing it in the path of the villain's jaw - one of dozens of maneuvers practiced and drilled again and again over the months.

What came next required him to push his leg muscles as hard as he could - sadly, his body was not accelerated the way his thought process was. And according to speculations on PHO, Indepth had a Thinker power at least somewhat similar to his own. Unless the blinding flash hindered him too, he would aim true... if there was any path for the bullets to hit him. Silver Crusader threw himself ahead of Iai, so that the Striker would shield him from the shots. If any bullet got in, hopefully his force-field had enough juice to contain it.

Of course, this put him at risk of Iai's fast recovery. No helping it. He tried to at least remain in close quarters, so that Iai would have trouble maneuvering for another attack.

Spoiler: OOC

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Thinker 6 + Mind 4 = 10 to counter the 10 from Iai's first attack. I tried to write it so that Workaholic raises it to 11, in which cases it lets him bruise Iai a bit more.

Body 3 + Tinker 4 + Veteran PHO Poster = 8 to counter Indepth's 8.

Martial Artist = 1 against the 4 of Iai's second attack. That's gonna smart...

[sun_tzu]

Holdfast sprints across the open desert. Though her body maintains strictly human limits, the armour she summons provides its own measure of strength; modest by the standards of some parahumans, but much stronger than an unpowered human. She maintains 30mph over the sands with a long, loping stride. She won't be able to maintain this for long, maybe ten minutes at most, but she's nearly there. As she runs, she receives an update on the situation at the Wells. Marshall is pinned, Silver Crusader is stuck dealing with two villains and two more villains are on-scene. The Militia's vehicles have apparently stalled, their retreat brought into disarray. She also hears the Director's kill-order. Dust-Devil will be there to provide aid soon as well, but her friends - her team mates - are still in danger. She reaches to her ear-piece and speaks.

"Hey, Crusader, I'm less than three minutes out. Any particular direction you want me to hit from?"

Dry wells Dry Gulch

Silver Crusader

He considered for a fraction of a second. "Get to the fleeing Militia. Capturing them is our priority. Watch out for enemy capes and snipers."

[tbergman92]

As the situation continued to unfold, Intereo's plans had to be modified slightly. Surveying the scene, he saw that Iai and Indepth had Silver Crusader more or less taken care of, and Impasse could deal with Marshall pretty easily.

That left the fleeing AMM members. Who were now cursing behind him... Turning around, he saw that they were getting out of their vehicles and running on foot. Damn.

He didn't see any heroes en route to the militia members, but that didn't mean more weren't on their way. Quickly deciding, he turned away from Marshal and Crusader, and began floating at a much faster pace towards the fleeing militia members, passing by Impasse on the way, staying just outside of his kinetic energy arresting bubble.

"I'm going to cover their retreat. It looks like you guys have these two pinned."

Careful to stay a short distance behind them in case he had to engage any heroes, he kept his eyes out for any incoming support from the Protectorate.

Spoiler: Stuff

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Same as before, effectively, just without a specific target. The Breaker to defend against any physical attacks, and the Shaker 5 + Bookworm + Mind 4 (10) for intimidation purposes against the first hero to see me.

[Ecksdee]

SCENE - WARDS TRAINING FACILITY
Gunshow

And so their little "dance" began. Milla might not have been as skilled as Peter, but she was certainly good at rolling with the punches. For the most part she kept up with him, getting the flow of things enough to start feeling her confidence build up. She even threw in a few flashy moves meant to impress more than anything. She kept her eyes trained on Peter the entire time, studying his moves -- and admiring them, too. He made it look so seamless. The way his body flowed through the motions... his size definitely didn't serve as a hindrance in this case.

One of his punches came a bit harder than usual out of nowhere, catching Milla off guard. She stumbled, but he reached out to immediately catch her. "T-Thanks." She said, smiling at the show of affection he administered afterward. She usually wasn't the kind of girl who melted over stuff like that... but the way he did it just had such an air of sincerity to it that she couldn't help but feel enamored.

The timely arrival of Diamondback and Rebound brought things back into perspective. Turning to face them she waved, falling out of the little moment she and Peter were just having. She really did enjoy hanging with her teammates. Rebound was pretty brash, but a good guy at heart, even though he liked to push certain people's buttons. Diamondback was nice, too. Milla had never seen the other girl's appearance as something to be feared. They were on well-enough terms it seemed, though she had to wonder if there was something else keeping them from being closer...

"Hah hah." Milla said in response to Rebound's little joke to Peter, stepping towards the ropes to lean against them. "I think Diamondback is right. You're looking a bit scrawny these days." She chuckled, clearly trying to needle him back in the same way he's accustomed to dishing out.

[The_Snark]

Scene - Wards HQ
Diamondback

Damn it. Why did it have to be these two? There's practically no-one better suited to drawing out Rebound's macho side, for lack of a better word. Peter is a rival to trounce, big and imposing but lacking control over his temper, and Milla... gives him a bit of extra incentive to show off. Mentally, Diamondback crosses "explore possible weaknesses of Rebound's power" off her list of things to try. Maybe some other time, when the gym is empty. It would be much better for Rebound to discover any loopholes or flaws in his invulnerability now, rather than out in costume. But for now...

"Actually, I was thinking we'd put him on the offensive," she says, hoping to head off a possible argument before Quake has a chance to retort. "Like you say, your power means you don't have to worry about defense much, and I think you could use that. Taekwondo isn't made for people who have to worry about getting stabbed or punched, you know? And in the meantime, I get to practice facing off against an enemy I can't really hurt. Since that's every other time I go up against a brute, I could really use it."

She pauses, then glances at Quake and concedes, "But we could switch off, if you like. You're tough enough to play punching dummy too."

[Lost Demiurge]

Wards Orientation gone awry

Alone in the hall, Agent Bowman's eyes widen as Glitch shows up and departs just as quickly. "What the... Young man, who are... Oh @%!%."

He runs down the hall, to the basement, keeping it together. A problem like this, there's only one person to see...

He pushes open the door to Wiretap's lab, carefully edging around the row after row of servers, to find the red-headed, short-haired tinker sitting in front of an array of monitors. She's in a costume, grey fabric overlaid with blue, circuit-board patterns, and various storage pouches for her gadgets and spools.

"We're compromised."

"I know, I know," she tells him, as she pushes her goggles up onto her forehead. "God @%!% it, this had to happen now... I almost had that merc group traced, lulled into false security with their little scriptkiddie hack, and now we've got a stranger on the wire. Give me a second..."


Dry Wells Dry Gulch

It's a hell of a close matchup. A superlatively skilled swordsman, versus a mentally-accelerated martial artist... If Iai could land a solid hit, the fight would be over. They fight to a standstill, until In-Depth's fire takes down Crusader's forcefield for a brief moment.

That's all the distraction that Iai needs to land a solid body-check, throwing Crusader to the ground for a few seconds. Crusader scrabbles and leaps out of the way, as the sword comes down...

SILVER CRUSADER

Spoiler

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Can't really see workaholic helping you here, sorry.

Choose one consequence:

Bruised 2, Forcefield disabled for the Scene, or Withdrawal from the fight.

Meanwhile, on the outskirts, Flux hides in the old dynamite shack. Though half the AMM have departed at this point, the remaining two groups find their engines literally leaking onto the ground. With shouts and curses they look around for their tormentor, seeing nothing. Gritting their teeth and grabbing their fairly-well-depleted ammo, they start heading out on foot, with Impasse and Intereo running interference for them.


With Impasse and Intereo defending, the remaining snipers descend, and start to flee. Marshall and the PRT teams break cover, once they realize that Impasse's bubble is up, and the defensive barrier cuts both ways. They trail, and Marshall does his best to stare down Intereo.

Intereo

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Not seeing how Bookworm would help you here, but the other stuff's good.

Marshall's using Personality 5, he's a Texas Ranger and takes no guff, his PRT Hero Training gives him an edge against intimidating villains, and his Gunfighter's Stare is THE right skill for the job, boosting it from 1 to 2. Which lets him tie you at 9. EDIT: Not so much, due to your eyes being hidden. So he fails, but not by much, and gains Intimidated 1 as a consequence.

And here comes a persuasion attempt of Mind 3, combined with Seriously Nice guy for a total of 4...

After trying and failing to hold the ghostlike para's eyes, he speaks, his voice soft in the silence.

"Friend, you and I know you can kill everyone here. Right now that don't fuss me none, because if you wanted to do that, I'd be a daisy right now. So I'm gonna ask you to stand down and walk away. You ain't got but one weapon that'd work against me, and that's an escalation neither of us want..."

And that's about the point that Dust Devil arrives on the scene, sweeping over Marshall and the PRT squad, covering them and starting to throw dust and grit forward over Intereo and Impasse, reducing their visibility a bit...

While this goes on, the black sedans disappear into the distance. Whoever the AMM's mystery clients might have been, they're gone now.

And then every PRT hero and squad member's commlinks crackle to life as Glitch pops into them, and starts asking questions. Marshall, his eyes on Intereo, turns his off to avoid distraction.

"Who the hell's on the line?" Agent Kensinger shouts, fiddling with the frequencies, shifting channels but failing to dislodge Glitch. "This is a live op, we can't-"

"I've got this," Wiretap's voice crackles through the interference. "Hey kid, who are you? You a good guy or bad guy? Because you're a hell of a hacker, and if you're a good guy, I've got a few ideas of some commnets active in the area RIGHT NOW, that you could go and jam like a #%##@^@er."

Director Walburn's voice echoes. "Language, Wiretap."

"Right. Sorry, ma'am..."

[Mabn]

Just as the operation seemed to be getting its act together, all of Faust's communications went haywire and he heard a teenager's voice on his com system. "Do not do this to me! Do not *^#*{^$~+@ do this to me!!" Already he was feeling isolated and claustrophobic and his power flares were making the walls glow. He channeled a blast as the back of his room so he wouldn't damage his already compromised link to the outside world. "If I can hear you, maybe you can hear me. It sounds like you think this is a joke. I am not laughing. In about a minute I'll be laughing. You really, truely, do not want me to be laughing. Get off my damn network."

Spoiler

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I have no idea what points I should put towards that intimidation

[sun_tzu]

Dry Wells Dry Gulch

Silver Crusader

As Iai struck, the silver-clad hero's force-field flickered out. As was only too typical of his fights with capes. I swear, if I could get this thing working reliably, I'd probably qualify for Tinker 6.

Quickly, he evaluated the situation. I'm not going to be capturing Iai today - not with my force-field shorted out, with Indepth providing cover, with the villain's super-speed making it so easy to retreat if things stop going his way.
But, as dangerous as he may be, Iai isn't the primary target. The AMM's thugs are. If I can make it unfeasible for them to escape before the cavalry shows up... then this won't have been a wasted fight.

"Code 3-7." He didn't say it so much as subvocalize it. That was enough for the tinkertech to pick it up; the next instant, his helmet emitted a blinding flash of light, as he tried to tumble out of harm's way. Mid-jump, he pulled out the containment foam gun... and aimed at the AMM's car. If the vehicle is covered in containment foam, they can't get out, and the villains can't free them.

Spoiler: OOC

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Taking "Forcefield disabled for the Scene" as my consequence.

Thinker 6 + Mind 4 for trying to prevent the AMM from escaping - Silver Crusader is planning everything and aiming super-fast, trying to make their escape impractical.

Tinker 4 + Body 3 for defending himself against any attack. Adding Amateur Martial Artist if applicable.

[Maugan Ra]

Dry Wells Dry Gulch

Iai

The swordsman staggers at the flash of blinding light, which is still disorienting even through his reflective visor, and by the time he regains his senses the Protectorate hero has already covered the nearest AMM car with foam.

Smart. Mission focused, even when contending with my direct interference.

He looks around the battlefield, listening to Impasse over the radio, and nods. Half the Militia got away, but there's no chance the rest are getting out of here without a damn sight more firepower to discourage the Protectorate from just following them. No sense in sticking around any longer.

The swords slide back into their sheathes without the slightest noise, and a quick blur of motion brings him next to Indepth. They've practiced this trick before, so the Thinker is prepared when his comrade lifts him for a brief moment, bracing the neck to prevent whiplash. Then there is another blur and they are gone, as unceremoniously as they arrived.

Spoiler

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Abandoning the van because we've seen evidence of someone melting car engines already and that is no longer a valid means of escape. One of us can probably come back and get it later anyway.

[Bhaskara]

Scene - Dead Hands

Radar

Radar was not very happy.

He had only barely just finished with being in-processed from the transfer. He still hadn't met most of the local capes he'd be working with. And what did they do with the weary and jet lagged troop? They sent him on a mission without a team. He couldn't even really argue that one was needed. His assignment was purely observational but with the way things were going he wished he had back up. He couldn't help but feel of this was supposed to have been a warm up job. Something to keep him occupied until he met the team. Of course without a team he was little more than a glorified receiver.

Which was why he was here. No one else would have had a hope to monitor the micro tracker that had been placed in the product the dealers had been about to hand over. Wiretap had said it was some of her finest work. He'd tried to have Wiretap explain how something the size of a small crystal could transmit a signal that would normally require a several antennas. However, he had gotten lost when she started talking about "using geomagnetic poles to reflect and lengthen harmonic wavelengths". All done in the hopes of getting some more intel on the Graveyard Gang, specifically Whipporwill. Wiretap had said something about wanting to get a hold of some sound recordings for study.

None of that mattered though from the sounds of things as he listened to the audio being broadcast from the exchange.

Radar sighed, cursed under his breath, established a connection to HQ, and broke radio silence.

"Hotel Quebec, Hotel Quebec. This is Radar. Operation Fairy Dust is a bust. Unknown Rogue is on the field. Shots fired. Requesting instructions on how you want me to proceed. Over."

While doing that he went to the trunk of his vehicle and got on some gear to put over the plain clothes he had been wearing. It wasn't much, standard bulletproof vest, face obscuring helmet, and gun and holster, but it was easy and fast to get on. If he had to go in fast he wanted at least have some protection. And he had a feeling he would be going in, so he started jogging to where the showdown was being held a block away. At the very least Wiretap would be wanting her transmitter back.

[Dorian Gray]

The School

Blackout

Isaac coughs slightly, shivering despite the bright sun and his long-sleeved shirt and jeans. Running a hand through his hair, he responds, "No, I was just wondering what was going on. Is it a schoolwide evac?"

As he speaks, Isaac steps into the classroom with Mr. Kaczynski- just in time to hear another round of gunfire. Rushing to the window, he looks up. "I thought I saw somebody fly by. God damn- do you know what's happening? Don't they tell teachers this stuff?"

[Tuv]

Scene - Dry Wells, The School

Alfred Kaczynski

"Of course there won't be an evacuation. The other teachers hear gunshots and go into 'school-shooting' mode. Turn off the lights, lock the doors, huddle the kids in a corner, just like they were taught as kids. Except that plan never worked, not really, and it especially doesn't work nowadays because of the capes. Sitting in a corner isn't going to do something if the building collapses, or gets filled with acid, or blown up, or what have you. Safety to normal people nowadays is a sham, so it's better for them to be hiding with their families than hiding with their peers. Get some closure, whatever."

Alfred sighs as he taps the pile of folders and papers he's gathered on his desk, to align them.

"And obviously we don't know any more than anyone else. It's obvious there's a shootout, and if capes aren't involved already they will be soon. It's like a chain reaction, and the only good option is to stay out of the way. That's... one of the reasons why I hate capes, there's nothing on this planet that they haven't disrupted."

He clears his throat "If you're leaving, you should probably do it now. If you're staying, I'll just say that someone your age lurking around an elementary class isn't very becoming." Then Alfred turns to leave, mumbling something to himself, disconnected from reality, lost in the moment.

"So he runs away, from his problems, from reality. He escapes to the little hole he's carved out of the trash, but more than that, escapes into his mind. Dreading inevitable confrontation."

[Grim ranger]

Scene - Dead Heads

Ruin

Mentally letting out a sight of relief as the gun of the remaining thug wavers for a split second and sends the gunshot wide, the vigilante decides not to waste the chance presented to him. Moving in with his black coat flowing around him ominously, Ruin feints a wide swing with the blade before going for rather inspired move and dropping it altogether to free both of his hands. Reaching out, he aims to grab the gun and push the slide violently enough to tear it free from the weapon altogether, thus rendering it utterly useless.

Spoiler: Action

Show

Using Body 3, Mind 2 and Unbelievably lucky + Exceptional aptitude for improvisation backrounds to improvise a disarming move to relieve 'Brandon' of his gun.

Scene - Dry Wells, Dry Gulch

Indepth

Seeing that the battle seems to be a lost cause with Protectorate reinforcements close and the vehicles of AMM out of commission, Indepth easily understands the situation and takes some time to consider best follow-up before Iai will inevitably pick him up for their speedy retreat as Impasse has ordered. Considering the matter for day or two in his bubble of frozen time, he decides that hindering the heroes is as good of a parting act as he can manage with very limited time to act, ending the time freeze and taking aim at Silver Crusader.

Alas, even the time freeze and the bullet-time like effect it confers to him does not allow him to prevent being somewhat blinded by the hero's contingency plan, the bright flash disorienting him for a split second before he is able to freeze time again and get his bearings. Still, the bright flash obscuring his vision becomes much less of a hindrance when he has had days to recover from the initial surprise of the effect and plan the follow-up counter to it. His plans made, he resumes the action once again...

With Silver Crusader foaming the vehicle closest to them, Indepth takes his (mental) time to aim shots at the containment foam gun of the hero, aiming to rupture it's container and leave the Crusader himself stuck and unable to give chase any longer. That will be sufficient, given that attempting to cripple the hero only to assure their retreat would likely only draw escalated response out of the PRT...especially with their current commander.

Second after his shots ring out, Indepth feels himself being lifted somewhat by Iai before both of their forms disappear in blur of movement, departing the battlefield.

Spoiler: Action

Show

Indepth uses Mind 6, Thinker 7 AND Expert Marksman to make sure to rupture Silver Crusader's containment foam gun, or at least render it unable to fire. After that he is evacuated by Iai.

[3SecondCultist]

SCENE - WARDS TRAINING FACILITY
Quake

"Don't get cocky, kid." Peter can't help but smile, even at his own joke. A little bit of cinematic drivel never hurt one's ability to have fun, right? Even he had seen Star Wars in his own time. He remembered the night - he was only twelve at the time. His father had been gone on assignment, and his mother had started in on the drinking. It was one of many nights he had abandoned Martha in order to cope himself. In the courtroom of his mind, they were charges he could not walk away from.

He hadn't known what they would do to her, not then. Not until after.

That night, he had hidden over at Diego's house, and the two of them had watched the trilogy in order. None of those terrible prequels either: he had nicked the originals from his dad's den before he left. Vintage, they were. Some of the worst effects this side of Hollywood, but damn if they did not make for some classic watching. They had tried to imitate the sounds of lightsabers swinging for hours afterwards, as the two of them would pretend to be Jedi Knights. They had even tried building a Death Star out of pillows and blankets.

Those were the happiest memories of that time. Beautiful, but also terrible.

Peter snapped back to the present when Diamondback began talking about potential match-ups. He nodded slowly, as though considering his options carefully. In truth, he was studying Rebound out of the corner of his eye. He really didn't like that guy, but he also knew that getting into the ring with him was a bad call. With his current mindset, he was likely to cause more collateral damage than he was comfortable with. Besides, he wanted to be alone with Milla for a little while longer. There was no avoiding the fact that the moment was gone, though. Peter sighed slowly.

"Alright... alright. What do you think we should do?" Peter knows that in this moment, he is betraying his own long-term intents to appear confident in front of other team members, but considering Milla's feelings was just as important, somehow. He can feel a guttural growl emanating from somewhere deep within. He suppresses it viciously. His ego would not come into this.


SCENE - DEAD HANDS
Lich

'Brandon' let the gun be ripped from his grasp. If he had managed to miss the shot from that distance, there wasn't much he would be able to do with it anyhow. This Ruin was quicker than Lich had suspected at first, and more open to sudden attacks. She would remember that. Instead, 'Brandon' began to droop his shoulders in a practiced gesture of surrender. His head was bowed in submission, as Lich planned her next move from within.

And it only took a moment for her to come to a decision.

Nothing had changed - only the parameters of the fight. This had already turned into a take-down, so there was no point backing down. Damn it, why had Ruin come to screw up her night? He certainly lived up to his name. She knew that the other gangers had run and left her behind, so she couldn't really count on any support. This had gone bad, quite fast.

So, as fast as was possible in her current body, Lich reached for the switchblade she had concealed in her left jacket pocket before the fight and moved to stab Ruin at close range. She aimed for his jugular, where there would be gaps in his armor. She knew that the blade wouldn't cut enough to kill him right away, but a wound like that would incapacitate him in the least.

Spoiler: Actions

Show

Using Mind 7 to assert fine motor control over Brandon and feign defeat, and then Body 3 to draw and try to stab Ruin in the neck - with help from Lich's Criminal Skills, Never Gives Up, and Streetwise backgrounds for the concealment and attack.

[TheFallenOne]

SCENE - DRY WELLS DRY GULCH

Flux

Shouted curses were enough to confirm the success of his move, a nasty smirk finding its way on Flux's face. The criminals - who were they anyway? Perhaps the AMM judging from the amount of heat they packed, but at this point he could only speculate.

Anyway, the criminals were on the defensive, but something covered them. Bullets flying their way stalled then dropped out of the air. A forcefield? But that would make the bullets glance off instead of just stop. There was as he recalled a Cape with a motion-stopping Power in the city. If he was fully sober he'd definitely remember the name. At least that's what he told himself.

He could sense where he - or she - was from boots and other items. Then they suddenly disappeared so quickly it took him a moment to fully realize it wasn't teleportation. Fast.

Reconstructing what was happening out there from his Power was becoming a real hassle. He stood up and in front of him a doorway-sized section of the wall turned to liquid and sloshed to the ground with a splash. He stepped out, the burgundy scales of his costume gleaming in the sun. Reckless. Caping under the influence definitely had an effect.

But at least he had a better view of the battle now. It was drawing to a close anyway it seemed so he did his part to speed things along. He swept his right arm out in a wide gesture in the direction of the AMM. A purely cosmetic move, not necessary to use his Power. But he felt it would look good. Dramatic.

He targeted the firing pins of their guns, rendering them useless. And for good measure the soles of their boots. If you want to make your enemies suffer, force them to run barefoot over rough terrain. Hot asphalt, stones, broken glass...

Corben made a mental note to rewatch Die Hard later this evening.

Spoiler

Show

Mind 3 plus Shaker 7 to mess up AMM equipment

[Kiranvonstrom]

SCENE - Dead Hands

Mad Dog

This city was just the hive of filth that he remembered it to be. He could see a dozen people abusing drugs that, by the looks of their wallet, they could never sustainably pay for. Two murders, one of passion, and another in what appeared to be a minor cape fight. Dead Hands reminded Mad Dog of every ghetto and slum he had passed by on his travels. The people were desperate, they lived in squalor, their buildings vandalized, and the law uncaring.

People passed by him on the litter-strewn sidewalk. Not many, but a few, enough that he noticed their stares. He was hardly inconspicuous, striding alone and unarmed through Dead Hands, wearing what appeared to be a light purple hooded bathrobe, pulled down to cover his face. Their apprehension was, he noted, coming from curiosity, rather than fear. It seems the city had forgotten him much faster than he had let go of Sancti. One problem he wouldn't have to worry about.

More problematically, there was nothing of particular interest to Mad Dog here. The gangsters he saw were of the mundane variety of discontented, no-one was nervous enough about being usurped to be of any interest. Mad Dog cast his attention over the cape fight occurring several blocks away, idly scanning any of the participants. Fearful contempt, terror, terror, terror, sudden and shocking realization of morality, and...

This was new. This was an anomaly. This...was suddenly worth watching. One man, raging against being contained, but slowly breaking, and someone else. Another, colder, more calculating presence. Two lights in one body.

Mad Dog grinned, and abruptly changed directions. While he may not have needed to be any closer to watch the fight, the victor...could be worth talking to.

[sun_tzu]

Too late. Holdfast arrives at the scene of the shoot-out in time to help round up the stragglers, but the fight is basically over. Half the Militia forces have made an escape, along with whatever group they were dealing with. The mercenaries are nowhere to be seen either. It could be frustrating sometimes. She was pretty strong and tough, sure, and she could move faster than most people, but in the grand scheme of things there were dozens, if not hundreds, of capes who beat her in that department. On top of that she knew she lacked initiative. It seemed like she was always reacting, always on the back foot.

She sighs, and mentally shrugs to herself. Ah well, time to get antsy later. Right now there's work to do.

Keeping her power active, she runs up to Silver Crusader's side.

"Backup's here, not that you need it. What'd I miss?"

SCENE - DRY WELLS DRY GULCH

Silver Crusader

"A few snipers, a superspeeding samurai villain, an enemy Thinker whose power is basically a better version of my own... and containment foam. Lots and lots of containment foam." Silver Crusader's voice was coming from inside a mound of the very foam. "Not a complete loss, mind you. Nailed the ones in the car, and I don't any of the good guys got seriously hurt."

[sun_tzu]

"Containment foam, huh, hadn't noticed. Thought you were trialing a new costume."

She pauses thoughtfully.

"Or maybe thought you'd just really let yourself go."

Another pause.

"Annnnnnyway, I'm gonna check in with Marshal. I'll flag down some disolving agent whilst I'm at it. Don't go anywhere."

SCENE - DRY WELLS DRY GULCH

Silver Crusader

"I shall strive not to, but I make no promise," came the deadpan reply.

[TheDarkDM]

SCENE - THE MISSION DISTRICT, SANCTI CENTRAL BANK

Miles away from the firefight in Dry Gulch, birds were flying north. There were so many of them, the shadow of their passing coated downtown Sancti like an oil spill, causing the pedestrians on the street to stop in apprehension. With all eyes on the sky, no one noticed the black dot rocketing down Route 667. The dust covered black car was a relic from the days of American muscle, its Hemi engine roaring like a caged tiger. The window on the driver's side was rolled down, revealing a dangling arm that seemed unaffected by the wind. The arm led to the driver, slouched against a pristine black interior, black aviators perched atop a thin nose. The Rolling Stones blared from an ancient cassette player, and as the care passed the border into Sancti proper the Midnight Rambler began tapping out the beat of the song on the steering wheel and turned his attention to the surrounding city.

The first thing he noticed was the dust. It was something he'd come to expect from the dying towns of the back roads, but in a city as large as Sancti? The city must have been in worse shape than he'd thought.

Good

He turned his attention to the people, the huddled masses of homeless that littered the border between the Bluffs and Downtown. He saw hunger, desperation, some flashes of anger. Sancti's poorest were living on the edge, but it seemed they still had some fight left in them.

Better

He slowed as he entered Downtown proper, the multitude of traffic lights consigning him to drift alongside the city's commuters. There were signs of decay even here, but most people seemed determined not to see them. People shopped in the scattered stores, walked their dogs and played with their children, even found it in them to smile when they passed the glittering edifice that marked PRT headquarters. Despite everything, the people here still had hope.

Best

He'd learned long ago that there was little satisfaction in killing someone who didn't value their own life. People with something to live for fought harder, bargained, begged, unleashed a flood of emotions on the road to the reaper. Those emotions made killing worthwhile - without them, it was just busywork. And when coupled with everything else? Oh yes, he could have some fun in this city.

He followed the flow of traffic as far as the Mission District, where the homeless disappeared entirely and the city seemed to forget the struggles lying scant blocks away. The Rambler's started to dart from building to building, only to settle on Sancti Central Bank. Smiling, he spoke to no one in particular.

"Wouldn't mind some walking around money."

*****

The bank was busy in the early afternoon, busy enough that a tall man in a black suit attracted no attention. He got in line for the tellers, smiling his thin smile as he listened in on the conversations of those around him. A woman near the front of the line was arguing on her cell phone, trying and failing to keep her voice down as she discussed her ongoing divorce. A bald man with a bad toupee a few places back kept checking his watch, a sure sign he was late for something. A pair of children raced through the velvet ropes that guided the line, and after a few moments the Rambler found their exhausted mother, clearly past caring. That put a frown on his face, but it lifted as the line moved forward and he found himself stand in front of a teller window. Behind the glass was a pretty young woman whose name tag read "Sandra", who flashed him a practiced smile.

"Good afternoon, how can I help you today, sir?"

Her voice was a West Texan twang, musical enough that his smile broadened as he responded.

"Thank you, darlin'. I'd like to make a withdrawal."

His own accent was a bastard of the American Southwest, with just a hint of a southern drawl he'd picked up on a tour of the deep south. It seemed to take the girl aback, the presence of an out-of-towner, but her composure only wavered for a second.

"Alright, can I have your account number please, sir?"

He raised his hand to remove his glasses. At the sight of his eyes, the girl couldn't hide her horror.

"Oh, darlin'. This isn't that kind of withdrawal."

Outside the bank, the windows darkened for a moment, drawing curious stares from nearby pedestrians. Then, without warning, the windows shattered outwards, blown apart by the shockwave of everything in the bank lobby suddenly striking the ground. Inside, it looked as though a hurricane had torn through the building, leaving only the Rambler and Sandra untouched. The shattered bodies of the bank's employees and customers were scattered indiscriminately on the marble floor, some moaning in pain, others making no sound at all. Sandra took a breath, almost certainly to scream, but before she could the window and desk separating her from the Rambler simply imploded, letting him lay a single finger on her lips.

"Hush now, darlin'. Don't make this unpleasant. Let's take a walk down to the vault."

*****

At PRT headquarters, a message streamed in from the local police -

211 in progress, Sancti Central Bank
Parahuman involvement suspected
Requesting Ward support

[Lost Demiurge]

Dry Wells Dry Gulch

...And in the space of heartbeats, the mercs are away. Dust Devil pulls back, Marshall strolls out of the storm and squints around, and takes custody of the few AMM members left. They surrender without a fight, some of them having found out that their guns are no longer functional.

Flux, meanwhile, sees the PRT squad start to spread out and sweep the area. Unless he retreats or finds a better way to hide, they'll probably find him.

Crusader moves over to Silver Crusader, looking askance at the heap of foam surrounding him. "You did good, holdin' them mercs off. And slowin' those last two down."

He looks over the six or so captured militia men, and the disabled cars. "Reckon this one was a victory. No losses, wrecked some of their vehicles, got a few low-rankin' members... And we did it without goin' lethal." He smiles, but it fades. "Unfortunately we got no clue on their customers. That was the big question here. Guess we'll see what the interrogations turn up..."

That's about the point that your comms scream... BANK ROBBERY IN PROGRESS, CIVILIANS DEAD.

"Damn it!" Marshall growls. "We're too far out! Dusty?"

The cloud coalesces, into a grey-skinned bald man, fairly buff, and wearing only loose pants. "No good. Too much collateral if I cut loose in that neighborhood, and Wiretap's stuck chasing that kid out of the comms. Unless there's someone who can hoof it quickly in a position to do so, the Wards are on their own."

Marshall sighs.

"Let's hope their fight goes smoother then ours did..."

CLOSING

Spoiler

Show

Right, I'm thinking this is a good place to end this scene, unless anyone has any further business.

Dead Hands

The knife is a surprise, and Ruin's legacy damn near ends there in that crappy back alley.

But thankfully his armor is sturdy, and it keeps his arteries safe. That said, it's bleeding all to hell and back, and the shock drives him back a few feet, Jacob's gun now in his possession.

RUIN

Spoiler

Show

five points of consequences, if you please. Divvy them up between "Bleeding like a #%@#%, Confidence Shaken, or Armor Breached. You may also negate two points of consequences by retreating from the scene, if you so choose.

That's about the point that Radar makes it around the corner, and sees the struggle, as the others hear his approach...

And unnoticed, Mad Dog starts ambling his way down the street, close enough to hear the drama.

[TheFallenOne]

SCENE - DRY WELLS DRY GULCH

Flux

"Reckon this one was a victory. No losses, wrecked some of their vehicles..."

"Someone called my name?" Having abandoned all attempts at stealth Flux stepped closer to the assembled and somewhat battered Heroes, a cheeky grin on his face. When designing his costume he just couldn't help but have the mask not cover the area around his mouth. Some say his smile is his best feature. He crossed his arms in front of his chest, seeming relaxed and at ease. Perhaps too much so given the PRT Director's opinion of him. But he didn't need to eye the PRT officers warily, his Power let him track well enough if someone moved in his direction or turned a weapon on him. Whatever uneasiness he felt because of their presence he could mask, keeping his eyes fixed on Marshall. It still was reckless, but truth to be told running away felt like too much of a hassle right now and he was halfway confident he could leverage things to get away unarrested.

"Sorry for the 'littering', some liquid remains of motors, boots and firing pins lying around. I hope given the circumstances you don't mind. Anyone up for drinks and a movie, my treat?" His behaviour was way way way too casual given the situation. Some of that was the alcohol. Some of it was deliberate exaggeration just to get a rise out of the assembled Heroes. Most of it though simply was Corben's nature.

[Grim ranger]

Scene - Dead Heads

Ruin

The disarming move works like a charm, more or less as he hoped it would: not getting shot in the face seems like a certainty for him now. Unfortunately, Ruin is still caught completely by surprise as the last remaining thug draws a knife and gets stuck. The flashing pain of knife inflicting cut to the side of his throat drives him back somewhat, and even though the agony is not the type he'll not walk away from, it still leaves him at distinct disadvantage... Especially as more people seem to be arriving at the very moment.

He knows when the situation goes bad, as even though his reputation is formidable, he has retreated from fights before and is not afraid to do so now either. The rent in the kevlar weave of his armor and heavy bleeding starting underneath it only reinforce the viability of that decision for him. This is not a situation he will want to remain in.

Hurriedly grabbing hold of a case of product left behind by the graveyard gangers with one hand and his blade with the other, Ruin contains his staggering and shakes from the injury and sheer shock just long enough to tug pins from pair of smoke grenades on his belt, which he then drops to the alleyway before legging it in quite undignified manner nobody will luckily be seeing. Damnit, he will need some real help with this one...

Spoiler: Action

Show

Ruin opts to flee the scene under protection of smoke grenades, taking one point each "Bleeding like a #%@#%", "Armor Breached" and "Confidence Shaken". I think he got 3 drama points from that scene.

Scene - Wards HQ

Rebound

Shrugging his shoulders, Jonathan looks from Diamondback to Quake in non-committal manner. "I suppose I could give it a shot, if you really think we accomplish much by it. You can both come at me at once: maybe it'll make this entertaining if nothing else" he adds with a grin, clearly intent on proving his superiority in a sparring bout against the rest of them if nothing else: maybe it will at least cut down on the time he will have to spend in the gym instead of being out there doing something productive. Team-building exercises have never really been his forte, and after some initial attempts the topic has generally remained buried for months to end before now. Perhaps him humoring them will allow the whole sorry mention of regular gym sessions to be swept under the rug as soon as possible? At least he dearly hopes so.

Walking over to the practice ring while rolling his shoulders somewhat, Rebound gives the pair his usual cocky smirk, mimicking a 'bring it' stance from The Matrix. "About time we got started then, right? So I dare say: come at me, compatriots!"

[3SecondCultist]

SCENE - WARDS TRAINING FACILITY
Quake

Peter watched Jonathan's easy smile with the practiced eye of someone who has seen false cooperation before. The cheery facade did not fool him in the slightest: he knew exactly what Rebound hopes to accomplish by riling him up. He gritted his teeth inwardly, but resisted. He could certainly go all-out, but not if he wanted headquarters to stay standing once he was finished. The PRT stopped testing him after he had collapsed half of an escarpment on his own, and he certainly wasn't keen on finding the ceiling of his powers today.

"Nah, you know what? I think you should just spar with Diamondback like you came here to do. Gunshow and I can - " Peter stopped, as he heard a faint beeping noise from the other room. The gym itself was housed next to one of the main PRT offices, thankfully. Three beeps, two dots and one line, over and over. It was unmistakeable.

"Guys, I think that's an emergency broadcast." Not waiting for anyone else, Peter climbed out of the ring and jogged over to one of the desks, in order to radio in. The voice on the other end was measured, but scared: a beat cop on patrol, calling in a serious threat.

211 in progress, Sancti Central Bank
Parahuman involvement suspected
Requesting Ward support

He was done playing the dutiful second in command. It was time to suit up.


SCENE - DEAD HANDS
Lich

As Ruin retreated, 'Brandon' began to move forward as though to apprehend him. Her contingency had paid off, certainly. But she wasn't expecting the sudden smoke bombs, and her host body was suddenly disoriented. For the briefest of moments, Lich felt her control slip. She could see other surroundings: a dark room with a lamp, an armed shadow by the bedside. That wasn't her body, lying there. No, not that weak shell. As she got back to her feet gracefully, Lich felt the pull of every tendon in Brandon's body. This was where she belonged.

By the time she had time to look around, Ruin had long since left... and he had taken some of the contraband with him. Suri wouldn't be happy about that. Then again, she had just fended off one of the most notorious vigilantes in Sancti more or less by herself. The Graveyard Gang would have to take Brandon seriously after this. She smiled inwardly. Really, she ought to be thanking Ruin. He didn't know it, but he had moved up her timetable considerably.

She paused, as though looking around for the first time. Someone would have to move all of the contraband off of the streets. And she knew just the right place to put it. Discreetly and efficiently, Lich began to load up all of the weapons that Brandon's friends had brought out for this haul back into the car. The Gangers would be able to trace this shipment - she was counting on it.

It was only when she put the car in drive that she saw the man in the bathrobe.

[Kiranvonstrom]

SCENE - DEAD HANDS

Mad Dog

As Ruin drops his smoke bomb, Mad Dog casually walks to the alley, taking advantage of the smoke and confusion to stay hidden. Sometimes, being blind was very handy, in a very limited set of circumstances. And in those particular circumstances, even someone in a purple bathrobe could be stealthy. God, he hated this costume. But it would be helpful in a few hours, so Mad Dog would persevere.

Sidestepping a fallen Graveyard Ganger, he strides to the center of the alley, and pauses a moment, as if surveying it. No-one in good enough shape to see him, but the anomaly is still alive, if blinded. Excellent. Now, where to wait for him. Or possibly her. Safe, secure, easy access to the anomaly after the action...

The car.

Mad Dog smiles slightly beneath the hood of his bathrobe, and picks his way over to the Graveyard Gang's car, careful to avoid disturbing anyone currently writhing on the ground covering their eyes. When he reaches the van, he quietly opens one of the rear doors, and sits down, awaiting the anomaly's move.

After all, if it's who he thinks it is, he may need every bit of surprise he can get.

Mad Dog stays out of the anomaly's view while he (she?) loads up the car with weapons. The Graveyard Gang would have to...Clever. Very clever. Same thing he would have done. Probably would have been better if the other cape was AMM, otherwise there may be some deniability issues.

Oh, this one has definitely passed.

He watches the 'graveyard ganger' get into the driver's seat and start the car before making himself more obvious. He hadn't precisely been hiding, so much as sitting where the anomaly hadn't been looking, and taking advantage of its apparent distraction.

Oh, and now it's noticed him. Damnation. Earlier than he had planned. No gun in his hand yet...Oh well, that would probably look like a threat.

"That was well done. The guns were an inspired touch," May as well start with a compliment. Surprise them, catch them off balance, then compliment them, establish that you weren't a threat.

OOC:

Spoiler: Out-Of-Character

Show

Sorry, I thought it would be an amusing way for Mad Dog to introduce himself.