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Rai Ki Wai Estate Wakaya Island, Fiji Saturday, February 17, 2024, 9:00 AM local time Bernadette O'Connell had been one of the last ones to arrive at the Main Quad for Lawrence to provide the means of traveling to Fiji. The Irish teen was wearing a black T-shirt with her band’s logo on it, a pair of cut-off jeans shorts and sandals. Her long red hair was currently pulled back into a ponytail, and she was already wearing a pair of sunglasses. Over one shoulder she had a small bag and was carrying a larger duffle bag in one hand. The redhead was pretty quiet and more subdued than normal. Last night her band had performed at a local club and after which she had gone out for a bit with her bandmates. After that she had gone to see Charlie, given she was going to be spending most of the weekend out of the country, so she was presently operating on only a couple hours of sleep. Added to that was that while she had not drunk much alcohol last night, with only a few hours sleep, she was still feeling it some. As she stepped through the portal created by Lawrence, the eighteen-year-old was somewhat reminded of when she had been briefly transported to another dimension during summer break. As crazy as that had been, it had also directly led to her and Summer Sands deciding to start their band, and how she had inadvertently ended up with Trebel, the singing fish that occupied a small tank in her dorm room. The redhead looked around at the sprawling compound and the ocean beyond as she adjusted to the suddenly sunnier environment, only half listening to Lawrence's quick orientation. Coming from a blue-collar family of Irish immigrants, this was far posher than she was accustomed to, even considering how much time she had been spending over the past few weeks at the mansion that now served as the Young Guardian's base of operations. Shaking her head slightly to clear it, Bernadette held out the duffle bag she was holding as a duplicate appeared beside her. "Ya know, I am just as tired as you are." The duplicate grumbled quietly as she took the bag. "Then bloody drop it off somewhere in tha house an' come back out ta take a nap as well." Bernadette replied with a smirk as she walked over towards one of the lounge chairs scattered around the massive deck. Dropping her small bag down next to the chair, the redhead pulled off her T-shirt, revealing a colorful bikini top underneath. Her jeans shorts followed to reveal the matching bikini bottom. Sitting down on the chair, Bernadette removed a small chain with a cross from around her neck and reached down to drop it into her bag and pull out a large bottle of sunscreen, which she began to apply.

Riverside Freedom City, New Jersey Wednesday, February 14, 2024, 4:54 PM Seeing that it was Valentine's Day, Sampson’s Sodas had been pretty busy since the local middle school had gotten out. It would continue into the evening with high school students from the area and beyond. Once classes had finished for the day at Claremont, Michael Adon had hurried to start his shift at the store, now nearing the end of the first hour. Currently, all the seating at the raised tables along the front windows were full, as were most of the booths along the interior walls. But for the moment, there were no pending orders that needed to be filled, so Michael was able to catch his breath. This gave him a chance to go over and talk to one of the few individuals sitting on the barstool seating along the counter that ran towards the back of the store. Seated furthest from the door was one of his fellow Claremont students, Carmen Arrache, who arrived at the store just a short time ago. Carmen had finally decided to take Michael up on his offer of a discount at the soda shop and come out to see him during his shift. Elsewhere in Riverside…. Jean Dweomer was currently sitting on a bench at one of the small park areas that were scattered throughout Riverside. Dressed in civilian clothes, the Anthro-fox certainly attracted a few stares, but this was Freedom City, so they were often brief. The small playground in the park was currently empty, with any of the kids that would be interested likely home and having dinner. At least a few couples had walked through or by the park since Jean had sat down on the bench, seemingly on their way to one or more of the restaurants, art stores or other venues in the area.

GM It was raining. A warm rain that muted the sun and carpeted the dry island. A healthy rain, one might say, one that promised green amid the desert. A beautiful rain, that splintered the horizon into a double rainbow. An uncommon rain, for these time of the year in Socotra. A rain that smelt of a storm to come. Through the rain, flew an old aircraft. World War 2, by the look of it. It sailed through the air unpetrubed by cloud or rain, looping into a curve and descending gracefully. Finally, it reached a dirt track and landed, flawlessly. The precision was remarkable, for it was only a couple of dozen of yards of taxiing until it reached right by the feet of Giang Trang, aka Xian Lou Khan, aka Tsunami. The hood of the plane opened up, and a man stood up. He was dressed in antique fighter pilot wear, complete with jacket and goggles. Sunburnt, one might say, or sunweathered, with bleached blond hair, stubble, and a handsome (if worn) face. Bizzarely, he was holding a wooden cane, one you might see an elderly gentleman (or gentlewoman) use to walk. In his other hand, a silver compass. He consulted it for a moment, and, ensuring that the needle had stopped right at Giang, introduced himself wih a short bow. "Giang Trang I presume? I am Harry Cane. Mr Murk sent me."

Mid-August, 2023 After sunset / before midnight Liberty Park “…And in an update on other unfortunate news. The body of local small business owner Donald Greuber was found. The body was found in the waters of Liberty Park, just a hundred feet from the spot local news correspondent Vincent Lancaster and his cameraman Andrew Peterson disappeared from three days ago. The latest victims to fall prey to what people are calling the Liberty Park Demon.” A young anchorman reads from an offscreen teleprompter. “Freedom City Police have repeatedly insisted though that after serious investigation, there is no actual proof of supernatural involvement.” Anywhere else in the country and that may have been meant as a joke to lighten the mood. But in Freedom… “City Hall has been under pressure after it had been revealed police had been downplaying attacks around Liberty Park that have been increasing over the last year. No connections have been made between the known victims and police still have no suspects.” The young man folds his hand solemnly. “We will continue to cover this story as more information becomes available.” the camera switches to a cheerful looking young anchorwoman. “And when we return…” **** *ring ri-* “911, what is your emergency?” “Ya, ah, I want to report a, ah, a body.” “A body?” “Yes.” “Can you tell if they’re alive?” “Nah, they not moving, and I ain’t getting any closer.” “That’s okay sir. Can I get your name?” “I, ah, rather not.” “That’s okay sir. Where did you find the body?” “Near the Foster St entrance of Liberty. It’s, ah, it’s hangin over the wall.“ “Hanging over th-“ “Look, I can’t talk anymore. I ain’t getting involved.” “Sir-“ *click* **** Street lamps illuminate the police tape that cordoned off nearly a hundred yards in every direction into the park from the Foster street entrance of Liberty park. Agitated police personnel swarm the area looking for clues while keeping late night rubberneckers at a distance. Several reports argue with the police refusing to let them past the barriers until they’ve finished. Despite the efforts of police, civilians are still active in the park. It’s been a sad, but constant struggle for authorities. Some are heedless of the danger, some possibly hoping for it. Some hoping to take advantage of it and some just because they tragically have no where else to go. There have been rumors of federal involvement at the behest of local government. And pictures on social media have show individuals in suits speaking with local police, though no official statement on it has been given. All said and done… there seems little optimism that an end is in sight.

GM Freedom City December 1st 2023, Evening The first day of December is a cold and dark Friday evening in Freedom City. Snow is slowly falling, giving the city an almost ethereal sense of beauty, calm and peace. A good and peaceful start to the time of christmas. But this is Freedom City, and that obviously won't last. As Bernadette O'Connell returns to her dorm, she finds a folded piece of paper in the shape of an rectangle on her bed. Once it is unfolded, the paper shows machine written text that reads "Want to do some good? Come find me." and a set of coordinates. When Leon Moore comes home, he finds a piece of paper likewise folded as a rectangle on his table. The machine written text on his paper reads "Wonder what Casanova and his goons are up to? Come find out." and a set of coordinates. Luke Landers likewise finds a folded piece of paper, with a message for him. "Do you know where you girlfriend is? Come save her." and a set of coordinates. The coordinates on each piece of paper point to the same abandoned warehouse in Bayview.

Claremont Academy Bayview, Freedom City, New Jersey Wednesday January 3, 2024, 8:10 AM With the start of the second half of the school year, Headmistress Summers had called an assembly for the student body to start the first day back in classes. Once all the students had gathered in the auditorium, the headmistress made her way out onto the stage. She was accompanied by a most unusual individual, a short figure, under four feet tall, with aquamarine blue skin and a long prehensile tail. The figure appeared to be female, and was wearing some sort of breathing mask and dressed in punk style clothing and combat boots. Directing the figure to a spot close to the podium, the Headmistress stepped up behind the podium and began to speak. "Good morning everyone, welcome back. I trust everyone had an enjoyable and safe holidays and New Year's. Before we start classes this morning, I wanted to make a short announcement to introduce everyone to a recent addition to our student body." The Headmistress indicated the small figure that was standing nearby. "Vueriz is a recent arrival, not only to our city, but our planet and galaxy. Many of you likely heard on the news about a recent crash landing near Freedom City, that was Vueriz's arrival. After some debriefing by the Freedom League and AEGIS, she has been remitted to the school's custody. I trust each and every one of you will do all you can to make her feel welcome and help her adjust to her new surroundings and learn about not only our city, but our world." "Now, classes begin in half an hour, so you have some free time until the, but I expect everyone to be on time. Will the members of the sophomore class I spoke with early this morning please gather in the antechamber to meet with Vueriz and help ensure she makes it to her first class. For the rest of you, there will be ample opportunity throughout the day to introduce yourselves." "Dismissed."

Sunday, December 3, 2023 The pop-up shop hadn't been Winifred's idea. Conducting business entirely though correspondence hadn't been a foreign concept to her even before spending the better part of a decade acclimating to the 'future' and minimizing face-to-face interactions suited her just fine. Chrysopoeia had grown considerably as a company in the fast few years, however and both the marketing consultantation team she'd hired through AEON and her in-house 'social media' person had agreed that a physical presence was a must during the Yuletide season. Given the bespoke - and sometimes volatile - nature of her products that meant that Winifred herself needed to be on-hand. And so the petite Englishwoman paced about the polished wooden tables in the small Hanover storefront, the combination of warm tones and glassware evoking some idealized remembrance of the laboratories of her youth. She wore a pine green sleeveless turtleneck, leaving the sleeve tattoo on her left arm on display, metallic ink that caught the light to look like spun wire, along with loose black trousers. Her actual lab wear was in the consultation room behind her in an attempt to look more inviting, an affectation her imperious resting expression already made something of a challenge.

Friday, September 10 Albright Institute, Freedom City Getting into the field trip to the Albright Institute took a little luck. You had to put your name in and get drawn in a lottery. Interest in the trip was high. As the premier lab researching super powers, the Institute held a special interest for Claremont's metahumans. So naturally, Bernadette O'Connell, known to the world as the duplicating super hero Multi-Girl, was expecting every seat on the bus to be full when she scrambled aboard. Instead, the back third of the bus was empty and students were crammed up to three to a seat in the rest. It didn't take long to figure out why. Bernadette's dorm mate, Consuelo (known on campus as "Rot") was sitting in the back seat all alone, the rest of the Claremont teenagers happy to have some distance between themselves and her. Nowhere else to sit for Bernadette, though. The green-haired outcast in the back sees Bernadette and grins. "Hey, Bernie! You're coming on this trip too? That's awesome! I saved you a seat." Consuelo looks around conspiratorially, slyly opens her backpack, and then whispers: "Dude, check it out, I've got, like, half a case of Mountain Dew in here!"

Late Afternoon, Saturday the 16th of December The Fens Waterfront It was a bright clear day, the air crisp as a party had started out of a small flea market, mulled wine and a few good turns of luck proving enough to bring out some Christmas cheer early, especially as everyone's 'Uncle' Michael decided now was the best time to bring out his latest batch of homebrew rum. Shooting Star Alice made her way through the crowd, the bottle of rum she'd acquired tucked under her arm. She wore a sky blue sundress and a white scarf as an acknowledgement that it was supposedly cold. For the dozenth time that minute she checked her phone, having messaged Luke and Leon asking if they'd wanted to come to the little party. She'd been meaning to meet up with them since the attempt at a party get together that had ended with them briefly being crows together, but never found the time, simultaneously juggling school, superheroics and family responsibilities. The latter of which she was avoiding right now, Aaron was getting more involved this Christmas, and it was getting too much. She huffed out a sigh, surveying the crowd for her... friends?

GM Eyeball had information. Blowfish, struggling with finances after Nightscale's daring theft of gold, and caught up with fighting the Yardie gang lead by Machete Max, was moving in on the smugglers of Freedom City docks. Small time crooks, weak, ripe for the picking. Right now, just past midnight, a gang of six of Blowfishe's mooks, armed with pistols, shotguns, and baseball bats, were closing in on the ship Lost and Forgotten, a mid sized cargo ship arrived from Africa. Even Eyeball didn't know quite what was in it, but he knew it was contraband. And he knew that the ships Crew knew it to. It was going to be a bloody affair. The ships crew were sailors, not fighters. There were evenly matched in number, but were not ready, not armed. If Blowfishes thugs got the jump on them, it would be all over quickly. And that was the plan. Blowfish not only intended to steal whatever contraband was there, but to start taking over the smuggling business- or rather, start demanding protection money from the smugglers. He had sized up the docks and found it ripe for the plucking. Only thing was, Blowfish rather stayed away from electronics. He was old school. Eyeball could hack and spy, but he didn't know what precisely was in the ship. And he had only found out about the raid last minute. Nightscale had got the call, but had little time to prepare...

Rai Ki Wai Estate Wakaya Island, Fiji Saturday, February 17, 2024, 8:30 PM local time It had been a rather full day of water and sun for the Claremont teens staying at the Fiji estate owned by Lawrence's parents. After the group had grilled dinner up on the massive deck up by the main house, Lawrence had gathered as many as were interested in heading back down to the beach to sit around a campfire to wait for nightfall and a chance for what he indicated was some amazing stargazing while they relaxed a bit before everyone was ready to go to bed. The teens had begun to gather down on the beach where Lawrence had gotten a fire started just before sunset, just before 7:00 PM. Over the next hour and a half, the sky continued to darken, until the sky was filled with countless stars, with even the Milky Way Galaxy visible in the sky above the beach. The fire was crackling in the center of the circle of teens as Lawrence looked up at the sky with a grin. "Like I said, a view of the night sky that is hard to beat, unless you are out in space."

GM March 16th, 2024, 1.13PM Millennium Mall, Bayview, Freedom City It was winding towards the end of a nice, relaxing, post-school day. The quartet of young incognito heroes sitting in the food court had wandered the echoing halls of the vast shopping mall and gotten more or less what they'd wanted out of the experience. Plus, there was some of Doctor Metropolis' new art on display. The presence of the strange, quiet city-spirit was normally an unseen one. As an expression of Freedom City as a whole he didn't favour any areas or inahbitants over any others, unlike the mysteriously-vanished ghost Lantern Jack whose hauntings had rarely gone beyond Lantern Hill. And, similar to how people rarely notice good roads but can't ignore bad ones, his most visible role had been as a healer of civic wounds and shepherd of missing persons. Brief, purposeful, unsettling, Doctor Metropolis was in some ways less approachable than the space aliens and living dead that had served with the Freedom League. However, while a tireless repair-man, the city-spirit was also a "born" artist. His canvas was the layouts, structure and material of buildings, and places with high concentrations of citizens could look forward to something new and unexpected. Today, the ceiling skylight rippled like a watery surface, while tiles on the floor and walls schooled in dazzling rainbows or loomed in grey enormity. Out the main door, a number of plaques had appeared dedicated to the lives lost in Freedom City's long-gone fishing industry. Most of this was lost on the shoppers, who had their own lives to worry about. Especially the busy lives of teenaged superheroes.

December 1, 2023 Claremont Academy As if gym class wasn't bad enough... They'd been divided up as partners for basic unarmed combat when the flash of light came, a snap and boom of white that was all-too-familiar to La Puma Negra. The scene was familiar to none of them, however. They were no longer standing on the washable firm mats of the Claremont gym floor, instead they were standing inside a strange place. It was a room full of trophies; statues of a caped figure holding up a gigantic globe, surrounded by smaller statues of men and women in togas, artifacts from countless worlds and timelines. The walls on either side were of some exotic metal, as was the floor; with doors visible that seemed to lead off to a much larger tunnel complex. This was the lair of the late legendary Centurion, long a museum --- or was it? The whole place had a strange air about it as if long-neglected air had just been recently been disturbed, the air thick with dust and the distinct scent of blood. And then a man appeared; blonde and blue-eyed, he was wearing the Centurion's costume but clearly wasn't him. La Puma Negra recognized the adult form of Quirk (and perhaps a few others did too) - his daughter was no longer with him. "Welcome, combatants!" he called in a booming, artificially amplified voice. "You have reached the Centurion's stronghold! But be warned, if you seek to claim his true power, the guardians may not be what you expect! You must defeat them and reclaim the Centurion's rocket if you wish to be victorious. Let the combat begin!" And then, he vanished.

Kestevan 79 Coalition Victory Station Lor time mark 2104.5 For the last several cycles, tensions along the boards of the Coalition worlds and the Stellar Khanate had been high. After Star-Khan’s brief attempt to restore the Khanate to its pre-Incursion boards, which had only been partially successful, things had gone back to the longstanding status quo of occasional build up of military forces on either side of the boards and the far more common influence and activities of the criminal organizations allowed to operated basically unchecked within the Khanate’s boarders. But other than the military forces or the Praetorians and Star Knights, most beings within the Coalition and Lor Republic went about their daily routines, building on the progress that had been made since the end of the Incursion. Recently, there had been reports suggesting some sort of disruption within the boards of the Khanate, although details were rather sparse. There were even rumors that began to make their way to Republic and Coalition governments that Kinan Khan, the once formidable Star-Khan, had died, succumbing to a combination of his advancing age and the terrible injuries he suffered at the hands of the Communion. However, thus far, those rumors were not yet confirmed. One thing was clear, something was happening within the Khanate, which brough the concern of whether whatever was happening would erupt beyond its borders. So, when a Khanate cruiser approached the system that was home to Coalition Victory Station and hailed the station requesting an audience with the Coalition council, it was cause for great concern. This was particularly true as the last time a Khanate warship had visited CoVic Station, it had been part of a ruse to steal certain information and materials from the station and coincided with the launch of Star-Khan’s attempt to reconquer lost worlds. While Republic and Coalition forces along the Khanate boarder were put on high alert in preparation for any renewed hostilities, the cruiser was held far from CoVic Station until its intentions could be confirmed. As a gesture of good will, the Khanate vessel had agreed to allow a group of inspectors abord to confirm it was not preparing for an attack. And so, a shuttle craft carrying three members of the Praetorians and several members of the Lor Navy made its final approach to the main hanger of the Khanate cruiser….

Along the banks of the Yarlung Tsangpo River Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon, People’s Republic of China Wednesday August 2, 2023 10:45 AM local time Situated high on the Tibetan Plateau, the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon lay in the eastern end of the Himalaya range, where the great Yarlung Tsangpo River turned south through the range, before dropping nearly ten thousand feet to the lower gorge and into northeastern India. With an average depth of nearly 7,500 feet, it was the deepest canyon on land, and was slightly longer than the American Grand Canyon. Despite the high elevation, the day was fairly warm, reaching into the low 70's. This was tapered somewhat by occasional light rain from the cloudy sky. While the rain was intermittent, it was enough that all of the vegetation in the forest covering the banks of the river in this stretch of the canyon was soaking wet. Veronica Danger moved through the wet vegetation, following after Davyd Palahniuk as he tracked through the forest. The young brunette was, as always, dressed in a pair of cargo shorts (black in this case), a linen Khaki button up short sleeve shirt worn over a grey T-shirt and a pair of well-worn hiking boots. However, given the rain and wet vegetation, Veronica had added a lightweight waterproof parka, which she had pulled out of her dimensional storage when the rain had started over an hour ago (providing similar parkas to her friends that wanted one). A short distance behind Veronica was the third member of the trio hiking through the forest, Louise (Lulu) Beaumont. While both Davyd and, more recently, Lulu, where employees of Danger International, when Veronica had asked for their assistance it was based on their friendship that went back to their first year together at Claremont Academy. The trio where hiking through this remote forest in search of any signs of Veronica's younger brother, Rex Danger III. The teenage Danger had been accompanying a group of scientist employed by Danger International conducting research in the canyon. Two days ago Rex had vanished from the base camp the scientists were working out of and had not been seen since.

"So Vegas! F-ck Yeah!" Luke grinned enthusiastically, as he threw a glance at the map. It was a long way from Freedom City. Was it for a daring rescue, though? Chasing a dangerous mastermind? An ingenious heist? Nope for the nineteen years old, it was something way more important. Road Trip! Graduation was approaching and what better way to celebrate than an adventure. Now, they were both pretty much broke, had no ride, a continent to cross and... well... Luke dreaded to imagine what his best friend might have planned at an actual Casino. But those were just details, that the two still needed to iron out. Nothing that could not be decided in an afternoon, an amazingly short amount of time before the expected beginning of their journey in a messy dorm room with piles of half packed crowding out the place. @Spacefurry

Bedlam City, January 11th, 2024. 8 PM. Getting a Thursday off was not unusual for a bartender. They liked their best people to work at Club Maxx on the busy nights. Ellie did not know that one of her coworkers put her picture up on social media. It wasn't on purpose, of course. However, Ellie had very good reasons to avoid having her picture put out in public. Ellie noticed she was being followed around 7 o'clock, about an hour prior. A pair of men in plain gray suits seemed to be showing up wherever she went. They ended up at the diner she ate her late dinner at, and the also seemed to show up at the convenience store she bought her bottle of whiskey at. Now, they were across the street, standing at a bus station, not moving or talking.

Claremont Academy, Jasmin Summer Administrative Building Freedom City, New Jersey March 1, 2024, 9:30 AM Ever since Miriam Juarez had come into possession of her Star Knight armor and been contacted by members of the Order, there had been some question as to what was next for the young Star Knight in training. From what Miriam understood, over the last nine years (which many of the Star Knights seemed to refer to as cycles for some reason), the Order had increased recruiting of younger squires, taking them to a planet called Citadel (which was apparently the Order's headquarters) for training. There were several Star Knights that saw no reason Miriam should not follow this established procedure and leave Earth to undergo her training on Citadel. However, two Star Knights from Earth, Maria Montoya (a former police officer and member of the Freedom League) and Kyle Steward (who also used the title Cavalier) had supported Miriam being allowed to remain on Earth and attend Claremont Academy. This view was supported by A’lan Koor, whom Miriam had learned was an elder Star Knight (part of something called the Inner Circle) who had been a member of the original version of the Freedom League back in the 1970s. Ultimately, this view was accepted by Mentor, and Miriam was enrolled at Claremont Academy, with the understanding that there would be regular visits by members of the Order to check on her progress and that during her summer breaks, she would travel to Citadel for additional Star Squire training by the Order. So, after a few weeks of uncertainty, Miriam found herself with Sri Montoya at what appeared to be some fancy private prep school, but which she had been told was secretly set up to help young metahuman teens learn to control their powers, but also to help train those interested in learning to be a superhero. They had met with the school’s headmistress, Callie Summers, who quickly made it clear that she was fully aware of Miriam's background, but also clear that the teen was hardly the first to come to the school with a troubled past. Headmistress Summers assured Miriam that she was coming in with a clean slate, with only the headmistress herself knew of the teen’s past. After their meeting in the headmistress’ office, the three made their way to the foyer inside the main entrance to the building, with Sri Montoya turning to face the teen. "Remember Miriam, whenever you put on that armor, your actions reflect on the Order. Down here, that may not be all that important, but when you get up into space, the implications can be far reaching for the Order. So do not develop habits here that will not serve you well in space." She put one hand on Miriam's shoulder giving the teen a supportive smile. "Remember, the armor chose you for a reason. I firmly believe you got this." Removing her hand, he continued, "I am not sure it will be me, but someone will stop by in a few weeks to check in on how you are settling in. Mentor is always there if you need him." She then glanced over to Headmistress Summers. "Good to see you again Callie." "Always good to see you as well Maria." The headmistress responded with a small smile. Sri Montoya gave Miriam another smile and a nod and then made her way out the main entrance. "Well Ms. Juarez, it appears your guide for your first day here has arrived." Headmistress Summers indicated, looking to her left down a hallway that led to a side entrance to the building. Emerging from that hallway was a tall attractive redhead girl with green eyes who appeared to be about eighteen. She was dressed in a blue and black plaid skirt, a white collared shirt with a red tie, over which she had a blue sweater. But the older girl topped the school uniform look off with a black leather jacket. "Ms. Juarez, this is one of our Seniors, Bernadette O’Connell, and I will leave you in her capable hands." The headmistress said with a nod to Bernadette and a smile to Miriam before she headed back off towards her office. "Your Miriam right?" The redhead said with a smile and a very evident Irish accent. "Welcome ta Claremont. As the headmistress said, I'm Bernadette an' I'm here ta give you a tour o' the camps an' get you settled in." Suddenly an exact duplicate of the Irish teen popped into existence beside her, holding out a hand towards Miriam. "I can help you with yer bags." The duplicate said with a smile.

Claremont Academy, Jasmin Summer Administrative Building Freedom City, New Jersey February 1, 2024, 9:00 AM Callie Summers, the headmistress of Claremont Academy led Iris and Daniel Evans into the main entryway of the administrative building after her meeting with the twins for their first day at the institution. The headmistress had surprised the twins by reveling that she was fully aware of their criminal background, while making it clear that she was more than willing to allow them to make a fresh start at the school. The headmistress promised they would be treated no different than any of the other students, noting nothing they were hardly the first metahuman teens to come to the school with a questionable or even criminal past. The twins found another individual waiting for them when they arrived in the building’s main entrance, a tall, attractive teenage girl who appeared to be about eighteen. She had long red hair, bright green eyes and was dressed in a pair of jeans, a light grey sweater and a winter jacket. "Mr. Evans, Ms. Evans, this is one of our Seniors, Bernadette O'Connell." Headmistress Summers said in greeting as she indicated the tall redhead. "I will leave you in her care to ensure everything is in order for your first day." She gave the twins a small smile, then a nod to Bernadette and made her way back toward her office. "Hi, Iris an' Daniel right?" The redhead said with a smile, an Irish accent very evident as she spoke. "As the headmistress said, I'm here ta give you a tour o’ campus an' help you get settled in."

GM July 4th, 2023, 6.37PM Pacific Ocean, 50 nautical miles from the Oregon coast Blackstaff The conclusion was as inescapable as it was impossible to accept: under the cold, leaden weight of the Peaceful Ocean, far below the light of the life-giving Sun, the machinations of equally antipyrated hearts had created a dark edifice, a visage, a mask of stone through which eyes alien and incorporeal could peer into the brimming, oblivious swarms of life, and decide their fate by measures impossible for any brain thwarted by a linear existence to comprehend. And now its worshippers gathered, to pledge a fealty as mad as it was undying, to defend it against the feeble struggles of the pale things which sought to avoid their inevitable fate. On the other hand, the PanStar representative had been very eager to make clear that the Deep Ones needn't necessarily be killed, and a diplomatic resolution that allowed them to move their camoflagued underwater surveillance module away from the temple-reef sonar pulses had uncovered would be more than acceptable. And now here he was, on a small, fast boat equipped with diving gear, heading for the locus of unearthly phenomena with only his thoughts, two stolidly uniformed representatives from the Brande Management Security Company, a three-man crew, and a captain constantly dropping by to check how he was doing to fill the anxious hour. Captain Cosmos "We can't thank you enough, Captain Cosmos!" the co-pilot of Singapore Airlines flight 56SO shook the hero's hand fervently, still panting a little from the exhilaration of the last few minutes. Behind him, the plane windows opened on the beautiful sight of the Oregon and Washington coasts, the cloud-strewn Atlas Mountains, the Emerald Cities nestled beneath the peaks on the banks of a wide, slow Columbia River. "I know I can't, they're likely gone forever, but I'd still like to thank Science Communicator Buddy and Labour Activist Buddy for all they did to help us with that bomb, and that near-riot on the second floor." "Approaching the site of the distress call," announced Captain Sen, looking much better without the tape the now-unconscious Overthrow agent had swathed him in, "I believe this is your stop, Captain Cosmos. I took the liberty of contacting the local Coast Guard, in case they need more help than we did." He couldn't help but smirk, though he did a good job hiding it. "Best of luck to you, Captain. If you're ever in Changi, look me up, Jai Sen!"

Absolute Zero Waterfront, Freedom City, New Jersey October 2023, 9:45 PM Absolute Zero was a popular nightspot located along the Waterfront in downtown Freedom City, a few blocks north of the Pier Two Shopping Center. The club actually consisted of two distinctly different venues located on different floors. The First floor was The Lounge, a more relaxed, casual venue that was mainly candlelit with comfortable chairs and couches. Downstairs, was the Hollow, which was a much more lively venue, with high-tech lighting and sound systems, with musical offering varying each night. Luke Landers and Leon Moore found themselves in the Hollow on a Wednesday night after getting an invitation from their semi-teammate, Bernadette O'Connell to see her perform that evening. From what Luke and Leon understood, that after entering a competition in Boston over the Summer, Bernadette and another Claremont alumni Summer Sands (who had been a year ahead of Luke and Leon) had put together a band and begun performing at various venues in Freedom City or other nearby cities. The Hollow was pretty full for a Wednesday night, filled with what seemed to be something of a mix of patrons. There several groups who appeared to be young, white-collar employees from any number of such business in the city. Then there were a number of people of varying ages who seemed like they worked at some of the nearby restaurants or shops, that wanted to take in some live music and some drinks after their shifts. And then there were a large number of young adults that appeared to be students from one of the many colleges or universities in or near Freedom City. Another local band was just finishing up their time on stage. The performance had been good, but not one that had particularly excited the crowd overall. Bernadette was currently backstage, standing with Summer and the drummer and base player they had found over the last few months. The Irish teen was currently dressed as if she were heading off to classes at Claremont, with a grey and black plaid skirt, white socks and black shoes, a white dress shirt (which she had left unbuttoned several buttons lower than would be the norm) over which she had on a navy blue blazer. Not that it was particularly common for the students to have to wear such a uniform at Claremont. She looked over to Summer, who was dressed as she often was, baggy pants, a T-shirt and hoodie. The older girl was making a few last adjustments to her guitar's tunning before looking back out to watch as the current band was finishing up its last song. Bernadette looked back out on stage as well, waiting for their turn to head out.

Early January, 2024, Location: Sampson's Sodas, Riverside district of Freedom City, Early Evening Sampson's Sodas was a store operating out of what had once been some sort of warehouse. The warehouse portion was old, charming red brick, giving it a rustic atmosphere that nicely complemented the remodeled and added on front end, an open frame wood and brick affair with woooden decour. The entire building's front was set with windows for patrons to look out of while sitting at raised tables lining it, with the counter and the series of soda taps nestled in the back of the room. The walls were pictures of current trending bands with tour dates, or signed photos from them. Some popular teen heroes had pictures and autographs on the walls as well; this was a place for teens to immerse themselves in their culture. This late at night, it was getting close to closing, and only a single person was inside; Michael, wearing dark slacks and a lime green polo that announced him as an employee. The polo almost strained against the hero's sportsman frame, but he was leaning on the countertop and flipping through math homework while he waited for the store to close. Or more correctly, he was waiting for his visitor. After the party, or during it, Michael had only had a few moments to catch up with Charlie, as busy as they both were, but they had managed to exchange numbers for a chance to meet up later. Or maybe he'd asked Bernadette for the number and she'd gotten permission to share it, but it wasn't at all surprising, one way or the other, that Michael had sent Charlie a text a few days later and asked him to come to his work so they could talk. Michael had, after all, been very clear he had as much hero worship for the former Nevermore, now Stormcrow, as he did for the members of the Freedom League or Dead Head. That he was doing this at his work- even on a slow day when no one was in the store and he was about to close up-, in his civilian identity, indicated that alongside that Hero worship was a person who had a reasonable understanding of what he could and could not manage; a statement that he knew that it wouldn't be any work at all for Stormcrow to figure out who he was, if he somehow didn't already, and he had no intention to try and hide it from him anyway.

Claremont Academy Freedom City, New Jersey December 1, 2023, 3:05 PM The final class of the afternoon had just ended for what had been Vicki Adams' first day at Claremont Academy. After her rather eventful tour of the campus, Lawrence had gotten her to her classes for the afternoon and things had started to take on a bit of a normal routine. Of course, she was coming in at the end of the semester, so the school was working with the Atom Academy to provide semester finals that would cover what she had been working on there. As she exited the classroom, Vicki found herself in a crowd of students that included Lawrence Harrow, Mizuki Iwasaki, and Consuelo Nunez. The crowd the four teens were just exiting the building into the main quad when there was a flash of white light. The teens found themselves standing in the main parking lot for the school, or at least, it resembled the main parking lot. What appeared to be a wide racetrack ran through part of the parking lot, leading off into the wooded area around the school. The teens were still wearing the clothes they had worn for the day, but their bookbags were no longer with them. Each was standing next to what appeared to be a combination of a race car and a go-cart, each of a different color. The sound of cheers and applause filled the air, and glancing behind them there was a large stand of bleachers filled with almost cartoonish figures dressed in Claremont colors and bearing various banners and signs for "Team Claremont." Lawrence's eyes narrowed slightly as he regarded the scene, when suddenly a voice rang out. "Hey! Lawrence!" Glancing out onto the racetrack, there was a large figure with a spike shell on its back driving by on a four-wheel ATV, however, the odd figure's head seemed completely out of place, as it was a blond-haired man that looked to perhaps be in his early thirties, but with an impish, childlike grin. "You and your friends should hurry up, or you'll lose the race!" Following alongside the bazar figure was a small, pink racecar/go-cart, which was driven by a girl that looked to be five or six, with long blonde hair and wearing a pink princess dress. She had a similar impish grin to the other figure as she giggled as the two drove past the four teens and called out, "bye Law-werence!" "Quirk?" Lawrence said as he watched the two figures go by, before muttering, "oh, bloody hell." Lawrence looked over to the three girls and gave them an apologetic smile. "I am sorry you three got caught up in this, but we have been pulled into a game by a very powerful extra dimensional entity. I can tell you from experience, the best thing to do is play along, until we can find a way to beat him at the game." With that, the blond teen climbed into the car that was next to him and started up the motor.

Rai Ki Wai Estate Wakaya Island, Fiji Saturday, February 17, 2024, approximately 9:42 AM local time After having a bit to eat with Michael, Carmen had decided to explore more of the island while the others began either settling in near the pool or started making their way down to the beach. Moving away from the area near the main house, she found the property had several open grass fields, along with well cared for gardens, but then quickly became jungle. A short distance from the buildings and tennis court there was also a helicopter pad. Moving into the jungle, the teen was met with an array of scents, from the various wildflowers and other plants to numerous birds and other small animals. It was certainly reminiscent of Puerto Rico, if different flora and fauna. A short while after stalking through the jungle, Carmen came to a tall fence that seemed to be set up around the property. Beyond it lay more jungle and the higher elevation that was toward the center of the island. Of course, the fence represented little in the way of an obstacle for the teen.

(GM Post) Mid January, 2024 What should be an easy assignment turns violent! A fun visit turned into a semi-nautical nightmare! What's a high school assignment compared to the aggression of Supervillains!? Can our Heroes save the day AND complete their assignment!? The Freedom City Aquarium was always open for students doing projects, especially ones from the well-funded Claremont Academy, whose headmistress was a significant donor for the massive, three story building and it's attached research vessel. A big exhibit now was a live Blue Whale, currently swimming in a fenced in area of the harbor while it recovered from injuries sustained in the wild. But there were plenty of other exhibits throughout the three stories of the building. Parker Powers, Consuelo Nunez, and Michael Adon had, in their Sophomore level Biology Course, been given an assignment along with the rest of the class to go around the city and examine a microbiome in the city; the same assignment that sent Mizuki, Lawrence, and Baz to the local Estuary underneath the amusement park. Carmen had gotten the chance to earn some extra credit by going along with them, partially as a chaperone and partially by writing her own essay about some of the more interesting examples of sea life at the aquarium. While it wasn't a microbiome in reality, since obviously it wasn't natural, it did allow the group to present comparisons between creatures of the same species that were adapted to different locations; a major example of this were Otters, as the Aquarium had both Sea Otters and River Otters among it's other exhibits. With special permission from the handler, the group was currently standing on a platform in the sea otter exhibit, taking notes to compare it to the River Otters they had visited before. With it's thicker fur and heavier body, the creature was quite different from the slick, svelte river otter that was it's biological cousin. It wasn't anything specifically straining or dangerous, it was actually pretty relaxing. Right up until the alarms went off, flashing red lights in the exhibit the group is in as a voice echoed over the loud speaker. "All Visitors and non-security personal please exit the Aquarium. Metahuman Activity is occurring." Which wasn't great to begin with, but it got worse when Carmen, her senses naturally more heightened than the three Sophomores, could hear a wail of pain by the largest beast in the area. It was too high to be heard at first, but on it's second scream, even Parker and Consuelo could hear it. Someone was torturing the Blue Whale, and the poor creature was screaming in fear and pain, loud enough that it could be heard inside the building. The otters fled off the platform into deeper water to escape the sound, and the crying whale was interwoven with the sounds of violence occurring on the lower levels of the Aquarium.