EternalPhoenix
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Ah, so that's what this thread is for. Have a happy one, Heri.
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Knowing how powerful Lady Liberty could be and thusly taking no chances with her double, Terrifica took her staff from her belt and shook it open. This is my city. Mine. This is the city where American liberty took its first breaths, and I will not allow some ancient, deluded ghost to cause any harm to it. She yelled over her shoulder. "If you're not tougher than steel, be cautious. Ice wielder, if you can do anything about the civilians, please do. At the very least you can shield them from the this...travesty's wrath. Caradoc, you'll be needed up here. Try not to harm the host any more than you have to, please. That goes double for you, Miss Liberty. I know you don't like her, but she's currently inside a policewoman. The shapeshifting one? If you could help the ice wielder with evacuations I would appreciate it. However, your companion seems to have a nasty temper." She smiled. "Why don't we put that to use? And as ever, I'm not your boss. Think for yourselves, but do it quickly. That blow won't stop her for long." She returned her attentions to the opposite end of the common, where Southern Belle had landed. "Is that it then, Mary Preston Hammer? Is that all the Southern Belle can muster? Where's your Southern Pride?"
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I know what I'll do. I'll take out the Terrifi-Staff, and ready an action to be used later. Because I can do that. Nyah.
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Terrifica lowered her staff. "It is as he says. Running is only another cage, one of your own making. I cannot promise it will be easy. I cannot promise that you will not be feared and hated. However, I can promise you that if you run now, you will be running for the rest of your life, and you will turn out just like your parent. You choose who you are. You are beholden to no one's idea of who and what you should be but your own. You have a mind of your own. Use it. Decide what you want. A life lived alone in darkness, forever running. Or one lived in the light, with people who understand what it means to be different. I can help you. This man can help you. That young woman up there can help you. We're heroes. That's what we do. So tell me. Are you going to run, or are you going to ask for help?"
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Sam frowned, and her brow wrinkled. "In particular? I was hoping you had copies of a few things." She rattled off a multitude of syllables in Mandarin, too fast for Maddy to catch. "I'm sorry, I didn't understand any of that." Sam blinked. "Sorry. It's been a long time since I've had to translate. Mental muscles do get rusty if they aren't used. I was thinking specifically of Ding Ling's Diary of Miss Sophie, and Ba Jin's Torrent Trilogy. As for titles...Flowers in the Mirror, The Scholars, and Slapping the Table in Amazement. You...may need those titles in the original Mandarin." She reached into her pants pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper. "I've written it Western style, from left to right and top to bottom. The names are in the order I said them. Ah, and that last one is Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio. That's...less necessary." Maddy nodded. "That's quite a list. Let me see what I can dig up." "They shouldn't be too hard to find in English, but that's the problem. I'd like to have them in Chinese. It's been remarkably difficult to find them on the East Coast. I suppose you could say I'm trying to reconnect with my homeland."
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Yep, I'm here too. Hello.
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Samantha Carson walked into the bookstore, inhaled deeply, and smiled. There's something about the smell of old books that puts me at ease. She was in town yet again because HIT needed a consult and no, Skyping wouldn't do. Still, I'd been meaning to stop by for the opening anyway. She wandered into the stacks, browsing gently. "Can I help you?" The dark skinned woman surprised Sam, who jumped. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you." Sam, with the ease of long practice, controlled her breathing. Her heart rate began to slow. "No, it's my fault. I shouldn't let my guard down, even in a place like this." She smiled. "Never know when I'll be unexpectedly ambushed." The woman smiled back. "Well, you seemed a bit...meandering. I thought I could help you narrow it down a bit. By the way, I'm Maddy." Sam extend her hand and they shook. "And I'm Sam. Pleasure to meet you. I'm not meandering as such. There are quite a few books in here, and I thought I'd take it all in before I began searching in earnet." Maddy nodded, and a predatory glint appeared in her eye. The prey had been sighted. "A bibliophile, eh? I've got just the thing." She led the way to a certain shelf in the back stacks. "Try these." Sam gave the shelves a once over, and her eyes widened. She took one of the books. "This...this has been out of print for years. No one appreciates English Literature anymore, and most of these are consigned to the dustbin of history. And this one-" She took another out. "this print run had less than ten thousand copies." Maddy grinned. "Need me to ring you up?" Sam grinned right back. "Oh, no. I need to see your children's books. The good ones. And if you have anything from China's pre-Communist years, that would be excellent." "Very well, then. Follow me."
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Wonderful. Simply wonderful. Terrifica had a few far less polite words for this situation as well. Really? Really? "REALLY?" She strode forward, coldly furious, stopping just a step to the right and back of Miss A. "The living incarnation of Confederate racism returns?" The severe disdain of her Aunt Cassandra echo in Terrifica's perfect memory. She wasn't Southern by any means, but the naked hatred for anyone that wasn't lily white (cloaked by manners and fine breeding) was exactly the same. "Liberty and justice only for the whites, is it? Freedom only for those with the correct blood in their veins? I'm the most intelligent person on earth, and even I can barely grasp the staggering amount of hypocrisy it takes to believe that and claim to be any part of the Spirit of Liberty." She took a breath and pointed across the Common. "Take a good look, heroes. That is Southern Belle. Champion of the Confederate States of American, with all that implies. What did she call you? Mary Preston Hammer? Take a good look around. See the Boston of 2014. All races, all creeds. Intermingling freely." Terrifica smirked. "And it's not just Boston. Richmond. Chattanooga. Charleston. Atlanta. Savannah. Name a city. Any city. It's much the same. The color of one's skin is far less important is this day and age. You lost the war, Mary. You've even lost the argument."
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Initiative... 31. That is one fast brain. Knowledge (History)... Lady luck favors me more. Yay?
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Terrifica >Once Upon A Dream 2 posts. >Heavy Decisions 2 posts. >Jury Duty 4 posts. >The Spirit of Revolution 6 posts. >Silverman's Books: Grand Opening 2 posts. >Rep Chart Counts be final, y'all.
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NPC Investigations Overview Timeline NPC in the Freedomverse The Partners Penny Nihara Carla Perkins Edwin Christian Senior Associates Sonya Harmon Harmony Perez James Scott Junior Associate Rotation (small sample) Ricardo Alvarez Tessa Macleod Elinah Monroe Immortia (Tia Hammond) Eiko Takanouchi Other Titles Willa Hawke (culinary specialist) Kazuma Nihara (Clan Nihara Trainee) Rumiko Nihara (Clan Nihara Trainee) Sofia Harmon (Receptionist) -
With all the heroes crowding in, Sam felt comfortable enough to motion to Stan. He took Lucas's hand and pulled him along. They turned and walked around the corner from all the heroes. Stan gave his wife a look. "Plenty of heroes there. They should handle it just fine." Sam smiled, somewhat wryly. "Yes, I imagine they'll do just fine." Stan matched her smile with one of his own. "We're not going to make our reservation, are we?" Sam sighed. "Sadly, no. After lunch, I was planning on stopping by work, just to tidy up before the summer session. We're not going to make it to the restaurant, so I might as well do it now." Stan nodded. "All right. I'll get the car and take the kids home. You'll be home in time for dinner?" Sam considered briefly. "I don't know right now. You know how Benjamin can be." Stan looked disquieted. "Don't get carried away, Sam." Sam smiled. "I never do, love." At that, Stan took the kids and stared walking away as fast as Lucas could move. He questioned his father, not realizing the entire preceeding conversation was for his benefit. Samantha Carson slipped in a dark alley and opened her briefcase. Not two minutes later, Terrifica strolled out. She had the long coat with her, and the briefcase-now full of her civilian attire-was artfully hidden underneath it. She returned to the scene, striding up next to the imperious dark skinned woman. When she noticed the new arrival, Terrifica spoke to no one in particular. "You know...I'd like one holiday in this town to go smoothly. Just one. You would not believe what I had to deal with on Father's Day." Miss Americana clearly wasn't herself, and she was indeed quite powerful. However, Caradoc was here and he was quite powerful as well. Between the five of them, they could solve this one without unnecessary damage to her city and it's people. Hopefully.
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BEYOND HUMAN by Thevshi I've only got Terrifica, so. Three things. Motorcycle right out of the book. Binoculars on the Utility Belt, and the Feat Uncanny Dodge (auditory). I've done most of the work, down below. Feat's just a copy/paste job, really. And the two spots where the PP total will need changing.
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16 beats that. Terrifica doesn't have Evasion. 10 for the eyes 27 for the ears
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Let's see what's around before I get all staff smacky. Knowledge is power, after all. Notice check. 25. Then let's get staff smacky Hmph. 20 total. Could be better, could be so much worse. DC 22. That ought to do it.
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Terrifica could have been right on Nevermore’s heels, but that wasn’t her way. Instead she waited, watching and listening as he leapt into action. She had caught that brief light herself and heard the scream. When Nevermore’s voice came out of the building, she glanced around to find a good spot to place her grapple. Having found an acceptable one, she fired the gun and leapt off the roof at an angle. The grapple caught and held. Terrifica literally ran along the side of the building until the gaping hold of the missing window all but invited her in. With a flick of the wrist, she disengaged the grapple’s hook at the same time she entered the window. She landed in a sliding crouch and stood up. Well. Never doing that again. She adopted a smug, mocking tone of voice. “Oh, that wasn’t a woman being murdered? It was thieves? My, my. What a world we live in, where the darkness of an office building can make a grown man scream like a girl.†She stood there with a smug smirk on her face, long coat swishing slightly in the night breeze. I bet I look so incredibly cool right now. Maybe I will try that maneuver again someday.
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Terrifica smiled fiercely, highly pleased. A worthier bunch than I expected. Good. “I didn’t ask for your undying loyalty and obedience. I actually expect everyone to think and judge for themselves at all times. “ She looked BB in the eyes. “It’s nice to meet you, BB. I’m Terrifica. For the record, when it come to combat I am a patron of the way of agility myself. However I imagine I pale in comparison to the others. At any rate, it seems we don’t have a ranged specialist, which will make things more difficult. All the same, I have most of the ground floor plotted out, and I think I can come up with something decent.†She turned back to Divens. “Detective, do you have anything to add? My plan is only a rough outline. Any variables you could eliminate would be appreciated.â€
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Sam’s family stared, stunned. It wasn’t every day a blonde woman fell out of the sky in front of them, much less Miss Americana. Sam herself was shocked enough that she slipped into a higher mental speed and thus was the first to recover, apparently with effortless ease. She eyed Miss A warily. “Is there something we can do for you, Miss Americana? We were just on our way to a late lunch.†Stan was the first of the rest to recover. He took the diaper bag off his wife’s shoulder, and she offered no resistance. “You did say you had a feeling this was going to be one of those days, love.†Sam couldn’t help but smile, though she kept her eyes on Miss A. “Yes, I did, didn’t I? As we enjoyed this, the most American of holidays in this, one of the most American of cities, who else would fall from the sky but this, the most American of heroes.†Stan let out a chuckle, but he didn’t take his eyes off the heroine either. “Couldn’t get any more American without a founding father showing up. So you’re Miss Americana? I’ve heard a lot about you. Nice to finally see you in person. As my wife said, we were on our way to a late lunch. You’re welcome to join us, if you like. I’d imagine there’ll be room at our table.†Lucas tugged his mother’s hand. “Yes, bao bei? “Something’s wrong with the lady, Mama.†Sam absentmindedly patted her son’s head without averting her eyes from Miss A. “She did just fall from the sky. She could just be disoriented, my son. In fact..are you feeling all right, Miss Americana? That landing looked rather unpleasant.â€
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The Aquarium had been wonderful, as expected. Before Sam had even bought their tickets, Lucas had been enchanted by the seals. His eyes had lit up when he got to touch a real live ray. He was full of questions about everything, and Sam deferred to the employees whenever possible. The boy's intellect dwarfed those of his peers, and she shared more than one glance with Stan. It was something they had discussed before, and likely would discuss again. Meili, for her part, took in everything quietly, with only the occasional slurred Mandarin comment on the whole affair. Afterward, as the Gresham family strolled out, Lucas, excited, ran ahead of his parents. Sam and Stan had exchanged baby and diaper bag at some point. At Sam's questioning look, Stan spoke up. "Yes, I made the reservations. You really like that place, don't you?" Sam smiled at him."Dick's Last Resort? Yes, I do. It's so...lively. And the servers are allowed to have personalities aside from generically pleasant and helpful." Stan nodded. "You want to get the car?" Sam shook her head. "No, we'd just have to find another place to park. We can walk. Lucas! Stay close to us!" Lucas ran back. "I'm here, Mama." Sam rubbed his head. "There's a lot of people around today. I don't want you getting lost." Lucas made a face. "I won't get lost. I'm smart like you, Mama." Sam smiled at him. "Of course you are, bao bei. But you're still small. You know how small things can get lost or stolen without anyone noticing." Lucas looked thoughtful for a moment. "Okay, Mama. For you." He fell into step beside his parents as they walked. Meili spoke clearly for the first time today. "Bendan gege." Stan raised an eyebrow. "You're really going to have to teach me more Chinese. I don't know if that was an insult or affectionate." Sam just walked. "Stupid brother, but affectionate. I would, but your accent is atrocious. Your Mandarin is barely a step above gibberish." Stan's eyebrow got higher. "Oh really? This from the woman who couldn't pronounce R's until after she could legally vote?" Sam flushed and looked away. "Th-Those were occasional slips when I was flustered. I overcame my accent before I want to college, as you well know." Stan just looked at her. "Riiight. So that must've been my other wife who said 'balbecue" the other day." Sam fixed with a sly look. "This from the man who often can't restrain the thickest Bawston accent in the world?" Stan chuckled. "Point, Samantha. But what about..." They continued to banter on the way to the restaurant.
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recruitment Charitable Donations and Money Laundering
EternalPhoenix replied to Gizmo's topic in Archives
Don't be silly, Giz. You don't owe me anything. I am just not among the chosen few this time. S'okay. -
Good ol' Beantown happened to be home to Samantha Carson, alias Terrifica. But tonight, the costume was packed in her briefcase. Her best friend, Dr. Benjamin Beardly, had been given tickets for the Pops this evening, but as was usual for him he gave them away. Specifically, to Sam herself. However, that was later. Today was a family day out, starting with a visit to Christopher Columbus Park. She walked alongside her husband Stan and their young children Lucas and Meili. Lucas, a toddler, sat on his father's shoulders while Meili, not much more than an infant, was in Sam's arms. Her aforementioned briefcase was on her hip via shoulder strap, and Stan had the diaper bag. On occasion, life is perfect. Stan's questioning look brought her out of her reverie. "You brought it?" Sam blinked. "Oh, yes. I can't remember the last time a 4th of July in a major city on the East Coast went off without a hitch, so it's best to be prepared." "You're not the only one in town. That flying woman from earlier, plus the usual suspects. You should relax, and enjoy the holiday. Won't be long before classes start up again and I barely see you." Sam nodded in agreement. "Yes, I know. It's just...I have a feeling." Stan regarded his wife bemusedly. "A feeling? From you?" Sam...blushed. "I know. It's embarrassing. I can't put my finger on why, but I know I'll be needed today." Lucas suddenly cut in. "Daddy, look at the boat! It's doing it wrong!" Stan glanced out at the water. "Lucas, that's a ferry. It's supposed to do that. All right, Sam. Just let me know if I need to get the kids out of downtown again." Sam smiled. "You say that like it happens all the time." Stan returned the smile with a teasing grin. "I'm practicing." Meili burbled something in slurred Mandarin, and Sam whispered something back before replying. "You need practice? Didn't you tell me you were born ready?" Stan waved the question away. "Semantics." "That word...I don't think it means what you think it means." Stan chuckled. "Keep that up, young lady, and you won't get any ice cream after the aquarium." Sam raised her free hand in mock surrender. "Anything for ice cream. I'll be good, I promise." The two continued their banter as they walked towards the aquarium, the next stop on today's list.
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recruitment Charitable Donations and Money Laundering
EternalPhoenix replied to Gizmo's topic in Archives
Sounds like the kind of thing Terrifica would jump right on. If you'll have me. -
If you need a hand with the math, I'm a math nut. So I'll gladly lend a hand.
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Notice for the screaming is 16 Will save vs Illusion is 23
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Terrifica let out a long sigh and rubbed the bridge of her nose. Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful. Glorified bodyguard duty. That said, you have misstepped, young lady. Fix it. She took a deep breath and forced the irritation out of her mind. "I apologize, Detective. I...don't react well to closemindedness, even when it is warranted. I am well aware of police procedure. That said, this young man is correct. Anything you can tell us would be of immense assistance. I do mean anything. As a detective yourself, you ought to be well aware that even most insignificant detail can mean a great deal." Humility did not come easy to Terrifica, that much was a fact. It was a struggle to be that easy on the man. She consulted her wrist computer. She began to input data into a what appeared to be a 3-D mapping program. "At any rate, you speak of a potential siege. If the blueprints for this building are available and my associates"-she glanced at them all meaningfully-"would not mind sharing their capabilities with me, I can put together an effective protection plan. Among my many strengths, I am also an excellent tactician. Even if we must travel, I am just as capable of a navigator." One of these days, this will come easier to me. Hopefully. She lowered her arm, and looked Divens straight in the eye. "You are in charge of this operation, Detective." And as much as I find it unpleasant to kowtow to a closeminded and crude pìyǎn, "My vast intellect, immense knowledge, and wide skill set is at your service."