R. Bluefish

Samantha Lawrence is wanted for parole violation, but we can probably figure something out, and I like the idea of her getting a job. Maybe she can actually start helping Miras with the rent instead of just lying on the couch and taking up space.

Echo Power Level: 11 (160/175 PP) Trade-Offs: +3 Attack/-3 Damage, +3 Defense/-3 Toughness Unspent Power Points: 15 In Brief: A wisecracking, reality-warping heroine with ties to the multiverse, determined to stop her evil alternate-self. Residence: Southside, Freedom City Alternate Identity: Elizabeth “Buffy” Stein Identity: Secret Birthplace: Freedom City, New Jersey Occupation: Barista/student Affiliations: The Interceptors Family: Mother (Marian Stein, 55), father (Thomas Stein, 53), older sister (Rachel Stein, 30), older brother (Thomas Stein Jr., 28), younger brother (Joseph Stein, 18), numerous other relatives Description: Age: 25 (DoB: January 3rd, 1991) Gender: Female Ethnicity: Jewish Height: 5’ 5” Weight: 125 lb Eyes: Hazel Hair: Black (wears a white wig when in costume) Buffy Stein is a young, cheerful woman with a pale, heart-shaped face, hazel eyes, and black hair she keeps cropped short. She usually wears casual, comfortable clothes and no makeup, not being overly concerned with her appearance. As Echo, she wears a blue-and-silver bodysuit with white lines around the forearms and shins, which is designed to afford her maximum mobility. Her features are concealed behind a full face mask with large, opaque eye slits. She wears a long white wig to make the disguise complete, which does a remarkable job of staying on despite her constant acrobatics. Power Descriptions: Most of Echo’s powers appear to be extremely heightened natural traits, such as her inhuman agility and strength. She isn’t particularly subtle with them, either, constantly flipping and leaping around like a circus performer. She possesses what looks like super-speed, but is actually limited temporal manipulation. She does have a few tricks that are obviously “impossible” even for someone with her enhanced physiology, such as altering gravity so that she can walk on walls or freezing someone in place with a touch. When she teleports, she vanishes instantly with an audible whumph of displaced air, and the space around her seems to ripple and distort slightly, as though being viewed through water. History: Lisa Stein was born to a middle-class Jewish family, the third of four children. Their parents worked demanding, but respectable jobs, and the siblings were well loved and cared for. Until one day, in 2001, they found themselves suffering the main disadvantage of living in Freedom City. When their mother, Sarah Stein, was walking home from work, a grudge match broke out between two groups of so-called “heroes” who had chosen to openly defy the long-standing Moore Act. The battle escalated quickly, until part of a storefront was destroyed by a careless attack, and Sarah was buried underneath rubble. The combatants were too busy with their fight to bother helping her. Eventually, both teams called it a draw and withdrew, and the emergency services deemed it safe to move in. They were too late for Sarah, however – she suffocated to death. The family never recovered. Their father fell into depression, withdrawing, bit by bit, into himself. The siblings drifted apart, separated by childish quarrels. Lisa grew up quiet and deeply resentful, but deep inside she longed for the opportunity to join the rogue heroes of the city, Moore Act or no Moore Act. She knew that her mother was dead because of their failure, and she was certain that she could become a better hero than any of them, and stop this from happening to anyone else. On her eighteenth birthday, everything changed. The moment she woke up, she felt different. The world around her no longer seemed fixed and immutable – everything could be altered. Excited experimentation followed, and she discovered that she seemed to possess an array of minor superabilities. Simply by thinking about it, she could become a little stronger, a little faster, a little less hampered by the laws of physics. Her powers were fairly weak, but she was undeterred – she continued to push herself, intent on discovering exactly what she was capable of. She got her wish. After one particularly intense “training” session, she vanished from the face of the Earth. In her entire life, Eliza Stein never wanted for anything. Born to rich, high-class parents, she spent her entire childhood being pampered, spoiled, and told how special she was. Things like money were almost meaningless to her – she had so much, she could do whatever she wanted without the tiniest consequence. She and her siblings lived a life of such opulence and excess, she grew bored. She wished for something unexpected, something that would throw off the dull monotony of luxury she lived every day. She got her wish when a young woman identical to her in every respect arrived at her doorstep, babbling excitedly about “powers.” This was certainly unexpected. Intrigued, she invited her in, and the woman introduced herself as Lisa Stein. She insisted that she had just arrived from another world, and that they were two versions of the same person. None of the other rich kids had an alternate-universe clone! The next few weeks were an incredible game for the two young women. They switched places, pranked relatives, compared life stories. Lisa began to feel as if she had finally found her true soulmate, in herself. Until, as always happened, Eliza grew bored once more. Once the novelty of the situation wore off, she began to wish that this crude, low-class girl would go back to where she came from and leave her alone. When she told Lisa as much, Lisa panicked, terrified of going back to her old life of frustration and mundanity. Why couldn’t they just stay together, forever? Couldn’t she see this was how it was supposed to be? Desperate to make Eliza see reason, she seized her by the shoulders and shook her, screaming into her face. She had forgotten about her enhanced strength. She accidentally broke Eliza’s neck. But her initial horror lasted only a moment – suddenly an incredible thing happened. Eliza’s body seemed to dissolve slowly away into glowing threads of energy, which Lisa’s body immediately absorbed. As this happened, Lisa’s understanding of the universe seemed to deepen. It was a feeling of indescribable euphoria, realizing how easy it was to shape the world, make it bend to your will. Lisa’s power nearly doubled. Eliza was gone, nothing more than a heap of empty clothes. Lisa mourned her not, instead taking her place and living her life for several months, until one day the feeling of unease came again. The surety that she was intended for more than this. She had been given this power for a reason, she just needed to figure out what it was. Maybe if she did that again, just once more, then she would understand… Maybe there was always something broken inside the young woman. Maybe the act of inadvertently murdering herself pushed her over the brink of sanity. Maybe when the other woman’s very being was unwillingly absorbed into her own, some critical part of her mind was irreversibly warped by the trauma. But so it was that Lisa Stein became one of the more unusual serial killers in the many worlds. Every few months, she would travel to another reality, divine if there was an Elizabeth Stein there, and if so, kill her. And with every kill, her power grew. Years passed. Beth Stein was raised on one ideal: responsibility. Her father was a police lieutenant – her mother, an assistant district attorney. When she discovered she possessed a suite of minor physics-bending powers, she became a hero without a moment’s hesitation. While she was comparatively weak next to many of the others in the world, the newly-christened Echo made the most of the abilities she had, compensating for lack of raw power with skill and training. Soon, she became a respected figure. Until one day, a woman appeared to her. This woman was her exact physical double in every way. She was polite and soft-spoken, reassuring her that she had nothing to fear, but Beth could see a dark glitter in her eyes. Her fears were not assuaged when the woman politely asked if she would be so good as to let her kill her. She fought. She defended herself with everything she had, but her doppelganger had her hopelessly outmatched. When the smoke cleared, Beth had been beaten so savagely she could hardly move, and her duplicate (who mildly introduced herself as “Lisa”) hadn’t received so much as a scratch, and seemed quite unperturbed. In a final attempt to play for time, Beth begged Lisa for one single favor: to know why. Lisa obliged, explaining apologetically that they were the same person from different realities, and that this was the only way Lisa could realize her true potential. Out of some twisted sense of compassion, she comforted Beth, telling her she wasn’t going to die, far from it. In fact, she was going to become a part of something greater. Something wonderful. With her last ounce of strength, Beth focused on the desire to be anywhere but here. Buffy Stein was born to a middle-class Jewish family in Freedom City, the third of four children. Their parents worked demanding, but respectable jobs, and the siblings were well loved and cared for. One day, when Buffy was ten, her mother found herself an innocent bystander in a battle between a team of heroes and a team of villains. A building was damaged by a misaimed attack, and she was trapped under rubble. The heroes, who had formed based on their respect for the Centurion’s sacrifice during the Terminus Invasion, immediately leaped to her aid, ignoring their opponents and disregarding their own safety. They rescued her, but she was badly injured, and their fastest member rushed her to Freedom Medical Center. She was determined to be paralyzed from the waist down, but alive. From then on, Buffy worshiped superheroes, who had saved her mother’s life with their selfless action. Unfortunately, she didn’t seem to possess any powers of her own, despite her many attempts at awakening them, and her father put an end to her experimentation by forbidding her to jump off the garage roof anymore. Resigned to the fact that she would never fly, she decided instead to do the next best thing – write about those who did. Being a reporter swiftly became her new dream. However, she had difficulty applying herself in class – there always seemed to be something better (read: more fun) to do. No matter how hard she tried to work on her grades, she was inevitably distracted by the siren song of that one video game she wanted to try, or the latest issue of Freedom League Adventures. By the time she decided to truly buckle down and pursue her ambition, she was in her twenties and working in a coffee shop to pay the rent. She enrolled at Freedom College, but still had trouble concentrating, unable to shake the feeling that she was still intended for something more important (or at least more exciting). The last thing she had been expecting when she returned home from her shift one night was to find a woman perfectly identical to her lying in a bloody heap on the floor, clad in a tattered costume. The strange woman could barely move, but she refused to let Buffy call 911, saying there was no time. With her final breaths, Beth told Buffy everything she knew about Lisa Stein – that she was them from another world, that she grew stronger by killing them, and that she was already terrifyingly powerful. As the last of her strength began to fade, Beth begged Buffy to heed her warning. It was all up to her now, she told her. Lisa Stein was going to come for her too, sooner or later, and she had to stop her, to protect every Elizabeth Stein in every world everywhere. And with that, she died. When Buffy involuntarily absorbed Beth’s essence, she was both shocked and horrified. But because Beth willingly allowed it to happen, the process was smoother than it had been when Lisa murdered Eliza. By combining her own latent power with Beth’s, Buffy was made far stronger than either of them ever could have been alone. She became the second Echo, determined to uphold the ideals the first one died for, and honor her sacrifice (whether it was voluntary or not). And besides, being a superhero sounded like a lot more fun than being a barista. Personality & Motivations: Echo is torn between two conflicting feelings. She is intently disturbed by the knowledge that she is apparently capable of cold-blooded, selfish mass murder, even if it is a different her who lived a different life. On top of that, she watched herself die in her arms, an experience that she still has occasional nightmares about. But on the other hand, she can walk on walls. She is both excited by her new power and troubled by how she came by it. Never much one for self-analysis, she’s decided the best way to deal with it is to beat nine kinds of crap out of bad guys and save people, while doing her best to live up to her own ideals, particularly the name of Echo (despite the fact that no one in this universe knows who the original one was). When in-costume, she has a tendency towards being energetic, almost manic. Heroics are a chance for her to break free of the stifling restraints of her normal life and become a different person, and she likes to make the most of it. She can’t resist making constant wisecracks (of sometimes dubious quality) unless the situation is truly dire, in which case she can become surprisingly serious. Of course, her definition of what constitutes a “truly dire situation” might differ somewhat from that of most people. Ultimately, however, she knows that she has these powers for one reason: to stop Lisa. She has no idea what Lisa’s endgame is, or if she even has one, but she apparently intends to reach it by murdering countless innocent Elizabeth Steins. A source of constant frustration for Echo is that she currently has no way of actually confronting Lisa, having yet to master her own world-traveling powers. Not to mention the fact that Lisa could be literally anywhere in the entire multiverse. Powers & Tactics: Echo has what she might describe as a “unique” relationship with reality. She considers things like time, space, mass, and gravity to be loose guidelines at best. Simply by wanting to, she can accomplish physical feats that would be outright impossible for any ordinary human, becoming far faster, stronger, and more agile. Beyond this, she can bend or even outright break the laws of physics themselves, doing things like redirecting gravity in order to walk on walls, reducing it in order to perform impressive leaps, slowing down time, or teleporting short distances (although when asked, she says she’s actually moving the universe around her, which she insists is far easier). She is unsure if she has the ability to travel between parallel worlds like Beth and Lisa, but if she does (and she does), she hasn’t figured out how to do it deliberately yet. She is well aware of her own physical strengths and weaknesses, and she has tailored her combat style around them. Fighting fair is something she avoids at all costs, using all manner of dirty tricks and unorthodox tactics to seek an edge. She also has a tendency to keep up a steady barrage of taunts and groan-inducing quips during a battle, partly to rile up her opponent, but mainly just for kicks. Complications: Best Game Ever: Despite everything, Buffy loves being a superhero, sometimes a little too much for her own good. She has trouble taking thing completely seriously, having yet to truly appreciate some of the stakes of her new role, or experience the consequences of failure. Family: Buffy has a sizable (and fairly close) family. My Own Worst Enemy: Lisa Stein is still out there, somewhere in the multiverse. And she is extremely displeased that the original Echo escaped her clutches. She has been spending a certain amount of effort attempting to divine which reality she fled to, to settle the score with “the one who got away.” Secret Identity: To date, only a select few know that Buffy Stein is actually Echo, and she does her best to keep it that way. Struggling: She’s not likely to starve, but most of her money goes toward paying bills, leaving her perpetually a little cash shy. Unworthy: Deep inside, she worries that she’s not as much of a hero as Beth Stein, and that Beth’s the one who should be alive, not her. She does her best to not acknowledge these fears, but the nagging self-doubt remains. Her exuberance is partly due to overcompensating for this feeling. Abilities: 0 + 2 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 8 = 22PP Strength: 26/10 (+8/+0) Dexterity: 30/12 (+10/+1) Constitution: 14 (+2) Intelligence: 14 (+2) Wisdom: 14 (+2) Charisma: 18 (+4) Combat: 8 + 8 = 16PP Initiative: +14/+5 (+4 Improved Initiative, +10/+1 Dex) Attack: +14 Unarmed, +12 Melee, +4 Ranged Grapple: +24/+20/+12 (+12 Attack, +8/+0 Str, +4/+0 Super-Strength) Defense: +14 (+4 Base, +10 Dodge Focus), +2 flat-footed Knockback: -4 Saving Throws: 4 + 2 + 6 = 12PP Toughness: +8 (+2 Con, +6 Defensive Roll), +2 flat-footed Fortitude: +6 (+2 Con, +4) Reflex: +12/+3 (+10/+1 Dex, +2) Will: +8 (+2 Wis, +6) Skills: 56R = 14PP Acrobatics 12 (+22/+13) Skill Mastery Bluff 8 (+12) Diplomacy 6 (+10) Gather Information 8 (+12) Skill Mastery Knowledge (current events) 8 (+10) Knowledge (popular culture) 2 (+4) Language 1 (English [Native], Hebrew) Notice 10 (+12) Skill Mastery Sense Motive 8 (+10) Stealth 5 (+15/+6) Skill Mastery Feats: 31PP Acrobatic Bluff Attack Focus (Melee) 8 Attack Specialization (Unarmed) Challenge (Fast Acrobatic Feint) Defensive Roll 3 Dodge Focus 10 Elusive Target Evasion Improved Initiative Skill Mastery (Acrobatics, Gather Information, Notice, Stealth) Takedown Attack 2 Well-Informed Powers: 1 + 10 + 14 + 2 + 4 + 34 = 65PP Feature 1 (Temporal Inertia) [1PP] Go Real Fast 4 (8PP Array, Power Feats: Alternate Power 2) [10PP] Base Power: Speed 8 (2,500 MPH/25,000 feet per move action) (Bend Time) {8/8PP} Alternate Power: Enhanced Skill 12 (Acrobatics +12) + Leaping 4 (x25 [using Skill Mastery Acrobatics: running long jump: 875 feet; standing long jump: 437.5 feet; high jump: 218.75 feet]) (In a Single Bound) {3+4=7/8PP} Alternate Power: Teleport 5 (500 feet; Flaw: Short-range only, Power Feats: Change Direction, Progression 1 [200 lb], Turnabout) (Spatial Hop) {8/8PP} Reality Warping 5 (10PP Array, Power Feats: Alternate Power 4) [14PP] Base Power: Damage 0 (Extra: Autofire [8]; Power Feats: Improved Critical 2 [18-20]) (Superfast Fists) {10/10PP} Alternate Power: Enhanced Speed 1 (to Speed 1 [10 MPH/100 feet per move action] or Speed 9 [5,000 MPH/50,000 feet per move action]) + Quickness 9 (x1,000) (Slow Time) {1+9=10/10PP} Alternate Power: Paralyze 10 (Extra: Alternate Save [Reflex, +0], Flaw: Action/Full) (Temporal Stasis) {10/10PP} Alternate Power: Super-Movement 5 (trackless, wall-crawling 3, water walking) (Gravity Schmavity) {10/10PP} Alternate Power: Super-Strength 4 (effective STR 46; heavy load: 6 tons; Power Feat: Groundstrike) (Ignore Weight) {9/10PP} Super-Movement 2 (dimensional [parallel universes]; Flaw: Uncontrolled) (World Traveler) [2PP] Super-Senses 4 (Danger Sense [Mental], Dimensional Awareness [Mental], Temporal Awareness [Mental], Uncanny Dodge [Mental]) [4PP] There Is No Spoon 6.8 (34PP Container [Passive, Permanent]) [34PP] Enhanced Dexterity 18 [18PP] Enhanced Strength 16 [16PP] DC Block ATTACK RANGE SAVE EFFECT Temporal Stasis Touch DC 20 Reflex (staged) Paralyze Unarmed Touch DC 23 Toughness + Autofire (staged) Damage (physical) Totals: Abilities (22) + Combat (16) + Saving Throws (12) + Skills (14) + Feats (31) + Powers (65) – Drawbacks (0) = 160/17

Starlight nodded and smiled agreeably along with his words, while her brain scuttled along behind trying to make sense of his rapid speech. Did this kid forget his Ritalin, or just inject caffeinated sugar into his own veins? “Yeah, they smell great,” she said, trying to surreptitiously massage some feeling back into her shoulder after his vigorous handshake. She glanced at Richard’s dispensation of the hot sauce with a critical eye. “So long as he doesn’t burn all of our taste buds off, this should be pretty good.” She looked back at Will. “I see you’ve got some of your dad’s powers there. You go to Claremont?”

Thirty-odd years? That at least seemed to confirm that both of them were a lot older than they looked. Did they age at all, or were they...basically immortal? Come to think of it, did she still age? Not enough time had passed to tell...She looked up at the approaching teenager, and wondered half-seriously how old he actually was. Sixty-five, probably. When superpower s--t gets involved, it's anyone's guess. She took a step forward and held out her hand to him. "Will. Hi. Your parents invited over me for dinner," she said unnecessarily. And thankfully not "for dinner" in an ironically literal, cannibalistic kind of way.

Introduction Who are you? Sum yourself up in one sentence. I’m Starlight, a light-controlling super. Do you have any nicknames, street names, titles, or nom de plume? Just Starlight. What is your full birth name? Samantha Madison Lawrence. Where do you live? Freedom City. I spend most of my time in the Fens. I was, uh, “between residences” for a while, but now I’m staying in Greenbank with Asli. How old are you? What year were you born (if applicable)? I’m 26 years old. I was born in 1988. Physical Traits What is your gender? If not applicable, please explain. Female, last time I checked. How would you describe your heritage? No clue. Mom never talked much about family. And I’m no genealogist. How tall are you? Five feet, eight inches. What is your body type? I’m kind of skinny. I didn’t take very good care of myself before my powers manifested, and…well, now I don’t know how the hell my metabolism works. Do you have any particular weaknesses, such as allergies or physical disabilities? Not anymore. Used to be have some serious hayfever allergies, but my powers seem to have taken care of all that. Only thing with my powers is I need to juice them up from a light source every day or so, or they stop working. It has to be natural light, too, like the sun or something. How do you carry yourself? Are you graceful, or heavy on your feet? Can you be stealthy, do you walk with confidence? I’m told I tend to trudge a bit, like I just got some bad news. I also have a habit of keeping my hands in my pockets. I can be pretty quiet when I need to, though. Describe your skin, eye, and hair color. I’m white, blonde, and have grey eyes. How do you wear your hair, if applicable? Do you have facial hair? I keep my hair back a ponytail. It’s pretty long, goes down to my waist or so. Facial hair? Hell no. Do you consider yourself attractive? Do others? Attractive? I used to. Kinda stopped caring about that when I stopped doing drugs. These days…I have other things to worry about. Do you have any scars, tattoos, piercings, or birthmarks? I had a few scars. Biggest one was a nasty little cigarette burn on the back of my hand, courtesy of dear old Mom. But they all disappeared when I got my powers. I don’t know why. I guess compared to getting all that poison out of my system, erasing a few scars must have been child’s play for them. I still have pierced ears, though, and wear a couple of earrings in both. And I have this fancy tattoo of a half-eclipsed sun on my right shoulder. Woke up with that one morning after getting wasted. Do you resemble anyone famous? I think someone once told me I look like a young Vera Farmiga, whoever that is. Do you have a dominant hand? Right. What kind of clothing do you wear? Black jeans, a T-shirt, boots. And a leather jacket. I don’t get cold anymore, I just like the look. Do you wear makeup? No, never. Even if I wanted to, I don’t have any money. What is your vocal range? Is your voice distinctive in some way? My voice is a little deep for a woman, but nothing that unusual. Do you have any distinctive habits, nervous tics, or mannerism? Where did they come from, and what causes them? Do other people notice and remark on these habits? Do they annoy you or other people? Yeah, I still have a bunch of little habits from my junkie days. I’m always shifting around, avoiding eye contact, fidgeting with stuff. You know, the kind of habits that make cops want to search you. People don’t really mention them, but they look at you differently, like they can tell you’re beneath them. History Where do you come from? Right here. Freedom City, born and raised. Hell, until I accidentally ‘ported myself into outer space, I’d never been outside the city limits. Have you made any major moves, or do you live in your hometown? Unless going to the moon now and then counts, I still live in FC. Do you feel loyal to your country of citizenship? Do you consider yourself patriotic? How do you feel about the government of your country? I don’t feel loyal to any one country. I just live here. The government? I don’t really trust them. They turned on us supers once before. Who’s to say there isn’t another Moore Act waiting in the wings, just waiting for an excuse to be passed? How do you feel about the place you come from? Well, the Fens is a cesspit, take it from me. The rest of it is fine, I guess. Where is your home town? What was/is it like? Like I said, I was born and raised right here. Same as it ever was, give or take a few supers. Growing up, were most of the people you knew similar to you, or were you somehow a minority? How did that affect you? I was always kind of the weird kid at school. Comes of Mom being an angry drunk. I was the kid who showed up every day with new bruises. And no lunch. Either because Mom hadn’t bothered to buy food, or because I’d given it to Becky. Is there something you’ve always been really good at or really bad at? How has that affected your life? I’ve never been any good at anything. (Until now, I suppose). Bad at something? Sure, I’m bad at not treating the people I love like s—t. Really bad. Were there any traumatic experiences in your early years (death of a family member, abandonment, orphaned at an early age)? Mom drank. A lot. I think she started after Dad left. And she hit me all the time. I let her. Better me than Becky, I thought. Briefly describe a defining moment in your childhood and how it influenced your life. Let’s just say, the first time somebody handed me a joint at a party? Thanks, man. Thanks a whole lot. What stupid things did you do when you were younger? What didn’t I do? I started in high school, mostly. Smoked, drank. Started doing drugs. I thought I’d just try it once, see what it was like. You can see how that worked out. Where did you go to school? How much school did you have, and did you enjoy it? I went to school here, in the city. Hated every minute of it. All the kids treated me and my sister like freaks. I dropped out when I was sixteen because I thought it was getting in the way of my – ha – life. Do you have any mementos of your childhood? What are they, and why did you keep them? If you have none, why not? Nothing about my childhood I want to remember. When did you decide to become a hero? Why? Did anyone influence you one way or another in the decision? Started when I overdosed. Sounds weird when I say it like that. Usually it all ends when you overdose, right? But for me, it kickstarted something. The super gene or whatever the hell they call it. Shoulda woke up dead, instead I woke up glowing. You know how my powers mean I can’t be poisoned? Well, turns out that applies to drugs too. I didn’t crave anymore. At first when I realized that, I was happier than I’d been in years. I thought it was like this magic cure that had just fixed my life, just like that. Then I started to realize what I’d – how I’d treated my kid, Arthur. Then I just wanted to forget again, I couldn’t deal with that. So I tried to shoot up, and it didn’t work. It was never going to work again. That, right there, was when it all really hit me. I mean, look at what I was doing. It’s like God just up and gives me this one chance to get off that stuff, and I turn right around and try to go back to using? What the hell was wrong with me? I still don’t want to think about who I might be today if the drugs had worked. Superpowered junkie? Recipe for disaster. So, I decided I wasn’t going to be that person anymore. I know I can’t change all the things I did before, but maybe I can try to, I don’t know, make things a little better now? Like, if I do enough good now, maybe the world will still end up being a little better off for my having been born? Try telling that to Arthur, I guess. Is the reason you give people for becoming a hero different than your real reason? If so, why? I usually don’t talk about the drugs. It’s slipped out a couple of times, though, and when it does, I try to act like that’s why I do what I do. I don’t talk about Arthur. Do you have any deep, dark secrets in your past that may come back to haunt you? Why? Like I said, I’ve never told anybody about Arthur. Ever. I don’t want them to know. I don’t want to know what they’d think of me if they knew. Do you represent yourself as being different from who you really are? Why? Sure. I represent myself as being a hero. If you do have these secrets, what do you fear would happen if the truth became known? How far would you go to protect these secrets? I guess the biggest reason I’ve never told anyone about Arthur is I’m scared of what might happen to him if the wrong person found out. You hear those horror stories, you know? About what happens when the bad guys find out about some hero’s family? I think I’ve messed up his life enough already. How far would I go to keep him safe? All the way. I don’t care what I need to do. If somebody threatened him, I would…stop them. Whatever it took. I may be the world’s worst mother, but I can at least do that. Do you have any sort of criminal record? If so, is it public knowledge? Yeah. I did some time for drugs. And child abuse. And neglect. I guess that’s probably public record. At least, for the old me. Far as I know, no one knows Starlight’s an ex-con. Family What are your biological parents’ names? Jeffrey and Lisa Lawrence. Were you raised by them? If not, please explain and describe who raised you. Dad left in the middle of the night when I was pretty young. I don’t really remember much about him. Mom “raised” me and Becky after that. What was their standing in the community? What did/do they do for a living? They were both lowlifes. I don’t know what Dad did, but I’m guessing it wasn’t anything too great. Mom was always getting fired from some job or another. Where are your parents now? Don’t know, don’t care. Mom’s a worthless drunk and Dad’s a cowardly sperm bank. Did your family stay in one area or move around a lot? We lived in this once crappy apartment for my entire childhood. I still have no idea why the landlord didn’t throw us out, the rent was always late. Always. How did you get along with their parents? How do you get along with them now (if applicable)? I used to blame them for screwing up my life, but now I see I did that all by myself. Now I just don’t want to think about them. I’m away from them now, it’s done, that’s all there is to it. How do your parents view you now, or how would they? They’d probably be scared of me. That might be just wishful thinking on my part, though. Do you have any siblings? If so, how many and what are their names? Describe your relationship with them. I have a little sister, Becky. We…don’t talk anymore. What was your birth order in the family? Eldest. Meant I had to do a lot of growing up pretty fast to protect Becky from Mom. Where are your siblings now (if applicable)? Do they have families of their own? What do they do? Becky still lives in FC, like me. She’s in med school, I think, and got married to some guy named Omid a while back. The two of them are taking care of Arthur now. I owe them for that. I know having a kid so early must be screwing up their lives, but she didn’t let him go into the system. Turns out she’s a better person than I am. Surprise. Do you stay in touch with them or have you become estranged? We haven’t spoken in years. One night, she just up and told me that if I didn’t stop doing drugs, she would never speak to me again. Well. Here we are. Do you love or hate one member of your family in particular? I know I didn’t treat him right, but Arthur’s still my son. I can’t believe how long it took me to realize that. Is any member of your family special to you in any way (perhaps, as a confidant, mentor, or arch-rival)? Not in that way, no. Are there any black (or white) sheep in your family (including you)? If so, please explain. Me. No question. Look up “screwup” in the dictionary, and they’ll have my f---ing picture. I was doing drugs and getting arrested while Becky was acing her classes and studying to be a doctor. Do you have a notorious or celebrated ancestor? If so, please explain, including how it has affected your life. Nah. Not that I know of, at least. Do you have a partner and children currently? If so, please describe them. My little boy, Arthur, is seven years old now. I don’t know who the father is. If you do not have a partner or children, do you want them someday? How firm are you in your opinion on this, and what might change your mind? I think I’ve demonstrated already that I’m not exactly a fit mom. I doubt I’d be any better of a spouse. What type of person would be your ideal mate? What, is this for a dating site or something? I stopped thinking about stuff like that a long time ago. Relationships Do you have any close friends? If so, please describe them, and how you came to be close to them. That would be Asli, I guess. She’s a cape, like me. Goes by the name of Miras. A mage. Pretty powerful one too, from what I can tell. We met a while ago, both trying to chase down the source of this new drug. After we dealt with that, she found out I was homeless and offered me a couch to crash on. Most people wouldn’t do that. Do you have a best friend? If so, how did they become your best friend? How close are you to your best friend? Again, Asli. It’s been a long time, a long damn time, since anyone actually went out of their way to help me. She lets me stay at her place, read all her books, disorganize her CD collection. I know I don’t need to eat or sleep or stay warm, but I think being out on the streets 24/7 was starting to get to me. So, she helped me and I’m honestly not sure why. But I’m doing what I can to make sure she doesn’t regret it. If you were to go missing, who would worry about you? Technically, I am missing right now. Sam Lawrence hasn’t been seen or heard from in quite a while. I guess maybe the parole board might be curious as to where I am. Becky probably just thinks I’m getting high somewhere. Or dead. If I disappeared now, Asli would probably come looking for me. At least, I like to think she would. Have you lost any loves? If so, how did it happen, and what did you do? I had a string of boyfriends for a while. I didn’t really love any of them, though. Do you have any bitter enemies? If so, please describe them and their history with you. No one in particular. That I know of. If you have enemies, how do you think they might attempt to work against you in the future? Like I said before, what really scares me is the idea of someone finding out about Arthur. I have no idea what I would do if someone had him. Beyond that, I guess they might just try to kill me? That wouldn’t be so bad. What is the worst thing someone has done to you? I suppose that would be dear old Mom, hitting me, yelling at me, blaming me for Dad ditching her ass. She put out a cigarette on my hand once, does that qualify? Where do your loyalties lie? In what order? I like to think it’s with whoever needs/deserves my help. But I guess, really, it’s all about Arthur. Try and make a better world for him, you know? I owe him that much. Who or what do you trust the most? Why? I have what you might call “trust issues,” so that’s a hard question for me to answer. Once upon a time, I’d have said “myself,” but I think that particular self-delusion has fallen hard. So, I really don’t know. I guess I trust Becky. Not that she trusts me, and I don’t blame her. I’ve betrayed her trust enough times. Asli. I trust Asli. She’s good people. I know she’ll always try and do what’s right. Even if that involves taking in a homeless ex-junkie. God only knows why she did that. Who or what do you despise? Why? Drugs. That one’s personal. You know what drugs do? They make people into animals. Animals who will do anything, anything, just for one more fix. And all the while, the kingpins and dealers just sit back and watch the money stack up and up. What qualities do you admire most in other people? Are those qualities you possess? I’ve always kinda admired people who can just shut off their emotions and focus on the task at hand. Like, just put aside all of their own baggage and get the job done. Something I’ve never been very good at. What qualities do you hate most in other people? Do you have any of those qualities? Selfishness. Some people just think the whole universe revolves around them, and don’t care about anyone but themselves. And yeah, that used to be me. Do you have a secret identity? If so, who knows it? Do you hide it from people who are close to you? Why? Well, no one knows who I really am, so I suppose so. I think I mentioned before that I don’t use the name Sam Lawrence anymore. She’s basically dead and gone. Good riddance, I say. I’ve told Asli my name is Samantha, but nothing much beyond that. I feel kind of scummy about it, since she’s doing so much to help me, but…I really don’t want her to find out about Arthur. She almost respects me right now, I think. I don’t want that to change. And no, I haven’t told Arthur what I’m doing now. Or Becky. What am I going to do, show up on their doorstep like, “Hey honey, I know I spent years criminally neglecting you, but I’m doing cape work now, so it’s all good?” Do you work well on teams and in groups? Are you a leader or a follower? I’ve never been good with people or teams. I’ve been told I “don’t play well with others,” which I think is code for “you’re a jerk.” I’ve worked with other capes a few times before when we all had the same goal, but nothing truly organized. If I did wind up on a team somehow, I’m not leadership material, I know that. Are you on a super team? If so, how do you get along with your comrades? Do you trust them, or do you have secrets from them? I’m not on any team right now. I probably wouldn’t want to be a member of any team that would have me. Are you a member of any church, fraternal organization, club, committee, political party, or other group? How much time do you spend on that? No. All that seems like a waste of time now. Personality & Beliefs Who are your heroes? When we were kids, me and my sister were just in awe of superheroes. I mean, we worshipped the ground they walked on. I remember on T-Day, all of us sitting in front of the TV, watching all these heroes lay down their lives to defend us. I was really young then, but I think even then it made an impression on me. Funny how things work out. Did you ever become disillusioned with former heroes or idols? If so, why and what were the circumstances? My fascination with heroes waned a lot as I got older. I just started to realize that they weren’t any better than us, not really. Just way more powerful. Do you like being a hero? If so, what is the most rewarding part? If not, what makes you keep doing it? Do I like it? It’s what I am now, whether I like it or not. What else am I going to do? Is there anything that would make you give up hero work, or even switch sides? If something happened to Arthur, I don’t know what I would do. If that happened, then what’s the point of going on? I’d probably just give up. Go off into space or something and live inside a star. What are your short term goals (what would you like to be doing within a year)? I want to make every drug dealer in the city s--t themselves at the sound of my name. What are your long term goals (what would you like to be doing twenty years from now)? I want to make every drug dealer in the world s--t themselves at the sound of my name. What is your greatest fear? Why? What do you do when something triggers this fear? Well, aside from the thing about Arthur I’ve mentioned, I’m scared of what would happen if I found out I could do drugs again. If something changed with my powers or something like that. I don’t know what I would do if that happened. I don’t know if I’m strong enough to resist that. Is there anything you would give your life for? I’d die for my son. I may be the worst mother in the world, but I can do that at least. How do you feel about money and material wealth? Do you desire it or disdain it? Are you miserly with what you have, or do you like to share? Is it a mark of success, or a means to an end? I don’t have any money. At all. I don’t need to eat or drink or sleep or anything, so what’s the point? What am I going to do with it? How do you generally treat others? Oh, I’m a real bunny rabbit. Can’t you tell? Are you a trusting person? Has your trust ever been abused? I used to be one. Then my trust got abused plenty. I did my share of abusing too. Are you introverted (shy and withdrawn) or extroverted (outgoing)? Do you have a lot of self-confidence? I don’t talk a lot. So introverted, I guess. Confidence? I’m confident I can kick the ass of anyone I want. How’s that? How do you act around attractive, available members of your preferred sex? When I was younger, I was about as subtle as a train wreck when it came to that kind of thing. Now, I have other things on my mind. What are your most annoying habits? I don’t really look people in the eye very often. Gets on their nerves. Makes me seem untrustworthy. Imagine, me untrustworthy. Do you feel contempt for any general category of people? Who are they, and why? There was this guy, a couple months ago, some Walter White wannabe who was cooking up this fancy new drug and selling it on the street. Not by himself, of course. He got all his goons and lackeys to do the dirty work, the actual selling. Didn’t have the guts, or was too scared of getting caught. But anyway, we get him, and he just has this attitude, this smarmy yuppie scumbag attitude, like he thinks he’s some kind of defiant-to-the-end rogue. I never wanted to kick somebody’s teeth in more in my life. So, people like that. People who profit off other people’s misery, and don’t have to feel bad about it because they don’t actually the consequences. What is your favorite food? Do you prefer any particular type of food? Do you take the time to enjoy your food, or do you eat it as fast as you can? Don’t really have one. When I was a kid, I didn’t really have the luxury of having a favorite food – I just ate whatever I could get. Now, I don’t even eat anymore. What is your favorite drink (alcoholic or otherwise)? I used to drink a lot of beer, until I found something “better” for getting me through the day. Don’t need to drink anymore either. What is your favorite treat (dessert)? I suppose when I was younger, I would kill for an ice cream sandwich. Are there any specific foodstuffs that you find disgusting or refuse to eat? Not really. What is your favorite color? Are there any colors you dislike? I always liked white. Nice and simple, but pure, you know? I like black too, for pretty much the same reason. Not crazy about puce. What sort of music do you like? Is there any that you hate? I never did listen to much music, but recently I’ve been binging on this guy called David Bowie. You ever hear of him? If you have a favorite scent, what is it? Well, I like the smell of woodsmoke. Do you have a favorite animal? Uh…dogs are nice. What is your most treasured possession? Why? A couple years ago, when Arthur was five or something, I got one of my sudden “let’s be a good mom” kicks, and decided to take him to the zoo. You know, see the animals and eat junk food and stuff. It was the greatest day ever. I was so proud of myself, being a normal parent and all that. I got this guy to take our picture in front of the elephant enclosure, with me holding Arthur up in the air and him just laughing and laughing. For so long after that, I carried that picture everywhere. Whenever I started to get scared that I was a bad mom, I would pull that out and look at it until I’d convinced myself it wasn’t true. Of course, the real reason I was in such a good mood then was I was as high as a kite. Very next day, I was back to sleeping all afternoon, and not making dinner, and screaming myself hoarse at him for every little thing. I don’t have that picture any more. I burned it. Do you enjoy “roughing it,” or do you prefer your creature comforts? Oh, I loved being homeless on the streets of FC. Lap of luxury. Okay, to be fair, I don’t need to eat, drink, or sleep, and cold and heat don’t bother me. So, I guess it could have been a lot worse. Still, just being able to rest at Asli’s does me a world of good. I can’t fall asleep, but I can at least close my eyes and relax for a while. Is there a job or task you would absolutely refuse to do? …Sell drugs? Do you consider yourself a spiritual person? If so, how do your beliefs affect your life? How important is it to you? I’ve never been very religious. But…what happened to me? My powers? Curing my addiction and saving my life and everything? That’s seriously weird. One hell of a coincidence. If there is somebody up there, they gave me a second chance. I don’t know why, but they did. Was your faith influenced or molded by anyone special? Not really, no. If you belong to a religious organization, how often do you attend? Do you have a specific place of worship, or friends within the organization? How much do you agree with the beliefs of your organization? I’m not a part of any church or anything. Could you kill? Have you killed? I don’t kill. Just don’t. Doesn’t sit right with me. I don’t think I’m in any position to judge someone else like that. What circumstances led to you forming that conviction, or taking that action? Look at me. I was a complete waste of skin. World would have been a better place without me, that’s for damn sure. But here I am, and now I’m trying to do something to make it right. I know I can’t really, but I’m trying. It’d be pretty rich for me to deny someone else that chance. Are there circumstances under which you believe it is permissible to kill? What are they? Okay, fine. If somebody…hurt Arthur, I have no idea what I would do. But I know I would find them, and I would make them pay. Bad. Yeah, I might kill them. I don’t know. I don’t think anyone really knows what they would do in that situation. How would you react to watching someone kill another person? Would your reaction be different if the killer was a friend or an enemy of yours? I would probably be a little freaked out, to be honest. Or maybe just angry. Hard to say. If it was a friend, they’d better have a damned good reason, that’s all I can say. How would you react if something important was stolen from you? I’d go get it back. And I wouldn’t let anyone get in my way. How would you react to public humiliation? Get angry, probably. How would you react if a good friend or relative were purposely or accidentally killed? Has it happened to you? “Get angry” seems to be the answer to a lot of these questions all of a sudden. And no, it’s never happened to me. What do you consider to be the worst crime someone could commit and why? I don’t care who you are. I don’t care what you do. I don’t care why you do it. You don’t hurt kids. I’m aware of the hypocrisy of that statement, yeah. If your life were to end in 24 hours, what five things would you do in those remaining hours? Five things? Uh… I’d try to find my parents. I know there’s not much chance of finding them in just a day, but I’d give it a shot. And if I found them, I’d tell them exactly what they are, and exactly what I think of them. I like to think she already knows it, but I’d tell Asli how much it means to me, all the help she’s given me. I’m still not exactly on Cloud 9, but I was in a pretty dark place before, and she took me in. That’s not something most people would do. So I would thank her. I wish I could do more, but apparently I’m dying. The Clines. They invited me to dinner a little while ago. No idea why the hell they thought I would make for a good dinner guest, but they did. If it wasn’t for them, I probably still wouldn’t know whether or not it was safe for me to eat food. They’re good people, and I suppose I don’t really have time to return the favor in full, but I’d send them a…a fruit basket or something. Something to say thank you. …I’d talk to Becky. No. No, I wouldn’t. I’d leave her a note. Just explain what happened, what I’m trying to do, and that I’m going to be gone soon. Maybe ask her to explain it all to Arthur when he’s old enough. And tell her that I love her. Both of them. Then I guess I’d go somewhere. The moon. I like the moon. And I’d just wait. Career & Training Do you have any special training in your hero skills? If so, where and how did you get it? No. Self-taught. If they had a college course on photokinesis, I’d take it. Who taught you the most about your heroing abilities? What was your relationship with that person? Nobody taught me anything. Kinda figuring it out as I go here. Do you have any particularly unusual skills? How did you acquire them? Well, I can balance a spoon on my nose, and can do a handstand, and…oh yeah, I have superpowers. Is that unusual enough for you? Do you do something besides hero work for a living? Have you ever done anything else, or do you plan to? I used to do all kinds of low-paying jobs. Waitressing, stuff like that. I always got fired pretty quickly. Now, I’m “self-employed.” What is your preferred combat style? I’m not the most subtle fighter. I go in, I blast everything that moves until it stops moving. If it’s not going well, sometimes I’ll try to turn invisible and come at them from another direction. Or just ‘port myself out of there. Have you ever received any awards or honors? No. They don’t give awards to junkies. What skill areas would you like most to improve in? Is there anything you can't do that you wish desperately you could? I have powers. What more do I need? How do you act around people who are more skilled than you in areas you'd like to improve? Are you jealous, or do you try and learn? What, like other supers who are more powerful than me? Good for them. Not like there’s a whole lot I can do about it. Lifestyle & Hobbies What is a normal day for you? How do you feel when something interrupts this routine? Fly around the city, usually the Fens, and wait for something illegal to happen. When I start to feel like I’m losing my mind, head on back to Asli’s and vegetate. Read a book, ransack her fridge, listen to some Bowie. I have to do something to keep me sane, now that I’m physically incapable of sleeping. Do you have any hobbies, or interests outside hero work? What are they, and where did you pick them up? Sure. I’m an amateur astronaut. I go to the moon every now and then. It helps. The quiet. What do you do for fun? The aforementioned astronauting? I don’t know if I’d call it fun necessarily, but it helps me stay sane. Do you have a costume? What does it look like? I don’t really have a costume. I don’t even know where you’re supposed to get those things. I just wear street clothes. How do you normally dress when not in costume? I’m never not in costume. Comes of not having one. What do you wear to bed most nights? I don’t sleep anymore. At all. Trust me, I’ve tried. Can’t. I’ve been awake for months now. Sometimes I feel like I’d give anything in the world just to shut off for a few hours. Just close my eyes and rest. But, well. I can’t. Do you wear any special jewelry? What is it, and what does it look like? A bunch of little earrings. You know, faux-punk-style. Do you have a special place where you keep your valuables? What valuables? I don’t have anything. All I have is what I’m wearing now. What's your preferred means of local travel? How about long distance? The answer to both is teleportation. Or flight, if I feel like taking in the scenery. Miscellaneous Have you ever made a will, or tried to make arrangements for your death? What provisions did you make? When I was younger, it never occurred to me that I could die. Now, I’m not sure what kind of arrangements I could make. “To my son, Arthur, I bequeath my jacket? Sorry about the neglect?” If your features were to be destroyed beyond recognition, is there any other way of identifying your body? Uh, what the hell kind of question is that? Dental records, maybe? My tattoo or something? What would you like to be remembered for after your death? I’d rather not be. There’s a reason I avoid the public eye, you know. Nothing I’ve done is going to sound very good in an obituary speech. “Thus let me live; unseen, unknown. Thus unlamented let me die. Steal from the world, and not a stone tell where I lie.” That’s the only piece of poetry I know. I just read it somewhere once, something about it stuck with me. I don’t know. It’s just kinda how I feel. Do you believe you pose a threat to the public? Why or why not? What happens if I find a way to do drugs again? Or find something even “better?” It wasn’t like I stopped before of my own free will. I’m weak, I know that. What happens if there’s some superpowerful crackhead flying around the city, chasing her next high? So yeah. I think I’m dangerous. What do you perceive as your greatest strength? Gonna have to go with the laser beams on that one. What do you perceive as your greatest weakness? That fact that I’m not a good person. You think I chose to be a hero? After I got my powers, I didn’t rush out the door and don a cape. I just wanted to get high again. I didn’t so much refuse the call to heroism as I did run away and lock myself in the closet. As a player, if you could, what advice would you give your character? Speak as if he/she were sitting right here in front of you. Use proper tone so they might heed your advice... You’re too hard on yourself, and it’s holding you back. You’re not the only one in the world who’s done things they regret. Constantly flagellating yourself for every mistake you ever made isn’t helping anything. Lose the attitude, put the past behind you, and start thinking about what you can do to actually try to make up for it. Also, stop thinking of yourself as invincible. You’re not exactly the biggest fish in the pond, despite what you seem to believe. It’s going to get you killed.

Reputation HellQ Origin Story: The Wish I Make (Part One) Origin Story: The Wish I Make (Part Two) Origin Story: The Wish I Make (Part Three) Origin Story: The Wish I Make (Part Four) Origin Story: The Wish I Make (Part Five) Origin Story: The Wish I Make (Part Six) Origin Story: The Wish I Make (Part Seven)

Starlight stood quiet in the living room in the dark, leaning with her back against the wall. The couch beckoned, an indistinct, comfortable-looking shadow. Some residual instinct made her go to it and lie down, pulling the worn quilt over her and shoving the pillow under her head. She breathed out once, slowly, and didn't breathe back in. She waited for several long minutes, but her lungs waited with equal patience, without the slightest hint of protest. Eventually she gave up, sucking in a useless breath and closing her eyes, nestling deep into the warm depths of the couch. Sleep didn't come, it never did, but a strange sense of peace came over her regardless. She wondered how long it had been since she had last laid down. It was dark, and quiet, and safe. "They can't beat me," she whispered in the blackness. A smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Good day.

Samantha Lawrence Gather Information: DC 10: In 2011, a young woman named Samantha Lawrence was convicted on charges of drug use, as well as child abuse and neglect. She served two years before being paroled. DC 15: In 2014, she was officially reported missing. A brief investigation followed, but no insight into the nature of her disappearance was ever found, and the case remains open. Samantha’s younger sister, Becky Lawrence, is now the legal guardian of her son. DC 20: Both Samantha and Becky were physically abused by their alcoholic mother when they were children. No criminal charges were ever filed. DC 25: Samantha was last seen on June 21, 2014, in the company of a known drug dealer. DC 30: A young woman who matches Samantha’s description (and seems to go by the name of Sam) now resides in Greenbank with a one Asli Sadik. Asli Sadik was once charged with a misdemeanor drug offense, which was pleaded down from possession with intent to distribute. Starlight Gather Information: DC 15: Starlight is a minor-league superhero with light-controlling abilities. She doesn’t seem to have a costume, wearing just ordinary street clothes. DC 20: Starlight appears to focus her activities mainly on the Freedom City drug trade. DC 25: See Streetwise DC 20. Knowledge (Streetwise): DC 15: Starlight is a light-controlling heroine who has proven to be something of an annoyance to the local drug trafficking rings. DC 20: Despite displaying relatively potent levels of power, Starlight has exhibited a degree of carelessness and cockiness at times, apparently supremely confident in her own abilities. DC 30: There are whispers that a certain drug lord is planning something that will take her out of the equation for good.

Starlight nodded. "Don't screw with your Necronomicons, clean up after myself, don't be a jerk with the music. I can do that." Her expression didn't change when she saw Asli's track marks. She only glanced down at her own arms, a quick, almost involuntary motion. They were as smooth and unmarred as if she had just been born. Another side-effect of her powers, as far as she knew. As well as a damn lie. "Yeah. All right," she said. "I'll go. But..." she hesitated. "One thing you should know...I'm not entirely...human anymore. Even by our standards, I think. I don't need to eat, or sleep, or drink, or breathe. And I can't be poisoned. At all." She said the last part quietly, pausing to let it sink in. "That's why I stopped, Asli. I didn't kick it, I didn't decide to better myself, I physically couldn't use anymore. God knows I tried." She tucked a strand of hair back into her ponytail. "So I'll go to the meetings. But I don't know what good it'll do. I am currently in - ha - zero danger of relapsing. And I doubt I'm going to be of any help to the others. What am I going to do, say 'all you need to do is get superpowers, then you'll be clean for life?'"

Starlight had raised her eyebrows when she took her back to the exact same place the Doze had been coming from, but had diplomatically declined to comment. As they ascended to Asli's apartment, she felt an increasing sense of deja vu at her shabby surroundings. Just like home. She smiled crookedly to herself. The more things change, the more they stay the same. At the doorway, she stood in the hall for a moment, uncertain, then entered, doffing her jacket and hanging it up on the hook next to Asli's. "Beats my old place," she said truthfully, massaging her aching shoulders. "Fewer syringes, at least." She scratched her arm, then sighed. "And uh...Samantha. That's my real...my original name. Sam." It had been so long since she'd used it, the name sounded almost unfamiliar to her. She wandered around the room, studying the countless music posters and trying to see if she recognized any of them, before coming to the blank picture frame. She looked at it, then turned to Asli, pointing to it questioningly. "What's with this?"

"Thanh. New here." He felt that something else was expected of him, so he added, "Nice to meet you." There so many new people here all of a sudden...he had been secretly hoping to slip in quietly, do whatever he needed to do to get settled, and just show up in class like he'd been there every day of his life. As it was, it looked like he was going to meet the entire student body face-to-face before the day was over. So much for keeping a low profile. He resigned himself to the fact that he was probably going to have to talk to people. That he didn't know.

Taken aback only momentarily by the other woman revealing her face, Starlight automatically started to tell her that she didn't sleep, didn't eat, and didn't need her pity, but something made her words stop in her throat. Maybe it was the frank sincerity in Miras's face, maybe it was the long night they had all had, or maybe it was just the promise of something soft to curl up on, but she found herself nodding. "Yeah. Okay." Been a long time since I've gotten out of the elements. Maybe I'll give a hoot, read a book. "Just, you know, for a few nights."

Starlight shrugged dismissively. "Eh, I've got a busy schedule ahead of me. Going to go absorb some delicious moonlight and collapse on a park bench until the sun comes up. Lap of luxury. But thanks for the offer." And coffee would probably kill me. She watched the handcuffed yuppie for a moment longer, as though hoping he'd try to make a break for it. Hope they keep him locked up for longer than they did me. "Did pretty good tonight, I think. That guy's done selling his wares. On the street, at least." She fingered one of her earrings and said quietly, "No more Allisons."

Starlight felt oddly lightheaded as she made her way through the house to the yard where Richard and Holly were working the grill. As she drew nearer, the smell of the burgers wafted towards her, and her mouth began to water despite herself. She held out the utensils and sauce. "Brought you these. And Paige told me to remind you to go easy on the hot sauce." I just got my taste buds back, I should probably avoid scorching them off. She looked at Holly, managing to avoid having a mental breakdown this time. Hey, progress. "And kid, your mom needs you in the kitchen."

Starlight snorted a laugh. "I like that. I like that a lot." She squatted down on the other side of the yuppie scumbag, so he had Fast-Forward on one side and her on the other. "How about you, ---hole? What do you think of that? You can go down in history as the guy in a cheesy PSA." Her eyes flickered with light again, just for a second. "Consider yourself lucky you're going down in history at all." She rose up and looked around. "Nice place, though. Must have been doing pretty well for yourself. Selling poison pays good, huh?" She paced a slow circle around the room, examining everything in an impressed sort of way. "No idea how much all the crap in here must have cost you. Hell, just the stuff in this room. And how much is the rent on this palace? Or do you own?" She completed her circuit and returned to the scumbag. "Shame, really," she said, looking contemptuously down at him. "Now you're just a cautionary tale." She leaned against the wall once more and closed her eyes. She was silent for a long moment, then said to Fast-Forward, "Oh, and if you do make that PSA, I want somebody who goes to the gym to play me."

Starlight glanced down at the guy under her boot. Now that her initial surge of anger had worn off, her leg was starting to get tired. She pressed her boot down once more, meaningfully, before carefully stepping off him. "Not like you're going anywhere. Oh, and by the way, hire better goons next time. Ones less likely to cut and run at the first sign of trouble." She leaned against the wall, hands in her pockets, before glancing up at Fast-Forward. "So, what's the plan? We just find out where he's making the stuff and blow it sky high?" She thought for a moment, then added, "Or report it to the cops, I suppose. But hell, are we pretty much done? No more Doze, hooray for us?"

Start a new life? Is that what I'm doing? She smothered a bitter chuckle. Should probably straighten things out with the parole board then. Been a little while since I checked in. She doubted that would go over well if she said it aloud, though. "Doing fine. Doing great. You'd be surprised how many problems can be solved with lasers." She scraped the floor with the heel of her boot. "You probably heard I'm staying with Miras right now. Got off the streets. Nice to have a place to put up my feet." Especially now that I know I can eat. Her fridge isn't going to know what hit it. "Might even get all fancy and get a real costume at some point. Gloves and a mask and a big f---ing cape." The kitchen felt small and suffocating. She needed air. She seized her drink and pushed away from the counter. "Think I'll go see if Richard needs any help with the grill," she said, the excuse sounding false even to her own ears. "Good...uh, good talk, Paige."

Starlight felt a cold knot of anger constrict in her chest. She seized him by the collar, hurled him to the ground, and planted one of her heavy combat boots on his throat, applying just enough pressure to make him know she could apply more if she wanted to. "You know," she said, struggling to keep her voice level, "you're actually right about one thing. Nobody cares if some junkie ODs. Another piece of gutter trash gets dead. Who gives a s--t, right?" She leaned down, and her eyes flared with light. "And you know who people hate even more than junkies? Dealers. So ask yourself this. If nobody cares when a junkie dies, who's gonna care if some smartass yuppie drug dealer is never seen or heard from again?" She curled one hand into a fist and let it blaze into a white-hot star of energy, "Nobody, that's who. So lose the attitude, or you'll lose it anyway and a hell of a lot more besides."

Starlight said nothing, trying to digest what she had heard. Something odd stood out. The eighties? The Moore Act? T-Day? She looked up at Paige, trying to guess how old she was. She didn't look more than thirtysomething. Then again, when you have powers...she changed mental gears. She's probably old enough to be my mother, she realized. "I remember T-Day," she said. "A little. I was pretty young. Me and my family just hunched together, watching the TV, seeing everything that was happening." She stared out the window, random long-forgotten details popping into her head all at once. "My father piled all the furniture up against the door. Covered the windows. It wouldn't help and we knew it. But, hell, had to do something. He got his gun and got us all around him, and we just hid in there and prayed to God they wouldn't notice us." She laughed under her breath, though it wasn't funny. "I think they were too busy killing people out there to bother coming in here. "Then we heard that the Centurion was dead. And not just him, so many other heroes, and that they had all died to save us. And I remember, even then, all I could do was wonder why. Why the hell would you sacrifice yourself for people you didn't even know? People who had turned on you, made it a crime for you to help them? For a long time, I just couldn't figure it out. Still have trouble with it some days." She took a handful of Chex mix and crunched it slowly. So that's what food tastes like. "Didn't take long for us to forget about it, of course," she said with her mouth full. "Once the battle was over, and the reconstruction began, and the graves were dug, we all just started going back to our own bulls--t problems like nothing had happened. Dad left. Mom started drinking. I grew up, started doing drugs. Had a-" Ow. A sharp cracker poked the inside of her mouth, jolting her from her reverie. She broke off abruptly, feeling all of a sudden absurdly guilty. "Anyway. Doesn't matter now," she said, swallowing hard. "Sounds like you straightened yourself out. I respect that." Just wish I could say the same.

Starlight was silent for a long moment. Their life of suburban bliss seemed so perfect, the idea that they, like her, could have come from "less-than-ideal" circumstances seemed fantastic, almost laughable. And yet, there was a look in Paige's eye that instantly dispelled any doubt that she might have had. That was a look you couldn't fake. "That..." she rubbed the back of her neck, "uh, that must have been pretty rough. No way for a kid to grow up." Christ, who the hell raises their own kid to be a villain? And I thought I was a bad mom. "So, you used to be a bad guy, and your family were scumbags. What made you switch sides? I mean," she gestured to the house, "looks like you really turned your life around something fierce. Nice house, nice family, good reputation. Your own TV show. How the hell do you go from there to here? Both of you?"

Dangerous mutations? Starlight felt sick. That had never even occurred to her. Wish I'd paid more attention in biology class. She accepted the bottle and took a sip, but didn't seem to taste it. Where the hell did you even go to get a genetics scan? She glanced down at her hand, which, almost of its own accord, started to glow softly. How did she know there wasn't anything harmful about that? It certainly wasn't normal, that was for sure. An overdose couldn't be the healthiest way to unlock your powers. Unless they had actually come from the drugs themselves? Which was probably worse, but might mean they weren't genetic, so... She found herself badly wanting to change to subject. "Didn't know your parents were villains," she said, studying the Chex mix intently. "Does that mean that the two of your used to be...on the other side?"

"Right. Of course. Didn't mean anything by it." Immensely relieved, Starlight's picked her drink back up and drained half the glass in one gulp. It didn't affect her as strongly as before, but the intensity of the flavor still made her eyes water. She stifled another cough and said, "Sounds like it must be rough sometimes. Knowing what's going on in other people's heads. Especially for a kid. She's lucky to have you two." Abruptly, she remembered what she'd wanted to ask, and fought to keep her voice casual. "So, she got her abilities from you. Does it always work that way? Are powers hereditary?" She winced at how transparent the question was. "Just curious. I was wondering if I got my powers from one of my parents or something," she lied hastily.

Thanh tried not to stare at the newcomer's huge smile. "Yeah, we're new. At least," he glanced at Vicki, "the two of us are. I'm Thanh Nguyen. Vox. Just got here." The number of people he didn't know was already making him antsy. They all have powers? Before, on the street, he could at least rely on his abilities to grant him a unique advantage. Now, he had no idea how his array of mindtricks would serve him if he needed them. He hoped he wouldn't need them. The temptation arose in him, unbidden, to just give their minds a little poke to see if it worked. They would never know, probably. He squashed it angrily. No. Never again.

Starlight raised an eyebrow at the armored squad. "Who the hell are you supposed to be? The Learn-2-Count Crew? A barbershop quartet?" The scene was lit up by a flash of light, and she was standing behind the one with the 1 emblazoned on his chestplate. "Doesn't matter. You're working with drug dealers." She thrust out a fist before he could turn, and slammed a burst of brilliant energy right into the small of his back, denting his armor. There was another flash, and she was right back where she was before. "So four-" she glanced after the paralyzed guy - "make that three against three, huh? You don't want to go get the rest of your little conveniently-numbered friends, make it a fair fight?"

"Instinct, mostly," Starlight replied quickly, seizing onto the new topic like a life preserver. "Not a lot to it. The lasers are pretty much just point and shoot. Everything else more or less takes care of itself. I've heard of other capes with similar powers pulling off way more complicated s--t, illusions and stuff, but if I can do that I haven't figured out how yet. Most I do is turn invisible, if I'm feeling sneaky." She kept talking, uncharacteristically fast. "What about you? I know Richard has time control, which sounds a hell of a lot trickier than what I do, but you're some kind of telepath, right? How does that work?" An unpleasant thought struck her. You're not in my head right now, are you? Hello? You do not have permission, okay?