Zeitgeist Blue

GM A fully armored rider on a griffin steed is bound to get attention anywhere, especially in the dank Undercity. Stares follow you as you saunter toward and down the alleyway. One of Alaynah's hooded and large companions takes notice of you first, and they quickly point out your presence to the others. They look back and see the panoply of a warrior, ready for battle, but they do not yet do anything. They take a turn down another alleyway, and you follow. Half a minute later, they step down another path, smaller than the last two, and you follow. Then after another minute again, they turn down a corner and you follow around the bend. Alaynah and her companions stand further down the path. She looks up at you on top of your griffin and you see her one good eye narrow, an eye patch covering the other. "What. Do. You. Want?" She bites out each word. Beside her, her companions have put down their luggage and stare at you from beneath their hoods. You see bits and pieces of gray, hard skin underneath shadow. One of them cracks its knuckles, cracking like rock against rock.

A Griffin isn't hard to notice at all but they are distracted. DC 10. -5 Penalty. Alaynah Notice: 1d20+4-5 = 3. Mixnus and Nixnus Notice: 2#1d20+4-5 = 19, 18. Mixnus's a Nat 20.

Okay. If we're not at combat time anymore Salvo will grapple her. Grapple: +17-12 (Bellios + Servo-Dynamos + Iron Grip)/13-8 (Salvo + Servo-Dynamos)/7 (Salvo)/3 (Nicole) Enhanced Strength 8 [8] + Enhanced Strength 8 (Iron Grip; Flaws: Only when having won a grapple check; Feats: Improved Grapple) [5] = [13]

Salvo "Can you check on the other one?" Salvo said as she landed and began to follow the girl. "Tie him up and gather their weapons. We don't need another fight on our hands." She kept an eye on the girl as she shapeshifted out of her Justice's form and knelt down. Weapons or no, Salvo still knew they had a few tricks up their sleeves and their teleportation was one of the most pressing issues. Salvo raised her foot and lowered it on the girl's calf. Then she applied a bit of pressure on the calf, enough so it was like a normal person was pressing down instead of a thousand pounds of steel. "No," Salvo cut the girl's request off almost immediately. She looked down, her sensors recreating a figure of the girl in her mind's eye. "You will answer my questions or I will step down with my whole weight and strength. I can break steel easily and bend titanium, just so we're clear what I am able do to you." "So if you want to be able to run after this, answer my questions." She bent down. "First, can you or your partner teleport and if so how?"

GM You hear Brixton writing your name down as you exit his shop. The chimes tinkle, the red mist disperses, and you are once more in the Sunken Bazaar avenue. It doesn't take long to spot Alaynah and her crew among the market-goers. For all its vaunted ability to bring the denizens of the Undercity together, it is still a dark and damp place to be in. The Undercity does not have the crowds or the population that the surface city has, and it is a trait the Undercity denizens like. They are a secretive lot. Alaynah's two companions tower over all others, and even hooded that makes it easy to spot them. Both of her companions carry the heavy luggage they had exited the shop with. They are heading away from you, dozens of yards away, and through sparse market-goers of the Bazaar. Then they turn a corner and disappear from your sight, down one of the alleyways that branch off from the Sunken Bazaar's main thoroughfare. What is your next step?

GM Northern Shore, Emerald City, Oregon Friday, June 03, 2020 01:30:00 AM Two months and change have passed since you had escaped from the basement filled with the unliving, clutching the harddrive and black tome as spoils of war. They were yours, holding secrets that called to you to unlock, and that is exactly what you did. The harddrive was easier to crack, its security just a step above the run-of-the-mill one would find in the market. Right then, custom programs spring up, loaded to the brim with measurements and simulations. Trying to wrap your head around them all is like a high schooler looking into a doctorate's dissertation on astrophysics. You do not understand the specifics, but with hard work the gist becomes clearer to understand. It is what? Disparate elements and magical thought kitbashed into creating what you suspect to be another Terror-figure. Yet, it all felt incomplete, as if you had a fraction of a code but could not see the rest. It was chance perhaps that had you overlay a diagram against a map of Emerald City in the morning, and you saw the pattern for what it was. A pentagram. The Riverfront warehouse only represented one point in the symbol, but there were others too that could be traced to each side and each point. They filled the spaces and the lines in between. Emerald City was their canvas and you had with you a map. Of what you would find, nothing could be deciphered. The black tome was harder. If the harddrive's contents was like a high schooler trying to comprehend a dissertation, then this was a treatise written not for the layman or a board of panelists to understand, but by a master for masters. It was a spellbook of some sort, that was apparent. It spoke of dark dimensions and the preternatural entities inhabiting them. It also hinted at the power wielded by those able to tap into these dimensions. The text was tempting, a drug for the mind instead of one for the body. And with every sentence gleaned and insight discovered, a dozen more would unravel in front of you, enticing you to take one more step deeper into the knowledge hidden beneath. *** But for all your tenacity and metahuman physiology, you are still mortal and mortals need to rest. So you find yourself lying down in your bed, in your room, in your home, a blanket of darkness over your room. Tomorrow is Independence Day and your sister has come home to celebrate with her family. You hear your father will too, but only for the day itself and not one hour longer. What would those you hunt be doing then? Do they celebrate like normal people or shall they be hidden within the pentagram, laboring tirelessly to see their creation born? From your window, you hear a sharp crack.

Salvo: 1 posts + 12 GM posts = 13 posts = 1PP Backtrack (1) GM: 6 posts = 12 GM posts (to Salvo) Hunt for the Serpent (3) The Basement Shudders (3) The Jadetown Shuffle (0)

Salvo Salvo was lining up her next shot when she saw the last fake Justice raising her gun in the air. It was as close universal sign as surrender as there could be, and Salvo powered down her weapons platform. Then without a word, she dropped from the sky like a lead pipe, her thrusters pushing her past terminal velocity within ten seconds. Her flight downward was silent as air screeched and the ground rushed up to meet her. And just as she was about to hit the pavement, she arrested her flight. The G-force alone would have crushed a person, but she came to rest easily, twisting so that she 'stood' mid-air. She was just in time to hear the Justice's deal, and every word her eyes narrow with annoyance. "Wrong." Sparks began to fly from Salvo's armor as she began to talk. She crossed her arms, looking down at the Justice. "Here's what you will do. You will drop your gun. You will drop that USB. You will drop all your gadgets. Then you will turn around, walk ten feet away, and drop to your knees. If you try to run or fight or look at one of us wrong, we will beat you unconscious." Her voice was calm, a statement of fact. "Consider this your last warning, because we're nice." Her visor crackled with energy, the danger set squarely on the Justice. "Understood?"

Rebellion's paranoia is justified. A Gather Information roll would have been Opposed. Knowledge (Arcane Lore) beat the threshold for Basic and Easy questions. Computers beat the Average threshold for breaking in. Results to be in thr IC and a new scene.

Move Action: Drop back down to near the ground. Standard Action: Ready Energy Vent. It will be used if the Justice tries to flee or fight back. All-out Attack / Power Attack +5 DC / -5 Defense AP: Stun 7 (Energy Vent; Extras: Area [Targeted, Burst] [5 Feet per Power Rank], Affects Objects [+1], Selective Attack; Feats: Accurate 3, Attack Focus [Ranged]) {38/40} (Additional Descriptors: Electricity) Energy Vent: 1d20+13 = 32

Actually, want I want IC is a post on how Rebellion conducts his investigations. Two months have passed to June 28 and how does Rebellion pass that time? His Arcane Lore would still be considered untrained. Though you can roll for it and see if it passes any DCs on the way. Or you can take 10. You can also roll Gather Information to find experts on the field. Though is Rebellion in the know about magic/the magical community? That would affect the flavor of IC. Both DCs are staged.

GM "Hmmm." The shopkeeper hummed as he rubbed his chin in thought. "I can't rightly say, missy." Then as if coming to a decision, he leans forward. His voice is low as if he were whispering a secret. "Next sure meeting I can give you with 'er is in two weeks time, I think. Alaynah's a busy woman and, between you an' me, I 'eard she's got a job on that'll keep 'er busy for the next week or somethin'. Bought a load of my stock she did! So you's can say she's indisposed currently." He straightens, then begins to write on the pad. With a more normal voice he continues to speak to you. "'Course, if that ain't to your liking, I can always refer you to other 'ssociates of mine. Depends on what you want to get done now, 'innit?" "What's I'm gonna call you though?" He points his pen at you, waiting for an answer.

Salvo Five hundred pounds of multi-dimensional solids coalesced into an inch thick rod and Salvo struck out her arms, feeling the parafey energies manifest through the Bellios' systems. Such a weapon from her height and fired at terminal breaking velocities could easily maim or kill someone. She didn't want to kill anyone. When the lance of solid steel left her palms, her Ahgrazul-Faux simulations had peaked, allocating mind space for external factors and guiding her aim towards the location of minimal harm. A nanometer's deviation would be fatal for her target, but the lance cut true down the evening sky. It sliced through the Justice's forceshield, ramming at an angle such that the concussive waves were bent and contained inside the forcefield. Inside, the fake Justice's vision and hearing was be seared from this plane and he would see and hear Nothing. But the world outside was unharmed in anyway. The real Justive would have perceived nothing more than a bright flash and a pop, like a firecracker. From five thousand feet in the air, Salvo regarded her work as a success though the fake Justice still stood. She did not kill the man.

Okay! And that's a wrap unless you want to ask anymore questions or do anything else. We'll wait for Hunt for the Serpent to go forward a bit more so that thee two threads can converge.

GM Advay smiles at you beatifically, as if he did not sport a black eye or have dust caked on his clothes and hair. "I've been hiding here for a month. I'd like to believe I know a path or two." He starts walking forward, his boxes trailing behind him, bobbing up and down. "Though I must admit, I would have thought you'd know of a path yourself. Isn't that how you've managed to reach me?" The two of you begin your trek, quickly leaving behind the group of Morlocks still encased in ice and glaring at your backs. Before half an hour is done, the badger and dwarf would have reached them, but the two of you would have been long gone by then. Two travelers in the countless tunnels and caverns of Sub-Terra, only magic or powers could track your path. Disappeared in the darkness and the stone, you expect another two hours before you reach the Undercity, relatively more civilized than only Sub-Terra. Advay in tow and your smugglers waiting for him in a sewer that leads into Malory Bay, you have all the time in the world. So ask your questions. Rest and recuperate, but ready your wits. There are still many who want him. The job isn't done until Advay is safe and hidden.

Okay, so tell me what would you like Rebellion to do in order to gather information about what he has. He has no Arcane Lore so everything he has is pretty much gobbledygook.

GM Nothing stops you as you make your exit in the darkness, through the bodies that lay around you and back the way you came and through the shutter gate. It slides open, rattling noisily, but nothing stirs. Then it is as simple matter to turn invisible, blend among the dark sky and empty buildings, and take flight, carrying the spoils you had taken from your enemies. The warehouse recedes into the city and soon the industrial port of the Riverfront gives way to the markets of the Cannery. They are empty at this late hour, though you see the occasional figure or car. It is not until you climb the Cannery Rotunda that you stop and finally take stock of your bearings. The world brightens as clouds drift from the moon. You have your information. Your mission is accomplished, your enemies humiliated, and though the night is done there is still many lingering questions. The answers are there for your taking. The conspiracy begins to unveil, but now aware of your presence. And they wait. And they begin to act. *** The Riverfront, Emerald City, Oregon Saturday, April 25, 2020 01:21:00 AM <Pathetic.> Gravel crunches as Mingzhu steps forward, a cigarette perched between her fingers. Looking down, she takes a puff and the cigarette's fire briefly illuminates her face. Coffin lies against a wall in a heap, bricks turned rubble and dust resting on his too-still form. There is no indication that he knows she is there, much less that he is conscious, but she knows the magician still lives in unlife. Through smell, she had been witness to Coffin's battle after all even as she had slipped into the basement, knew everything about the powers that effused through the warehouse. There was no mistaking the similarities between their current experiments, of the Terror, and the intruder. It was an interesting problem that had been laid on her lap, one that would no doubt make Koschei or his colleagues want a more direct role in this project. She would not mind. If Koschei's involvement meant this project would go faster then all the better. There was too many problems on her plate to be bothered by a lone wolf with an axe to grind. She would wash her hands off this mess. But for now, she would act the courteous colleague. <Wan, return Coffin to his lab. Make him comfortable for when he wakes.> With a flick of her wrist, her one remaining bodyguard hurries forward and begins to drag the undead magician by the feet, the head bouncing ever so often on the pavement. She turns away from the sorry sight and raises a phone to her ears, a memorized number on dial. It begins to ring and she looks up towards the east. A broken pearl rests on her ring finger, fragments shaken loose, and in turn she smiles, satisfied. *** Emerald City June 28, 2020 Two months pass. What does Rebellion do in the intervening time?

Right. She'll target Evil Justice 2.

Alright. I'll get an IC post up and we'll be on to the denouement. Also roll Notice vs. DC 1d20+13 = 27 for some flavor.

Full Action: Fire Kinetic Beams. Removing Explosion from Dazzle. BE: Damage 10 (Kinetic Beam; Extras: Linked [Dazzle], Range [Perception]; Flaws: Limited [5 times a day], Action (Full); Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2, Improved Critical 2 [18-20], Penetrating 5, Variable [Energy/Divine Magic]) {20} + Dazzle 10 (Visual and Auditory; Extras: Linked [Damage], Range [Perception]; Flaws: Limited [5 times a day], Action(Full)) {20} = {40/40} (Additional Descriptors: Energy, Divine Magic, Straight From the Soul) Toughness and Fortitude Save vs. DC 25 and DC 20, respectively

GM "Oh no no no no," Advay shakes his head as you give him an option to choose among his belongings. "There's no need for that now. I have just the thing that would bring us along." He gestures to the boxes and the path full of trapped Morlocks. "If, ah, you would stay by my side to ensure none off these ruffians put their hand on me, I have a device which could bring all my belongings with me." Then he steps forward, his stride confident for one who had just been beaten and bound a few seconds before. Perhaps your presence had boosted his sense of security considerably. None of the Morlocks trapped in ice attempt to stop the both of you and the few Morlocks still free back away as Advay moves towards one of the boxes. The professor opens it and rummages through its contents. He takes out a small circular device, slightly larger than the palm of his hand, and with a click it begins to glow softly. All five boxes are lifted into the air, as if by invisible hands, and arrange themselves neatly into a line. Advay smiles and pockets his device. "Perfect. The Ether Key remains functional. Heavens know I wouldn't know what to do if it was broken." Then he gestures with a hand. "After you then, Mr. Dayes. I trust my down payment to be sufficient? Is the bennu to your liking?"

GM "Wait wait wait!" Advay squeals as he if suddenly lifted off his feet and hurled through the air towards you. There is a yelp of surprise from the Morlock holding the professor's rope. Though the Morlock tries to keep its grip on the rope, it is in vain, and it trips, landing face-first in a heap. Your spell puts the Morlocks into action and immediately you see those with weapons already on hand, advance towards you. Those still carrying the professor's boxes set them down and reach for their own weapons. But it is the leader of the group who is right in front of you, and it swipes you with its dagger. The crude blade glows faintly with malignant energies but whatever the effects, you won't feel them as you dodge away from the blade. Before they could bring more of their numbers to bear, you cast another spell. The temperature drops, turning the dry heat of the cavern into blistering cold, and you summon a fierce winter's gale. You see the Morlock leader's eyes widen in surprise a second before the magical ice washes over it and its companions. When the ice subsides, allowing you visibility once more, you see the leader encased in an unbroken block of ice. Only its head and its hands, one of them still wielding the glowing dagger, are free to move around. You see it struggle. The ice does not budge. Then it turns its eyes towards you, a snarl in its face. Yet it says nothing, only growling softly. Behind it, most of the Morlocks have been similarly encased. Only four of their number are lucky, untouched by the ice entirely or only a foot or hand trapped within the ice, something that is easily broken. They stare at you, clearly overawed by the power on display, and they do not approach you. They only hold their weapons warily. "A-- a fine display of skill, Mr. Dayes." Behind you, Advay is breathing heavily as he attempts to free himself from his bonds. "Too much action for me, I'm afraid, but that is precisely why I hired you." Finally, he slips his hands from the rope and looks up to regard you. He adjusts his spectacles with one hand. "You-- you are who you are, yes? I have to ask, do you have a plan for escape? For me, of course, but also," He gestures to the boxes at the feet of the trapped Morlocks. "But also for my work and equipment."

That grapple attack is an automatic win for Blackstaff. Reflex Save: 11#1d20+2 = 19, 20, 18, 12, 14, 21, 22, 18, 18, 9, 20 4 Morlocks make it. Everyone including the leader get stuck. The Toughness of the Snare is 10 so unless the Morlocks get a Crit to break free, they're stuck.

GM Ever slowly, the balance of the two powers shifts in your favor. You feel Abracadaver's push weaken, a subtle thing at first, but then your shadows push farther, barely contained by the magic. They thrash against the dark lances and for a brief moment you see the whites in Abracadaver's eyes as his eyes widen in shock. Then the lances of magic break like glass, a shriek cutting through the night air, and your shadows lash out around the warehouse as if suddenly let loose. Abracadaver is slammed by several of your tendrils and he is sent flying, crashing through the warehouse's walls. He keeps on going, leaving behind an ugly hole in the concrete wall. Cool air seeps through the hole, mist from the late hour. The zombies around your shelf are shredded to pieces much like their brethren before. The zombies farther away have been touched by your shadows as well, but not nearly enough to stop them. Yet as one, they fall limp like puppets to the ground, their strings cut. They form a trail of bodies from the basement entrance and though they are now unmoving, you still remember how much stronger and vicious they were compared to any normal human or predator. The seconds tick by in silence but you hear no morbid boast, no howl of rage, or the gnashing of cut teeth. There are no rats or stray dogs to bother the stillness that had fallen on the warehouse and so you stand atop the warehouse shelves, the only being left alive and moving. What do you do?

Yep, that would hit Abracadaver. Toughness Save: 1d20+12 = 14 vs DC 30. Unconsious. Knockback: 1d20+8 = 11 vs DC 29. Disabled. Abracadaver breaks through the warehouse wall and the zombies are pretty much toast. Looks like Rebellion's home free.