Zeitgeist Blue

Salvo By the time Salvo stepped out from behind a gallery the situation had already reached a fever pitch. Gas permeated the room and obscured her vision, but her radar allowed her to bypass that obstacle. Civilians stampeded for the exits and her schoolmates were busy decking the floor with the Red Death's goons. Six Shooter had fled into the gas and she watched as Black Mamba leaped through the skylight, the woman doctor in his arms. Yet she couldn't let Black Mamba's exit be the window the criminals needed to escape and she leaped to the air, thrusters firing carefully behind her so she could hover where the gas cloud was thinner. As expected it failed to penetrate her filtration system. The situation was laid bare for her. There were too many civilians that she could harm, too many things to break that could sour Dakanan relations. It irked her to be so hemmed in but criminals rarely considered her feelings in their crimes. She took her time to search for Six Shooter, scanning with her radar, going back and forth through the crowd. She ignored the fighting around Corinne and the Red Death, trusting that the Ajasoro and Astrid could handle her. It was so annoying how a man with six robotic arms could easily hide when things were chaotic. There. Still wearing his gas mask and coat, it did not quite obscure his robotic limbs. Salvo reached out an arm, a single barrel extending from it and sent out a stream of white foam in his direction. "Liberty!" She yelled as she sprayed even more of the foam, speakers on full volume to carry her voice above the crowd's screaming. "Gunman behind you, to your left!"

Guess I shouldn't have preempted rolling Initiative so soon. Now everyone's ready for a fight! But I'll give you guys a bonus on your perception rolls to not get surprised when we get there.

Salvo Salvo watched the proceedings stoically. In under a minute everything around her seemed even more chaotic than the fight with Krampus. Students wailing and shouting and laughing and smiling all at the same time, voice rising above each other. Summers was cool in the midst of all this, but without her helmet Nicole would have looked a mess trying to process it all. Pan, laughing and chattering as if he were unfazed by the whole Krampus incident. It was unsurprising to her and maybe she just wanted to fly up to him and soak in that optimism. Unconcsiously, her thrusters activated but she tamped down on that quickly. Ajasoro, standing tall even if burns ran the length of her costume from one of Nicole's blasts of energy. She wanted to apologize to the Dakanan princess but perhaps now was not the right time. Leroy, crying in one instant and then acting normally the next, and she moved a little wondering if she should try and comfort him. Her sensors picked up Liz and Abby, who was the source of the Nether-magic, up in the roof and shouting they were okay. Then Summer's voice brought her back down on some errand or job she was incredibly unsuited for. She was about to retort when Zenith began her song and dance as Micah walked to Alex, both of them dragging the dark elf away from Summers and her. Micah did good standing up to Zenith and Salvo gave him a small thumbs up. And the other arm rose to shield her eyes from the light that exploded outwards from Zenith. Light rushed around them, through her limbs, past her armored figure. For a moment she could see nothing save the blazing sun that was Zenith in the middle of her powers. Once the lightshow was over, Nicole let her arm fall and used her sensors to confirm Zenith's work. Everything was fixed. Craters gone, ground even. Rubble rising to form whole statues and walls and ceilings again with not a crack on them. The dangerously sharp ice that pervaded the whole battleground evaporated into fine mist, which left the surroundings slightly humid. It was as if things were newer than they were before Krampus. Nicole scoffed. Then her boots fired and she rose to the air beside Astrid. Nicole glanced at her dormmate then back down to Summers. Zenith had fixed everything in that power she revelled so much in. It made Nicole's skin itch but she repressed the urge to snap at Zenith's behavior. It would only destroy the flimsy veneer of peace they had achieved now and so instead she turned away from Zenith and spoke to the headmistress. "There," Nicole said, her voice dripping in exasperation and the stress of retaining a facade of confidence, of energy, when all she wanted to do was flop back down on her bed. "Corinne fixed everything through her..." She paused for a fraction of a second then continued in a hurried voice. "It's all fixed. The buildings, the grounds, the statue. Even the oak tree's back up. Was there anything else or what?" She shook her head, taking comfort in the proximity of Astrid. She wasn't a builder like this. She could tear things down and break people up but Bellios was machine of war and consequently Salvo a hero that lived only for battle. There was little for her to do here. Now.

Roger that!

Salvo It was done. Salvo held the contract that would free the four souls and though her fingers were clumsy and thick as wrapped in steel as they were the quill was somehow held easily in her hand. The tip hovered over the signature line and she was about to put ink to leather when Pan's objections rang through the cavern, stopping her hand midair. Pan was right. Her hand was as still as a rock, but her breathing quickened as she realized what she had been about to do. Signing a contract from the devil as blase as she was about to was the quickest way to damn your soul to Hell. She didn't know what she was thinking. It felt like a matter of hours as she pulled back the quill from the parchment, and only then did she realize she was holding her breath. Then she descended to the ground so that Pan and Selena could read Baal's terms. She had read the contract twice already and was churning its words a third time as they came to her. She offered no resistance as they took the parchment from her. "Forever Boy. Gauss," she said, voice low, after they had time to read it. Her hands balled into fists and she glared at them from her visor. "My soul is no guarantee for my work. My skills speak for themselves." And she told them of the terms and conditions as stated in the contract. Convoluted as they were, they could be pared down to simple words. Four weak souls was worth a dozen times less than any magical artifact she could create. And her soul was collateral if her artifact could not meet Baal's expectations. The latter clause was the most damning of the whole contract. What defined a difference in the countless Wars of Hell? What would ensure Baal did not use the artifact in bad faith in order to claim her soul? This were questions that ran through Salvo's head and she relayed them to her companions. "This is low," she said at last, exasperated of this whole debacle and she showed it with every word. "This is low even for a demon with a fraction of Baal's status in the Circles of Hell. Like-- like Veronica or Ajasoro fighting a bum for that last half-eaten piece of burger in the dumpster low. I can't believe this is what it stooped to, scrapping for my soul even if-- I don't believe in God-- but that isn't one of their metrics for souls ready for Hell. My soul is like that half-eaten burger but," and she jabbed a finger Mike's way. "His and his posse's souls are the l'aperitif, hors d'oeuvres, and the main dish rolled into one." She shook her head. "Baal couldn't take theirs so now it wants mine. Disgusting and desperate and if every damned self-styled Lord of Hell could see this too they'd agree with me before attacking Baal for showing weakness."

Salvo As Tyler pulled off his hat, Nicole couldn't help but peer at the horns sticking out of his head. And as he put it back on, Nicole couldn't help but narrow her eyes in thought. "Righttt," she said, drawing out the word. "You keep that cap on you at all times if you want most people to be friendly. Some people have a thing against demons. That's you, right? A demon? A demi-demon?" She didn't wait for him to reply back as she tapped at her glasses. They allowed her to see Tyler's magical aura but nothing came through and she closed it with a disappointed sigh. "I've dealt with demons before. They can be easily found if you know where to look. But there are some students here who's got a beef with the infernal realms and all its inhabitants. Stealing souls and feeding on them like parasites." Tyler didn't exude anything demonical but she could put two and two together to form a picture. She shook her head then tipped back her thermos for a large gulp of coffee. "Take my advice. Don't think you suck souls if you're let in here, but... it just sucks to be you."

GM Upon Veronica's call, the presence that Ouroboros sees moves to beside them and reaches out a hand from between it and their dimension. Its arm extends then stops at the shoulder and it waits for someone to take the offered hand. Regular eyes can't see anything of the figure behind the mirror yet Veronica takes its upturned palm, taking Masque's hand in her other hand who in turn grabs hold of Ouroboros. Thus linked, it drags the three of you into the mirror. As you dive into the mirror you feel yourself subsumed in liquid, so clear that if you could see your companions floating in the liquid. You see two Veronicas ahead of you. One stares back with listless eyes and you know this to be the impostor, your guide. It pulls at you again, hard enough to drag you bodily through the liquid if you could not keep up. Of the guardian that Veronica had talked to, no sight or sign could be seen. A minute passes of this swim and tug game where the three of you try to hold on to each other while keeping up with the untiring pace of Veronica's reflection. Finally, you see a speck of light in the distance and as you swim closer it quickly expands until it stretches dozens of meters around the three of you. Veronica's reflection stops when you are almost upon it, her face looking out the dimensional window. It flies through the different dimensions that exist within the Core, showing you numerous scenes as it searches for a way to Bellios' self. The corridors and spaces of the Core are choked with drones of all shapes and sizes, yet as you watch you see them all turn on each other. Frenzied by the sudden departure of the mercenaries, the code dictating their behavior is left broken. So they fight and tear each other apart in a melee with no rhyme or reason. Claws rip at comrades. Bolts of energy fry the internal systems of whole crowds. Lumbering brutes squash their smaller brethren with every step. Mists of nano-drones break down steel bodies only to leave rust and dust in their wake. You note the Core is not saved from this self-harm either as towers of electricity topple as an explosion tears at its base. A drone unleashes what looks to be a hail of bullets, which slash and break apart the doorways linking the realms. Gears break as drones ram through them. As the window slows its flight, you see Veronica's reflection frown. Her eyes are watery as it turns to face you, and though it says nothing the pleading look it gives is more than enough to understand. Behind her, the window stops at Bellios' Self and you cans see the damage wrought here even if no drones could be seen. The sands, once sluggish, has turned into a violently shifting vortex. Sand whips by the window at speeds sufficient enough to scour at exposed skin. Yet even watching within the vortex you see Bellios' Self, shining harshly amid the turmoil. It hurts too look at directly and sun spots cloud your vision if you glance directly at it. Veronica can feel the helmet fastened to her belt tug forward as if urging her through the window and to the mini-sun. You know what you are to do. Enter the cyclone and submerge the helmet within the sun. Let them merge into one and your task shall be done.

While you guys are waiting, can I have Initiative rolls from all of you?

Oh, if the +10 is there then I'd use it.

Knowledge (Arcane Lore) to try and maneuver around it. This is without any other bonus besides Salvo's skill bonus. Knowledge (Arcane Lore): 1d20+15 = 24

Right. I'll be indisposed for the next two days so there won't be any posts from me in the forums, but this is on top of my list!

Salvo From her vantage point high in the air, Salvo could see it all. Krampus bound from above by Sun Dragon's impossible mass and bound below as the Earth swallowed its legs, Nether magic steaming from the ground all around it. On the back of her mind, she could trace its source to the dorm's rooftop where Masque was pumping out double images of all the students. Then the marble encasing the Basket of Ancient Winter and Astrid running up to the giant's feet, Porklubba crackling with magic. The fight was as good as ended. The giant bound and helpless for the coup de grace. It was the physical antithesis of Christmas, taking everything Claremont has dished out so far. Yet it still stood, too large, its hide too thick, for the merely physical to do it harm. They needed another approach and she quickly began creating one. She rerouted the links between her suit and her energy stores, opened dimensions left closed and closed those unneeded for the task. Code, the language she chose to read magic in, flew past her eyes and she picked at particular lines, changing them to suit her needs. Seconds passed as Salvo hovered in the air, but just as suddenly her thrusters ignited in a spurt of flame and she streaked towards Krampus, landing with a crunch as her armored boots dug into its snout. She drove her palm into its flesh and the contact pulsed violently. A white-blue light seared at Krampus' soul (or lack thereof) and her assault spread throughout its body once more. The Claremonters could see the light dig within it, as if the giant was made translucent from the energy coursing through its body. Krampus shook with all the forces arrayed against but Salvo held on, thrusters pushing against its snout, digging her heels in. Then she wrenched her hand back and in between her hand and Krampus' skin was a thin vortex of light, twisting and buckling with all the force of a mini-tornado. Yet she held on to the vortex as it siphoned the Krampus' essence. Ever so hungry, coal ash began to sputter out. "It's all over big guy," she said, more to herself than anyone. "You're dead and died with no prizes taken." Though perhaps somewhere within the giant's brain, it could comprehend her words. If it could then her touch would be all the sweeter. "Try again next year."

Salvo Nicole downed her coffee in one go then slammed the thermos on the worktable, rattling the various tools and half-finished projects on it. It was late in the evening, technically morning already, but she did not mind the clock that much or the fact that she had classes in the morning. This was the time when she could best work, when no one was around to bother her. She was alone but not lonely, with her mind and her tools keeping her company. She glanced at her laptop's screen and saw Terrifica's reply and JustJustice's post, dated just a few minutes ago. A fellow night-owl. Nicole approved and if JustJustice's past posts were any indication, she had a feeling they were doing similar tasks. A fellow engineer together in a thread with a fellow scientist. The thread was brimming with brains. Intrigued by the unfamiliar name, Nicole began to research on JustJustice as she intermittently typed out a reply. Going to her profile to gather what information she could, and then from there to the forums and the wider net. Wiki info, videos, there wasn't much but Nicole took what she could. Meanwhile, her reply finished, she hit the send button. Nicole wouldn't have thought she'd come upon realizations asking Terrifica for advice but she was pleasantly surprised by what she wrote, the words coming into her head as fast as she could type. And putting her thoughts to word made those realizations more concrete. She typed one last post before she would have to get back to work and she hit the send button a second time that night. Shorter this time and to JustJustice.

Salvo "He means DnD, like the roleplaying board game," Nicole replied to Tyler's question, satisfied that Veronica took the horrible drink from her. She pointed at the drink in Tyler's hand. "And that's mint chocolate flavour. Don't know if you'd like that. I know I don't." Nicole rummages through her wheelchair's pockets and takes out a thermos just as Alex announced his plans for the day. "Maybe," she said. "I'll have to check if my desktop's finished downloading the system I need for poly-fractual analysis of the last multiversal overlap." Then she turned to Tyler, looking at him askance. "So what's your story? Everyone here is special," and her fingers formed air-quotes at that. "We've got foreign royals and demi-gods and dragons and inter-dimensional, outer space refugees and mages and vampires and billionaire kids. Did you know Veronica here's a Danger? So what can you say about yourself?"

Well, this seems like a good haymaker. If no one minds I'll have Salvo punch Krampus in the face. Move Action: Fly to touching Krampus. Standard Action: Use Damage 15. Spend an HP to add in a power to Weapons Suite Array. Power Attack/All-out Attack: +5 DC/-5 Defence Damage 15 (Extras: Alternate Save [Will] [+1]) {30/46} Damage: 1d20+5 = 6 Nat 1. Another HP to reroll. Damage: 1d20+5 = 6 Another Nat 1. Last HP. Damage: 1d20+5 = 11 Will Save: DC 35. Salvo: 0HP, Defence 10.

GM Through the Mirrored Glass and back Again (2) Salvo Fright Night at Claremont (4) Giant Krampus 2: Krampus Campus (2) My Name Is Terrifica. Ask Me Anything (1) New Arrival (4) Sky-Pirates! (2)

Salvo "And can you believe they'd mix the strawberries like that! They weren't even real strawberries. I bet that was just some cheap powder. Coffee my ass..." They heard Nicole's voice before they saw her roll out of the building on her wheelchair. She had a frappuccino cup gripped in one hand, clear plastic and topped with pink whipped cream. She shook it and it threatened to spill but she was too busy ranting to the boy walking beside her. Veronica would recognize him as Alex, a senior in the school, and he and Nicole's path veered them into Veronica and Tyler. "And they have the gall to price--" Nicole noticed them as they neared each other and stopped mid-sentence. With a slight sparkle in her eye, she held out her frappuccino, barely tasted, to Veronica. "Hey Veronica, you can have this. Save me from strawberry-flavored drinks." And as if just noticing Tyler, she glanced at him then back to Veronica. "And who's this?"

The decision was easy for her, a snap of her fingers. She couldn't well call herself a hero if she just walked away from all this, let the Prince of Hell snap up four souls to be fodder for endless wars. Baal did not state what he wanted their souls for but she had an inkling of an idea. Some less knowledgeable about the matter would think demons just loved to beget suffering upon others and while some demons do Baal was a more pragmatic sort. Four more souls. Four more soldiers for his legions. Decades did not matter for beings such as Baal. That span of time would go unnoticed, a drop within eternity. Neither did four souls for that matter. It was all a game for him, a fun outing before this avatar of him went back into the business of Hell. But the four souls mattered for their owners and so they mattered for her. The thought that this was all their fault for something so petty did not even cross her mind for discussing something as serious as souls. She read the books. She knew the gravity, even if Baal did not care for the individual. And she was confident her companions felt the same as her. "No," Salvo finally said, ending the silence after Baal's offer. Baal was pragmatic to the extreme and so she needed to talk in his terms. "You don't need the souls. Just four of them would give you a marginal output in the forces that you command, barely noticeable in the grand scheme of Hell. So I'll give you a counter-offer: release the Mike and the three victims and I offer you my services as a master artificer and rune-smith. There are forces in the magical planes your own smiths would be hard-pressed to harness that would be easier for me as a mortal." She pushed herself off the wall, thrusters firing so that she was hovering at a standing position, and she looked straight at Baal's human eyes. "One crafted item, a weapon or armor or whatever you have in mind, for the four foot-soldiers. What do you say?"

Yeah, the best idea I have is to offer Baal Salvo's magical services instead. Create an artifact, probably of Divinen or Logos descriptor, that would probably be a mechanical drawback for Infernal entities. Then he could use it for his war instead of just four more souls for his demon army. Hopefully I'll get to the IC post today or tomorrow.

GM You stretch your senses around you and almost immediately they lead you to the mirror-wall beside Masque and Veronica. Abigail's signature is mixed with a more condensed form of the radiant magic in your surroundings, tumbling and tearing each other apart as if they were fighting for dominance. Yet the scent of a Netherborn is easily identified and it is easy to separate it from its antagonist. You move past that mirror into another dimension overlapping yours (and perhaps the whole sphere the trio of you stand in), and you trace with your eyes the path Arcana had taken mere minutes ago. It ends soon enough with a conflux of her spells, dissipitating slowly. With her gone and the path of magic terminating suddenly plus what you can analyze at a glance, it seems she had escaped. The power and suddeness suggests the whole suit entirely as if she had expelled herself. You also note in your examinations that a presence watching you from the dimension inside the mirror. Steeped in a similar signature as its own, it blends easily into the background and it might be only luck that you notice it. It notices back you watching it but it merely flickers for a moment before righting itself. Then it continues watching the three of you, not minding that you had noticed it.

We could try using Salvo's high Arcane Lore skill but besides relying on luck to give us a high roll we could try lowering the DC first. Somehow. The end use for an Arcane Lore skill would be to give Baal something more valuable and/or less effort to get for him than the souls of the kids. Let me start with a few questions and see if Salvo can know things from her Knowledge (Arcane Lore). What kind if effort would Baal need to exert to enact shackling and taking their souls? How valuable are four souls to him? What are the things in life and Hell Baal enjoys/wants or needs, especially to stay on the top of the demonic pile? Knowledge (Arcane Lore): 1d20+15 = 31

I don't know, Baal's offer sounds pretty convincing to me. Let's throw in Forever Boy's soul too to sweeten the deal.

I'll have that auto-pass. It'll be up in the next short GM post.

Salvo Watching Pan take to the air and taunt Baal with nothing more than a smile and bright lights, Salvo had to admit the Forever Boy had serious guts to do that. He boasted and pointed fingers alone in the air as if he could give a good fight all by himself. She couldn't help but scoff at that, almost amused by how ballsy he was. Her helmet turned a fraction of an inch towards Gauss and she gave an almost imperceptible nod. She had an idea of what the Forever Boy was doing and they all needed to create that illusion of unassailable confidence. Her armor cackled with electricity, weapon mounts unfolding from her form, and with a roar of flames she took off into the air. She was about to shout something at Baal but a small explosion tore at the air in front of her left shoulder and she was thrown back in the air. She hit the cavern wall, dislodging pieces of stone and rupturing a man-sized boil. It spewed a foul-smelling, yellow-ish liquid all over her armor. It got into her joints and ruined the shiny finish of her plates. Looking nothing like the hulking brute she had been just seconds before, she shook her head and glared back at Baal. She braced herself against the ruptured boil, ignoring the pus all about her. Discordant energies caused the explosion, she noted idly, quite annoyed she hadn't had enough time to fix the leak between the two cords that ran underneath her shoulder plates. But that was enough to ruin the aura she was trying to build. "Listen to him, Baal," she growled instead. She would defer to who had the greatest skill, reluctant as she was to hand it all over to the immortal prankster. "He knows what he's talking about. Don't put yourself to the test."

Masque The mirrored wall shatters as the mallet's head smashes into it, shards of glass clinking as they fall outwards from the impact. A few harmlessly drop on you and some clatter against the few drones nearby. Yet even the sudden violence is not enough to rouse the hallway from dormancy, and when the shards had settled, the echoes of your shout gone, when you heft your mallet from the glass all you are left with is a mirror fragmented into dozens of pieces. Shattered immediately in front of you and cracked around the point of impact, dozens of your reflections staring at you. No magic here, just fractures and the silence of friends gone. Around you drones begin to move, but not in reaction to your sound or your mallet shattering the wall. Instead, it is because of a threat you had left behind so long ago. Then when they are gone, you alone are the lone figure within the halls. Even your reflections are gone, faded into the walls. Ouroboros With a swish, the shroud of nothingness reforms into a human silhouette and Nobody swipes at the simulacra before he resolves a hand. Held up by dark tendrils he brings it closer to his face, examining them for several seconds before you see him smile, the white of his teeth visible. "Not bad, not bad at all," he says, stashing the simulacra into his torso. "Exact copies of the pet armor's Core and two other artifact Selves. And who do these belong--" Masque's shout interrupts him and Nobody whirls about, his form flaring as if expecting an attack from behind. When nothing but what sounds like glass shattering comes, he reforms and turns back to you. "And that answers that. But you know what, your speaking some sense, vampire. We got what we came for and I'm not one to bloody my hands for no reason." He chuckles. "Though fun's a good one." He seems to deliver on his words, floating backwards until he is beside the pixelated eye. "Really?" Snap says, her voice incredulous. "We haven't even finished the whole job." "Yeah well, we already got more than what we need and I haven't had a hamburger in ages. Let's get out of here." Snap's eye doesn't have anything resembling a face but you can swear she is glaring daggers at you. Still, pixels seem to converge out of nowhere around them into a portal, and as they step back Nobody smiles at you. "Arigato, kid. You aren't so bad at this magic game. If you need out of this cheap joint, fixing machines for girls, just hit me up. Ask around for Mr. Nobody... or Snapshot too, I guess." Snapshot scoffs and the portal closes on itself, but before it completely shuts you hear an exchange between the two. "Hey, what'll happen to the robots and all the things you were screwing around with?" "I don't know. Maybe they'll go crazy and tear everything apart if we're lucky. Not that you care." "Nice." Then they are gone. Veronica It doesn't say anything in response to your acceptance of its help but your reflection does, swimming around you so the both of you are face to face. The similarity is uncanny, every curl of your brown hair and every perceived flaw that you notice whenever you look in the mirror is exactly as you remember yourself. And you have perfect recall. Yet it is bereft of any sign of emotion on its features. It stares at you with dull, dead eyes as it reaches out and plants its thumb on your forehead. A second passes, then two. Then in the distance you see several points of light in a straight line, as if outlining a horizon that is not there. They expand, slowly as if unfurling themselves, and as they do so you begin to see things inside them as if they were windows themselves. On the farthest window to your left you see inside a slowly twisting funnel of sand, so dense that the funnel would seem solid save for the shifting sand itself. A diamond-cut gem floats in the center where the sand funnel narrows into. A doorway is carved into the side of the funnel, one which leads back to the central chamber where you had found the pinions and doorways. The next window shows just that chamber, but the pixelated eye is there blasting scores of drones as the drones attempt to destroy it. More types of drones join the fight. To the right of that again, you watch as Masque draws an oversized mallet and smash it against the window, shattering it into a dozen pieces that reflect her. And on the farthest right, you see Ouroboros conjure three artifacts from thin air. And a flat silhouette of a man and the living eye converse before disappearing. The actors leave the stage, its voice rumbles in your head. But their influence lingers on. Bellios' Self shall tear itself apart if the imbalances caused shall not be corrected. The wyrm unfurls itself, leaving you free to move to the window where Masque lingers in front of. And just as it does so, your reflection tugs at your sleeve and begins to swim forward. The window seems to move towards you just as much as you move towards it, and in no time in looms over you and your reflection. Masque is there, close enough for you to reach and cross the barrier between the two dimensions if you so wish. Go then. Console your companion but danger still lurks within the realms and remember your words. Call upon me and you shall be heard and accept the hand that offers aid, for I provide a way into realm of the Self unfettered by the maze and distance you had traveled through. Then its voice and your reflection is gone, leaving you alone save the Masque you can reach.