Nerdzul

Nightscale is gonna ready an action, if Aoife intends to attack someone with the intention to harm he will try to interrupt with a grapple. 

He will also use Interpose. 

Will post in IC tomorrow (trying to sneak in some from work) I'm not feeling that great today.

Nightscale - 24

Let the body hit the ground 3

Golden Dead - 3

Paper Trail to the City of Sin 2

Dream Chasing 5

The Young Guardians Return 3

Friends in the Fens 4

Holiday Cheers 4

"Yeah awesome performance." Luke smiled as he saluted Bernadette. "I mean... almost a one woman show." He grinned.

The young man chuckled at his flat-mate jokes. 

"Yep. We thought you would be thirsty." He offered her the drink as well as a "Cheers..." And a clink of his own. 

"Wanna introduce us to the rest of the band?" He asked. "You people had anything else planned for the evening?"

"Yeah me neither... Don't seem like the talky types either." Luke nodded. 

"It's that damned gold." He added, clenching his fists. Unfortunately it seemed like he had made things way worse with his spell. 

The least he could do though, is try to recall his magic and see if he could at least limit the damages. He let the spell go. And moved away from the group of zombies and toward the stairs leading out of the cargo hold. "Hey..." He shouted.

"Do you want more of this." He continued as he used another spell this time to turn a piece of a nearby crate into gold as he tried to attract the attention of the mummies away from breaking the hull of the vessel.

On 12/23/2023 at 8:41 PM, Kaede Kimura said:

Unable to help herself she leaned over to faux whisper in Mizuki's ear, "It really was, there was a dragon, and a shadow monster! Some of the students weren't much better either, we had one guy who would steal everyone's secrets, and another who kept destroying the textbooks." She winked at Luke, before speaking more normally, "I'm Muirne by the way, Shadowborne in costume."

 

"Yeah, 'teerrifyiing'..." Luke shifted to a 'playfully scary' voice. "Or lovable, depending on who you ask." He grinned and playfully tickled Muirne. 

"But my bet is, that not much has changed on that front, we all have our own form of weird and the school is cool like that." The young man smiled fondly, in truth, his few years of Claremont had been full of so much precious memories that he had decided he was gonna treasure (or hoard much likely) forever. 

"Anyway... I am sure we are gonna have plenty occasions to meet on the field, I mean, my... terr- well turf...." he chuckled. "Is pretty close to Claremont."

The young man felt a shiver run down his spine as a weird sense of uneasiness seemed to pervade him when the newcomer, another student, arrived. "Hey... Nice to meet you as well... L- Nightscale here." He forced himself to offer an handshake, albeit visibly with some effort to fight the strange sensation.

The young man tensed up a little as he saw the shadow gathering around Muirne, but he quickly relaxed when things seemed to get back under control.

On 12/29/2023 at 10:20 AM, Kaede Kimura said:

 "I am afraid I need to steal Nightscale to the side. I wanted to have a private conversation with him. I hope you enjoy your evening " 

"Uh ok..." He nodded, with a slightly puzzled expression. 

"Is it something we can discuss over a dance?" He offered with a soft smile. "I have been practicing, you know?" 

Luke saluted the newcomers with a bright smile and, when appropriate an enthusiastic handshake.

On 12/20/2023 at 4:30 AM, Electra said:

"That was a scary night," she agreed wholeheartedly, "but fortunately I recovered pretty quickly. I'm sorry I haven't really been able to work with the students at Claremont since then, but I've been keeping busy." She laughed and gave Basil a little bounce on her hip. The toddler, who had been watching Velocity with considering eyes, suddenly gave the group a shy smile before burying his face in Stesha's shoulder. "I suppose you might have graduated since then, what have you ba

 

"Yeah... It was f-" Language Luke. "I mean messed up. It's great to see you fine though... I mean..." He continued, joining Murine in her relief about the situation concluding for the best. 

"Merry Christmas, by the way. To you both... Hey... Nice to meet you..." He smiled softly at the toddler. 

On 12/19/2023 at 7:41 AM, The Sailor said:

"Mizuki if you will." She said. Not really latching on to the name, but then again... "But yeah... new person, old name. More given than taken."

"Luke here, aka Nightscale, friendly resident dragon" He introduced himself playfully. 

"First year at Claremont, right? How are things going there now that I have left?" He asked. "I mean, my bet is that it's much safer, but..." He teased, a smirk on his lips.

Luke saluted Bernadette and her band with few powerful "Wohooos...." 

"Why not both?" The nineteen-years old chuckled turning toward his flat-mate.

"I mean... We can grab a drink for the lead singer as well." He added playfully shortly thereafter. 

"You know what kind of poison she's havin'?" 

Fetching a drink was perhaps a bit slower than Luke had planned, crowded club after all in-between acts. But then again, once they were done a visit to the backstage was in order...

"Definitely... you just need to ask." Luke smiled at Owain. "Plus I mean... one of us here has actual wings... can't get better..." He chuckled. 

"Nah you'd be wasted wasted being a copper, you're too good for that." The young man objected, in truth, it was likely more of a prejudice on his part, still, despite being a superhero now, so in theory on the same side of the force, he had enough negative experience in his youth to color his perception.

Luke gulped another round of home-made rum, this time without pyrotecnics, when the subject of their conversation shifted to making money. 

"If you have the chance go for it... I bet you'd do great." He smiled encouragingly at Alice. "Superhero stuff will get to you anyway..." God if he knew... it almost felt like most times he want out to just hang out some supervillain was just behind the corner.

"I am just hustlin'" He replied, ruffling the hair on the back of his neck. 

"I wait tables at Tony's and I found a pretty good gig at the mall for Christmas." He continued, finishing his glass. "I mean it's a bit reavealing, but it pays well." 

"Plus I still got enough time for ... you know... Be Nightscale and all..." Yep and seeing his girlfriend, his family, his friends, admittedly he had sacrificed plenty of sleep recently, but in truth, he didn't really mind being busy.

"Not gonna be forever though..." Yet, it was not like he was swimming in job opportunities at the moment. "I am gonna apply at Claremont too... I mean, Coach definitely need some helps, with you poeple..." He grinned at Owain and Neko playfully.

I think that Luke isn't going to do much else than go and give Muirne an hug, sure it might not be tactically sound, but in his mind, with Cas gone the fight should be over soon. Plus... his girlfriend has been kidnapped\mind controller, that's his priority now. 

Perhaps he could notice that there is still something odd going on (if needed he has both Notice and Sense-motive at +10 with skill mastery), but I think that he might be acting impulsively and just ignore that.

Although... if Cas wasn't imprisoned in the tentacle, he would have used the occasion to throw him at one of the remaining fighters (scorpion maybe?) just for fun... Him being entangled prevents this, though? Right?

Luke grinned when he saw Shift suddenly appear. "F- Yeah." He kept the telepath tight, sure he could not stop him from using his powers, but he could make him an easier target for his robotic friend.

"Thanks..." He smiled at Shift. Now he certainly had many question for Shift, given that they had been away for so long, but those could wait, perhaps a bit longer.

When it felt like Cas was no longer a threat, the young man very unceremoniously tossed him aside like a sack of potatoes. After all, no matter what, he wasn't there for him. 

On 12/15/2023 at 9:28 PM, Kaede Kimura said:

She spoke up quietly, her voice sounding worn and tired, "Fýrdraca, please don't make me fight you. Just let him go." She spread her arms, like she wanted him to come give her a hug. 

"We don't need to fight... not anymore..." Now, perhaps with the corner of his eyes, he had noticed that whatever dark magic connected Sebastian with Muirne hadn't dissipated, but in truth, the nineteen years old had barely registered that.  He closed the distance between himself and Muirne and went to give her one of his trademarked bear-hugs (or dragon hugs perhaps?). 

"It's ok, you're safe now..." He smiled and his gaze went to met her own. "God if I missed you..." He continued softly.

Luke chugged the rest of his drink in one go and then started following the musical number, offering another "Whohooo..." At the appearance of the clones. 

He placed one arm on his friends' shoulder and playfully began chanting with the rest of the crowd, letting the vibes of the evening sink in. He could for sure use some distraction and there were definitely worst one than getting lost in the music during an evening spent with friends.

"Yeah absolutely nothing of note happened there..." Luke smirked. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas after all. 

"Don't worry man, I am sure you will find someone..." It was Owen to receive a playful nudge from the young man this time. 

"Let's start with your Uncle's poison... Wanna see if it's really that strong." Luke took a very generous sip, seemed unfazed for a moment, but then exhaled a small puff of flames.

"Woah..." He grinned. "Not bad... not at all..."

Cool

And no problem... I mean... I am not exactly a fast poster (understatement of the century)

Does Luke get anything useful from the knowledge check?

Well at least it did somethin'  

Was it good though? The young man wasn't sure.

"Well..." He ruffled the hair on the back of his neck. "This got us some time..." He winced turning to face Chimera. Admittedly he kinda expected for the mummies to like became giant after absorbing all the gold or something. 

Maybe he could try to bring those things to his lair... then again... the place had literal mountains of coins (plus it was kinda in his head, so having freakin' living dead roam around there wasn't perhaps the smartest plan).

"This is freakin' odd..." He continued. "Does... I mean... your 'friend' Blowfish, did he say something about what was gonna be on this damn ship?" He asked, perhaps there was like a magic gizmo that animated those creatures or something. 

As he spoke, he studied the mummies, trying his best to figure out if there was something he might have picked up in class that could help dealing with these things, that wasn't just trying to melt them with dragonfire, not exactly practical in an enclosed space.

"Hey guys?" He addressed the zombies. "Stop..."

22 hours ago, Kaede Kimura said:

"Thank you Fýrdraca, you look very handsome yourself." She looked pensively inside, "Let's hope that it goes more smoothly than our last outing with the Freedom League."

"Oh I am I aware..." Luke teased playfully. "...but that's just cause I feel great havin' you back." He grinned. 

"It's a superheroes party... So no way it's gonna be all smooth." He chuckled. "... still... yeah... a scrap with an eldritch abominations is definitely not what I have in mind for tonight." He smiled.

21 hours ago, Thevshi said:

A moment later Velocity came up to Luke and Muirne as they made their way inside, slowing down from a littler further away so she did not quite so suddenly appear.

"Nightscale, Shadowborne, good to see you both again. Welcome to Freedom Hall." She said in greeting with a wide smile.

 

Luke nodded and gave Velocity a bright smile and a confident handshake. "And It's a pleasure to be here. This is freakin' amazing, you know?" Of course she knew... but whatever. 

16 hours ago, Heritage said:

"Oh, nice to meet you! Grimalkin, Mistress of Mystery. Forgive me, I'm not familiar with your work; I don't follow younger heroes as well as I should."

"Nice to meet you Mistress of Mistery..." He replied warmly and offered to shake hands as well.  "Well I have mostly been sticking with my neighborhood, you know, Soutshide Dragon and all." He smiled. "Haven't yet got the chance to make the big news... Yet..." He added confidently. Not that he minded too much, although attention was not something he shunned, not being an household name yet afforded him some degree of freedom. "You were in the Interceptors right? Yeah when I was a kid... That's fu- I mean cool." 

"Well, we did manage to scare that thing off though, I'd say we didn't do that bad." He teased Muirne when she mentioned the little 'accident' while on patrol. It was definitely a day he would not forget, besides, he also got the chance to hang out with the only other dragon he knew... Speaking of which... He could swear that he had seen Tiamat somewhere around there..

His expression turned more serious when Shadorwborne began asking what happened to Fleur after that night. 

Luke warmly saluted the three newcomers as well, all hugs, smiles and high-fives.

20 hours ago, Kaede Kimura said:

"Hey Luke, it's been too long. Mostly just been the same old stuff. What about you?"

"Same old, same old... I mean... graduated, got my own place with Leon here..." He gave his flatmate a playful nudge. "Still doing dragon stuff of course." Well whatever that was, in truth he wasn't exactly sure. 

The young man smiled enthusiastically at the offer of booze. "Always..." He smirked. Although, after he gained his powers, the young man had started to require an ungodly amount of alcohol just to get high, 'strong enough to put Omega on his ass' sounded about right. "Love the challenge..." 

"Sure thing man." He nodded when Owain invited them. "How is school going since we left, you two?" He asked casually.

It has been a busy day for Luke, the morning has began early, he dashed out of the apartment that he shared with Leon to go waiting tables and serving coffees at a bar. Lunchtime with his family at the trailer park, helping dad with some repairs trailer with his super strength (when Gabriel, his little brother not yet in the known, wasn't looking). Most of the afternoon came and went with a second Christmas' hustle, this time being as a greeter at a local shop, a pretty successful one at that, perhaps due to the fact that his uniform there consisted of just festive red board-shorts and a Santa's hat. 

Now though, well, the time for working was over and the much awaited Christmas party was about to begin. Sure, the fact that it was his first year participating after he graduated from Claremont was somewhat exciting, but in truth, this was not what had sent his heart pounding. It had been a while in fact, since he has been able to spend some proper time with Muirne after all the shenanigans of the past year, and Luke was definitely looking forward to the occasion.

Of course he had volunteered go give her a ride for the evening, sure he had no car, but well, his wings could definitely carry them both. 

In fact, he had flown far above in the sky, with Muirne on his back, playing tricks and fooling around a bit among the clouds, his dragon head adorned with an oversize  Santa's  hat. When it was finally time to land in front of the party venue, the young dragon lowered his neck to allow his girlfriend to easily descend and than shifted back to his human form, now himself, thanks to being a shapeshifter, he rarely used a proper-superhero costume and so he had picked up a suit jacket, his best shirt and jeans, rather than his more informal usual attires.

Once he was adjusted to his human form, the young man turned toward his girl, smiling fondly and seeking to meet her gaze. "God, you if you are gorgeous..." He offer her a playful kiss on the lips and then his right arm so that the two could walk in together.

"Questionable legality... You say..." Luke grinned, stretching his arms as he kept basking in the sun, eyes closed and just vibing with the underlying music. 

On 12/11/2023 at 8:43 PM, Spacefurry said:

“Hold on tight.”

"Wh-"

In fact, the young man wasn't paying enough attention to the street to notice that there was someone waiting there and he quickly found himself having to brace tightly not to get catapulted out of the car when his friend hit the brakes. 

He gave Leon a puzzled look, but a glance at who sat at the side of the road quickly dispelled his questions.

"Hello boys..." The young woman smiled mischiviously. 

"Somehwere in between." She nodded.

"You two are life savers..." She leaned closer to gently pat Leon on his shoulder, seemingly caring little about the paper texture of his arm. 

Luke pretty much jumped down from the car with a fluid movement to help load the massive lugage in the Impala (and to show-off of course). She gently lead his hands to the handle, ostensibly to guide him due to its fragility, but at the same time giving him a gentle caress and a soft "Thank you...". 

"Ivy..." She introduced herself to Leon, lifting her sunglasses to let her bright green eyes meet with the ones of the young rogue. 

OOC - Feel free to write Ivy as well, do you think she should be an honey trap and maybe rob them or something, or perhaps there is some kind of trouble following her on the road that the boys finds themselves having to deal with?

Still slightly winded Luke had landed in a nearby alley, hopefully out of sight of the crowd.

He was a bit late, honestly speaking, but he had managed to find a somewhat decent gig serving tables at a local bar for the Christmas' season, it wasn't bad, well-off, but not too rich, neighbourhood with pretty decent tipsters who were definitely a blessing for his chronic lack of dollars (despite having millions in gold bars still slowly being distributed to the neighbourhood in his hoard). The shift, however, had extended well past what was originally planned, forcing him to try and catch up by navigating the city rooftops. His principles after all di prevent him from making money out of his powers, but at the same time they said nothing about using them not to be (too) late... 

A light hoodie and, a rarity for him, one with sleeves, was his own concession to the cold weather, with his enseble being compleated by an old Poets of the Falls T-shirt, jeans and his well worn, but trusty sneakers.

He had scanned the area from above not long before, to locate his friend among the festive market allowing him to reach Shooting Star with ease.  He saluted the fellow teenage hero with a wide grin, a big "Hey..." and one of his trademarked bear (dragon?) hugs. 

"It has been a while... how is it hangin'..." 

The nineteen years old joined the small crowd clapping at Owain display. "Bravo." He grinned and waved at the small group. 

Luke chuckled and shook his head.  "Thanks man..." 

He offered Bernadette a nod and a smile when her attention turned to them.

"Well... she did try to electrocute me, though..." He added with a playful grin, although to be honest that had been just a misunderstanding. "Admittedly I was playing the 'big angry lizard' card with some mobsters at the time..."

The young man saluted Bernadette apperance with a powerful "Wohoooo" And then joined his friend with a forceful whistle. 

Well Luke will go back to tracking the scent, he will skill mastery it at 20 as usual if he can\needs to roll

13 hours ago, Supercape said:

"You, young man, are about our best shot at finding what it is, and where it is."

 

August paused, raising an eyebrow in thought. "The real question is why it is... why here? why now? why the murders?"

"On it sir." Luke bowed his head lightly and smirked produly. In truth he hoped that he could still find the scent as whatever that thing was it certainly had some advantage on them by now. Still it was no reason not to try. 

"Yeah... besides, one escaped Bio-weapons is already strange, but two working together... it feels like somethin' in missing right?" He mused, perhaps the person behind their creation was the real mastermind or something. 

21 hours ago, Spacefurry said:

“I know when we’re just in the way.”

"Maybe..." Luke grinned. "But seriously though, it's much safer for you, we can tank and hit from those things and still get up after that..." Hopefully at least. Now he didn't have a particular liking for cops, but certainly he didn't want any to get in harm way if he could avoid that. 

Quote

"Yes, there is a prison. I almost died there," 

"You did?" Luke raised an eyebrow. "Woah sorry... must have sucked... I..." Well hismself he had experienced his own stint in juvie so yeah, not exactly the same though as he imagined that a prison that could contain a super-hero would be even nastier. 

"Anyway... Let's get her to a safe place yeah..." He nodded. 

The young man shook his head at Aquaria's challenging the killer, that said, who knew right? After all the monster craved for flesh, so perhaps it would not shy away from direct confrontation and actually come to them for a change.

When Luke finally burst into the room, following his friends and had the chance to take in the scene, the young man could do nothing, but starting to see red.

Muirne was there, which was a definitely relief , but the smile on his lips died down quickly, apparently Cas, had gotten into her head again, the idea itself was enough to fill Luke's young heart with rage. 

"Get the Hell out of her head." Nightscale half-shouted, half roared, ignoring everything else that was going on in the room, dashed past the group of fighters, the army of clones and the circles of runes almost if none of them were really there. 

He crashed into Cas, with all his weight, pinning the telepath against the floor and trapping him in an in a tight grip, unleashing a fury of punches and claws, that, although they had very limited impact on the man himself, at least proven to be somewhat cathartic.

Failed the first save for the aoe (by one) 19 But at least he got the second 28

EDIT: a minor thing that I thought, can Luke prevent Cas from talking as he is grappling him? I mean, if I remember well from previous encounters his powers are telepathic, but at least it might make it harder for him to coordiante his minions.

I think that in the end Nightscale is gonna charge Sebastian if he can or otherwise just move\jump at his position and claw him, hoping that if he disables him the mind control will end (hehe and being 'slightly' angry that he is getting into Miurne's head).

Note that if the runes do something that is magical to people that pass through them Luke is resistant to magic

He will use this:

Dragon Rage - Strength Attack (Extras: Autofire 1 [9 ranks] )

If he succeeds he will also use Improved Grab and try to tackle him.

To hit: 29! (nat 20!) 31 if he can charge (but he will get -2 defense).

That would be 24 base DC + 5 for crit + 1 for each 2 he managed to hit.

To grapple: 43! With another 20 lol 

hehe I imagine that seeing his girlfriend mind-controlled did a number on him