Avenger Assembled

Edge shook himself, dusting the cobwebs out of his brain as he said a silent prayer of thanks that he'd remembered to wear his vest that day. He shot a quick look at Wander, glad to see she was watchful, glanced at Phalanx to make sure he was reaching out to Psyche, and then joined Geckoman in jumping off the platform to speak to the technician. "Who are you people?" he asked firmly. "Where are we?" "Take it easy," Ted was saying, but his dark-haired colleague was evidently in charge. She was, at least, considerably less alarmed by this. Both Ted and his colleague were in faded fatigues that looked like they'd seen a lot of use, some of them even patched together from multiple outfits. On the wall was an American flag, where the sharp-eyed could make out there were only forty-eight stars. "Are you students from Claremont Academy?" she asked the four kids. "Do you know Hope Rogers?" On closer inspection, both she and Ted were armed, though Ted hadn't gone for the .45 strapped to his waist and she hadn't reached back for the M-1 Garand over her shoulder. Their weapons looked as used as they did, and on closer inspection all the science equipment around them looked battered and used too, almost as if it had all been scavenged together from multiple sources. "She's a friend of ours." Edge stared at the woman, trying to sort out what she was saying. "She was with us when this happened...and so were a lot of other people!" "There was another signal cross-hatched with ours!" said Ted, looking appalled. "It must have taken them, fractured the beam, um...they would have appeared together at the antipode! At the teleporter nearest the opposite side of the Earth from here! Oh, Lord..."

Breakdown opened his ears to music and was surprised to find the sky nearly empty. They were clearly nowhere near a major city, assuming they were in a place where radio traffic was anything like what he was familiar with. He did eventually find a signal in a language he recognized as Japanese, especially once a little help from the magic of the dance translated the words for him. Playing it back for everyone else gave Eddie and the others who could speak Japanese a disturbing message in a gruff male voice, speaking at a shout at every word A strange song began to play then, one only vaguely familiar to the Americans there, a harsh, military band behind it. Eddie recognized the name of Kaiju Island right enough, the island in the South Pacific that was home to Gigantosaur and the other "kaiju" that were such a big feature of Japanese (and thus anime) popular culture. The last he'd heard, this island was a UN enviromental protectorate, but...things were very different here. Wherever they were. Meanwhile, Psyche heard a voice in her heard as she extended her senses. It was Phalanx: "Are you ok? Mark, Erin, Chris and I are in some wierd little room with a couple people I think they are responsible for this." Her words were enough to calm down Hope, who like of the others had been distracted by a distant, massive roar from the jungle where a massive shape could be seen moving far off up the side of a nearby volcano, an indistinct form obscured by the heavy tree cover moving slowly and deliberately.

Mark smiled. "That sounds great, Alex, and like a useful job to boot. Being a hero is about what's on the inside, not the powers you've got. I'm sure you'd be helping others whatever abilities you had." Traffic was fairly heavy this late in the day, but Mark's good luck meant they could easily pass back and forth in the spaces between blockages, easily making their way into the heart of the downtown. He'd turned on the radio by now, a cheesy pop song providing a quiet counterpoint to their conversation as they made their way into a parking garage near the museum.

thumbs up on the Mario cape It seems like the easiest solution would be to break down all the powers you want from the equipment into individual pieces. i.e.; a Gliding cape would be fine, a deflect/shield incorporated into your costume would be fine, and the like. It's the idea of putting it all in a cape as equipment that seems dicey.

"I have," Mark agreed. "I mean, there's really nothing better if you've got powers. I don't think I could ever just be a stockbroker or a gambler, or whatever I'd be able to do with my powers. If you've got some special talent, you should do everything you can with it to make a better life for everyone else. Being lucky shouldn't mean your life is easy. If you don't have to work hard for yourself, you should work hard for other people." He nodded at what was evidently a simple truth to him. "If I hadn't developed powers, I think I'd have been a police officer or a firefighter, or an adventurer like my dad. How about you?"

You can indeed! (It may save our bacon.)

Date: August 5th, 2009 Darian Cale was in the middle of an important scientific activity (eating lunch) when his communicator rang. He was a little surprised to hear the voice of his science teacher, Ms. Harcourt, and to hear the urgency in her voice. "Darian, this is Ms. Harcourt. I need you to come meet me in the cafeteria as quickly as possible. We have a science emergency here and you're the only one of my special students I can find. Bring your equipment with you." Across town at about the same time. Dr. Archeville's computer received an emergency message from one of his contacts in the scientific community: "Dr. Archeville, this is Stephanie Harcourt at Claremont Academy. We have a scientific emergency here and most of my usual colleagues and students are away for summer vacation. Your assistance here would be very much appreciated. Bring any equipment you feel will be necessary, and I'll see that we provide the rest."

This is the OOC thread for Doctor Archeville and Quark helping rescue the kids stranded by the teleporter accident.

A flash of light erupted from the cafeteria ceiling, bathing the Claremont students in a wash of pure energy as they were pulled away from their seats into another place. Erin, Mike, Mark, and Chris landed on their feet, nearly falling over as the chairs beneath them vanished and they landed with a hard impact on a solid surface a few feet beneath them. They were in a small, battered room stuffed practically to the gills with glowing super-science equipment, a man and a woman standing at a panel on the wall pulling back their goggles with shocked looks on their faces. "Oh, Lord, we got the wrong ones!" called the dark-haired woman. "Ted, quick, reverse it!" "I...I can't!" he called back, a shocked look on his face as the Claremont kids gathered their wits. "Taking this many burned out the dimensional modulator! We're going to have to get another one!"

This is the OOC thread for Edge, Wander, Phalanx, and Geckoman on Erde. Everyone take an HP for the Fiat Dimensional movement.

Go ahead and post. Gimmie a Notice check while you're at it; along with a Physical Sciences, Current Events or Pop Culture check while you're at it.

The sky overhead was a gorgeous shade of impossibly clear blue, the sandy beach beneath their feet a gorgeous, luscious white that spoke of unspoiled beauty and splendor. From the incredibly lush tropical jungle behind them, the sound of tens of thousands of animals came in a symphony of natural wonders. Behind the trees, volcanic peaks rose high into the sky like hands of the Earth reaching up to touch the heavens themselves. It would all have been really wonderful if they'd arrived under other circumstances. "Oh God! Oh God!" Hope had gone for her pistol the second the beam of light had come crashing down from the ceiling, carrying them all away to this bizarre new place. Looking around, the Young Freedom members on the beach could see Agent H, Psyche, Breakdown, and Hellion, but there was no sign of any other members of their team. They'd taken with them only what they'd had in their hands or been carrying; the table and chairs they'd been sitting in having been left far behind. An exceedingly large crab scuttled by them, evidently attracted by the noise, a coconut in its weighty claws.

This is the thread for Agent H, Hellion, Breakdown, and Psyche's visit to Erde. Everyone take an HP for the Fiat Dimensional Movement. :)

"I'm not sure I'd exactly fit in with some of these kids," muttered Hope to Erin. She was polite enough, after several months at Claremont, not to glare at any of the students to whom she was referring. But having worked with her a couple of times, Erin had a pretty good idea. Hope was a volatile girl, a veteran of bloody battles in her home dimension, and wasn't the most sociable of sorts at the best of times. But everyone there liked free food and good company, and they avoided any arguments as they ate. She gave James a speculative look as she ate, opting not to say anything. She was clearly sizing him up, but with Hope it was always hard to tell what she was sizing you up for. "Glad you could join us, James," said Mark with a half-teasing glance at Hellion. Mark was pretty easy-going when it came to, well, most everything, but he wasn't so even-handed as to not be a little annoyed when his colleagues didn't show up. Still, as was usual when Mark was irritated about something, the moment passed very quickly. Hey, it wasn't like he'd paid any money out of pocket for the pizza. "Come up and pull up a chair. And the pizza's free; it's on the school's dime. And we'll meet in our lair when we get a lair," he said to Alex with a wry smile. "Right now this is as close as we're going to get to some real action." Later, Edge would curse himself. Probability controllers shouldn't say things like that. - Up on the roof, Gravity Master was beginning to panic as his teleporter began growing brighter and brighter. "No, no, this isn't right! Someone's trying to tap into my signal!" His fingers flew frantically over the machine, trying to dim the growing cycle of its activation, but ultimately his youthful bravado failed him as it became more and more clear that the machine he'd built was going haywire. Yelping in fear, Lawrence Smalls hastily reprogrammed his gravity belt and flew away as fast as his device could carry him, a moment before the teleporter erupted in a flash of light and sent a wall of energy cascading down into the cafeteria, completely enveloping the table where the various Young Freedom member sat!

Hooray! D-A has cleared up our conundrum. That's why they pay him the big money. (That noise you hear is his laughter. ) OK, so Dark Star is bruised only and it is Captain Knieval's turn to act. Do I understand you right, that your action is to attempt to run towards the front of the courthouse? Nothing's changed in the other direction except for the arrival of Dark Star and the Vestige. I'm not going to tell you how far you can get, because your character wouldn't have that knowledge. :)

"I guess it would be too obvious to say I'm just lucky," said Mark with a shrug. "Current theory is, it has something to do with all the radiation and magic my father and grandfather soaked up over the years. I mean, Granddad once got vaporized by Superior before Centurion and his genie flew back in time to rescue him, and even my dad couldn't tell you all the stuff he picked up when he was on the Freedom League." There was not a trace of doubt in Mark's mind that either of those stories, both implausible in their own way, were perfectly true. "So my genes have been messed with a lot. Terminus Invasion, huh?" He shook his head. "I was just a baby when that happened. When the Omegadrones appeared in our neighborhood, my mom grabbed me and ran out of the house till she found the old bomb shelter in the church in our neighborhood. My dad went into the city to help fight. He was one of the last couple of people to see the Centurion alive." Mark blinked, then looked her date's way. "Sorry, I guess that's something I think about, even though I don't remember it at all. The Invasion wound up being one of the defining moments of my childhood. Same it was was for everyone else our age. I've been at Claremont since I was thirteen, as soon as I was old enough. My dad knew Mr. Summers from old times, and he made sure I got in."

"That's pretty rough," agreed Mark. "Poor Mike. I guess that explains why he's so down on himself." He frowned briefly, then brightened. "Well, I'm sure being at Claremont will help him out. He's got good friends, and good teachers too." He liked Mike well enough, but on their date he was hoping to talk more about himself and Alex. "When my powers first appeared, I made the cafeteria ceiling fall in on Sloth when he was trying to smack me around. He was okay, though, just really pissed. Too bad he couldn't do anything about it." He grinned. "That was back when there were still a lot of non-powered kids in Claremont. My parents knew I was going to have powers because I'd tested positive for one of the meta-genes, so they sent me off to school to see what would happen there. And eventually, when I was under the right stress, my powers did show up. That was pretty sweet, I've gotta say. Claremont's a great place to have powers."

OK, Dark Star is bruised and injured (assuming Avalon was doing lethal.) Captain K is up.

Mark frowned just a little, listening to Alex's story and not really understanding it. "Alex, can you clear something up for me? I know this is a personal question, so if you don't want to answer it, that's okay." She saw his brow furrow in thought before he asked with simple honesty, "Why didn't your parents just go to the Freedom League for help? I mean, I don't know anything about Mike's family, but I know your mom knew a lot of superheroes. I know the League has stuff that helps control powers when they go crazy. I mean, my dad's still got the old power nullifier they used on Blackthorn on his desk. Was she really that uncomfortable with superheroes?" He looked a little embarrassed to have asked, but the question had evidently been weighing on him.

"Oh, this is your first date-date?" He looked her over as she sat down, thinking about that. "Well, I'll have to make sure it's a memorable experience for both of us." He laughed a little as they pulled out of the spot, heading away into the evening together. "I'm surprised you haven't been on a date before," he said with a light tease in his voice. "I'd have thought someone like you would have had the guys hanging around before. I'll have to make sure I'm worthy of the honor. What do you like on the radio?" he asked.

I'd be more comfortable if you bought something like "Penetrating on your unarmed damage". It seems less clunky and more balanced.

I don't really have a problem with how things are currently set up. You get sixty points to sink into the PC being upgraded, it's not as if you can't just buy back whatever it is you gained as a PL 6. That said, I do admit it's a kludge. (But that's OK; a lot of our rules are that way! There's nothing wrong with setting things up to avoid particular outcomes )The big thing is, I'm not really comfortable with the idea of characters jumping from PL 7-8 up to 11-12. Particularly with the Claremont kids, but with street-level heroes as well, that just raises some really awkward, not-good-for-the-setting questions that are best left avoided. ("Elite! You just went from PL 8 to PL 12 in a week and a half! How did you do that?" "I did a lot of steroids!") See, it just opens too many questions.

"I don't think I'd want to go to a club," said Mark doubtfully. "I know the one where Eddie works lets in kids under twenty-one, but I think that would be like drinking diluted root beer." He grinned as they reached the car. "I think the best places to go for dates is wherever the two people on the date want to go. Whether that's the museum, a club, or anywhere else." He could tell she was a little nervous, and wanted to make sure she was at ease so they could both have fun. So he opened the door for her when they got there, reaching in from the driver's seat to unlock it for her. "We're gonna have a great time tonight," he promised.

"Well, all of it," said Mark with a smile. "I love that place; I've been going there since before I could walk. My dad wanted me to know that the people I'd grown up with weren't just my honorary uncles and aunts, they were heroes who'd saved the world a dozen times over." He smiled, ducking his head a little. "But I know most people aren't as into that stuff as I am, so it's okay if you just want to see a little of it. Not everyone's a hero-nerd like I am." He squeezed her hand as they undertook the short walk to the student parking lot. "As for the car, it's the gentlemanly thing for the guy to drive the first time," he said with a confident smile.

"That's right," Mark agreed, "today we're riding in style courtesy of my family's Ford." As they left her front door, Mark took a chance and reached down to take her hand. When she didn't pull away, he repressed an even bigger smile. This was going to be a good night. "I know we could do a lot better than an Escort, but my dad's pretty old-fashioned. Sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes that's a bad thing." He smiled, giving a friendly wave to Magni as they passed him on the stairs. "You know how it is with parents."