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Raveled

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  1. Blue Jay Oni Oh No! Miras Heatwave The New White Knights Corona Chrome June Vignette The Slow Roll Brigandine Nowhere Noone Nohow GM Crystal History
  2. Raveled

    The Slow Roll

    Warren made a sound as Mona impacted with him and they fell to the ground in a tangle of arms. He tried to sit up, realized it would mean crushing Mona, and fell back on the ground instead. Mona certainly seemed to do everything at breakneck speed, but he was still surprised that she would go so fast to wanting to introduce him to family! "Sure, I'd like to meet your grandma." If she was anything like Mona... "Is she more like you or, uh, more like your brother?"
  3. Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility Leavenworth, Kansas Marie Locke waited in the meeting room. She had waited for the guards to confirm who she was; she had waited for the airline flight from Freedom City; she had waited for the lawyer to draw up the papers. Through the whole thing she had waited patiently but now, here, at the finish line she found herself drumming her fingers impatiently. For whatever reason the closer she got to her husband, the more nervous energy she had to contend with. And as if thinking about him had summoned him, Anthony entered the room with a guard at either shoulder. He still walked with the easy, rolling gait of a man who owned the entire world even as he was dressed in prison orange, and Marie felt her old affection for him even now. She kept her face blank as he was sat down across from her, though, and as the guards moved back to the doors. He smiled at her and reached out for her hands; she didn't stop him but didn't respond when he squeezed her fingers. "Hey Marie. It's good to see you. I, uh, was hoping Warren would come with you." Marie's lips were suddenly dry and she had to swallow before speaking. "I thought that he shouldn't see what we're going to do here." She freed her hands and pulled out the stack of legal papers from the manila envelope in her lap, sliding them over to Anthony. "I came down here... because I want a divorce." Anthony stared for a moment, speechless, before he picked up the stack of legal documents and started flipping through them. Marie watched his eyes flick from place to place as his gaze washed over them, though she was sure he wasn't reading them fully. "I... you don't want to be with me anymore? But, Marie..." He trailed off without asking the why. The why was obvious, was hovering over the entire conversation like a great, gleaming elephant. Anthony had broken the law, stolen from the government, and endangered their family to try and save their son. It had gone about as well as anyone could expect it to go, but the fact was he had broken so many laws and endangered their child. The why couldn't be more obvious if they were still standing in that hospital room. Anthony turned through the document again, more slowly this time. "I thought that maybe you might wait for me, Marie. When I get out --" "When?" Marie's voice was full of venom and tense anger as she cut him off. "Anthony, you committed treason. You stole from ASTRO Labs and AEGIS and endangered God knows how many people with that damn vial of -- of alien goo! Do you still believe you're going to get out at any point? You'll be lucky if they don't -- they don't." Marie's voice shook with sudden emotion and she swallowed past it. "If they don't kill you, you're going to be in prison for the rest of your life. And I... cannot deal with that. I am still trying to raise our child and I can't do that if I'm married to a, a traitor." Anthony dropped the papers on the table and gripped the plastic surface hard, his knuckles going white. "I served all over the world. I know I wasn't there for a lot of Warren's life, but I sacrificed everything, everything, to save him. He would be dead in a couple years if it hadn't been for me!" "Yes, Anthony," Marie replied harshly. "You were gone for years. I raised Warren myself, alone, for years. I took him to the hospital myself. I measured out his pills myself. I took him to physical therapy myself. And I managed to do it because I said to myself that you were away protecting the world, trying to make some part of it better. Then... I got a call saying that you stole from AEGIS, that you were racing through the city with some godforsaken alien technology and shooting people!" "Never shot anyone," Anthony muttered to himself. "Just... threatened them." "Goddammit Anthony, listen to me!" Marie slapped her hands on the table, surprising even herself with the noise. "I saw our child wasting away every single day for fifteen years! And I got through it because I thought I had a partner, that I had someone who loved me and would get me through it. But then you go off on a half-cocked plan that could have killed Warren, could have destroyed the whole city! And you never even breathed a word of it to me! You could have killed absolutely everyone, and you never thought to tell your wife!? Anthony, was I ever your partner, or was I just another secretary, another subordinate doing some job you didn't have the time to do yourself?" Anthony kept his eyes on the divorce papers, his voice still low and almost under his breath. "I thought I would protect you, from the blowback. If you didn't know, they wouldn't arrest you..." "Protect me? You do not get to protect me from this! Enemies foreign and domestic, okay. Foreclosure and bankruptcy, yes. A, a, a mad dog when we're on a walk? Good! Protect me from those! But this -- Anthony, you exposed our son to god knows what and you did it without ever asking me. I can't forgive that, and I can't live with the man who did it." Marie wiped at the corner of her eyes, surprised to find tears there. "I need to have someone in my life who respects my opinions and won't... Won't sideline me in literally world-changing events! You have no idea what would happen!" Anthony raised his eyes for the first time since he'd seen the divorce papers. "Someone in your life? Is there... are you seeing someone?" Marie laughed, the sound harsh and flat. "Between AEGIS questions and getting Warren settled in at Claremont and avoiding the press and seeing my therapist -- Anthony I feel like I've barely slept in the past three months. You want to know if I've been 'seeing' someone? Okay, fine: no. I've been faithful to you through this whole... mess. But I can't anymore, Anthony. I want you to let me go, I want to do with quietly and painlessly, but if I need to I'll take it to court." Marie fell silent and the silence stretched between them for long minutes. Finally she stood up, stepping away from the plastic table. "My lawyer's card is on the last page. Cal him if you want to talk." ------- Some days Marie was sitting in her clean ranch house in a Bayview subdivision, looking at the papers. Anthony's signature and initials were on all the right places. She noted, distantly, that it was all dated just two days after her visit and thanked him, silently, for not dragging it out. Now she just had to learn what it was like to be single again in her forties.
  4. Technically speaking you could build the Unkindness and Talon as Alternate Powers of a general Raven Vehicles array; that would give you the chance to give him a more rounded option of Car, Bike, Plane, and Sub. Same thing with the Rookery, have a lot of EP invested in the main one and then AP to have a couple of sub-bases elsewhere. Or even buy Benefit (Local Bases) to represent always having a stash of equipment no matter where Alek goes. For grapnel, consider Slow Fall. Something to let him arrest a long fall.
  5. I'm going to be out of town most of the coming week, from July 1 through July 6. My posting that week is going to be spotty.
  6. Scion, I think it's time for the bouncers to show up. If anyone wants to toss this guy out, Miras will turn the magic off.
  7. "... So since I had the weekend free and this whole party thing was happening, I figured it was the Prophet giving me a message and booked a flight." Aydin sipped at his setzer water, while Miras could only stare. "It's really good to see you again, big sis. In the flesh, I mean. You've been gone for a long time." She shook her head slowly, still trying to process what was happening to her. "I hurt Mom and Dad pretty bad, Aydin. I spent all of my college money and a good bit of their retirement money on drugs. I did.. I did a lot of things that I'm not proud of, things that I still have problems facing. I don't know if they'd want me to come back." He reached across the table and squeezed Asli's hand. "It's been a long time, Asli. I think they're ready to forgive you." She felt a lump in her stomach and she had to swallow. "I mean... Dammit, Aydin, your timing really sucks." She glanced up on-stage, checking the time. "I've got to get on stage, but stick around! We're going to talk about this more.. little brother." She climbed on stage and brushed back her hair, and in a moment she was DJ Eclectic. She stepped behind the mix table and began ramping up a beat, letting the bass carry the crowd. Before long she had the dance floor full of twisting, bumping bodies and she was feeling in her groove. She glanced up from the mix table and spotted a man making his way through the crowd. Time seemed to slow down as instinct took over; she saw his muscles, his shaved head, his white shirt, and the bloody meat in his hands. The magus considered her options, took a breath, and quickly summoned a cage of smoke and air to contain the man. She couldn't take the chance of being video-taped slinging spells on stage, though; she took a moment's more effort to weave the spell's motions into her mixing and an impromptu dance behind the table.
  8. Miras is going to use Snare on the guy coming up to her. A roll of 5 means she has 15 to hit, which is garbage, so she'll spend a HP to reroll. That gives her ANOTHER 5, which at least adds another 10 to it, so a total of 25 to hit that guy with a DC 20 Snare. At the same time she's going to make a Bluff check to make the magic seem like part of her set. A roll of 17 + 12 means Bluff result of 29.
  9. Miras's djinn heritage hasn't really been working into stories so I think it's time to get away from it. That means she'll have to be reworked a bit to be more speed/time focused. Let's see what we can do. Powers: 1 + 10 + 26 + 6 + 2 + 14 = 59PP All powers have the Magic descriptor Enhanced Feat 1 (Quick Change) (Magician's Robes) [1PP] Force Field 10 (Time) (Slow the Blow) [10PP] Offensive Array 11.5 (23 PP, Feats: Alternate Power 3) [26PP] BE: Blast 10 (Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2 [DAM 10]) (Stopped All the Clocks) [23/23PP] AP: Paralyze 10 (Extra: Range [Ranged], Flaw: Action/Full) (Stop Their Clock) [20/23PP] AP: Drain 10 (Toughness, Feat: Incurable, Reversible, Extra: Range [Ranged]) (Micro-Aging) [22/23PP] AP: Strike 10 (Feats: Accurate 3, Extra: Autofire [10]) (Punched Their Clock) [23/23PP] Super Senses 6 (Magic Awareness [Olfactory, Tactile]) [6PP] Super Senses 2 (+Ranged on Magic Awareness) [2PP] Working of Deosil 6.5 (13PP, Feat: Alternate Power) (Time) [14PP] BE: Speed 6 (500 MPH, Extra: Linked [+0] [Super-Movement, Super-Movement]) + Super-Movement 2 (Permeate 2, Extra: Linked [+0] [Speed, Super-Movement]) + Super-Movement 3 (Wall-Climbing 2, Water-Walking, Extra: Linked [+0] [Speed, Super-Movement], Flaw: Limited [Only When Moving]) (In the Blink of An Eye) [13/13PP] AP: Healing 3 (Extras: Action/Standard, Affects Objects [+1], Feat: Stabilize) (Reverse the Flow) [13/13PP]
  10. We'll say Sun Walker can just do that.
  11. Judex loses nothing.
  12. I didn't really intend for everyone to do it... Miras is using Skill Mastery on Notice for 22.
  13. Asli moved through the crowd, shaking hands and taking selfies and signing memorabilia. Some people offered her a drink or a joint or something like that but she always declined. Being a music star was a bit like being a politician, she knew, and right now she was just glad handing her fans. Some people might see it as dishonest, but she enjoyed meeting all of her diverse fans. Many of the people crowding into the pub were self-modified in some way, mostly by piercing and tattoos but she saw one man by the wall with pebbly-looking skin that probably cost a few thousand dollars to achieve. And then there were people like the next man, who was just standing there in a dark jacket. In fact he looked familiar... He reached out to take Asli's hand and she froze in a shock of recognition. "Big sis with nothing to say. That's a first. You're not even going to say hello to your little brother?" Asli wheezed like she had been punched in the gut. "Aydin? Wh -- what are you doing here? How are you here? How did you find this place!" He shrugged, outwardly diffident but smiling broadly. "You're Asli Sadik. DJ Eclectic. Every time someone wants to talk about a Turk made good your name gets brought up. You're famous, sis!" He paused, more holding her hand than shaking. "Are you just going to stand there? I expected, I dunno, a hug or something."
  14. Raveled

    The Slow Roll

    Warren was shocked when she disappeared, and was left gaping and blinking until she suddenly reappeared again. He could 'see' her standing behind him, picking her up with his RADAR, but he still had to suppress the instinct to turn and face her; it was still awkward to have a conversation with someone who was behind his back. "I don't think that's true," he said. "You are smart, and you're brave, and you are really fast too but you're also really clever. I like that you know what to get and you just go and... get it." Warren's words petered out slowly. He was just a teenager, with a lot less life experience than even most other teenagers. "I... I didn't have a chance to see a lot of places when I was growing up, but you've been everywhere. Like, in the whole word. I think that's really cool." He paused, and let his hands fall to his side. "And I don't know what other people think, but I do think you're cool." He reached a hand behind himself; he didn't take Mona's hand, but just reached out towards her.
  15. Happy birthday, Bluefish. I wish you were still around.
  16. Asli Sadik moved through the crowd, shaking hands and laughing with the assembled hip hop fans. She was dressed in her usual heavy clothes, a distinct contrast to the brief outfits most of the bar was wearing, but she had accessorized with a sparkly gray-white scarf, which sat on top of her jacket. It was a little thing, but it was emblematic of why everyone was here. "DJ!" A yell brought her over to one table where a knot of young people with dark skin were waiting for the concert to begin. The young man who had called out to her had a large gold stud on one ear and a GWAR tee-shirt, but he was hardly the most outrageous dressed person in the room. "DJ Eclectic, it's such a great thing to see you out here. I loved your March on East Coast album! Do you think you could, uh." He fumbled in his jacket pocket and brought out a CD case with a younger Asli on it, posed with her foot descending on the Capitol building. Inwardly Asli winced to see her punkier stuff brought out but she was a performer, after all. "Always happy to meet a fan," she said, grabbing one of the gel pens in her pocket. It wasn't the usual black markers normally used to sign things. For tonight only she had gel pens of the same sparkly gray-white as her scarf, and she signed across the surface of the jewel case with a flourish. "Keep up with the beat!" she said and pressed the case back into the man's hand before moving on.
  17. Tag. And science. Results 10#1d20: 10 # 5 [1d20=5] 5 [1d20=5] 17 [1d20=17] 2 [1d20=2] 20 [1d20=20] 1 [1d20=1] 17 [1d20=17] 4 [1d20=4] 20 [1d20=20] 16 [1d20=16]
  18. How much damage are we allowed to do to Scion's bar?
  19. "The Park"? It could be a park concert, or it could be in a bar or club in Greenbank. That leads to more confined spaces, opportunities for civvies in danger or collapsing... things. A park is pretty open.
  20. "People disappearing is a thing that happens, Sam," Tona grumbled. "And laser-raptors or whatever wouldn't be the weirdest thing you or I have ever seen. Probably not even in the top ten." She scrolled quickly through the top headline but there was nothing that caught her eye there; mostly it was talking about weird encounters in the hills and forests around the town, and Tona already knew what that was about. "If something like this gives us a leg up, shouldn't we use it?" Any further debate was stalled as a truck just in front of the store started honking, its horn strident and overpowering. It was an armored truck of the sort used to move money around, and directly in front of it was a white panel van. The traffic light was green but the van wasn't moving, and in fact Tona couldn't see a driver or passenger in the white van at all. Before anyone could investigate, the back of the van opened and there was a sudden flash of blue light. When the light faded, the front of the armored truck had been flattened against the ground like it was a clay model someone didn't like. The sides of the van opened up and three people got out. Each one was wearing a dark pull-over, track pants, and colorful masks that could have been made in Jadetown. Each one was also armed with an elaborate, decorated weapon; one with a sword made to look like the blade was erupting into fire, another with a musket crafted to be a dragon's maw, and the last carrying a huge hammer with the head fashioned in the style of a falling meteor. The civilians started screaming and moving away from the area while gun-demon and hammer-man stood on either side of the road. Meanwhile, the sword-user stalked to the back of the armored car and touched the blade of the sword to the door's locks. Sparks began spraying from the point of contact like it was a cutting torch!
  21. Raveled

    The Slow Roll

    Warren smiled at Mona's sudden impertinent moment, a flash of white teeth. "Man, that sounds amazing. Just running off to China -- because." He turned towards Mona, putting a hand on either of her shoulders. "Mona, I... I would like to see those places. They sound like a lot of fun. But I asked you here because I wanted to be with you. I..." He licked his lips. He was tense and anxious all of a sudden, like this moment was made of precious crystal, like if he said the wrong thing it would shatter and he'd be back in bed or something. "I asked you out here because I want you to know that I want to spend time with you. I don't want to go to exotic places because you can take me there. I want to be somewhere where you are, because you want to be there with me."
  22. Raveled

    The Slow Roll

    For some reason that statement struck Warren as unbelievably funny. He doubled over in silent laughter, doing his bed to hold in his mirth; he had a feeling that the museum staff wouldn't care for kids coming in just to laugh at the exhibits. "It, uh, yeah, it does kind of look like a pasta dinner." A wobbly smile spread across his face and he glanced over to the side to see a docent giving the pair of kids a hard look. "We should, uh, probably move on." He grabbed Mona's hand and hustled her away from the double-story structure. There was a gallery of paintings just off the main hall that was almost deserted on this lovely day, giving the pair of them plenty of privacy. The works themselves were an eclectic mix of styles; Warren found himself most drawn to a few that were nothing more concrete than splashes of color on white canvas with suggestions of motion. Mostly, though, he was focused on talking with Mona. "I was surprised you wanted to go to a museum," he said. "I didn't think this sort of thing would be up your alley. I thought, like, you'd suggest checking out the Great Wall of China or something."
  23. The solo slowed, faded, and Asli swayed back up to the microphone to begin the next verse. As she opened her mouth and began to vocalize, though, there was a sudden pop from the mixing board, loud enough to echo in the room. A moment later it came again, then the lights cut out and the room was plunged into darkness. The recording studio went dark, too, and with the thick glass and padded doors Asli couldn't ever hear what was going on. Joe could hear inquisitive tones beyond the door. "Did the lights go out?" "Hey! Who blew the circuit breaker?" "It wasn't me, I was doing acoustic. Who's in the studio?" "It's not just our building, I just saw lights across the street go out. Hey, the street light's out, too! The whole block's dark!" The heavy door to the studio opened and Asli crept out, her hands stuck in front of her to avoid running into anything. "Joe? Cyril? What happened? Where are the lights?"
  24. The pair of heroes exited the way they came in, cutting a wide berth around the Campbell estate before cutting back west above Hanover. They landed in HIT and easily got access to one of the upper-level labs; the university was quite used to superheroes showing up with something that needed to be examined or analyzed. Terrifica quickly determined that the crystals on the edge of the bathtub were the same sort and same color as the ones that Arthur Campbell had recorded in his notes. The real surprised came when they opened the box. The dinosaur wasn't inside -- instead there was an egg of pure, deep purple crystal! It exactly fit the dimensions in Arthur Campbell's notes, and after chipping a tiny piece off Terrifica was able to examine it and see the same sort of hard angles in the crystalline structure. It seemed that for whatever reason, the dinosaur was able to turn at least the dripping water in Campbell's old bathtub into the same material as itself, and had reverted to some egg-state when placed inside the box.
  25. Miras is going to get roll a 19 when she sings, for a 39! She's doing fantastic!
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