Ari

GM Blackstaff Checking through the binoculars, the captain nodded as he caught sight of what Christopher had seen. "Ah! The Shadowcaster, our local superyacht. Sorry, Mr. Daye!" All smiles, the clean-shaven young man was at least apologetic, "We're on the clock, and according to the radio it's already gotten the attention of the Coast Guard." His smile soured, just a little, "No need for us to get involved, and especially not for you to meet the rotten little twerps the Shadowcaster hauls around." The venom in his voice all but said that he had, and he regretted the experience. His earlier cheer soon returned, however, and as the 3QH rocketed towards the dive site he regaled Blackstaff with stories of other, much less hateful encounters with pleasure ships at sea. All too soon they arrived, and Christopher was being expertly fitted into the impressively sleek and autonomous diving suit prepared for the operation. "Agents Mariner and Torch will wait up here," the captain said, indicating the towering, glowering hulk of a man in a blue uniform with sharp teeth and gills, and a stout woman in a red uniform with glowing red veins and eyes like the heart of the Sun, "they're security in case the negotiations go wrong. Press that button on your left wrist if they do, and we'll haul you to the surface and send the Agents to make sure nothing survives to follow you. The temple should be directly below us, according to the sonar, but it's quiet. Be ready for anything. Good luck, Mr. Daye!" Those words, a tip over the side, and Christopher was falling into darkness and cold... Captain Cosmos Descending from the cold of the upper air, Captain Cosmos was soon faced with the black-hulled and imposing grandeur of the good ship Shadowcaster, its signal flares burning and pluming merrily away. The decks were milling with loud, angry teenagers in various genres of summer clothes arguing furiously with each other, though few were bothered enough to move from the deck chairs or pools or where they'd leaned against the gunwales (the wall things surrounding the decks). Even the arrival of the mighty Captain Cosmos was barely enough to catch anyone's attention, most of the passengers content to glance at him sullenly. The harried and nervous crew, for their part, seemed to scarcely dare turn away from their constant work cleaning up spills, broken things and hurrying to and fro with drinks. Fortunately, one of them shouted "Hey, CHUCK! There's a cape here!" at the stairs leading down into the ship's lower decks, drawing out a smooth and polished valet of some unguessable age and origin, who pierced Buddy Brand with a gimlet grey eye and swiftly brought the dauntless dimensional deliverer up to speed. On a whirlwind tour, Buddy found that the engine was shockingly busted, apparently from some juvenile prank, and that hours before that some of the teens had tipped the emergency helicopter into the ocean. They had steering, communication, everything but the power to move against the waves. A rescue tug was headed their way, but what was really needed was someone who could head off further damage, and keep some kind of order among the passengers. "The parents of my young masters have expressly forbidden me from interfering with them," he said crisply, "but I'm unaware of any agreement on your part against laying hands on these priceless treasures." A scuffle and thud of feet overhead drew a slow, weary look from Charles' face, a calm "Ah, another bare-knuckle brawl," and as the noises grew louder he looked at Captain Cosmos in silent, but desperate appeal...

Hooray for double-checking rules! There are a heck of a lot of them. I had to check my own physical copy of the Core Rules several times while making this post. Alright, let's see if Lady Luck is playing faves or what, DC30 Toughness check: 12! Holy Jeeves, let's use a Hero Point to re-roll: 18! But wait, that's a roll of 10, which is less than 11! Which means a 10 is added, for a result of 28! A Bruise(+Injury if Lethal Damage is being applied in this simulation)! That puts me at 1HP, for bookkeeping's sake. On his turn again, Rainshadow will attempt a stratagem: Stunt Teleport 1 (Extras: Accurate; Flaws: Short-Range Only; Feats: Change Direction, Change Velocity, Easy, Turnabout)[6PP], for a 1 Fatigue Condition, then attempt to escape via Teleportation(in the fiction, the idea is he builds up the air pressure change that lets him fly and releases it as a burst to shunt a short distance away). According to the House Rules, that's a DC20 Concentration check: 16! Aw shizno. Welp, rerolling: 15, from a roll of 5, so +10 again for 25! Out of the Grapple and immediate peril of being instantly squished! By gum, and I thought that buying +10 Concentration would be useful for just such an occasion. I guess there are still 9 lower numbers than 10 that are possible to roll. 0HP, for reference. Undine's go!

I'll say he was only 50ft above the lake, which he flew towards last go. DC20 Toughness check vs Falling Damage: 20! DC10 Fortitude save: 10! Undine's turn, I believe.

OOC thread for this thread. @Spacefurry @Supercape To start with, DC10 Notice checks to locate the Shadowcaster, our ship in distress. Space, since the boat Blackstaff is in, the PanStar 3QH, has a mission of its own, a DC15 Social Skill (Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate) check will be necessary to convince the captain to change course.

GM July 4th, 2023, 6.37PM Pacific Ocean, 50 nautical miles from the Oregon coast Blackstaff The conclusion was as inescapable as it was impossible to accept: under the cold, leaden weight of the Peaceful Ocean, far below the light of the life-giving Sun, the machinations of equally antipyrated hearts had created a dark edifice, a visage, a mask of stone through which eyes alien and incorporeal could peer into the brimming, oblivious swarms of life, and decide their fate by measures impossible for any brain thwarted by a linear existence to comprehend. And now its worshippers gathered, to pledge a fealty as mad as it was undying, to defend it against the feeble struggles of the pale things which sought to avoid their inevitable fate. On the other hand, the PanStar representative had been very eager to make clear that the Deep Ones needn't necessarily be killed, and a diplomatic resolution that allowed them to move their camoflagued underwater surveillance module away from the temple-reef sonar pulses had uncovered would be more than acceptable. And now here he was, on a small, fast boat equipped with diving gear, heading for the locus of unearthly phenomena with only his thoughts, two stolidly uniformed representatives from the Brande Management Security Company, a three-man crew, and a captain constantly dropping by to check how he was doing to fill the anxious hour. Captain Cosmos "We can't thank you enough, Captain Cosmos!" the co-pilot of Singapore Airlines flight 56SO shook the hero's hand fervently, still panting a little from the exhilaration of the last few minutes. Behind him, the plane windows opened on the beautiful sight of the Oregon and Washington coasts, the cloud-strewn Atlas Mountains, the Emerald Cities nestled beneath the peaks on the banks of a wide, slow Columbia River. "I know I can't, they're likely gone forever, but I'd still like to thank Science Communicator Buddy and Labour Activist Buddy for all they did to help us with that bomb, and that near-riot on the second floor." "Approaching the site of the distress call," announced Captain Sen, looking much better without the tape the now-unconscious Overthrow agent had swathed him in, "I believe this is your stop, Captain Cosmos. I took the liberty of contacting the local Coast Guard, in case they need more help than we did." He couldn't help but smirk, though he did a good job hiding it. "Best of luck to you, Captain. If you're ever in Changi, look me up, Jai Sen!"

DC25 Reflex: 19! Failed by more than 5, so I believe that leaves Rainshadow Bound and Helpless. On his turn I'll have him use his Blast effect to try and destroy the snare (extreme heat, for a Toughness DC of 25.

GM At Richard's shouted warning, the white-masked duplicates and their progenitor scrambled away from the light of the herald of scorching summers, launching on makeshift jets of ice that propelled them far off into the waving firs. But long before they realized the error of their trajectories, Richard and Melissa had arrived back inside the stately Cutler home. The countless knick-knacks and objet d'art in the living room (one of them anyway) rattled and swayed momentarily in the small shockwave of their arrival, but otherwise everything was quiet and still...except for two voices in one of the sitting rooms, its light spilling in along with the sound. Preston and Josephine were there, smiling fondly at each other over glasses of one of the red wines Josie had started making years back. At the window stood one of the Emerald City Police, clean-cut and shining in her blue and green uniform, watching the street through a set of heavy goggles. She started abruptly, announcing "Elevated chroniton levels, Mr. Cline's close, prepare to secure Michael Cutler." "Confirmed. Preparing containment" said another voice, its owner briefly coming into view as they crossed an intersection, another ECPD officer tapping briskly at the controls of a heavy-duty collar with attached rigid cuffs. Other footsteps echoed in the house as officers converged in a loose semi-circle around the front door of the house. "Go easy on the old guy," urged Preston genially, "he's had some problems with the law, might not want to hand over Mike to a bunch of strangers, even if the kid *did* try to kill a stadium full of people. In fact," with a grunt, the first Sportsman got to his feet and stretched, "I'll talk to him, sort this all out easy."

Whiteouts as a group vs a DC24 Bluff check: 22, failed! They run for it and just manage to avoid staying with their target.

I'll gladly take the pain Thursday for a Hero Point today. By which I mean I'll let the Obscure get Countered. On his next turn Rainshadow uses his Standard Action to activate Environmental Control to enact Hamper Movement (2PP version, 1/4 speed if applicable) via causing multiple waterspouts to form, churning the water body for a mile around. No Move Action.

Alrighty, to start off Rainshadow will lay down an Obscure effect (a dense, freezing fog) with a diameter of 1 mile, activate his Force Field and fly into the resulting cloud.

Initiative roll: 29

Choosing what looked like the sturdier (and harder-worn) of the recliners, Ming settled in as best he could, grumbling and grunting a little as he got situated in another object just barely outside the comfortable for his height and weight range. The helmet was a deal all its own, though thankfully it could more than accommodate his thick and unruly hair. "They got things like this at the MAX arcade centers, up in Ee-see-ess" he remarked, carefully slowing his breath, "not *like-* you know. VR programs. Lets you make-believe you've got powers." He chuckled as the apparatus began to hum and blink to life "I got 'em for real, but I'm *still* using these things." His non-response to the mention of 'nerve-impulse rerouting' argued for either complete ignorance as to the ramifications of that phrase, or complete acceptance of the stated lack of risks involved. "Just in case some kind of robot virus hijacks my brain," Ming added gravely as the thrumming began to reach its apex, "offer me Laramie Blues when this is done. If it's me, I'll refuse. Fire away, ma'am." Despite himself, he took firm hold of the armrests, as if that could arrest his fall into the realm of cyberspace.

Looming uneasily in his seat, the powerfully-built man picked up the tablet between thick fingers, with a gingerness that argued for bad experiences with its kind. Squinting at it for a second, he blinked hard, "Uh, okay...uh...hang on." Reaching into a pocket of his coat that smelled slightly stronger of nicotine than the rest of his clothes, he retrieved a pair of reading glasses and scanned the pages closely, muttering and nodding for a few seconds before leaning back, replacing the tablet on its table with great care. He nodded more emphatically at Terrifica, his grim face offering a polite smile "Yeah, looks right. Stormy, but not above a 7 on the Beaufort. Someone good in water who's got a brain on 'em, structure's got to push me to not just hang around in there, yeah." Law Ming talked like every word was a reluctant, furtive escapee, but the awe and curiosity on his face as he took in the equipment on display (well, partially visible) spoke volumes. The idea of *not* trusting Terrifica with its operation didn't seem to have entered his head for an instant. Looming to his feet, the man did a quick once-over of his eclectic gear. He seemed satisfied with its condition, and said "I'm ready" in a much more confident voice than he'd used all day.

Hey @EternalPhoenix, I'd love to throw Rainshadow into this mix! A straight-up fight against a super-toughie, but more specifically a *smart* one, would be my preference. Maybe a power-armor type, after he's gotten his teeth handed to him by Steelhead of the Trident mercenary super-team. Basic idea being: he just wants to recreate the scenario to see how he could have won, only to figure out as the fight goes on that his mistake was keeping an environment where his enemy had the advantage, when he should instead cause a change of scenery.

GM An indignant "Hey-!" was all one of the snowbound stun-beam-flingers said, before Richard's flying fist caught him straight under the chin and sent him catapulting into the stream's charming, rustic stone bridge. The rest of the blows hits solidly, but without the same finality and force. A nerdier hero might have started thinking about the chill sensation around their bodies matching that of the beams hissing and flashing around the riverbank, leaving trails of frost and frozen greenery in their wake, but those kinds of details were rarely the kind worth slowing down for. What was worth noticing was how careful they were to avoid hitting the time-frozen body of Melissa Cutler, and their movements bringing them into what would be a loose circle around the young woman. Meanwhile, amid the ceaseless barrage, one of the masked attackers had ducked behind a tree and concentrated, a fine white aura shining around his body, and long fingers of ice sprouting from his upraised hand as another of the men shivered into existence. He didn't come into being wearing a mask, and for the moment stood looking around in confusion, giving Richard a good look at a soft-faced young Asian man with a snowflake tattooed on each cheek. His creator grabbed him by the shoulder and pointed at a spot Richard had occupied a good few milliseconds before. "That's the intruder, freeze 'im!" he yelled above the din, a flourish of his hand conjuring up a snowflake mask he quickly handed to the new arrival. "You got it St-! I mean, Whiteout! I mean, me!" his creation said, hurriedly slapping on the mask and racing to join the fray!

Okay, so, the four Whiteouts take their turn: With one Knocked Out, the lead Whiteout accidentally reveals themselves when they use their Duplication power to re-create them. Taking a stage of Fatigue, they activate Total Defence, raising their to-hit number to 30. The others keep up the Stun barrage, except for the newly-created one that will act next round: 28, 22, 19. Two miss but one lands a Critical Hit! A DC 27 Will check, please.

Sorry Avenger the Nullifier's got a DEF of +14 at PL10, and at PL12 that'd be a +16, that'll require a reroll. On the I feel reasonable chance the reroll hits, I'll take the spoiler off the Toughness checks:

GM What happened next was hard to track in the moment, but easy enough to describe. As Melissa flickered out of sync with the rest of the universe's slow decay to nothingness, several identical figures dressed in white suits with snowflake masks flashed into view, scattered on either side of the stream. Raising ice-covered arms, they unleashed flurry of crackling white beams at Richard! At the same time, one of them barked out "Stand down, Cline!" "You're due a talk with the big man!" shouted another of the same guy "Use of powers unprovoked is against the rules!" "Don't push it, Cline! There's more of us on the way!" added a third. The quintet at least seemed to have some sense and fear of what they were up against, throwing their whole weight behind the massless energy beams that seemed to fill the entire world in an instant. One of the beams clipped Richard's leg, sending a jolt of icy chill through his body...and a sense of something clawing at his powers.

Reach Power Level: 7 (105/105PP) Unspent Power Points: 0 Trade-Offs: +2 Defence/-2 Toughness In Brief: Renegade Blackguard bonded to an escapee from a human-supremacist cult. Catchphrase: "We've fused, we've become one!" Theme: You're a God - Vertical Horizon Alternate Identity: Kala Vishaharihan Shahdeo (Secret), Ashley Suresh (Secret) Birthplace: Emerald City, WA, USA, Earth-Prime Residence: Freedom City, USA, Earth-Prime Base of Operations: Claremont Academy Occupation: Student, Superhero Affiliations: Claremont Academy, Majestic-20(former), the Blackguards(quasi) Family: Capt. Lalita Danupriya Shahdeo(mother, deceased), Capt. Jai Nath Shahdeo(father, deceased), Raj Singh (uncle, deceased), Parvati Singh (aunt, deceased), Rani Singh(cousin) Description: Date of Birth: September 17, 2007 Apparent Age: Mid teens Gender/Sex: Masc./Male Ethnicity: Indian(Sadan) Height: 5'4"/1.6m Weight: 165lbs/75kg Eyes: Brown Hair: Black(Currently shaved, to combat parasites) Kala still retains some of the taut, fit physique he had as a Crow, with a squared jaw and plain yet honest face with large eyes and a natural intensity. However, his time wandering the U.S. has left him haggard and anxious, with sunken eyes, an unhealthy pallor and a furtive attitude. Thanks to picking up multiple diseases, including parasite infestations, his head is shaved of its naturally curly hair and his skin bears the pale blue squares of disinfecting A-Rays. His Claremont Academy uniform is kept almost obsessively clean and his "street" clothes all match its colours, with long sleeves to hide extensive scarring from tattoo-removal and the silver armband he wears at all times. History: Kala was born to parents working at the Joint Army-Air Force Base in Emerald City, Washington State. Officially, he died at birth. In reality he, along with 24 other children born that day, was dispatched to the far side of the Atlas Mountains, to be raised in the secret fortress Camp Malory. A leftover of the Cold War buildup, Camp Malory housed hundreds of people in a state-of-the-art facility entirely hidden from the outside world, built into the mountainside. There he was given the name Ashley Suresh, and brought up to love America, to honour its founders and defend its virtues against the sinister, unending alien menace. Aliens were evil, Ashley was told, and as a future agent of the secret society Majestic-20, a loyal soldier of the great and wise Col. March, it would be his job to kill them as they tried to sneak onto and conquer Earth. The face-stealing Grue, imperious Lor, and barbaric Zultasians were only a few of the enemies he was born and destined to fight. For most of his childhood, Ashley's real enemies were the other children. At Camp Malory, his obvious pseudonym and poor performance in reading or writing quickly labelled him an outsider, both his peers and the older children taking pride in Personality & Motivation: Powers & Tactics: Power Descriptions: Complications: Diagnosis: Kala suffers from multiple mental-health problems, including learning disabilities such as dyslexia and Anti-Social Personality Disorder. Countless everyday things, from accurately assessing risk to reading a sign, can be serious challenges for him. Enemy: Kala has made an enemy of both the anti-alien conspiracy Majestic-20 and the Shadow-wielding legions of the Blackguard. Both have vast networks of agents, few scruples and no hesitation in using deadly force. Family: The last direct relative Kala knows about is Rani Singh, his cousin, childhood friend and heiress of advanced weapons contractor Singh & Mani Arms. Feeding: The Shadow Band encourages and feeds off of negative emotions in its wielder. Especially great causes of of anger, stress, pain or grief could manifest powers far stronger than anything a non-Blackguard can summon or control. Lifeline: Kala has a bond with Sesha, willingly transferring his lifeforce to the former Blackguard, and anything that disrupts, breaks, or even reverses this connection could have dire consequences. Secret Identity: Not only must nobody but other heroes know that Ashley is Reach, nobody must know Ashley is Kala. Abilities: 2+ 6 + 4 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 12PP STR 12 (+1) DEX 16 (+3) CON 14 (+2) INT 10 (+0) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 10 (+0) Combat: 10 + 10 = 20PP Attack: +5, +7 Shadow Band Defence: +9 (+2 flat-footed, +4 Dodge Bonus) Initiative: +3 Grapple: +11/+34 w/ Move Object(Shadow Band) Saves: 2 + 3 + 6 = 11PP TOU +5 (+2 Con, +2 Defensive Roll, +1 Protection(Shadow Band)) FORT +6 (+4 Con, +2) REF +6 (+3 Dex, +3) WILL +6 (+0 Wis, +6) Skills: 68 ranks = 17PP Acrobatics 2 (+5, SM) Climb 4 (+5, SM) Craft(Electronics) 5 (+5) Disable Device 10 (+10, SM) Knowledge (Galactic Lore) 5 (+5) Knowledge (Physical Sciences) 5 (+5) Knowledge (Technology) 5 (+5) Language 5 (Cantonese, Galstandard, Grue, Japanese, Russian, Base: English) Medicine 5 (+5, SM) Notice 5 (+5, SM) Search 5 (+5, SM) Stealth 7 (+10, SM) Survival 5 (+5, SM) Feats: 17PP Accurate Attack Acrobatic Bluff Attack Specialization (Shadow Band) Benefit (Use Disable Device for Knowledge (Technology) checks involving alien technology) Defensive Attack Defensive Roll Dodge Focus 4 Evasion 2 Fearless Luck Power Attack Skill Mastery 2 (Acrobatics, Disable Device, Climb, Medicine, Notice, Search, Stealth, Survival) Powers: 36 = 36PP Device 9 (Shadow Band, Hard to Lose, 45DP) [36PP] (Alien, Shadow, Technology) Blackguard Array 12 (24PP Array, Feats: Alternate Power 4)[28DP] Base Power: Damage 6 (Feats: Affects Insubstantial 2, Indirect 3, Mighty [DMG 7])[12DP] + Elongation 4 (25ft reach; Extras: Projection; Feats: Indirect 3, Subtle)[12DP] Shadow Hand [12+12=24DP] AP: Insubstantial 3 (Shadow Energy; Feats: Selective, Subtle)[17DP] + Enhanced Concealment 2 (Auditory Senses; Feats: Close Range)[5DP] + Super-Movement 1 (Air Walk(1/2 speed horizontal, 1/4 ascending/descending))[2DP] [17+5+2=24DP] AP: Move Object 7 (+35 STR, Extras: Damaging; Feats: Indirect 3)[24DP] AP: Snare 7 (Extras: Area(Targeted, Shapeable(35ft square); Feats: Indirect 3)[24DP] AP: Teleport 7 (700ft per round; Extras: Portal; Flaws: Medium(Shadows), Short-Range; Feats: Change Direction, Change Velocity, Easy, Moving Feint(+16 vs Sense Motive), Progression 1(Portal size, 10ft max. radius), Progression 3(1000lbs max. additional mass), Subtle, Turnabout)[24DP] Concealment 4 (Normal Visual, Mental Senses; Flaws: Limited(in shadows))[4DP] Immunity 2 (Suffocation effects))[2DP] Protection 1 [1DP] Super-Movement 2 (Slow Fall, Swinging)[4DP] Super-Senses 6 (Visual Counters Obscure(Darkness); Visual Penetrates Concealment)[6DP] Drawbacks: (-3) + (-2) + (-3) = -8PP Normal Identity (Frequency: Uncommon; Intensity: Major; Needs to wear Shadow Band to use its powers)[-3PP] Recurring Injury (Life Drain; Frequency: Common; Intensity: Minor; +1 Bruise at the start of a scenario)[-2PP] Vulnerability (Light Damage; Frequency: Common; Intensity: Moderate (x1.5 DC))[-3PP] DC Block: Abilities 12 + Combat 20 + Saves 11 + Skills 60/17 + Feats 17 + Powers 36 - Drawbacks 8 = 105/105PP

That overcomes her flat-footed Defence by a lot and we'll say she doesn't attempt to avoid it and it temporally-freezes her, however it also causes Melissa's previously unseen guardian(s) to leap into action. Have a Hero Point for the ambush, and please roll initiative. The Whiteouts roll: 8 Whiteout the duplicating nullifier(Using your Nullifier build advanced to PL12 with the addition of Nullify(Duration: Sustained), Duplication(Heroic) and Concealment(Visual, Phantasm, Passive)) tries to nail Fast-Forward with a fast flurry of Stuns. Attack rolls: 14, 15, 19, 19, 30. Most of them miss, but one gets incredibly lucky and lands a hit. With the Autofire, that upgrades the DC by +1. DC23 Will save vs Stun.

GM "Honestly, better if it breaks up sooner than later. Team-ups between villains, historically they only last if one side is strong enough to keep the rest afraid and obedient. But "you'll be a small fish in our pond" doesn't sell to new members, so they have keep us relatively equal and enforce peace.They've tried to compensate with sharing money and social power, but encouraging greed encourages competition. Nobody wants it to last if they're not on top, but nobody wants to become a threat to the mututally-profitable order, either. So they look for loopholes, use their kids as proxies, assassinate each other's secretaries." Melissa sighed. "It goes on and on, and gets worse and worse. And if it falls here, it rises somewhere else. Sorry, I'm talking a lot and haven't answered your question. In my defense, can't really talk like this with anyone else around here." Tossing the shovel aside, she sat down on the mostly-dry bank, tilting her hat back to briefly squint at the sky. "Mike wants to leave. Leave the life, leave it all. And he loves me too much to let me stay. I don't want to leave. If I do, not only do I become a target for retribution, I become...nobody. Worse, a security risk, without the glamor and immortality of someone like Bombshell to make up for it. The way I see it, Mr. Cline, I'm spending the rest of my life around people who don't like me no matter what I do, and I'm not putting up with righteous contempt on top of that." "So I pretended to be persuaded, came to his lair and shot him. Then I took some of his gear, accessed the tele-grid and threw one of the bowling balls at the Liberty Dome, remembering you and Mrs. Cline would be there. Now, even if he goes over, that will weigh on the heroes' minds: no matter how forgivable, it's a lapse in judgement that left him vulnerable and endangered innocent lives. They don't forget those. And now I can't go over, because I shot and almost killed my own brother and nearly killed many others. On purpose." The silence when Melissa finished was deafening. The trickle of the stream and rush of the sea-breeze seemed blunt and muted.

GM Mike's lair was empty, bar the essentials. Richard's long experience with supervillain lairs, particularly the cutely-thematic ones, helped put a very solid point on the mystery: lairs had *stuff* in them, not just the necessities but trophies, reminders, little things dedicated career criminals acquired over time in places they were reasonably sure nobody else would ever see. Even kids just starting out like Mike would have things, especially after seeing the sheer nostalgia-soaked state of Preston and Josephine's citadel. At the very least, it would have had a picture of his little sister. A second tour of Lower Emerald, and Richard found pretty much what he expected: Melissa Persephone Cutler, burying a canvas bag under a bridge in a secluded park north of the Memorial Stadium. A bag bulging with some very familiar round shapes, and an odd, oblong one. Something alerted her just as he arrived, and in a spray of mud she spun to face him (remarkably fast for an unaltered human), shovel held axe-like and at the ready. She dropped it immediately on seeing him, and sighed in relief. "Mr. Cline! I thought you were-it doesn't matter," she shook her head, squinting through the glare off the low-ebb stream, the sun still hot and piercing through the trees, "is Mike okay? I know that sounds weird to ask, but I didn't have a choice. Me and him staying on this side, it's safer for both of us. I hope you understand, sir." The words weren't what Josie might have chosen, much too blunt and direct, but Richard could hear her defences of Princess Poison and the Sportsman's darker deeds and dismay over Richard and Paige going straight. Supercrime payed, but you'd better pay *out*, and the Cutlers weren't lacking in debts to answer for.

Alrighty, Mike stabilizes and stays conscious as his healing factor gets a chance to work, and Richard notices some oddities: 1) The lair doesn't have a "doorbell" or any kind. 2) Mike was shot in the side, not in the front. 3) He's definitely lying and trying to protect the identity of whoever attacked him. 4) His story is clearly made up on the spot, at least as regards the attack, given the gunshot in a quiet stadium and an assassin who just leaves without followup. The rest of the story seems true, after a cursory check of the lair.

Can absolutely take 10 on the checks, but for the sake of the fictional stakes can only take 20 on the Medicine, let's say fixing up Mike requires a LOT of concentration and Richard can't keep track of multiple things like he used to?

Okay, Medicine at DC 10 to stabilize Mike (thanks to his powers and some medical equipment in the base, it's relatively easy), DC20 to keep him both stable and awake, otherwise he falls unconscious again. Wisdom or Sense Motive checks at max DC20 to figure any problems with his story.