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One advantage to living in a former industrial zone was that Miras knew plenty of buildings that no one cared about. Her magic had made it child’s play to get inside, and she had spread around a few pillows and unfolded cardboard boxes; she couldn’t afford to buy any amount of gym mats, so this would have to suffice. The hardest part of everything had actually been getting word out to Kingsnake that she was ready for their session. The man had been infuriating when they were forced together by mercenaries and key witnesses and runaway trains. Kingsnake was skilled at fighting, but his methods had left a lot to be desired. Miras couldn’t just let him walk away, so she decided to give him a talk about how to handle a fight like that. In the meantime, though, she could probably stand to learn a thing or two from Kingsnake. Being able to move faster than an eyeblink handled a lot of problems but eventually she needed to know how to hit someone properly. Miras’s normal robes were hardly suited for a fistfight, so she had reconfigured her usual outfit into something more bare; a hooded green jacket that reached to her waist, loose white trousers and black boots and gloves. She paced around the room, bounding from one foot to the other as she waited for Kingsnake. Part of her was regretting setting this whole situation up. Who was she to lecture this other hero how to fight? Sure, he liked being scary, but so did Raven and Foreshadow and Arrowhawk -- and those were all heroes. On the other hand, she kept coming back to the memory of him letting the plane crash with the paralyzed soldier in it. He had been willing to let that vehicle go down with the mercenary in it, and only Miras’s quick thinking had saved the man. As she tried to use that memory to motivate her, a small voice kept reminding her that the soldier wouldn’t have been paralyzed if it hadn’t been for Miras’s magics...

November 2nd, 2015 11:04pm For whatever else Freedom City is, it is the epicenter of meta-human activity in the world. And that means that the world's largest collection of death rays, possessed talismans, magic rings and all other man of super weapons are collected in close proximity. When the city's criminals are caught, these items are confiscated, logged as evidence, and stored in different locations throughout the city so as to not paint too large of a target on any one location. One such facility is in Lonely Point, the closest geographically to Blackstone prison. This facility however only houses items that are damaged or broken so this facility is theoretically the safest as anyone breaking into the area won't acquire any new firepower once inside. As FCPD learned today however, that did not mean that it wasn't a target. The facility had been the target of a coordinated assault of meta-humans, who made a clean getaway, with the police unsure of what was stolen. Police forces were being assembled, Blackstone was locked down in case this was a precursor to a jail break and the story was played on all the late night new channels and radio stations. And now, the heroes began to arrive on the scene to lend a hand in apprehend these dangerous criminals.

Talya had never really thought she'd miss English weather but the unseasonably warm December really had begun to cut into the Christmas mood, in her opinion. Still, that hadn't deterred her from enjoying the season, especially with the Espadas children to shop for. Although, to be fair, it wasn't like the ex-spy needed an excuse to shop but the season was more magical when there were children to spoil and Eden was right at the right age for that. So, it wasn't unusual for Talya to try and coax Min or Erik on a holiday shopping trip once Thanksgiving had passed. Nor was it unusual for Talya to turn up in the dojo when she wasn't scheduled to teach and knew Erik's classes were light, but she wasn't dressed to spar and her expression lacked the coaxing smile that usually accompanied Talya's suggestions to play hooky. Still, things couldn't be all that terrible as she waited for things to finish up before twining her arms around his waist and offering him an affectionate kiss. "And good morning to you, handsome. I don't suppose you have time in your busy schedule for a quick errand?"

Date: Halloween, 2015 Location: Faretti Mansion, North Bay Halloween was a busy time of year for Huang's parents and he'd been able to plan on them being out of the house as soon as the sun went down. Arrangements had been made for his younger self to stay at Sanctuary for an overnight long in advance and JJ would no doubt be having a fabulous Halloween with Ammy and her mother on the verdant world. Huang had been warned no less than three times by his mother as she walked through the manor, putting things in her cloak for an evening of chasing down cultists, monsters and probably making out with his dad (ick!). He'd been told to stay behind the wards as there was no shortage of people who'd like the potent blood of a dhampir to fuel their fell rituals - and not to expect them back before dawn. So, technically, there hadn't been any specific rules about not having people over. Technically. At least nothing beyond the usually secretive bent of his family in general. When his father came downstairs in his Avenger costume, Taylor kissed Huang's cheek with one last reminder to stay safe before his parents vanished. Really, they should have been suspicious at the lack of requests to come along but Huang had his own plans for Halloween. Namely, an illicit holiday party! Earlier in the week, elaborate scrolls had appeared in the rooms of certain classmates of his - those that might be receptive to such endeavors. Without fail, a sealed scroll had popped showily into existence in front of them at some point earlier in the week. In contrast with the fancy appearance, the wording itself was utterly contemporary: You know who's got a mansion and a guarantee of absent parents? This guy! Party at my place on Halloween. Folks will be gone at sunset so party starts after. Oh, bring the scroll or you won't be able to find it. Magic. J.H.F. Also, goes without saying but, no racist costumes welcome, obv. Especially ghosts. They're really sensitive this time of year. For those who followed the very brief instructions, they ended up at an over grown driveway in a ritzy North Bay neighborhood where all the houses seemed to have expansive grounds. Which, of course, left them standing at the bottom of a winding driveway, heavily overgrown and oddly foreboding. There was no mailbox or sign to mark the place but for some discolored brickwork that marked the start of the driveway. Outside it, it didn't even seem like there was a house at the end of the drive but once they crossed the line, the cracked driveway and overgrown trees parted enough to reveal a dark mansion at the top of a hill through the overgrowth. It was spooky and foreboding, with thick cobwebs knotting the branches of the trees that obscured much of their view. Apparently Huang's family went all out for the holiday spirit?

GM Post Monday November 9th, Midmorning partially cloudy Centennial Station, Monorail By midmorning the usual crush of commuters on the Freedom City Monorail had thinned to mostly tourists and a grab bag of students, shoppers, and others less bound to the rigors of a timeclock. The doors slid open and a handful of people departed onto the platform at Centennial Station while several more slipped into seats in the sleek passenger car. Just before the doors slid closed a young woman dark haired and well dressed in a style that read wealth without ostentation slipped on board. The astute would note a frustrated pounding by a man in a non-descript dark suit as the door slid shut in front of him before the train launched into motion once more. The women quickly made her way to an empty seat away form other passengers and seemed focused on her cell phone as many commuters were. As the monorail came up to speed a conductor made his way down the car checking passes as he went with an easy smile and polite nod to the passengers.

"Okay, so what do you think about this?" Erin rested her back against the front passenger door of the Maserati convertible and studied the binder in her lap. She addressed her question to Trevor's legs, since they were the part sticking out from under the car. "We have the wedding in May, on the grounds here, over by that pond Aquaria's been mucking out. We get a trellis and a little platform built, rent a bunch of chairs, and have a florist do up a whole pile of flowers and cattails and stuff so it looks nice out there. Then we clean out the second floor ballroom, get a serious waxing done on the floor and have the bulbs in the chandeliers replaced, and have a reception in there? Easy, and we don't even have to go anywhere."

28th August 2015 Casey Blankenship, 17, Born Colorado Springs, CO but now a resident of Freedom City, NJ As a proud member of the Girl Scout I enjoy outdoor activities... It was an accurate description but the thing was Casey didn’t write one word of it, in fact she wasn’t aware of the Young Women of America show until the brochure was hand delivered this morning. Yet here was a photo of her smiling at the camera and detail of her as a contestant in this show. It seemed that somehow she’d been entered in what appeared to be a more modern take on the pageant without her even being aware of such a things. In fact the event was about to start this weekend in Freedom City itself.

Silberman’s Book’s It wasn’t unusual to see strange people in Freedom City, to a certain extent it was expected, but there was still times and places when strangely dressed people could still surprise. Such a person was boldly walking into Silberman’s books. She wasn’t particularly tall but tottering on heels she towered over most people in the store dressed in what costume shops would call Sex Librarian. Her hair was tied up into pig tails high of her head mostly blonde except for the tips that were the same tweed color as her jacket. She was also nonculatly chewing on bubble gum and occasionally blowing bubbles. Showing no interest in the books around her she went straight for the counter speaking to whoever was tending the till in a broad New Jersey accent. “Hi there I need to talk with you boss about something really important.â€

GM Tia Martia's Restaurant West End, Freedom City, New JerseyFriday November 13th, 2015 6:00 PM The benefit of privatized High School experience meant the teachers did not have to abide by standardized testing curriculum that came with being state funded. The downside? When Jesse Perry was your Creative Writing teacher he expected only the best out of his students. Having been assigned together as a writing group for professor Perry's finals next month, four students had found their way to Tia Martia's to begin a brainstorming session of how exactly they were going to wow their teacher. Tia Martia's streak of being one of the highest rated restaurants in the city continued unchallenged. The family style servings a popular choice among the teenage crowd. And it was easy to appreciate the Spanish and Italian blend of food not being coupled with lavish decorations trying to sell an "authentic" Spanish or Italian experience. Instead the diner had a modest appearance. Giving off a feeling of being inside someone's dining room.

160 years later, the time portal no longer absorbed or radiate visible light. But it glowed like a torch at the higher and lower end of the spectrum - standing out like brightest day to Miss Americana and Dragonfly on their arrivals, and in fact putting out so much radio waves that the former couldn't get very close without the risk of losing connection to her controller. For those with normal eyes, the strip mall parking lot in the West End was quiet and still - any eyewitnesses to any recent events at this location had either fled the premises or were in hiding.

June 10, 2:45pm. Claremont Academy Eileen exited the classroom, holding her textbook and notebook in one hand while hitching her purse up on her shoulder, clearly a little distracted by the juggling act. Fortunately not so distracted that she trampled the tiny sophomore who she crossed paths with in the hall just outside the doorway. "Sorry!" the tall blonde girl exclaimed, from nearly a foot higher up due to her boots. "Didn't mean to nearly run you down." Perhaps amazingly, she hadn't lost her grip on any of her things -- would wonders never cease? She took a second look at the other student, and something clicked. "Hey -- you're, um, Zephyr, right?" she went on with a smile. "You've got some major mind mojo going on, from what I hear. Impressive, and probably a little annoying," she observed, her smile turning wry. "Oh, and I'm Eileen," she introduced herself, managing to free up a hand to hold out in introduction. "I've only been here a few weeks, still getting used to," she hefted her textbook, cradled in her elbow, "'Energy Theory and Secondary Propagation'. Or, another way to put it, 'stuff has consequences'." She snorted -- like a textbook or a class was needed to figure out that.

Talya's directions had them parking well away from the school. The racy sportscar was more suited towards the life that went with the high end apartment building than her West End activities so she never parked it in the same place and never close to the school. Walking wasn't exceptionally onerous, after all. When she stepped out of her car, she pulled a different jacket over the top of her blouse, modernizing the pencil skirt enough to distance it from the tailored retro style she favored in public appearances. As Talya's quick changes went, it was relatively minor on the spectrum of what Dimitri had seen before as far as Talya's efforts went. There was no wig and only very minor make up and clothing adjustments. He was well aware that there was probably no less than four or five very different disguises in the trunk of her car. She threaded her hand through Dimitri's parka covered arm, her Russian still flawless despite the definitely loose swing of her hips and the roll of her steps. She wasn't sober, but it would take a discerning eye to notice such things. Talya put on a very convincing facade of sobriety, aided by the fact that she could probably still scale the building in her heels and narrow skirt without missing a step. Fortunately, that wasn't necessary as she fished a key out of her pocket to unlock the closed door to the front of the dojo, "We ought stay down here. If the girls are asleep, I don't want to wake them." Talya said as she opened the door and then locked it behind them, "But, I can show you where I'm spending my time, nonetheless. You can tell me what you think of the very minor addition I made."

Silberman's Books. Saturday, October 31st, 2015, from the Crack of Dawn to the Witching Hour. Originally Lynn was going to give Halloween a pass this year; not that she wasn't going to observe her favorite non-Jewish holiday (yes, she liked it even better than Thanksgiving), but she wasn't going to do anything special beyond having candy for trick or treaters and maybe conjuring up a few decorations. School was taking up more of her time, and since Gretchen had become her personal crime-fighting assistant she was actively hitting the streets again. In addition, last year's Pier 13/Autumn Court incident took a little wind out of her sails, and she still felt bad about how she'd treated Tona at last year's Halloween party. So this year, she planned to keep it low key. That is, until her sidekick saw how pitiful she'd looked all week, what with the sighing and the longing looks at every jack o' lantern or cardboard cut-out of Frankenstein's Monster taped to a window. She hated to see her normally effervescent boss all mopey like this, so she made a decision and confronted her. "We are doing a haunted house on Halloween, right here in the store," she'd insisted. "And you are going to be scary and inappropriately cheerful and have a great time." And that was that. Shaken from her funk, Lynn really went to town, staying up half the night on Friday to cover the place in cobwebs, skeletons and other ghoulish paraphernalia. Gretchen tweaked the store's sound system and ran cables out into the yard so she could set up hidden speakers in the spooky mini-labyrinth her boss had conjured between the back of the building and the carriage house. Lynn's dad Butch dug his vintage 70s haunted house LPs out of storage and lent them to Gretchen to upload and remix. And in the loft of the carriage house, Lynn cleared out all her conjured gym equipment to make a funky, freaky black light party room, where kids and adults could bob for apples, play scary games and make their own Halloween masks. Emails were sent and cryptic hints left on rooftops in the hope that some of Grimalkin's 'friends' might make an appearance. Not bad for a night's work, really! - - - In the morning before opening, the Silberman's staff was rather stunned; Lance wandered around the dusty bookshelves, slowly shaking his head "Uhh, boss lady? When were you planning to tell us about all of this?" "I know, I know, I should have; I wasn't planning anything, but then Gretchen got sick of seeing me all hangdog, so-" "No, it's awesome, I just-" "We don't have anything to wear," chimed in Kiki, who also seemed to be charmed by the whole affair. "We can make costumes; we can use stuff lying around the store, I can conjure more stuff-" "I have lots of makeup!" Maddy dumped out the contents of her purse and began digging through it. Gretchen grinned wryly, crossed her arms and bumped her hip against Lynn's. "See? Told you this would work."

Greenbank Freedom City, New Jersey Tuesday November 3, 2015, 10:23 PM local time Halloween had come and gone, but Freedom City was still clinging to warm weather, with the temperature having reached the mid-60's during the sunny day. And though the sun had set hours ago, the temperature had so far only dropped about ten degrees. Although night had fallen, there was still plenty of activity in Greenbank, as many of the warehouses continued to operate around the clock, and several of the establishments that had built up in the area to cater to workers getting off shift were open as well. But for every few warehouses or other business that were in operation, there was one that was out of business and sitting empty. Or at least mostly empty. Along the northern edge of Greenbank near the West End sat what appeared to be an empty warehouse. Taking up about a quarter of a block (with an enclosed shipping yard covering another quarter), the building was three stories tall and had once handled a variety of international exports. But now many of the windows were boarded up; the signs were dull and faded; and scattered about the shipping yard were weeds that were growing up through the concrete. But such empty buildings did not always stay that way, and currently there was word that a group of weapons smugglers were using the building's basement to store illegal arms shipments. It was these rumors that had brought three individual costumed crime fighters out into this part of Freedom City tonight....

Saturday, September 5th, 1:13 PM Eve Martel's Chambers, DuTemps Building Even at her most human there were certain aspects of Becky Shuster's physiology that had been changed irrevocably by her possession by a wendigo spirit. Her appetite for raw flesh was one she could done without, for example, but the contented jungle cat purr that reverberated throughout her whole body as she snuggled closer to her girlfriend's back was alright. With the silk sheets below them so smooth that they turned the mattress into a reasonable stand-in for a cloud and the pair of alpaca wool blankets tangled around their legs forming a toasty cocoon it was hard to think of anywhere else she could possibly want to be. Even so, as she nuzzled her face into snow white hair and tightened her embrace around the Frenchwoman's waist she murmured, "Mmh... We should probably leave your castle at some point before I have to head back on Tuesday. Probably."

GM The Super Museum Midtown, Freedom City, New Jersey Saturday, October, 31st, 2015 8:30 PM For many in Freedom City, Halloween was a time of relaxation. A day for those who didn't already don a mask on a nightly basic to put on a costume and get in on the fun. If you went to the right places the crowds were comparable to the zombie hordes sprawled on many a tv set. Malls, bars, and even museums offered special events and trick or treating opportunity. One such museum was the famous Super Museum in Midtown. Normally a super or two volunteered to pose for pictures following a documentary showing of a hero's known history. The Q&A session followed by grab bags of candy being handed out. Unfortunately, for the Super Museum festivities were cut short. Before the building could be reopened it was discovered an artifact had been stolen. The artifact in question was known as the Horn of Taurus, and was notably not a replica. Due to the magical nature of the horn, it didn't take long for word to spread about its theft.

September 5, 2015 It started with a wave of car thefts from the edge of the West End, all of them parked, secured vehicles in the parking lots of the many strip malls and other commercial areas that took up space between the West End and the growing suburbs of Ashton and Grenville. Then came the dumpsters, emptying out without a trace, and then finally vanishing themselves. When store owners put out security cameras and caught glowing lights surrounding their missing property before it vanished, they called their local superheroes for help. This meant the Interceptors - this meant stakeout. A little investigation revealed what looked to be a regular pattern to the thefts; and suggested the next place the thieves would strike. The team was currently occupying the next location on the list; a strip mall adjoining a small stretch of scrub woods that had for the moment escaped the growth of the city all around them. This late, only the all-night liquor store anchoring one end of the complex was open; the rest of the businesses, like much of the neighborhood, were sleeping. Luckily, Steve had a face for customer service, and so behind the counter he sat in the uniform of Al's Liquor Store, his scarred face and brusque demeanor making him seem 'like the kind of person who would work at a liquor store late at night." He wasn't entirely sure he understood what that meant; but he'd been given a mission by his team and he did his job. He knew the other Interceptors were on the case too. Of course, they weren't the only people out tonight trying to solve the mysterious disappearances...

Contrary to what the television would have you think the Emergency Room was not an action packed hotbed of trauma and drama. While Docs regularly traded out of ER rotations it had less to do with the intensity and more to do with the mind numbing boredom interspersed with myriad opportunities to be vomited on. Despite this Ellis actually had stopped trading his shifts and started banking the goodwill of a few extra here and there to use in case of heroics interfering with his work. It certainly didn't hurt that the ER really was a front line look at trends in the cities crimes and traumas. Thus Ellis found himself using the slow afternoon parade of sports injuries and confused geriatrics to catch up on paperwork while the residents dealt with the minimal medicine needing to be practiced.

June 8th, 2015 The citizens of Freedom City tended to be a politically active sort, as keen to hold protests as rallies, to throw parades and circulate petitions. There was something about taking to the streets to make a spectacular demonstration that was simply baked into the city's core. Even so, there was only so much of the specific mechanics of actual government that the average citizen was honestly willing to wrap their head around so it would be understandable if the name Stewart Bench didn't ring any immediate bells. If he'd emerged with surprising speed as the front runner to be the new city councilman for one of the western wards in the next election, well, who had really heard of any of the candidates before the campaign signs started going up? If his poll numbers indicated a noticeably higher voter turnout rate than previous terms, well, it was just nice to see the youth of today exercising their democratic rights. It had only taken Ellie Stein a little bit of digging to realize that those numbers simply didn't add up and while creative use of statistics might have been a way of life for politicians it was enough to convince her to investigate further. The more she looked into Bench, the less she like what she found. Eventually it was the blue and silver clad heroine Echo who peered down at his campaign offices, the lights still on at this late hour, ready for some more hands-on research...

September 12, 2015 Cline Building, Freedom League Special Circumstances Housing "I do not care what thy do," Sekhmet growled irritably, pacing to the far end of the small apartment she shared with her ofttimes irritating charge and rubbing either side of her head. "Merely cease wringing they hands as though a smitten scribe initiate!" Perched with his feet on the armrest of their couch, Set sniffed the air with a frown. "I'm hardly wringing my hands, Sekhmet, I merely wish to observe to correct etiquette. Our previous encounter ended... less well than I might have hoped. I'm unsure of the proper waiting period before tis proper to reopen communications!" The lioness goddess snorted. "Praise Ra should today be that day. I cannot stand to sit through another week of thy pouting over the boy not contacting thee first." "Set does not pout, Mistress of Dread," the godling protested, looking back down to his phone with a glower. "Nor does he sit idly! I shall message Huang forthwith!" Sekhmet waved a hand over her head in sarcastic celebration while the redheaded Heliopolian typed. Heeeeeey handsome ;p How fare you??? >

While it was not common to be summoned to the Jasmine Summers Administration building in the middle of a weekday it was rare that it was for accolades. Thus when the tight lipped RA passed off the notice for Winnifred to attend a meeting with the Headmistress it was to say the least some cause for concern. There was no specific mandate for the girl to attend alone of course either so it hadn't taken much thought for Robin to volunteer to join her for the short walk to the imposing building and found the young ladies awaiting the appointed meeting in the spacious foyer where a kindly receptionist informed them Ms. Summers previous meeting was running slightly overlong and they ought have a seat. It didn't take long before a younger student, attractive in a blond girl next door kind of way sat opposite them and smiled prettily as she stared at the pair rather unguardedly without saying a word.

41 Moulton Avenue, Doncaster, United Kingdom 22nd November 2015 Every child was a genetic lottery and even when engineered you could never tell what you would get. And even with the magical science of the Lyudi Gory, Klara’s people, each child was and wonder and a surprise to their parents. And today one of Klara children had a surprise in store for her and Tracy. With Klara back from the States for a couple of days it had been decided that the Mathes clan would gather for the great tradition of Sunday Roast. Whilst the two eldest were already her the youngest hadn’t yet arrived and the meal, that Klara had been working on all morning, was almost ready. “I’m telling you that there’s something going on with our Alexis.” Tracy only dared to invade Klara’s busy kitchen to uncork a bottle of wine “And did you finely honed spy skills tell you this?” Klara added with a laugh running her kitchen like a finely honed military operation “And you can’t tell? Good job I only married you for you good looks.” raising up on tiptoes she planted a kiss on Klara’s cheek”You keep on with Operation Feed the Family whilst I ply my other daughters with wine to tasty gossip.”

Ocean Heights Amusement Park Port Regal, Freedom City, New JerseyMonday. September, 7, 20152:04 PM It was closing day for the Ocean Heights Amusement Park. Labor Day always marked the point in the year where the park would open only to private events. And with that knowledge came special promotions to try and get as many people to visit the waterfront property. 80% off astronomically overpriced food, live concert by local bands, even tickets were at reduced price. The park wasn't operating at a loss by any means, but on this day they were relying on numbers for profit. And it worked. The amusement park was filled to the brim. Mostly families looking for one last big excursion before the school year really got going. It was a restful a day as any for many. But, then again many people weren't at the pier area overlooking centenary narrows when the two Atlantean princess rounded the corner. The larger woman pointing at into the crowd yelling out without warning, "Hold Fiend!" Those with a keen eye could easily forgiven for assuming that the person she was yelling at came from Atlantis based on appearance alone. In fact, it would have likely made the situation less explosive had that been the case. But, Aquaria Innsmouth was no Atlantean.

The Espadas School of Swordsmanship and Sword-Fighting (!) was just a little busier than the last time Raina had shown up for her lesson. It was a small knot of largely older ladies filtering out through the door and gossiping as they collected their belongings and gathered up to leave. When she stepped past the still-empty receptionist area, the only instructor visible was Talya as she spoke with one of the older ladies in friendly tones. Unfortunately, the attractive male teacher was no where to be seen. Oddly, as Raina drew closer, the crisp British accent was gone and Talya's half of the conversation was softer voiced, her tone pitched a little higher and the faint traces of a midwestern accent and phrases peppering her speech. She hustled the lady off with a friendly smile before putting up the sign for a private lesson in progress. "Sorry about that. Delightful lady, really, but I made the mistake of mentioning that I know how to knit and now it takes a few minutes to extricate myself from discussions of patterns post class without fail," Talya sounded once more herself, assuming of course that this was the actual natural intonations of the woman in question. Today, she wore black tights that ended at the calf and a leotard over that. "Put your things down in the corner and we'll stretch out just a bit first. The last thing you need to do is cramp a calf. How's your week been?"

Kestevan 79 Coalition Victory Station October 1, 2015 (Terran Calendar) Less than a year ago, most major space faring races gave little thought to Kestevan 79, a system generally avoided due to its nebula, neutron star and magentar companion causing problems with navigation systems. But that had all changed with the conclusion of the Communion Incursion and the defeat of the Communion mothership in the system by Coalition forces. Now, Kestevan 79 was an important location within the neutral zone between the major space powers, with the derelict Communion mothership being renamed Coalition Victory Station and millions of sentients from hundreds of species from across the galaxy living aboard the repurposed vessel. As a true neutral ground, the station provided an opportunity for the various space powers that had formed the Coalition against the Communion to try to form a lasting peace between them as they sought to rebuild in the aftermath of the Incursion. Large sections of the station had been rebuilt by the various Coalition members to provide housing, business, spaceports and other facilities for those relocated there. But even with these city sized settlements in place, vast sections of the former Communion vessel stood empty and unexplored, often without life support systems in place. It was in one of the larger inhabited sectors of the station that the Praetorians had chosen to establish their new headquarters as they began to carry out their new role as galactic protectors. The outsider status of the ancient protectors of a long gone empire provided the Praetorians something of a unique position between the governments that had formed the Coalition, even as the group formed close bonds with the Lor Republic and Star Knights. Over the past few months, Aya K'zan had become familiar with parts of the station, having joined the Praetorians as the official Lor representative and liaison for the organization. Of course, given the current state of the galaxy, she and the other Praetorians were often away on some mission or another. Her current assignment had her down in a lower level of the section that held the Praetorian's headquarters, to a sector inhabited primarily by independent Grue. During the chaos of the Incursion, large numbers of Grue drones had been separate from the Unity hivemind of the Metamind, gaining independent sentience and leaving the Unity join Coalition forces fighting the Communion. Given the callous disregard the Metamind had shown for drones and even Unity worlds during the Incursion, the vast majority of the independent Grue had chosen not to be reincorporated into the hivemind. But the shift from being independent of the Unity was not easy for many, and given the distrust many races felt for Grue, the majority of independent Grue had become roaming vagabonds, unable to find any place to make a new home and life. One contingent of the independent Grue, referring to themselves as the Grue Individuality, had established a delegation on CoVic Station, and a number of other independent Grue eventually followed. While the communities of independent Grue were normally left to themselves, a recent string of murders in this sector had prompted the Grue Individuality to request the assistance of the Praetorians in investigating the matter. Stretched out before Aya was a larger cavernous space that descended downward hundreds of feet deeper into the station. A maze of structures and passages snaked along the sides of the space down as far as the Lor officer could see through the misty haze filled the humid air. Hundreds of red skinned humanoid figures could be seen moving about, mixed with the forms of other species, though whether the later were truly members of those species or independent Grue that had taken that form was impossible to tell for certain. "How do you suggest we proceed Officer K'zan?" Asked the hulking figure that stood beside the Lor in accented GalStandard. Seresk, an enormous reptilian humanoid over eight feet tall, was one of the original Praetorians that had been sent to assist Aya in the investigation.