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Central Puerto Rico, the northern side of El Yunque('the Anvil'), July 25th 2013 Subito had ended up going to Puerto Rico alone with his family. Cerys was busy, Serge doubly so, and the rest had either graduated or were hard at work preparing for it. That had turned out to be a considerable blessing for the muscular teen, as the sudden explosion of familial visits and reunions with laughing cousins was something he felt would have been hurt if he'd dragged someone else along for it. He, Galanta and Rodrigo had finally been allowed a day to wander the island before the celebratory meal, and the trio had quickly taken advantage of it and their maternal grandparent's closeness to the mountain to trek up its slopes. Subito was in his usual white shirt and jean shorts, and had found an excellent seat in a rock shelf partway up the northern face. He looked out at the island from that vantage point, quietly watching the slow sway of the trees stretching to the horizon, the movements of birds, the stealthy creeping of grounded animals and the distant glimmer of the sea. He felt a sudden, powerful connection to everything he sensed, and all the myriad of things built by humanity just out of sight. Here at last he could learn the truth. Steeling himself, he whispered 'Dama, I ask leave to enter your dominion and hear from your mouth what this knight means, and why you refused to explain. I will surpass any obstacles you place before me, and defeat any foe who stands against my quest My permission is granted, Herald. And you shall hear it and understand. Since you have already seen the bridge, the pool and the rest I will only say this: do not retreat. Be strong, I must not guide you once you enter.' Closing his eyes he willed the beating of his heart to a slower, stronger rythm, gradually attuning himself to the island. The books lent to the young paragon by the mages of Parkhurst had been amazingly helpful and complete, describing meditation techniques for mental and spiritual travel that could take you almost anywhere imaginable. Of course, he reflected, cracking an eye open and smiling, the books would have been useless without Mali's help teaching him how to meditate properly. Settling back into stillness and silence, arms laid on his crossed legs and hands turned upwards, he opened the inner eye and walked out of is body for the first time, drawing back an invisible curtain on the universe and passing through to the other side with a rush like being flung backwards by a deluge. Recovering himself, he stood up and looked around. The change was immediate. The world was watercolors now, the rock around him had gone from the uneven brown patterns of unending erosion to a solid mass of light gray stone, the air was abruptly motionless and filled with the smell of perseverance and hardihood, and the forests before him were transformed into an immense tangle of vivid greens and browns that perfectly hid what his senses told him was a riot of barking, shrilling and baying animals. The sky was overcast with golden clouds shaped like mighty birds of prey under a blazing sun. Below him on the green pastures stood two he knew at a glance depsite their filmy appearance: Galanta looked like a statue of steel, resembling an Athena he had seen pictures of; the other was a towering stereotypical Spanish knight in armor that glistened blue, the helmet shaped like a fishes' skull though Subito knew his cousin Rodrigo was inside. The reminder of his strange curse suddenly made the patriotic paragon's visit just a little more eerie, and Subito grappled with a momentary surge of guilt at just letting Claremont's veterans take care of him, and not finding a way to cure him in the months before. Around the ghostly pair ranged hundreds of sheep in armor of their own, grazing on the grass. They looked like if someone had heard that armor was supposed to be practical defensive wear, and decided that they were better than that. Every inch was intricately carved and sculpted in a different way, and the gold and silver used to make the figures gave the herds the impression of a large field covered by wandering metal barrels. Climbing down from his perch, Subito glanced up at the now literal iron anvil crowning the mountain and grinned despite himself. Sauntering northwards through the mysterious herd at the mountain's foot, he nodded politely to the massive ram with blood-dripping horns who seemed to be in charge, surveying the rest from a boulder. <"Don't suppose you can tell me anything"> he said aloud, scratching the sheep behind the ears fondly and starting when the ram butted his hand aside as it answered flatly <"I can. The caretaker of this island excepts you. Follow the path and do not stray"> without a backward glance he jumped down and vanished into the clanging mob. Staring after the animal, Subito turned away with a muttered <"Ooookay then, guess that's all I can expect from these weirdos"> glancing around he caught sight of a small dirt track leading away to the north through the forest. At the mouth of the woods yellow eyes glittered at him. Meeting the stares grimly, placed a hand over his heart and said crisply <"Dama, I ask that you not grant me your power while I am here. You pro'lly weren't gonna anyway, but still. I'll be with ya soon."> With a shake of his curly hair, he set his jaw, squared his shoulders and marched into the gloom, the forest blocking the light almost utterly as he was swallowed up.

Eve exhaled slowly, shoring up her resolve and willing the butterflies to leave her alone, at least for a few moments and risked a glance at the mirror. Outwardly she appeared calm and collected, but the young woman knew what to look for, and saw the faint mark of nervousness on her features. But worry was reasonable, even expected, as she was about to put into motion something she spent a long time planning. Brushing a hand through her snow white hair--longer than it had been in years, resting between her shoulder blades--Eve stepped from her car. She stood outside the Espadas School of Self-Defense and Swordsmanship, though today she wasn't here for training; her jacket, blouse and knee-length skirt made for poor sword-fighting apparel. The worst that he can say is no, Eve thought to herself as she gathered her courage and entered.

GM Claremont Academy, garden paths September 16th, Monday, 10.15AM The brief, terse letter each of the teen heroes had been given after morning classes led them there at the crossroads, to wait for a meeting with the dour Edme Dupont, one of the rotating Ethics and Superhuman Law teachers who had an uncanny gift for knowing exactly what topics to emphasize for maximum effect. 'Student,' they ran 'you and four others have been selected for the chance to perform an extracurricular exercise. I and the others faculty hope this encourages team-building spirit and your abilities to work in tandem. Assemble at the garden path juncture before 10.20AM, I will meet you there if you wish to attempt it' Under the bright morning sun, the fog banks were quickly evaporating, but the ones still drifting over the city gave the dew-speckled lawns and crisp buildings a strangely lovely quality. The air was beginning to heat up in anticipation of the day to come.

GM Saturday 10th August Late Afternoon Starbase Coffee House... This particular Starbase Coffee House was just like all the others. Nothing made it stand out - and that's why it was a chain. One could not fault the service, the coffee, or the decor. But neither could one rant about it either. You knew what you were getting, nothing more, nothing less, despite bold advertising that would suggest otherwise. The coffee was good, but not out of this world. It's pleasant blandness served one man very well. Oscar "fingers" Ferson was old and, by his own admission, beaten with the ugly stick. That hadn't stopped him. He had a devilish smile, and a quick brain. He was cautious but clever, ambitious but not greedy. Illegal, but not immoral. Fingers fenced goods. He didn't touch drugs, he didn't touch killers. He just knew people who knew people, and new how to make plenty of contacts to "facilitate the flow of goods and money". Fingers had his fingers in many pies. Hence his name. Fingers nursed his coffee, a rich, creamy mug full of chocolate and marsh mellows. For all its abundance of calories, he looked painfully thin. He inspected his watch, and coughed violently into a napkin. He recovered, and folded the napkin neatly. He had called Kit. And he hoped she would turn up. Without police or handcuffs, ideally. She knew enough about him to cost him serious lawyer money. But then, he knew a thing or two about her, too.

GM May 20th, Monday, 2013 Beaudrie Opera House, Theatrical District, Freedom City "...And that, more or less, is why we invited you two rockers to our fine institution" explained Celeste Beaudrie, the pale middle-aged woman looking trim and crisp in her austere blue suit and skirt, standing beside the door leading into the backstage. Through the walls thrilled the voice of Marguerite, singing desolately of lost love. The dark hallway buzzed with activity, busy people marching, jogging or dashing past on the jobs that ran the opera. "You go on in half an hour. Everything has been made prepared for your performance and we have some of the best musical equipment in the city if you need more. Any questions?" She asked briskly, checking her watch for a flickering moment.

USS George Washington March 12th, 2013 Across the sea was the place where the monsters dwelt. Captain James Tremont looked out onto the horizon. At this point, he could see the edge of the island just crowning over the sea. He was just fine with keeping his distance at this point, though for all he knew, he would have to advance. This was not his operation. This wasn't even Uncle Sam's operation any more. This was pure UNISON. Kaiju Island. It was a bastardization of the Japanese, to be sure, but it had a gravitas that "Giant Monster Island" didn't. Or perhaps it just kept the secret better. Tremont wasn't exactly happy about coming here, but those were his orders. His family had a... history with the island. His grandfather had been on the crew of a bomber in the Pacific Theater; they'd been shot down over the Kurils, and had the bastard luck to crashland on the island. Of the six who walked away from the landing, his grandfather had been one of only two to make it off the island. His father had been part of one of the serious joint-force efforts in the Eighties to do something serious about the kaiju problem, after a disturbing number of them had made it to Hokkaido. All that resulted from that was severe damage to several American and Japanese ships until the Atom Family had come in to do cleanup duty. And now here he was. On the edge of one of the last places he want to be. He'd been keen to just let it sit where it was. Let it rot. But if the UNISON scientists were right, then the island was going to be a lot of trouble for a lot of people, and very fast. Hopefully, these experts would be a lot better suited to stop it.

GM May 14th, Monday, 2013, 5.00PM Martel Enterprises(American Branch Main Office), Wading Way, Freedom City Eve Martel had been paying a brief, albeit incisive, visit to her family's local holdings in the city, catching up on the sometimes quick, sometimes slow but always continuing advancement of human knowledge that Martel Enterprises assisted. In the main lobby she and the three research leads were making their final polite goodbyes as the day shift began making way for the night, when a noise of somebody frantically running downstairs interrupted them, the four turning to see Dr. Florence Bridges practically leap the last staircase and come racing up to them, eyes wide, graying brown hair nearly shaken out of its bun. Nearly colliding with the quartet, she caught herself a few feet from them and stood for a few seconds, gulping in air before she managed to gasp out "M-Miss Martel! It's Garamond, h-he's vanished! I was in the r-r-room with him, talking about that new species of bact-anyway, I looked away for a second to get a book from his shelf, and when I looked back he had just...just disappeared!" The research leads glanced at each other, one of them deftly slipping the radio from her belt and calling security sotto voce, one of the others moving to calm Dr. Bridges while the third turned quickly to Eve "It might be best to evacuate the building, with your leave I'll start sending word to the employees" Meanwhile, the dignified-looking man attempting to lead Dr. Bridges to a chair suddenly asked sharply "Doctor, where's your radio?" Florence looked dazedly at the empty spot on her belt, then stiffened. "I...I had it when I went to his office, maybe I dropped it...no. It was gone when I turned around too!"

GM Wiltmoor hospital Just outside London September 1st "Just a second ma'am..ill buzz you through" said the nurse. He was dressed cleanly and causally, middle aged but fit, with a pleasant smile. "Your father is here already..." he explained kindly as he lead Lady Dawn Farrington through the clinical and friendly corridors of Wiltmoor hospital. It was expensive, to say the least. But it was money that showed in the high level of staffing, expertise of said staff, and architectural beauty and function of the building. It was actually fairly secure for a hospital, but it hid it well. The grounds were expansive, and green, and the fencing discrete. "Susan..she is doing ok, you know. She still has some days where she is bad, but on the whole, she is making progress. She is learning to talk about and cope with her problems" he smiled, encouragingly. Further into the bowels of the hospital, outside the ward Susan was in, stood her Father, in consultation with Doctor Felicity Green, her psychiatrist, and a tall, bulky man wearing regulation agency suit and carrying an enormous briefcase that carried God knows what inside. A weapon? a bomb? "AH there you ah, m'dear" said Lord Farrington, stiffly, trying to contain his irritation at his daughter's appearance behind a stiff upper lip. "This man, Mr. Smith.." he said indicating the suit "...has come from the Ministry. They ah...were just checking up on your Sister. And you, I understand..."

Friday, September 6th, 2013 Mara's Warehouse, Greenbank "....can't be right. Can't be." Mara Hallomen looked wide-eyed down at Puppy, her food forgotten in its bowl on the counter. The young woman had taken a rare day off from her job at HAX to work on some personal projects - one of the perks of being the boss - and had been idly sifting through some data while she sat in her kitchen getting a snack. Now, snack time was over; she suddenly had a lot of work to do, and no time to do it. A quick thought had her computer dialing one Ellie Espadas, as Mara started frantically digging through the racks and bins of parts in her warehouse. "Ellie? I...need your help. It...mmmh, capacitors capacitors capacitors...." She sounded stressed, which was normal, but also almost frantically concerned, which was not. "....there, yes. Sorry. Really really really need your help."

Tuesday, February 26th 4:18 PM The observation deck at the top of Pyramid Plaza was empty, save for one woman. No one else wanted to be in there right now, except for the people who were paid to be there. Around twenty minutes ago, the young woman had entered the observation deck. There wasn't much odd about here - sweatshirts, jeans, sneakers, short and somewhat untamed hair. She stood before the windows of the deck for about five minutes, not moving. And then she'd started pressing her hands against the glass, and slowly, it had begun to crack. The visitors began to move back when they saw what was happening, while the guards quickly moved forward. They didn't get within ten feet of the girl - she looked at them, and within seconds, they were asleep, passed out on the ground. In two minutes, she was the only person left at the top of the Pyramid. In five, the glass on all sides had cracked, with nothing but air surrounding the frame of the peak. For ten minutes, she stood up there, looking out over the city. Looking out... and waiting. STAR personnel were sweeping over the scene, keeping their rifles trained on the pyramid in case anything happened. The heroes would be arriving soon enough; if nothing went haywire until they arrived, maybe this could end peacefully.

GM Saturday, August 31st, 2013 Eastern Seaboard Bank Building (Riverside Branch), Downtown Freedom City 4:51 PM Freedom City has always been an odd cookie, even for one based in a world filled with those of truly exceptional gifts such as superpowers. It has always been something of a mecca for those with a penchant for the extraordinary; a trait that has both been reviled and revered in the long annals of the city's history. Yet no matter how many heroes claim Freedom City as their home, there will always be those who oppose them in the face of such overwhelming odds, crime as readily available on the streets as it is in any other city. And today was no exception. For the Downtown Branch of the Eastern Seaboard Bank Building, it had been an otherwise uneventful day as the clock slowly crept its way towards closing time. With most of the staff having already left for the day as it wound its way down, only a handful remained steadfast in their duty, placated by the silence following the last mild rush of the weekend. The manager, Janice Fitzgerald, still sat poised at her office in her smooth two-piece business suit, plugging away and double-checking figures, ocassionally pitching a glance towards Bernard, the thirty-something security guard who'd been with the branch since his graduation from FCU. The man was relaxed, a magazine in-hand as he rested in a plain black chair near the front entrance. He was a good guy... but more noticeably, he was the apple of her remaining teller's untold affection. Rebecca was positively smitten; and while Bernard might have remained oblivious to her hints, Janice -- and practically everyone else! -- wasn't. Just another day, really. Suddenly, an unmarked van pulled in alongside the entryway, its faded and chipped grey paint belying its age against the modern world. With a harsh, audible squeak, the driver side door of the decrepit vehicle was flung open, and in its wake came forth the last customer for the day -- a customer who was looking to make one last withdrawl before the eSea Bank shut down for the day. Garbed in a simple grey, nigh skin-tight spotted jumpsuit, the young woman wore a humble domino mask and matching hood alongside the rest of her atire; a woman who would be a spectacle anywhere else were it not Freedom City. For a moment the guard hesitates, but that disarming lipstick-smeared smile is all it takes from the costume-clad arrival to put the man at ease. "Evenin', ma'am," Bernard greeted, his western drawl as evident as his polite demeanor. "Just in time. Looks like you'll be the last 'fore we close down shop." "Oh? Well that's good!" mimed the woman in faux surprise, her eyebrows sinking in halfhearted relief. But as quickly as the costumed lass' smile had appeased the lone armed guard, it twisted and contorted itself into a sinister grin; one of malice and hate, driven by bitter passions and grim forebearance as she spoke. "Very good..."

The Hunter Museum of Natural History Friday, May 3rd, 3:00 PM By any reasonable measure of teenage autonomy, it was way, way too late in the school day to be in a museum. But the strictures of homework said otherwise, which was why Eliza Oxum and her friend Trenice were looking over the displays at the Hunter Museum, trying to do research. "Don't know why you're choosing to pick bones," said Trenice as they passed through a hall on the native tribes of New Jersey. "We'd probably find more exciting stuff at the Freedom Museum." "We can hit there next," she said. "And there was stuff happening long before any of us came here. We just tend to forget about that. Guess that's kinda the point of picking the topic." That and, if worse comes to worse, I guess I can ask Dad to ask what this place was like at the time. "Don't understand why they want us here," said Trenice. "It's like they completely missed the Internet." "Guess they want something tangible." "Or antiques. Listen, the tribes ain't my thing. I'm gonna go poke around the Egyptian wing. That's more my style." "I'll see you there." Eliza kept her eyes on the exhibits, taking notes, while Trenice headed off into the depths of the museum. Perhaps both of them would find something interesting today...

Grier Ave, Lincoln, Freedom City “I’m not sure I quite understand?†the young woman sat bouncing a her baby on her knee staring dumbfounded at a piece of paper Nicki Dee sat there patiently looking for all the world like the perfect business woman in her plain dress suit and practical suitcase sat by her feet. She patiently explained the offer she had made not moment’s before. “It seems the business you previously work for made an error in his benefit’s I’m here to offer you the balance of what is owed.†“Are you sure about that?â€

The Vanguard were the united kingdoms major superteam in the late twentieth century, forming slowly between 1970 and 1980. Much is known about them, from press cuttings and interviews. Of course, some information is more classified, and known only to those with access to the Ministry of Powers files on these exceptional individuals. What is not known is how and why they disappeared overnight...

GM Samantha Vance knew what the inside of police stations looked like. The institutional wallpaper, the thin, colorless carpet, and the fluorescent lighting that seemed to flicker just at the edge of perception -- this was a police station waiting room straight out of the catalog. And Sam was sitting here because because because because some AEGIS agents had come to Claremont to collect her. She was used to dealing with authority figures, but this time she was off her game because they were so darned polite. They had politely collected her, and politely driven her downtown, and politely put her in this waiting room. Now they were reentering with a uniformed police officer and politely escorting her deeper into the building. The whole situation was creepy, like the moments in a slasher movie before the hillbilly family reveals that they're cannibals. They came to an elevator and went down, below the lobby and into the basements and sub-basements. They came out in a chilly corridor and Sam was politely herded towards a pair of swinging metal doors. Through the door was more shining steel implements and tables, a man in surgical scrubs, and a shrouded form on a metal table. All of a sudden Sam realized she was standing in a morgue. The doctor looked at the police officer, who nodded back. He folded back the sheet, revealing a face that Sam knew all too well. After all it was the woman who had shared her name with the thief and enrolled her in Claremont. An AEGIS agent cleared his throat and spoke. "Ms. Vance," he said politely, "can you identify the deceased?"

Steam Manor, 3rd August 2012 Once the Avian’s had been dropped off on the Canadian mainland the dirigible Cressida made good time back towards Freedom City. Whilst the ship made its way back to it’s “home†the more technically minded of the group quickly found the information they needed On arriving at the manor Lord Steam’s staff, as efficient as ever, had arrange for a light luncheon for them to enjoy whilst they planned there next move.

Thursday, May 3, 2012 Cambridge, England 7:20 AM (BST: British Summer Time) Megan Howell closed her eyes as the warm water of the shower washed over her. The twenty year old was in the house owned by her current boyfriend, Robert Harrow, who was finishing his graduate work at the University of Cambridge. Megan was nearing the end of a year studying economics at Cambridge as part of a study abroad program through her school back in the States, Yale University. Though she had her own apartment near the university, since the end of the Christmas holidays Megan had generally been spending more nights at Robert's than at her own place. Of course, spending so much time with Robert had made it more difficult for the young woman to be out as Velocity, but she did what she could to get out in costume at least a couple of times a week, even if it was not for more than an hour or so (which was still enough time for her to get out to the European continent and to deal with some situation if she wanted). Those outings had been the source of some tension, as Robert at times questioned the reasons she gave for being unreachable if he happened to try to contact her while she was out. But thus far Megan had been able to defuse most of that and had generally tried to time her outings for when she knew Robert was busy and thus far less likely to try to get in touch with her. The young blonde had a fair bit of experience (not that she wanted it) with the problems her superheroing could place on her relationships, particularly romantic ones. The need to lie and keep secrets had caused tension in a number of her past relationships, but Megan had yet to really figure out when, if ever, was the right time to tell someone she was with about her dual life. But she was starting to wonder if perhaps it might be time to tell Robert the truth. The nearly seven months since she had begun dating Robert ,not long after Megan had arrived at Cambridge, was very nearly the longest relationship Megan had ever had. In some ways, the entire relationship with Robert was still somewhat unreal to Megan, particularly given how they had first met, more than two years before she had come to study at Cambridge. It had been during the summer after Megan's senior year in high school, when she and a couple of friends took a European vacation before they started at their respected colleges in the fall. Part of that trip included a several day stop in Ibiza, where Megan had celebrated her eighteenth birthday. It had been that night that she and Robert had met at one of the clubs on the island, before they ended up going back to Megan's hotel room together. That prior night together actually was a part of the reason Megan had not yet told Robert about her powers or her life as Velocity. There was a part of her which worried that for Robert, their relationship now was nothing more than a tryst he knew would end when she went back to the States to finish her undergraduate degree back at Yale. Overall, Megan was starting to feel this was less and less likely, but it was still a fear in the back of her mind. The blonde young woman's anxiety over the possibility was not helped by the fact that Robert had been somewhat quiet about any thoughts he might have on the future of their relationship after she did return to the States. Turning off the water, the Megan stepped out into the steam filled room, taking a nearby towel to dry herself off. The young blonde still had tan lines from the recent vacation she and Robert had taken to the Maldives over the Easter holiday. The trip had been very relaxing, allowing her and Robert to just spend time together with little else to distract them. For her part, Megan had been able to get through the tip without feeling a need to use her powers, though she had gone out as Velocity the very first night after they had returned from the trip. Wrapping her towel around herself, Megan took another to dry her hair some as she looked into the foggy mirror. Even if Robert wanted their relationship to continue after the end of the academic year, there was still the fact that she would be returning to the United States to finish her last year at Yale. While Robert would be done at Cambridge next month, his father had been ill recently, and the young man would likely be needed to help in running his family's holdings, meaning any continued relationship would need to be a long distance one for at least a year or so. Getting her hair about as dry as she could for the moment, Megan looked at her reflection in the mirror for a few more moments before turning to make her way out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom.

April 4, 2013 Albany Subway Station Freedom City The deed was done and the heroes had returned triumphant, rescuing dozens of people from extra-dimensional enslavement in a world cast like a mockery of their own planet's grim past. The Freedom League was already working to strengthen the world's magical defenses with the help of magically inclined independent heroes; and the castaway from FLSCH that Caradoc had crossed dimensional boundaries to rescue was back home with his delighted lover. Steve had gone back to Gina, told the story of exactly what had happened to his Caradoc emitter, and promised to avoid deliberately standing under showers of molten steel "to prove some kind of ridiculous point". But the job wasn't done yet. It had been easy enough, once he borrowed Gina's computer, for Steve to look up something of Wail's history - the veteran hero who had fought alongside others in the Terminus invasion of 1993. That had been the greatest crisis in the history of this world, the public face of the horror of it all still burned into the minds of many of the Freedomians who had fought in it, lived through it, seen others die in it. Would such a man really be interested in talking with him? Steve had already been shamed enough by the open hands and welcomes of so many heroes. Sitting alone in the subway station, his brown skin and scarred face keeping away most of the passersby, Steve was comfortable in his solitude. Fortunately, it didn't have to last forever.

Trevor Hunter was more than a little glad when the attendant announced they would be landing at the Cote d'Azur Airport shortly, though anyone unfamiliar with the stoic young man would have had no inkling. He'd grown no more fond of air travel in general but at least the trip had not been plagued by the interruptions that so often appeared in the life he shared with the auburn haired woman in the seat beside him. He hadn't been entirely sure how interested Erin would be in attending the Grand Prix despite her developing skills as a mechanic. He'd originally had somewhat more elaborate plans in mind for their anniversary but after the events of the new year something more terrestrial had seemed to be in order. At the end of the day, however, one could do much worse than taking a few days off from their respectively hectic schedules to visit the Principality of Monaco. Something also appealed to him about a celebration that was by their standards fairly low key: the implication that there would be many more opportunities in the years to come. Rolling his stiff shoulders against a seat not designed with his tall frame in mind, he ensured his sunglasses had remained in place and looked over to Erin. "So far, so good?"

February 1st, 2013 Freedom City, United States Liberty Park Late afternoon Tona Baudin made her way through Liberty Park, choosing a path to avoid the few determined joggers and dog walkers. The boles of the leafless trees didn't provide much cover, but the young woman didn't want to be around people very much just now. It hadn't even been a month ago that an artificial duplicate of hers had a rampage just south of the river, attacking her friends and a group of young Terminus mutants, even killing a few. While most citizens didn't know to connect Blue Jay with Tona, she still felt a twinge of guilt at walking around free after something modeled after her skills had killed people while she was stuck an unimaginable distance, captive to an alien intelligence. It didn't make a lot of sense. Tona knew that, admitted that it didn't make any sense. That didn't make her feel any less guilty. In almost no time she came to the center of the park, near where the lake split into two tributaries. She hitched at the pack carrying her bow and quiver (Headmaster Summers had reminded her to bring her gear) and looked around. She had been told that she was to meet someone here, but she seemed virtually alone.

Earth-I-War-4 March 1, 1983 (Local Time) 0y 0d 0h 0m 0s Post-Arrival It should have been a quiet Thursday, or at least relatively so. Certainly on Earth-Prime, it was. This is not Earth-Prime. So when a >rip in space-time manifests a few hundred feet above the ground over a corner of the field here in western France. No one even takes note of the over-sized young man who emerges and is, somehow, flying directly at the ground at barely sub-sonic speeds. He only just stops himself before striking the ground, ending up in a crouch as he looked around, nervously adjusting the backpack and shoulder bag he bore. Looking behind him, he just saw trees. "Man, where did I end up? I'll have to...call...the..." His words trail off as he turns back in front of himself and he takes in the sight before him. A plain stretched out before him for miles. Large hills sat beyond the trees at his back. But while it was nominally beautiful, the unfamiliar vista wasn't what caught his attention. It was the battle. Specifically, the one being waged in the air and on the ground. Tanks rolled across the ground, nearly as advanced as anything one saw in the news of the day. Fire flew from their barrels, and vehicles on both sides erupted in flames. Solders dashed to and fro, firing from cover. None of that compared to the really weird stuff. On one side, clad in black uniforms that amounted to robust skin-suits, men and women suddenly and violently shifted into lupine man-beasts, howling in unison before charging in a line of fur, claws, and fury. Overhead, more remarkable people flew in crisp formation, moving through the air as easily as...as Quo-Dis, he realized. They even had that same faint glow to their bodies. Opposing them was a group a bit less uniform. Several were dressed as superheroes. Some he didn't recognize. The man dressed like an Ancient Egyptian and wielding a glowing hammer was probably Horus the Avenger, though. And boy, did they hold the line! Blasts of energy drew the...well, for lack of a better term, the super-men and -women down to the ground just as the lycanthropes struck the line of heroes. There was just enough confusion to leave them disoriented, which clearly helped the group with Horus. Considering the Iron Crosses on the black or grey vehicles he could see...they were probably Nazis. Which made the others...the Allies, he supposed. It wasn't Erde, but- "Nazis. Why did it have to be Nazis?" He couldn't help but smile at his own private joke for a moment...before the smile faded. Those heroes seemed like they were barely holding on, and any normal Allied soldiers who got too close were...not long for the world. "​I...I have to help. Damn. Not what I planned, but I'm sure if Horus is kicking around, so is Daedalus. I bet I'll be home in a week or less." With that cheery thought, Corbin took his bags, conjured a blue box of energy around them, and buried it next to a tree. Giving one last glance around, he blinked, and was suddenly Cobalt Templar. When asked later what had happened, most Allied soldiers would say they still weren't entirely sure, except that a streak of blue light cut across the air for a moment, and a half-dozen Nazi tanks were missing gun barrels. Meanwhile, the biggest werewolf on the field had knocked Horus back, and was raising both clawed hands in a gesture that would likely leave the deific champion wounded, if not worse. But instead of a flare of pain, the dazed paragon was treated to a flash of blue light and the smell of burned dog hair as the Alpha was sent flying by a burst of the blue flame that was the signature of Cobalt Templar. The young hero stood in the place of the werewolf, facing the rest of the pack as he held a great burning sword of fire in his hands. "Who wants some?"

GM Wednesday, April 17, 2013 10:20 PM A thick curtain of cloud hung over Freedom City, concealing the moon behind them. The lack of moonlight made the streets of Southside even darker than normal, a stark contrast to the bright lights of downtown Freedom City across the black waters of the South River. For a group of high school students from nearby Claremont Academy, the moonless night made for a perfect opportunity to get out and patrol for crime. Tonight it was a group of four such students who were flying through the dark skies, or teleporting along the shadowy rooftops, of a rundown neighborhood of Southside near the Boardwalk. Tonight's patrol had been arranged by two of the teenagers, Subito Sondo , also known as El Heraldo, and Katharine (Kat) Shade (Warp). They were accompanied by two of their other classmates, Serge Explinker (Net Fly) and Giang Trang (Tsunami). It had taken Subito and Kat a fair amount of work to convince Giang to agree to join the patrol tonight. Ever since early February, the Asian teen had been extremely reluctant to leave school grounds. The rumors had circulated around the school that she and John Smith (Myrmidon) had been attacked by a Chinese sorcerer and a group of martial artists at the Chinese New Year celebration in Freedom City's Chinatown, though Giang did not discuss much about the incident. But in the end she had relented to their pressure, and was now accompanying Kat, who was teleporting the pair from rooftop to rooftop, following along after Subito and Serge, both of whom were flying. So far, the evening had been relatively uneventful, with the four having only thus far stopped a couple of gang members who had been trying to steal a car.

The mid-March weather was warming up just enough to make being outside bracingly brisk rather than an invitation to numbness and a lingering ailment. Wildlife had begun to return and become active again, the still largely bare trees home to more chirping birds than layers of snow. As he adjusted the sizeable pack slung over both shoulders and trekked further into the Wharton State Forest, Erik Espadas had a moment of unusual introspection and reflected that the gradual thaw wasn't dissimilar to the slow return to normalcy after his sister's kidnapping by the cosmic villain known as the Curator and eventual rescue. Then again, the wide eyed infant strapped into a harness across the dusty brown haired fencer's chest was a potent reminder that the normal of the day was a far cry from what normal had looked like a year before. He hadn't been camping since well before he'd taken up the heroic identity of Jack of all Blades but given the connection the mother of his child shared with the natural world, it was something they'd intended to do for a while. In the fallout of what the media had insisted on titling the Day of Wrath, however, he'd been reluctant to let Ellie too far out of his sight and had ultimately dragged not only her but her girlfriend and their adopted younger sister along as well. "C'mon, ladies," he called over his shoulder. "Almost there! ...I think."

Tuesday, April 2nd, 2013 11:23 PM Cannonade tread across the roofs of Southside, looking down on the streets below. He was looking for some sign that might lead him to the answer to the latest mystery in a city that never seemed to run out of them. Specifically, he was looking for an anachronism. He'd first learned about the issue at work, the week before. Harry, one of the long-time guys, had been talking about his brother. The guy had been working at a construction company that had gone bankrupt, and had spent months looking for a new job without finding much luck. Joe knew that well - his dad was busting his butt just trying to keep all the guys on the crew. But Harry's brother had called him about finding a new job, one that wasn't inside his usual skill set but which would pay well. He'd been gone two weeks, with his wife not hearing one word from him. But she had received something through her mail slot - a sack full of coins. Gold coins. He'd done some digging, checking over news articles on missing persons cases. Over the past three months, there'd been a few cases where the person who'd disappeared had been jobless, and had been so for a while. Not many articles mentioned if they'd taken employment before their disappearance, but the families had received items in the mail - a jade statue, for instance, or a box of rubies. Valuable things from people who had no idea how modern currency worked. Cannonade knew he wasn't the detecting type; he was more willing to throw himself into the fray and beat a problem until it went away. He'd checked the case files on the missing persons, finally finding a detective who was willing to bring in a hero. They'd let it slip that there was a detail in one of the disappearances that wasn't mentioned in the press - the man's daughter had heard the clopping of hooves on asphalt, and woken to see a carriage outside her house. She'd gone back to bed, thinking it was a dream. And now, Cannonade locked his eyes on the streets below, hoping for one hell of an unlikely sight, and hoping it might help him find where these people had vanished to.

Tona Baudin awoke with a jerk. She was high up in a tree, nestled in between two branches, and tied to a third by a tough rope. She was dressed in as rough-spun tunic, leather pants, and high boots with pointed toes. There was a recurve bow and a quiver of arrows hanging from a branch. There was no Claremont dorm in sight, no buildings or other people at all in fact, because becasusr because because she had never been at Claremont in the first place. A world that had wounded, and later destroyed, Omega? And they had wanted her to come and help them? It was a laughable idea, though it had been a good fantasy while it lasted. The Day of Wrath should have clued her in; the sensible side of her had been trying to tell the rest of her that she didn't fit in that world, but like a fool she had resisted. So her dream turned against her and became horrible. Tona grabbed her bow and quiver and slipped down the tree, crouching in the bracken at the base of it and peering around intently. She was back where she belonged, but where were all the people?