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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.

Alright, superspeed and supernatural shenanigans! Interceptors, feel free to establish yourselves either on the same rooftop or nearby checking in on communicators. Thev, I'm assuming Jack has some way of reaching Velocity but if we need to specify how exactly, go for it. Temperance will get folded in a little later, so we'll keep you in the loop, troll.

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."

January 15, 2013 Morning West End There's a man in a giant robot suit marching down the street, calling down vengeance on all who have oppose him. Just another day in Freedom City. "Fools!" boomed the voice of the giant automaton, the pilot just visible inside. "Everyone always said old Jerry Craven wasn't ever going to amount to anything, but look at me! I've got a giant warsuit! Now I'm big, and YOU PEOPLE ARE SORRY! AHAHAHA!" He laughed manically and stomped forwards, people fleeing in terror as he made his way from the warehouse that he'd simply walked his way out of, heading in a leisurely fashion towards the sea. His suit was big, towering as tall as the small tenements on either side, and wide enough that he nearly brushed them on both sides as he went. This was a big problem for the neighborhood; one false move in that big suit and the whole thing would come crashing down on the neighborhood!

The Interceptors + Dragonfly deal with some problems.

Interceptors A teenager given superpowers in a freak accident is taken under the wing of the organisation of a mysterious man with the calling card of a Tarot card: The Jack of Blades. His team, the Interceptors, operate from a brownstone in New Jersey, working in secret to fight crime, iniquity and rogue superhuman foes! Cast: Initial team Erik Espadas/Jack of all Blades: James Roday - An initially mysterious yet charismatic man in a long coat and bandanna mask, he has the ability to form energy swords. A very secretive man, over the course of the series his family, and the past tragedy of the Interceptors, is revealed to be a big factor in this secrecy. A keen tactician and skilled swordsman, he is proud, confident, brash, and likes to flirt with the ladies. Later in the series, he falls in love with Willow. Chris Kenzie/The Gecko: Joe Dempsie - The audience surrogate, and a washed-up high school drop out with strong regenerative powers, the ability to crawl on walls and a keen sense of smell. He is rescued from near death by Jack of all Blades, and recruited as an Interceptor initially grudgingly (but later shown to be part of Erik's need to protect others). He soon shows a keen detective mind and learns to fight. While he's in his Gecko costume in the first episode, he later tends to wear a green leather jacket and his signature orange goggles. Chris has a sharp wit, and a fondness for goofing off which tends to put him at loggerheads with Jack. Mara Hallomen: Sarah Jones - An emotionally stunted genius with an array of gadgetry and a computer room in the Brownstone. Her computer room. While able to use technology in the form of a visor and gauntlets to fight in the field, she excels in the field of providing information and gadgets for the team's current mission. She is a little wary of Jack and Chris's loud natures, but gets on much better with Mona. Mona Teymourian/Fulcrum: Bahar Soomekh - The Team Mom, a tall and striking woman of Persian heritage. She has unexplained superhuman strength, endurance and running speed, and is able to make powerful leaps (though not true flight). She vaguely resents Jack for his actions driving her old boyfriend out of town, but understands why he did it, and as his old babysitter, maintains a fondness for him nonetheless. Towards Mara and Chris, she acts much more supportively. A genuinely moral and good person, she is the least likely to engage in any form of questionable action. Later additions Ellie Espadas: Silvia Tovar - Erik's little sister, and a powerful biokinetic. While the younger sister who Erik is overprotective towards, she is clearly the more mature and is unafraid to remind Erik of this. Her fledgling relationship with Mara is a recurring plot thread. By the end of the series, she has progressed from recurring character, to regular, to member of the team. Willow: Lesley-Ann Brandt - An ancient being awoken early in the series. With great power to control plant life, and formidable regenerative capabilities, she is an aloof woman not entirely acquainted with modern life and struggling both with it, and her attraction to Erik. Her presence overtakes Chris's in the role of someone to exposit on advanced technology to. She is the Herald of the Gorgon, and plays a pivotal role in the finale. Episodes (Italics denote important parts of myth arc) Season One: Gorgon Season Two: Vigilantes Future Season plot arcs: - The Houses of Suits arrive to take the city for their own. - The demonic invasion, and Jack's infection by hellfire. - Spellbound and Chris keeping their involvement secret. - The rise of the superheroic era.

May 21, 2012 Erik Espadas was a man who had faced everything from alien armadas to demons from the foulest pits, a living weapon honed to peerless sharpness by talent and training, a hero who risked his life routinely with no regard for risk or fear of failure. None of which helped in the least to prevent him pacing back and forth across the living room of his family home, hands clasped behind his back and shoulders set with stress as obvious as the fretting expression plastered across his face. More than half a year of mental and emotional preparation had evaporated the first time Willow had experienced a 'fake' contraction earlier in the week. Now, as the rest of the house filled with family and friends preparing, the knowledge that he was about to become a father had become somehow more real. Running a hand across his heavily stubbled jawline, the fencer redoubled the speed of his pacing. "Try not to wear a rut into the floor too deep for my chair to get over," a wry, matronly voice requested as Gina Espadas wheeled out of the adjacent bedroom and over to her son. Still inside, his thankfully medically trained sister saw to the heavily pregnant dryad in what, surprisingly enough, was not her first experience with midwifery. Although Ellie had made the case for handling the whole affair in a regular hospital, Willow's fairly obviously more-than-human nature presented a problematic risk to their collective secret identities. Compromising, she'd asked her girlfriend to clear a section of the Lab's extensively equipped medical floor, intending to use Mara's teleportation technology to whisk the soon-to-be mother there once they were sure she was about to go into labour. In the meantime, the West End home had accumulated the eclectic assortment of characters collectively known as the Interceptors, including the artificial intelligence colloquially known as Vince running on a borrowed laptop and the quietly precocious six-year-old girl Ellie and Mara had brought back along with more than three hundred refugees of a recently destroyed alternate reality. Orphaned by the creatures who had devastated her version of Earth, Yolanda had been staying with Gina and Ellie since a few strings had been pulled to have the former expediently declared her legal guardian. While Vince had elected to have his monitor left in the kitchen area with a joke about staying out of the way, Yolanda had taken up a cross-legged vigil in one corner of the bedroom, silently watching the proceedings with wide eyes. Erik gathered that this wasn't even the first time the little girl had been present for a birth and considerably better circumstances. He found himself envying her composure.

Willow Power Level: 13/15 (188/250 PP) [264] Trade-Offs: None Unspent PP: 62 In Brief: An ancient guardian of life discovering what it means to live while rooting out threats to the world and those that inhabit it. Alternate Identities: Minerva "Min" Salix, Guardian Willow Identity: Complicated ("Secret") Birthplace: Prehistoric Earth Occupation: None Affiliations: The Interceptors Family: The Gorgon (Sister), Eden Espadas (Daughter) Description: Age: Ancient Apparent Age: 26 Gender: Female Ethnicity: Preserver Engineered Life Form ("Dryad") Height: 5'7" Weight: 130 lb. Eyes: Amber Hair: White Tall and slender and appearing as though she were in her mid twenties, Willow possess piercing amber eyes and a wild mane of snow white hair, which she usually wears in a long flowing ponytail. This, combined with her unblemished copper-hued skin, fine bone structure and slightly pointed ears enhance her exotic appearance. She movement is practiced and serene, and brings to mind the lightness and grace of a dancer. Willow frequently has a faint smile, as though amused at some secret joke, and watches the world through eyes that are far older than her apparent young years. Willow tends to favor natural hues, favoring greens and browns, though the colors tend to trend with the seasons. Her dress is always comfortable, though she often opts to go barefoot, preferring to feel the ground under her feet. History: Many millennia ago, the Preservers embarked upon a bioengineering project on Earth, one of many they seeded across the cosmos. In this case, they began with a human template but wandered far afield, adding new powers and abilities that would permit these creatures to be guardians of the biosphere and protect the growth of the nearly-untouched planet. One of these creatures came to be known as Willow. Willow and her siblings watched the rise of the human nation of Atlantis with interest, maintaining distant contact and intervening in their development only when absolutely necessary for at the guardians were more concerned with checking the destructive power of Lemuria. When Lemuria and Atlantis started to wage war the attitude of the Guardians shifted; containing and repairing the damage of the conflict was proving too costly. Willow and her fellow Guardians concluded that drastic measures had to be taken for the good of the planet and fell upon Atlantis and Lemuria. In the end both nations were shattered, their people scattered to the four winds and with a deep scarring of their racial memory. As humanity slowly climbed back up from barbarism, Willow and her fellow guardians forgot about their creators and started to think of themselves as Gods of Nature. Inevitably this brought the bioengineered guardians into conflict with the new (and actual) Gods of Humanity and they were soon subjugated and subordinate. It was at this time that the guardians were given a name that stuck; nymph (and the various subclasses). Reduced in influence, Willow, like many of her fellow guardians gradually withdrew from the Preservers mandate, only stepping in when directly asked or when the need was great. As the Gods withdrew and humanity forgot about her kind Willow found herself entering periods of hibernation; sleeping away years, then decades and finally centuries. Each time she was awoken her power had diminished and her memories were more fragmented. The last time Willow woke, the world was recovering from the Terminus invasion. The dryad worked herself to exhaustion, doing what she could to clean up the residual Terminus energy affecting the natural world though she slipped back into hibernation before she could finish. Recent disturbances in Wharton State Forest have woke her up before she had completely recovered from the energy expenditure. Personality & Motivation: Willow is a complicated woman, with certain aspects of her personality becoming enhanced or subdued with the changing of seasons though the core of her being remains the same. In her youth Willow was ready to answer any slight to nature with the full might of her righteous anger, though as time marched steadily onward she adopted a softer approach. She does not despise the rapid advancement of the humans, for it is instinctual on their part, and instead she merely seeks to moderate their impact on the world around them. Willow is a believer in balance, and as such has extended her stewardship beyond the forests. In spring, Willow is almost perpetually happy, laughing and whimsical, even a bit seductive. She possesses a near rapturous joy of life, and seeks to encourage that feeling in others. During this season, Willow's optimism is enhanced, almost to the point of naiveté, believing there is good in everyone. During the summer, Willow's whimsical nature, along with her optimism is subdued somewhat. During these months her protective instincts are heightened, planning with contingencies in mind to ensure the safety of others. For Willow, the summer is a time of long term planning and intense focus. On the heels of summer, Willow's autumn aspect leaves her quiet and introspective. She thinks deep thoughts and takes great pleasure in long puzzles that could take a long time to work out. She rarely acts hastily and be easily overlooked at any party or gathering due to her standoffish nature. Winter is the time of culling, of winnowing, of separating the young from the old. At this time Willow is at her most secretive, since she tends to evoke a faint sense of dread. Serious and firm, Willow does not do well with long debate and discussion during this time, for as far as she is concerned things are black or white. Despite her generally bright outlook, there is a faint sense of sadness about the dryad. She misses her sisters, and while she believes they are still alive, she does not know where they might be. Willow also finds herself in a strange place, and though she would dearly love to return home her sense of duty compels her to stay in the new world. Powers & Tactics: Willow's powers have declined over the millennia however she still retains some measurable influence over plant life, passing unhindered through even the densest foliage without a trace, rapidly changing her location by traveling through the root network and even communicating with the flora around her. The dryad can even alter the fundamental nature of the plants around her, often using this to grow a suit of living armor. Overall, Willow's tactics are fairly straightforward; she uses her strength to pound her opponent into submission. Her regenerative capabilities are enhanced when in forested areas. Complications: Enemies: Guardian Willow is at odds with her sister, the planet preserving Gorgon. In addition, as an agent of the Preservers, she has the enmity of the Terminus Identity: Willow has recently, with the aid of the Freedom League, adopted a civilian identity. She understands full well the importance of blending in. Relationship: Willow is exceptionally fond of %5Burl=%5Burl=]Erik Espadas (Jack of all Blades), thinking with her heart rather than her head where he is concerned. She is also fiercely protective of the Espadas clan in addition to her teammates on the Interceptors. With the rest of her siblings dead, Willow is determined to not lose her new family. Responsibility: Willow is a mother which comes with a whole host of responsibilities. She is also the last of her kind (it is uncertain, yet, if Eden will express any of her mother's traits) and bears the weight of the Preserver mandate on her shoulders. Abilities: 8 + 4 + 8 + 4 + 6 + 4 = 34PP Strength: 34/18 (+12/+4) Dexterity: 14 (+2) Constitution: 18 (+4) Intelligence: 14 (+2) Wisdom: 16 (+3) Charisma: 14 (+2) Combat: 16 + 16 = 32PP Initiative: +2 Attack: +12 Melee, +8 Base Grapple: +26 Guardian Strength, +16 Base Defense: +12 (+8 Base, +4 Dodge Focus), +4 Flat-Footed Knockback: -6 Saving Throws: 4 + 6 + 2 = 12PP Toughness: +12/+4 (+4 Con, +8 Protection) Fortitude: +8 (+4 Con, +4) Reflex: +8 (+2 Dex, +6) Will: +5 (+3 Wis, +2) Skills: 72R = 18PP Acrobatics 8 (+10) Climb 8 (+12, +20 Guardian Strength) Concentration 12 (+15) Handle Animal 8 (+10) Knowledge (Life Sciences) 8 (+10) Medicine 2 (+5) Notice 12 (+15) Sense Motive 7 (+10) Survival 7 (+10) Feats: 13PP Animal Empathy Attack Focus (Melee) 4 Dodge Focus 4 Favored Environment (Forest) Fearless Interpose Equipment 1 Equipment: %5Burl=%5Burl=]Interceptor HQ contribution [5EP] Powers: 22 + 4 + 1 + 4 + 11 + 9 + 5 + 8 + 1 + 4 + 2 + 6 = 79 Ancient Guardian 10 (20PP Array, Feats: Alternate Power 2) [22PP] BP: Enhanced Strength 16 (Strength +16 [34, +12]) linked Super-Strength 2 (Effective Strength 44; Heavy Load 5.6 Tons) [20PP] AP: Environmental Control 3 (25 ft. radius, Distraction [DC 15], Hamper Movement [25% Speed], Visibility, Extras: Action [Move], Independent, Selective Attack, Flaws: Limited [Forests], Range [Touch], Feats: Slow Fade [1 Minute]) [19PP] AP: Snare 12 (Extras: Area [Targeted, Burst, 60 ft. radius], Flaws: Medium [Plants], Range 1 [Touch], Feats: Improved Critical 1 [19-20], Indirect 3, Obscure Sense 2 [Auditory, Visual], Reversible, Tether) [20PP] Comprehend 2 (Plants 2 [speak To and Understand]) [4PP] Concealment 1 (Olfactory, Flaws: Limited [Misleading (Smells Like Strawberries)], Permanent [+0]) [1PP] Concealment 4 (All Visual Senses, Flaws: Limited [Forests]) [4PP] Immunity 11 (Aging, Disease, Environmental Conditions [All], Poison, Starvation & Thirst, Suffocation [All]) [11PP] Leaping 2 (x5, Running Long Jump: 110 ft., Standing Long Jump: 55 ft., High Jump 27 ft.) [2PP] Protection 8 (+8 Toughness, Extras: Force Field, Feats: Subtle) [9PP] Regeneration 6 (Recovery Rate: Staggered 5 [standard Action], Resurrection 1 [1 Week], Flaws: Source [Forest], Feats: Persistent, Regrowth) [5PP] Regeneration 8 (Recovery Bonus 5 [+5 to Recover], Recovery Rate: Bruised 3 [No Action]) [8PP] Speed 1 (10 mph, 100 ft./round) [1PP] Super-Movement 4 (Permeate 3 [Full Speed], Trackless, Flaws: Limited [Vegetation]) [4PP] Super-Senses 2 (Danger Sense [Auditory], Uncanny Dodge [Auditory]) [2PP] Super-Senses 6 (Extended 2 [Auditory, 1000 ft.], Extended 2 [Visual, 1000 ft.], Low-Light Vision, Ultra-Hearing) [6PP] Drawbacks: -0PP None DC Block:[table]ATTACKRANGESAVEEFFECTUnarmedTouchDC 19 Toughness (Staged)DamageUnarmed (Guardian Strength)TouchDC 27 Toughness (Staged)DamageSnareTouch (60 ft. Radius)DC 22 Reflex (Staged)Snare[/table] Totals: Abilities (34) + Combat (32) + Saving Throws (12) + Skills (18) + Feats (13) + Powers (79) - Drawbacks (0) = 188/250 Power Points

Oh snap, a baby! For reference, the first floor of the Espadas house: Backyard _|-|___________________ | | | | | | ___| | | | | | |____________|-|__| | | ..... | | | | | | | | | |_| |_| | | | | | |__________|-|__________| Porch Erik and Gina are near the forward wall, near the front door. The kitchen/dining room is a long, narrow room along the left side of the house; that's where Vince's laptop is set up right now. The stairs up to the second floor are in the middle while the first-floor bedroom and bathroom are along the back wall, which is where Willow, Ellie and Yolanda are. Feel free to have your characters already there or just arriving as you like.

The building wasn't much to look at, if one was being brutally honest. Like a lot of structures in the West End, it was two storeys tall, designed to be a place for business on the ground level with small living apartments on the second floor. The space for a sign was empty and evidently had been for a while if the weathering was any indication, not to mention the birds' nest tucked in between the top of the large placard and the window sill above it. The large windows were filthy enough to make them nearly opaque and the hinges on the door were probably going to need to be replaced altogether. Despite all that, the young, dusty brown haired man in the wool-lined coat standing on the sidewalk in front of it, keys spinning around his finger jauntily, grinned broadly enough to show pearly teeth as he regarded the building. "Perfect."

Hours after word had reached Sanctuary from Earth-Prime of the Gorgon's defeat and the ended threat, the relocation of the evacuated populace was in full swing. It would take days to return everyone to their homes, but thanks to significant foresight and high spirits stemming from relief, thing were going as smoothly as could be hoped. Overlooking the procession from hill nearby Stesha's cottage, Erik Espadas sat on the grass divested of his alter-ego's costume and generally trying to stay out of the way. While the world's greatest scientific minds and space-borne heroes had faced the planet-killer head on, the street level swordsman was forced to admit that the threat had been well out of his own weight class. Instead, he'd done what he could in keeping Willow away from the influence of her 'elder sister' after the controlled dryad's nearly disastrous rampage through the West End. Looking over to the slender, white haired woman, he was silent for a moment before beginning, "So. We should probably talk, huh?"

September 26, 2011 Jack of all Blades, Jill O'Cure, Miss Americana, Geckoman, Ferros, and Willow deal with some thorny problems. Yeah, Gizmo is running this.

September 26, 2011 The West End 9 AM Things were in a bad way in the West End, what with the upcoming apocalypse. The Gorgon was only about thirty-six hours from making contact with the Earth, her silvery shape as clearly visible as Mars in the clear Freedom City night sky, promising a doom for all humanity should she get closer. The Freedom League was fighting the Gorgon and her train in space; the Lab crew had gone into the sky to unlock the scientific secrets of the monster coming to devour the Earth. (Sure, that wasn't technically her mission, but good luck telling that to the man walking down the street listening to apocalyptic street corner preachers pronouncing the imminent doom of man to all passersby.) There was a war in space, but a battle on the streets was imminent. Street-level heroes had been busy catching crooks and putting down disasters, but there were so many threats. The heroes of the West End had reason to be a little understaffed these days, anyway...The flashpoint came outside a local bodega near the Espadas home, when two uniforms from the local FCPD station came out to move one of those doomsaying street preachers off the streets. This gentleman, though, a wide-eyed man with thick glasses and a "PRAY FOR MERCY" sandwich board hung around his neck, wasn't willing to give in. "What's the point of doing what you pigs say?" he demanded, his fear rallying the crowd of onlookers who'd been listening to his sermonizing (and, not incidentally, blocking the door of the San Domingo Market whose manager had called them in the first place) to shout at the cops. "We're all gonna die anyway! The supers have run off! They left us to rot down here on the streets while they ran away into space and into their fancy other dimensions. Don't we deserve the right to have a little happiness now before she takes us all!?!" he exclaimed, pointing to the sky as the crowd roared. Normally West Enders were a bit more skeptical than this, but nerves were fraying. "How dare these fatcat shopkeepers keep what they have when the end is coming. I say, let's take what we want and give them a taste of their own greed before we're all gone! Who's with me?"

The senses-shattering conclusion to the Evil!Dok saga! For now, just the six Interceptors -- Colt, Dynamo, Fulcrum, Grim, Jack and Jill -- should post. (They'll find the inside of the house empty, as by now Scarab's already warnedAvenger & Phantom of what's going on.) Others can come in by invite, and other threads may be spun off from this one as needed.

Date: June 17th, 2011 (Friday), later afternoon/early evening Continued from ArchEvil: Terrible Bosses and News. In one of the darker corners of the historic waterfront of North Bay lay a spooky old house, complete with a graveyard off to the side: the home of Jack and Taylor Faretti. In the middle of the seldom-used street which ran by it, a pinpoint of blue-grey light appeared, which exploded into a great sphere. Out of this strode a grim figure in black and blood red armor, followed closely by six figures of equally dark, though very familiar, mien (one notably taller than the others). "Come along, Auffängers!," ArchEvil commanded. "This Doktor has a housecall to make!" ArchEvil stopped mid-step. "Auffängers," he said between gritted teeth, "secure the perimeter... and find the witch, the vampire, and their abomination of a child!"

Date: July 13th 2011 It had been two months to the day that Willow and Thrude had joined the Interceptors and moved into the brownstone apartment building. At least the goddess of thunder and lightning had moved in immediately; once the novelty of being indoors had worn off, it had haven some convincing to get Willow to actually use the room she'd been provided with rather than sleeping in the oak tree in their backyard. Even so, it was in those branches that she could often be found, and so it was there that the fencer known as Jack of all Blades went looking, dressed in simple civilian attire as he stepped out the back door. "Hey, pretty lady," he called, sauntering into the summer sun, "you around?"

Willow and Thrude need pants badly! Also, some supervillains show up, because that's how these things typically go.

Standing on a Riverside street corner with her hands placed dramatically on her hips, Ellie Espadas turned to the eclectic group of women behind her and announced, "Alright, ladies, welcome to Meadow Street. A sensational hive of thrift and fashionability." Indeed, the line of shops behind her featured a generous quantity of second hand, vintage, handmade and fair trade clothing boutiques, several of which fell under two or more of those headings. "So, we've got two goals here," she reminded them. "First, to get Will and Trudy some actual people clothes." The dryad and goddess's limited wardrobes had become inconvenient enough that they'd quickly reached the limit of practical sharing and borrowing from the other Interceptors. "Second, we're practicing the 'secret identity' thing. Obviously Mo' is a little conspicuous, so if you get busted, we'll just say you're hanging with your girl Fulcrum on the downlow, but we're going for subtle, okay?" The young medic could perhaps be forgiven for directing the last part of her comment more to Thrude than anyone else.

Date: June 17th, 2011 (Friday), later afternoon/early evening Continued from ArchEvil: Terrible Bosses Just as Ferros reached up the ring the doorbell on the building Doktor Archeville had instructed him to go to should he feel he was ready to audition for the fabled Interceptors, the building collapsed, threatening to fall upon him! Inside, in the secret basement lair of that team, Geckoman, Thrude, and Willow had just witnessed the team's secret benefactor -- Archeville himself, now some sort of hideous fish-man! -- usurp control over the core members of the team, then teleport away with them as he ordered Vince, the team's AI 'mascot,' to activate the building's auto-destruct, bringing it down upon them!

1 HP for Ferros, Geckoman, Thrude, and Willow b/c the villain escaped. 1 HP for them b/c I'm fiating the Self-Destruct feature for the Brownstone. Since it's a PL 15 HQ, I'll treat it as an Area Damage 15 Attack. DC 25 Reflex, then a DC 30 (or 22) Toughness save.

Date: June 17th, 2011 (Friday), later afternoon/early evening Continued from ArchEvil: Revelations The Brownstone! Home to the Interceptors! Dynamo, Fulcrum, Jack of all Blades, and Jill O'Cure, plus newer members Geckoman, Thrude, and Willow, were in the basement training hall, joined by former members Colt and Grimalkin, who had stopped by to pick up some forgotten items and were roped into the exercise by Jack. Some blocks away, a new potential recruit, Ferros, approached, having been told by Archeville himself -- secretly the founder of the fabled team! -- to come by for a tryout with them. ArchEvil appeared in the basement of the Interceptors' Brownstone, next to Vince's computer core. "Hey, boss-man, the gregarious AI's upbeat voice greeted, appearing in mechanic's overalls on the monitors along the walls. "Whatcha do- yeow! What happened to-" "Attend: Stratus. Nietzsche. Wave. Neper. Tornado. Shark. Venus Flytrap. Viktor. Vince. Viktor." Vince's image froze, the eyes went fuzzy, then his entire form flickered as the long-buried overrides were activated and hidden subroutines booted up. Now the AI was dressed in a very crisp, black uniform, with hobnailed jackboots and a leather trenchcoat. "I obey, Herr Doktor," he said, all trace of his jovial nature gone with the click of the back of his heels. "As shall you all, Vince. As shall you all." ArchEvil walked out of computer core chamber and towards the training room, as a hunchback!Vince began pulling on virtual cords, locking down the Brownstone. He entered the training room, using his Belt's intangibility function to simply bypass the door, so as not to interrupt their session. Eventually, of course, the Interceptors did notice the strange bare-chested fish-man in a labcoat and khakis standing in their danger room.

As day gave way to night a light rain began to fall, a gentle drizzle that filtered its way down through the canopy of a tall oak to its lower branches. There sat a copper skinned woman with a wild mane of long flowing white hair and a long shapely leg dangling below the bough. Her eyes were closed and her head was tilted back; a faint smile on her face that would gave the impression that she was enjoying herself in spite of the rain. Willow was humming quietly to herself, an old tune she had heard numerous times in her life. The words always changed with the passing of centuries, but the melody always remained the same. The gentle reminder that all things change, but nothing is truly lost giving her some measure of comfort

May 22, 2011 9 AM Lincoln The Church of the Eternal Rock of Justice is the oldest traditionally black church in Freedom City. The congregation dates back to the 1850s when the first large black communities began in the city, while the building itself is a magnificent Romanesque cathedral rebuilt and refurbished in the 1920s thanks to lavish donations from a wealthy parishioner turned beauty shop tycoon. Chester Brown, the Bluesman, once sang in the choir here, at least before he decided to take his magnificent vocal talents, and his fists, to juke joints rather than choir. (The acoustics are still magnificent.) Back in the 1960s, 'the Rock' was a centerpiece of Freedom City's civil rights movement: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke here in 1966, back when today's senior pastor Reverend Thaddeus Q. Stone was just another fervent young believer in the crowd. Now in his mid-60s, Stone is famous for rejecting the support of larger religious organizations who make their financial aid dependent on adopting regressive social politics he and his congregants reject: the Rock, as it has so often in the past, stands for integrity and compassion. Numbers of parishoners are falling these days, as they are in most churches, but it remains a centerpiece of Freedom City's community. Parishioners are running out the door; screaming. "There are dragons in the church! There are dragons in the church!" And sure enough, if one looked past the frightened older woman clinging to the rail as she heads down and away, inside the sanctuary is a scene from a science fiction film: six gigantic reptilians, each as tall as a man with a tail whipping behind them as long as they were tall, paced the hallways as those parishioners who hadn't been able to run cowered in their seats or slipped away where they hoped the new arrivals couldn't find them. Today was children's choir! Standing behind his podium, secure in his faith (if not, if he was honest, his ability to live through the next few minutes,) the Reverend Stone faced down fearlessly the largest of the beasts as it stalked down the aisle towards him. No, not a beast... On closer inspection, all the new arrivals were wearing harnesses and carrying gear, their clawed hands working with an unnatural dexterity. And so it was that as the lizard-thing approached him, the Reverend asked, "How can I help you, Brother?" The thing hissed a reply in English that sounded inside the Reverend's head, its foul breath like rotten meat blasting in his face. "<Monkeys! Where are your leaders!>"