ic Study Group: The Sound of an Eclipse

[Poncho]

Mid-late January, 2024

 

The End of January brings the beginning of February. As the first month ends, so to do many resolutions fall by the wayside.

 

But change has not stopped occurring just because a new year has begun! In fact, often the last shackles of the prior year's poor decisions can only be thrown off during the first month of the new one!

 

Our new group of heroes, having encountered a group of delinquents, are now in a position to restore some level of normalcy to the lives of 5 troubled young girls.

 

-------------------------------------

 

Ashley did not like losing.

 

She didn’t lose often, of course, and whenever she did it put her in a foul mood.

 

She had excuses, of course.

 

Ashley didn’t lose, she reasoned to herself. It was the other three; they couldn’t keep up their end of the engagement. She was fighting off two of them at once and winning, the other three had a numbers advantage and they couldn’t keep up with them. They were pathetic. What was even the point of all of them having powers if they were so useless! Power should go to the strongest! That was why she had the powers she did, after all. Those who weren’t deserving, shouldn’t have power.

 

-------------------------------------

 

Felix didn’t care about losing, but he was annoyed. 

 

He wasn’t the strongest, after all, but he liked his niche; he liked the new powers he had. And he had barely gotten to use them at all before that British kid had made him so slow he couldn't even move. Which was whatever. Paradox had acted all high and mighty about it ‘that’s inevitable, you aren’t on his level; your borrowed speed can't compete with his natural abilities'. Paradox didn’t know anything about anything, no matter what he acted like.

 

What really grinded his gears was the Bug Boy. The one who had actually knocked him out. That bug didn't really understand anything about how cool FX was. GBB? GBB was garbage compared to FX!

 

He thought he was cool, but Felix was actually the cool one! He just didn’t get how cool Felix was. He was gonna show him how wrong he was about that.

 

-------------------------------------

 

Ashley had always been entranced by the Starstone ever since she first saw it. It had as many facets in it as there were stars in the sky- something she realized was meaningful-, and when you looked through one of the facets you could see a constellation. Each facet had a different one stored in it.

It was also a clear source of tremendous energy, something the girl given the codename Eclipse was always desperate for. It had given her a tremendous amount with the Draco constellation, but it clearly had more; there were 88 constellations in the sky, but there were only 7 Starlights right now. So there had to be more juice in the gem than it was giving.

 

It sat on the stage of what had once been a bustling theater just off Michigan Street; a prismatic gem that shifted through the hues of every color imaginable- and some beyond that-, about the size of a man's chest. Ashley didn’t know where it came from- the other girls did, but they seemed uninterested in telling her-, but she didn’t care anyway. She floated over to it and placed her hands on it, concentrating and breathing in its energies.

 

“...Now come on, give me what you’re hiding...”

 

“Ashley!? What the heck are you doing!?” someone called behind her, but she wasn’t paying attention to them. She had something bigger going on, after all.

 

All this stuff; the color coding, the ‘Starblights’. They were small time. She was Eclipse, and she was big time.

 

-------------------------------------

 

Lawrence had been right about one thing; Michael had thought Mizuki was insanely cool for getting the abandoned boat house out of the Headmistress and the faculty. He hadn’t gotten all overbearing about it, but he was clearly appreciative of Mizuki being willing to share something she had obtained with her own hard work with her friends. 

 

What was maybe less exciting was the realization that both of the groups had been harassed by color-coded schoolgirls- and one guy-, though appropriate congratulations had also been given to Baz, Mizuki, and Lawrence that they had handled their group so easily while the one at the Aquarium had been a bit more troublesome. It had also been noted that Parker, Consuelo, and Carmen had been excellent, though. Parker had even managed to open a line of communication to one of them thanks to his gentle nature.

 

That was what the group was doing now, after school two days later, waiting for Parker to call the girl who had given him her number to continue their communications. When everyone had arrived and was prepared- including whatever preparations they had made for this-, the number was dialed, and after three rings, it was picked up.

 

“Alright, listen. I’m gonna talk for a second and then you can ask questions, but we need to be quick about it.” The voice definitely belonged to the orange wearing Orion from the Aquarium.

 

“About 2 years ago, a weasel named Enoch approached me, Kitty, Ashley One, Zoe, and Jenny. He said he was being hunted by magical things from another dimension and turned us into the Starbrights. We got super powers that he gave us from a gem called the Umbra Star.” she clearly sucks in breath through her teeth. “It sucked. A bunch of terrible stuff happened to us because of it, and Enoch wasn’t exactly great at being a mentor. We were constantly fighting monsters sent by this evil queen named Solus, they were threatening and hurting our friends and family. Then, about a year ago, one of her monsters killed Enoch. And we didn’t even have him anymore. So we gave up. Stopped bothering to fight the monsters, didn’t really go to school. We only had each other. But sometimes the monsters still found us.” She talks fast but it’s not hard to understand her, and her frustration is clear even in just her words; she’s not a delinquent lashing out because it’s fun, she’s a girl their age who is hurt and wounded. 

 

“Ashley II and Felix weren’t part of our group. They ended up caught up when one of those monsters attacked us. But the Umbra Star that gives us our powers gave them powers too. They already had powers, so it just made them even stronger. We all could see they were a problem, even beyond us, but we couldn’t really do anything about it; we don’t decide who gets the powers and who doesn’t, only Enoch could figure that out and he never told us. So we had to stick with them. But it’s not gonna fly anymore. They’re way too violent, and they’re clearly working for some other purpose.” she was quiet again, for a second.

 

“...If you take them out, get them arrested, beat them down and take them away to Juvie or some prison or something, maybe the connection will break. And we can be free of them. The others won’t ask this because they’re concerned about each other; no one wants to get blasted by Ashley or watch someone else get blasted. But I’ll do it, because we need the help. We don’t want to fight you. The others don’t know I’m talking to you, but if I show up with you, they won’t side with Ashley and Felix. If you help us, we’ll call it even and split, no hard feelings.” she paused. She was tense, extremely. And it honestly could have been seen as quite suspicious that a girl that had just been trying to punch everyone was now asking for help.

 

"...Okay, sorry. I can answer any questions now." She finally said.

[Huckleberry]

Rot

 

The longer Orion talks, the deeper the scowl of confusion gets on Consuelo's face. "Uh what? Why would getting beat up and dragged off to juvie take away someone's powers? I mean like, oh, no wait, are you saying that if one of you guys is kept away from the Thunder Star for too long, you lose your powers?" Consuelo sticks her tongue out of one side of her mouth as she thinks. "But what about, like the monsters? Say we can do this, and Ashley dos and Felix do lose their sparkle powers. Weren't the monsters, like, kicking your butts and that's why the Thunder Star had to like empower those two? To, like, save you? Maybe, like, you should try to fight Queen, uh . . . Solstice while number two Ashley still has powers even though she's like, a total tool."

 

"I mean like, it's not my deal, but it seems like Solstice is your, you know, ultimate problem and Ashley and Felix are only, like, your most recent symptom." And Consuelo looks around at her friends for validation. 

[RocketLord]

Spaceman

 

Parker has done what they had talked about and had equipment that should be able to trace the call, but it's not something he knows a lot about. Still... he has tried activating it before the call, of course doing what he could to try and make himself untraceable. Money came in handy some times. He had put the phone on speaker, to make sure everyone could hear what Orion had to say.

 

He listens as Orion speaks, and he listens to Consuelo. 

 

"I want to help you, but I can't speak for everyone else, and Rot has some good questions," he agrees. "Do you lose your powers if you are defeated? Or does it have to do with distance? It's important to know as much as we can, so we can try to help without anyone getting hurt." He looks over at Consuelo, before he continues, acknowledging her point. "But it does sound like there's a bigger problem. You won't have peace while the monsters keep coming, and what happens when monsters arrive that can't find you?" 

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass II

 

Mizuki adjusted her suit. Since she had started the remodeling process of the shed, and started kitting out the shed with useful things that could aid in disaster response, the barn that once held rowing sculls now had a new purpose. She turned to the screen. She noted Rot's VERY astute observation. "Treat the disease, not the symptom... good analogy, Rot."

 

"Thing is, and this is my sense of the situation, I'd yeet that Umbral Star into the Challenger Deep and forget it existed." She said. "Orion... are you sure that our show of numbers would be enough to convince the others to take your side? And how do we know this isn't a power play of your own?"

 

That was a solid question... they might be removing one dictator to ease the ascension of another. Something her Dad taught her when she couldn't understand international dynamics.

Edited February 9 by The Sailor

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

There is silence for a little bit. Parker's tracking gear slowly starts to solidify her posistion; somewhere in Southside. There's three towers in Southside, and it's not sure which of the three she's closest to just yet; it needs a bit more time. 

 

"...Let's see." she mumbled. "So for our powers; we get our powers from the Umbra Star, but it's a connection, not an...endowment. We aren't permanently empowered. If we get knocked out, we lose the connection until we can wake back up and re-establish the connection. So I can't promise anything, but it seems logical to me that if you knock them out and then take them far enough away or drain their powers, the connection would break." She explains in regards to the broken connection and the powers.

 

"As for the monsters, well, we'll manage. We've done it before, and we'll go from there. I'd rather have trouble with the monsters than have Ashley and Felix picking fights with people we don't need." she seems uncertain about that. "We don't actually know how to get to Sola, and she never comes here. She just sends her troops after us; Enoch said she can't actually leave her realm for long, which is what keeps her from coming here. And probably some other stuff I'm not aware of. I think some people have dealt with the monsters before we have, but most of them seem able to hunt down where the Umbra Star is, or where we are. That's how they found Enoch and got rid of him in the first place, and it's why we don't tend to leave the area around the Umbra Star anymore, they kept attacking our family and what used to be our friends. So it was my fault we left two days ago, I suggested that Kitty and Ashley I and Jenny and Zoe should have some time off to go on a date, so...yeah, it's my fault that stuff happened." she admitted.

 

"But we can't get rid of the Star. I know that for sure. I don't exactly know what will happen if Sola gets it, but Enoch always said it was bad; that if she got it, his home universe would turn into a 'Netherworld', some sort of dimension of dark magic and terror. If we throw it down into the ocean, she might have some commander or creature that could get it back...and then all this effort is for nothing."

 

"But I know that if we show up, then Kitty and the others won't team up with Ashley and Felix. No one likes them, we're just stuck with them. We've been together through a lot, and those two haven't. If it's a trap or not...I can say it's not, but I don't know how to prove it's not. I can only point out you've already beaten us up once, and I'm not sure why getting all of you together at once to try again would go any differently versus taking you out one by one."

[Thevshi]

Timeout

 

Lawrence had been listening to the conversation closely, a clam expression on his face. It was difficult to judge just how forthright this Orion was being as they only had her voice to go by, but her story about how the group gained their powers was not something to dismiss out of hand. However, it was not what she said that interested him, it was what she did not say.

 

When Orion finished answering the questions from Consuelo, Parker and Mizuki, the blond teen spoke up. "Even if removing Ashley and Felix far enough away from this Umbra Star was enough, there is one thing you have failed to mention, which might make that impossible to even achieve." He stated, his British accent unmistakable. "Who is this Paradox that pulled all of you away from each of our prior encounters, and was able to reverse all the damage done in those? How do we know that even if we defeat Ashley and Felix, Paradox will not just step in and save them once again?"

[Poncho]

(Golden Star)

 

"That is a problem." Michael complains. He's leaned back in a chair to look up at the roof of the boat house while they talk, a frown on his face and in deep concentration. He has an astronomy book that he's been going over since the encounter open on his lap "'Paradox' doesn't just move people, right? It's like they were never there in the first place, all the damage the Starblights did to the aquarium got reversed, and all the graffiti at the amusement park too, right? Is that a power from the Umbra Star? One of the other constellations?" he asked, showing the book to the others with the list of constellations. "...Your powers are based on Constellations, right? Orion, Scoripo, Taurus, Draco, Libra, Cygnus, and Aries. So there's 88 possible powers? Is 'Time Travel' one of them?" he sighed.

 

"This involves magic too, it sounds like. We aren't exactly a group of spellcasters. Not that that concerns me really." He smiled. He clearly had some plan he'd already worked out regarding that.

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

Baz sat on the floor, chin on armoured hands, never taking his red eyes off the enemy. 

 

If they were the enemy. He didn't like them. He didn't trust them. But, he had to concede, they weren't actually attacking him with blazing chainsaws or psionic machine guns. Or whatever strange powers they had. 

 

And their story was at least plausible. 

 

He glanced at Lawrence. Lawrence usually understood these things. 

 

This sounded like reality warping, time distorting stuff. And magic. And science. 

 

He sighed. How much easier if there was just a psychotic clown hurling disintegration pies at them. Unless, of course, he got a disintegration pie in his face. He had read that Cockroaches could survive for an hour without their head, but he didn't want to experiment with that. 

 

He couldn't quite keep the acid of suspicion out of his words when he spoke. 

 

"So what's you mastermind plan, then? Sounds like you have something cooked up...."

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass II

 

"Horologium, Gold... the Clock. It's a Southern Hemisphere constellation. I studied different star maps to help with navigation on the ocean." Mizuki said to Golden Star, adjusting her suit. "Although at least right now there's no one on their roster named Horologium... in fact it's bereft of Southern Hemisphere constellations. They're all Northerns."

 

She leaned against one of the new supports she put into the shack. "As for Magic itself... it's just another source of power. We don't flinch against other sources, Magic is no different. A Psychic or genetically sourced power is just as dangerous."

 

"The only difference is Magic can be learned or granted. Unless there's something I'm missing here..."

"I'd say if there is a plan, we become unpredictable."

[Huckleberry]

Rot

 

"Yeah, who's this Paradox guy? Between them and Sola, Ashley and Felix seem like small potatoes. I think we need, like, a little more information before we go messing around with your infighting, you know?"

 

Consuelo hesitates a moment before adding: "It's not like I don't want to help you or anything. Ashley Two is, like, way out of line. I made this book for her about why you shouldn't hurt whales. But I don't know if it will be enough."

[MoonSimply]

La Puma Negra

 

Puma was still in her gym clothes after getting off from her session with the gymnastics team. While not the typically sociable type, her time at Claremont had given her more socially available periods of discovery, able to relax her sort of loner persona and get used to the company of many others around her. Certain others had even become friends of a sort such as Consuelo, and others even closer with Michael. However, during a recent visit to the Aquarium this sort of comradery with her fellow students was tested as they faced a group of literal magical girls in a rather rough brawl. Puma, as the upperclassman however, showed what it meant to be one, easily dealing with two of them at the same time without seemingly breaking a sweat, now listening in to one of the very girls that she had fought from before.

 

"It sounds like we need to go straight for the head, take out the source or else we might not be able to stop it, finish it once and for all," she says, leaning back on a wall, arms crossed. She wasn't trusting of any of these so-called Star Blights, keeping herself at the ready.

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

 

"...I didn't know that." Orion says as Mizuki lists out constellations. "I...huh..." she pauses. "Well, uh. No. No. He's not related to us. I don't even think they really like each other; they're some team or something, the three of them, maybe there's more of them? I don't think he's their boss or anything. But I've never met him, or even seen him, and he's never acknowledged any of us when talking to Ashley II and Felix...Ashley II is one of those girls who just assumes everyone should do whatever they say, and Felix goes along with it, but I don't think Paradox does. They got into a big fight after he rescued us because he told Ashley II that he wasn't going to save her next time. But he said it weird. Like he said 'Be aware, I do not save you from your next failure.'"  The machine beeped and showed that she was hanging out in an ally a few blocks off Michigan street. 

 

"It's weird that he said it that way, so I remembered it...but maybe he knew I was listening?" she sounded concerned now. "...Maybe he knew I'd do this. You're probably right, this is probably a bad idea." she hissed at herself; like she was mad she had even brought this up to them. "...We need to do this ourselves. The same way we usually do. Get rid of them, then get rid of Sola. You're right about that. Not that I have any idea of how to even get to her. But I bet if we get rid of Ashley II I'll be able to figure it out." she was just about talking to herself now. But her voice returned to being pitched up and frantic after a moment.

 

"...Wait...what's going on? What happened to the sky...what the heck are those things..?"

 

The phone disconnected suddenly. At around this time every phone in the clubhouse chirped.

 

EMERGENCY ALERT

 

UNKNOWN SUPERVILLAIN ACTIVITY NEAR MICHIGAN STREET IN SOUTHSIDE

ALL CIVILIANS SHOULD EVACUATE AREA.

[Thevshi]

Timeout

 

Lawrence had been watching the tracking software Parker had been able to obtain from his parents as he and the others kept Orion talking. He noted the address identified by the system before focusing on Orion’s response to his question and the other follow up questions from the others. Her answers were not the most reassuring, leaving the question of who or what Paradox was still very much unanswered.

 

But before he could ask anything more, Orion seemed panicked, mentioning something in the sky and the line went dead. Just as they all got emergency alerts about metahuman activity in the very area where Orion had been. Opening up Google maps, Lawrence quickly pulled up the area, looking at the satellite image to familiarize himself with a spot a couple blocks away.

Looking up at the others, he simply asked. "Do we want to got there? I can get us all there right now." He stated as he began focusing on activating his powers and a new trick he had been practicing with Parker.

[RocketLord]

Spaceman

 

Paradox, Felix and Ashley. Those are the ones they need to deal with. The rest of the Starblights can, hopefully, be reasoned with. They can hopefully talk things through and avoid fighting them. As much as he hates to admit it, he doesn't think that will be the case for those three.

 

The others are asking good questions. Keeping the line open. It shouldn't take long to get the location and... Everything cuts off. Orion panics.

 

Parker is already pulling his shirt off, revealing his uniform under it. 

 

"Do it," he says to Lawrence. If he doesn't, then Parker will do it by himself. It's not too far away. He should be able to hit it right.

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

Baltazar cracked his armoured plated knuckles. 

 

"Sure. That's what we are here for, right? Superheroic superheroism! Lets go! Gamma Buzz, baby!"

 

He hadn't been in a spacetime portal before, but it sounded cool. As long as he didn't end up in space. Wait... maybe I can survive in space?

 

It didn't sound like something he should put to the test. Even for Gamma Buzz. 

 

He had no costume to get into, but he took off his white t shirt just to blend in with the ritual. His armoured plated chest proudly on display, his converse trainers still on his gamma feet, his tattered jeans still on his tattered legs, his red eyes glinting. 

 

He did feel pretty superheroic right now. 

[Poncho]

(Golden Star Post)

 

"Agreed. Open the portal once everyone is ready." Michael said, standing up and closing the book he'd been studying. He was going to rely on what Charlie told him here, and his own experience from all his sports teams. He spoke with conviction as he gave out assignments.

 

"We can't say what is going to happen when we get there, but I know what I saw last time; Carmen and Consuelo had the easiest time breaking through whatever barriers they have going on, so they're the ball. Parker, you can eat whatever Draco throws at you, so keep her pinned down. Baz, that Aries guy didn't like you much, right? Let's see if we can't keep them split up by getting him after you..." he looked between himself, Lawrence, and Mizuki.

 

"You two each go where you think you can help the most, I'll fill in the gap."  He finished, pulling his uniform shirt over his head and revealing his costume. 

[Huckleberry]

Rot

 

Before stepping into whatever portal gets conjured, Consuelo offers a little pre-fight scheming. "So, uh, like, from a, you know, strategy perspective, Ashley Two, aka Sentry Draco, is the blonde with the purple outfit. And she shoots, like dragon-blasts or whatever." 

 

"What does Felix look like? Oh . . . actually maybe it will be really obvious, because Felix is the only dude. Is Felix a dude? Does his super outfit, like, have a skirt too? Is it,uh, one of those, you know, like Sottish man-skirts?"

 

She seems lost in thought for a minute, but quickly recovers. "So, like, I was thinking . . . Maybe we don't really have to worry about Paradox, you know? Cause, like, if they already know that we're going to win, maybe they won't even get involved. Or maybe, like, Lawrence and Paradox will get into a debate about how time and the future work and that will keep them out of the fight.  . . "

 

That's pretty much all the young super can think to share with the team, so she moves over next to Carmen and checks in with a quieter voice. "Hey, uh, you're not planning on attacking, like, all of them again are you? Like, the ones besides Ashley and Felix and stuff?"

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass II

 

"Considering FC just put out a emergency bulletin over EBS... this might not be Ashley 2 and whatever we're stuck into. This might be something more, the script might have just flipped."

 

She straightens herself out, looking over to Lawrence, nodding. "Make it so. The Adults might disagree, but we gotta show 'em the kids are alright. They might need the extra hands."

Edited February 12 by The Sailor

[MoonSimply]

La Puma Negra

 

Carmen rolled her eyes at Consuelo. She may be what one could call a friend to her, but it still didn't stop her demeanor at times as she got off the wall, arms still crossed. Sure, she likely shouldn't have struck the first blow in the fight, but she was a person of impulse, "They try to make moves Rot they'll have me to fear. I took two of em on before, I can probably take three of them next," she spoke. It was almost like she was spoiling for a fight against them, like whatever sort of instincts she had telling to her do so.

 

After a going back quickly to change in the restroom, Carmen was dress in the typical attire of her person La Puma Negra, standing ready to enter the portal, "I'll behave this time."

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

Lawrence summoned his portal and everyone went through it. Into the darkness.

 

It was night time. Or rather, the sky was dark and the sky was full of stars. It had not been night when they left, and Lawrence had not made a mistake; a false sky burned in the air, suffocating light enough that each constellation was clearly visible, connected by lines of power in a way that didn't really exist in the real world. Each individual star shone, and the combined effect lit up the area like noon, even though they were inside a bubble of darkness.

 

At an old burned out theater a block away, a violet beam of energy arched directly into the sky, the clear source of the different sky. Every now and then it pulsed; each pulse carried a visibly dark undertone that even from this distance seemed corrupting and ill-intentioned. It was feeding directly into the Draco constellation, which was taking prominence at the direct center of the darkened sky.

 

And the stars were falling. Or rather, the Constellations were. From each Constellation, at an interval, a bolt of colored energy fell; each of it's own color. From Aries fell White, from Libra fell Red, from Taurus fell Pink, etc., but for every single one of the 88 constellations except the dragon at the center. Where one impacted, it did so with force, leaving a crater in the ground. And from the fallen star's crater crawled a humanoid creature that seemed to be made of glass; it lacked any identifying features, other than the colored glass matching the bolt that had spawned it, and the constellation imprinted on it's chest. They moved like zombies, going after people as they fled or moving out of the darkness all together and into the city proper, each showing off a power similar to the ones the Starblights possessed.

 

If that had been all the issues, that still would have been plenty, but trouble comes in tsunamis. Which was cemented when their previous phone-caller, Sentry Orion, suddenly went flying past them and crashed into a display window as the group exited the portal, shattering the glass as she landed and her transformation ended, turning her back into normal.

 

"Wow! You guys are fast! But late is late!" FX called from down the road in his white uniform with his hood up. He was staying well away from Timeout this time; as soon as he'd seen the portal he'd intentionally moved far away out of an abundance of caution. What are more concerning near them; and what had defeated Orion, were the two monsters.

 

One was a Chimera-like creature; half bull, half scorpion. It stood on four legs, with a pair of claws coming out of it's heavily muscled shoulders, and a scorpion tail on it's haunches, dripping venom.

 

The other was a swan-like humanoid monster with a flame burning on one of it's shoulders and a frozen ball of ice on the other, each side equally balanced on a scale of gold.

 

"A...Ashley. Is draining the Umbra Star. It's...it's going to get corrupted...then everything we've suffered for will mean nothing." Orion explained as she collapsed onto the ground in a seated position. "...You have to stop her. And him. Both of them. Please."

 

There was chaos on the streets; people fleeing monsters, the strange star zombies, and the creatures that were now threatening the group after dealing with Orion; plus Felix, staying far out of range of being immediately disabled by Lawrence. These things needed to be subdued so people could escape.

 

But there was also the actual source of the issue; the beam of purple that was coming from the theater, where the Draco had made her lair; without stopping her, anything done on the outside wasn't permanent, and it sounded like there was a time limit.

Edited February 12 by Poncho

[The Sailor]

Torpedo Lass II

 

"Anchors Aweigh..." Mizuki muttered. "I'm heading for Ashley. Gonna need backup."

 

She rolled her shoulders, stretching as she walked. "This is getting out of hand..."

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

The team of 7 youths split in half; each having their own job to do. For only the first outing of the group as a real team, it was an impressive amount of delegation. The heaviest punchers- the ones best at finding the biggest, heaviest thing and punching or grabbing it-, headed towards the theater, breaking their way through crystalline zombies. They shattered like glass when struck, dispersing into the sky once more; but they eventually rained down again. There was no stopping them just by beating them down, but they couldn't be left to roam free, so Gamma Buzz, Timeout, and Golden Star stayed behind to try and contain them, and the creatures that FX was now commanding.

 

The Silvery speedster was still hanging very far away from Timeout- not willing to repeat his mistake so easily-, but his voice could carry far. It was likely related to whatever powers he had outside of the Star Power he had taken.

 

"Have fun with the girls, you three! I'm gonna sit back here if you don't mind! Unless you wanna come this way, but then you'd be leaving your backs open! Kinda stinks!" He yelled, then he laughed and sat back down on the bench he had been lazing on.

[Thevshi]

Timeout

As several of them made their way towards the theater to confront the Starbright called Ashley, Lawrence looked out at the opponents that had seemingly been called down from the very constellations. There were a lot of them, including two large creatures and FX, who had clearly learned from their last encounter and was keeping his distance.

 

The blond teen suddenly became blurred by temporal energy, as he moved over closer to the two large creatures and a group of the smaller ones. Once in the right position, he released a burst of temporal energy intended to try to capture as many of the creatures as possible. While it mostly succeed, one of the large creatures was unaffected.

There was another temporal blur of movement as Lawrence moved back to where he had started near Baz and Michael.  

[Poncho]

(GM post)

 

The chimeric bull-scorpion creature stumbled, then stalled out as it was once more assaulted by the time manipulation powers so deftly wielded by Timeout, but the Swan-Scale creature quickly moved away before the bubble touched it. If they were representations of the Starblights the group had fought; it would seem that Libra and Cygnus were in no quick hurry to once more be baffled by Lawrence's powerful abilities. A group of the star creatures were similarly caught in the time bubble, breaking apart into cosmic dust at the energies within, the dust floating back up into the sky and the respected constellations to be recycled and reused later.

 

"Woooah, spooky as always. But not this time! This time I get to do something!" FX said, snapping his fingers. He blurred with speed, getting in the middle of the group and pointing his finger up.

 

"Bliiiiing!" he called. And, as he said, a power did occur; a very bright flash of light shone from his finger as he made the sound, lighting up the area.

 

For about a second, then it sputtered out.

 

"...Still learning how to use that one." he admitted. The weird Constellation Beast had no such issue in using it's powers; from the orbs of fire and ice on it's shoulders, it launched a pair of projectiles; one at Lawrence, and one at Baz- once more targeting the individuals who had last engaged it's component powers.

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

"Your puny bling powers are no match for my amazing Cockroach - reflexes!" declared Baz, wagging his finger at the burst of light. 

 

"Wait... oh blast, you blasted me!"

 

His proclamation of superior cockroach reflexes may well have been true. He was far more agile than a normal human. But he had spent so much time boasting about his superior cockroach reflexes that, alas, his superior cockroach reflexes were not sufficient to dodge the light. 

 

He did move - and moved fast - at the last minute, but the light cracked his shoulder, just between the armour plates that guarded his more fleshy flesh. 

 

"Ouch!" he declared, spinning around, his eyes diverting in a dazed glare. "Just you wait! Slowball slam him, Lawrence!" he shouted at his friend.