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The Break-In


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Looking over at Scarab, Dark Star nods. "I can stay hidden quite well when I choose to. I'd say taking your hand would be quicker but I'm made of energy; not solid. I can move under my own power. Tell me where you wish me to go and I will be there within moments. Assuming it isn't past Alpha Centauri of course. Then it might take me a couple minutes or maybe even longer..." He let his words trail off as he realized he was rambling.

A quick thought and he let his concealment envelope him, making his dark form simply vanish in a blink. The voice in his head caused him to blink and pause. Telepathy wasn't unknown to him. But having a stranger he just met in his head was not something he was comfortable with, even when that voice came from a hero.

He became audible once more briefly. "Scarab, if you're willing, some specific directions? I know the city somewhat and can get anywhere in it within seconds if need be, still unobserved." He brought his concealment up once more and headed south, straight through the wall...

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DarkStar sees a picture in his mind, less like he's actually watching it in front of his eyes and more like he's remembering a movie he watched in the past. It starts with the skyline of Freedom City. Then the camera zooms in on the downtown area, then again on Pyramid Plaza. Then the buildings and ground of the Plaza become transparent,and the camera angle drops down, through the street and the sewers and a layer of bedrock until it's deep underground. The camera takes DarkStar through a series of tunnels that end at a dead end, a slab of stone. "Meet us here."

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"Mm." Avenger grunted in reply, stepping off into the shadows while the others talked. He walked a long way before disappearing into the darkness, making sure to be gone entirely by the time Scarab and Dark Star were finished speaking. (As far as he could tell, anyway! Taking chances with the Scarab around would only get him caught out for who and what he truly was.) Mindful of the heavy security systems around the Lair, Avenger took his sweet time in getting there, trusting the eternal hero and his space-born buddy would open the door when he arrived. It was only polite to knock.

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Dark Star focused on the images, noting the locations. Once he was certain he knew where to go, it took only a moment and a blue of speed before he was gone. Keeping his concealment active, he made sure to detour a few hundred miles, just to make sure. Even with the detour, he arrived at the large stone door a very short time later.

He became visible once more outside the door. He didn't enter of course, that would have been somewhat rude and presumptive. The Scarab had been trusting to tell him of this location and he would not abuse that trust. Even so, he stuck one hand towards the door, feeling for any energy shielding that would have prevented him from passing through if he chose. He also deliberately kept from using his senses to look beyond the door for the same reason.

Instead, he looked around the tunnel. He picked up a small rock of some kind with his telekinesis and rapped it lightly on the stone door. An insubstantial man's attempt at knocking. He then stood, floating a foot above the ground, looking around and waiting patiently.

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The Scarab floated down the secret tunnel a few minutes later, still cloaked. In one eyeblink, she wasn't there, and in the next she was. "Sorry I'm 'late.' I never thought I'd see the day when flying over rooftops was the slow way to travel." She reached out and pushed against an outcropping on the side of the tunnel, and the rock depressed a few inches. The stone facade grinded against the floor as it slid away to reveal a steel door, embedded with several screens and keypads. She walked up to the door, typed a few digits into each keypad, placed a hand on one screen, and leaned the side of her face against another. The cloth and armored plates of her gauntlet and helmet sprang to life, retreating slightly and uncovering just enough of her flesh to provide a handprint and retinal scan. Then she spoke into a microphone embedded in the center. "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. What a bastard." A familiar-sounding* mechanical voice from unseen speakers announced ""VERIFICATION COMPLETE. ACCESS GRANTED." The steel door slid open, and The Scarab walked in.

The door opened onto a vast cylindrical and vaguely triangular open shaft that descended several stories deeper into the ground, with a large pole running down the center, floor to ceiling. The hum of motors and current emanated from the pole, and a series of scenes painted in the style of old Egyptian art spiral around it. At each floor, several doors branched off in two or three different directions. The entire structure seemed carved out of ancient stone blocks, evoking a feeling of being inside a pharaoh's tomb.

"I would call up the elevator, but given the company, the effort would be redundant." She took to the air, floating down the shaft one level and hovering next to the first door. "The living quarters are on the bottom floor. Take the door on the right, follow it through the Great Hall. Try not to break anything (you'll see what I mean). Hang a right again, and there's food, beverage, and plent of comfortable places to rest. The door on the left leads into the Command Center, if one of you needs to use a computer." She waved a hand, and the door in front of her swung open. "I'll be in here."

The Scarab floated through the antechamber and into the audience chamber, past the pillars and onto the throne at the far end of the room. She sat down, leaned her head back against the chair, and let her mind slip free.

*DC15 Knowledge (Pop Culture) check to recognize Majel Barret's computer voice from Star Trek: The Next Generation.

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Avenger showed himself upon Scarab's arrival, simply stepping out of the shadows alongside Dark Star as they headed inside the Scarab's massive underground lair. As always, it was quite a challenge to tell if he was some sort of stealthy teleporter or simply very, very sneaky. Having seen this particular show once already, he simply nodded as Scarab spoke, staring up at the Egyptian-themed paintings on the wall with an expression on his masked face that was supremely difficult to read. "Resurrection and the Life," he growled as he looked up at Osiris rising from the dead, showing his usual grasp of theological niceties. "C'mon, I'll show you where she keeps the good booze," he added to Dark Star in a comradely way as he led the younger man down the way Scarab had directed.

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Dark Star resisted the urge to frown as Avenger 'appeared'. Scarab appearing was one thing. Obvious super powers there. Avenger seemed normal but blink and he was gone. It was actually somewhat frustrating and fascinating at the same time. He shrugged and began to look around after they floated down to bottom of the shaft.

He blinked as he realized that Avenger was already at the bottom of the shaft. Maybe the guy was a teleporter or something... He shrugged and followed behind Avenger. He nodded towards Scarab in thanks before continuing onward. As they moved, he continued to look around, still curious.

"So, are you two a team of sorts? This is an impressive facility as far as I can tell. Oh, thanks for the offer but I can't and don't need to drink. Or eat or sleep either. I'm made of graviton energy. At least when I'm like this." He waved vaguely at himself. "So...what exactly was Scarab doing up there, sitting on the chair?" He wasn't exactly sure what these heroes could do but they had trusted him with the location of this place. Honor required reciprocate and be polite. But he was still curious. "You two seem pretty well set. Not sure how I can be of assistance."

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The door Avenger leads DarkStar through opens onto a gargantuan chamber filled with a dizzying array of antiques. Massive stone pillars support the ceiling high overhead. There are statues, glass cases filled with jewelry, framed papyrus scrolls, and art, artifacts, and weapons from dozens of different nations and time periods, some thousands of years old. The centerpiece of the collection is a complete Egyptian chariot. Ancient Egyptian-style paintings and carvings, similar to the ones from the central pillar, also decorate the walls here. They mostly depict some sort of running battle between what appears to be a monarch and a sorcerer or demon.

Despite the ancient facade, there is contemporary lighting, the rooms are all at a comfortable temperature, and fresh air circulates throughout the structure.

Maps of The Lair can be found here.

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"Scarab's thinkin'. She does that." Avenger looked up at the Egyptian art with a gleam in his ice-blue eyes, expression naturally very hard to read behind his mask and his odd body language. "Psychic powers." Standing before an image of a prince rising from the dead somewhere in medieval Europe, Avenger turned his sharp gaze on Dark Star. "Cooperation. Scarab has skills. I have skills. And you?" The question was a little vague, but from the look in Avenger's eye he was definitely interested in Dark Star's answer.

-

The city opened to Scarab like a Nile hippo's yawn; magnificent and deceptively dangerous all at the same time. There were the usual impassable islands where her vision never seemed to work just right; parts of Ditko Street and Midtown, Lantern Hill and the South Side, but for the most part things were remarkably open to her tonight. Then again, weren't they always? She found "Lockpick" in an unexpected place; the high-class burglar was nearly unrecognizable in a classy tuxedo at the Atlantis Casino. He's not at the table, though; instead the man was playing cards in a backroom with four bleary-eyed men in loud suits and slick hair. One of the men did a line of coke off the table while Scarab watches, but the men are mostly interested in the game. "Tonnifanni," as the others call him, AKA Lockpick, was winning this round. Though everyone seemed friendly at the table, Scarab could tell the others weren't very happy with Tonnifani's good fortune. From the sound of things, he'd come to the table already flush.

She found the other man just at the edge of the obscured areas around Dikto Street, standing inside an old church evidently refitted for some dire purpose. Scarab had only the time to catch a few words of the man's talk, though, ending with "...and soon the master will rise, and the blood will be ours!" before suddenly the hooded man looked up and stared straight into Scarab's psychic gaze! "I CAN SEE YOU!" he shouted, even as the crowd around him screamed and gamboled in the height of their religious ecstasy.

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She found the other man just at the edge of the obscured areas around Dikto Street, standing inside an old church evidently refitted for some dire purpose. Scarab had only the time to catch a few words of the man's talk, though, ending with "...and soon the master will rise, and the blood will be ours!" before suddenly the hooded man looked up and stared straight into Scarab's psychic gaze! "I CAN SEE YOU!" he shouted, even as the crowd around him screamed and gamboled in the height of their religious ecstasy.

"And I can see you. You can't hide from me. I will find you. And I will stop you."

Blind and deaf, The Scarab rose from her throne and began running through her audience chamber, reaching her arm out to feel the pillars lining her path for guidance. She ran all the way to the central elevator shaft, then took to the air and descended down, running her hand along the outer wall. I have got to learn how to observe two locations at once. This is too dangerous. And awkward.

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Dark Star nodded and looked at the various artwork and artifacts. “Psychic powers. Ah,†he said understanding her comment from earlier. “She’s searching for the targets.â€Â

He looked over at Avenger. “Skills hmm? Those are some impressive skills then. You know, I remember Scarab from before. Back when Scarab was in the League. It's been a while; I’ll have to look up what happened when we’re done,†he said the last to himself, thinking aloud.

“Me? I’ve got some skill in investigation. Not much, more of a hobby really. I’ve done a little peacemaking too. I’m also something of a scientist though it has been a few years. As for this,†he gestured towards himself, “I have various abilities associated with a dark star. Believe me, it isn't theoretical. Gravity control, telekinesis, radiation control, space travel and being difficult to detect. Recently manage to be able to adjust the radiation to heal as well. What else? Some enhanced sensory abilities based on seeing gravity waves.â€Â

He shrugged. “I’m not exactly experienced in fighting but I’ve been in a few. Mostly with aliens or their ships though. I’ve only been back on Earth for a few days.†He shrugged and looked around, still impressed with the surroundings. "How about you?"

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Scarab's bold words got her an animalistic hiss in reply, the man making diabolic gestures in the air. As she watched, the air around the man began to turn red and dripping, waves of unspeakable crimson washing through the air in an obscuring tide. Within minutes, the whole building was solidly blanked from sight. Fortunately, as the builder of this lair and its inhabitant for decades, Scarab was well able to navigate even when her senses were displaced elsewhere. Outside the obscuring bloody mist, she could see passersby on Ditko Street going back and forth quite normally; evidently that great red mystic dome was either invisible to their eyes or only visible to her.

-

"Me? Ancient Chinese secret," Avenger replied. "The mask, the nom de guerre, strike fear. The real name, the real face; no." He laughed. "Or maybe this is my real face. It's hard to remember these nights. Seems like I'm everywhere." He hesitated a moment, then added with a faint trace of wonder in his gruff voice, "Space travel, huh? Ever fight a Grue?"

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The Scarab let her senses snap back to her physical body as she stumbled through her Lair. She called out to her comrades as her sight returned. "AVENGER! DARKSTAR! We need to move!"

"I found our thieves. Lockpick's raking it in at the Atlantis Casino, but he isn't a priority. He's a hired gun, enjoying his paycheque. If we need a back-up plan, we can corner him and beat the information out of him. But his employer is trying to Call Cthulu at a church on Ditko Street. And he saw me scrying on him. And he was able to ward against it. Which means we're on a time limit!" As she spoke, The Scarab transmitted a picture of the church and a quick map into the minds of her comrades.

"DarkStar, you can move ridiculously fast. Can you take one or both of us along with you?"

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Meanwhile...

As Avenger, Dark Star, and scarab headed off to Scarab's pad, none of them noticed -- or, at least, none showed any sign of having noticed -- the dark thundercloud that had exited the Baumont Building, darted across the street (moving perpendicularly to the light southern breeze) to hug the edge of the building there, and towards the shadowed dumpsters. Nor did they see the cloud coalesce into a dark red demonic form.

"I may not know much about real magic," he growled, "but if what I suspect about those stolen items is true, things could get quite... interesting. Ominous, yet profitable."

The demon retried his messenger bag from behind the dumpster, wiped off a bit of foulness that had dripped on it, and took to the skies with a flap of his great wings. He headed southeast, towards Riverside. His muscles ached quite a bit, though, and he was not able to go as fast as he would have liked.

"I'm gonna need some help, though," he growled to himself. "Someone who can find that 'Lockpick,' or the Bela Lugosi-type guy. And I think I know just how to get it."

Belphegor returned to his shoppe/home, entering via the skylight he'd installed in the bedroom. He tosses his bag on the bed, then concentrated a moment.

Gone, gone, O Belphegor!

Resume once more a mortal's form!

The demon's tail, wings, and horns shrunk, his fanged muzzle of a mouth compressed down into a more normal facial structure, his eye sifted from orange slitted pupils to normal green ones, and all his scales sloughed off, landing with a wet *plop* on the bedroom carpet and quickly dissolving away into nothingness. He retrieved one of the prepaid cell phones he kept in his nightstand, stretched out on the bed (au naturel), and made a few calls. In the few months his shoppe had been open, he had made a few contacts with some minor adepts and street mages, contacts he meant to put to use in helping him locate whoever might be attempting the sort of ceremony for which those those particular items could be used.

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Down in the Scarab's lair, Avenger sprang quickly into action at his ally's call. "On it. I can..." He looked at Dark Star, a thoughtful look in his ice-blue eyes, before nodding. "Can't move fast on my own," he agreed. "Won't take up space. Need to get to church." He was on his feet quickly, already heading for the door and the way out. "See anything else?" he urgently asked Scarab. "Rites, words?"

Across town, Jos had found some interesting things. A new fringe cult has recently split from the local Satanists, the new faith a blending of Satanic and Gothic imagery in a way seen only in the pages of cheap, tawdry occult exploitation novels...and unspeakably foul demonic cults. The Blood Brotherhood has leased the former Precious Blood Church on Ditko Street, much to the aggravation of the occultists who used to use the area for their own blasphemous rites. They've avoided trouble with other occultists so far by paying them off in cold, hard cash; though they're not friendly, they are very generous with what appears to be an ample supply of funds.

In particular, the Brotherhood catches Jos' attention because of the doctrines they believe. Soon, very soon, the sacrifice of the son will deliver the Blood God to Earth, where his followers shall reign in wicked darkness forevermore...

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He looked over at Avenger, a bit surprised at first, at the mention of the Grue before he remembered a lot had happened. Instead he nodded. "Yeah, I've fought the shapechangers more than a few times. Individuals aren't tough; heck even the commanders aren't that bad. But they're devious and constantly messing around out there."

His head snapped around at Scarab's urgent call. He nodded as he listened. "No problem!" He focused on altering the gravity around them, gently scooping them up. "Keep your arms and legs inside the cockpit and observe the no smoking sign. Next stop, Ditko Street! Eta...maybe 5 to 10 seconds with delays!" With a gentle grip on his companions to tow them along, he took off like a rocket, only slowing or stopping enough for Scarab to open any barriers in their way.

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Terhune glanced at the clock on his bedroom wall. "Hrm, not yet midnight. Which means it's still February 1st. A Sunday."

He got up, stretched a bit, and a moment later was back in his demonic form.

"I'd best get to church.

He exited through the skylight -- with some difficulty, due to his great wingspan -- and once atop his roof took off. Before he could get high enough to be unrecognizable, he spotted a young man and woman jogging by. He wasn't sure if they spotted him, but just to be sure, he made them feel a consuming passion for each other; the man was especially eager. He neither knew nor cared if they were lovers, friends, co-workers, or had just met, or what their tryst would mean to any significant others they may have had. Soon he was safely higher up, though, and made his way to the Precious Blood Church on Ditko Street.

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The fast-moving heroes arrived at Dikto Street after only a few seconds in the air, Dark Star's fantastic speed and Scarab's psychic perceptions letting them navigate through the skyscape of Freedom with fantastic speed. Their target turned out to be on a cul-de-sac near the end of Ditko Street, a small curve where the street slowly began transforming into the small shops and dockside factories of the rest of that district.

The Precious Blood Church was clearly visible as they made their descent, the bloody obscurity noted by Scarab during her earlier scan no longer present...at least, no longer present to any senses she was using currently. Jack was tense as they flew, impassive though he was behind the grim and gritty mask of Avenger. What if I was right? Could he fight this monster, with these people?

Navigating was a bit more challenging for Belphegor; after all, translating a street address from the air without benefit of Google Maps is a challenge even for the demonic. Still, he was a cunning and careful flier, and managed to avoid apparent detection despite his off-handed bit of fun with that unfortunate pair as he took off. The question was, what to do now?

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Belphegor circled the Precious Blood Church, looking for a spot to land where he would not be seen by the passersby. After a few moments he saw an opening, and dived down to the back of the building. He looked for a backdoor, a service entrance or something.

Should he find one, he knocks.

Should someone answer, he just smiles a big fang-filled grin.

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When they arrived at the church, The Scarab broke off from the other two heroes. "Gentlemen, the time for subtlety has passed."She scanned the street for a moment, mentally comparing the cars on the road. Where's the biggest, heaviest, most expensive, most likely to belong to someone with a lot of money and a lot of insurance...there! She pointed at a black Cadillac Escalade with gold rims parked two blocks away. She turned her hand, palm facing upward, and lifted her arm slightly. The SUV lifted up several feet into the air. She turned her hand sideways, and the SUV flipped likewise. She made a fist with her other hand. The cover popped off the nozzle leading into the gas tank. She stuck out her index finger and twirled it around in circles. The seal unscrewed and fell off, and gasoline spilled out into a pothole on the asphalt.

Once the SUV was drained, The Scarab raised her open hand, made a clutching motion, then hurled her arm toward the church. The Escalade flew toward the front door, and The Scarab followed.

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Standing on the roadway where Dark Star had deposited him, Avenger made a single, involuntary noise as Scarab knocked an SUV-sized hole in the door as easily as waving her fingers. "Good work. Meet you inside." As was his wont in combat, Avenger disappeared at that juncture; heading around the side of the abandoned church as fast as he could run through the dark shadows of the evening. This church certainly didn't feel holy, if anything, rather the reverse! But Jack had no idea what divine magic would do to his undead flesh, and if he was going to react to any displays of power, better to do it where his friends couldn't see him.

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The Scarab, hovering a couple feet off the ground, floated into the church through the new hole, where the front door used to be. She lifted her open hand again, and what was left of the battered SUV lurched up into the air again. "I highly doubt the Vatican would approve of these 'unorthodox' services. For shame." The SUV spun in circles as it hovered next to her. "I can't make any promises, but if you surrender now, you might not get excommunicated."

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Flying through the door revealed to Scarab a nave in chaos; figures in red robes running around like refugees from the Inquisition, gathering up various blasphemous-looking artifacts and fleeing through the rear door of what was once the sanctuary. "It's all on you, Sister Sixtus!" called a familiar voice, the cadaverous cult leader moving with remarkable alacrity as he scooped up a leather satchel by his pulpit and ran for the rear door.

Sister Sixtus, for her part, stepped forward with a confident sneer on her broad, pale face, raising high a golden metal staff marked with serpentine colors. "You'd better get back, hero! Your powers are nothing before the powers of the Staff of the Necro-Kings!" Sure enough, the staff did crackle with bizarre supernatural power, seeming to make the very air itself blur around her as she raised the mighty weapon high. Sixtus herself was standing near where the battered SUV had landed, still on the ground as she glared up at Scarab.

Meanwhile, Belphegor hid overhead a loud commotion followed quickly by a tremendous crash inside the church, all the signs of a building rapidly falling into chaos as someone came bursting in the front door. No sooner did he knock on the door than it was thrown upon almost in his face, a red-robed, red-faced man greeting him with a startled look on his face. "Oh my...um, Satan! What do you want?!" There were quite a few other people behind the man, a crowd cut short in its escape by the demon in the door.

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Hrm, think fast, man....

"Satan? No, not quite," the demon bellowed. "The Fallen One has taken note of your activities, but his attentions are held elsewhere, so he has sent me as his emissary, to offer guidance and inspiration for your great works. You may address me as 'Bael', as in 'baleful'. Now, quickly," he said , stepping back to let others out, "tell me what vexes you so, why you flee from your unhallowed hall, when your hour of victory is so close. Have the Pope's men found you out?"

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Dark Star didn't blink as Avenger basically vanished. Apparently he was getting used to the man's sudden vanishing. However, Dark Star did blink at the SUV missile. He mumbled, a little surprised, "I do hope whoever owned that had some kind of super-related insurance..." While he wasn't sure he approved, it certainly opened the door for everyone.

He followed Scarab inside and looked around with a disgusted look. It certainly did not look to be the meeting of the Vienna Boy's Choir. Given the words being yelled, he didn't think anyone in here was on the side of light. He wasn't sure what exactly was going on, but he could sort it out later. For now he brought a massive gravity field down to cover everyone inside, exclude himself and his teammates of course. The gravity went from 1G to way into the negatives, sending everyone headings for a nice smashing impact into the ceiling, leaving them pinned there hopefully.

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