Hideouts & Hoodlums: Justice Society of America

Game Master Scottenkainen

"It's been a while* since I tussled with you Krauts," the Sandman says. "You guys still can't take a punch!" The Sandman tries to land a furious blow, hoping to knock the German out.

*As shown in Adventure Comics #42 in a story penned by Battlin' Burt Christman, the Sandman, in his secret identity as Wesley Dodds, served in the navy during the Great War.

The German lieutenant was a skilled boxer. Sandman's rooftop bout ranged back and forth as the two men jabbed, blocked, feinted, and jabbed again. Sandman took some glancing blows that stung, but again he continued to give at least twice as good as he got. The problem was, this lieutenant was fresh and could take the hits, but Sandman was still worn out from days in a row of tough crime-fighting.

Flash raced up on the roof, circled the battle and saw Sandman was winning -- albeit slowly -- and that no one was in the autogyro currently. There was a door on the roof that provided access to the building. About 400 ft. overhead, the dirigible hovered.

Dr. Fate read the surface thoughts of the guard behind the secret door. Ah -- the man was under orders to guard the secret door, but hadn't been shown how to close it tight! The man seemed like a pretty dim bulb and very afraid that his boss, Jimmy the Jeweler, would report him to Mr. X if he failed in his guard duty.

Flash darts towards the Pilot, giving him a quick (and hopefully unexpected) body-check to help Sandman, then rushes over towards the building door. He looks for a way to block it from this side, but in a manner in which it could be later removed if desired.

Body-checked by the Flash, Lt. Klaebisch was perfectly set up for a haymaker from Sandman that landed the Kraut flat on his back on the rooftop and unable to get back up.

Flash then rushed over to the roof access door and found that it opened inwards and there was nothing on the roof that could be moved to block it if opened -- except for the autogyro.

Dr. Fate tried to read more useful thoughts from the mobster behind the secret door, but the dim-witted man started thinking about the pastrami sandwich he had the other day for lunch and wouldn't move his mind to another topic.

Dammit now Fate wants a sandwich.

Dr. Fate creeps closer to the secret door. "Hmmm... how does this open? More importantly how does it close?" Dr. Fate thinks to himself as he nears the door.

Assuming I can not sense any other thoughts as I bring more of the space beyond the door into range...

Hoping he is not under-estimating the intellect of the hungry minion Dr. Fate carefully picks up a foot long peice of billet splintered wreckage and kneeling down tries to use the wreckage to slowly open the secret door. If the door will not open then Dr. Fate will softly tap...tap...tap on the door.

The goal is to try to get Captain sandwich here to come through the door which would allow Fate to slip past him through the secret door. Fate will then close and lock the door behind him effectively bypassing Captain Sandwich.

"Thanks for the assist, Flash. Those German soldiers are pretty tough. So . . . should we see what trouble Fate has gotten into inside? Or do you fancy flying up to the blimp?"

With no way to block the door, Flash abandons the idea.

"Do you think you can fly that thing?" He asks Sandman. "Otherwise, we'd better disable it. Who do you think the pilot brought down here?" He looks over towards the German to see if he's in any condition to answer questions.

"I think I might be able to fly it, or crash it as the case may be. I agree though, we need to figure out who the pilot flew down. It must've been someone important. Perhaps you check inside and I can try to board the blimp. Though, when I say it out loud like that it's sounds like an idea that is likely to turn out terribly." The Flash could almost see the vision of a blimp crashing into the city flash across the Sandman's eyes, if, of course, the Sandman weren't wearing a WW1 era gas mask.

Flash checked the unconscious German pilot and found that he was out cold. They would have a long wait until he could be revived, as hard as Sandman was punching him.

Inside, Dr. Fate tapped, tapped, tapped on the secret door. Thirty seconds later, just as he thought his strategy might have failed, he spotted a gun barrel poke through the crack and push the door open wider. A chunky, fat-lipped mobster in a suit and hat pushed the door open and waved his Tommy gun around cautiously. He stepped out just enough that there was some room to slip around him, but it would be a 50/50 chance of brushing up against him.

"Right," Flash says to Sandman. He's somewhat dubious, but doesn't want to question Sandman's abilities.

Flash ties up the pilot securely, then heads over to the stairs and makes his way down with as much stealth as he can manage.

This would be the point where something like mage hand or ghost sounds or other reuseable minor magic would be really handy. If we survive this Fate will be looking into some utility magic items.

Flicking the bit of debris into a dark corner in a last attempt to distract the goon, Dr. Fate tries to sidle past him through the door.

"Hmmmm splitting up . . . that's always the best idea. I'll have some stories to tell at the next JSA meeting," the Sandman thinks as he races over to the autogyro, stopping along the way to rifle through the German's pockets. "Perhaps he'll have something that will help start this contraption." Once he reaches the vehicle, the Sandman inspects it, hoping that he can figure out how to fly this bird.

Sandman found the ignition key for the autogryo in the pilot's jacket pocket. He noticed that the autogyro had a machine gun mounted on it. Ignition...contact! The motor roared and the propeller blades began to whirl until they were invisible to the naked eye. He spied a handle that looked like a break and released it. The autogyro started to roll forward. Sandman pulled back on the control lever and watched with baited breath as the roof's edge drew near. Thankfully, the autogyro began to lift off of the roof before going over the edge. He was airborne, as opposed to falling! Heading up to the blimp?

Flash raced through the access door and found the top of a staircase, a fire extinguisher, and an elevator door. Ignoring the slow elevator, Flash took the stairs. The staircase was dimly lit. The first door he came to was locked. Continuing down, he surprised a mobster with a sub-machine gun on the next landing down. Combat intentions, or try to evade him?

Dr. Fate made one last effort to distract his sandwich-obsessed adversary, but it was not enough. His long cape brushed the mobster's arm as he tried to slip around behind the man invisibly. "What was that?" the mobster cried out, and reached out for what he had felt. Dr. Fate was in a short, dark corridor maybe 20' long, with a light coming from around a corner ahead and to the right. Surprise lost. Intentions?

Flash doesn't want to leave any armed adversaries behind him, and attempts to snatch the mobster's gun before the man has time to react.

The Sandman chuckles quietly to himself as the autogyro launches off the top of the building. "Whew . . . now I just have to land this thing without crashing." He flies towards the blimp, hoping to figure out who is behind Mr. X and his German friends.

Haven't had real suprise since the shooting started. The only question is what they are ready for.

Dr. Fate curses as he feels his cape drag on the mobster. Not wanting to be trapped in the small space the archon of law darts forward around the corner and into the unknown...

Sandman managed to raise the autogyro and bank hard around to face the much larger dirigible looming overhead. From here, Sandman could see the grapple hooks mounted under the dirigible that he would have to line up with, come in under, and hook loops on the wings to in order to "park" underneath it.

Flash tried to disarm the mobster in the stairwell, but found the tight confines of the small landing did not give him enough of a speed advantage over this tough hoodlum. Instead, Flash had to spin in circles around his foe, dodging bullets, and always stayed at least 5 inches ahead of them.

Dr. Fate managed to dash down the secret hallway fast enough to escape the grip of the mobster guarding the secret door. In his haste, he circled around the corner and almost fell as he reached a staircase going down right around the corner. The stairs went down one story to a basement level. There, Dr. Fate invisibly came to stand in front of two more hoodlums armed with advanced-looking sub-machine guns guarding a single door.

Flash continues tussling with the mobster.

"Darn," The Sandman mutters to himself, "I should've brought a parachute. I'm sure to crash this thing, trying to land it–maybe attach is the better word–on that dirigible. I hope the Flash is ready to catch me when I fall." With that bit of hopelessness, the Sandman begins angling the autogyro towards the looming airship, examining the dirigible for any identifying marks.

He hopes to safely park the autogyro and begin exploring the blimp.

Clang-clang! Contact. Sandman hooked the autogyro onto the landing array under the dirigible. There was a ladder within reach that would allow him to climb up to a trapdoor.

Flash stopped circling his foe and put himself at risk of one more shot, but it was worth it. He managed to snatch the gun out of his opponent's hands and left him disarmed. But it was a short victory, as he could hear another man running up the stairs, shouting, "Pat, what's going on up there?"

Fate stands silently before the two mobsters. He slows and quiets his breathing.
....

Two mobsters in front of him one behind. They really are making his job easier.

...

Dr. Fate slowly flattens himself against the wall as the mobster behind him draws closer. Fate silently waits to see how the pair of guards will react to the secret door mobster when he tells them that he 'felt something.'

Dr. Fate smiles behind his mask.

The Sandman, too, is smiling behind his mask as he clambers out of the autogyro and up the ladder, pausing to listen beneath the trapdoor. "I don't know if I should tell Dian about this expedition or not. She'll probably be upset that I didn't swing around to her dad's place to pick her up!"

Assuming he doesn't hear anything interesting, the Sandman will open the trapdoor just enough that he can get a get a look at the inside of the gasbag floating over the city.

Flash attempts to muffle the first guard's mouth with his hand while he waits for the second to appear. When the second one appears below, his plan is to hurl the first guard down upon him, then follow to finish up.

((By "finish up" I mean knocking the two of them unconscious, preferably by conking their heads together like two coconuts))

Sandman lifted the trap door carefully and observed what appeared to be a cargo hold. It was over half-empty, except for some tall crates and a German Mercedes-Benz car. There was a door at both the fore and aft ends of the hold. By the fore door, a man in a brown suit was talking to a man dressed like a German soldier. Neither had noticed him yet.

In the building's staircase, Flash tried to muffle Pat's mouth, but got a finger bit for his troubles. "Help!" Pat managed to cry out in warning.

The second hoodlum came into view at the next landing down with a sub-machine gun in hands. Flash sent Pat hurtling down into the next guy as he started coming up and they both tumbled over each other, landing in a heap at the back of the landing and both moderately injured. They remained prone as Flash came running down to join them, but were rising back up to their feet as he moved to finish them off.

I ran out of time for Dr. Fate's turn. Sorry! It'll come tomorrow.

Flash grasps one's head in each hand and attempts to bang them together like a pair of coconuts.

The Flash had a good plan, but it was thwarted for a minute longer by the mobsters having faked being stunned by their fall. As he moved up to grab them, they each lunged for his legs. He was still too fast for them to grab on to, but they made him dance around their frantic grabs instead of getting to do the coconut thing that would have been so satisfying.

Dr. Fate stood silently off to the side as the secret door guard came running up behind him.

"Where did it go? Did you see it?" the bigger man asked frantically.

"Where did what go? What's gotten into you? Get back to yer' post before the boss sees 'ya."

"Something brushed past me back there! Something I couldn't see! I think it was a...a ghost..."

"Yer' off your rocker!"

"Hey, wait..." said the third guard. "Don't they say the Spectre is a ghost? Go check it out with Dave. I'll wait here."

"Oh, fine...c'mon, show me this ghost!" the first of the door guards said as he and the secret door guard, Dave, went back to the secret door.

The Sandman, hoping to learn something of the connection between the Germans and the mysterious Mr. X, attempts to silently climb into the cargo hold and then slip behind some the crates, striving to get close enough to overhear the conversation.

Sandman slipped like an eel up into the cargo hold and, out of sight, was able to hear the end of a conversation. Luckily, the Germans were not talking in German, but in badly accented English.

"So, der general 'vill give these Amerikanner' mobsters one hour to prove themselves. If 've do not hear from him by then, you are to report to battle stations, ya?"

"Yawol, mein herr."

Flash is getting increasingly frustrated by the time he's wasting on these two-bit goons, he continues his attempts to render them unconscious.

Flash had another minute to get even more frustrated. The "two-bit goons" might have doubled as professional wrestlers, as working together they still continued to fend Flash off. At least it was a stalemate, with Flash able to dodge their every attempt to land a hold on him. But, as long would have it, he could hear a third goon on his way up to join the battle.

Fate silently studies the door while his amulet sifts through the mind of the remaining guard.

Dr. Fate thinks to himself... "I don't want to hurt this man if I don't have to...There must be a way to slip past him.... Maybe if I slip into the space where his partner was standing I can see how the door opens.."

Grrrr I have never missed cantrips so much! A simple Ghost Sound and I would be past him. Any chance Dr. Fate can throw his voice?

As Dr. Fate invisibly stood within striking distance of the remaining mobster, and found that this door had only an ordinary handle, he made a ghostly sound emanate from across the small room.

"What was that?" the mobster asked out loud, lifting his gun into firing position in the crook of his arm. "...is somebody there? Well...if it is the Spectre, or that other spook, Doctor Fate...I was given something to deal with spooks..." Looking confident, the mobster put down his gun on the floor and pulled a silver dagger out of a sheath concealed under his jacket. He then stalked around the small room, listening for sounds.

A smile behind the mask of Nabu The enigmatic doctor waits until the mobster is facing away before quietly picking up the discarded submachine, pulling the door open and silently sliping through. Once through he softly closes the door and (assuming the door hardware allows this) slips the gun barrel through the door handle and securing it with the shoulder strap.

"That should slow them down a bit" Dr. Fate thinks as he moves deeper into the hideout.

Flash continues tussling with the two goons. With the advent of the third, the beginnings of a plan (not necessarily a good plan, but a plan nevertheless) begins to take form in his mind.

"That doesn't sound good. No matter what it means," The Sandman thinks to himself. "Perhaps these Germans and Mr. X are not as friendly as we think. Or perhaps, they are just giving Mr. X the chance to finish us off before the Germans use this blimp!" Hoping to find out more information, the Sandman continues to listen to the conversation, while waiting for a chance to slip through the fore door, thinking that it might lead to the command center of this invading German air force.

The conversation on the blimp ended there and the man in the suit went through the door to the fore of the blimp. The soldier relaxed and started meandering through the hold. With a momentarily clear path to the door, Sandman started for it -- only to step on a twig. Who leaves twigs in cargo holds, seriously? Nevertheless, the soldier turned and barked "Who goes there?" as he came to investigate. By the time he was in line of sight of the Sandman, Sandman had his hand on the door handle, about to exit.

The coconut thing never happened. The thugs actually managed to corner Flash long enough to get him in a one-arm lock. Flash responded by slamming the goon holding him at super-fast speed into the wall behind them and knocking the man unconscious.

"He--he ain't human!" the other wrestler-mobster decided, and turned to run down the stairs. Flash punched him in the back of the head and sent him sprawling, head over heels, down the stairs, until he landed in a crumpled heap in front of the third mobster coming up.

"Why you dirty--" the third mobster said, but the rest of his sentence, which probably ran cruder, was obscured by the bark of his sub-machine gun. However, with the stairwell landing cleared of mobsters now, Flash had no trouble moving back and forth fast enough to dodge all the bullets.

Dr. Fate's silver-wielding foe turned and shouted "Hey!" just as he saw the door opening as if on its own. He ran to stop it, but the invisible Dr. Fate stepped through first. Sure enough, it was just the right kind of handle for his improvised door-barring trick to work.

Dr. Fate found himself standing in a brick alcove facing into a larger room. The chamber, lit by fluorescent lights overhead, was 40' by 40', with a 20' high ceiling. There was a huge table in the middle of the room surrounded by mostly empty chairs. On one side of the table sat three elegant-looking mobsters. On another side of the table sat a Nazi general, more specifically, General Reinhard Heydrich. On a third side of the table, furthest away from Dr. Fate, sat a Japanese general -- more specifically, General Takuma Shimoyama -- who sat next to Dr. Fate's old pal, Mitsuhirato.

A voice was addressing them from a radio mounted in the center of the table. "If your countries acknowledge the American war on crime, then you must acknowledge me as the general of crime. So, on equal footing, I entreat with you gentlemen. We will only gain by an alliance. Once I control the United States, it will become an ally to the Axis Powers."

"Ve still 'avait a demonstration of your abilities," General Heydrich said.

"What of a demonstration of defense?" the voice that was surely Mr. X responded. "The Justice Society of America is, even now, trying to breach its way into my lair, but they will never reach this inner sanctum."

The room had some other minor furnishings, like a water cooler and a coat rack. There were also two other dark alcoves facing off this chamber, one in the left wall and one in the far wall.

Flash discards his now-uneccessary plan and barrels into the third mobster.

Boy I hope the Flash/Sandman get here quick. That door will not hold for long. Maybe I can buy some time.

Wait a min. Turnabout is fair play and all. Are they really here?

Dr. Fate quietly moves out of the alcove and towards the wall behind the german. His mystic powers ready to shatter any spell Mitsuhirato should raise against him. As he does so his amulet taps the thoughts of the Japanese general. If there is time he will also touch the minds of the german and the center mobster. Once in position and satisfied that what he is seeing is real Fate will speak.

"Hubris is the besetting sin of criminals, "General" X. I am afraid your demonstration has failed. Your sanctum is violated and your men neutralized." Fates voice fills the room appearing to come first from one side and then the other.

"Leutanent general Shimoyama, you are a long way from your air command. Obergruppenfurer Heydrich, it is interesting to see the head of the Reich's police forces so far from the fatherland. You will please both consider yourselves guests of the United States government. You will be here for some time."

The mystic masters voice drops in tone as he continues. "Mitsuhirato, you had promise despite your petty scemes, but your corrupt ambition has overborne your usefullness."

Dr Fate fades into view as Mitsuhirato's chair, suddenly remembering when it was a living tree bursts into wild growth. Strng limbs wrap round legs and arms them. A thick oak branch circles his chest squeezing the breath from him. The pressure is not enough to strangle him but far too much for him to gather a breath to speak a spell.

Casting hold person on Mitsuhirato. Limited to a single target so his save is at -2.

Want to be out of the way when the 'ghosted' goons decide to shoot the lock off the door. The bullets wouldn't hurt but if I am not in the way then they might hit their friends. By the way is the Obergruppenfurer on the left or right side of the table looking from the door I came through?

Current effects, Protection from Normal Missiles. Spells remaining i3 ii2 iii1 iv2 v2

Spotted, the Sandman swiftly launches himself at the guard, hoping to quietly knock him out with the butt of his gun.

Once the Sandman has disposed of the soldier, he will quietly comment: "It was a twig that revealed my presence. I always thought that Germans were a clean folk." He will then continue his exploration of the airship, hoping to discover what the Germans are up to in America and how they managed to get this thing into American airspace.

Sandman managed to close the distance with the Nazi sergeant before he could be fired on, but then the two grappled with each other for a full minute, neither managing to land a blow on the other, though they knocked over quite a few crates and made a lot of noise in their tussle.

Flash came barreling down into the remaining hoodlum, knocking the man back a few steps, but not knocking him down or out. This guy was tough. He stood his ground and tried to bash the Flash with the butt of his gun, but Flash backed away a good 6" from being hit.

The assembled mobsters, generals, and magician stood up and looked around when they heard Dr. Fate incant his spell. Mitsuhirato, perhaps recognizing the spell, shouted, "Stop him!" -- but it was too late. Mitsuhirato was frozen stiff as a statue, just as Dr. Fate faded into visibility.

Guns were drawn around the room and scores of bullets were fired at where Dr. Fate patiently sat, still protected by his warding spell.

"What is going on?" Mr. X was shouting over the radio, but could only be heard when the shooting quieted down.

"He can't be killed!" one of the mobster shouted.

"Any man can die," General Shimoyama said as he threw down his gun and drew a sword from his side.

((Can Flash hear the gunfire?))

Flash continues tussling with the (hopefully!) last mobster, trying to knock him out.

The Flash heard no other battles being waged.

The Sandman attempts to withdrawal from combat, trying to gain enough time to set off a gas grenade. "Sorry, but we are making too much noise, and I don't have time to wrestle."

Assuming the German has fallen asleep, the Sandman will attempt to stealthily infiltrate the ship, going through the fore door.

Sandman stepped back and let his foe have it at close range with the gas gun. The soldier tried to take a deep breath before the gas reached his nostrils, but it was too late. He took a deep breath of sleep gas and dropped to the floor, unconscious.

Flash, meanwhile, gave his last standing foe one more super-fast punch and knocked him out cold.

Both heroes had clear paths to their objectives now... Though I'll pause here, hoping that Dr. Fate gets in a post today for combat intentions.

The chair binding should last for 16 more turns.

Dr. Fate moves around the table keeping the expanse of solid oak between him and the Japanese general.

"I am suprised at you General Shimoyama. It is in your governments interest to keep America out of your imperial sphere. Yet here you are. A high ranking military officer found plotting with petty criminals. You will be quite the embarrassment to your emperor."

Dr. Fate turns the expressionless mask on the Nazi. "Your presence is more predictable. You will be dealt with."[/b]

"First however..." With a wave of a hand the stripe pattern on the wall paper suddenly loops free and grabs the three mobsters (or as many of them as I can get. In a perfect world I would snag all three and the German, worth a shot) binding them tightly to the wall.

casting web, catching as many baddies as I can.

"Get used to stripes. You will be wearing them for some time."

Oh editor what is the floor made out of? Concrete? Stone slab?

Sandman opened the door at the fore end of the cargo hold and saw that it opened on a short hallway. The sides of the hallway were obscured by short partitions, as it to create stalls on either side of the hall. The partitions were also providing cover for three more Nazi soldiers who had heard the fighting in the cargo hold and held rifles at the ready.

"Halt! Surrender, or 've 'vill shoot!" he was warned.

Down below, Flash celebrated his win over the hoodlums in the stairwell by pouring on the speed and finally reaching the lower levels of the building. He passed an exit from the stairwell on each level, with there being two doors out on the ground floor. One of the doors on the ground floor, the north one, was ajar. This door let into a small lounge with an equally small kitchen adjacent though an archway and a closed door on the far side (north side) of the lounge. Also checking the other door (on the east side of the stairwell), he found it led into a meeting room with a table and chairs in it, and another door in the north wall. Both rooms had nice paintings on the walls.

Still further down, Dr. Fate was able to keep the table between him and his foes long enough to cast another spell. The stripes on the walls multiplied rapidly and sprung out to ensnare the mobsters and General Heydrich. They might have snared General Shimoyama too had he continued longer in trying to run around the table to reach Dr. Fate. But he quickly saw the futility of that and, with a shrill battle cry, he jumped up on the table and ran across the top of it to reach Dr. Fate. The stripe-web piled up on the table, threatening to catch his heels, but he jumped off into melee range of Dr. Fate just in time and forced the hero to dodge. The general's sword missed him by just an inch.

"If the meeting is here somewhere, they've got to have posted more guards. I must be in the wrong area...", Flash thinks. He tries opening the door to the north of the lounge. If nobody is in there, he'll zip back and try the door to the north of the meeting room.

Flash's wish to find more guards was quickly rewarded. Through the north door in the lounge, Flash came into the back of the lobby of the jewelry store. There were shattered display cases all over the middle of the room and two mobsters with sub-machine guns in hand hiding in the shadows. But they were not hiding from him -- they were hiding around a corner near him so they could not be seen from the front of the lobby. The reason became clear enough when Flash noticed flashing red lights reflected in the lobby -- police cars were outside.

Before Flash could react, one of the mobsters turned at the sound of the door opening and saw Flash there. "Hey!" he managed to shout before... Combat intentions?

Current effects, Protection from Normal Missiles. Spells remaining i3 ii1 iii1 iv2 v2

"I don't want to kill this man but he insists on not making it easy"

Dr. Fate nimbly leaps atop the table to put some distance between himself and the sword wielding maniac. Activating his amulet as he does to in order to gain a greater understanding of the foe he faces.

"General, I am trying to be reasonable. The JSA is here, that is a fact. The police are outside and will be here very soon, that is a fact. You will be taken into custody, that is a fact. However our nations are not at war. You are not an enemy of the United States. You well be confined in some comfort as befits your station while our governments talk to each other about how best to return you to Japan. This is also a fact.
You were duped into this fools errand by 'General X'. A general I note who is too afraid to even appear before his allies. Is this coward a suitable ally for Japan? Think General. You did not achieve your high rank by being a fool."

If the words are having any effect fate will pause to give them time to work. If the amulet shows him byond words Dr, Fate will cast Mirror image as a protective measure.