A few minutes later, Kenneth's phone beeps in response. cleaning up. see u guys soon.
"Well, okay, if you really want to leave, you can, but I think the others would be bummed if you left. I'm sure it will be fine either way though."
|
Imagine watches the older man go with her unblinking stare, and, in the end, says nothing further. Things had gone...well.
Reasonably sure, if not positive, that she's not watched, she simply glides up to the trapdoor and opens it. She cracks it enough to squeeze by the short ladder and then just flies up, letting the trapdoor close behind her.
'Greetings,' she mind-says, not wanting to make noise. 'Your foster-paternal-unit is...nice. He says you are in big trouble, although he did not specify the origin of the status.
Have you located that which you sought?'
Imagine watches the older man go with her unblinking stare, and, in the end, says nothing further. Things had gone...well.
Reasonably sure, if not positive, that she's not watched, she simply glides up to the trapdoor and opens it. She cracks it enough to squeeze by the short ladder and then just flies up, letting the trapdoor close behind her.
'Greetings,' she mind-says, not wanting to make noise. 'Your foster-paternal-unit is...nice. He says you are in big trouble, although he did not specify the origin of the status.
Have you located that which you sought?'
"Nah, we found Lethal Weapon 1 and 3, and some kung-fu movie with Chackie Jan in it, but... Aha!" Hashtag finally uncovers the box of 'anatomy study materials' and hefts it, passing it to Kenneth while he pulls out the hard plastic case of laserdiscs. "Found them!" he says, pulling out a bunch of the disks and a bulky 1990's laserdisc player. "Can you hold this? I don't want to hold too much when I port." he asks, holding out the player to Imagine. "Kenneth and I will bring the movies."
He'll hand the player and the power cable to Imagine, pat her on the shoulder, and give her a 'port back home. He'll look over at Kenneth, look down at the magazines, and waggle his eyebrows. "You can take one if you want... I suggest that one there. She's got great articles." he says, pointing to one that has a korean girl wearing a large witches' hat and not much else on the cover. Nevermind if Kenneth can actually READ Korean or not.
Once that's settled, he hands several of their collected movies to Kenneth, and grabs his arm, sending him back to the tower too. Then, he carefully opens the attic door, peering down and creating the illusion that Imagine, crying, runs down the stairs holding a battered stuffed animal, looking at his father for a second before throwing open the door and bolting outside without a word.
Then, only then, does he head back to the tower.
Wingblade's mouth twists in uncertainty as Shaun announces his intention to leave. "Okay," she says simply while readying a couple bags of microwave popcorn. "I'll see you later, I guess."
She sticks a tray of pizza rolls into the oven, grabs a soda of her own and then moves to the couch. She sits, tucking her legs underneath her.
Tycho will take a seat on the floor, putting his back against the couch.
Tectonic arrives, her clothes brand-new, jacket and all. She gives a small and a wave to everybody in the common room, then chills up against the wall, snacking on a bag of popcorn.
Kenneth will watch as Imagine floats into the attic and he looks away for just a moment, feeling that blush start to come over his cheek again. "Jesus Christ, you control terrible powers that warp reality. Get a hold of yourself."
He gives her a nod of his head, the general greeting of most teenagers these days, as Vick finally finds the movies and the bulky laserdisk player. "Wow...that thing is...ancient." He said with a small laugh, shaking his head as his phone buzzes and a message from Nora comes in. Imagine is sent over first and when the offer is made to take the magazine home with the beautiful girl, Kenneth looks it over again and shakes his head.
"Bring it in next week. Last thing I need is Imagine pilfering through and finding that knowledge, you know?" A wink is given before he is sent through that strange, twisting pull and reappears back in the Clocktower.
"We got movies!" He shouts out, making his way over towards where everyone was settled. "Nora! Good to see, about time you showed up. Going to miss the Tales of Chackie Jan here." He looks over the scene for a moment, frowning for a moment. "Where'd Atoms go?"
The young woman shrugs. "Eh, got here as fast as I could. My room was a mess, and River wouldn't let me come until I cleaned it up."
Ghost Dragon, his confidence restored a little bit, dumps some popcorn into a bowl and says, "Alright, the Tales of Chackie Jan. I love that movie. Particularly his use of the environment. That's a great one!" He will then grab a seat on the floor, back resting against the couch.
"Who is Chackie Jan?"
Eldritch settles down on the couch, grabbing a handful of popcorn and shrugging a little bit.
"Hell if I know. I'm hoping for some really terrible lip-dubbing here."
He looks back over Tectonic as she leans against the wall, watching her for just a moment.
"Come on over here, what are you doing hanging out at the wall. That ain't the smoking corner at school, after all."
"Naw, you guys can have the couch. I'm cool."
Vick pops in moments later. "Whoo! Got it." he says, giving a couple of disks a spin. "I was thinking that Chackie Jan would be better to start with since Atoms would probably... where'd he go?" he asks.
"Ah. Whatevs. His loss." he accepts, handing the disk to someone while he plugs in the laserdisc player. "Okay, you guys think this is terrible, but these things were like blue-rays before blue-rays were a thing! Really high def pictures. Didn't get erased in teleport. Mom used to steal them for me all the time." He holds his hand out for the movie. "VHS never really makes the port, for some reason."
"Does it shoot lazers? I thought we'd be watching a movie, but I can get my projector if you want."
Condition(s):
Deputy Atoms nods at North Star's words, as if accepting them. In truth though, he isn't really sure how the other members of the team will react to him leaving. He found his mind going to extremes; maybe no one would care, maybe they actually wanted him to go, or perhaps someone would get upset and it'd serve to ruin or put a damper on the night. Would it be better if he forced himself to stay, or would it be best if he left? He looks to the others present.
Ghost Dragon doesn't seem to even notice that he's leaving, and as for Wingblade... "What does 'I guess' mean?" Atoms' gaze lingers on her, trying to figure her out. Their reactions were like nothing he expected. They were mild instead of extreme, to put it bluntly, and it hurt, especially in Wingblade's case. She seemed to be treating him so disdainfully this week. First, she didn't even acknowledge that he caught and saved her; second, the quip about the loofah; and now, this whole "I'll see you later, I guess" thing.
The Deputy leaves before Eldritch and the rest of the team gets back, going on his usual 24/7 patrol, but without giving his usual 10-Code (10-8) over the communicator channel. On his way out, lost in thought, he nearly walks into Tectonic, but he doesn't greet her or even apologize.
The Transformed has influence over...
The Beacon - Ghost Dragon
The Delinquent - Hashtag
The Outsider - Imagine
The Protégé - Wingblade
The Transformed labels themselves as...
Danger : +1
Freak : +3
Savior : +1
Superior : -1
Mundane : -1
Potential: 2/5
Team Pool: 2
Move: Pierce the Mask on Wingblade
Wingblade's always been uneasy around Atoms -- it's hard to look someone who saved your life at the cost of their own in the eye, even if that person did eventually come back to life.
Convince her that he doesn't blame her for his new state of being. Though, how -- that's the hard part.
Hold her responsible -- show that he resented her for her failure; superheroes were supposed to prevent casualties and keep innocents from getting hurt.
This is tough -- he's never seen her truly happy. She's hesitant in social settings, and often aloof. If there was some way to lift her burdens, letting her truly relax for a time -- but would that go against her training from her mentor?
Wingblade surrenders the use of one of the security monitors to be used for the laserdisc player. The rest of the monitors continue to cycle through the various entrances of the Clocktower. She stays quiet as the others chat about the movie, not having anything to contribute. She retrieves the pizza rolls from the oven and dumps them hissing in a bowl, then sinks back down into the couch. As the movie begins, her eyes still flick periodically to the other monitors.
|
|
Imagine stares in rapt fascination at the popcorn bowl, as if it instead held a scorpion eating a grasshopper. As Wingblade attends the kitchen, she asks, 'I have heard of the ritualized practice of exothermicly exploding maize and adding sodium chloride...but I've never actually seen it done. May I try one?'
Imagine gingerly takes a single kernel in her petite hand and gently drops it in her mouth, chewing with determination.
A smile springs on her mouth and she nods, apparently finding it good.
Mimicking Ghost Dragon, Imagine dumps some popcorn into a bowl, then adds a few steaming pizza rolls to the bowl in apparent abandon. She walks over to the couch and slides into the six inches between Hashtag and Elritch.
"This Chackie Jan is amazing!' she mind thinks, her telepathic messaging not nearly so annoying as actually talking during a movie. She turns to Kenneth after the hero beats up an entire room of thugs with a ladder, 2 chairs, and a rubber duckie and asks, 'Are many Earthling practitioners this skilled? If this is common place it's a wonder you ever bothered developing firearms!'
And so the evening devolves into teenage revelry and this is a movie night that will be in the back of each of your minds, not as the best movie night ever, but as a comforting atmosphere around people you like to be around. Its a time in your life you can think back to and say, "That was a pretty enjoyable night.
Deputy Atoms chimes in from time to time, ensuring his comrades that the streets are quiet. Perhaps hashtag ports out to check on him, or maybe the Deputy finds a solace in the silence of the night. Regardless, each one of you find that this night passes like so many others, uneventful, but fun.
===============================
Issue #2: The Proxy Wars
===============================
It's a school day for our beloved heroes (at least for those who have school). But some developments have happened to a few of the members.
Tectonic finds her sister is busier these days. By the time she wakes up all she finds is some wrapped up cooked food on the kitchen table, and it seems no matter how late she stays up Tectonic can never catch her coming back home. You're almost certain she's avoiding you, maybe giving you some space or just tired of dealing with your outbursts. But you haven't seen her much less talked to her in over a week.
Wingblade notices that her mentor is not as hard on her as she normally is. Perhaps its just your imagination, but training sessions are cut short for no reason, her hits don't land as hard as she used to when driving in a point, and even the flight patrols you both go out on seem more relaxed in nature. You haven't had time to confront her about this and you're still not sure if you're just imagining it.
Deputy Atoms patrols as usual, though for the most part he is steered clear from. Even with the protective suit on, most bystanders don't want to risk a possible accident, and some law enforcement don't take kindly to "would-be" vigilantes.
===========================
Classes are at the midday point and Eldritch, Tycho, Hashtag, and Imagine find themselves in one of the classes they share, English. Even now, the somewhat dull cadence of Mr. Spearen's speaking is lulling most of the class to sleep. Tectonic, who would normally be there, is out blowing off more steam.
Then it happens.
A sound similar to a glass shattering occurs and wakes everyone up from their daze. The first kids to rush to window see it first, a large crack in space and several beings stepping through it. One raises its hand and soon a bubble-like dome encompasses the entire school.
Meanwhile....
At Franklin High, Ghost Dragon is busy trying to shove as much food as he can manage before the lunch break ends. The cafeteria has an odd smell of old milk and dry bread so he, like many students, prefers to eat outside when able. That swiftly changes as the same scenario plays out here, only this time the students outside flee in terror to the school building as these alien-like humanoids approach the school as the dome is set up.
Vick stares at the spectacle, his mouth hanging open in surprise.
Woah, cool!
He'll look at the scene, keeping low and as out of sight as possible as he observes the situation.
"Does any of you... Have any idea who they are?" he asks.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Ty flees with the rest of the students back into the school building, not wishing to draw attention to himself. Great. An alien invasion. Got to contact the others, let them know.
With the chaos of the panicked students, Ty is able to locate a janitor's closet with no one in it. With everyone panicked, it's a simple matter to phase his hand through the door to open it from the inside and shut the door behind him. He pulls out his communicator and calls, "Ghost Dragon to Wingblade, come in. I've got an emergency."
Wingblade pushes herself away from the computer, rubbing her eyes after finishing up watching an online lecture. She drums her fingers on the desk while she contemplates her ability to sit through another before she breaks for lunch.
The communicator comes to life with Ghost Dragon's urgent voice on the other end. She grabs it and pops it in her ear. "I'm here. What is it?"
Condition(s):
Deputy Atoms enters the Clocktower. He didn't really want to come here so soon after the whole movie thing, but leaving early the other day meant not getting a full charge on his communicator, the battery of which was now dead. Unfortunately this also meant that, for the first time ever, he was coming into Wingblade's home totally unannounced. He just hoped the security system picked him up and that she noticed it.
While thinking of some polite way to greet Shayera and apologize for letting himself in, The Deputy opens the door to see her on her communicator. It was all it took for any thoughts of being polite to leave him. Maybe something urgent was going on and he didn't know it because of his communicator? He skips the pleasantries and gets right down to business.
"Is something up?"
The Transformed has influence over...
The Beacon - Ghost Dragon
The Delinquent - Hashtag
The Outsider - Imagine
The Protégé - Wingblade
The Transformed labels themselves as...
Danger : +1
Freak : +3
Savior : +1
Superior : -1
Mundane : -1
Potential: 2/5
Team Pool: 1
Kenneth was staring at the chalkboard, trying not to fall asleep in the class. It wasn't that the story their teacher was reciting was boring, it was that being forced to read it and listen to it in class was boring. He was almost tempted to try and see if he could catch a few winks when there were the exclamations from the outside.
Rising from his seat, Kenneth looks out the window into the world outside and catches sight of that crack that seems to be in nothing and the beings that begin to come out of it.
"I don't know but that dome doesn't give me a great feeling about it..." Kenneth murmurs to the Vick, moving to the window and pushing a few others out of his way. "Get the hell back people! You don't know if they're friendly!"
Arriving at the window, he'd assess the situation and see what he could pick up about these new visitors.
"Well, I'm at Franklin High. There was a sound like glass shattering, and a giant crack just appeared in the air, and a bunch of strange looking figures appeared out of it. One of them put some sort of bubble-like dome around the school. I haven't taken the time to further assess the situation, as there was a general panic from the students. I've isolated myself, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to figure this out myself. Some backup would definitely be helpful. I don't suppose there's anyone around and available, is there?"
As he speaks into his communicator, Ghost Dragon pulls out his costume and begins changing.
Listening intently to Ghost Dragon as she runs across the Clocktower to grab her boots, Wingblade has them pulled on by the time he asks his question. "No, it's just me--" She looks up and her eyes grow wide when she sees Deputy Atoms entering. "-- and Atoms."
She stands up, amazed that the Transformed would be walking in just as Ghost is radioing for help. "Okay, hang tight. We'll be there in a few; Franklin High isn't far from here. Few minutes, tops, if I gotta try carrying him."
Then addressing Atoms, she says, "Weird crack in the air, strange figures. Dome around Franklin High. You want a lift?" She glances over to the Lift, the rapid-acceleration launch pad in the Clocktower that will send anyone who steps into it hurtling into the air above Halcyon City's historical district. She doesn't look certain that she could keep them both airborne, but willing to try it nonetheless.
|
|
Imagine rises from her seat, but otherwise doesn't move much, allowing others to flow nearer the source of an incoming Traverse.
She only wanders close enough to get a glimpse of the persons stepping through the Dimensional Rift and assess the situation.
who here is most vulnerable to me?
[to strangers:]'Salutations to you. What is your race, planet of origin, and intent? This planet is currently under the protection of the Skylar Planetary Alliance, lead by King Joakim von Goethe and covered by the Non-Transgression Commune blood-pacted in the year 3TG-HK7. Exo-Terestial events are currently suspended, pending the eradication of Extinction Threat=Lord Borak the Despoiler in the year 4KU-8K3. Please cease and re-Verse.'
[to:Eldritch, Tycho, and Hashtag:]'I'm currently trying to classify who they are. Of note, if these are non-Earthlings with hostile intent am...am I allowed to kill them?'
Tycho felt out of place as the only person his age in a group full of freshmen, but he enjoyed learning how to read, regardless of how hard it was. He was especially struggling with how letters put together made different sounds than letters by themselves. It made no sense to him.
Tycho had just been called up to the board to try and finish a sentence when someone near the window shouted "Hey, what's going on?" turning his head, he looked out the window and noticed the dome covering the school. While everyone is paying attention to the window, Tycho will sneak out into the hallway and then outside.
Kenneth stares out the window at the newly arrived visitors, a twisting feeling building inside of his stomach. "I have a bad feeling about this."
The mental message arrives from Imagine and he looks back at the girl, speaking back to her in his mind. "No, we don't kill. But we will sure as hell hurt them and get some answers from them."
Turning towards the students by the windows, he calls out to the teacher. "We should be getting everyone down and away from the windows. Lock the doors too, we have rules and procedures for trespassers and dangerous people on site, right?" His attention turns towards the window, his hand touching the glass as he begins to speak.
"❄︎♒︎☜︎ ☞︎□︎☼︎❍︎ ♓︎⬧︎ ♐︎☹︎︎✋︎︎" Those marks along Kenneth's skin will burn and begin to glow their pale, ethereal blue and the sigils will spread down the wall and along the glass itself. Like a mouth closing, the wall would close and seal the sight outside.
"Stay hidden and stay out of our way. Vic, Imagine, let's go." He would head out into the hallway, turning on the communicator and sending a message through. "Wingblade? You getting this? Some people just stepped out of a tear in reality and domed the school. The four of us are on it here."
"Lets just hope it isn't like last time" He hopes quietly to himself, as he makes his way down the hallway. He catches just the end sight of Tycho making his way outside, cursing to himself. "What the hell is he doing?"
These humanoids have almost translucent bodies, but each is wearing something you could call clothing. The two that lead have what appear to be armor on, the light hitting them in some ways to almost seem like they are moving-sets-of-armor rather than someone wearing one. The one in the back is floating in the air, and has a slender appearance in comparison. Its eyes glow a faint green and seems to have a higher position than the two in front of it.
================Halycon High===================
The only thing that would make sense to you is that you should watch out for the one that seemingly raised the bubble. None of them seem to be carrying weapons of any sort.
The only thing that would make sense to you is that you should watch out for the one that seemingly raised the bubble. None of them seem to be carrying weapons of any sort.
They all seem to be the same sort of humanoid, but given your strength it'd probably be the one out of three who isn't wearing armor.
The class seems to gasp and panic as Eldritch seals up the classroom in a small form of protection, and as the teacher tries to get everyone to follow protocol, you guys sneak out of the room.
Tycho, Eldritch, Imagine, and Hashtag find themselves in a hallway with a few other students most likely running to grab their phones from their lockers, or to call their parents.
Looks like those fancy school emergency plans don't account for teenage whimsy.
================Franklin High===================
Ghost Dragon, you hear gasps from the other side of the janitor's closet, though not screams of terror.
Since no one is seems to be in charge, Tycho will race outside and yell "Hey! You probably shouldn't be here! You'll only get into trouble!"
Hashtag heads outside so he can monitor the situation and panics as he sees Northstar heading right towards them.
"What the hell is he thinking?" he exclaims to himself. He concentrates, trying to 'throw' Northstar's image half a dozen meters to the left of where he really is.
Guy has no goddamned sense of self-preservation! he thinks. Shaking his head.
"I'll try to keep Northstar's ass alive, just... figure out what we should do. and quick!" Hashtag reports, his punk outfit rippling like water and turning into his hero costume, a matte black outfit that covers everything but the lower half of his face. The eyes of the costume are a cool blue visor of holographic light.
Condition(s):
"A lift?" He repeats, surprised, but no less serious.
It takes Atoms a moment to understand what Wingblade is asking, and he takes a moment to think it over. Under normal circumstances he would object, but this sounded like a particularly urgent situation that required speed. Besides, he knew that she could carry him, he had seen her carry a man out of a car during the whole Haxor incident.
Glancing at The Lift at the same time she does, he gives her a curt, serious nod and proceeds to the device, stepping onto it. He waits for her to make any necessary adjustments, positioning himself so that he'll be easy to grab onto and fly with, while looking up at the aperture that they're about to be shot through. Everything seems to be going smoothly, until she wraps her arms around The Deputy and they're about to get launched.
"I believe I can fly~ I believe I can touch the sky ♫ I think about it every night and day! Spread my wings and fly away..."
The Transformed has influence over...
The Beacon - Ghost Dragon
The Delinquent - Hashtag
The Outsider - Imagine
The Protégé - Wingblade
The Transformed labels themselves as...
Danger : +1
Freak : +3
Savior : +1
Superior : -1
Mundane : -1
Potential: 2/5
Team Pool: 1
Finishing his costume change, Ghost Dragon stuffs his bag out of sight and cracks the door slightly to peek out and see what's going on outside, rather than phase through.
She looks at Atoms strangely as he sings, her eyebrow cocked in confusion. Then slowly her expression changes and a smile grows on her face. She giggles softly in her throat, then shakes her head, hair swishing about her shoulders. "Well, I believe you can fall. So hold on tight."
She steps into the Lift with him, hits a couple overrides and confirms that it is compensating for the increased weight. Then she moves very close to Atoms and guides his hands around her waist. "Better you hold onto me, and I can concentrate on keeping us in the air." Then she reaches under his arms and locks her hands behind his back.
"Engage!" she shouts, and the Lift launches them through a narrow tube that opens out into the Halcyon sky. Wingblade's modified physiology and Atom's invulnerability protect them from the rapid acceleration and intense gee-force as they hurtle into the air.
Her wings fan out, first forming a dagger shape with a couple metallic pinfeathers forming an aileron to adjust their trajectory, as they climp. At the apogee, she spreads her wings wide, catching the air in a glide once gravity begins to take hold. She feels them begin their descent, so she puts several hard beats into staying aloft at their current altitude as she orients herself towards Franklin High.
Once the school is in sight, she begins diving toward it, picking up speed. "Wingblade to Ghost Dragon, Atoms and I are inbound, coming in fast. Where do you want to meet us?"
Tectonic screws up her face as she looks at the worksheet in front of her. "I... what?" Addition, down. Subtraction, conquered. Multiplication was finally subdued. Division was a Pyrrhic victory, but at least she had a shaky grasp of it now.
But... letters?
"But x equaled four the last problem," she said plaintively, as Troy pushed his spectacles back up. He was the picture of an aging professor: salted black hair, kind watery eyes, tweed jacket.
"Nora, x is a... placeholder. A variable. Problems with x in it are about trying to find what x is, so that the problem makes sense."
Furrowing her brow, Tectonic takes another look at the problem. "So... 3x+16=28. That's three of x. Which means that... hm. X equals four, right?"
Troy nods enthusiastically. "Exactly! Now, how did you figure that out?"
"Well, it just-" her communicator beeps. "Hold on, I've got to take this," Tectonic says, pursing her lips. In case that the team accidentally left somebody out of the loop, the communicator activated with a general warning if everybody started using their powers at once. Punching in Atom's number, she asks, "Hey, At-adams. Nora here. What's up?"
Condition(s): H-Bomb.
The Deputy smiles too, but it can't be seen under the metallic exterior of his Theta Suit. He holds on tight to Wingblade as they soar through the air, somewhat mystified by the experience. This was probably the coolest thing he had ever done. Excitedly, Atoms looks around at the passing scenery.
Being this close to Wingblade though, he can't help but think about her. For as long as Atoms had known her, and especially over the last week, something felt off between them. Until the movie night just a day or so ago (he wasn't so good with time anymore), he had no idea what that 'something' was. But since then, after thinking about it for quite a while, he felt like he finally understood. He wished he could talk to her about it now, but it was like she said, she needed to concentrate on flying. They were about to head into a crisis zone, personal thoughts needed to be pushed out, at least until later.
He turns his head to look at the dome as they fly over the school, and he very quickly considers his options as they dive towards it, noting that all the students have fled inside the building. The bubble-like structure seemed to be made out of some kind of energy. Without the likes of Eldritch, North Star, or Tectonic here, the team's most powerful members, there was no way they could get through it. That meant he only had one shot at this.
"Tell him not to meet us outside." Before Wingblade can ask why, Atoms lets go of her. "Hero Bomb."
Atoms falls through the air like a missile, reaching terminal velocity, his fists ready to impact the dome in a powerful megaton punch. He's slightly interrupted when his communicator buzzes to life. "I thought it was out of battery?" Turns out the little things keep a small reserve charge for emergency situations. It wouldn't last for very long though.
"Hi, Nora", answers Deputy Atoms, his voice calm but somewhat muffled by the rush of air. "We've got bad guys at Franklin High and could use your help." There's a small pause. "Especially if this doesn't work."
The Transformed has influence over...
The Beacon - Ghost Dragon
The Delinquent - Hashtag
The Outsider - Imagine
The Protégé - Wingblade
The Transformed labels themselves as...
Danger : +1
Freak : +3
Savior : +1
Superior : -1
Mundane : -1
Potential: 3/5
Team Pool: 2
"An undoubtedly reckless plan? I'm-" Boom. "...$%#!. Sorry, Troy, gotta go."
Hands on his hips, Troy stares Tectonic down. "We're not done with our lesson, young lady."
"I really gotta go."
"No."
Nora sighs. "Hope it didn't have to come to this, Troy," she says simply, before she snaps her fingers... and just runs out in the moment that he's flinching, she runs out the door.
"What?!?" Wingblade shouts as Atoms lets go and twists from her grasp. She circles around as the Deputy plummets.
"Ghost, you've got incoming! Atoms is hitting the dome!" she yells into the communicator.
Not really sure what to do next, she stays aloft and tries to Be Mindful of her Surroundings, as Whippoorwill has taught.
So just a bit more exposition to give you all a better idea of what these beings are.
At each site, there is one "mage" and two "warriors."
The "mages" at each site are almost identical. Both are humanoid with translucent blue bodies that seem to glimmer in the light. They are wrapped in linen-like cloth wrapping into a robe and hood. They seem to radiate power.
The warriors on the other-hand are all unique in appearence, but strangely enough seem to be human.
At Halycon High:
One is almost covered entirely in thin metal, with joint connections also covered. The helmet she wears reveals only her mouth area and her short black hair. The visor she wears is hued green. We'll call her "Strider."
The other looks like a knight from the Medieval times, his armor is plate styled, has shield strapped to his arm, and a sword at his side. His helmet fully covers his head and face, and seems to stand a bit taller than most. We'll call him "Knight."
At Franklin High:
The first is covered in pentagonal plates, with a few of the plates floating around him. He's of slender build and his eyes are wrapped shut with bandages around his face. We'll call him "Panel."
The second seems to be made completely out of metal, not a sign of flesh on her. We'll call her "Alloy."
=================Halycon High=====================
Eldritch, Imagine, Tycho, Hashtag
You don't recieve a reply. In fact, its as if you're trying to send your mental message into a mind structured in a completely different way. It feels more....fluid, viscous, or something.
Tycho rushes out and shouts his warnings to the approaching three beings.
Hashtag throws up a quick illusion, hiding the Tycho's real presence and sending illusory copy off to the left for a bit.
The beings stop at the sudden appearance of Tycho. The mage who summoned the barrier raises one arm and extends his hand which begins to glow softly. He seems puzzled, as if not understanding why something isn't working.
A quick nod from him.
In blinding Strider appears in front of the illusory Hashtag. She brings one hand through the form as if throwing it aside, but as its an illusion, it just passes through and disperses it with a large gust of wind that shutters the school building.
Then mage waves his hand in the air, disperses into a mistlike form and travels into the school and out of sight.
=================Franklin High=====================
Wingblade, Tectonic, Deputy Atoms, Ghost Dragon,
Ghost Dragon peaks out of the closet to see the mage lifting a student with some invisible force, his eyes glow red and he sets the student aside, moving onto the next one. The student appears unharmed, and hurriedly moves away when he is set down.
There a terrifying BOOM!
It seems the barrier is strange in nature, as it receives a huge shock from Deputy Atom's fist which seems to reverberate it in its entirety. However, the resulting force manages to carry him through the force field and into the inside, though the barrier is still up.
Is seems Atoms had enough force behind him to carry him through, so if you have enough behind you as well, you could probably achieve the same effect.
Best way to end this quickly is to find out what they want, and give it to them.
This could hurt. This could hurt. This could hurt, Wingblade thinks as she decides to dive bomb the same spot where Atoms managed to penetrate, hoping that it will be still weakened from his impact. She flaps her wings hard to pick up speed, then angles her bladed wings so that they'll take the brunt of the impact.
"Northstar, buddy!" an illusory Hashtag appears next to him. "Stop trying to get yourself killed! I can't cover your beefy behind all the time you know?"
Still, his illusion did save Tycho some kind of fate, so it worked as intended.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Condition(s): So apparently The Deputy hit the barrier so hard it brought down the messageboards for nearly a whole day.
Deputy Atoms hits the dome hard and fast, passing through it, but the strange energy it's made out of slows him down enough so as to not make a impact crater upon landing. All seems well, but it only takes a moment for him to realize that he hasn't made it through entirely unscathed. His head was throbbing now, as if overloaded; but overloaded with what, he couldn't say. It had been a long time since he had felt any real pain or discomfort and he couldn't tell whether it was a physical or psychological pain.
"Just have to keep going."
The moment his feet are on the ground, Atoms breaks into a run, heading towards the school building. As he does so, he gets back on his communicator, pressing the 'Call All' button while hoping there's enough juice left in his communicator for a few more transmissions. He doesn't think to look back at Wingblade and so doesn't see her dive at the barrier. Somewhere in his mind, Atoms assumes that she's too smart and too cautious to even attempt what he just did.
"This is Atoms. I'm at Franklin High and my communicator is about dead. There's a situation here, some kind of force field and possible threats. We need everyone on the team channel. Change your frequencies."
With that, he enters the school, ready to fight the Mage and Warriors.
The Transformed has influence over...
The Beacon - Ghost Dragon
The Delinquent - Hashtag
The Outsider - Imagine
The Protégé - Wingblade
The Transformed labels themselves as...
Danger : +1
Freak : +3
Savior : +1
Superior : -1
Mundane : -1
Potential: 3/5
Team Pool: 2
Northstar shoots a Thumbs up to the direction he heard Hashtag's voice come from, then will turn to the creature who tried to kill Hashtag and says "You tried to kill my friend. That was a mistake." He then takes off at top speed, running around the flying being. He begins to move so quickly that his image blurs into itself, creating a visual streak. Having built up enough momentum, he converts it into a leaping punch on the being who tried to attack Hashtag.
Whoops.
|
|
Imagine sets her Bluetooth wireless talk-speaker on her ear (primitive, but convenient) and replies to Deputy. "Affirmative, Atoms. We have the same situation. 2 Heavies and a Support. Displaying exo-terrestrial capabilities. Attempts at Communication are negative. Assume hostile."
She sees North Star head outside and follows him. As soon as she's out of the doors her feet leave the ground as she flies up to get more mobility.
Tycho seems to be dealing with Strider, so she turns her attention to the other one.
Drawing on the power of her dragon amulet, she sets her Mind bolts from "Eviscerate" to "Perplex and Confound" and unleashes a furious fusillade of Mind Bolts at the being. They explode harmlessly on Knight's armor, but create a flashy distraction.
Her amulet glows slightly dimmer.
::Franklin High::
Ghost Dragon watches wide-eyed as the one alien who created the dome lifts a student in the air. He is pleased to see the student apparently, unharmed when put down, but he is definitely out of his league. Okay, Ghost Dragon, you need a distraction so you can take that one out, which will hopefully take down the shield - and then hope the others don't get you while you wait for backup.
Suddenly, there is a loud BOOM, and, thinking there's bombs, Ghost Dragon ducks. Then he faintly hears Deputy Atoms on his communicator, and grins. Well, there's backup.
As Atoms bursts in he slips out of the closet and, changing his voice slightly, says, "You picked the wrong place to walk into. Now, you can either tell us what you want, or we can kick your butts back to wherever you came from."