Midnight the Legacy

[DoNotFearToTread]

The Weight of Expectation

Temperance Jackson

Midnight, the Legacy

Black sheep of a broken legacy and all around C student.

"Sure, all the flashy heroes got themselves thrown into lockdown so now someone with shadow powers and a working knowledge of the city's sewers doesn't seem so bad, do they?"

Look: Black Femme, Comfortable Clothing, Unique Costume, Symbol Insignia

Abilities: Shadow Portals, Mind Clouding, Shadow SensesSo the amulet does more than wrap me up in living shadow. All shadow connects to the Tenebris and I can pull on those connections, opening one shadow into another. Passing through it sucks, like swimming in ice-cold Jello, but dropping things on people or sending them into bad spots is pretty cool. I can see and hear between shadows, too. Take that, CIA. The whole 'cloud the minds of men' thing is the weirdest, but Twilight told me that it has to do with the darkness inside people. Like metaphorical, I guess. I just know it makes sneaking out of class way easier.

 

Danger	Freak	Savior	Superior	Mundane
-2	0	+2	+2	+1

 

	Afraid	-2 to Directly Engage a Threat
	Angry	-2 to Comfort/Support or Pierce the Mask
	Guilty	-2 to Provoke Someone or Assess a Situation
	Hopeless	-2 to Unleash Your Powers
	Insecure	-2 to Defend Someone or Reject Other's Influence

 

Moves

Words of the PastWhen you seek the guidance of one of your elders or a member of your legacy, tell them a problem you face, and ask them a question about the problem. They will answer it honestly, and tell you what to do. Take +1 ongoing if you listen. If you go your own way, mark potential.

Never Give Up, Never Surrender: When you take a powerful blow from someone with far greater power than you, use this move instead of the basic move. Roll + Savior.

On a hit, you stand strong and choose one. On a 7-9, mark a condition.

- you get an opportunity or opening against your attacker
- you rally from the hit, and it inspires the team; add 1 Team to the pool
- you keep your attacker’s attention

On a miss, you go down hard but leave your opponent off balance and vulnerable.

 

Backstory

Where did you officially become part of your legacy?  I never wanted to be a hero, and until that day I never believed that was even an option. My parents are those seriously religious fire-and-brimstone types. My name might have tipped you but don't believe it. Abstain isn't in my vocabulary.  They're also sanitation workers. You know, the little cogs that make the big Halcyon City machine run. I've been reading city plans and sneaking around sewer systems since I was like 9. I learned quick that people throw all kinds of stuff away and I started using that to scavenge and pawn stuff to buy things my folks couldn't afford, or wouldn't allow. Soda, weed, Treyko Man cards. Do you play Treyko Man? You should, it rules. Anyway, finding that stupid amulet was just a fluke but the minute I picked it up everything changed. People started looking for me, talking about how I was bound into some weird cult (they hated when I called it that) because I found it. I didn't want anything to do with it until the Tangee first showed up, then it felt like having power and not using it was kind of a dick move. Probably should have accepted things earlier. Maybe I'd have had more time with people who actually knew how to use these stupid portals. You know, before the Beaks snatched them up.

What is the greatest accomplishment of your legacy? The Noctis cult goes back to ancient Rome, I guess. I read a lot of histories about it but it was soooooo boring I just can't remember much now. They were...are, I guess, a kind of secret police. Had a hand in the whole Caeser assassination thing and started focusing on watching superhumans when they became a big thing back in the 30s or whatever. Villains are no big deal cause there are always heroes around to deal with them. Well, were always heroes. Noctis kept an eye on the heroes in case they went to far or 'fell from grace' or whatever. Since they'd developed powers of their own, mostly hiding and concealing and sneaking around kind of stuff, they felt like they could stand in that kind of judgment. They dismantled the Tomorrow Syndicate and exposed Timestream as a secret villain but Aegis tried to steal all the credit, which did nothing to help out that relationship. Still, screw Aegis. What have they done for anyone lately?

How does the public perceive your legacy? You'd think the whole idea behind Noctis would mean keeping things secret but that isn't how they did things. They even had a little museum set up that told the public all about it. I asked about that and was told 'the threat of those who watch from the shadows is as powerful as striking from them'. So I guess you want people to know you're out there enforcing justice cause that reputation makes a difference. People seemed to be into Noctis before the Tangee came. For the same reason Aegis got support, probably. Everyone loves superheroes but nobody really trusts them. If someone can get mad and tear your house down, you probably find some relief in knowing that there are people out there keeping an eye on them. Now, though, people don't even know Noctis is still active. Cause it kinda isn't. I'm just one person, I can't keep things going by myself. Right? 

How does your legacy tie into your reasons for being a hero? So I started out saying I never wanted to be a hero, but that's a lie. No kid, I don't care who you are, grows up in Halcyon City and doesn't want to be a superhero. What I never wanted was the responsibility of it. I like to chill out after school, you know? Burn one and knock through a few levels of Scatter Squad Ultra IV: Death Reign. Anything more pressing than my after school job at the Sip and Soak is too much. Not that the Beaks left me with any real choice in that now. I see how my parents work themselves to death to make ends meet and I didn't want that life. But I didn't totally tune out my tutors about the Noctis stuff. There are things out there that are too powerful to go unchecked, and it is absolutely easiest to take those kind of things down when they don't see you coming. The Tangee and their crony villain brigade are a real threat and I can't just sit back and watch people suffer, so I'm gonna do things the Noctis way until it stops working.

Why do you care about the team? I took Noctis for granted before the invasion and now they're gone. Not totally, but everyone big is captured or in hiding so its not like I can just call them up with a question. I'm not gonna make that mistake again.

 

The Legacy

Twilight was active and prominent in the city until recently. Look, we all know how I feel about heroes, right? Twilight is pretty much the closest thing Noctis has to a public hero. She's the one on the flyers and that billboard that was down on 34th street before the Beaks destroyed it. It was a PR thing but that doesn't make Twilight any less badass and I have to give them respect. I once saw them stop the Praxis gang from robbing a bank by beating them up with their own shadows. Classic. The Tangee picked her up six months ago, I saw it go down, but I know she's still giving them hell from the inside.

Dusk is retired and quite judgmental. Dusk is a jerk. He was a big deal in Noctis before I joined up and I guess he's like some kind of Columbian super-spy or something. We've met a dozen times and they still call me Temper-tantrum because ONE time I portaled the contents of an aquarium onto their head. He's been real clear about thinking the amulet found me by mistake. He's still lurking about free and he drops me messages sometimes but we're not exactly friends.

Trevor Conroy is the next possible member of your legacy. I hate this sooooo much. I've known Trevor since third grade. We dated for seven months in eighth and I gave him a black eye in ninth. His family used to be as poor as mine but his mom caught a break with the lottery and he moved out of the neighborhood. Now he's flush with cash and a complete ass about it. He found Eclipse's amulet after she died and was supposed to start training with Twilight before she got nabbed. Now he's texting me asking about 'his purpose in all this' and I'm absolutely leaving him on read.

Timestream is the greatest opponent your legacy ever faced, and is still at large. Oh, man. Timestream is a lunatic. Isolating people in bubbles of time? Making them experience years in seconds or seconds in years? Nothing good about it. They broke out just before the Tangee arrived the first time and vanished in the chaos of it. They pop up a couple times a year to wreak havoc.

 

Potential

X

 

Team Moves	Moment of Truth
When you share a triumphant celebration with someone, tell them whether you see them as an equal. If you do, give them Influence over you and mark potential. If you don't, shift Superior up and any other label down. When you share a vulnerability or weakness with someone, tell them a secret about your legacy (including your feelings on it) to clear a condition and give them influence over you.	This is the moment that you prove how much the mantle belongs to you. You seize control of all your powers and overcome even impossible odds to prove you are worthy of what you carry. You accomplish feats that even your predecessors couldn't. Of course, once you prove something like that you can expect even more responsibility to land on your shoulders.

What kind of player are you? Engaged. I'm a longtime PbtA player and GM so I'm very familiar with the system and the themes of Masks. I like cooperative narratives that allow characters to shine in their own stories while working toward a shared goal. I am very big on communication outside of the game that allows everyone to be sure they're on the same page and looking for the same results in a scene.

Why are you excited for this game? Masks is amazing, and the Unbound playsets are doubly so. I've played a little in the Spiderweb and Phoenix Academy playsets but nobody ever runs Iron Red Soldiers. A game where I can get my teen angst on and run with a guerilla revolution like the Wolverines in Red Dawn? Absolutely yes.

What are your expectations for this game? Action and drama. Cool fights in exciting set pieces, interpersonal conflicts (be it a budding love triangle or a simmering rivalry) and heroes just trying to do the right thing in a very wrong world. 

Why do you think you would be a good fit for this game? I am an old hat at Masks and a consistent face on Baldr, though pushing for more than 2 posts in a week really presses my free time. Masks remains in my top 3 games to play and run so the interest will always be high from me. I am always eager to work with the other players to create stories that we all agree are compelling.

 

Edited April 13, 2023 by DoNotFearToTread (see edit history)

[Morphling]

Some things that I wouldn't mind seeing developed further:

Do you have any siblings or extended family? What does your family think of your new superheroic career? Are they aware of it? If not, what do they think of that new teen hero Midnight?

What are Noctis's expectations of your behavior and image? What are the public's? In what way do you struggle to meet these expectations? In what way do you excel? How do you compare with past members of the legacy?

What was your relationship with Twilight before she was captured? What kind of hero does she expect you to be? What kind of hero does Dusk expect you to be? Have you ever clashed with Timestream? How did your legacy manage to expose her as a villain? Are there any other villains with a grudge against your legacy?

All in all, solid effort. I would like to see what more you can come up with.

Edited March 3, 2023 by Morphling (see edit history)

[DoNotFearToTread]

Midnight's Answers

Do you have any siblings or extended family? What does your family think of your new superheroic career? Are they aware of it? If not, what do they think of that new teen hero Midnight? 

The Jacksons and Halcyon City go way back. My great-great grandmother was an architect and was responsible for a lot of the old downtown infrastructure. Her son, too. My grandfather broke the cycle. He was a file clerk at the DA's office but he retired and moved in with us a few years ago. Amelia...that's my little sister...just turned nine last week. That was about when I started getting into trouble so I know my parents are nervous but so far she's still all sunshine and smiles. Mom and dad work so much that it's just me and Amelia and Gramps most nights anyways. I thought about hiding the whole Midnight thing at first but I'm already keeping so much from my folks it just felt wrong to add something so big to it. They were pretty upset. About as upset as Amelia was excited. I get it, though. The whole thing seems like a weird magic cult and that's a serious no-go with the church. Twilight and a few of the ungifted members sat them down at a fundraiser one night and smoothed it over somehow. They're not loving it but they don't give me a hard time about coming home late or running off without warning now. Gramps treats me different now. Like I'm an adult or something, just way more respectful.

What are Noctis's expectations of your behavior and image? What are the public's? In what way do you struggle to meet these expectations? In what way do you excel? How do you compare with past members of the legacy? 

I mean, yes, there are technically only three superheros in Noctis at a time cause of the whole amulet thing but with Twilight locked up and only Dusk around as someone with real experience, the normies have had to really step it up. There are teams devoted to recon and surveillance around the city who feed us...well, me now...info on possible problems. Noctis never used to be big on dealing with villains before but with so many heroes out of action they've been pushing a lot more classic hero work my way. It's super uncomfortable for me, too. I'm not Twilight but I'm the only one with shadow gifts for people to look to and when I pop up in a crowd people actually seem happy to see me. I mean, Trevor has an amulet but no training so he isn't even official and Dusk still has some abilities knocking around but no amulet to feed them. I guess giving up the amulet leaves you a little something cause he keeps barking orders at me through that dark corner in my closet. As far as the world knows, it's just me against...everything bad. I can't talk in front of people like Twilight could and I don't love the attention, but I'm smart and I know enough to keep my eyes open so not a lot gets past me in a tough situation. And yeah, I can't throw hands like Dusk does but I'm pretty damn clever with my portals. I'm clearly like hero lite or whatever, but I think people see my potential.

What was your relationship with Twilight before she was captured? What kind of hero does she expect you to be? What kind of hero does Dusk expect you to be? Have you ever clashed with Timestream? How did your legacy manage to expose her as a villain? Are there any other villains with a grudge against your legacy? 

Twilight is like great. She's all the good things about a mom without all the judgment. I guess she and Dusk didn't get along great either so she was probably eager to see him pass on the torch. She has been there for me even back when I wanted nothing to do with all of this. She showed me rudimentary fighting techniques and how to move around while keeping people blind to my presence. I know there is a lot more I can do with these powers but she gave me what I needed to get started. And she has a really cool apartment that I've been using since she got grabbed. You know, for when my parents are too much and I need to just unwind. It's hard, though, cause she always talked about how much she believed in me. How I was going to make a difference. I couldn't even stop the Beaks from getting her. Dusk is always quick to bring that up, too. That I was there when they took her. He says I don't push myself enough, don't fight as hard as I could. Sometimes I swear he's practically a villain himself with all his talk about overwhelming force and terrifying the enemy.

I guess he is a little right, though. I ran into Timestream a few months back, just after Twilight was captured, and I knew they were there for trouble but I held back. I was scared, and I can admit that now, so they got away and some people got hurt. I don't know if I'm more afraid that Dusk is right and I'm not strong enough for this, or that Twilight is right and I'm just not trying hard enough to be the hero I'm supposed to be. I know Timestream has a grudge because they built a secret network of connections with villains and had a whole plan to corrupt Halcyon's heroes before Noctis agents buried in his own crew exposed the whole thing, and I know they're going to come back even harder than before. I just don't know if I'll be ready. At least that's not a problem for tomorrow. I've got Retread and his stupid RC monster truck bombs to deal with right now. He hates us too, and nobody ever told me what the story was there so I'm flying blind. 

 

Edited March 4, 2023 by DoNotFearToTread (see edit history)

[Morphling]

This in regards to Kroma.

Seems to be a contradiction between the sentence "We didn't even know Earth was a thing until I crashed here." and "We have vast banks of data on both humans and Tangee back home so everything I'm doing seems redundant to them." May need to rethink a few things.

Some things that I wouldn't mind seeing developed further:

What are the biggest differences Kroma perceives between humans and Neutronians? What are the similarities? What about humans does she find alien and unsettling? What about Neutronians most comfort her?

What are the most tempting reasons for Kroma to want to return home?

Where does Kroma stay on earth and who does she stay with? How did they come to welcome her? Does it have anything to do with the body she appropriated?

What are the Neutronian's relationships with the humans and Tangee like? How does that complicate Kroma's mission?

All in all, solid effort. I would like to see what more you can come up with.

[DoNotFearToTread]

Kroma's Answers

Seems to be a contradiction between the sentence "We didn't even know Earth was a thing until I crashed here." and "We have vast banks of data on both humans and Tangee back home so everything I'm doing seems redundant to them."

So humans are unique among the dozen or so technologically advanced species we've discovered in that they just took their entire history and dumped it onto this thing they call the internet. Anatomical evaluations of all creatures on earth, cultural and regional comparisons..., even windows into the daily lives of so many of you are just there. Free for the taking. It's absurd, but it sure made figuring you out a lot easier. My people were able to learn in a few years what would have normally taken decades of secret observations and abductions. The Tangee weren't an unknown to us before, having spread their wings (puns are my favorite Earth custom) in the galactic stage long ago, so what we learned from them here was how they tend to interact during open conflict. It's weird cause I never hear humans talk about us. You know, other aliens. They know other species exist in the universe but nobody ever seems to question what those species are doing while humans and Tangee duke it out. Turns out we're mostly taking advantage of the chaos.

What are the biggest differences Kroma perceives between humans and Neutronians? What are the similarities? What about humans does she find alien and unsettling? What about Neutronians most comfort her?

You humans have physical bodies, and anyone back home would tell you what a detriment that is but I'm not so convinced. My body, despite being a cheap knock-off, allows me to experience the world in ways my people wouldn't even conceive to ask about. You tend to live less than a century and nobody is really sure what happens to you after you die. We last three or four times that long before returning to the core of our planet to offer our energy to the collective. Both humans and Neutronians seem dead set on unraveling the mysteries of the world/galaxy/universe around them and it's pretty amazing the strides Earth has made in that regard. Especially with how limited humans are. I mean, they have to consume food, breathe and communicate through one tube. It's weird. And the only thing they hate more than me talking and eating at the same time is me shoving my thoughts straight into their brains. It's hard for me here without hundreds of voices brimming in the air just waiting to be heard. Talking to one person at a time is like living in slow motion.

What are the most tempting reasons for Kroma to want to return home?

As much as I've has made strides toward understanding what it is like to be human, I'll never be one. I'm still a vaporous cloud of energy at heart, and even the people I've told about my situation don't actually understand what that's like. I miss floating through the ionized layers of clouds on Neutra, and interlacing my own energy lattice with another, and very specifically I miss long trips through space with only my thoughts to keep me company. And, if I'm being absolutely honest here, I'm as scared of Earth as I am fascinated by it. What happens if the Tangee capture me and find out who I really am? What does that mean for galactic stability? It feels like going back is all around the safest bet but I just can't bring myself to give up on what I'm doing here.

Where does Kroma stay on earth and who does she stay with? How did they come to welcome her? Does it have anything to do with the body she appropriated?

It turned out that Meiying was an orphan and established in the foster system. I can't stress how much easier that made things for me. It turns out foster parents comes in either the 'smothering, helicopter' style or the 'show your face for the assessment so I get my monthly check' type. The later don't tend to keep tabs on their wards so it was simply a matter of slipping into Mei's life and avoiding personal questions. I know a lot about Mei from the memories imbedded in her bioelectric field but I don't act like her most of the time. My parents, as I guess the term applies, aren't exactly warm and welcoming people. Sarah and John run the house, pay the bills and put food on the table but don't pay me much mind unless there is something to yell about and lately that's been mostly focused on the fact that I'm aging out of the system next year. Tyree and Penny are a little younger than me but they've been around since I arrived and I've told them the truth about who I am. Of anyone, they feel most like family if I understand the meaning of the term here on Earth. Haliki is a newer arrival and she's been a major pain for me since day one. One of those tough-as-nails, system lifers who has seen more bad than good and won't hesitate to make that your problem.

What are the Neutronian's relationships with the humans and Tangee like? How does that complicate Kroma's mission?

I guess you could really say that we showed up at a bad time. The Tangee and the humans were closing out a big conflict when I crashed here and neither side seemed particularly interested in having another species in the mix. Neutra has a non-aggression pact with the Tangee that goes back ages and that leaves me in a kind of a tight spot. I want to help out here, to save these people who I've come to think of as friends, but if word gets back to Neutra about it I'll face serious reprimand. Even reassignment.