Freedom City Champions #1!

[Papa Bear]

Vendetta 

Seamus McDougal, Secret ID,  Character Sheet

---

"I am..." Seamus pauses for a second.  He'd never really thought to give himself a name.  He wasn't supposed to be a 'hero'.  His whole thing was to be a staged plan to rid the city of crime and the armor was just his tool to both hide his identity (without visible or auditory clues, including the cloaking field) and provide defensive capabilities should his activities draw unanticipated resistance. He had been calling the plan 'The Vendetta Project' but that wasn't exactly a name for a person.  "The Vendetta" he says, shortening the name of The Vendetta Armor, which is what he was wearing.  As soon as he said it, he regretted it.  'The Vendetta'.  That wasn't a very heroic name.

---

---

Nothing to report

[RedRajah]

Gadriel took no satisfaction in seeing the enemy fall unconscious.  Instead, he offered the other oddly-outfitted person in the alley a short nod.  "Well done, fellow sentinel.  Do you wish to take this cur to the authorities or shall I?"

 

If he had control of the body, Thomas would be rolling his eyes and rubbing his forehead at what Gadriel said.  Still, the gunman had been taken out and, as far as either of them knew, no one had been killed.  OK good, guy's down, nobody's hurt.  Can we go--DAMMIT!

 

Thomas, are you all right?

...yeah. I was gonna say 'go home', but we gotta make sure Jordan's ok now!

I do not trust that man, Thomas.  However, I yield to your concern.  Once this cur has been delivered to the proper authorities, we shall survey the area. Or, if you wish, once we change, you can use that 'Eye-Phone' device to reach him...

Thomas didn't reply.  Truth be told, he felt on edge around Jordan Dare.  The man had fired him after all.  But after Thomas' attempt, Dare insisted on hiring him back immediately, no questions asked.  The guy was like a mother hen now, checking in on him, making sure Thomas' gigs weren't too overwhelming.  Jordan seemed like a totally new man -- one who actually gave a damn. 

Still, Thomas had a rather BIG reason to keep Jordan Dare at arm's length these days.

 

Edited May 5, 2023 by RedRajah (see edit history)

[pesukarhu]

Ironworks gives Officer Jackson a nod. "Good to meet you. I go by Ironworks." As the cruisers arrive, he continues "Looks like it's time for me to go."

He looks over to Paul. "Like this guy says, too much paperwork otherwise, right? Nice moves there, by the way."

With that he takes a step away, then running a few paces to get a bit of speed, he leaps back up to the rooftop he'd jumped in from. There, he pauses a moment, to watch the scene unfold below.

[Jedaii]

Downtown Freedom City, 8:20 p.m.

 

The heroes having departed, FCPD sets up police-tape around the accident scene, clear the bystanders and begin investigating the SUV. 

 

Vendetta:

A changed DeAndre Phelps thanks the hero again, steps into his cab and rolls off into the night ....

 

Freedom City, 11:00 p.m.

 

Over the last few hours the internet, local and even national TV news have been an exciting montage of amateur video depicting Freedom's new vigilantes: the crazed gunmen blasting away at the downtown area! Preserver and Ironworks springing into action and taking gunmen down! Vendetta trying to negotiate a hostage situation! Lamplighter and Grigori uniting to bring the last gunman to justice! Channel 3's Amy Feng interviews Sgt. Roy Jackson, a local officer apparently saved by the mysterious vigilantes ...

 

Charles Maxfield, Channel 5's legendary newsman, comes out of the studio to get Mayor Michael O'Connor, Jr.'s opinion on the vigilantes - O'Connor has been campaigning against the rampant local corruption for years and many of his critics have labeled him as "Pro-Vigilante", as O'Connor has tried unsuccessfully to repeal the Moore Act of '84 ...

 

Numerous eyewitnesses and survivors of the downtown shootings are interviewed by various outlets, most praising the new heroes and others more critical framing a narrative that 'costumed vigilantes' are the real cause of violent crime. Across the national networks assorted pundits and experts debate and argue the greater impact of superheroes reappearing in Freedom City after being banned nearly forty years ago. Of those critics foremost seemed to be Freedom City law-enforcement: when interviewed, both Police Commissioner Barbara Kane and the Superhuman Tactics and Regulation squad Commander William "Billy" Maddicks expressed an adamant protest against citizens taking the law into their own hands - going even further to warn so-called 'superheroes' that an active police warrant has been issued against them ...

 

Almost in spite of the criticism against the vigilantes, Millennium Comics, a popular local comic-book store, announced an upcoming limited edition run of the new Freedom City Champions based on the new heroes! Faye Nelson, senior partner of the law firm Nelson & Bannerly, publicly defended the new vigilantes and offered them free legal defense! 

 

For the next week at least, the nation but primarily Freedom City would be engulfed in the flickering flames of these new superheroes and what their sudden emergence means for the future of the city ...

OOC

All players please post your hero's activities later that night and into the following morning. You saved lives! You're media superstars! What does that mean to you and how does it affect your life?

 

Edited May 7, 2023 by Jedaii (see edit history)

[RedRajah]

With Thomas as backseat driver, Gadriel flew over the city blocks, making sure to lose any paparazzi tails looking for a juicy photo op. Thomas guided the angel back towards Riverside Park, using the cover of the trees before the Sentry Statue to change back (checking again to make sure he wasn't seen).  Then, it was a matter of just walking back to his apartment.

But first, a phone call...

Thomas' jaw clenched as he punched in Jordan's contact number.  "Jordan, where the hell are ya?  Made it out safe -- what about you?  Look, if you're not dead, I better still get paid for the gig..."  A weak chuckle.  "...seriously, hope you're OK.  Call me.  Crazy night.  Just...crazy."

His throat felt dry and his hands trembled as he thrust his phone back in his pocket.  Down the sidewalk, from the bars' open windows, he could make out the news reports blaring about the chaos in the city.  Pundits already braying about how it was all the vigilantes' fault there were criminals going wild, psychologists talking about the "cowboy mentality" and the ambulance chasers offering their services to defend the unlawful heroes.

Finally, he made it to his apartment building.  He walked up the stairs to the fourth floor, still wired.  Thankfully, he was the only one living on this floor.  He fumbled for a moment in getting his keys out.  Then he got the door opened, slammed it shut and immediately got the locks back in place.  Even the chain -- he never bothered with the chain before.

"...what the hell happened tonight..?!"

We defended the innocent, Thomas.

"...besides THAT!  God, it's like, people could have died!  What then?!  And yeah, YOU can take a punch and stuff.  But suddenly there's all these guys playing hero in practically the same place and time!  What are the odds?  Is there something in the water?"  Thomas shook his head.  Then, more quietly.  "...I don't know if I could have handled seeing someone else get hurt  -- or worse.  What if we --I-- screwed up?"

You have nothing to doubt yourself over, Thomas.  Nothing to fear.

"Like HELL I don't! You're in MY body, Gads -- MY head!  That means what YOU do weighs on ME!  And if we f***** up, if someone got SHOT..." The young man was shaking now, seeing the still-healing scars on his wrists. "...I couldn't live with that, man.  If someone died--"

Thomas suddenly ran to his bathroom and doubled over in a dry heave. He rested his forehead on the cool porcelain seat, eyes burning with tears he wouldn't release.  Thomas' voice croaked "...find someone else, man.  I can't...I can't do this.  Not strong enough..."

I would free you from this burden if I could, Thomas.  You know I did not ask for this.  But you are in pain as well still.  Please listen to me -- you are strong enough.  Before those men attacked -- your performance tonight was passion!  I felt your raw joy, your belief in yourself!  And the people who heard you, they believed in you too.

"...I'm tired, just so tired..." The man struggled to get back to his feet, to get to the sink and splash water on his face.  "I'm a mess, Gads.  You could have done better than me, just sayin'..."

Thomas--

"--yeah, I know. You don't know how you ended up in me.  Just that guys like me don't usually end up with guardian angels."  A beat and a sigh.  "I don't wanna drag you down with me, Gadriel."

More that I fear that my own sins would drag you further.  We are each other's responsibility, Thomas Blackchurch.  In doing so, may we both lift each other up.  Allow yourself to rest for now.

"I really sounded good tonight?"

Like the storm...

"And you...we really helped folks tonight?"

That we did.

 

 

 

[pesukarhu]

It was pretty late by the time Jake got to his brother's apartment. He buzzed the intercom, then waited. Mike lived just down the block from the Astrolight diner, which was pretty convenient for him. Actually, most of his family was within a few blocks. Jake himself lived a bit closer to the waterfront.

The light outside the door was starting to go. It was getting that flickering thing that--

"Hello?" Finally.

"Mike, it's me." Jake leaned into the microphone. He knew this intercom.

"C'mon up." The door buzzed and Jake made his way into the building.

Mike was waiting with the door open when he got there. He ushered Jake inside and pointed to the TV in his living room. "Dude, the local news has been going non-stop about that shootout with the SUV. You and your friends made a real impression. I think they get someone new out of bed every half an hour to ramble their point of view."

Jake held up his hands. "Hey, I have no idea who those other guys were. That was such a mess, I guess everyone came out of the woodwork. By the way, you still got my phone? And did everyone make it home OK?"

Mike nodded, picked a phone off the side table and handed it over. "Yeah, of course. Everyone's fine. Davy wanted to go check it out, but everyone else dragged him home. You know things are going to be a circus now, with you as the main freak."

"Yeah, I know. But what can I do? I can't just sit around and do nothing."

Mike smiled at that. "Oh, you totally could. But you wouldn't be you."
 

[Papa Bear]

Seamus McDougal

CEO and Lead Designer; NuTech Inc. (Secretly Vendetta)

---

Seamus quickly changes out of the Vendetta Battlesuit once he gets back to the 'base'.  Things were not supposed to go this way.  When he had made all of his plans for the Vendetta Project, he hadn't accounted for feelings!  Those things could get you killed.  It was so close tonight.  DeAndre Phelps almost died.  That cursed gunman actually took him hostage!  And there wasn't much Seamus could have done to protect DeAndre.  His mind was racing a million miles an hour.  Some kind of force field... like the war ship's shields... but those were far too big, too massive a power draw for a personal size.  It would have solved his problems though.  Put up a protective barrier around innocents or at the least, between them and hostiles.  Could he have taken the shot at the gunman?  Would it have done any good?  it occurred to Seamus that a special setting on his Meta -Blasters might be a good idea... a shot that shocks the system but doesn't do any lasting harm.  He could use something like that without fear of accidentally killing someone.  Why hadn't he thought of that before?

He wanted to get right to work, but he was both agitated and anxious.  While everything ultimately turned out alright, there were so many other ways things could have gone wrong... like those other heroes.  Were they even heroes?  They could just as easily been villains who were there for the same reason he was; someone they cared about was in danger.

Mental list; 1) Create some way to protect innocent civilians from hostiles.  2) Create non-harmful way to subdue enemies.  3) figure out who those others were and, if possible, recruit them into the Vendetta Project.  4) Who the heck were the gunmen and what did they want?

Seamus knew his normal battle against the mob bosses and the thugish gang-bangers could wait.  They would pretty much always be there until he took them down and that wasn't going to happen, realistically, any time soon.  No, Seamus needed to make sure these gunmen were not part of a larger problem waiting to happen.  But how?  Very little was known about them.  Yes, the officers on site apprehended them, but Seamus had no true connections to exploit.  Only Sergeant Roy Jackson.  He could probably give Seamus the scoop on the gunmen.  After all, Sergeant Jackson had provided him intel before.

Intel. 

Maybe there was something on the news that the police department released to the public.  Seamus knew he couldn't trust the news media, not entirely, but he knew it might give him some of the right questions to start asking.  He flipped on the local channel 3 news report.  "Drats!" he said as he saw himself in the Vendetta Battlesuit plastered all over the screen.  It seemed to be favorable coverage, but that would likely change.  After all, vigilantism was still illegal in Freedom City.  Now everyone knew what he looked like... well, what his armor looked like.  That could compromise things.  He'd gone to great lengths to make sure virtually no one had seen him, even to the point of 'inventing' a cloaking device to keep himself hidden.  On a night like tonight, that wouldn't have been an advantage.  Sure, they'd have had a difficult time shooting him and it would be nice if there were not a dozen cell phones recording every move he made, every word he said (and he was beginning to rethink the amplified volume.  The phones picked that up significantly easier than anyone else's voice).    But as disembodied voice might make gunmen jumpy and nervous and that would put innocents at greater risk.  He hadn't engaged the enemy often up to this point, but when he had, it had always been on their turf (well scouted out, of course) where there was virtually no chance of collateral damage.

The Vendetta Project had accounted for 'unforeseen' branches sprouting out along the way.  In fact, he'd counted on it.  Dealing with each of those branches would help him to pull back from his main targets so they might get a bit more lax, not feel the noose tightening around their necks.  Maybe they might even think it was over.  A little break might cause them undo worry and stress, not knowing where 'the shadow' was and when 'the shadow' would next strike.  Seamus liked that very much.  As long as he didn't let them slip through his fingers.  There was always that danger.  Fortunately for Seamus, the 'big boss' was too big to slip away.  Unfortunately for Seamus, he was too far from the big boss to do any real harm to him... yet.

First things first, he'd hack the traffic cameras and see what he could find out about the 'other heroes'.  In fact, if he waited for a couple days, he could just hack the FCPD's footage after they scrubbed it because they would be doing the exact same thing.  But he could get the edited footage.  That would save him a lot of time.

New first thing first; make a sandwich.  He was starving.

 

[coreal]

Paul Petrovski

---

The mask and jacket get pulled off in a dark spot between two big parked (and empty) SUVs on the way back to Paul's parked car.

Then a few moments sitting in the car letting his heart rate slow down and the adrenaline clear from what just happened.  

Who were all those other people... have supers been operating in the city and the media is just keeping it under wraps like some sort of conspiracy coverup?

He pulls out his phone and powers it back up and sees if any of what just happened is making a peep on the news or... well if there was a coverup, it's blown now. Talk about supers in Freedom City is blowing up.

Paul peels off the jacket he was wearing and stuffs it under the passenger seat.  Might have to spend a little bit more than a ten buck face mask and a new jacket to keep someone from figuring out who he is if he does this again.

He turns on his GrubDash app and takes the first job, even if the tip is lame. Anything to get him moving and back into being just Paul.  The night is like that for many hours, hustling Italian, Thai, sushi, and subs to hungry residents of the city.  Each time he's in a restaurant picking up snippets of conversation about what happened earlier in the night, the various points of view, from 'It's about time!' to 'They should go back to hiding under their rocks' or even 'I hope they lock 'em all up before they hurt a lot of people.'

Later that night, laying on his bed staring into the dark of the night, wishing he could talk through what happened with someone, his mind drifts back to the brief glimpses of the others he saw.  The guy with the metal... the grim reaper type with the lamp post... the guy in high tech armor... the guy with wings.  Maybe if he could find one of them... but how.   That cop seemed like he was happy we showed up, but that was in the moment... maybe see what he says in the interviews, if he's just giving the no-supers line just lip service he'd be the person to use.  All the others there would know him and might get the same idea.  A lot easier than trying to post something cryptic on Craig's List and hope it works out.

[Zelphas]

Alfie's response to 'his' new notoriety is... lukewarm at best, to be honest. He started patrolling the streets to deal with the mess his city had become, not to become a character in a comic book!

 

No, that wasn't fair. He started doing this because he didn't know what to do with himself after he lost Sally. At least putting on scary clothes and discouraging a few muggers was something more than just sitting silent with his powers like most of his family did. But when he was just a rumor, he could pretend that he wasn't really affecting anyone but himself; irritating, but comforting too. Now that's gone.

 

Bella heard about the new costumed people, of course. She even recognized his lamplighter's pole for what it was from his stories. At least she was too young to connect the dots between his stories and the pictures on the TV. And at least the excitement of the news made her forget about her request for ice cream that night, though that was just selfish whimsy on Alfie's part that he added that in.

 

His old detective's instincts pulled at him, telling him to case the scene, find out about what was going on with the truck, why four armed criminals would get in a shootout in a crowded street in daylight over an overturned vehicle. The same instincts told him that returning to the crime scene was the best way to blow his cover, so he found it easier to ignore the rest of their calling. Still, some nights, he turned over the question, wondering if there was a bigger thread to pull, if only he could find the end of the string.

 

And all the other costumes... that winged person was actually flying, which ruled out a simple costume; he had to be a recluse or be able to transform, as ridiculous as that seemed sometimes, to stay hidden in the regular population. Same with the guy seemingly made of metal. The suit was simpler, though the technology boggled his mind a bit; he found himself researching up-and-coming tech geniuses in the area one day before he set that aside. The last one just seemed to be a fairly normal person, but with all that was going on, who knows?

 

For the next week, Alfie hid himself in his routine, hoping to vanish from the public eye as quickly as he appeared. He still did his patrols, but he tried to stay away from lights and cameras even more than usual.

 

Although, even with his detective background and natural disinclination towards spectacle, Alfie is not immune from the odd mistake. And who knows when his 'luck' will throw something else his way...

[Papa Bear]

Seamus McDougal

CEO and Lead Designer; NuTech Inc. (Secretly Vendetta)

---

After the sandwich had been made and consumed, Seamus went straight to work.  He'd figured out a way to adjust his Meta-Blasters to be less destructive as he was chewing on a ham on rye.  Food always seemed to help get his mental juices flowing when he seemed stuck on a problem.  He was pretty sure that if he cross wired the Iso-collateral transformer and jacked it into the hyper-modulator, it might just do the trick.  The problem was the Nexal Relays were right between them and that just might be a problem.  If he couldn't figure out an operable bypass, he might have to strip down the whole system and rebuild the architecture around a configurable Seamus Module... that's what he was calling it, anyway.  He couldn't figure out a translation for what the device was.

The idea for some kind of 'shield wall' actually seemed more simple than it initially had, at least after he realized he didn't need to keep it 're-energized' so that it stayed active.  But rather, create it to be inert, like a solid wall.  He wasn't sure how to amplify it enough to be truly effective, but if his calculations were correct, it would likely survive a single gunshot, maybe two.  It wasn't what he'd been hoping for, but it was a place to start, at least.

 

[Jedaii]

Freedom City, 9:00 a.m.

 

Grigori:

Thomas gets a text from Dare:

Hellish night! Where'd you vanish to? Thought maybe you were dead lol

Wanted you to meet someone from a major label. Big fan of yours. We're having breakfast at the Starlight Room. 10:00. This could be your big break, kiddo. Don't be late 😇  

 

Ironworks:

The Waterfront was busy as always in the morning with Jake and his crew working on a forging project. After ninety minutes of intense labor they're interrupted by Oscar, supervisor and friend, "Jake! They need you up in the office!" The other guys looked around at each other then at Jake -

Johnny looked sad, "Sorry Jake. I heard they're starting a lay-off. Tough break."

Kevin spit on the ground, "Yeah that sucks. You just got here not long ago and you was doin' so good. Corporate ***holes."

Car-Keys walked over, "Ayo - where we goin'?"

Davy cut in, "Jake's gettin' cut. Forgetaboutit, Jake. Your family bounced back with the restaurant. You'll be fine."

The crew stood around moping like somebody just died ...

 

Vendetta:

Continuing his work, Seamus barely noticed how quiet his phone had been until it rang! Answering the call he surprisingly hears a woman's voice, "Good morning, this is Winona MacLeod, CCO of AstroLabs. Is this Mr. McDougal?" 

Skill Roll

Make a Knowledge: AstroLabs roll (8-) to know about Winona.

 

Preserver:

After watching the interviews of the FCPD officer involved in the 'event', Paul was puzzled: during the very first on-site Channel 3 interview with Amy Feng, Sgt. Jackson was very complimentary of the people who appeared to stop the gunmen. Jackson even called them "heroes". But, with each subsequent interview the officer had less and less praise for the "heroes" and started to echo the anti-vigilante position held by FCPD officials. Going over it in his head, Paul got a call from Monique at the Freedom Center, "Hey, Paul ... we ... is there any way you could stop by today? We have a problem and I thought you could help. I'm on the other line with FCPD so just call me back or stop by. Thanks ..." Before ending the call, Paul could sense the tension in her voice --

 

Lamplighter:

Alfie wakes up a text message from Rev. Madeline Dickenson, pastor of St. Stephen's: 

Good morning Alfie. Pastor Maddy here.

Just wanted to let you know a city official will be inspecting the premises today and probably this evening.

It regards the guidelines for maintenance of historical sites. Please be professional. His name is Adrian. Can't remember if that's his first or last name sorry 😬

Have a Blessed day, Alfie.

Edited May 13, 2023 by Jedaii (see edit history)

[Papa Bear]

Seamus McDougal

CEO and Lead Designer; NuTech Inc. (Secretly Vendetta)

---

"Aye, it is." Seamus says, wondering why he'd thrown in the 'aye' like he'd grown up back in the 'home country' when he'd spent all but 3 months here in the United States.  Though, he had found that since that time, he'd added a few bits of slang and 'color' to his diction.  "I'm not sellin' my company.  If that's why yer callin'." he says with a chuckle.

 

[coreal]

Paul Petrovski

---

They're clearly getting them to follow the company line.  Or whatever it's called.  Damn.

Paul stops watching the news clips with the realization that of course forty years of attitude building isn't going to melt away because of one instance of vigilantes stopping crime without collateral damage.

He's already into delivering a few morning meeting bagel breakfast boxes on one gig when he gets the call from Monique.  

"Sure Monique, I'll start working my way that way and drop in when I am close by."

He sticks with his usual pattern of shifting his targeted gig work over in that direction, get jobs that pull him over, hopefully deliver a lunch within a few blocks so he can drop in after that and take a break.  He really hopes the itch at the back of his neck is just paranoia and not this being oddly coincidental, dealing with FCPD the day after he does something that makes the news.

[RedRajah]

His "host" finally drifted off into the uncertain embrace of sleep, allowing Gadriel the time to be alone with his thoughts.

Tonight had been a difficult night for Thomas (even before the assault), that much Gadriel was aware of.  To be back on the stage, exposing his still-raw and vulnerable self to the whims of a fickle crowd...the angel was finally coming to terms with how absolutely terrifying it was for the mortal.  But the audience had been enraptured by the music Thomas gave them.  How Thomas was unable to recognize that...

Gadriel grimaced.  Throughout the millennia, the capacity for the human mind to deny its own experiences and senses was staggering.  One ego could (and had) wage war on thousands of innocents if its keeper had felt slighted...

...or turn inwards and try to destroy himself if it was blind to love.

And then the chaos of the attack.  Gadriel had felt Thomas' fears.  Fear of failing, of people dying in spite of their efforts.  Of being captured and being cut open and experimented by doctors afterwards. 'They'd treat you -- US -- like a freak! Us humans...we don't like what we can't control! We're sick that way!'

(For that, Gadriel couldn't argue with. The human capacity for destruction was, in large part, the reason for his Rebellion all those eons ago.  That the Celestial Host should be tied to such violent beings....  Of course, the irony was, Gadriel was now unwillingly bound to one such violent being -- albeit violent to himself.)

Again, a mystery to figure out why...

Why to a soul so lost he would rather end his life than seek help? Family?  Friends?  Thomas appeared to have neither in his circle.  And that was another reason that tonight had been so important.  Maybe these 'vigilantes' -- these fellow heroes -- maybe they could be a support for Thomas.  To be friends.

Providing they were good people; not death seekers of another sort.

******

 Thomas stared for a moment in disbelief at the text.  "Whoa..."

Dare didn't say which label.  Just that it was a major on--

This is not a good idea, Thomas. He wants you to attend this meeting on the day after a near-tragedy?

"Record executives don't let reality stand in their way, Gads." Thomas chuckled, getting a clean t-shirt and jeans out of his drawers.  He decided on sneakers as well, but at least paired the ensemble with his one good dress blazer (dark brown).  "Besides, I need this.  I need this distraction.  And Jordan still has to pay me for last night."  The young man allowed himself a small smile as he punched in the address of the Starlight Room into his iPhone.

Maybe things were finally turning around for him.

 

[pesukarhu]

Oh boy. This wasn't going to be fun. Just when he was feeling he'd done some good work, he gets knocked back down a peg. His mom would say it's a reminder to be humble.

He pushed his chair back, "Thanks guys. No matter what, I'll still see you jokers around."

He got up and headed back to the office, running what he could remember of his union contract. If Steve Phelps, his union rep, wasn't there in the office, he'd have to ring him up as soon as he was done here.

He heads in. "Hey boss, I hear you wanted to talk to me?"