Emerald City Knights: Riders on the Storm!

[Zen Gypsy]

Pinnacle, Paragon of Emerald City

DODGE: +6 | PARRY: +6 | TOU: +14 | FORT: +10 | WILL: +10

HERO POINTS: 4 | LUCK: 2

ACTIVE EFFECTS: None

CONDITIONS: None.

---

Saturday, June 3, 2023, Yellow Brick Row, 1:01 p.m.:

As Quentin looked out of the shattered window frame, he saw others looking up at him, the young woman, whom he would later learn was named Iroha, was staring up at the, now, stirring in his arms. It was a ten foot drop to the concrete before, and he was carrying Cordellia's form in his arms, yet there was no fatigue, no straining. Standing on the edge of the drop, he began to process the events of the last few moments, that, painful feeling, that sense of ... inspection, like some insect pinned to a board, being scrutinized by something so far beyond him as to be unknowable, the metal twisting in his hands, the leap that propelled him to the 2nd floor of a building, a glancing blow of his shoulder shattering the brick and mortar window frame.

With an unnatural sense of conviction he felt he could make the drop down to ground level without inuring himself, or more importantly, the casualty in his arms. As he landed, the concrete buckled beneath the weight, he stepped forward, towards Iroha, as he placed Cordellia's form down, holding her so she could stay on her feet. "Are you, alright?" He asked as he set the woman down, steadying her, "there's a man down on the East end of the Row, wearing a Seahawks hat. EMS should be here any minute."

As the woman began to regain consciousness, there was something familiar about her voice. .... he thought for a second, "The voice in my head, earlier?" A quizzical look crossed his face, "that was you?"

[Draidden]

TEMPEST

---

"Or, that guy could just smash through the wall and rescue the lady inside. That works too. Let's see if I can put this fire out like the others. "

He floats over closer to the building.

"Someone make a wish!"

Then with a little concentration and a thrust downward with his hands a gust of wind slams down onto the fire blowing it all out.

"Only a couple of more buildings left on fire. We get those put out and the EMS guys can do the rest. Course the firemen might be a little peeved that we put it all out before they arrived."

Jordan will start to move towards the next flaming building. He wants to put these flames out before they start to spread.

Jordan has not noticed yet, but others might notice that the skies have gotten darker as clouds are moving in.

ActionsThe darkening sky is him, unknowingly messing with the weather.

 

[Inquisitor D]

"Spoilers..."

Cordelia whisper-wheezes to the man who saved her with just a trace of a chuckle, taking a second to get steady on her feet. She's wincing a little inwardly at the positive identification. Embarrassed by the recognition? Annoyed at herself? Nervous of what comes next? Hard to quite pin her feelings down. Still, she smiles at her new friend, even as Iroha starts giving her side eye and mouthing. "Voice in his head?"

"Thank you. This was... not how I pictured a simple visit to the Row going. Was just trying to help. Probably should've gotten out of there earlier, huh?"

"Gee, you think?" Iroha swats at her friend, before pulling her in close for a tearful hug. The two hold together for a long moment, Cordelia finally crying too. That had been too close, for both of them really. Drying her tears as best she can, Lia takes a second to just... look at everything. The heroes are still hard at work, now joined by the EMTs. The whole area looks devastated. She had just been talking to people before, experiencing most of this second hand, but now she's just looking at the destruction in a kind of terrified awe.

And then there's the figures in the sky. A wizard, an angel and a being of light. Guess today we really are a magical city.

As the moment with Iroha passes, and the two finally break apart, Cordelia looks to her rescuer. "Do... you know what happened here?"

[JagrHunter]

Mic sat the now conscious woman on her feet near her hysterical husband. "I was so scared and worried...Thank you, thank you..." the man began to sob uncontrollably. Mic watched the woman take him by the arm and mouth a thank you and gently pulled him away from the building to waiting EMS at a newly set up triage center, turning and pointing at another crowd milling about at the other side of the building he pointed toward the EMS station. "Citizens. There is an EMS triage station across the street. Please move in an orderly and speedy manner to the site away from the Row." As the crowd began to move in the desired direction, Mic began to hear calls form the arriving AEGIS units. Jetting into the air he moved to the center of the Row to get a quick view of the area. Hovering in the air he viewed the carnage and destruction, but it didn't look like an attack. It seemed...controlled somehow.

"The lightning appeared to be radiological in many ways...." added Oracle, as if reading Mic's mind, which he was obviously. "I am, however, unable to get an exact reading. Still trying though,. By the way, AEGIS units have arrived and are deploying as requested."

Mic mentally acknowledged the AI and continued to scan the area, marking the sudden increase in superhumans showing in the area.

 

 

Agent Whitehouse

Hilde watched from where she knelt next too an elderly couple as he waited for EMS. She had heard Mic had crash through the building and then arrive at the building rear carrying a very pregnant woman. She then watches him jet up and away. She thought back to when Director Powers gave her this job, he had said that Director McKenzie was a unique case and that her time as an A.R.T. agent and a long time AEGIS member she would be a perfect match for his assistant. As she motioned for an EMS tech. over to the couple she stood, dusted off the dirt and debris and watched as Mic jetted toward the center of the Row.

"Damn..." she thought before turning back to the injured.

 

 

[Zen Gypsy]

Pinnacle, Paragon of Emerald City

DODGE: +6 | PARRY: +6 | TOU: +14 | FORT: +10 | WILL: +10

HERO POINTS: 4 | LUCK: 2

ACTIVE EFFECTS: None

CONDITIONS: None.

---

Saturday, June 3, 2023, Yellow Brick Row, 1:01 p.m.:

As the woman and her friend embrace, Quentin stands awkwardly, scanning the crowd, "Move to the East end of the Row, look for a Seahawks ball cap, he'll get you to the EMT's." However, even as he directed people, he was searching faces, looking for his mother, he was starting to get worried. "Mom?" He called, before apologized to a woman who was, clearly, not his mother, "Have you seen a woman, tall, curly grey hair, brightly colored kerchief. ... mom?" He looked at the building across the street, he wondered if he'd been able to hit the second story of the bookstore, maybe he could.

Wait, was that the Tour Guide flying above the crowd? The woman he had saved had been able to cast her voice into his thoughts, was that an AEGIS agent in power armor?

As the moment with Iroha passes, and the two finally break apart, Cordelia looks to her rescuer. "Do... you know what happened here?" He turned to Cordellia, he'd heard about something like this before, though he'd never heard of it happening in Emerald City ... he ran a hand up the back of his head standing there unsure of himself. "You can call me Q," he paused, "and, uhhh, I think we just had an Origin event?" He'd seen some news story about kids in Freedom City breaking into chemical plants, hydro stations, power plants, hoping that exposure to dangerous circumstances would cause them to develop metahuman powers. "Listen," he pointed to the opposite rooftop, "I am going to jump up there, should give me a better view of the crowd, give me a chance to find my," mom, "somebody."

[Inquisitor D]

Cordelia takes a breath as she hears her flying friend start calling and asking for his mom. This guy, 'Q', is not being subtle. He's prominently using his new powers, talking about their origin event happily. Normal reaction: fair enough. He probably hasn't ever had to really think about this scenario before. She should try and blend in, not give anyone watching or listening any more clues, but...

... but damn it, she owes him. Cordelia puts a hand to his shoulder, just before he flies off. She doesn't want to start trying to perceive the other side just yet, but she can think back to her conversations during the pandemonium. A mom, older, seperated from her collage-ish age kid in the panic...

"Totally random guess, but... try the second floor of Elroys. It didn't get hit by the storm and a bunch of people ran up there. With all the chaos on street level, the security team... probably shut the area down to try and keep their customers out of the way? Like, barricading the door and refusing to let anyone in or out before the EMTs got there, bunch of panicky..."

Arrgh! Stupid deception. Acting like she's just guessing isn't easy for Cordelia. She glances in the direction Q pointed in. "And yeah... join the civilians. Get treatment. That'd be the smart thing to do, huh?"

She really should've listened. But... the official response is here. This situation's about to get complicated. And they still don't really have an answer for what caused this mess. If they let the 'proper authorities' handle the situation, perhaps they never will. So Cordelia tilts her head down the street, in the direction the lightning bolts came from.

"I... guess I'm sticking with 'not being smart' today. See you around, hero." She flashes a grin at Q, before running off in the rough direction of the storm, a panicked Iroha on her heels, calling out, "Lia! Wait!"

Edited August 9, 2023 by Inquisitor D (see edit history)

[Blue Firebird]

On 8/7/2023 at 3:23 PM, Draidden said:

TEMPEST

---

Jordan hears the call for help from the lady and sees her pointing at one of the burning buildings.

"Hey, winged lady. If I put out the flames, can you get in there and get the trapped person or people out?"

He looks at Seraph and hopes that she is willing to help.

 

ActionsNothing right now other than talking.

 

Seraph forces herself to get up and moving. People are still in danger. They need help. They need heroes, but for now they'll have to make do with a fallen angel.

 

Fallen no longer—Seraph climbs to her feet, her wings radiating out behind her like sunbeams. Then she realizes that one of the people—the tour guide?—is addressing her. He seems to be doing his best to help others. Seraph offers him a kindly smile, and the light of hope fills her eyes once more.

 

"Yes. If you can put out the fire, I can focus on getting them out." She springs lightly into the air, and hovers there for a moment like a vision from a dream. "Do you need a lift?"

[Jedaii]

The Yellow Brick Row, 1:06 p.m.

 

As the group of super-rescuers got a handle on their powers as well as the post-Storm emergencies, Emerald City EMTs and law-enforcement started to arrive! Many of the injured pedestrians began to receive professional care and paramedics were beginning to move the disabled from the area. ECPD officers began to set a perimeter using police-tape to limit access to the Row while also gathering witness testimonies. Fire-trucks also rolled onto the Row and firefighters deployed across the area to get their hoses set-up to combat the remaining blazes!

High overhead the Channel 11 news helicopter appeared pacing circles in the sky as it captured the spectacle on the Row!

 

Psi-Star:

As the hero notices AEGIS Special Agent St. John had arrived and was chatting with ECPD, Mic's sensors begin to register intense ultrasonic emissions coming from the Row!

ORACLEThe omnibot warns of a sudden 5.5-scale earthquake centered on the Yellow Brick Row! Structural damage probable!

 

Agent Whitestone:

After helping a few civilians exit the area she sees a familiar face, but before she can greet them Hilde experiences a sharp blow to the back of her neck and is knocked unconscious!

 

Analyst:

The heroine has barely recovered from her 'psychic backlash' when she senses -- intense selfishness? Anger! Avarice! Madness!?!? From the crowds on the Row, people are emerging with all the wrong intentions -- and a strong sense of entitlement ...!

 

Everyone:

The Row begins to shudder -- the entire area! A loud echoing rumble fills the area as people stagger and buildings groan as small cracks begin to form in their structures! As the shaking intensifies in seconds, some citizens tumble against walls or fall to the ground! As people begin screaming again a new panic begins to sweep across the Yellow Brick Row! (delete: DC20 AGI check for PCs on ground & all electronics go out)

"DO YOU FEEL MY POWER?!?!? YES - YOU DO!!" A young man dressed in a black "Imagine Dragons" T-shirt, blue jeans and sneakers walks out into the street, holding his hands out, palms up!

TempestJordan recognizes this guy: it's the bully, Charles Bradley!

 

There's a piercing scream as a woman is attacked by a giant - horse-sized - black spider that appeared almost from nowhere! She falls to the sidewalk as the nightmarish creature begins rapidly pummeling her with its legs while simultaneously wrapping her in silky-white webbing --!

 

A crowd of people around an injured citizen suddenly flee in all directions screaming and a massive eight-foot tall chalk-white monstrously-muscled man with a Swastika tat on his back stands! He looks down at his massive hands and arms and ripped clothing, "He was right -- Nietzsche was RIGHT! 'The Superman will become the meaning of the Earth!!" The man-monster looks around menacingly at the frightened crowds --!

PinnacleQuentin recognizes the Nazi tats and attitude: it's Marshall Hitteiger, a star football player from his team's strongest rival! The rival school is for wealthier kids and many of the football players there have racist attitudes!

 

Now amidst the attempted recovery of the Row and its crowds, a terrible new menace is emerging from edges of disaster! All the civilians, police, paramedics and firefighters are holding onto walls or lamp-posts or anything immobile to keep their balance as the ground shakes violently beneath them!

Scene

• It's a mess!
• Again the map is for general positioning, not determining specific distances
• Paramedics are mixed among the "Crowd" tokens (most of the civilians have fallen down)
• There's a few cops walking the Row talking to citizens trying to help them during the 'quake
• The news helo is circling 100' overhead
• Three buildings are still on fire
• The ground is shaking violently causing windows to break and walls to crack
• Tempest, Seraph and Psi-Star are considered airborne initially (maybe 30' high?)
• The giant spider is trying to make a meal of the innocent woman
• The Nazi-Hulk guy is looking for trouble then fell to the ground
• Any questions just ask OOC

 

Edited August 11, 2023 by Jedaii (see edit history)

[Rayth]

Hardlight had walked toward the main stretch of the Row as she spoke to the crystalline man, attempting to get a better picture of the threats present and damage done.

As she does, more threats decided to make their presence known. The ground began to shake, as a nearby man seemed to have some kind of megalomaniacal breakdown. Another seemed to swell and grow in size and he shouted praise for Nietzsche of all people; the tattoo on his back spoke poorly of his character and mental state. And to top it all off, a spider the size of a horse seemed intent on making pedestrians into dinner.

Olivia did her best to assess the threats in front of her. Whatever had caused that explosion, it seemed likely that it had granted superhuman abilities to various people on the Row. The why and how was important, but not the priority right now. Protecting those vulnerable was.

Thankfully, it seemed that not everyone with great ability had decided to go mad with power; there were several who were working to protect others and make the Row safe. In the sky, one of them even looked a little familiar. Was that... Jordan...?

There would be time to catch up when this was over. Olivia had no way to know which of her newfound allies had been granted powers now, or who had had them before. But she had to trust that they could hold their own against threats before them, and she had to assume that they would prioritize those closest to them.

That meant that the ravenous spider was the most pressing threat; there was no one nearby to help the woman under attack. So Hardlight flares her thrusters and launches into the air, held aloft by threads of amber light. She flies at speed down the Row, coasting over the crowds of people and emergency personnel.

In the moments before she impacts the spider, she's traveling about as fast as a speeding car. She lowers her posture into her best approximation of a shoulder check, and hopes her armor is rated for the collision.

OOC

Taking advantage of Olivia's high Intellect and Quickness to analyze the scene and get involved.

Olivia will use her movement speed of 900 feet to close the distance with the spider. I presume it's in range; 900 feet is quite a lot. If it isn't, then she'll start her approach.

She'll use her action to Slam Attack it. This gives her a Damage of 10, +1 for Slam, and possibly another +1 for moving her full speed. She plans on flooring it at maximum velocity, but I'm not sure if she has to move her full 900 feet for it to count.

Either way, she has a +10 to Unarmed, which I assume applies.

If she hits, she has to resist half the Damage(11 or 12, so 5 or 6, depending), against Toughness.

I am also committing to using a Hero Point to Heroic Feat a use of Interpose if the spider declares an attack against someone other than Hardlight.

[Jedaii]

Yellow Brick Row, 1:06 pm.

 

Everyone:

Hardlight jets at the monstrous spider slamming directly into it and sending the huge arachnid sailing fifteen feet away! It immediately pops up on its legs and hunches preparing for another attack as nearby pedestrians run for their lives! The female victim tears away at the webbing and scurries next to Hardlight, "I don't want to die! Kill it!"

Edited August 11, 2023 by Jedaii (see edit history)

[Laird_Thorne]

On 8/4/2023 at 9:44 PM, Rayth said:

With that, Olivia looks around and spots Phillipe's wheelchair, smoking where it was struck by lightning. Both he and Jordan were nowhere to be found.

Her heart nearly stopped; Phillipe had just talked about how fragile he was, and now he'd been flung through a window. With a flare of amber light, Hardlight jets forward, borne aloft on beams of light. She reaches the window and braces her hands against the top as she leans in, searching for Phillipe. She looks at the panicking customers in the store, and hopes she isn't scaring them more. Her voice comes through her armor strangely, modulated by the planes of solid light, helping to disguise her voice. She hopes they'll still understand her.

"Is everyone okay?! Where's the man who came through the window? Is he hurt?"

The large figure seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, but he quickly shook his head and turned to look at Olivia with the hint of a smile on his face. "He is doing very well at the moment. Better than I've ever been actually. This is definitely a new twist. But then, I can get used to it."

He stepped toward the street, grabbing a large piece of the building he'd crashed though as he went. He stepped up to one of the fire hydrants and braced himself as he braced the concrete at an angle over the hydrant, facing the building on fire next to him. He reached down, twisting the top of the hydrant in his big hand, attempting to twist the top of it apart.

[Jedaii]

The Yellow Brick Row, 1: 06 p.m.

 

Everyone:

The crystal titan ripped open the fire hydrant as easy as opening a bag of potato chips! But as he was focused on channeling the sudden water-spout towards the burning building, the earthquake-producing superhuman looked his way, "You think that's power? THIS is power!" The guy whips his arm in the hero's general direction and a thundering wave of nearly ten tons of earth rises from the street flowing at Crystal Titan! The hero dodges the meta-avalanche just in time and it strikes the building smashing away the entire front lower-level face/wall! The whole intersection is washed in light dust debris from the collision!

 

Several yards away as Hardlight defends a bystander from a massive spider, the creature leaps at the heroine attempting to overwhelm her with a multi-armed embrace -- but her power-suit-enhanced strength repels the giant spider! It once again crouches just a few paces in front of her ...!

[JagrHunter]

Mic was no stranger to encountering Nazis. His time spent in jail had exposed him to their cowardly and bullying ways. They thrived on outnumbering their victims, seeking situations where they could exert their dominance. However, this Nazi seemed different. He had somehow acquired superhuman abilities, which in the Nazis’ mind, was attributed to an extraordinary event, even "Act of God."

As Mic surveyed the scene, he noticed other attacks unfolding. Among them was an unexpected sight—a 'giant spider?' He couldn't help but sigh at the bizarre turn of events. Turning back and focusing on the task at hand, Mic sent a request to the suit’s AI and requested a tactical analysis of the situation, specifically seeking information about the Nazi standing right in front of him.  When the hulking aggressor fell to the ground, due to the current “shaking”, Mic chose to act.

Realizing that taking down this enemy swiftly would pave the way for AEGIS to intervene and subdue him, Mic swiftly navigated through the heads-up display (HUD) options. He selected the stun setting on his suit, a setting that would unleash the stored psionic energy of the armor into a concentrated energy beam. Its purpose was to disorient or even incapacitate the target.

Hovering in the air, Mic closed the distance to medium range, aligning the targeting reticle with precision. He braced himself to fire, keen on avoiding any unnecessary escalation.

 

OOCRequest a tactical analysis of the situation, especially form Nazi Hulk as to powers or weaknesses. Whatever Oracle can give me.

If I can only do that action that's it. Stay airborne.

If I can target and fire the Stun beam at Hulky, Mic will take advantage while he is currently prone.

Hero Point to make sure I hit.
+8 ranged combat for battlesuit armament.
Ranged attack 4 if that combines.
Mind stun beam: Affliction 8 (1 PP) 1st degree: Dazed, 2nd degree: Staggered, 3rd degree: Incapacitated, DC 18; Alternate Resistance (Dodge)

[Jedaii]

The Yellow Brick Row, 1:06 p.m.

 

Everyone:

Firing his energy weapon at the hulking mutate Psi-Star seems to have defeated him as the man-monster lets out a loud shout in pain! But the ivory hulk shakes his head repeatedly and looks up at the armored hero, "That the best you got?!?!" The ivory hulk pounds the street and is propelled upward straight at Psi-Star -- but the hero avoids his attacker who lands on a nearby rooftop ...!

[Blue Firebird]

"I can't hold him for long!" Seraph calls out to any of the other fledgling heroes on scene—anyone who can help, really. Fatigue slowing her limbs, she flares her wings and rises in a halo of sunlight. "Get the people out of the fire!" The angel takes to the sky, torn between helping the people and stopping the villain. However, he can cause so much more damage, she trusts the others on scene to be able to handle the fires. Crews aren't well-equipped to handle a monster like this, though.

"Hatred is a sword that cuts its wielder the deepest," Seraph says, her voice taking on a lofty quality. Pointing an accusing finger at him, she wills her light to work. The feeling is strange, a gravity, a pressure welling in her limbs, shifting to a pleasant tingle along the skin. Then it flows outward, like letting out a breath from one's soul, radiating out into a sphere of golden light. More than light, it takes on a thick, glass-like quality, a dome of solidified light—an angel's determination crystallized.

"Strike me down if you must. I won't let you hurt the others." The determined look in her blue eyes glowed like a dawn sky full of hope and promise.

OOC

So I am going to get close enough to him to trap us both in my barrier: Celestial Aegis. It's selective, so I'm making it block only him.

Seraph is well aware that this guy is going to try to beat the stuffing out of her to get free. She's sacrificing herself to buy others time.