The sun was setting on Penmore City and an eventful week, but it was only the begin of strange times for everyone on Earth. Two days earlier, the 13th of April, a meteor struck the planet in the Pacific South without warning. As asteroids go, it was not that big, and the worst effect was a tsunami similar to the one who struck the Indian Ocean on December 2004. Like many disasters, the vent was soon the headline of every news channels. But soon another phenomenon began to attract their attentions.

It began with a video of a woman who send flying a group of would-be robbers without touching them. Similar videos began to appear on social medias, but they were at first dismissed by any serious medias. But in the last two days, more and more super-powered individuals appeared, and it began impossible to handwave the increasing amount of evidence of their existence.

As the media shifted their attention, government after government were holding crisis meeting and the world hold his breath, waiting to see who will move first.

For five individuals of Penmore City, this was especially true. All of them developed super-powers in the last two days and, by luck or skill, they managed to avoid attention. But this respite was over as they all received an anonymous invitation mentioning knowing something about their powers. For some it was a simple message on their phone, while other found a paper in their pocket.

As 7pm approached, the five of them were heading to the meeting places, a small deserted park in the Sunset District.

[OOC: Try to describe a little how was the last two days for you and how you received your invitation. Every one of you decide to go and when you arrive no one is yet in sight, except each other. You arrive in the order of your post.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:41, Mon 07 Mar 2022.

It started with a dream... of flames.  Justin was walking in some dream, the details he could not remember then he felt... something change, and all was flames.  The dream had changed and he walked naked across a sea of flames bathing his skin with searing heat, but his flesh did not burn.  He remembered how ... odd it all seemed more memorable more 'real' than any dream he had ever experienced.

He awakened in his room ~ feeling something like excited restlessness instantly fill his body, as though some great event he'd been waiting for was suddenly happening today.  He turned to his bedroom window and dawn was just about to break the sun-rising eminent.  An urge filled him and he had to get up to meet the dawn!

He dashed out of bed still in his pajamas and ran through his apartment barefoot, fumbling with the latch to the back patio and left the two bedroom to stand on the Complex back lawn as the sun peeked over the horizon and bathed him in its celestial glow.

Then EVERYTHING Changed!  How does it feel to have cosmic power fill one's every portion of their being?  It's literally indescribable!

Justin, exploded!

His body was burned into ash in a conflagration so searing in its intensity a glassed circle of fused earth was all that was left of his former self.  The backside of the Apartment complex stone facing was scorched in its intensity and most of the windows of the back of the build cracked from heat waves that washed across the structure in the breaking dawn. But no sooner did Justin's life end it was born in flames again as from his ashes just catching the wind he reformed from the celestial radiance of the sun's light reforged and renewed whole and a shriek of cosmic majesty shattered the early dawn as the Star Phoenix arose from the pyre!

Justin stood in the place of his rebirth engulfed in stellar plasma surround him the conflagration shaped as a bird composed of never lessening cosmic flames!  He stood briefly naked the attractive young Mixed-Black American man was in a stupor and filled with wonder!

Extending his will he wished he had not completely obliterated his pajamas as he noted; though On-Fire.. he was in no pain and his brown skin was now an almost inky black and only felt more and more filled with 'power' as the sun's light caressed his skin.  It was just a stray thought but instantly it was put to reality and he was suddenly clad in a garment that formed out of the flames a featureless jumpsuit at first but as his gamer imagination took fancy it reshaped into a colored and stylized garment of his choosing.

"WHAT THE HELL has happened to me?!?"

Then reality reasserted itself and he realized he was setting fire to the building if he stayed so close he needed to get away from here lest he cause a disaster... and instantly he took flight into the sky!  Trailing a bright streak in the skies as across the neighborhood any who looked to the skies that morning saw the bird of cosmic flames with the man at the center of it streak across the skies of the city morning!

---

Justin spent the last two days figuring out what powers were his to command ... it was every dream as a sci-fi nerd, comic collector, Dungeons and Dragons playing geek could have ever dreamed of and beyond his wildest fantasies or dreams!  His powers were nothing short of miraculous and defied what his physicist intern mind told him was possible!!  He could fly, hurl powerful blasts of what he could only figure was charged solar flaming plasma!  He was strong like no being had any right to be able to lift multiple tons as long as he was in direct sunlight.  He'd tried to figure out how fast he could fly and found himself in space... without a vacuum suit!  He could break Einstein's relativity laws in that he could fly, at least in space, faster than light and yet he never got lost! He could feel how far away the earth was and what direction.  He could 'taste' the difference of Sol's thermal signature from all the other stars of the heavens and knew he would always be able to find his way back to it.  He learned he could refrain from burning things very close to his skin like clothing and apparel but larger objects would need protection from his flames... which led him to discover he could solidify the energy he created into solid constructs of 'frozen' light/plasma?!? A fourth state of energy ~ that boggled his mind!!! In retrospect... its likely the same material his outfit he called into existence is made of.  That proved useful when he timed his space flight, with his wrist-watch encased in his solidified plasma to protect it from vaccuum exposure, to the sun which he did in only 5 minutes.. faster then light ~ though he knew he could have done it much faster if he'd put more effort than casual.  He did not breathe when he was in direct sunlight - biology being outside his scientific scope he assumed the direct sunlight he could absorb like a plant to sustain and heal himself and others.  Something he learned when he'd returned home after the first flight he'd charred burnt his grey & white tom-cat 'Smokey' ~ which mortified him greatly to tears with guilt and regret but his touch when he'd calmed himself restored the dead animal to healthy life with no scars what-so-ever! Though briefly it was painful to him as the cat's burns appeared upon him... but were quickly obliterated with his own regenerative abilities. It was nothing short of ... he shuddered to think ~ 'God-like'!

It all made no sense as to why it worked but it did.  Try as he might he could not remove the phoenix aura when he used his plasma powers though he could lessen it to be only a light effect but there was no hiding it.  Most of his practice he did in deserts around the world at various places.  After his first attempt at maximum flight speed sent him into orbit he decidedly refrained from trying to do so anywhere close earth high-speed flight lest he hurt someone.  So his world trips went with him going to space then extending his Star Wings to reach any place on the surface of the globe as he only approached the speed of light then flying back down at more conventional speeds.  He was certain his antics were driving the world space agencies and defense departments of nations monitoring the skies mad with frustration as he zipped back and forth across the globe trailing solar plasma in the skies.

He could only conjecture somehow his personal imagination had been, some how, allowed to reshape himself into his "dreamself" in some fashion.  All through his youth and as a gamer he'd, read comics, played games and loved the imagery of the phoenix, heck even his e-mail address contained the word phoenix.  It ALL made him question the very nature of reality.  Of course, he saw on the news reports of superpowered beings and clearly he was one of them.. but if his dream-self  was actualized what about the others?  What about those who were unstably personalities?  What nightmare could be hatched from a realized sick or deranged human psyche?

Justin pondered the "Forbidden Planet" Vintage Scifi movie.. and the fictional alien race ~ The Krell.  Their 'dream machine' that could instantly actualize their very wishes with no restraint destroyed their race in one night!  Yes it was all fiction and fantasy.. but the point now was valid... what about the dark emotions and drives mankind possessed the potential for in every human heart on the planet?  What if those were unleash upon the Earth?

It made him think long and hard about what his powers could entail about other people who developed super powers.

---

It was really no surprise when he found the 'invitation' on his phone text messages... his powers were so flashy no matter HOW hard or cleaver he might think he was it was only a matter of time before he was discovered!  How many times can a bird of cosmic flames fly over a neighborhood before someone begins watching and tracking its flight patterns?

He was still trying to decide how to deal with what he saw a a great responsibility to use this power for mankind's benefit, but what about his family and friends... who should he tell and should he tell them at all?  But if hi identity had already been discovered the point was moot in fact... he really had no choice but to go to the meeting and see what was what.

So Justin rode the bus to the park and arrived in a loose fit pull-over top and jeans wearing battered sneakers, his normally wild hair tied back into a single puffy tail.



He found a park bench in the sunlight and sat down awaiting...
This message was last edited by the player at 01:53, Wed 09 Mar 2022.

Jeremy sat down again. Stood up again. Then sat down one more time.

The world sure had changed. What was going on? The news reports were talking about beings with amazing powers, something people only saw in movies and novels. It was strange to think of it, that it should all happen so fast and without notice.

Did the fallen meteor have anything to do with it? It was all speculation, all guess work.

But he could not help but notice the streak of fiery light coming and going through the sky, far faster than any aircraft he'd ever seen before. What ever could that be?

It would all come to be known, he supposed. It had been a quiet afternoon, but something was irking him. He could not tell. His thoughts had been strange lately, like something had changed in his mind, but he could not tell what. It was just... there. Like a presence, something that was trying to tell him it was there merely be being there, by making itself known as a sensation, as an 'atmosphere'.

It *was* odd. He dove again into his collection of novels, picked up his favorite title, Anne Rice's "Interview with the Vampire", and started at page one. But nothing. He simply could not get a single word to pass through his mind. And it was 3 o'clock in the morning. He'd think he'd be exhausted by now, but no, he wasn't even feeling groggy, or even mildly off. He felt like it was a pretty Saturday afternoon, after a walk with a fresh breeze. He felt energized. He just didn't get it. He simply could not get himself to sleep. And he had tried, but to no avail. So here he was, sitting around, waiting for time to pass so he could sleep, and perhaps not be a wreck the following morning.

A thought crossed his mind, something so utterly banal but he remembered wishing for it before and always laughing it off: what if I have become a creature of the night? Just the mere idea of it felt silly, and yet exhilarating. Sure, he loved the concept, the odd way the writers wrote of vampires and shadows with their amazing senses, being able to feel and see things no others could. Hey, it looked nice on paper, but he was now thinking it would make for really boring nights if he could not sleep. Anyways, too much thinking going on in his head. And he sure didn't want to have to kill anyone for their blood. That part he didn't really want to play with.

He now he really needed to focus on really getting his thoughts down and really back into bed. Ok, that was one too many reallys. Perhaps something at the local all-night market, like a sleeping pill, might help him out. He put on his clothes and got ready to drive there. He started looking for his car keys, but he could not find them. Where had he put them? Then he remembered, oh yes, the car is in the shop. He had taxied back. So, how was this going to work? He really wanted to stop by there and find something to knock him out. Really!

For a moment there was nothing but disorientation. Then he was standing in front of the 7-11 three miles away.

"What?!"

Jeremy stood there dumbfounded. A car parked and the driver, a woman, came out, looked at him, and asked,

"Are you ok?"

He just looked at her like she wasn't even there. She looked at him puzzled. Then it finally dawned on him. This was Mary Shepperd, the local junior high English teacher. She frequented the same bar he did, and they had a few beer fueled conversations before. But she turned around and walked away like she didn't know who he was. Odd.

His mind was still trying to figure out what had happened. He padded his body down, making sure it was real. Yup, it was him. And yup, he was standing by the convenience store. And nope, he never found his keys. And crap, he forgot his wallet. Ok, then. Guess he would have to... what... walk back? Maybe he could ask Mary to lend him a few bucks. He could pay her back next Friday, when they met again at the bar.

So he stepped in, started looking for her through the aisles. There she was, picking up ice cream and cookies. At 3 am. Guess he didn't really know her that well. He didn't really want to bother her, but then again, he was sure she would understand. He said hello, and she reacted in complete surprise. Like she hadn't seen him standing outside just a minute ago.

Ok, this is weird...

And just like that it started.

Two other patrons called out into the store.

"Everyone, this is a hold-up. Stay calm and no one gets hurt."

The one talking had a gun out, was pointing it at the cashier, and wore a ski mask. The other had a stocking over his face and a shotgun in his hands.

"You know, this is really bad timing", he whispered to Mary as they both ducked. She started to move away, hiding, aiming for the back door. But they saw her right away.

"Hey! I said STAY DOWN!"

He fired above her head, and hit one of the emergency light fixtures. There were sparks all over the ceiling and all the lights blew. The place was suddenly dark. Or at least it was supposed to be dark. Jeremy could tell that no lights were actually on anymore. Long shadows were cast over the floors from the street lamps outside. But everything looked clear to him. He could see the cashier flinching at the sound of the gun, and could hear Mary's screams as she struggled to get away on her hands and knees.

"Awh great. You! Get me the cash in the register. NOW!"

Jeremy was dumbstruck. How did he get himself into this situation? It didn't matter. He would have to help out somehow. He reached for his pocket, looking for his cell phone. Not there. That's right. He didn't drive here. He didn't have his keys, and he had left the phone charging in the kitchen. Well, this was just going swimmingly.

Mary's voice could be heard on the other side of the aisle. She was whimpering and scared. He could not stand that. He didn't think any of this was fair. Despite himself, he was beginning to feel ... what?... frustrated? angry? frightened? It didn't matter, he wanted to do something about it.

He ducked low and started to sneak around. The man with the shotgun stepped right around the corner of the aisle, looked straight in his direction, and... didn't see him? He kept on walking, searching for anyone else in the store. Jeremy wasn't about to question it. He realized this was maybe the only chance he had. He needed to get there, to the door.

And there he was. At the door. Just like last time. No explanation, just there at the door. He was maybe five feet away from the guy with the pistol, watching as the cashier was emptying the register with a flashlight. And they still hadn't seen him. And then he finally lost his patience. He didn't understand why, or how, he simply knew he had to do something, and, for some reason he had yet to figure out, his instincts were telling him that he was the man to do it, and he was ready for it.

He stepped up to the man with the gun. And he barely made any noise. He grabbed the man's arm, aiming to wrestle the gun away from him, but his own arm was covered in something... black... inky... shadowy.

Holy crap... what the hell?...

The man screamed out in pain.

... what? how? ...

He dropped the gun, and looked around, finally drawing a bead on Jeremy. He swung and connected, straight at his jaw. The crunch was loud. He pulled his hand back, obviously in pain, his face a distorted grimace. His eyes looked terrified.

"What... what the hell are you?"

Jeremy took a step back, somewhat taken aback himself. He caught a glimpse of himself in the corner mirror by the door, and saw nothing but a mass of dark shadows and inky blackness.

... oh crap, he's right... what the hell am I?...

He would have to figure it out later.

"Look, this is a nice town. We respect others here. We don't hold up stores, understood?"

He swung back. His knuckles connected with the man's face, and he flew back into the aisle, knocking it over.

... holy crap... again...

He didn't really want to hurt the man, and he had only intended to scare him a bit. A loud thunder broke through the store. Jeremy felt a solid hit on his back. It made him take half a step forward to keep his balance. He didn't quite understand what had just happened, so he turned around, only to find the man with the shotgun aiming at him. His face was the definition of horrified. Then he fired again. Jeremy took the slug straight in the chest. He felt the hit, it was a good blow. Then he heard the remains of the bent piece of metal hit the floor where it had failed to pierce his flesh.

The man before him turned and ran, bursting through the front door, all thoughts of collecting the money tossed away. It took Jeremy just a moment longer to accept he hadn't been hurt, then one more moment to reappear right in front of the fleeing man's path. On instinct, he picked up his foot in a magnificently executed round-house kick, and smacked the man straight on the side of the head. He dropped like a sack of potatoes.

... HOLY CRAP!... how am I doing this?...  Mary!...

Suddenly, he was standing next to her in the store, reassuring her, calming her down. She embraced him, shivering from the shock.

"Mary, would you please call the police? They need to be here."

She didn't question the request. A few moments later, she had placed the call. They were already on their way. The cashier had pushed the silent alarm. You could hear the sirens approaching in the distance. They would be here any moment now.

... well, I suppose I am a witness, and I did try to do the right thing... I hope they don't keep for ever... but still, gotta try to sleep...

Jeremy picked up a bottle of sleeping pills, some juice, fruit, and a cookie. He walked over to the cashier, put the stuff down, and then remembered that he had indeed forgotten his wallet. He looked at the scared fellow... and smiled.

"Look, I forgot my wallet. Can you put it on my tab? Jeremy Preston. Just check the regis..."

The man immediately interrupted.

"Hey, no worries. I got you. It's on the house."

Jeremy felt surprised, but pleasantly so.

"Thanks. You take care now, alright?"

Suddenly, he didn't really feel like dealing with this situation anymore. He was still trying to get some sleep. He had done his part, and the two men were out. He really needed to be home right now. And there was work tomorrow.

Next thing he knew he was standing in his apartment's living room. It was exactly as he had left it, just three minutes ago.

... wow... I really gotta get that under control...

--------------------------------------------------

Two days later, he received a message on his phone from an anonymous number. How does that happen? No caller id? It was a bit of security cam footage looking over the parking lot, from two nights ago. It showed him standing stupid before the store, his first words with Mary, who hadn't recognized him, and the whole commotion afterwards, culminating in him kicking the snot out of the running man with one amazing well arched round-house kick. Was that him? He had never kicked anyone or anything like that in his life!

But there it was. A place and a time.

How odd.

He had learned quite a lot in the last two days. For one, he had become a creature of the dark. Yeah, weird, but fun at the same time. No drinking blood. It was like a wish had come true. Which was a scary thought after he considered it. What if he wasn't the only one? What if someone's nastiest wishes were coming true? Maybe he had gotten lucky. But some folks were sure going to get something nasty in their wish-fulfilment department.

But... how could anyone know of this? Or him? The police hadn't come to visit him. Mary clearly had seen him. She had looked right at him outside and in the store. And she didn't recognize him?

It was odd. And he wanted some answers.

He got ready. Dressed for the weather, black pants and long coat, scarf, and a light hat. Then, without even thinking about it, stepped "through the shadows" and found himself at the park. At least that part was becoming easier to do.

There was a kid there already. Waiting.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:50, Tue 08 Mar 2022.

Some awakenings are less obvious than others. In Naomi's case it started as an immense headache while she was chatting with the boss and the other staff at her maid cafe on Discord, bad enough that she had to excuse herself to lie down and take some Panadol before curling up on the sofa-bed in the small room that had been set aside for her.

The dreams which followed were strange ones; not because they didn't make sense - because dreams rarely did - but because they were far too mundane. In one she was a housewife worrying about her son and whether he would fit in at school, in another she was an old man annoyed about the ache in his joints and about how dim and muffled everything was, and then she even dreamed that she was her housemate David, peeking in through an ajar door at herself, muttering fitfully on her sofa-bed...

And then, when she realized things were getting far too recursive for her own liking, she shook her head and sat up groggily on her bed...

But the dream did not stop. She was still looking at herself through David's eyes, seeing herself raise her hands to touch her cheeks even as a flash of concern filled her heart -

And then she was back in her own body again, looking up at David's stout frame as he loomed over her, a worried look on his face.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I"m fine," she lied, her throat suddenly dry and her head dizzy as she dismissed him with a wave of her hand. Not that she found him distasteful - he WAS providing her with a place to stay completely free of charge, after all - but she needed time alone to figure out what was going on.

It was only when the deadbolt slid home that she realized she had just shut and locked the door without making contact with it. To Naomi's credit, she managed to keep herself from exclaiming out loud. Instead, she decided to try and see if she could repeat that feat of hers.

The bolt slid out, the handle turned, and the door swung open - all while she was three feet away covering her mouth as though she was afraid to let her voice escape. She turned to her table, at the old craptop David had lent her, and it slowly rose off the table as conversation and cat pictures from her maid cafe server scrolled across the screen.

She ventured a hands-free "hey guys?" on the keyboard, which dutifully showed up and triggered an "are you okay sweetie?" from Dana the owner before the dialogue resumed.

Then, there was a quiet knock on the door, and when she turned to it, she saw David there, with a mug of hot chocolate and a strip of Tylenol in hand.

"Thought you might need some of this," he smiled sheepishly. Naomi had enough presence of mind to not take them from him with her nascent abilities of mind over matter... but as she felt the concern radiate off him like a space heater, an idea crossed her mind; why was he doing all this - putting her up, paying for her food, that sort of thing - anyway?

His concern soon changed to confusion as she gave him a weird look, and then her expression suddenly turned to one of surprise, shock and then embarrassment. Naomi put the mug and the pills on the table, not daring to look him in the eye... and then she hopped off the ground and wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging tightly to him like a koala.

"Thank you for everything," she whispered into his ear. "I'll make it all up to you somehow."

After that, Naomi quickly closed the door behind him and sighed heavily as she put her back against it and slumped into a sitting position on her ground. She had thought David just wanted her body but was too much of a pussy to ask her for it, naturally, but the sheer intensity of the selfless love she had seen behind his eyes made her embarrassed to have even doubted his altruistic actions. As the saying went, "by questioning my generosity you prove yourself unworthy of it."

Naomi didn't know how reliable this ability to see inside people was, but she trusted it the way she trusted her ability to make things float in the air by thinking it.

In more ways than one, life would never be the same again.

---

Naomi took the next couple of days off work, claiming that she had terrible stomach cramps. Most of that time was spent experimenting with her powers, which she soon found fell into two main categories - telekinesis and telepathy. Simply put, she could read minds and move objects with her thoughts, the latter of which was quite versatile considering that she could lift up objects and carry herself around. Naomi chuckled to herself as she recalled the look of surprise on that fishing boat captain's face as she buzzed his bridge at breakneck speeds while reclining on a thrift sale armchair. That said, as she landed her Magical Wishing Chair (as she dubbed it) on the roof of her building, her phone went off, requesting that she attend a meeting at Sunset Park at 7pm.

And so, after a quick change of clothes, she pulls her hoodie up over her long black hair and rides a skateboard over to the park, keeping her eyes peeled for whoever might have called her. She notices a kid on a bench, but she tries not to stare at him...


This message was last edited by the player at 04:59, Wed 09 Mar 2022.

She was blue.  There was simply no hiding that fact.

Somehow, overnight, Sarah had been transformed into this monstrous... thing.   Her fingers had grown longer and had dramatically pronounced webbing; so did her feet.  Even her musculature seemed different: there were odd striations along her neck and under her arms.    She had hair, still, at least, but her eyes seemed bigger.  Still, she could see her own features underneath the weird vaguely-iridescent sheen of her flesh.

But that didn't take the edge off the ragged wave of hysteria that plagued her after waking up in someone--something--else's body.  "Oh, Ana." she whispered, an ancient plea to the sister she'd never met. "Please let this be a dream.  Just a bad dream."

-=-=-

Sukanna, one of the assistants to her coach, and probably the only one who might not freak out--once convinced that this wasn't actually a practical joke--had picked Sarah up and they'd returned to Suki's place in The Coast, where she proceeded to put Sarah through a small battery of tests--both in the pool and down at Gonzales Beach at high tide.

By the time they'd finished, Suki seemed almost eerily elated.  "This is crazy! The world's record for holding your breath underwater is 24 minutes and 37 seconds.  You beat Šobat by six minutes!  And you didn't even break a sweat!"  Sarah bit her lip.  The truth was that she could have gone almost indefinitely.  She hadn't actually needed to surface.  And there was a small part of her that hadn't wanted to.   Suki stopped.  "Wait.  Do you sweat?  I mean, fish are poikilothermic.  But, on the other hand, maybe you're more like a shark and you have two blood--"

Not thinking about becoming a damned fish.  "Focus. Suki" Sarah said.  "What else?"

Sarah blanched visibly. "Look, I've called Joanna.  Told her you're sick.  Covid protocols says to isolate, so you do that here and we'll work through things.  Okay?"

Sarah nodded.  But the deep fear hadn't left her eyes, and Suki noticed. "It'll be all right.  I've got friends I can call in.  Guys over at UCLA Marine Biology.   I've sent them a clip. I think George would give his left--well, he'd be really excited to help out."

Sarah nodded again. "Okay."

"Okay." Suki tapped a pen against her lips.  "There is something you did that I don't understand at all....  I have video."

Suki played a short clip showing a large water-spout erupting dock-side then, defying conventional physics, bending toward the dock and placing Sarah on it's surface, as if Sarah were an egg being placed on a plate, gentle and precise.  Then the water sluiced back into the pool, leaving Sarah dry.

"What I want to know is whether that is something you did?

-=-=-

Sarah slept that night only with aid of medication.  She dreamed of whale-song and a curiously distinct soundscape where everything felt inter-connected.  It felt right.

When Suki shook her awake frantically, Sarah was bleary-eyed and disoriented.  In the dark of the guest-house, Suki told her that there was a problem.   Video of her open-water tests had been posted to the internet.  It hadn't been her video--Suki went to some lengths to convince Sarah of that.  And the video was shot at such a distance that nobody could tell that it was Sarah leaping out of the water like a dolphin.

Except that, apparently, someone had told.  For the anonymous text-message that had found Sarah's unlisted number showed a clip of the video, then gave her an address and time.

And that just pissed Sarah off.

Nobody bullied her.  They think they could do this to her, then, what? blackmail her?    She'd show them!  If she had to beat the living hell out of them to get answers, she would.

Suki tried--god bless her--to talk sense into Sarah.  But Sarah wasn't in a rational frame of mind.  And when Sarah got pissed off she saw nothing but fury.

-=-=-

Suki had driven Sarah to a small park in the Sunset District.  They'd driven by it twice, just to be sure.  Suki had cautioned against Sarah going alone, but Sarah offered a small tight-lipped grimace and said she needed to do this alone.  But she wasn't defenseless.

She pulled her water-bottle out of her hoodie pocket and took the lid off.  The water inside sprung out of the bottle, floated in the air before them before becoming a small figure-eight shape that flowed back into the bottle.  "If they did this to me, I'll wring the answers out of them."

Suki sat mesmerized by the water-play, then she hit Sarah's arm, as she noticed a couple of other people entering the park.

Sarah got out of the car.  She wore black yoga tights and a dark blue hoodie, pulled up over her head.  White wires gave the appearance of simple jogger running the park near sunset...

"Show Time." Sarah said, turning toward the park.  "Keep your Google Hangout open.   If this goes ugly, get to the police.  Might as well use my fame for something.  Not like I'll see the olympics again anytime soon."  The bitterness was obvious.

--
Things introduced:

• Sukanna "Suki" Kaur, University student, wealthy family with a home in The Coast, friends at UCLA, acts as an assistant to the university swim coach.
• Gonzales Beach - coastal beach in/near The Coast district

This message was last edited by the player at 05:58, Wed 09 Mar 2022.

The first night had been terrifying.

A nameless entity had roused itself from an abyss of nothingness. No memory. No direction. No food, cold and alone, peering out at an unfamiliar world from a thousand vantage points. The spinning, rippling view of a falling drop of water. The careful cleanliness of a bathroom mirror. The disgusting and warped close-up view of a human mouth from the back of a spoon. Half-remembered concepts, all of them, from whatever the nameless entity had been before. Even learning that she had a physical body was a hard-fought journey of discovery.

She (for her corporeal vessel possessed feminine features) had struggled to survive. She had stolen things. Clothes. Food. She might have hurt some people. It was difficult to remember at this point. A thousand screaming consciousnesses all working in their own way to ensure their survival had taken some time to organize themselves into something resembling an identity. This world was anathema to her, and she to it, with its weird pink and brown fleshy things and their linear, singly-instanced existences. She was Anathema.

Anathema knew some things about the world. She had seen images and heard voices from electronic moving picture boxes. Stories of death and destruction and corruption and intrigue, of people superpowered and superimpovished. The world was so chaotic and noisy and run by so many conflicting selfish interests. As much fear and pain and helpless as Anathema felt, she knew that many others were having it so much worse. She knew she wanted to help. But first she had to help herself.

---

Even now, two nights later, her thoughts remained disorganized. Some part of her -- Omicron? Theta? She was not certain -- had perceived an invitation for a meeting. Maybe they knew what she was. Could put some order to the chaos.

Anathema would answer that invitation. She traveled swiftly upon chariots of glass, water, and chrome, her core identity jumping from reflection to reflection whenever her current instance was no longer of service to her. She wondered if each image she left behind died when she did, if she was killing herself and being born anew with every new figment. In the end, it didn't really matter.

Anathema watched the meeting location from a thousand angles, in the way that only she could. She was in every shard of glass, every glimmer of metal. If one looked closely, maybe they would see a pair of glowing cyan eyes looking back.

... hmmm... just a kid on the bench, and that girl with skates... odd...

Jeremy decided to take it easy. There was no actual danger here. At least not for him. He could disappear and reappear at home anytime he wanted, and if they tried to blackmail him, he would probably have something to say. After learning about his powers, he realized that the possibilities for his life had changed... drastically. So, right now he needed to get this "meeting" over with, and then he would have to make decisions for himself as to what to do next.

The kid on the bench seemed to be waiting as well. And the girl was... what?... meandering? Where they in on it? They seemed young, bit younger than him, but not so much out of place.

Time passed.

What were the chances that he was not the only one with an invitation? His newspaper lines were ringing off the hook with new "super powers" sighting calls, and everyone wanted to get paid for pictures. It was good it wasn't his problem. He didn't think the budget was there. But if it was, maybe he should carry a camera around to take pictures of himself. If Spiderman could do it, so could he. And it would make for a nice bonus. Maybe he could afford that nice new apartment Downtown.

More time passed.

Jeremy picked another bench close-by, sat down, yawned, and stretched out all over it.

... ok... now what...

He could not shake the feeling that he was being watched. After all, they would be observing him as he came close. They knew what he looked like, or at least they might know. He wasn't recognizable when his powers were on, so...

oh yeah... I should turn that power on...

Justin looked around at those who arrived. He was not sure what to expect... honestly he was expecting men in suits and black vans, or maybe some Sweet looking but VERY Scary 'Amanda Waller' type to walk up sit on his bench and make him an offer he 'couldn't' refuse..supposedly.  But these folks looked at out of odds here as he did.

He looked for snipers or innocuous joggers who seemed to linger too long making stretches for a run there were not there to actually run. But Justin was no 'xXx' Vin Diesel Agent to notice the minutia details like that out of place... he was no detective.

22:20, Today: Star Phoenix rolled 20 using 1d20+4.  Star Phoenix - Perception check studying surroundings and 'loiterers' [+4]. – 20

But what he did notice, sitting in the sunlight on the park bench was the pair of luminous eyes gazing at him from the shiny metal frame of the bench he was sitting on.  At first he thought it was just his anxious mind playing tricks on him.. but when he looked back they were still there.  He looked away wondering what it meant was he getting spooked by graffiti?  So he looked around to reassure himself that it was just graffiti... seeking more  of the eyes as likely it was some kind of gang tagging sign of turf or somesuch.  And too his horror he did indeed see more of them ... and they blinked on occasion!

'Ok, I'm clearly being over anxious here that can't be what I'm seeing... but I'm tired of this, might as well ~ time to change this tune...'

He stood up and walked over to a place equidistant to the pacing young hoodie woman trying very hard to conceal her features, the skater who was not skating, and the ... loiterer man who finally sat on a nearby bench and tried to look like he wanted to fade into the scenery...

"Ah, hi! I know you all don't know me.. I don't know you either so.. this will sound a little crazy, but did any of you receive an anonymous text to show up here at this time... cause you have a 'secret'?"

"Well I received a text to be here, and if what I think is going to go down... you all need to leave cause trouble may be coming or may already be here because of Me. Because I DO have a secret, and I don't want any of you hurt if your just... y'know innocent bystanders."

"I say 'may already be here', because .. there are a bunch of really spooky and animated eyes watching us in all the reflective surfaces here in the park.  It's really freaking me the hell out so.. you may want to leave."

"And whoever is watching.. please, don't hurt these people if it's just me your here for! Show yourself and let's... talk ~ at least first. What do you want?"
This message was last edited by the player at 03:08, Thu 10 Mar 2022.

In the golden hour, everything was cast in cheerful, warm orange hues and the western sky was laced with  a low-line of red clouds.   Red sky at night, sailor's delight! Sarah thought.

The park was fairly small: a little blip on the landscape, abutted by a community center on one side and a set of apartment buildings on the other.   It was a hillside park with a looping path that overlooked the ocean.  There was a small promontory near water-level, with a looking glass and a statue of some sort, a commemorative plaque. Further up, near the community center, a children's climbing gym and a water-fountain. a cement and metal structure painted green.  Public washrooms.

Even hooded and masked, Sarah made reasonable time.    She didn't push herself, just moved enough to keep herself limber.   But it felt good to be doing something physical, something familiar.  The first loop around the park gave her a sense of the place.   The second time she looped near the boy with the hair, he spoke up.  Young kid.  Claimed he had a secret that could hurt them all.

Yeah, that's what she needed.  Get caught in some weird-ass terrorist thing two days after turning blue and growing gills.  It was a mistake to come, Sarah thought.  Her anger was already cooling to wary caution.  Exercise did that to her.  It was the answer to everything: channel aggression into physical activity.  Swim, fight, dance.  It didn't matter. Hell, it had gotten her the gold.

Too late to back out now, though.  Even with the boy-with-the-hair's words.  She was here already.  If whoever-did-this-to-her could reverse it and giver Sarah her life back, she'd see it through.

Sarah stopped a couple of meters away from the boy.  Acknowledged the others with a casual wave.  Sarah readjusted her mask and repositioned her glasses, though much of her hair--also blue now--had come out from the side of the hoodie.

Sarah pulled out her water bottle and took a small sip as her eyes constantly scanned the area.  "Might not just be you." she said.  "I mean, everyone's got secrets."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:13, Thu 10 Mar 2022.

There is a hiss of distaste, like a rush of insects that echos throughout the park, seemingly sourceless. Near Justin a voice echoes, feminine, indignant, with a strangely metallic or robotic quality. "We are not creepy."

"By most objective metrics, We kind of are," a second voice argues, very similar, though the way it enunciates is different. Softer, more contemplative.

"We are now known to them," says a third iteration, filled with aggression and fear. "We should flee from this place."

"Silence!" barks a forth instance, though this one sounds somehow more real, less on-the-far-end-of-a-tunnel. The buzz of voices through the park almost instantly quiets. "We are sorry if we have unnerved you. We are not the one you have come to meet, and have no intention of hurting you or anyone else." The voice almost pointedly fails to identify itself, its wants, or to show itself.

In reply to Anathema (msg # 10):

Justin turns to the closer voice and his expression ... softens to one of sympathy..."...I, forgive me.. I did not mean to infer or call you creepy, I was merely trying to communicate how uneasy your...manifestation made me feel as it was outside what I have ever experienced.  It... was unkind of me and misworded.  I am deeply sorry, I mean no harm or insult to anyone here either."

Turning to meet the eyes of blue-haired jogger woman, "..I see, so is all your skin blue besides your hair and eyelids?  That ... must be a difficult adjustment. But, appearance is only the surface not who you are.  My... secret is one I can hide.. the powers I possess."

He regarded al present, "I can conjecture you all possess meta-human powers, like those on the news?  I too have experienced such.  My... abilities seem to reflect my idealized self-imagination of myself.  Perhaps all of your abilities reflect an inner wish of yourself as well?  Whatever has granted us the abilities we now possess has given us something of our heart's desire, even if we had not realized it?"

"These past two days I have pondered that if such things are our actualized imaginary self, what that says about the actual nature of reality?  And I have shuddered to think what would happen if the mentally unstable or mentally ill had their wishes of self-realization made reality... troubling thoughts indeed!  Not all minds or moralities would use such abilities to socially constructive goals."

"I assumed with how flashy and powerful my abilities are someone would eventually track me down it was inevitable, but I think whoever has coerced us all here has made a mistake if they are thinking to compel our unresisted cooperation."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:38, Fri 11 Mar 2022.

Psyche looks over to the black kid, grateful that he's broken the ice, but then somewhat alarmed when he mentions that someone else is watching... because it immediately occurs to her that this might be a trap and that this person knows about the powers she's been using.

Wait, does this mean the others have powers too?

While she's doing this, the jogger doing laps around the park has come to a halt close to them. Psyche finds her eyes drawn to her blue hair... and more importantly, her blue skin. Of course, she immediately tries to avert her eyes, because staring is rude, but... well, if it's cosplay, it's really good cosplay.

Then the strange voice speaks, which is... rather alarming, to say the least. But at least there are two people who claim they don't mean harm, starting with the black kid and the spooky voice... Well, maybe it doesn't mean to be.

Then the kid from the beginning speaks again, making quite a few good points about their situation. She lets him finish, and then she kicks up her board into her hand and pulls her hood back, as a nonverbal gesture of (symbolically) opening up.

"Alright, first things first. My name is Psyche. Well, it's not really Psyche, but building trust on everyone's part is going to take time, and I doubt you'd really believe me if I gave my real name right off the bat, so... Psyche. Yes, I seem to have developed supernatural powers. Yes, I received a message to meet here. No, I did not expect to encounter you here, and no, I do not mean you any harm."

She glances briefly to the blue girl - maybe it's not cosplay? - and then to Justin. She holds up her phone, showing them the message she received - clearly showing that it was received, and not sent, in case anyone is mistaken.

"For better or worse, we are here. And for better or worse, we are all in the same boat. I think, with this power stuff. And I would just like to say I feel a lot better knowing that I'm not alone in this."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:06, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

Justin regards the skater...Psyche, and smiles nodding he slowly pulls out his own phone to show a similar text message as hers and says, "I'm... Star Phoenix... or to my friends, which I do so hope we can be, I'm 'Justy'."

He takes a deep breath a looks at all present openly, his expression... becoming somewhat somber and he Continues, "... I know none of you 'asked', for these powers and or changes to your bodies, but they are our new reality. I know some of you might like to go back to the lives you had before, but you will eventually have to accept no matter how much you may want to 'return to normal'... that will be very hard if not impossible to do so ~ THIS may be our new normal; as receiving this text most certainly infers. You can resist it or you can face it but you can't deny it. This is now your reality."

"I, however, will tell you I can empathize with your desire to live your life on your terms...and if it's possible, I will try in whatever way I can to help you achieve some personal acceptance with however you decide to deal with this change in your life. Your secret is safe with me and I will respect your choice and privacy. Though to do believe that freedom is at risk by our simply being here."

"In short, I'm willing to help each of you in anyway I can or as much or as little as your willing to let me help to protect your freedom to choose. I Promise!"

He pauses and lowers his gaze then declares, "..for my part, I have no desire to give up my powers or return to 'normal'! I want to use my powers to help and heal if I'm allowed ~ as much as I can... y'know, 'Great Power, Great Responsibility'.  That cliche' adage has a far greater meaning to me now.  But I'm firmly determined to NOT allow ANYONE to intimidate or try to coerce me to use my powers in ANY way I find morally corrupt or unethical!  I'd rather die... which ... in my case, would be rather difficult.. but I'm deadly serious about that!"

Then he looks up his eyes glowing red with flickering inner flames, his voice crackled with power, "And I'm Just as determined to make sure no one tries to do that to ANY of you either! I Promise!"

He takes a deep breath and the flames in his eyes flicker and fade his voice returns to normal, "So.. I'm waiting for whoever sent this text to arrive... none of you need stay if you do not want to. I intend to confront whoever did this and find out their intentions."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:57, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

The boy with the hair and the skater-girl introduced themselves  and the disembodied voice--wait, was the voice coming from the puddle?  Or the bench?  Sarah wasn't clear on it.  And it sounded like there were more than one, there, too. 

"Do you normally speak in monologues?"  Sarah cocked her head to one side, glanced at the boy-with-the-hair. "Oh god, you were a toast-master, weren't you?"

Sarah squared herself off against Star Phoenix and continued before he could answer, "You can tell yourself I wanted this if it helps you sleep better.    But it neatly undermines absolutely everything I've ever worked for."

She paused for a moment, then took her pandemic-mask off, letting it dangle from one ear.   Her entire flesh was uniformly blue with swirls of purple and green striations contoured with the lines of her features.  Her lips were darker blue almost bordering on purple.  Her eyes were still covered by the mirror glasses, so weren't visible.   I just want to find who did this to me, and get them to change it back.  'Cause this is some twisted shit.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:29, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

In reply to Fathom (msg # 14):

Star Phoenix regards the blue-skinned woman, his expression somber, "Are you put off by the fact I'm articulate and wish to accurately convey my thoughts and feelings to perfect strangers so there is no confusion about what I stand for and am willing to do?  That seems an... odd sentiment to me but I'm not judging anyone here.  I just want no misunderstanding between us is all."

He grimaces at her inference of her accusation about her interpretation of his postulations and calmly replies, "... it was not my intention to accuse anyone of 'wanting' these changes to their bodies and lives.. I'm sorry you got that impression.  My theorization may have been misworded. I only meant to postulate on a potential form of the manifestation our individual powers may have been shaped by.  It's pure speculation I have no proof of such only in my case it seemed to me likely part of my powers manifestation may have been some form of wish fulfillment simply because of the form my powers have thus far manifest in.  It is likely Far more complicated than that!"

His expression saddens, "..I have these past days come to an acceptance of my powers.. of course that, I'm sorry to say, is easy when my powers can be hidden so easily.  I'm truly sorry your powers have not given you that freedom and have been a source of turmoil in your life."

Then his expression brightens slightly, "But.. if I'm correct about the powers being some kind of sub-conscious 'wish-fulfillment', then perhaps for you.. there is some hope in that?  If your powers are shaped by your wishes.. have you pondered not rejecting your powers but accepting them and then shaping them to your desires?  Meaning have you 'tried' focusing your desires and will upon changing back to a more human appearance ~ Will it to be so? My powers seem to obey my will in some of my effects... save one which is annoying but, honestly, I like ~ if it was not all the time!  So not enough 'desire' to change the annoyance on my part... but perhaps not so with you?"

"I know this is a stretch, but hear me out.  The Fantastic Four comic books.. Ben Grimm was always so sad about his cursed appearance, he hated himself in many ways for his 'hideous' appearance... but in one story arc he found out he could change back at any point he just had to accept himself and will the change.  In other words the appearance was all in his head he always could change back, and Reed Richards knew this but he could not tell Ben this as it would always be Ben's own psyche holding himself back.. he had to accept he could do it."

"Its just a comic book of course, but we are witness to the fantastic here so.. it couldn't hurt to try to 'Will' yourself back to your human appearance?  Its something to ponder at the very least."

He sighs sadly, "...but as for who did this too you.. I really don't think its that simple.  Look at us all.. there is nothing that links us all we have never seen each other or even have the same ethnicity.  The chances that someone DID this to us purposely is highly unlikely.. more likely something in our environment has altered us.  Think about it.. if someone could give superpowers to anyone.. why would they randomly insert it into an uncontrolled group of strangers?  If it were a science experiment.. it would be in a secret lab someplace if it were a military experiment.. it would only be in soldiers... and again in some secret lab.  No world power or corporate agency would Ever want random people gifted with such power that they could not control.  It's not under control or profitable to do such a thing."

He smiles for her, "And personally.. I see nothing wrong with you... I see a lovely young woman with blue skin and hair ~ I see an amazing human. I'm Certainly Not going to judge someone by their skin color.. and you should not judge yourself that way either ma'am. So, how do you wish to be addressed ma'am?"
This message was last edited by the player at 08:42, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

"... This one talks too much," that ethereal metallic voice comments from the glass of a nearby lamp post.

"And this one protests too much," another voice says from directly behind Sarah. Fingertips delicately brush her shoulder and hair, almost playfully.

The owner of the voice shimmers into view, rippling and fading in as if water is draining away. They are a tall woman, about six-foot-two, with a slender build, blue-gray metallic skin and silver-black metallic hair. Her unclad form is covered in tattooed resembling printed circuit boards which glow with an eerie cyan light, as do her eyes, lips, and a bit of her cheeks, shoulders, and areola.

"Is it not clear that you have been blessed?" the statuesque woman asks. "T'was the sacred meteor two days ago that visited this fate upon thee; your moving picture boxes of glass and light say it is so!"
This message was last edited by the player at 10:02, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

In reply to Anathema (msg # 16):

Star Phoenix gets that 'deer in the headlights' wide-eyed gawk as the ethereal metallic woman coalesces behind the Blue-skinned woman, and then a full on sunrise blush brightens his face as he gazes upon her.. mostly naked feminine form.  Its actually quite cute despite the situation.

He pivots to the side and pointedly tries to keep his gaze at some point above here head... which is amusing considering she is just a inch shorter then him.

"Uhm, ah hi... m-ma'am.  I..didn't realize you actually were here and not just y'know..er remote viewing us..er."

He tries to regain some composure looking anywhere then at her, "...I saw the news about the meteor, but didn't make the connection meteors fall all the time... but perhaps your .. perspective within the ..data-streams of media give you a more complete picture?"

"T-thank you for your observation, I'll investigate that meteor fall as soon as ...er whatever happens here.. is resolved.."

He asks again looking above her head, "...so you can turn into a electrical wave and interface physically with the communications systems  or its it just you can read wireless devices with your mind like a wireless router hub?"
This message was last edited by the player at 13:56, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

Jeremy observed and listened from a distance. He thought he would just walk up to them, but after listening to the kid, what did he call himself?, Star Phoenix?, he hesitated.

Then the voices resounded all around them. It was unmistakable. Odd. Very odd. Still, he's read stranger things.

Then the blue woman, and the woman on the skateboard. This was getting crowded.

It occurred to Jeremy that whoever had contacted him may have also contacted all these others. But how? How was this person tracking them all? Something didn't quite fit. He would have to find out. After all, no one really knew about him, could have known about him so quickly. A deliberate intention or plot came to mind. But he needed more information. And his thoughts were turning a bit pessimistic. He didn't like that.

"Is it not clear that you have been blessed?" the statuesque woman asked. "T'was the sacred meteor two days ago that visited this fate upon thee; your moving picture boxes of glass and light say it is so!"

That's an interesting interpretation. She was pulling a religious angle into this. Hmm... that would bear observation. He really didn't want to have to deal with a zealot. All kinds of bad things happened around them. He would have to keep his eyes open for any of her "conversion" attempts. Hope this would not have to be as awkward as needing to shoo Jehovah's Witnesses away.

But it was time.

An inky black cloud of darkness enveloped him, and then reduced itself to nothing, in an instant. He was no longer at the bench. The next moment, the cloud of black ink reappeared next to the kid calling himself Phoenix, deposited his form a bit abruptly, and faded out into nothing moments later.

He gathered his composure after the unceremonious entrance, and said,

"Hi everyone. Looks like there is one more: Me. My name is... "

He thought it over. There was a bit of reason behind all their words. He wasn't sure what was going on yet. He was about to say Jeremy, but he wanted to keep things in the open for the moment.

"... Shadow. Looks like I am not the only one with new and interesting... abilities?"

He made a sweeping gesture from top to bottom aimed at himself. Then he stopped himself and realized he was being theatrically grand. When did that start?

He nodded at the kid, the woman in blue, the skater, and the odd looking lady with semi-glowing circuit board skin. To her he added,

"Nice get-up. Did you create that yourself? Or is that a part of your nature?"

Star Phoenix?

Yes, yes, it's rude to make fun of people and she doesn't intend to, but... yeah. Definitely a comic book name.

Then again, I DID give mine as Psyche, so I guess I started the trend.

Psyche sighs quietly, and then listens to Star Phoenix's (or Justy's?) spiel, which is interspersed by glances at Fathom, mainly because... well, she's blue. She has to banish the pulsing beats of Eiffel 65 out of her mind.

Just as she's about to speak, however, the tall naked woman appears out of nowhere, followed by a (fortunately) non-naked man calling himself Shadow. That brings their numbers up to... what is it, five now?

"Uh. Hello, Shadow. And I believe being able to appear out of nowhere qualifies as a very interesting ability indeed."

Psyche tries to keep her eyes off the strange tall naked woman who looks like circuitry and Miss... what did she call herself? Fathom?

She winces a little as she realizes she's doing that unconscious picking-up-on-stray thoughts thing that keeps happening because she's not focused enough, probably because she was paying too much to Fathom (she'll call her that for now). In an effort to avoid learning even more things that she shouldn't, she decides to stare at the ground instead and try to keep track of people by their feet.

"I think there should be at least one more person, the one who called us here. And, uh, Miss Tall Lady who appeared out of nowhere... you mentioned a meteor or something? You sound like you're familiar with it. Is there a purpose to giving us these powers, do you know who sent it, will our powers go away if the meteor goes far enough away... that sort of thing?"

Star Phoenix takes the arrival of Shadow in stride apparently inured to sudden arrivals by the Circuitry nude woman.

He smiles, "Nice to meet you Shadow, welcome, and you too Psyche.  It's a relief to know that others have received powers and are relatively sane and able to converse with!  Er.. my powers are... flashy and .. can be kind of destructive so.. I'm not manifesting them.  I would probably frighten the rest of the park goers and Definitely get their attention ~ something I think we'd all like to avoid."

He ... shyly looks at 'Miss Tall Lady'-Circuitry nude woman, in conjunction with Psyche, "I share Psyche's sentiment do you sense or conjecture something about this meteor that we have not?  I'm not sure if its a blessing from some divine source as yet.. though I do believe in God.  I 'seem' to be able to 'feel' cosmic occurrences.. like supernovae and quasar explosions.. its weird and hard to describe... and not entirely under my control.  Of course, I did not sense the arrival of the meteor as I did not have powers at that time but I'd bet it qualifies as a Cosmic event.  I do intent to investigate this meteor strike... I.. can fly VERY fast, like faster than light ~ but only in space at those speeds.  I would want to goggle the telemetry of the meteor and find out what trajectory it had before impacting earth... I might be able to find it's origin, unless its been traveling for a VERY long time, well I guess that might be a given."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:12, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

19:23, Today: Star Phoenix rolled 16 using 1d20+7.  Star Phoenix - Initiative [+7 {Dex '+3', Imp Init '+4'}]. – 16
This message was last edited by the player at 23:24, Sat 12 Mar 2022.

Psyche thinks back to her own experiments with telekinetic flight and raises an eyebrow. She was worried enough about being noticed that she limited her attempts to low level excursions  in areas with lots of ground clutter, or at least that's what David told her when she asked if he knew how to fly a plane so it wouldn't be detected by radar.

But faster than the speed of light?

She knows it's kind of bad to think of Phoenix that way, especially when he seems to be as earnest as he is, but he seems to be designed to attract attention.

OOC: 08:10, Today: Psyche rolled 13 using 1d20+4 with rolls of 9.  Psyche Init.

Sarah stood back, silent, arms crossed in front of her, water-bottle dangling loosely from one hand.  She tuned Star Phoenix out, dismissing his half-baked solutions to how she should deal with her problems.  Like she hadn't tried to will this all away.  It was always easier for men to blame the victim.  Because, naturally, she must have wanted it.

The disembodied voices made another round, "And this one protests too much."  One of the voices said.  One of them even brushed against her, forcing her to shiver and step to the side to avoid whoever--whatever--it was.   

When the Gertrude manifested, a tall woman with stunning features, Sarah stood dumbfounded.  Another followed quickly on the heels of the naked lady--another guy.  He appeared in a cloud of... mist? of darkness?   Yeah, this was getting too weird. 

Reflexively, Sarah started scanning the area again, measuring distances, gauging escape routes.  There were too many factors beyond her control, here.  Sarah decided she was going to need to put some distance between her and them real soon.   Coming here was a mistake.  But, damn, Sarah hoped that Suki was recording the Google Hangouts.

Fathom rolled 24 using 1d20+6.  Initiative.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:49, Sun 13 Mar 2022.

The glowy metal woman giggles softly as Sarah shivers and shirks away. "So cute," she coos to herself. She steps away from Sarah as Sarah does the same, her bare feet making a distinct metallic scraping sound against the asphalt.

She turns her gaze back upon the babbling, flustered Justin. She cocks her head and places a hand on her hips, smiling beatifically as he stumbles over his words. "Nothing so esoteric as any of that, sweetie," she softly refutes his speculations. She decides to show some mercy to the poor boy, reaching into the reflected world within her metallic skin and pulling out a gray leather jacket. She pirouettes around as she slinks her way into its heavy folds, coattails and sleeves helixing around her as she turns dressing into a dance. Then, she is covered and modest... well, as much as a streetwalker might be, in any event.

The woman's disposition seems to sour some as the self-titled Star Phoenix speaks of going to see the meteor personally. She opens her mouth to say something, but hesitates. "Nothing can go faster than light," she objects quietly. It is clear that is not what she was originally going to say.

---

Spoiler for gameplay mechanics: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
19:00, Yesterday: Anathema rolled 14 using 1d20+5+4.  Init.

---

Sensing that Blue...Fathom is feeling a little cornered, Psyche decides to make a little room for her.

Psyche glances at Fathom, and then she looks at the mysterious naked woman who is not naked any more.

"So, uh. Do you have a name we can address you with? Because Not Naked Lady does not roll off the tongue."

Sarah cocked her head to one side, distracted. Then she stiffened as if blown by a freezing blast.  Her eyes widened behind the sunglasses and a wave of pure, gut-wrenching you-can't-get-away panic set in.

She gasped, audibly.

Private line
This message was last edited by the player at 07:54, Sun 13 Mar 2022.

Psyche sighs quietly, and then takes another couple of steps away from Fathom, La Blue Girl, whatever she's called. Well, that went swimmingly, she rolls her eyes, more disappointed at herself than anything else.

Metal-girl cocks her head, frown intensifying. Internally she polls her myriad of reflected instances, asking if any of them see anything untoward.

In reply to Anathema (msg # 24):

Star Phoenix smiles, "I would tend to agree, but that does not explain the observations I've experienced.  I made it from Earth to the sun surface in 5 minutes... an impossibility as light is known to reach earth in 8 minutes.  And I know I could have done it quicker.. I wasn't really trying on my first star flight.  But.. honestly it kind of scares me the thought of actually attempting an intersteller flight to even alpha-centauri.  The void of all that darkness within a sea of stars seems so very lonely."

He looks at those present and grimaces noting they all seem to be put off by his honest openness and takes several steps back pondering {perhaps they'd react better if I was an asshole? But not happening ... that's not me, they are perfect strangers... so...}

He sighs, "..look I'm clearly freaking you all out. Sorry, just trying to be honest and helpful. You clearly want none of that so... maybe its best we just do our own thing.  I'm staying to see if someone shows up so stay or leave as you see fit."

He begins to turn away...
This message was last edited by the player at 12:14, Sun 13 Mar 2022.

"If science says you can't do it but you can, then clearly some more science is required. Shutting our eyes and singing tra-la-la does no one any good." She shrugs.

Jeremy could not help but notice that things were a little tense. It wasn't helping that the kid was just rambling on about how to deal with changes and what was good or bad. There would be enough time for judgement later.

Although, he did have a point. There was a part of him that had longed for this. Longed? Desired! Wished! It was both strange, surprising, frightening, and utterly delightful, at the same time. What was the word he liked to use for moments like these? "Odd". He chuckled to himself.

"You know,...", he spoke out loud, musing to himself, his eyes looking all around, "... thing is, I just got like this two days ago. It was weird. But there is someone or something out there that knows that this happened. I got a request to come here and meet... whoever it is... at 7pm tonight." He checked his watch and confirmed. "It's now 7:18 and whoever it was that wanted me here hasn't showed yet."

He looked at the assembled group.

"The fact that you are all here tells me you might have gotten that same message? This is more than a coincidence. But, that means that someone knows this has all happened, and knows enough about us to find us, send us this invitation, and then keep tabs on us."

He started to look around the park.

"I think we should look for whoever this is. They are probably watching us right now. They might know something about why this happened. At the very least I want to know who this person is, and what they want. I don't like the idea of someone watching me like this.

What do you say? Let's search this park."

Star Phoenix will pause at Shadow's suggestion of some cooperation.

Nodding his way, "Work together? Finally some comradery, sure Shadow.. I'm game to help with the search the park sounds fine! I too want to know who called us here and how they found us.. though I'm pretty certain with my powers its was not hard.  And though I know what I can do... having you willing to help with you powers would be awesome if it turns to conflict.  I'd rather have back-up and another alternative to spraying down a public park with charged solar plasma..."

He gestures, "Which side of the park do you want? I'm gonna stay powered down until a threat actually presents itself... safer that way to avoid property damage and innocent bystanders."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:39, Sun 13 Mar 2022.

As the group continued to talk, Anathema was the first to remark a strange phenomenon, a swirling mass of darkness was appearing at 30 feet of them. An instant later, it collapsed, revealing two figures.

The first was a floating thin man with a dark hooded cloak seeming made of shadows. In it’s left hand was a large shadowy scythe. The second was a brown bear but its eyes betrayed its intelligence.

The thin man suddenly slashed its weapon and a silver crescent appeared from nowhere and struck Phoenix in the chest, knocking him backward and leaving a large gash.

[OOC: Combat! I made a Perception check for everyone and only Fathom failed it, so no first round for you. The Initiative order is:
Fathom > Reaper (the thin man) > Star Phoenix > Anathema > Psyche > Medved > Shadow
Reaper attacked Phoenix with a with a ranged weapon +8, Damage 7 (Penetrating 4, Affect Insubstantial 2 and Incurable). He touched with 26 vs Dodge 8 (DC18) and wounded, Toughness check 16 vs Damage 7 (DC22). 2 degree of failure (>5), you are dazed and have 1 blessure).
Next is Star Phoenix. Then Anathema. Then Psyche. Then me. Then Shadow.]

Star Phoenix noticed the swirling mass of darkness some 30 feet away and the figures that appeared at first thinking they were more super powered arrivals, but the unprovoked attack on himself... was wholly unexpected.  Of those standing there ~ he, Shadow, and Psyche were the most normal and nonthreatening looking; so why he of all of them was attacked made little sense to him?

It was certainly not what he was expecting.  He was more expecting either SWAT team forces sent to apprehend them or some man in a suit to make them an, 'offer they can't refuse'.  Immediate direct sudden unprovoked violence... not so much.

He gasped at the sudden wound across his chest, the pain slowing his reactions somewhat but he was clear it was no normal wound he could feel his natural solar regeneration hindered from healing him... and the mindless violence was starting to make him angry.  But he noted that the Blue Girl was completely caught off guard and was not reacting.

He placed a hand to his chest would, "K-Koff~!! ‘Gasp’ THAT was completely uncalled for... but if you insist on hurting people I will not allow that..."

Justy was staggered but his purpose was not stymied... he moved away from his associates about 10'ft directly between Blue Girl and the hostiles to intercept any approach to her then he jumped into the air ~ to those with a keen eye the force of the leap cracks the concrete slightly... but all that is likely lost in what happens next as Star Phoenix drew the light in his surrounding into his body like a star forming in his heart ~ and he exploded into roaring golden flames!

His clothing changed into a body suit, forming like a reverse of something immolating ~ like ash turning into fabric; clothing him in a red and gold bodysuit stylized like perhaps a cycle racer's speed suit but emblazoned with a golden emblem of a fiery bird on his back.  The flames he seemed to be the source of coalesced into a golden fiery corona around him shaped like a bird composed of flames some 10 to 15 feet in wingspan with Justy at its center; as if to punctuate the effect a thunderous shriek like a hunting cry of a bird of prey roars forth from the blazing effect as it finished forming!

Star Phoenix took flight the leap just enough to keep the pavement from being charred as a wave of heat washed over all present from the heat effects of the firebird effect corona surrounding him.  The fiery bird was not some static image it moved as if a thing alive literally its gaze scowled at the attackers.  Justy had changed as well his skin an inky black, his hazel eyes now glowed a bright amber with flickering flames inside and his hair... replaced with a mane of stellar fire!  The radiance of the effect was almost as bright as the sun above.

 

Star Phoenix hovered in the air some 5 to 10 feet above the ground still between the Blue Girl ready still to intercept any approach to her and invoked his plasma sheath of fiery protection an inner corona of distinctly red flames surrounded him.  His pose shifting to one of readiness for a defensive attack as he points at the two assailants and unleashed a star burst of golden light targeting their area brighter than the sun…

He addressed the assailants, not yelling, but his voice now crackling with power, “Now that I have your attention, Who are you and Why did you attack us unprovoked?”

Actions –
Move Action: 10’ft {ground}, Flight 10'ft;  Jump to give a little distance between himself and pavement to avoid charring the surface 'roughly 2ft'
No Action: Instant Change into costume
Free Action: Activate Plasma Sheath-Protection [+8 Toughness Saves]
Standard Action: Defensive attack w/Star Burst – Dazzle, Dodge now 13 [DC23 dodge]

10:00, Today: Star Phoenix rolled 16 {15} using 1d20+3.  "Star Burst" Ranged Area Attack w/Defensive attack max {Dodge +5, Attack -5 'aimed at ground 30'ft radius} [+3]. – 16
Notes: ~ Opps, forgot he's dazed so an additional -1 to his attack, so only a 15.. but he's aiming at a spot on the ground between Medved and Reaper... so its not dodging
- Resist w/Will, DC18 or Impaired+

09:58, Today: Star Phoenix rolled 10 using 1d20+8.  Jump {Trying to avoid charring the concrete with flight & FF side effects}. – 10
~ Gah sorry been a while since I played the D20 system.  Ignore this roll I'm just going to take 10- with it.  Athletics 18.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:20, Mon 14 Mar 2022.

Possible complication triggers:

• Metallic Skin (due to the sudden wash of heat)
• Photosensitivity (due to the sudden bright light)

Metal girl cocked her head curiously at the newcomers, wondering what their contribution to this fun little outdoor party would be. They contribute wordlessly but enthusiastically. "Oh boo, so much for that burgeoning camaraderie," she says, coy and unconcerned.

Her too-cool-for-this disposition doesn't survive the Star Phoenix, however.

With a surprised yelp she raises an arm to shield her eyes. The length of a blink later and her image shatters like a sheet of plate glass under a hammer blow, leaving nothing but shimmering shards to settle into the shallow puddle of rainwater she had been standing in. Both are rapidly evaporating, now.

From a safer distance, she observed and calculated. A dozen more of her did the same and double-checked her math. The conclusion was clear; giant flaming fire man probably has it under control. She elects to simply use her mysterious influences to shield Sarah and cover the escape she looked to be halfway to commuting towards even before their attackers showed up.

Using Deflect 10 to protect Fathom.

Psyche freezes up as the strange darkness appears before discharging a pair of attackers at them. It is at this point that she realizes something:

1 - someone was obviously expecting them to be here
2 - someone was planning to ambush them here
3 - she doesn't know anything about them
4 - she doesn't know anything about the others either

Now, she doesn't think any of Fathom or Shadow or Justy or Not Naked Lady are bad guys, but she doesn't know anything about them, and even if they aren't the villains here trying to pose as a fifth column to pincer them with these obvious aggressors, she has no experience fighting with them and she has no experience fighting, period.

Which brings her to her next course of action. She should run, of course. Best form of self defense is to never get into a dangerous situation in the first place. But then what if they were planning for her to escape? She was probably spotted flying around on a beat-up armchair;  since this was a planned ambush, would they really not have taken any countermeasures against that? Like, who knows, a surface to air missile launcher or something.

No, best not to risk that. Besides, it's not a good look to take off while the others are in the lurch. But then, what should she do?

Phoenix is big and obvious... what if I were the opposite? What if... they didn't see me?

And then, nothing happens at all. Psyche is still there. Except... People don't treat her like she's there. Shortly afterward, a voice speaks in everyone's heads.

I'm not gone yet. I'm just... monitoring the situation.

OOC: Activating Mental Invisibility Technique. Psyche will then get into the tree branches to set up her next action.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:36, Tue 15 Mar 2022.

Phoenix’s flare exploded at the just before the two aggressors, but when the light faded, the bear was charging the most vulnerable target: Fathom. Or at least that was the impression, when he struck why is claws the air rippled and the paw bounced back on its owner but failed to penetrate the tough skin.

[OOC: Phoenix, I made the dodge test for the two with DC18, Reaper succeeds (31), Medved fail (12). For the resistance check the two passes: Reaper 21 (DC14) and Medved 26 (DC18). No luck.

Then we have Anathema and Psyche, no test.

Medved move to Fathom (30 feet) and attack her with claws (+10/dam14), Since Anathema as a deflect on her I did the clash: Anathema with 24 vs Medved with 21. Since only Medved is in range to redirect I made the check myself (tell me if I got it wrong). You hit with 24 against Parry class of 18 but you don’t wound (I had a 32 against DC29)

The turn of Shadow, then Round 2 with Fathom first the Reaper]

"What the...?"

Shadow was a bit taken aback at all the sudden action. A reaper and a bear showed up out of nowhere, and the kid turned to fire, hurling fireballs.

"Hey. Hey! That's not cool. Stop it!"

Shadow's tried to manage the situation, which had gotten seriously violent at this point, but he doubted these new-comers had any intention of talking.

His instinctive mind took over, and his body began to ooze dark inky blackness, which billowed all around him and hid his form down to a silhouette. Not wanting to get too much in the way, he decided to shift position to about 30 feet past and behind the reaper, looking for an opening to strike a good blow.

The blackness around him fully swallowed him up, then reduced itself to nothing. About 50 feet further away, and 30 feet past the 'reaper' figure, it reappeared again, tossing Shadow out of it's confines with a bit of an unceremonious shove. He stood there, taking the conflict in, and examining the possibilities.

OOC: Activating defenses (Move Action), then taking a move to a new position. Next.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:28, Thu 17 Mar 2022.

What actually happens is that the air before the bearmonster shimmers and ripples, forcing him to face am ethereal and silvery reflection of himself. The reflection parries his blow and counterattacks before shimmering away, failing to do meaningful damage.

It all fell out so fast.

Two people just appeared in a cloud of smoke and immediately attacked them. No introductions, no therats.  Guy-with-a-scythe--a scythe?-- slashed Star Phoenix who exploded into a floating man-on-fire thing.  Psyche, the metal-woman and Shadow all just kinda disappeared.  Or maybe it was just that Sarah lost track of them.   

The bear-thing leapt at Sarah, scary claws swiping at her.    She swore she should have been dead right there.  But something happened.  Like, the bear-thing was fighting itself for a moment?.  Sarah was terribly confused, but she didn't have time to ponder it.

Grateful for whatever had given her a precious few seconds, Sarah felt dramatically outclassed.  So, the imperative was absolutely clear: get the hell out of there!

There wasn't time to waste.

Sarah pivoted then, out of range, reflexively reached for the water in the shallow puddle Anathema had been standing in.  All she wanted was a barrier between herself and the bear-thing.

The water from the puddle erupted outward and expanded dramatically, forming a barrier nearly 10 feet tall, six feet across, and one foot thick.  It was made of hardened water--not ice--but shaped water.

Then, she turned tail and fled.  She wasn't concerned with the others--she simply wanted to live through this.  She could beat herself up about it all later.  "Suki!" Sarah shouted. "It's going south!  It's really going South!"

--

Start of second round.
Removed Stunned & Vulnerable conditions from Fathom
Move-Action: Pivot & move out of Medved's immediate claw range
Standard Action: Create Construct: simple barricade, 10' tall x 6' wide x 1' thick = 60 cubic feet, Toughness(10), Descriptors: water, opaque
Move-Action: Run away.  Since the GM says we're not near the ocean, I'll leave it to them to define which way I run...


Edited for semantics.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:41, Fri 18 Mar 2022.

OOC: Just in case Shadow's move may have been misinterpreted, I have edited my last post with a bit more detail on his actions. He only teleported to a rear position. He's still very much "in the fight".

As Fathom tried to run the battle toward the edge of the park, the cloaked man floated until he was standing on the water barrier and raised his scythe. Bands of dark energy came from it and snaked their way to everyone at least than 30 feet, safe for the bear.

Everyone touched by the bands was feeling like icy water was running in their veins and that their strength was diminishing. But the adrenaline in their blood was enough to keep them fully alert and the feeling could be easily ignored.

[OOC: Reaper uses a Burst Fortitude Affliction with the selective, concentration and cumulative modifier. You all pass your dodge check and fortitude check.
Following: Star Phoenix, Anathema, Psyche]

Star Phoenix frowned, "So that's how you wish to do this?  No dialogue, No conversation ~ none of us here have done you ANY harm and you only seek naked violence against people who know nothing of you and no desire to harm you?  Fine then.. if Violence is the only thing you understand than violence you shall have!"

Star Phoenix flies in low but fast his phoenix aura of stellar flames licking the pavement briefly... low so he can come in below the Water wall that Reaper is standing atop... so he can aim Up and risk not damage to the park or innocent bystanders or if he misses the bolt hit nothing but open air.  From that brief tactical position he unleashes a pure solar plasma bolt at Reaper in an all out power attack for maximum destruction aiming at him above the water wall.

His shot fired Star Phoenix continues his move-by action to return to the skies some 50'ft up, never once coming within melee range of Reaper.

Actions -
Move-By: 100'ft {25'ft to firing position, 50'ft up [25'ft away/50'ft in altitude]
Standard Action:  All-Out Power/Attack w/ Plasma Bolt ~
”Plasma Bolt” {Damage}: 8 w/All-Out, Power Attack 12 (Cosmic, Elemental, Fire, Heat, Life Force, Light; Range 200/400/800’ft, DC23 w/All-Out, Power Attack DC28 , Affects Insubstantial 2 {Full Rank}, Dangerous 4 {CRT 16+}, Increased Range 1: Ranged [+1rk/Lvl], Penetrating 2 [+2rk})
11:44, Today: Star Phoenix rolled 27 using 1d20+8.  Ranged Combat: Energy Control-Solar Plasma [+8, All-Out {+5}, Power Attack {-5}]. – 27 - CRITICAL HIT 'Dangerous 4' {CRT 16+}

There is a blast of energy brighter than the sun and the Phoenix Aura surrounding Justy/Star Phoenix shrieks like a living beast in Thunderous Triumph of COSMIC RAGE Unbridled.. Fire made flesh in the sky above!
This message was last edited by the player at 18:07, Tue 22 Mar 2022.

Anathema continues to spectate from some intangible space not entirely of this reality. This is fun! Like a movie, or a play! If she threw an ear of corn at Star Phoenix, would it turn into popcorn on the cob? So many questions!

---

Anathema takes no meaningful action.

Psyche decides to gain more information about the situation. She focuses her attention on Reaper and does her best to stare right through his head...

OOC:
Using Mind Reading on Reaper. She wants to figure out what they're trying to accomplish, who sent them and their real identities, if possible.

The blast sends by Phoenix detonated just before his eyes, completely washing his vision in white bright light, blinding him. Nearly at the same time, Psyche infiltrated his mind, in the stream of thoughts the psychic was hearing, mostly about his current predicament, she distinguished his burgeoning doubts about the fight, and mainly if the money promised was worth it.

While Reaper was having problem, the bear ignored the water wall and turned his fight toward the only other person he could access, Shadow. With a growl he charged the man and mauled him with his claws leaving a deep gash and a little rattled from having received the weight of a adult bear at full speed.

[OOC: First Phoenix: You exchange damage for affliction blindness, Reaper is now blind (I rolled Fortitude).
Psyche you managed to roll 12 vs 9 to Reaper Will check, you have only Surface Thoughts for now.
Last: Medved vs Shadow, he rolls 23 vs your Parry (DC20) and then you roll 19 vs damage 14 (DC29). So, you have 1 wound, and you are dazed for until next turn.

Now: Shadow to finish the round, then Round 3 begin with Fathom, then Reaper]
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:42, Thu 24 Mar 2022.

The women were not too eager to fight. That made sense. Seriously, who would. But these guys didn't seem to have gotten the memo. For them it was a fight no matter what.

Looked for an opening with the reaper figure.

That was a mistake. He underestimated the bear. Which came charging at him and tore him a new trachea, conveniently located between his ribs. Well, it would be scar to remember. But, dammit!, it stung.

"Hey! Hey! Not nice, little bear."

Shadow lifted his hands, fists closed. His arms became enveloped in inky darkness, and he struck a pretty simple jab at the bear.

"Here, beary, beary... "

Let's see how this bear likes to have his energy drained.


OOC: Hitting with Shadow's Essence. Trying to get him to settle down.

14:45, Today: Shadow rolled 27 using 1d20+10 ((17)).

That's gotta be a hit. Affliction 10 [Vulnerable/Dazed - Defenseless/Stunned] - Dodge/Fortitude

Fathom is continuing to run away from the conflict.   There were noises. Scary!  That was crazy!  And they attacked her.  Without provocation!

She didn't owe anything to the others there.  She didn't know any of them.  And, hell, one of them turned into fire!

Who does that?

No.  Don't stop.  Don't think.  Just run!   Put it behind you.


--

Start of third round. Condition: Normal
Free Action: rolled 19 using 1d20+12:  Athletics(+12) vs DC15 to run faster
Move action: run! (60ft)
Standard Action: run! (60ft)

Fathom moves at Base Speed +1.  She's also using her standard action to run.   So... She puts 120 more feet between her and the center of the fight.   She should be somewhere about 150 feet away by now.

She's not stopping until she's out of the park, where Suki will pick her up in Suki's car, and they will  get the hell out of there!  Yeah, I know, not very heroic of her. 

GM: How far is the rendezvous?

The battle was turning against the assailants, Reaper was still blinded from Phoenix’s blast and while Medved managed to score a hit on Shadow the powers of his target was weakening him.

Ignoring the battle, Fathom was running toward the edge of the park she could see in the distance.

[OOC: Shadow, you score a hit and Medved had a 17 on his toughness check, so first degree of affliction: Vulnerable and Dazed.
Fathom, 50 feet before the edge of the park.
Since Reaper is blinded he will not do anything.
Following: Phoenix, Anathema, Psyche Medved.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:56, Mon 28 Mar 2022.

Star Phoenix lowered his flight to a 25'ft altitude and paused...

"Alright, are we done with this foolishness now?  Can we talk?  I did not come here for violence or to harm or threaten anyone.  So big bear and scythe bearer.. can we just talk now?  Why attack us..?!? We were threatening no one... or did you also receive a anonymous invite to come here and you thought were were waiting in ambush?  You loose nothing from just conversation, I'm not angry at you an will just as likely leave as continue a pointless fight where innocent bystanders could be hurt. So please talk to us...!  How did you two meet?"

Actions -
Skill: Persuasion - Diplomacy to try to deescalate the fight to dialogue
Move action: Change altitude 25'ft, Shift Defensive Attack to full defense Dodge [+5 {23}]
06:29, Today: Star Phoenix rolled 17 using 1d20+4.  Star Phoenix - Persuasion [+4 '+6 if attracted to males']. – 17
- I'm assuming neither of them find a fiery Attractive Black American male appealing currently.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:26, Thu 31 Mar 2022.

Anathema continues to spectate. These guys and gals seem to have the situation well in hand. Fire boy is trying again to open a dialogue, which she thinks is a good idea. The air around Star Phoenix ripples nearly-imperceptibly as Anna extends her protections over him, ready to punish the bad men if they continue to fight instead of attack.

Anathema extends her Reflective Defense over Star Phoenix.

Psych attempts to probe the bear's mind to assess his reaction to Justy's words. Why is she calling him Justy, anyway?

OOC: Psyche is going to try and Mind Read Medved as well and see if he knows anythign different. On the next round, she'll try to get Reaper to grab Medved (since Reaper can teleport (?) but Medved can't) and pin Medved down so the others can subdue them more easily.

The bear growled when Phoenix descended and tried to defuse the battle. His head turned toward the flying man while keeping Shadow in sight. But the curse inflicted by him was clearly making him a little unsteady.

-You are naïve kid, he said with a tick Slavic accent. We are the ambush. Someone wants to kill you and your merry band. Me, I am just doing business.

While he was talking, he didn’t knew that Psyche was infiltrating his mind. She found that the bear was telling the truth, he was simply paid to kill the people in the park at this time. He didn’t even knew the other person, save that he was paid like him.

Police sirens were starting to sound in the distance.

-Sranje, growled the bear.

[OOC: No attack from him this turn. Psyche you win the Mind Reading with 28 vs 20, two degrees of success.
Following turn: Shadow, Fathom, Reaper.]

I'm going to assume that my action here does not conflict with Shadows.  Since Fathom is booking it out of there as fast as she can, she's just continuing in that vein...

Move action: Run!
Standard Action: Run!

That should be enough to get her to the curb, anyway...   Hopefully Suki's going to be somewhere nearby.

As the police sirens were approaching, the cloaked man, who had recovered from his temporary blindness landed near his companion and raised his scythe without a word. Space distorted and the two attackers vanished from view and every other senses.

The group was left alone in the park, Phoenix and Shadow were the only visible near the wall of water, while Psyche and Anathema were hidden by their powers. Fathom was finally at the edge of the park where Suki was waiting for her in a car.

[OOC: End of the fight. You have the equivalent of 3 turns before the cops arrive.
Next post: 14/04.]

This message was last edited by the GM at 20:33, Mon 11 Apr 2022.

Anathema decides to step back onto the field, emerging from a puddle further away that hadn't been evaporated by the Star Phoenix's heat. She wipes her dirtied, bare feet on the grass before looking at the would-be assassins.

"We do not know what is going on but our statistical analysis suggests this is not going to end well for you two," she informs them. "Do with that information what you will!"

Hopefully they'll perform the cost-benefit analysis themselves. One of them looks like he already has done and didn't like the answer. Good! Maybe they'll surrender.

Psyche quickly sends a psychic message to everyone.

They were paid to kill us. They don't know each other. They didn't know anyone here or have instructions to keep anyone alive either, so I think we're all trustworthy. You can contact me at 555-6463 if you want. I think we should leave before the cops show up.

With that, Psyche hops off the tree and lands on her skateboard before activating her Mental Invisibility Technique once again and rapidly making an exit.

In reply to The Narrator (msg # 54):

{I did not post as I was awaiting my turn ...but Star Phoenix has some 'choice' words for the assailants}

Star Phoenix scowled at the slavik accented bear metahuman, "...Then YOU are the BIGGER FOOL here!  Attacking us for pay was the only thing your pea-sized brains could come up with to do with your amazing abilities?!? You're Morons ~ both of you!  Did  Whoever 'contracted' you to attack us pay you in advance?  Likely Not!  What makes you think that when you go to get 'paid' there will not just be a bomb waiting for you?  And even IF it's supposed to be some 'secret bank account' ~ Your a Double moron.. as your employers clearly know who you are and where you live! Go home to a bomb or a hit team waiting for you!  Did it ever pass through those EMPTY HEADS of yours that the Only reason you were being sent to attack us was in hopes we'd wipe each other out and Save your employers the hardship of doing with conventional forces?  YOU'RE IDIOTS!  They found you.. they Know who you are just like us!!! We are not a 'merry  band', we all just met, we don't know each other either you FOOLS!  You were sent here just so someone else could either see how YOU died or how WE ALL DIED fighting for no damned good reason ~ just for THEIR own private schemes!!  Go away and grow a brain before you end up dead doing stupid crap for the sake of someone else LAUGHING AT YOUR IDIOCY!!!"

When they vanished Star Phoenix shook his head in disgust...

Then he noticed Anathema coalesce out of a reflective surface.  He flew over lowering down to about 5 feet up and then stopped flying and shut off his protective aura both his fiery plasma sheaths dissipated as he drops to the ground without searing the concrete or her to stand before her.  However, but his fiery bird aura remained but was purely a light effect only a slightly warming the air around him like a constant summer breeze.



He smiled and spoke, "Hey.. I noticed your defensive field you used on me Thanks you didn't have to do that, I appreciate the help.  Look I know right now is a crappy way for us to meet and I understand any sentiment you might have to leave quietly.  But clearly whoever set this up know at least how to find us... I doubt the will be their last attempt at.. well whatever it was they sent those idiotic killers after us."

He gestures with his hand like snapping his fingers and light appeared in his hand and coalesced into a flat rectangular shape... like business card? It was made of solidified light that was semi-transparent... and broke many laws of physics with it's mere solid existence!  Neatly typed upon the solidified light construct was a cell-phone number.  Which he handed to her.

Use - ”{Create} Plasma Constructs”: 7 (Bludgeoning, Cosmic, Elemental, Force, Life Force, Light; Range 175/350/700’ft; Volume: 125 cuft., DC 17; Innate [1rk], Movable [+1rk/Lvl], Stationary [1rk]; Tether [+1rk])

"That is a cell number to a burner phone I use.. its turned off most of the time battery out.. but I turn it on everyday 8 times for 2 minutes at 12, 3, 6, and 9, Respectively. If those jerks show up again and you need help or you just want to talk.. call me."

Again he smiles, and closes his eyes briefly and his costume and appearance return to normal like a dissipating mist the fiery bird aura fading out of existence the warmth in the air vanishing with it.

He turns and waves, "Nice to meet you ~ ma'am.. take care."

He then walks away without hurry heading for the edge of the park...

He pauses looking up as he listened to Psyche's mental voice and reflexively nods, thinking 'Cool, thanks.  Perhaps we should met and talk on our own choice in a few days after this has cooled down a bit.. you take care too.'

{GAH! Got ninja'd by Psyche she posted before mine was done.}

BY the time she'd made it to the edge of the park, Sarah was nearly frantic.  None of what happened made any sense.   Some stalker type found out who she was--already--and he was trying to kill her?  Them.  All of them?  She regretted having run away so quickly, but she wasn't going to be any help for a guy who turns into living fire.    It wasn't like they needed her there.

Sarah looked up and down the road, hoping that Sukanna was going to pull up and get her the hell out of there.  She pulled out her cell-phone and opened up the app that had been recording the entire time...

"So, yeah." She said, trying to marshal her voice. So... now there are people trying to kill me?  I don't know.  One guy with a scythe.  The other like a big bear...   I mean, I hadn't told my family yet.  Now, I think the only way to be safe is to blow this shit wide open. "

Of course, they'd have to edit the audio to give the others a choice about their personal identities.  Coming out had to be their choice, not hers.  But at least her course was clear.  She'd set up a press conference in the next couple of days...

So much for dreams of a second Olympics. Whatever followed next, she'd have to work her ass off.  She wasn't going to be caught unaware like that again...

With their two aggressors vanishing, the group was left alone with the cops coming their way. Not wanting to be involved with law enforcement, the five of them quickly evacuated the park, each going in a different direction.

One hour later, every TV programs were cancelled for a presidential allocution. The first two minutes were a classic politician speech where the President reminded of everyone the value of the United States and the need to sticks together in face of adversity. But the rest was of a particular interest for anyone who developed powers in the last days.

-If we need to be reminded of that is because we will face difficult time, said the President. You all heard of rumors talking about people with incredible powers, something we all thought to be confined to the realm of fiction. But I can tell you today that these rumors have some truth in them. In the recent days, super-powered individuals have appeared all over the globe, this includes in this country. From the testimony of several of them and our own investigation, we are confident that these people were and are humans who lived along side us until the last days where they began to manifest powers for still unknow reasons, even for them.

He paused to let his word sink in the mind of everyone, before continuing.

-This represents a crisis we never planned for. Already, several incidents involving superpowered individuals, that were dubbed Async by some scientists, have showed beyond doubt that some of them will use their powers for criminal purposes. But others showed a willingness to help others and use their powers selflessly. And this represents an opportunity.

A new pause

-I declare the creation of an agency called Async Response Team, or ART, to coordinate our response to the situation. I call anyone gifted with superpowers to seek out governmental officials, the more of you who help, the more this crisis could be controlled. For now, and until further development, any crimes committed by Asyncs will be judged as such, this includes of course thief, assault, manslaughter, and any forms of coercion on others. I urge you to respect the laws in places for the safety of everyone and the stability of our entire world. For anyone else, I call for patience and prudence, heated reactions will not help anyone, and we must keep our heads clear. I am fully convinced that with the help of citizen and the grace of God we will emerge even stronger. Thank you.

As soon as the speech ended, commentators of every channel, with the help of ‘expert’, began immediately analyzing the allocution and the consequences of it. The reception varied wildly between scientists trying to explain the cause of the powers, political experts guessing the structure and duties of the ART or even religious figures proclaiming the end of time. But one thing was certain, the world was changing.

[OOC: I let you react to the speech and decide what you want to do for now. Will you try to kept low profil, search for your agressors, contact the governement? It's up to you.
Next post: 17/04.]

After reaching home, Naomi finds herself so drained from the day's events that she just curls up on the sofa and faces into the back of the seat. The mind-voices she heard echo in her head, as well as the more physical voices of the others who were caught in the ambush with her. Justy, so idealistic it hurts. Eiffel 65, obviously sensitive about her appearance. Metal woman, obviously not. That weird... Shadow guy? And then, the ambush from the other two, that edgy scythe guy, that bear guy... And the knowledge that they were paid by someone.

It all swirls together and she flees from it into the darkness of sleep. The next thing she knows, the lights in the living room are on and she hears a familiar voice complaining about power bills, gas prices, her... but that last is tinged with a hint of affection, and concern.

Yeah, I could just chase her out, but I've come this far already so what's a month or two more? Not like I'm low on money anyway, and if paying for shit is this expensive already, how much worse is it going to be if I throw her out on the street? Fine then, it's just an extra room, not like she's bringing guys home every night or anything. World's a messed up place and I should probably do a little to make it better.

David jumps a little when he feels something close around his neck, but he instantly relaxes as Naomi pulls him into a strange perpendicular hug.

"What did you even do anyway?" he asks. "You only went out for a bit but you're all tired out."

Naomi can tell David's not really worried about her. Concerned yes, but he trusts her to take care of herself. After all, she came back, right?

"Stuff," she says.

"Want to talk about it?"

Naomi doesn't reply right away. Should she tell him all about her powers and the conflict surrounding them? Or would it just worry him needlessly? She knows David is the reclusive sort and knows how to keep his mouth shut when asked to, but maybe this is one secret she can't burden him with. You know, along with her being a triad princess and all. She suddenly feels tired all over again.

She glances at the TV screen, which is on and playing something from David's computer. It seems he's watching a music video from a game, starring a one-eyed Yakuza singing a weird idol song while dressed up as some 80s performer. Man, this is some weird stuff, she chuckles, and then she hugs him tighter. He makes no attempt to free himself.

"Can you put on the local news? There's something I want to check out," she says.

"Hm? Sure." David pauses the video and changes to the local news stream. As expected, the local news is all over the disturbance in the park and the news camera is showing the tree she was hanging from, as well as the bench and the lake she remembers.

And then, it is interrupted by the President's announcement. She senses David going "what is this bullshit" in his head before falling silent. Both of them watch the broadcast without saying anything else until it's over.

Naomi withdraws inside herself, wondering what she should do next. Should she register for this task force thing? What about the others? Should she tell anyone, like David, for instance?

"Man, flying would be handy. That, and X-ray vision. In fact, pretty much the entire flying brick powerset would help a lot," David muses.

"Say what?" Naomi asks.

"I mean, the President's going on and on about superpowers and stuff. And now he's making a call for people to join him. That tells me a few things. For instance, he's known about superpowers for a long time now, but things have gone out of control recently. That's why he's making this appeal, see. "

"I don't get it," Naomi replies.

"Consider, the government wants to keep itself in power. That means it wants to keep all the power under its control. In the case of superpowers, they either recruit everyone with superpowers and put them under government supervision, or they eliminate them. In this case, it seems to me like there are too many people with superpowers running around, which is why the government is launching this program. If there are too many to secretly recruit or bump off, then make it open, and make everyone who doesn't cooperate the enemy. They say, "joining us is good, staying independent is evil", and everyone just goes along with it, because most people would be frightened by and jealous of someone close to them suddenly developing superpowers. Either you have concerned relatives urging this new powered guy to turn himself in where he can be labelled, monitored and controlled, possibly used as supercops, or you have people snitching on them, at which point the cops and possibly the supercops get involved."

"You sound like you know a lot about this stuff," Naomi says.

"Hardly. This is my first time hearing about this too. I'm just saying, that's one way a government would play it if they learned about superbeings popping up willy-nilly. Appeal to the people's fear of the unknown and the desire for stability and peace. It also got me thinking about what powers would be nice. I like flight. Flying is fun. Would also help me work inside false ceilings and searching for hidden routers and all that."

"But you'd have to register if you wanted to be a legal superhero, right? Would you?"

"Hmm. Well, it depends on a couple of things. Some people might have easily hidden powers. Others might have super obvious ones. And then there's the risk of being spotted and turned in by some busybody or clueless person. Like, if I were living alone, I wouldn't bother. But with you around..."

David turns to Naomi. There's a tender look in his eyes.

"I'd tell you about it first. And then we could decide together."

She knows he means it too.

"I don't have superpowers though, so it's just idle speculation. Anyway, time to make dinner. I bought a big batch of half-price sliced beef just now and it just so happens that there's a recipe for Yoshinoya beef bowls I want to try out."

David carefully untangles himself from Naomi and then heads to the kitchen, leaving her alone with her thoughts on the couch.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:37, Fri 15 Apr 2022.

Justin walked away form the arriving police cruisers and at the very edge of the park watched with the rest of the rubber necking inevitable crowd.  He was just mostly interested in who else showed up looking for any who might be detectives or FBI.  Also he was interested in finding out if anyone had been injured or ambulance medics called in.  He took out his cell phone and took pictures of anyone that stood out and any pictures he could get of the detectives or 'men-in-suits' that showed up... if any.

He only stayed an hour or so then walked to the parking lot of the Grocery store some 4 blocks away to return to his motorcycle and drive home.

He had much to ponder.

Dinner, a movie or two... then the news.

He watched the President's Address and considered just how bad an on the surface progressive and accepting policy could go so badly or be terribly abused.  Questions needed answering in the public about how this 'policy' would be implemented and enforced.  How much of the superbeing's private lives would be infiltrated how would they be monitored?  Such information could be used to try coerce them to doing all manner of despicable Human Trafficking.

They needed to know these answers before any super powered beings stepped forward to reveal themselves for any scrutiny.

But how could the Government be forced to voice those policies in open forum for the world to know of its policies and hold them in the public eye to be accountable for such?

He pondered again.. someone must confront them openly to force them to make public declaration of their intentions.

Someone with the power to if not make them reveal the scope of their policies at least be able to evade their control.

He was not sure he wanted this task, but he did have power.  But he needed a back up plan as well assuming things went worse case ~ and he needed someone to bounce his options off.

So, he left home went for a walks several blocks away before powering up in some isolated ally.

Star Phoenix wrapped his phone in solid light to protect it from his fiery aura before taking flight... he did not see the need to go as fast as he could but he kept the trip to about 30 minutes regardless of how many Mach velocity was required at an altitude no higher then 1,000 feet.  Certainly the fiery phoenix blazing across the sky was seen for miles but with his speed he doubted any could follow or track him he'd not need to be there longer then 10 to 15 minutes he was certain.

He felt it prudent to make contact from a distant location... another location 250 miles away seemed prudent.  He followed his GPS and found a Interstate Rest stop the appropriate distance away and landed some half mile away, and powered down to walk to the stop.  Finding a payphone there... he called the voice in his head had offered...

555-6463 - +"This is Star Phoenix, I saw the President's Speech.  Is now a good time to talk?"+

The sound of cutting onions comes from the kitchen as Naomi covers her face with her arm. Tell him, don't tell him, join, don't join... And then her cell phone rings.

She looks at the number and doesn't recognize it. She's about to just hit "decline" (too many phone scams these days) when she remembers that she gave it out just now. With a sigh, she answers the phone, and as she expects, it's Justy.

"Hey, uh, Justy. Yeah, I can talk. Sounds like they want us to join or else, huh?"

Justin turns in the phone booth just to survey his surroundings as he keeps his voice down in answer.

"Yeah that's this issue here...we don't know.  We don't know just what joining up would entail, how much of our private lives would be monitored.  It could be great and all but it more than likely even if it was initially good could be turned into something REALLY BAD.  But we don't know.  I think we need to find out and we need to make the 'Government' publicly declare Exactly what it would entail.. no behind closed doors crap.. full transparency."

"I... have an idea to just confront them, fly to DC hover outside the White House and ask for details... PUBLIC Details and demand/request they state publicly just what their 'program' would involve... for all America and the World to see!  Make it SO public that if they start to backslide everyone knows and the court of public opinion hopefully can be kept on 'our' side.  I think this is the best possible defense.  Also we should ponder suggesting we Supers, with some government supervision, police ourselves.. cause for every two like perhaps you and me who want to use our powers responsibly there are I'm sure two more like Reaper and Slavic Bear.  And honestly, how can any Normal cop contend with a Super without using lethal force?  We would be ideal for making sure other Supers don't abuse or take advantage of Normals.  And I mean Supers like us trained in law enforcement... not necessarily you and I specifically."

"I think, I'm ideal to do this cause if things turn bad... I can fly at mach speeds, fly through space faster than light and regenerate from almost any injury even death... so good luck trying to 'silence me' or hurt me."

"But I don't want to go off half-cocked. Do you have a better idea or serious reservations about me risking myself?  I just think someone needs to force them to make this ALL Very public.  We don't want a war between Supers and Normals, and this could turn REAL Ugly!"
This message was last edited by the player at 02:37, Sat 16 Apr 2022.

Non-linear, so sorry.   But it wouldn't make sense for this to come together that same night...

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank-you for coming on such short notice."  Joanna Zeiger, head coach of the US Olympic swim team  addressed the small room of reporters and journalists. The zoom call would be streamed to many news outlets, but Sarah had insisted that there needed to be people physically present for their announcement to carry any weight.

"Two nights ago, swimmer Sarah Swath underwent a radical--even life-changing-- experience that has profoundly altered her life outlook and her relationship with the Olympic games and the sport she has dedicated her life to.  It is my duty to announce that distance swimmer Sarah Swath will no longer be considered for competition in the Olympic games."

They'd convened the press conference in one of the small conference rooms at the downtown Marriott.  It had allowed Sarah to stay removed from Zeiger and her handling of the press until it was time to take center-stage.  But Sarah was nervous.  She'd dealt with the press before, been both lauded and raked over the coals for her performances.  But that was about what she had done, not who she was.

"I'm going to ask you to remain seated and remain calm." Zeiger spoke in a stern tone, "This is a difficult time for Sarah.  We'll take questions after she's issued her statement."  And that's when Sarah entered the room.

The reporters went silent.

Sarah wore black athletic pants and a white tank-top under a simple white cotton cardigan-style hoodie.  She'd pulled her hair back from her face, the way she'd always done it, but felt that her new cheekbones were a little too pronounced, her new nose a little too severe.  So, she wore her hair down, for a change. Yeah, like anybody would notice the difference in hair-style.

Sarah could feel all eyes on her.  A sort of stunned hesitance.  Someone near the back muttered a stifled laugh, then, as if that were the permission they'd been waiting for, the press erupted in a clamor of noise. Strobe after strobe went off, and the small group of reporters crowded forward.  Thankfully Zeiger and a couple of the hotel security people stepped in between them.

"Hello."  Sarah said, leaning into Zeiger's microphone.  At least her voice was still the same. "You heard the presidential address.   I... I woke up like this.  There was no warning, no illness.  It appears that my affinity with water has grown beyond anything I could ever have imagined.  And out of respect for the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic Team, I am withdrawing my involvement, both as a spokes-person and an athlete.  My resignation has already been accepted by Mr Bach.

"Last night, I was attacked in public, by two people who appeared to have learned of my change--despite my having taken precautions to isolate myself.  Their actions and demeanor left no doubt in my mind that they wished me and others harm.  It is for that reasons that I will be contacting the Asynch Response Team program.   Any threat to our constitutionally-protected freedoms should be identified and addressed.  It is my hope that, as Fathom, I will continue to stand for empathy, communication and cooperation.

Joanna stepped forward and placed a hand on Sarah's shoulder.  Hey, it was progress.  Three hours ago, Joanna couldn't even look at her. "We'll take questions now..."

And then it got weird...

Naomi sighs. She'd figured Justy for a (literal) hothead, but to actually go up and call out the entire government right after an announcement like that?

She closes her eyes and shakes her head, then continues speaking.

"I think confronting the White House in public by yourself would be a very bad idea. Among other things, they could simply call you one of the Asyncs they were talking about and then everyone would go after you. Maybe try contacting the others? Or making yourself really visible so others see you, and possibly want to talk to you? I don't think you're the only one who feels this way too. Plus, the President's pretty much done the introduction for you - you can just introduce yourself as your friendly neighborhood Phoenixman and help people out. That way you'll at least have a supportive community to help you out - don't underestimate that."
This message was last edited by the player at 09:03, Sat 16 Apr 2022.

Naomi glances over to the dining tabel and sees that David is bringing a big, steaming pot out of the kitchen. The electric rice cooker is waiting on the table, the READY light glowing orange.

"Anyway, I'm having dinner now, so I'll talk to you later. Don't be rash, okay?"

And with that, she hangs up before heading over to the table.

"Wow, smells great," she smiles as David lays the pot of sliced beef and broth on the table. However, her smile is just a mask as she reads his mind - and to her surprise she finds the answer to her queries waiting there, as though he were the mind-reader instead of her.

On the off-chance you ARE psychic, then you probably know how I feel about you... as well as the, uh, stuff I try not to mention. Sorry, I'm trying to not be a creep here. Anyway, I don't want this power thing to change the comfy life we have, though I have the feeling it will anyway. Just know that I'm always on your side, no matter what.

She looks up to meet David's eyes.

Wait, you really are telepathic?

Yup.

Since when?

Since a few days ago, I guess. When that comet flew past.

Wow. Mind telling me about it?

He's already scooped a bowl of beef and rice for her. Naomi takes advantage of the fact that she doesn't need to use her mouth for mental communication to eat it as she telepathically narrates the events at the park to him, though she doesn't go into detail about Justy and the others. It takes a while for David to get used to the mental link, but eventually they're having a lively conversation entirely within their own heads, and then Naomi decides to go one step further and demonstrate her telekinesis too.

Whoa. That's pretty damn impressive too.

Why do I have the feeling you're more in awe of the telepathy than the telekinesis part?

Oh, don't get me wrong, being able to kill a yak from 200 feet away with mind bullets is pretty neat, but I could do the same thing with a gun, and as Thulsa Doom says, "what is steel compared to the hand that wields it?" That's where your real power lies, if you ask me. Mind control stuff is so horrifically overpowered in games and so on that they have to put in all sorts of limits to it and people who are flat out immune to it just to make sure the other powers have a level playing field. I can tell you right now that the people who'll only be wary of someone who can toss a truck with their mind or set a city block on fire will be downright terrified of someone who can play with their thoughts like putty.

Wow. You make me sound like some kind of supervillain.

Well, you could be one if you wanted. Easily. The media already has billions of people agreeing with them with nothing more than half-baked lies. You don't even have to bother with that. Of course, I'd rather you not be one. While I'm on your side regardless, I'd feel better knowing that you were one of the good guys.

And who IS a good guy to you, anyway? Because you seemed pretty dismissive about that ART thing on the news just now.

I'm a cynic, I admit, but I think the stated intentions which the ART was founded with are noble enough. Working together with like-minded individuals to protect innocents and bystanders from disaster and malicious superpowered beings is a worthy cause. People might try to twist it or make it into something it isn't, but that's their fault, not yours. It's also why I said I'm always on your side. If you know what you're getting into and join them for the purposes of doing the right thing, then I have no reason not to support you. Spiderman needs his Mary Jane and all that.

He winks, and she giggles.

Kind of fat for a Mary Jane, don't you think?

Hey, that way your version of the Green Goblin won't be able to get away so quickly when he tries to kidnap me. And besides, I really am trying to lose weight.

Naomi's only reply is the bowl in front of him, which they both know has been refilled three times already.

I said I'm trying! Some hero you are, fat-shaming me...

A hero, huh. You think I could be a hero?

Naomi, you can be anything you want to be.

In that case...

Naomi projects an image of herself into David's mind that she found during her brief exploration of his psyche. To that, she adds I'llsee you upstairs once you're done with the dishes.

After he sets what must be the fastest record for washing up in the history of the household, the two of them proceed to have a very enjoyable evening together.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:20, Thu 21 Apr 2022.

Anathema tuts at the Star Phoenix's thanks, holding up a palm and smiling beatifically. "Think nothing of it," she says serenely. "I wanted to help." After all, it seemed like fun.

She commits all the numbers she is being given from all angles to her flawless (if alarmingly blank) memory, humming tunelessly to herself. "Alrighty, it's been fun! Take care ya'll! Taaaaaaa~!"

And with one more perfunctory shattering, she is in a million pieces and a million places and yet nowhere physical all at once...

---

Anathema goes on a wild ride. She considers, briefly, trying to determine where she came from; all indications suggested that the so-called superhumans appearing all over the world were all once ordinary people. But she dismisses that line of action quickly. Her biology has clearly been radically altered and it was longer possible to perceive her as being anything other than a freak. It didn't matter who or what she once was; what mattered now was that she was a goddess and what lay ahead on that route.

She thinks back. She cannot get that meteor out of her head. It is... important to her, somehow. Acquiring it is her highest priority now. But to do that, she needs followers.

And so, the goddess watches the lost people of this tarnished world as she had been before the little diversion at the park. To those that she deems worthy she reveals herself. Those suffering under a system bowed and broken under a wealthy, amoral few; the anarchists, the disenfranchised, the radicals; those looking to smash the system and make a better, more egalitarian world. She needs a submarine and a salvage ship most of all, and she needs them right now before anyone else gets any ideas to snatch her meteor away.

Anathema sees the government announcement. She hears the discussions. The desperate flailing of the old guard trying to protect itself from a threat to the status quo. She has no doubts that this ARC group will do some good, but shes not trust government thralls. Ultimately they are just but corporate puppets. She will cut their strings someday. As their goddess she owes them that much. But; priorities.

She does her best to move fast, but she knows that others will be doing the same. This salvage mission could benefit from a little muscle in case things goes bad. That Justy man seemed very interested in cosmic matters. He would understand the value of rescuing the meteor.

Anathema seeks out the Star Phoenix. She has his "phone number," but such things give her the willies. Instead she comes to him in a mirror when she is least expected, as she is wont to do, appearing behind him in mirrorspace rather than the physical one.

"Hi!" she greets him. "Wanna to go on a holy quest?"

It was after the press conference, with all it's inane questions, that Sarah finally retired to Sukanna's place.

She couldn't go back home quite yet.   Now that she'd gone public, there were people waiting for her outside her place.  Fans possibly.  More likely, reporters and journalists.  Even possibly, whoever had tried to ambush her in the park.

Living in Sukanna''s family's guest-house wasn't exactly terrible.  But it wouldn't be for long. Sarah had more than enough wealth.  She just... well, things had changed for her so much in the span of a couple of days.  She appreciated Suki's support and generosity, but also worried that she might be putting her friend in the crosshairs, too.

Dithering about, an making tea, Sarah sighed and leaned back on the couch.  She'd been putting off this part, the part where she actually did the thing where she talked to someone else about what happened.

It was late.  Probably too late.  And she was half cut on a fifth of Bushmills.  Courage for the cowards.  But the girl had given Sarah her number.  And Sarah didn't know if the girl had even survived the thing in the park... or whether she was strapped down on some table somewhere being operated on to see what makes her tick...

She dialed, and though she wasn't quite aware of it, she held her breath...

Tag to Psyche...    I figure it's late.  So, possibly after your fun-sexy-times?  Or the next night?  I'm not clear, but I don't think it matters.

Naomi's cell phone rings and she imperiously holds up her hand to summon it to her from the next room over... only to her a quiet thud as it clips the doorframe on its way to her, leading to a brief burst of panic as she fusses over the device while David chuckles to himself, having witnessed the whole thing.

Fortunately it's made of fairly sturdy stuff, and as she picks up, David quietly excuses himself to give her some privacy.

"Hello?" she ventures. She's not quite sure who this is - there were four other people and Justy had called her from a payphone, so the fact that this number was different didn't exactly rule him out either.

In reply to Psyche (msg # 67):

He chuckles, "I think 'confront' is too strong a word for what I had in mind, I'm not talking about busting into the White House or threatening anyone.  Just going to DC and right where everyone one who is a law-abiding tourist can legally be... powering up and patiently waiting for the many press folks to come and start asking questions ~ to start the dialogue of questioning openly exactly what the Presidents ART plan has as specific policies.  However, I do see you point of view people react many times with fear and reactionary actions to the unknown or new.  I like the idea of first building up some 'clout' with public good deeds.  I some ideas on how to do that.  I'll keep in tough thanks for the Advice ~ er 'Saturn Girl'!"

{OOC: Tut-tut, Psyche...bad form posting back to back posts not allowing replies! :) }

Justy walks back about a half-a mile from the rest stop then powers back up again and flies he way back home but not directly or immediately as he begins to plan how he will start his 'good deeds'... he was pondering if he should try to hide his identity or just not bother... as what he had planned going to various hospitals around the world healing the sick and raising the recently deceased... that would certainly be a provocative and hopefully seen as good.  He'd have to be careful how he chose to approach as his flight could cause unintentional fires... plus he needed to consider the language barrier in non-English speaking nations.

He was considering lowering his target goals by initially sticking to the US for ease at first before expanding so people would know when they see him Exactly what he was there for and language might not be such an issue... when his Solid Plasma Encased - wrist-watch {so encased to keep it from being slagged by his fiery aura in flight} went off with its alarm at 9PM.

He paused and found a secluded place to land, pulled out his solid-plasma encased 'burner-cell phone' and he turned it on at the scheduled time to find he'd received no messages.  He turned it off and was about to put it away when he noticed the reflection in the surface changed and spoke to him!!

It was the ... 'Naked Circuitry Girl' {Anathema} who tried to help.

He smiled, "That's a VERY cool trick, is there a limit on how far away you can be to do that? Wait before we go any further.. What should I call you? You know I'm Star Phoenix.. but what name do you wish to be known by?"

He pondered her question, wondering if she was being just eccentric or literal. In either way his curiosity was peaked so he replied, "Sure! Never been on one before ~ I ...do consider myself a man of faith but I've never done a pilgrimage to any Holy site or locale Patroned by any existing Religious organizations. I've always believed Holy to mean keeping to ones worship of God without hypocrisy to one's professed beliefs. Or maybe that's a better definition of the words 'Sacred'?  But if you would like my help seeking a spiritual goal I'm willing to listen and help where I can. Where would you like to meet?"

Star Phoenix remembered that clothing seemed optional to her... but he did not want to seem judgemental or make her feel uncomfortable, so he made up his mind to just focus on her eyes.  He had no idea how her powers had manifested that might have made her feel the USA norms of clothing no longer applied to her and who was he to judge her choice as bad?  Though there were laws of public indecency ~ whatever that means!  So he'd just try not to be startled with however she decided to appear... and be polite.

She wasn't hard on the eyes... but he did not wish to be rude by gawking at her either.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:06, Fri 22 Apr 2022.

"Hello?" [Naomi] ventures. She's not quite sure who this is...

The voice was the same, Sarah thought.  She felt a wave of relief.  At least this girl, Psyche, had survived.  Sarah could put the visions of her being tortured to rest.

"I was afraid to call."  She said.  She didn't say her name, didn't think to.  "The news all focused on the pyrotechnics of the phoenix-guy."

She took a moment, then let out a solid breath.   "So... it's Sarah Swath.  I'm sorry to call so late.  But you were the only one there who seemed kinda half-way normal, you know?  And I don't know what happened, after.  Can you tell me?"  She didn't add After I ran.  She didn't feel she needed to.

She wasn't embarrassed or ashamed for her instinct for self-preservation.  Nobody was calling on her to be a hero.  yet.   But if she joined this government thing, they would be looking to her for just that.  No pressure.


And, hey Star! Psyche's post wasn't disallowing anyone from responding.   She gave it five days!  Hardly bad form, that.

"Sarah Swath..."

Naomi briefly considers the list of people who were present. She's definitely not Justy. Probably not the Shadow guy, who already said he was Shadow. That left the two girls, one of whom was hanging around and protecting the others, and... Ah yes, Eiffel 65.

"...You must be the girl in the hoodie, right? Well, the other girl in the hoodie. Well, my name's Naomi, for what it's worth. Anyway, Justy leapt to our defence against Mr. Bear and Edgelord McScythedude. The others were backing him up. I decided to see what I could learn about them, and it turns out that they were mercenaries who were paid to kill us, they didn't seem to have instructions to spare anyone in the group - so I think we should be trustworthy - and they didn't know each other all that well either. After that, I gave everyone else my phone number so we could contact each other on our own terms. You're the second to call, as it turns out. Justy was the first, shortly after the President gave his statement, and he was talking about flying up to the White House to demand accountability and all that... I tried to persuade him not to do something which could be mistaken for an air raid of the nation's capital, but I don't know how effective it was..."

Psyche's voice trails off, and then she continues.

"Are you alright? I lost sight of you after that skirmish in the park..."

Anathema's image in the smooth plastic grins back at him. "Anathema... but that's so stuffy and formal. You can call me Anna! It's delightfully palindromic~!" She sing-songs that last sentence, giggling happily. "I can occupy a space a couple kilometers in diameter, but I feel like I can push it much further in time! So exciting!"

The image of Anna looks left and right, searching for a larger reflective surface to step out from. "There is a lake about half a mile south of you. Er... south? Southeast? It's a big puddle and you can fly, you can figure it out, haha~!" She sticks a finger out of the screen and waggles it at him, but can't squeeze any more of her body out of such a small window. "See you in the meat soon! Ta~!" She walks offscreen, and soon Justin's own face fades back in.

"Are you alright? I lost sight of you after that skirmish in the park..."

"I don't know.  I don't think I'm handling this well at all." Sarah said.  "I... I left the Olympic team.  One of my endorsements withdrew.  One's in formal review.  Not sure about the others.  And now this government thing.  After twelve years, I knew it had to end... but this isn't how I envisioned it.   Shut out and blue--literally.

"I've got friends.  family, even.  If some freak is already trying to kill us, then what's the right action?  It always feels like there's a choice between the right thing and the prudent thing.

What are you going to do? 

For a moment, Naomi is glad that she's nowhere near Fathom, because she has the reflexive urge to try and read her to see what's going on, and the last time she actively did that to Fathom, she got that snarly response. What was up with that, anyway?

So she forces herself to think and focus, work with what she already knows - you can't just go around raiding people's surface thoughts whenever you're stuck! - and puts two and two together. Olympic-class athlete. Abandoned by sponsors. Government. Shut out. She must be feeling pretty high and dry now, especially after she ran away from the one group of people who might have been accepting to her. Well, Naomi understands why she might feel that way, but it's not like her opinion is the same as everyone else's.

In other words, Miss Blue must be feeling really lonely right now and Naomi - having been in that situation not just a few weeks ago - is uninclined to leave things as they are.

"Alright, so... I take it you heard the President's speech just now, saying that he's calling on all powered individuals to join that ART thing. In your case, at least, I think it's a great opportunity. The President just told the nation that people like us aren't bad people, which ought to go a long way toward making us more accepted and welcome."

Deep breath. Then, she continues.

"I'm afraid I don't follow sports so closely so I'm not aware of the finer details of being an athlete, but I know being on the Olympic team means you're world-class and something to be rightfully proud of, so having that taken away from you by something you had no control over sucks and I'm really sorry it happened."

A pause. This part might come off as patronizing, but it really needs to be said.

"However, that doesn't have to be the end of it. I'm pretty sure there are other athletes who've been empowered like you, and if having your powers puts you in a class of your own, then maybe the people in charge should organize one? Like, the enhanced athletes Olympics or something. People change, and so does the world. And you could be on the forefront of that change. I'm sure pros and amateurs don't compete in the same leagues, so maybe they just have to add another league. And you could be part of that. I'm still not sure what you can do, but even with your powers, you're still the same world-class athlete; and if you did it before with hard work and determination, I'm pretty sure you can do it again."

Naomi winces. Hopefully she didn't come off as too naggy there.

"Um. Anyway. For security, I think it might be best if you joined that ART thing, made yourself as public as possible. I mean, you're an Olympic athlete, that kind of makes you a national symbol anyway. It would be in the government's interests to protect such a symbol. Those guys who attacked us were mercenaries, and they probably won't take jobs which are too risky, like say, attacking someone with the equivalent of the Secret Service or the FBI keeping an eye on them 24/7. I'm personally considering joining myself for similar reasons. Like, if they're forcing us to go on the defensive, might as well hole up in a fortress rather than on open ground, you know?"

As she says this, she heads downstairs to the kitchen and telekinetically pours herself a glass of water from the kettle before taking a drink.

"Sorry for monologuing at you. I just want you to know that you can talk to me if it bothers you."

And Justy too, she thinks, apologizing mentally to the lad for hanging up on him so abruptly.

In reply to Anathema (msg # 75):

Star Phoenix smiled, "It is nice to meet you Anathema / Anna, I'm Star Phoenix / Justin... my friends call me 'Justy'."

He listened to her and got a curious expression on his face, "...you can use ANY reflective surface?"

Gesturing he creates a solid plasma construct of a floating disc paper thin but 6feet in diameter tweaking the construct to possess a very mirror quality reflective surface in the visible light portion of the EM spectrum.


Action: Standard - Use Create Power
”Solid Plasma Constructs {Create}”: 6 (Alternate; Bludgeoning, Cosmic, Elemental, Force, Heat, Light, Quantum Forces, Radiant, Radiation; Range 150/300/600’ft; Volume: 60 cuft., DC 16; Innate [1rk], Movable [+1rk/Lvl], Stationary [1rk]; Tether [+1rk])

"Can you sense the reflective Disc, I just created?"

Anna cocks her head and winces a little. "Sense... sort of? It is like looking into a light bulb." The object that Justy created is radiating too much of its own light and energy which is dominating any reflections it might otherwise have had; it felt like stepping through it would be like detouring through the surface of the Sun and that did not seem altogether pleasant.

He chuckled, "Interesting!?!  Ok, sorry... I'm on my way!", with a thought he dismissed the construct...

Star Phoenix powered up forming his costume... which also made him wonder at the physics of his powers... perhaps his 'costume' was also solidified plasma?

Taking flight it was only a few seconds of flight to the lake his fiery phoenix aura bright in the sky as he came to hover over the lake's surface to hover at the body of water's center-most spot.

There he hovered about 5 feet above its surface causing steam to slowly rise from its surface from the heatwash of his fiery flight aura.

Extending his will he created another disc 1 inch thick and 10'ft wide of solid plasma some 2 feet above the watery surface where he landed to stand atop the platform as he dismissed his flight aura the fiery effect vanishing allowing Anathema / Anna a place to stand when she arrived where he would not be burning her.  Star Phoenix looked into the lake an waited for Anathema to appear...

The lake stopped steaming...

To any on the shore watching, a fiery phoenix had swooped down upon the surface of the lake which suddenly stopped being made of flames but only light out of which a man coalesced into view standing upon a suddenly appearing circular 'plate' of yellow "glass" floating motionless above the surface of the lake. The man was at the center of the bird of light clearly emitting from the man standing there.

In short like nothing they'd ever seen before!
This message was last edited by the player at 13:26, Sat 23 Apr 2022.

In reply to Psyche (msg # 77):

Sarah let the silence draw on far longer than she probably should have.  Naomi's words resonated well, and Sarah didn't think that the other girl was working an angle or, for that matter, even had a direct agenda that involved her.  Paranoia doesn't need to be all-encompassing.

"No, it's okay."  she said after a while.  "I just... "  Sarah trailed off, mulling it over. "That is a really good idea.  A Asynchronous competition league.  Or something."

"I got into swimming because it allowed me to work out my aggression and it gave me a bubble of solitude, you know?  A social shield against all the demands, the idiotic squabbles and utterly mundane minutia that crowds out real progress, real development.  I forget sometimes, that no-one ever really blazed a trail alone."

"I'm meeting with the reps." Sarah said.  "Don't know when yet.  But I've got to confirm that I've still got my lawyers on retainer."

She could feel the tension ease up as a new direction opened up to her, allowing her to focus on someone other than herself for a change.  "So... what about you?  What do you want, out of all this?"

"It sounds like swimming is really important to you," Naomi nods. She's actually a little envious; she's never really had anything to devote herself to like that. I guess that's why she's an Olympic athlete and I work part time in a maid cafe, she thinks.

"As for what I want out of this... Well, as you can imagine my world was flipped upside down the moment these powers showed themselves. I guess I'm just doing what most people would do when the rug gets pulled out from under them - trying to find my feet. On the whole though, I think it's been a good thing; I just need to get used to it, establish a new normal, that sort of thing. That said, the new normal might involve joining the ART, and who knows what THAT will lead to...

In reply to Psyche (msg # 82):


"Yeah.  I can't imagine what it must be like to be able to look inside other people's head.  I can see a lot of people wanting to restrict those of us with other-than-normal, well, baseline abilities.   But that's never going to end well.  You can't ask someone to never use the tools at their disposal...."

"So, maybe those of us who join the ART at the beginning... maybe we get to shape it and actually define what it means and what it does..." That sort of appealed to her.  The idea of universal respect appealed to her.

--
Oh, I get to coin the term "baseline"... a throwback to Aberrant, from way back in the day...

"That's a thought. I wish I could have told Justy that - he's a little rough around the edges, but his heart's in the right place, and he's really big on that righteousness and fairness stuff. Plus, you've seen how powerful he is. I think that if he could set an example for the rest of the ART, maybe it could turn out to be a pretty good organization after all."

Naomi nods to herself.

"It's sounding better the more I think about it. I still think I want to sleep on the decision, but I'm kind of leaning towards it myself."

When the Sun raised again over Penmore city, the inhabitants woke up with the news of the last Presidential allocution. The White House had only added that many things where still being decided, notably the extend of the ART’s jurisdiction, it’s funding or the working status of powered individuals.
One thing was repeated, that any crime committed by Async would be judged like it, but experts agreed that the government would probably go for extreme severity to make examples.

For five Asyncs in the city, the new day was busy. Fathom did her press conference and things did go pretty much well; the journalists were still recovering from the shock of the last new that none of them really tried to push an agenda. She soon received a message from a governmental agent to meet for talking about her potential participation to the ART.

Phoenix toyed with the idea to go directly to the White House but ended putting his plan on hold before Anthema called him with a strange idea.

[OOC: I resumed a little your last post and tried to put them in order.
Next post: 03/05.]

Romancing the Stone

The water below sparkled slightly as the only clue anything out of the ordinary was happening when Anathema’s image coalesced in the water below as if she were in a reflected mirror surface.  Then the mirror reflection exited the surface as she flew up to set foot tentatively upon to solid plasma platform.

Star Phoenix gave the lovely and naked woman of blue glowing circuitry overlaying her skin an appreciative nod then focuses solely upon her eyes... now knowing what to expect.

There like two divinities perched upon the solid disk of light discussed Anathema’s proposal to retrieve the possible source of their superhuman powers which he pondered seriously and nodded in agreement that the source needed to be secured before someone else did for unknown potentially nefarious purposes.

Justy, suggested flying there directly and retrieving it now.. but Anathema suggested the possibility that their powers might not be able to do so, a backup manual mundane retrieval plan might want to be organized just in case.  Star Phoenix found that a prudent course of action and pulled out his regular smart phone and after minutes of Goggle searches and identified several ships with crews with the needed skills and resources to perform such a sea retrieval.  But such would take at least two or more days to arrange.  Making some called for almost a 30 minutes he got a ship and crew in motion to begin preparation for the retrieval.  It was not cheap to arrange but his wealth though strained could accommodate it, as what needs did he really have other than rent at his apartment which was not due for another few weeks?

With the mundane wheels put in motion the two decided to try an immediate attempt with powers to see if the stone could be retrieved with their powers immediately.

Star Phoenix formed a shaped and comfortable fitted acceleration seat out of solid plasma; even the seats were malleable soft and cushiony to sit in for Anathema.  Then he encased the seat in a bubble of solid light with an attached harness from him to fit over his shoulders.  His constructs, currently, do not create moving parts as much as shapeable fields of force. Though he could form shaped limbs or geometric objects that he could animate... being carried by a disembodied fist of yellow solid plasma/light was not very dignified a seat was more appropriate for a journey of indeterminate length.  He opened breathing holds on the rear of the air tight bubble away from his fiery flight aura to allow her to breathe easily.

Anathema seated and contained ~ protected from his fiery flight power and his rapid acceleration Star Phoenix donned the harness and activating his flight his fiery aura licked at the solid plasma construct but did not burn it or the woman seated inside.

The solid plasma disc they had been standing upon was dismissed with a thought and off into the sky Star Phoenix accelerated into the air... out over the city carrying with his Star Powered Strength his burden out over the city heading for the Seaboard coast.

At Anathema’s direction he altered course... heading for the Impact location out at sea off shore.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:22, Sun 01 May 2022.

After a brief introduction Anna had once again donned the gray leather trench coat she had stolen off some well-to-do woman. She didn't like this garment so much; it was heavy and constricting and didn't really cut a proper goddessy figure, but she had nothing better.

She and Justy had what seemed to be a good conversation and a solid foundation for a future working relationship. She knew that the cosmicly-inclined man would understand the importance of retrieving the sacred sky-stone! From there, the conversation turned to practicalities. Anna was worried that their precious mother-rock could function like a kryptonite for their abilities; she isn't exactly sure what kryptonite was, but she had observed many nerds arguing passionately about it as superpowers had started to emerge in the world. Thus, it was she who suggested that a conventional salvage crew be assembled. Anna would have preferred a crew motivated by her divine mission and the purity of their cause, but Justy had dollars, many many dollars, and for reasons she didn't fully understand having a lot of dollars was almost as good as loyalty. What a strange world this was!

Justy still seemed to want to try a superpowered retrieval however, and lamented that the girl with the water powers had hung up on him. "Well of course she did!" she laughed at him. "You're talking about going into a confrontation with the ruling caste without even solidifying your position first! You gotta have a plan, man~!" And collecting the meteorite was the first step to having a plan. It would be nice, Anna supposed, to have a child with actual water powers along for an underwater retrieval. But I have no way of finding her! Justy objected. Anna smiled mysteriously. For her, this would only be a moment.

Finding a blue girl ought to have been fairly easy, and it was. Her face was all over the local news. Anna debated the means by which she should introduce herself, and decided that teleporting directly into her bedroom while she was in the shower was expedient, prudent, and would have no diplomatic consequences whatsoever.

---

"Hi!" Anna cheerily greets Fathom after having unwittingly broken into her bedroom with the both of them in the buff. "Can we talk?"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:35, Tue 03 May 2022.

In reply to Anathema (msg # 87):

Justy shook his head, "I DID have a plan, but she didn't wait long enough to liste~", then it occurred to him Anathema had already vanished... also not waiting to listen.

He pondered perhaps he should just DO and not bother to try to consult or voice his plans as no one really seemed interested in listening just assuming they knew what he was proposing.  He shrugged and lowered the solid plasma seat carriage to the ocean surface and created another Solid plasma disk of semi-transparent light turning his fiery flight off to wait upon for her return knowing she'd just seek him out through the reflections in the watery ocean surface.

In reply to Anathema (msg # 87):

Anna debated the means by which she should introduce herself, and decided that teleporting directly into her bedroom while she was in the shower was expedient, prudent, and would have no diplomatic consequences whatsoever.

OOC: Haha snort gurgle. bwahaha.

Even before the change into this... what was she, a mermaid?  Yeah, sure, sit around on rocks and lure men to their doom with her... nope.  no singing voice worth noting.  Even before the change, there were few things Sarah enjoyed more than a long hot shower.  And Suki's family had a heat on demand set-up which meant that the nearly scalding heat could go on nearly forever, easing the anxiety and tension out of her bones.

What she needed, she thought unbidden, was a chance to really go to town on someone... She'd spent enough time in martial arts to know that she was a quick learner and had some skill.  But she had no clue what her strength was like.  She had a slightly lower center of gravity now and her body just felt wrong.

She pondered this as she emerged from the shower.  She pat-dried her legs and torsos, more out of respect for the Kaur family than anything else.  And she padded into the bedroom.  Silk.  she thought.  The cottons and wools she used to wear all seemed heavier and more scratchy somehow.

As she dried her hair, this voice came out of nowhere, far too cheerful for having snuck into some place where--again noone was supposed to be able to find her!  Jesus, what would it take to be alone?

"Hi!" Anathema cheerily greets Fathom after having unwittingly broken into her bedroom with the both of them in the buff. "Can we talk?"

Sarah nearly jumped out of her skin, and backed up hurriedly, knocking over a standing lamp in the process. She reached out to grab it before it fell too far, immediately over-extending, and knocking a decorative vase teetering on the edge of the lip of the hallway entry.  "Ack!"  she exclaimed, then Nrglgrmph!. as she stuck out a foot to try to forestall the vase spinning off into the hallway to shatter against the wall.  It was a kajillion years old, after all!

Finally, when she had the vase settled and the lamp stabilized by it's cord, she managed to stop, one leg out, one arm over her head, the other wrapped behind her back and perched against the far wall.   She was half wet and resembled nothing more than a figure in a Greek satire.  And she was still naked. "Who the..." she turned to round on the newcomer.  If it's a paparazzi, I'll get my wish! she snarled inwardly.  But it wasn't paparazzi.   It was the circuitry girl.

"Gertrude?" Sarah shook her head and slowly eased the vase back into place.  "You've got three seconds before I unpretzel myself."    Yeah, that sounded confident and threatening.   But she eventually resumed a posture a little less... revealing.  "I'm... I think I'm glad you survived." she said once she'd regained some relative semblance of dignity.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:19, Thu 05 May 2022.

Anathema didn't have the heart to interfere in the spectacularly adorable display unfolding in front of her, although some more calculating part of her gestalt consciousness monitored that vase carefully and was ready to step in if it looked like it was about to meet a grisly fate. Fortunately, its intervention was not required!

"So cuuuute~!" she squeed once more in undignified fashion.

Anathema giggles softly to herself before standing up to her impressive six-foot-two-inches height. "Nope, not Gertrude! Anathema!" She declares, sticking a hand on one hip and making a V with the other which she uses to frame one of her glowing eyes like she thinks she's Sailor Moon. "But you can call me Anna! Or 'Goddess' I suppose, but stuffy formality is ick and ew and stuff."

"Anywhoodles!" she swiftly moves on. "Sunfire birdman and I are planning to retrieve the superpower meteor before any corporate or political interests can get their nasty little claws on it. We sure could use your abilities. And also, whoever hired those two bozos is probably still out there and until we figure out what makes us special it's probably good we stick together. I know you don't like the guy very much -- he is impulsive and monologues a lot -- but I do think he means well, and with a firm yet feminine hand I think we can steer him towards good things! What do you say, my child? Want to join our holy quest for the mighty space rock?" She moves one hand to her sternum and holds out the other, bridal-style, to the other woman.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:57, Fri 06 May 2022.

In reply to Anathema (msg # 90):

"I don't dislike the guy... what was it?  Star Phoenix."  Fathom said. "I don't know him well enough to dislike him."  She crossed the floor to sit on the corner of the bed.

"I do dislike being condescended to.  I'm not some lost little lamb looking for a messiah."  Fathom shook her head suddenly.   Too many memories. "Sorry.  Long story. Not your problem."

She laid the towel down, sat on it, and began sorting through the small pile of clothes that she'd laid out earlier, picking up one piece at a time and turning it back and forth, feeling the fabric.  She seemed utterly unconcerned or unfazed by her own or Anathema's nudity.    Lycra was good. Satin too.  But silk was what she'd set her mind to.  Yeah, a shopping trip was definitely in order.  Even her proportions were different now!

Then, after finally picking a little pale cyan camisole and tap set, she nodded to Anathema, grateful for the circuitry-woman's apparent patience.   "I am interested in finding out who hired those goons.  Do you really think the meteorite is the cause of all this?  Are there others looking for it?  What about Naomi--err--Psyche.  Did you talk to her?" 

Then, after a moment, "And, how'd you find me, anyway?  I had to bust my ass to get attention as an athlete.  But as soon as I turn blue, I can't get any privacy.  Hell, this isn't even my place!"
This message was last edited by the player at 05:38, Fri 06 May 2022.

Anathema chuckles. "Yeah that whole children of god, holy father crap rubs me the wrong way too. I guess I need to work on my ironic presentation, huh?"

She is happy to wait. Why should she be bored when she is in a thousand places at once? She is watching a dozen news reports, families eating, couples making passionate love, pretty girls and nerdy boys streaming to the intertubes, and learning way more than she ever wanted to know about the hygiene regimes of the city's populace. She also watches and inspects the young woman in the room with her Prime Instance. She carefully examines her gills, her prominent vertebrae, the skin stretched between her fingers. Some Impacteers were far more prominently affected than others, it seemed.

Was Anathema herself an impacteer? She could not remember being anything other than what she is, which made it all too easy to imagine that she had come down with the meteor to spread warm, motherly goddess-light on this lost little world that is so lost as to not even realize they need a messiah... though she is not so arrogant as to think of herself in such terms, and wouldn't if Cute Blue hadn't put the idea in her head.

Anathema blinks and starts a little as her Prime Instance is addressed again. She snaps back into mono-instanced thinking and smiles beatifically. "Popular opinion says the meteorite is the cause and I feel it to be true in my core," she says, pressing her fingertips into her sternum over her heart to illustrate the point. Her metallic skin ripples and glows a soft cyan as it is distorted by the pressure. "You are the second I talked to. Naomierpsyche -- odd name! -- did not seem directly relevant to the quest, so I thought I would visit her once the magic space rock was secure."

And, how'd you find me, anyway? "I'm a goddess, you silly goose~" she says coyly, and glances to the bedroom mirror.

The reflection in the mirror waves back, independently from the image it is supposedly reflecting, and distinguished by a different-colored glow in its eyes. "We are everywhere."

"We see everything~" singsongs a pale reflection in the bedroom window.

"No secrets can be kept from Us," a voice calls from the bathroom.

"That must be a great responsibility."  Fathom said carefully.  "Knowing that one ill-placed revelation could lead to utter disaster."

Fathom was an apostate, herself.  Her "outing" had led to her family disowning her.  She was certain that religious perception was going to be a central issue in the days to come.  If one had the powers of a god, was one really beholden to the laws of baseline man?

The world needed people to help ease the transition into this new reality.  They needed people with insight and empathy.  They needed people like Naomi.  And--maybe--herself.  "But, yeah.  Having Psyche on board would be an asset.  She has a serious edge on insight and negotiations.  And, trust me, you're going to need someone with people skills."

She didn't even know whether Psyche would want to be in on this.   But perhaps a less conflicted interaction with these others would allow them a better beginning. Like as not, they were going to be dealing with each other a lot in the future.  And being able to examine the meteorite... well, it would give them a powerful political position from which to deal with everyone...

"In a better, more beautiful and honest world there would be no need for secrets," Anathema notes, a mote of sadness creeping into her voice.

Anathema nods at the subtle accusation that she herself does not have people skills. "Oh, definitely. I'm, like, super smart but I'm also wacky and guileless and I know how seriously people stress over that whole professional demeanor thing. Utter nonsense if you ask me, but... well, you didn't." She smiles. "I am certain that anyone who would moniker themselves Psyche would be a wonderful asset. Do you have her beep-boop or would you like me to find her?" When she says beep-boop she mimes typing on a smartphone and holding it up to her ear. Badly. One her reflections holds up an actual phone, although the back is labeled iPhony.

"Let me."  Fathom said.  She didn't say that she needed Psyche on-board for her own benefit.  Curious that of the five Asynchs she'd met, the one who could talk inside her head was the one she trusted the most.  Empathy.

"Oh,. you mean, like, right now.."  she faltered for a moment.   "Okay, hold on..."

And when Naomi answered, her intro was, "So... I have this circuit-lady standing with me.  She and the firefly are going hunting for the meteorite they feel is the cause of everything.  Actually, we're going hunting for it.  Any chance you wanna come on an adventure?  'Cause I think I'd really like to have you along..."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:54, Sun 08 May 2022.

Naomi is actually sketching up designs for a superhero costume when Fathom reaches her. Summoning the cell phone is second nature now, and she even manages to telekinetically hold it beside her ear as she continues drawing.

"So... we're going meteorite hunting? That sounds neat. As for whether I'd like to come along..."

She glances at David, who's engaged in the laborious process of snipping out, filing down and piecing together the pieces of a huge model kit (seriously, if she curled up she could probably fit inside the box) and nods to herself.

"Before I say yes, do you know how long you'll be taking? Any idea where you'll be looking? And what are you going to do if or when you find it?"

"A week at the most, probably less, possibly much less," Anathema whispers.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:54, Sun 08 May 2022.

Star Phoenix pondered Anethema's absence... he wanted to be doing something useful... using his powers to help... and decided he'd waited long enough.  Let her search for him in reflections again... it was time for him to act.
He ignited his flight aura and lifted off the solid plasma platform and disc he'd created.  With a thought he dismissed them in a burst of light.

Pulling out his cell phone in its solid plasma sheath, he called up his GPS got a direction and distance to Washington DC.  His own natural absolute direction and distance senses took over and he knew which way to go...

The fiery phoenix burst into the sky and tore across the skies seeking the eastern seaboard at a velocity well over mach 2... Justy was certain he would be spotted by strategic air command hopefully he'd get to his destination before he was intercepted.  But he was not so lucky... the trip would normally have taken on a perhaps two hours but an hour into his flight he spotted the rocket heat wash of missiles tracking him.  He realized clearly the two F-15 'Eagles' zeroing in on him fired because he did not answer their hails as he had no radio to respond with.

He sighed perhaps he should have taken a parabolic trans-atmospheric route into space to cut down on the inevitable heat trace he was leaving across the skies... but they still would have been there when he came down near DC from orbit.. no real way to hide that.   Justy was sure the missile were explosive and there for useless in harming him but he didn't want his cellphone wreaked with the explosion.  So he merely powered off into a sky diving freefall to let the missile loose target track and the jets now moving far faster zipped by loosing track of him.  At an altitude of about 500 feet he powered back up and continued on his way.  He'd gotten use to evading the inevitable fighter jet interceptors.  The jets may have be informed of his heat signature reappearing but flying so low and fast did not reengage quick enough to stop him from reaching DC.  To which he landed at the outskirts, powered down, walked to a gas station and called an Uber with his cell phone to take him into the city.

Justy directed the driver after a Google search to the Blair Shelter - Homeless shelter in DC at 635 I St NE, Washington.  On arrival he exited the Uber and went toward the brownstone entrance.  Sitting on the steps he noted an elderly man in worn clothing of partial US military fatigues.  He had a pair of crutches various bags and a beggar’s cup.  His legs were stiff and clearly disfigured...

Justy approached him and met his eyes, "Hello sir, how were you injured?"
He looked Justy up his features hard, his voice came in a wheezing gasp, he smelled of cigarettes, booze and unhygienic living, "Not injured, CP. Served in the US army got no help from the VA, spare some change?"

Justy crouched and reaches to his outstretched cup but gently touched his hand instead, "Thank you for your service sir... be healed!'

With just a light touch a golden glow fleshed warmly over the man and his bent legs straightened, his wheezing stopped, his old scars upon his face & hands smoothed over and vanished completely, even his odor changed subtly. The man's eyes went wide in surprise and he shakily stood, which Justy, caught him by the arm to steady him...

"I- It's a miracle? My pain is gone... {Gasp}.. I can breathe!!"
He looked at Justy and his expression was one of wonder as he asked, "A- Are y-you one o' them supers?"

Justy smiled and steadied the man replied, "...slowly, its been years since you stood under your own power you may need to relearn some of your balance as your muscles learn again.  I think you may have had lung cancer, emphysema, heart disease, and Cerebral palsy. That's all gone now, you were also missing a kidney ~ you are well now... sorry all your old scars are gone as well.  Yes, I'm a super - Call me Star Phoenix."

This is how it all started.  The man ushered Justy into the homeless shelter and room by room he healed injuries, removed diseases, cured blindness, restored lost limbs, cured any and all sickness.  Then he asked where the nearest Major hospital was?  He was told of the Washington Hospital Center at 223 7th St NE, Washington, DC 20002 and decided to walk there.  Many of the Homeless and Veterans healed decided to follow him to see more.  Justy made no attempt to dissuade them from following, evade them or to try to conceal his features. He walked the street following their directions.  On the way there he spotted a elderly woman crossing a street using a walker... he walked over to her greeting her she smiled as he came to her side to escort her cross the street and he placed a gentle hand upon her shoulder saying, "You do not need that walker anymore ma'am."

And was just a shocked as her back straightened and her prosthetic leg had to be unbuckled as her perfectly healthy lower-leg regrew.  She even took off her glasses realizing she needed them no more and though it was not obvious she was also no longer diabetic.

The crowd with him gasped and roared in applause, the elderly woman looked at him in awe, "A-are you an Angel young man? God bless you... your heaven sent!"

Justy only shook his head and smiled, "No ma'am, I'm just gifted to heal those in need. I'm no angel, just a man with a gift. Call me Star Phoenix."

The whole incident had people with Cell phones recording but he again continued to walk to the hospital.  On arrival the crowd gathers caught the worried attention of the hospital security.  Justy entered the emergency immediate care lobby the hospital security not realizing anything was amiss until the people following him entered and crowded after him.  Justy saw a young Hispanic woman with a young boy whose arm was broken in a compound fracture the bone protruding slightly from his arm.  He walked over and spoke to her, "Are you waiting for a doctor?"

She looked up at him "Si, senior... ", then she switched to English, "..I have been waiting almost an hour...!", then she noted all the people following Justy and keep their distance but all watching, "Wha..is ~"

Justy spoke, "Can I look at your sons arm?"

She looked back to him and nodded slowly uncertainty on her expression.  Justy crouched down to look the boy in the eyes... and realized suddenly the boy had down's syndrome.. in addition to his broken arm.  Justy smiled and just touched his shoulder and the golden hue flashed across the boy and before everyone's eyes the arm reknitted itself the bone sliding painlessly back into his arm and the skin healing over as if nothing had ever happened.  But also the boy's features shifted the typical facial features associated with Downs Syndrome faded as his eyes, one ~ once lazy, now both tracked in unison to look at Justy his features shifting to the expression of a smiling Hispanic child of age 8 or so. To which he turned to his mother and said "mama, mama.. my arm is good!"

The woman gasped, "¡Ay dios mío!", but her smile brightened the room and she hugged the boy fiercely tears filling her eyes.

She spoke to Justy, "He has never spoken in a full sentence ~  Only single words, Gracias Senior,  Mucho Gracias!"

Justy was astounded as well, "..I guess my healing extends to genetic disorders as well?"

The crowd cheered again and the hospital security were dumbfounded as Justy went around the emergency care room and healed all present.  When the doctors arrived there was much conversation and some skepticism, but one doctor took Justy by the elbow and urgently asked, "Your one of those Supers and you can heal?  Please... come see if you can do anything for a patient I have whose dying!"

Justy smiled, "Of Course.. it's why I'm here!"

The other doctors watched most were awed some were resiliently unconvinced... even protested somewhat but the Dr. Nickoles from his name tag was clearly desperate to save his patient if by some miracle Star Phoenix could accomplish where his skills could not.

Justy was taken upstairs a ushered into a room with a burn patient upon a respirator... her breathing came is slow mechanical gasps.  Dr. Nickoles stood aside and pleaded, "Can you help her at all?"

Star Phoenix stepped to the side of her bed and taking her only exposed limb ~ a foot, for she was in a plastic bubble apparatus for burn victims that covered her in plastic bag from head shoulders and torso.  Her burns were terrible.

At Star Phoenix's touch her breathing became stronger and she coughed as her flesh healed, her skin reconstructing itself, regrowing like time-lapse photography right before everyone's eyes, as the golden glow suffused her body her hair and skin restored fully.  Her eyes sprung open in shock and she began to violently cough!  Dr. Nickoles pushed by with two nurses to pull the bag away and drag the long respirator tube from her mouth.

The young woman sat up completely stunned, "Wha..what happened?" The nurses continued to remove the plastic bag bandages that had been used to cover her 87% burn coverage upon her now fully healed body.

That is when multiple doctors, nurses, patients and visitor families crowded around begging for Justy's attention.  This is when Justy summoned his costume and told them calmly to take him to all the injured in the hospital... and so room by room Justy healed the injured, the symptomatic, and the dying removing birth defects, restoring even the neuro-diverse on the spectrum of autism, terminal illnesses, restoring damage organs and limbs, and even brought patients out of coma to the amazement and many cell phone recordings of his deeds.  Many asked questions of him and he only replied with, "Call me Star Phoenix, I'm one of the impact supers... I'm here to help."

Dr. Nickoles, looked at him a gasp, "Can you... restore life to the dead.. is that even possible?"

Star Phoenix smiled, “Yes, but there is a limit to how long the person can be dead, minutes I believe... don’t ask how it works it’s a mystery to me as well ~ I just know it can work.  Would you tell me where the next major hospital is in the DC area?”

Dr. Nickoles looked expectantly, “Y-your going there too?”

“I’m going to ALL hospitals in the DC Area.”

Dr. Nickoles looked on in something like reverence and gave directions...

Star Phoenix walked out of the hospital through the throngs of crowds gathering healing all who came to him, “... I’m going to visit all the hospitals in the DC area so all can be healed. Please stand back...”

But reporters and the amazed pressed close with a multitude of questions... too close if he took flight.  So patiently he formed a cylinder of solid plasma around him and gently slowly spread his arms to gently push people back creating a circle of solid translucent light around him in a 15’ft radius.  Then he ignited his fiery phoenix flight aura and took flight to the gasps of the crowds and the media at the wash of hot air over the crowds.  Then he dismissed the circle of solid plasma now that he hovered some 20’ft above the crowds.  Those who took note realized the fiery aura had scorched the same phoenix emblem into the pavement below him.

“Sorry, my flight field is dangerous; I did not want to set anyone on fire... I’m going to all the hospitals in the DC area, good health to you all!”

He took flight and flew down the street of the DC at a height of 50 feet no faster than traffic a slow 45 mph.  Yes it caused many to gawk in wonder as the news crews followed and continued to try to get him to answer questions.

But he let nothing misdirect him from his goal and that is just what he did from hospital to hospital he healed the sick, restored the lame, even brought a few recently dead back to life.  To his surprise he caught glimpses of Dr. Nickoles every so often in the crowds that followed him.

When finally he’d healed everyone in the last hospital in DC and yet still more crowds came for free healing he told the media ... he would take questions as the steps of the Washington Monument ~ the stone spire where he would make a statement and answer questions.

His flight brought him to the monument and he flew in low over the pool his phoenix aura reflected brightly off the water to a large crowd already assembled... he landed at the base of the spire, the media immediately pressing in.

“Call me Star Phoenix, I believe myself to be one of the Impact Supers~", he powered down so his voice did not crackle so menacingly...

"I possess ... literally cosmic powers.  I have no idea how my powers work or their specific origin only that I possess them.  I have been in consultation with other Impact Supers, and based upon what we have discussed our powers ‘seem’ to be some form of wish fulfillment ~ perhaps a heart’s desire.  This is only conjecture as we have no proof only the self-reflection of our own personalities.  My powers specifically seem structured after my imagination’s “ideal self-image” and the legend of the phoenix... but perhaps too much reading of comic books in my youth.  But the results cannot be denied, I am a being of cosmic energy able to fly though space faster than light without protection, invulnerable to cosmic fires of the sun.  I can unleash charged highly destructive plasma, I heal from any injury almost instantaneously, but I can also extend my healing to others curing any and every malady with but a touch.  I’m still learning the limits of my powers but I ‘m always holding back to keep firm control of the cosmic power I possess.”

“And yet, though likely my physiology is changed from normal humans I still deserve human rights, as do all those like me.  I consider myself to be a religious man, a good Christian ~ but I am personally no god, sent by god, nor in contact with god... I’m just a man with a gift, a gift I want to share with mankind.  Why are we Supers here, I honestly do not know.  But I think what’s more important is what we do with these gifts we possess?”

“I plan to spend every Saturday for 24 hours healing people across the globe, next week I’ll be in Ethiopia hoping to vanquish the Ebola outbreak there.  Perhaps for NASA I’ll lift ten 20 ton satellites of their specification and put them in permanent orbits around every planet in our solar system including the sun... shouldn’t take longer than a month to place them if NASA is interested.  I want to use my powers to help mankind ~ Lending a hand where I can, helping where I’m invited.”

“I too listened to the President’s ART plan.  It seems an admirable policy, on the surface ~ but its the details where things get questionable.  Its not enough to say we have a plan and all we need is for all supers to register.  How will that data be used?  Will those who voluntarily register have their basic human rights upheld?  How will their protections from unreasonable search and seizure be handled?  Will they all be drafted willing or no to government or military service?  Will our right to privacy be protected?  Not every super will want to use their powers as I have chosen to... will their rights to privacy be protected?  These are things that need to be addressed first ~ Openly with Full Transparency before a call for all to give up their privacy is made!  I’m not against the ART, but I do believe an open discussion about EXACTLY what is required by such a policy.  ‘Trust us we’re with the government and we're here to help’, does not cut it anymore!”

“There is also the issue of the Asynchs.  For every Super who comes forward to use their powers in socially acceptable ways, I’m sure there will be some who will choose to use their gifts to take advantage, coerce, harm or steal from the mostly unsuspecting Normal Humanity.  How can Normal human law enforcement deal with such?  I’d say society would need Supers trained in law enforcement to police ourselves to see to it that Super-Asynchs ‘Criminals’ are not using their powers to dominate the welfare of Normal Humanity.  Super Humanity and Normal humanity can live together in harmony… we MUST not let our differences spark conflict or let Racism rear its ugly head!”

“It could even be arranged for Supers who want to help but want to maintain their secrecy to register as a Super Identity with legal status as their Super Identity... sort of how corporations do business under their business name and not the name of their Board of directors.  That would allow for Secret Id Supers to maintain a legal identity and be held accountable by that legal identity without exposing their private lives or Normal Humanity Id.  I’m not a lawyer, I’m a physicist intern... but I’m sure there could be some legal wrangling to help protect the identity and private life of Supers who want to help but protect their families and private lives.”

“Anyways... I’ve said what I wanted.  Any questions?”
This message was last edited by the player at 14:11, Wed 11 May 2022.