Mutants & Masterminds: Future Imperfect - Quest

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

“So… like just telling about ourselves?” Rebecca asked, looking a little surprised. She didn’t have people ask her that often, not in her work.

“Yeah, like where you’re from, that kind of thing,” Jaunt said easily.

“Oh, uh,” Rebecca paused, biting her lip. “Well, I’m from rural Missouri. My family had a farm west of St. Louis. I lived there until I was fifteen, when my father kicked me out for being a mutant. He picked me up after school, my bags were packed and in the car. He drove me to a mission in St. Louis and dropped me off.”

“Wow,” Adrian said, his eyes troubled. “Didn’t your mom do anything?”

Rebecca shrugged. “Maybe… I dunno. All I know is she wasn’t there and Dad wouldn’t say anything to me. At least he still loved me enough to take me to a shelter instead of just dumping me in East St. Louis, right?” She tried to smile; it was a little weak but she made the attempt.

“One of the guys at the shelter took me under his wing,” Rebecca went on. She missed Kevin, just as she did every time she thought of him. She wondered where he was, what he was doing. He’d probably know how to help Rebecca, and if she really had a cure for the virus. “He taught me a few things, helped me out. After we parted ways, I just stayed in motion. I’m not sure where I’m going – I’m just wandering around, getting into trouble and living.” She laughed a little. “That made me sound like I should drive around with a talking dog in a van, didn’t it?”

[Jaunt]

"A little bit, yeah." Jaunt smirked. He could be quite charming, as long he didn't actually try at it. He moved over to the counter, leaned against it and hopped up onto it and sat there, his heels tapping against the cabinet doors. Rebeccas was a bit surprised he didn't just jaunt there, as was seeming to be customary for him.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry." There was genuine tenderness in his voice. His experience was different in scope, but the pain of going through it was just as real as hers must have been so relating to her was relatively easy. "I know it's hard to be forced to wander. To be a vagabond with no real place to call home. I wish more for you, seriously."

There was an awkward silence for a few moments as his twelve ounce can rotated several time within nervous hands. He really didn't like talking about him self but he brought it up and it was time to deliver. "I grew up with my pops. He was a mess, an alcoholic who couldn't keep a job to save his life. He was abusive, but not physically. He didn't hit me, not sure why, but he always had some really foul things to say to me."

He was good at this game, and Rebecca could tell. His emotions were check on the outside but the residual emotional feedback coming from him told her he wanted nothing more than to break down into tears or cry out in unchecked rage... she could tell which. If Jaunt had a sore spot, this appeared to be it. "I was never good enough. I was a wuss, or a pussy, or a fag because I went out for gymnastics instead of the football team. Everyday until I was sixteen I had to hear how useless and worthless and how much a nobody I was going to be one day."

"It was almost enough to make me go emo." There was the witty quip that Rebecca was waiting for. Jaunt wasn't to difficult to predict, even in the short time she'd known him. "Once my powers started manifesting, I practiced in secret. I got pretty good, did my research, and one day I packed a bag and never looked back. For all I know the bastard is still in Arizona drinking himself to death. Prick."

She could feel it, briefly, but it was there. Despite the ire and venom in the words about his father something in Jaunt told her the truth: he missed his father dearly and loved him more than he would ever admit. Perhaps the he was a good man before the drinking, or there was more to the story...

He tipped his can back and took a long drink until the carbonation burned his throat. "Surviving wasn't too hard. I'll admit, I'm a crook, I mean seriously if I'm hungry and some well off family has an LED TV I can pawn for a few hundred to get by on, I'm jackin' it for the greater good. I've been fencing goods in Vegas for about three years now, which explains the mess," He motioned to his apartment which was lined with all sorts merchandise from cook ware boxes to designer clothing labels. "I don't make much, but it's not about getting rich, it's about surviving."

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

Rebecca's smile had shifted to a more somber expression as he spoke. Hesitantly, she went to his side, looking uncertain about what she was doing. But she put her hand on his arm, her dark eyes sympathetic as she looked up at him. "We've all done things we aren't proud of to survive."

His life was worse than hers; it was a stark reminder that no matter how sorry she felt for herself, most of the time, she was actually in pretty good shape compared to the next guy.

Rebecca was curious about the rest of the story that she sensed was left unspoken; she guessed it was about his mother and what she had tried to do to him. Not for the first time, Rebecca regretted that she'd had to violate someone's privacy to learn if she could trust them.

Awkwardly, she realized she'd just been staring up at him, her hand resting on his arm. With a blush, she stepped back and cleared her throat, looking at Adrian expectantly.

[Jaunt]

Jaunt smiled back at her and it went even broader when she blushed and stepped away. Here the teleporter had been thinking that he was the one uncomfortable around her! Wow. "It's okay Rebecca, I don't bite, unless your into that. Seriously though, it's nice to meet someone who actually cares and understands what people like us go through."

"It's refreshing." He slipped off the counter and opened the fridge grabbing another cherry coke. "Most others like us just seem self-absorbed to me. Everyone had their own agenda it seems, y'know? No one ever seems to be who they say they are, we're all just convenient speed bumps on the road to get them what they want."

He stepped close to Rebecca and placed his hand on her hip. He wasn't seriously going to make a move on her was he? They'd just met... and Adrian was standing right there! The entire apartment braced for impact. With a gentle nudge he convinced her to step aside a bit. "S'cuse me hotness, I need to grab the plates."

"Take Orphan for example," He started while he set the plates all in a row upon the counter that just served as his perch. "That woman, and I don't care how hot she sounds, doesn't give one flip about you or me. She wants Adrian and Becca, period. You and me, we're just bystanders caught up in the eye of the storm on this one. If she had to lie, cheat, steal, manipulate or even take one of us out to get her precious cargo into her custody she would, and yet probably claims to be on our side."

Jaunt turned around and leaned against the counter, folding his arms. "Maybe that's why I decided to stick with you. You're like me, just a bystander caught up in something. A woman who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. No idea what all this is about. No secret agenda. Just a someone, like me, who's just trying to survive as best they can, y'know? I like that about you."

"It's up to people like us," He shot her a charming wink and a smile. "To make sure the Adrian and Becca stay safe and out of the hands of lying bastards like those A.E.G.I.S. pricks. Not that U.N.I.S.O.N. is any better, I can't say I trust any of them and now our own kind, like this Orphan, are making it harder to even consider trusting the 'good guys'. Average Joes like us don't need to be caught up in everyone else's war."

He smiled that confident 'I can take on the world, and win' smile of his and shot Rebecca a 'I kinda like you' wink, finishing with. "So, I guess it's up to me to protect you guys from basically everyone, should be fun."

[Ira Sagebrush]

Sam stumbled out of the computer room, into the base clutching her head. "Oh. My. Effin'. Gee. My head hurts." she moaned.

She ran her hands through her hair, squeezing her head, keeping her gaze focused on the back of her eyelids as she headed for the supply of pain meds. At least she was until she unexpectedly ran into something solid and rebounded slightly.

Sam caught her balance and looked up into the shimmering eyes of Fenny. "Dude, dub-tee-eff, this room is like a gazillion miles wide, you couldn't move? Do I not have enough problems trying to track............." Sam's brain started clicking, track".......Hey! How'd you like the challenge of a lifetime? All you have to do is find a group of teleporting kids in a city that's been brought to its knees..."

Sam grabbed his arm, and for a split second was taken aback at the lack of give in the corded muscles. "C'mere. I'll show you where they were last." She pulled on him for a few steps, but then gave up at his slow, relaxed pace and hurried ahead into the computer room and pulled up the street corner where she had been talking to Jaunt on Google Maps.

Fenris ducked through the door just as Sam was pulling it up and she stood up, ignoring the pounding in her head and pointed to the screen, "There." She sat down again, and her hands flew across the control panel as she pulled up pictures of the two kids she wanted and Jaunt. "There's also some chick with them..." And she pulled up a still image of Rebecca as well.

"Really, those two are the targets. Jaunt's a prissy fuck, so I don't care about him particularly, but if he fits our profile, he can be brought back too...any questions?"

Fetch, boy, fetch.

[Grim]

Sea-green eyes examined the images on the screens, the smooth features under them tightening indefinably in silent concentration as the man Sam called Fenny memorised features, postures, and lastly the map location. Sam watched him in turn, curious as to what was going on in there. She could guess, of course, based off their working history so far...

"You've been in contact with them?" he asked in accentless English, his voice low and soft. Sam nodded and, unasked, pressed a few buttons in sequence, cueing up the replay of the conversation with Jaunt. He could smell her pain and simmering anger as she stepped toward the door.

"Enjoy. I'm gonna get something for my head, like a pickax." she told him as she left the room. Listening to that asshole delinquent Jaunt again would only worsen the pounding in her brain. By the time she was back the recording had finished and 'Fenny' was sitting back in the chair, gazing at the images on the screens over steepled fingers, considering. Sam took a seat herself and watched him. Those gleaming eyes shifted to her.

"Trust is the issue. He doesn't know us, doesn't trust us. When I've found them, that will be a problem. He's a teleporter, which means the only way to contain him is to disable him." Fenris shrugged, an expression of faint distaste in his eyes at the thought. "He's not the enemy, and we don't need him as one."

"Sure, sure." Sam said, biting back her impatience. "But they've probably gone underground again now. So what's the plan, Secret Agent Man?"

"I find their scent, then I find them. I'll need some resources."

"Name 'em."

He told her: it took a couple of sentences. Sam frowned in thought. The clock was ticking... but this way, at least the two kids would be safely out of human hands. Aware that he was still watching her, she tilted her head curiously at him.

"You haven't asked why I need those two."

"If I needed to know, you'd tell me." Fenris smiled slightly as he stood, plucking the lid of an ice-cream carton from the floor and tossing it into the waste basket. Sam wondered if he was joking. She'd known him personally for a year now, and it was still hard to tell at times.

"They're a possible answer to the Virus." she told him simply as he stepped towards the door. She had the satisfaction of seeing him stop and look back at her, surprised for an instant. Then his eyes narrowed as he looked again at the pictures on the screen, his focus becoming more intent, and he nodded.

"Understood. I'll be in touch." Then he was gone.

* * * * *

The sounds and scents of the city bombarded him, but he was used to that. Overlaying the smells of pollutants and the herds of humanity was smoke and blood and the scent of fear and panic.

He was used to that, too.

There were patrols out in force. At the perimeter of the contained area were police, keeping the gawkers and the curious away. Not that there were too many of those - everyone with a modicum of sense was somewhere safe and off the streets. Still, this was Vegas: more foolishness than sense to go around.

The police were easy to slip past, especially at night. Dressed in dark, shapeless clothes Fenris moved through the back alleys and over rooftops, in his element like the hunting beast he was. Inside the cordon there were more serious players: SWAT and National Guard and others, probably some AEGIS mixed in with them. He practiced patience, his senses warning him of approaching danger and guiding him around the search parties long before they even came close to setting eyes on him.

He stepped from the rooftop and dropped noiselessly down into the alleyway Jaunt and his charges had been in together, before the teleporter had spirited them all away. He moved along the alley quietly until he found the spot where his nose, more sensitive than a shark's, could tell the story.

Fear/nervousness/female/male/adrenaline/arousal/shock/excitement... The emotions and impressions hit him altogether. Two males, one young adult, one child. Two females, same. All mutants. The young adult male (Jaunt) controlling his fear, taking charge, the young adult female (unknown) having a hint of determination in her scent. Fenris closed his eyes and breathed in several times, letting the spoor of the four he sought roll over his palate and olfactory nerves, learning their unique scents and marking them in his memory.

He opened his eyes again, the faint light of the alley causing them to gleam.

A short time later had him at the last known position of Jaunt and the young adult female. Again, he closed his eyes and let the scents flow over his senses, but this time he was looking for other clues. Where had they been last. Any defining environmental scents that would give him a clue or act as a red flag to him should he smell them again during his search. A chemical plant or gas station nearby, any smells of plants or animals... anything at all could be a clue more obvious than a signal flare for him. Finally he moved off, heading first for the underground. Homework was over.

It was time to start hunting.

Click to reveal.. (I iz in ur sittee, stalkin ur mootants)

Extended tracking roll, Part 1: The Phantom Mutant

1d20=12

+13

=25

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

Rebecca was alright with her job most days. There were times that she hated what she did and who she was, but mostly, she tried to just go some good and not focus on drawbacks. But when they were rubbed in her face like this, it was hard to focus on what she needed to focus on to do what good she could. Rebecca needed that focus, or she was going to end up as angry and self-hating as Tyler.

“Yeah, I can’t really say I trust Orphan at all,” Rebecca added. Some part of her was still trying to keep it together and continue to reduce the risk of having to go head-to-head with Orphan over the siblings. The rest of her was having a rare self-pity party over the fact that a cute guy liked her and she’d never be able to follow up on what they both seemed to want. “I hate that feeling.”

“Not being able to trust?” Adrian asked with a certain amount of understanding. He must have been dealing with it all his life.

“Kinda, it sucks that with everything else going on, we have to watch out for this woman, too,” Rebecca sighed. “It’s not enough that the police are being people up, that there’s a riot and bombs going off, that all this is raining down and we have to worry about this, too.” Add in that she had what she needed but no way to get the kids to safety and Rebecca was really annoyed.

She forced herself to be calm. Getting irate wouldn’t help. Forcing a smile, she said to Jaunt, “You know, it doesn’t have to be you vs. everyone. I can help, too, ya know. Or has the woman’s movement died while I was out of touch?”

[Jaunt]

"Well, I guess you can help too if you want." He shrugged with a grin, being playful with her. "I mean, hey, I'm just saying our first date hasn't gone to well... almost got hit be a car, running through the sewers, EMPs, my X-Box died and we're having frozen pizzas instead of someplace a little more classier like maybe, I dunno, Burger King."

"I'm just trying to do what I can to keep ya wanting to come back," He should have taken the act on the road, Jaunt could serve out hand tossed comedy at a premium. "See, guys aren't impressed as much when the ladies fight for us, it makes us insecure. But when we do it... see, now then it's awesome and the ladies get all slack jawed and bug-eyed and throw their panties at us. It's just the natural way of the universe, I'm not making this up."

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

“Date?” Rebecca asked, her face turning red. It only got redder as she quickly added, “I don’t see me throwing panties about it… anything… ever.”

“C’mon, you’ll love it,” Jaunt teased, loving the innocent blush that colored her cheeks.

“I don’t know… why would you throw panties?” she asked, clearly showing that no one had educated her in the finer things of life.

“Because it’s fun, in the right context,” Adrian replied, bemused.

“Have you ever had someone fight over you?” Jaunt asked.

“Uh, no, not like you mean,” Rebecca replied. “I was once trapped under two guys who were fighting each other, but not for me.”

“Then you haven’t been in a situation that calls for throwing panties,” Jaunt informed her. “Just wait, when I get all up in some guy’s face in your defense, you’re going to want to throw your panties. I swear. It’s a rule.”

“Well… we’ll see,” Rebecca said as she grinned. It was impossible to not smile at him, when he was like this. Her blush was also still burning her cheeks, making her feel a little giddy.

[Grim]

The trail was not really a trail at all, more of a seemingly unconnected series of random 'spots' of scent dotted around the city. A single bloodhound would have had trouble following it, would have gotten confused and dismayed at the constant blipping of the trail.

Fenris's senses were sharper than a bloodhound's, and he had trained analysis, imagination and reasoning power to present options and discern likely avenues to pursue when he hit a dead end. The background scents in the spoor of the mutants he was tracking were ingrained now, and one by one he was eliminating likely places where those smells could be found. Ordinarily, this too would take forever. But the hunter had other tools to speed his pursuit.

He was loping along rooftops and down alleyways, zig-zagging to avoid patrols and the flying powersuits that seemed to be interdicting the MIC. Flat out, Fenris knew he could match an automobile for speed, but necessity caused him to move only as fast as was practical.

He took two steps and leapt, landing on the edge of the roof of an apartment building ten stories up. Keeping low among the vents and chimneys, he trotted swiftly across the flat surface and cast about again with his senses.

He was getting closer, he felt it. Some instinct told him that one of the next few places he zeroed in on would be the one. He reined that eagerness in with the ease of practice. No assumptions, no dealing in anything except the cold facts. He crouched there on the rooftop and looked out over the city, hearing the sirens and gunfire and the distant screams, smelling the blood and panic and rage simmering over the MIC. A mixture of sadness and anger filled him. These were American citizens. Residents of the nation that had toppled his Rodina by virtue of her ideals of freedom and self-determination. He'd admired America, as had most KGB spooks grounded in reality. The truth of it, though, was that any government was hypocritical and repressive, especially where his species were concerned. Perhaps one day mutants would be able to have their own nation. But that would take blood, human and mutant, to accomplish. The raising of mutants from second-class pariahs would not be peaceful: there were too many humans, within and without their systems of government, who were resentful and afraid of what mutant self-determination might mean.

"There she is!" A shout from the street below. Pale eyes moved down to see three black-clad SWAT officers moving hurriedly along the street in pursuit of a fleeing woman, her feathery green hair proclaiming her to be a mutant. She was encumbered by bags filled with tins and other groceries, and with a flash of insight Fenris noted her ragged appearance and all-too apparent poverty, and realised that the goods she had were not paid for. Looting. It stood to reason that the hungry and desperate would try to make small gains in this crisis.

A rattle of SMG fire and the woman screamed. Fenris wondered if she'd been hit, but the cop had fired high as a warning, to frighten her, and it worked. She dropped the goods and crouched in a fetal position, her hands covering her ears. Fenris silently paced the cops as they ringed her.

"Puh-please! We were hungry. You can take the food. I'll go. I was just-" she screamed again as one of the officers, slinging his gun, grabbed the woman's stick-thin wrist and forced her to the ground.

"You're under arrest, mutie." The cop rasped as he forced her hands behind her back and zip-tied her wrists. The woman started crying louder, and her hair took on a glow.

"Shit, she's trying somethin'!" Another cop stepped forward and kicked the woman in the head, cutting off her sobs with the thud of a heavy boot. The green glow of her hair cut off just as suddenly as blood sprayed on the sidewalk and the woman went limp.

"Fuck, Demetrio!" yelled the cop who'd been restraining her. "What the fuck did you do that for?!" He felt for a pulse, then listened for breath. "I think she's still alive. We need to call a wagon." Far above them, eyes glinted in the reflected light of the street.

"Mutie witch was trying some shit." Demetrio answered. "And ain't nobody calling anyone right now. All the comms are fried."

"Good." said the third one. "We don't need to be wasting ambulance time with fucking trash. Leave her here."

"God dammit." said the first one, standing up. "I guess you're right, but we had her, man. It doesn't sit right."

Reason told Fenris that the woman was as good as dead if they left her. He could sit and wait for them to move on, then drop down and try to render aid. His anger, his rage on the other hand, were not so easily satisfied. He took one step back from the edge of the building, then stepped forward and leapt out and down.

"Let's finish her off clean." Demetrio said, raising his SMG and levelling it at the woman's bleeding head. Those were his last words as a large blond man landed on him feet-first. A crunching sound of breaking bone and an gurgled scream heralded the SWAT's death.

"Holy Jesus crapfuck!" screamed the third man, whirling and raising his MP9, firing a burst into the fast-moving target. A spray of blood indicated a hit, but he didn't have time to register anything else before razor-sharp talons ripped up and through the kevlar he was wearing. Blue-green eyes glared into his past a mane of blond hair, and the cop saw teeth bared in a silent snarl as a second taloned hand buried itself in his throat, the tips of the claws emerging from between his shoulderblades.

The first cop swung his gun round and fired a long burst, staggering the assailant. Dropping to one knee, Fenris felt the impacts of the bullets and with an effort, swung the cop he had impaled into their path. The armored body proved an effective barrier for the 9mm rounds, and the cop felt a sick sense of horror as the SMG clicked empty.

"Crap!" he dropped it, letting it dangle on the sling as he yanked his pistol out. Fenris cast aside the body of his team-mate and rose, blood speckling his hair, face in shadow under the harsh lights from overhead. "Don't move. Don't you fucking move!" screamed the cop, sighting between the shimmering cold eyes under the hair. With a sick sense of horror he saw the bullet wounds in the man's torso closing, and knew that his automatic wouldn't be enough. "I tried man. I didn't kill her. It was Demetrio. I've got no beef with muties- I mean mutants! Mutants, I mean mutants!" The mutant was silent, and the officer's eyes glanced down at the huge, taloned paw-hands at the end of each arm. Dripping blood, four-inch claws protruded from the end of every digit, all of which seemed to contain an extra joint or two. The mutant seemed to be considering his words.

In truth, Fenris was just waiting for the virus induced dizziness to pass. He'd already made up his mind.

No witnesses.

When he moved, it was with terrifying speed. The cop screamed and fired, and the mutant felt the burning sting of the bullet as it passed through his throat. The pain was transitory: he'd suffered far worse. And the cop didn't have time for a second shot. He let the body fall and hawked up blood, spitting it onto the corpse at his feet as he felt his throat re-form.

He held up his taloned hands and watched dispassionately as they shrank once more, becoming ordinary, the talons shrinking into nails and the light brown fur receding to tanned skin. Then he knelt and wiped them clean on the clothing of his kill.

A few minutes work and he'd stripped the corpses of some useful webbing and gear. Two pistols, one SMG, plenty of ammunition and some other SWAT toys went into the webbing. Demetrio's body furnished him with a kevlar vest, and he found some energy bars in the third man's pockets that would be useful. Healing burned calories, after all. Then he knelt by the woman, a water bottle and a bottle of Tylenol in one hand. He could hear her heartbeat, knew it was strong and regular. She would probably live. He severed the zip-tie with a combat knife, then propped the woman up into a sitting position and wondered what the hell he was going to do now. He couldn't call Orphan for a pickup.

"Jessie!" a boy's voice, a youngster. Fenris looked round to see a kid running towards him. He looked normal at first glance, but he seemed to know the green-haired woman, for he rushed right to her side and began patting her face. "Jessie?" The woman started to stir.

"She should be alright." Fenris said quietly, his deep voice soft. "Wake her up, and keep her awake until you can see a doctor. Use these." he handed the boy the water and the pills. "And get off the streets."

"Thanks..." the boy's voice trailed off as he looked at the dead bodies laying around. "Uh... Who are you?" Admiration mixed with a lot of fear in his voice and scent.

"No-one." Fenris told him seriously, his blue-green eyes intent on the boy's face. "I was not here. This did not happen. Trust me. I wouldn't hurt you, but others would. You are better having not seen me, my friend. Understand?" The boy swallowed, but nodded.

"Good." A ghost of a smile touched Fenris's lips. "Now get off the street, quickly." The boy nodded, and turned back to the mumbling woman. When he glanced over his shoulder, the tall blond man was gone.

[Joani]

Adrian got more and more quiet as he watched Jaunt and Rebecca obviously enjoying the little flirt. He could see what was going on but he kept to himself. Even earlier, when Jaunt had opened up Adrian felt like sharing some of his and his sister’s past, too... but they had moved on past that point and now it would’ve felt awkward to spoil ´the party´. He’d have to disappear like they did in New York over a year ago. His escape was carrying them farther and farther to the west. Some day he’d have to swim to get away – through the pacific.

But how could he have started it anyway? Hey, I’m the son of Valiant and Will-o-Wisp- You know the two greatest heroes of our time who died in the first wave when the Virus hit? Jaunt would probably laugh at him. Adrian chuckled, suddenly realizing he had caught their attention.

He immediately waved his hand shaking his head, „It’s nothing, I was just thinking about something. Not important...“, the lie was as obvious as a baseball bat to the hat.

Somewhere near the MIC

Fenris kept his head low after the short intermezzo with the Police. Part of him could’ve gone on killing those bastards but the hunt was more important. He checked the roofs waiting for another opportunity to get up and continue his search from above when he felt the ground quake briefly. It wasn’t an earthquake, that was sure but something made the ground shake. Looking down the street he saw one of the powered suits breaking through a wall of a building and coming to a sudden stop. It’s large anti-tank-rifle was aimed at the roof of the next building across where he saw a silhouette of someone crouching, peaking over the edge either probably unaware that it was in that things target sights.

He had more important things to do to get involved with this but could he just watch and stand by if that thing killed his kin? It was black and huge, absolute state of the art high tech and probably more advanced than the old prototypes he had seen back when he was still KGB. Something from its back fired off and then the thing was covered/hidden behind a wall of fog. It happened almost as fast as he flinched from the sudden explosion.

Click to reveal..

If you want to interfere roll Initiative. Regardless of your decision I also like to see a Perception roll at -2 modifier.

[Grim]

There was a long frozen pause while Fenris considered the two-legged tank in front of him. It was top-of-the-line, and he had nothing capable of even scratching it. There were some breaching charges in the fanny-packs he'd taken from the SWAT men he'd killed, but those would be laughable against this thing. They were meant for doors, not military vehicles. His claws could cut steel, but not enough to seriously inconvenience one of these. Once more he had that sense of unreality that the American government were deploying such machines against barely-armed civilians.

Then the thing fired it's weapon, and the sound galvanised the mutant into life. Time to go. He darted for a nearby alleyway, keeping an eye on the cloud the mech had disappeared into. He would circle around a few blocks and pick up the chase on the other side. A possible cure for the virus was more important than futile heroics against an enemy he wasn't equipped to take down. But he would store any impressions he gained of these things, because one day he felt in his bones that he and they would have to meet.

Click to reveal..

Perception roll

1d20=15 + 8 -2

= 21

[Jaunt]

"'We'll see' is good, it's a star-" The sudden rumble took Jaunt's attention away from the lovely Rebecca and towards the street. "What the hell was that?"

He started to move from the kitchen and when the others followed he held out his hand to stop them. "Stay put, I'll go check it out..."

With a sudden pop of rushing air to close the aperture Jaunt was gone. The glimmer of his teleportation scar remained slightly shimmering the air for a moment.

The sudden rush of the cool night air caught his jacket and hair, whipping it about as he looked over the edge like an action star in the low budget flick. He peered over the edge, his safe house only a few blocks from the MIC, and took inventory of the current shit storm brewing...

Click to reveal.. (Perception Roll)

Roll: 7 +9 Modifier -2 Circumstance Bonus = +14

[Joani]

Originally Posted By: Fenris

But he would store any impressions he gained of these things, because one day he felt in his bones that he and they would have to meet.

Just before Fenris wanted to pick up his trail he noticed two things. The Mech obviously hit something or someone who managed to survive the hit by gracefully tumbling in a superhuman display of uncanny athletical skill – female and very feral in the way she carried herself. Just as fast as he noticed her she was gone, dashing through the debris into cover and disappearing out of sight.

Above her was another Mutant, a blond man floating above the Blackhammer and taking aim. He was either crazy or very powerful or absolutely ignoring that a full force hit could easily kill him.

Click to reveal..

You notice both Travis and Felicienne, she disappeared to fast out of sight, using some kind of supernatural camouflage (predator-like). You can tell that she was heading towards the MIC

Originally Posted By: Jaunt

With a sudden pop of rushing air to close the aperture Jaunt was gone. The glimmer of his teleportation scar remained slightly shimmering the air for a moment.

The sudden rush of the cool night air caught his jacket and hair, whipping it about as he looked over the edge like an action star in the low budget flick. He peered over the edge, his safe house only a few blocks from the MIC, and took inventory of the current shit storm brewing...

Outside he saw the Blackhammer and probably the remains of whatever it tried to hit. Telling by the size of the hole it left Jaunt could hardly imagine it missed its target – even if its aim was off it would probably still hit everything within 8 Feet radius of the focal point of its target. Just before he duck back into cover he saw something or someone floating above the Blackhammer, it was hard to tell since he didn’t want to draw any attention to his position but it seemed as if someone was actually fighting that machine.

[Jaunt]

"Oh, this is so not good." Jaunt mumbled to himself. "So, not good."

The air popped as he reappeared, already in motion and walking towards the kitchen. "There's a guy out there fighting one of those military mutant hunter tanks. Adrian, Becca, I need you two to take cover in the kitchen."

He looked to Rebecca and she could see genuine worry behind his calm eyes. He didn't want to show it, and she knew it, but Jaunt didn't have a plan for this. He had no idea what was going on tonight, it was like there was full out war in Las Vegas tonight or everyone had gone off their rocker insane. "There's full blown war or something going on over at the MIC, it's like..." She could hear something that resonated with joy in his voice. It was subtle, but it was there. "...we're fighting back."

"Best of luck to them," He took a deep breath and smiled at her. "I gotta look after you guys. If things go bad, we're getting the hell out of here. Keep an eye on them and I'll go pack us some bags. Oh, and is the pizza ready yet? I'm starved."

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

War… MIC… we’re fighting back… Rebecca paled as he delivered his news. Jaunt might have been happy, but Rebecca had seen war. She’d seen the broken bodies and hollow-eyed orphans and she hated it. People were going to be hurt – they were going to die: mutant and human alike.

“We could help,” Rebecca said, putting her mouth into gear before really thinking through what she was saying. “I have some medical training… I can fight.”

“You?” Adrian asked dubiously.

“Not like you’re thinking, or have done,” she added with a glance at his bruised knuckles from his earlier confrontation with the police. “There are ways to disable and disarm without killing or breaking.”

“This is rather crazy, you know,” Adrian pointed out.

“And?” Rebecca asked, her voice rising. People were getting hurt and killed – people she’d sworn to protect. Well, people that May had sworn to serve and defend, but she was kinda May. Kinda. “As a group, we’re going to be safer than alone. People are getting hurt. People are dying! We can help. Even Becca could press a compress to a wound and save someone’s life.”

She glanced between the two men, asking, “Do you want to look back on this night and know that you did the right thing, or do you want to hide?”

“I want to keep my sister safe,” Adrian said, crossing his arms.

“So that she can learn it’s okay to hide? To let others die?”

“I don’t care about them!” Adrian hissed, his voice rising in volume only a little in deference to his sleeping sister. “They’re not important.”

“You know what? Earlier tonight, you and your sister were ‘thems’ to Jaunt,” Rebecca said fiercely. “But he stuck his neck out for both of you, and now you’re safe and about to eat pizza. And that was one of us. What could the four of us do together?”

[Joani]

Fenris watched the Blackhammer suddenly halt and probably scan the area. It swivelled around its head looking up where he saw another Blackhammer lift off and take up speed. From the trail of smoke it left he could easily tell that someone hat seriously damaged it. Some Mutant were fighting back...

Concentrating again he blend out those sensations that were distracting and refocused on the hunt. He picked up the scent again and quickly determined a possible route. He was sure that the hideout must’ve been very close now...

Click to reveal..

One more perception roll please and I’d suggest a stealth roll, too.

Meantime at the HQ of the Mutant Underground

Mouse was running – something he never did since he spent most of the day in his cubicle only leaving his station to eat and the necessary bio-breaks.

„Boss!... Boss!“, he panted out of breath. The short distance was enough to make him sweat as if he had run a marathon. Mouse was a clanky skinny guy, just a hair taller than Sam. He swallowed hard unable to speak but then the screens sprang back to live.

They showed a satellite map of Vegas, Military Standard tech. Mouse hacked into a Government Sat.

„I... I just wanted to check the Radio-frequencies when...“, he panted again taking a few breathes as he reached with one arm to suppress the side-aches he had gotten from breathing wrong.

„Then I accidently switched into a frequencies and heard an encrypted signal. It was Military standard and I easily hacked it. The National Guard...“, his voice rattled as he tried to put as much information as possible into the little air he had available to speak.

„The National Guard is locking up the city, no ins or outs without a proper permit. But there is more...“, he stumbled to Sam’s workstation and sat down typing in a few commands into her terminal.

„There was a second signal, much stronger and heavily encrypted. Never seen something like this before. I couldn’t crack it, but... I located the transmitters.“

The Map zoomed into the City with unbelievable detail. Sam could tell they were watching live footage. There were 7 circles on the map, 6 small moving dots and one large dot at Nellis Airforce Base.

„That’s their base of operation. And they called in Helicopters and crap. But look at those“, he jumped up and pointed at one of the small dots, a Blackhammer. He used the mouse and zoomed into the immediate area of a Blackhammer, the picture getting crystal clear within seconds.

„Mother-fucking-Mechs – they’ve got Mutant-hunter-killers, we’re screwed.“

Jaunt’s hideout

Adrian shook his head and furrowed his brows. „I’d rather run. My sister is 14-years-old and I won’t put her in such danger. We’ve been through too much trouble anyway.“, he didn’t want to sound like a coward and it hurt him thinking about his father who’d taken the responsibility to fight for the mutants. Rebecca could see the struggle in his eyes.

[Grim]

Click to reveal.. (Perception re-roll (Hero Point))

Roll: 3 +10 for HP +8 Modifier -25 DC = -4 FAIL.

There. Just for a moment, somewhere within his range was a stronger trace of the mutant known as Jaunt, gone almost as soon as it had appeared. Fenris moved to the far end of the alleyway he was in and cast about, silently cursing the aerial mutant-hunting machines that made taking to the rooftops a foolhardy exercise. Down on the ground level traces were faint, gusts of wind shaped and funneled by the streets and buildings made for a misleading scent, and skilled though he was the tracker just couldn't pinpoint the elusive teleporter.

With typical stoicism he shrugged away his frustration. He was close. Damn close. The traces were there, and nearby. Within a mile, for certain. He picked the most likely direction and moved off, taking care to keep to whatever cover was available. He didn't want the humans to find him, and certainly didn't want the mutants he was seeking to spot him and rabbit before he'd had a chance to make contact.

Click to reveal.. (Stealth roll)

Roll: 8 +10 Modifier = +18

[Ira Sagebrush]

Originally Posted By: Joani

Mouse was running – something he never did since he spent most of the day in his cubicle only leaving his station to eat and the necessary bio-breaks.

„Boss!... Boss!“, he panted out of breath. The short distance was enough to make him sweat as if he had run a marathon. Mouse was a clanky skinny guy, just a hair taller than Sam. He swallowed hard unable to speak but then the screens sprang back to live.

They showed a satellite map of Vegas, Military Standard tech. Mouse hacked into a Government Sat.

„I... I just wanted to check the Radio-frequencies when...“, he panted again taking a few breathes as he reached with one arm to suppress the side-aches he had gotten from breathing wrong.

„Then I accidently switched into a frequencies and heard an encrypted signal. It was Military standard and I easily hacked it. The National Guard...“, his voice rattled as he tried to put as much information as possible into the little air he had available to speak.

„The National Guard is locking up the city, no ins or outs without a proper permit. But there is more...“, he stumbled to Sam’s workstation and sat down typing in a few commands into her terminal.

„There was a second signal, much stronger and heavily encrypted. Never seen something like this before. I couldn’t crack it, but... I located the transmitters.“

The Map zoomed into the City with unbelievable detail. Sam could tell they were watching live footage. There were 7 circles on the map, 6 small moving dots and one large dot at Nellis Airforce Base.

„That’s their base of operation. And they called in Helicopters and crap. But look at those“, he jumped up and pointed at one of the small dots, a Blackhammer. He used the mouse and zoomed into the immediate area of a Blackhammer, the picture getting crystal clear within seconds.

„Mother-fucking-Mechs – they’ve got Mutant-hunter-killers, we’re screwed.“

"Three ways from Sunday for sure." Sam said, analyzing the feed.

She wanted nothing more than to bring this battle to them, but her people couldn't compete with the FMKs (Fucking Mutant Killers). They would get ripped apart by the mechs. Her best bet at the moment would be to break that encryption and them down that way. The more complicated the machine, the smaller the move needed to dismantle it. Sam knew that if it came to battle, even if they succeeded in bringing down the ones here, more would come, and more and more, until the mutants were 'contained' and the situation was 'handled'.

"But fuck if we're gonna give up. My brain is still fried, but we can break it if we work together. If not, well then...if it's war they want, it's war they're gonna get."

Click to reveal.. (Hack the Planet!)

Roll: 16 +18 Modifier +2 Circumstance Bonus -30 DC = +6 PASS.

[Joani]

The trail was getting clearer and less diffuse now. His instincts didn't betray him and he was very sure he had found the right building. With uncanny skill and the experience of years as a hunter Fenris closed in on his target, carefully evaluating his every step as his senses sharpened to superhuman levels. The hair on his skin stood up in alertness sensing the slightest change of current in the air while his sense of scent provided him with details even unknown to the one he was tracking.

He located Jaunt's hideout and smiled. The young mutant knew how to keep himself out of reach, there was no door or other obvious entrance to the hideout. Probably he didn't need it since he could teleport. It was a challenge but certainly not impossible, in worst case he'd have to blast him through a hole with some c4 but that would certainly result in his prey jumping away.

Mutant Underground HQ

The door opened and they let Juno inside while Steve removed her blindfold.

"Welcome to the Mutant Underground.", he announced but got immediately interrupted by some men who looked like Guards.

"Who the fuck is that?", a rather brutish looking Mutant with a mustache and blueish skin asked while Juno could feel how the temperature dropped dramatically.

"Heyheyhey, she's a friend, guys.", Steve tried to explain

"A cop? Your friend? You've been smoking crack again, idiot? Where are the kids? We had them and now? Sam's not gonna like this. She's in a foul mood anyway. You've gone too far tnis time Steve."

The other men pointed their guns at the trio, only letting Brick bypass them.

"You'll wait here, I get the Boss. One wrong move and you're toast. Don't believe me? Zack will make you believe.", frosty-mustache was nodding at a third "Guard" behind them, a frail looking skinny guy with white hair and eyes that were missing pupil and iris, they sere completely white.

Steve smiled nervously, "We're on the same side, guys, just relax.", he bent forward to whisper something to Juno.

"Zack can cancel your powers, he'll make you just human if he has to. I wouldn't fuck with them. It'll be ok, trust me.", Steve didn't sound too convinced, though. He was really scared.

Frostbite made his way to Sam finding her deeply in concentration as she hacked herself into the military network Mouse had discovered. They had just bypassed the secutity systems and where establishing a backdoor when Sam felt the air getting colder around her. From the corner of her eyes she saw Frostbite waiting impatiently, he was the head of their security so probably he had some news from the surface. She hoped good news.

[SalmonMax]

As the blue guy walked off through the 'headquarters,' Juno started pulling off the police riot gear she'd borrowed previously, all the while keeping an eye on Zack; the only one who had a power that was potentially worrisome to her. Still, she reasoned, if he was going to cancel her powers, he'd best do it fast, because he didn't look like he'd stand up to much.

Under the riot gear her t-shirt and jeans were perforated with dozens of tiny holes. She plucked at the cloth and muttered angrily. And people wondered why she shopped at thrift stores.

"There, see?" she said. "Not a cop. I borrowed the uniform so they wouldn't gun me down out there."

[Grim]

He padded along the blank-walled corridor on the balls of his feet, head cocked as he listened intently to the wall every meter or two. He could hear voices over the distant rumble and rattle of the fighting in the MIC: young voices.

"..is 14-years-old and I won’t put her in such danger. We’ve been through too much trouble anyway."

Male. Young. Stressed. The brother, perhaps. It didn't sound like Jaunt, that was for certain.

The teleporter had done a good job of camoflaging his hideout. Drywall covered where the door used to be, painted and textured to appear identical to the real wall. Anyone coming along this hallway would see an apartment on the right side, but no apartment on the left. Unless they were seriously searching for anomalies, it would be missed. There was a slim-to-no chance of a casual observer noticing anything amiss. Fenris approved of the bolthole. If not over-used, it was a perfect spot to retreat to.

How to make contact, though? He rested his back against the drywall and pondered while listening to the mutants inside talk. Bursting in, breaking in, or sneaking in were out. The first two would compromise Jaunt's hideout, which in turn would antagonise the youth in addition to spooking all four occupants into attempting to flee. Sneaking in was likely to be difficult: even allowing for air vents, there was no guarantee they would be wide enough for the well-built tracker. And again, a sudden appearance would cause misunderstanding, perhaps flight. Not a problem if he put Jaunt down first, of course... But he wasn't here to harm: he was here to rescue.

Fenris liked that part of working with the Underground, liked being more than a homing weapon. He found and rescued mutants that were in danger, got them to safety, sometimes through very hostile territory. It was a challenge, and a rewarding one, to spirit oppressed mutants out from under the repressive authorities. The fact that he got to 'retire' official mutant-hunters was an additional bonus.

White flag. he decided, and rapped his knuckles, loud and steadily, on the wall he was leaning against as though he were knocking on the door. He waited until he was sure they'd heard the knocking, then with a slight grin beat out the tempo 'Shave and a haircut'. At the same time, Fenris mentally crossed his fingers. He really hoped that they didn't just bolt.

He'd much rather do this peacefully.

[Ira Sagebrush]

Quote:

Frostbite made his way to Sam finding her deeply in concentration as she hacked herself into the military network Mouse had discovered. They had just bypassed the secutity systems and where establishing a backdoor when Sam felt the air getting colder around her. From the corner of her eyes she saw Frostbite waiting impatiently, he was the head of their security so probably he had some news from the surface. She hoped good news.

Sam's concentration didn't move from the large monitor that was currently split in many subsections when her voice emerged from the staccato of the keyboard, "What is it FB, I'm kinda busy here."

"Steve and Brick are back--" Frostbite started.

"They have the kids?" There was surprise in Sam's voice and the typing seemed to break rhythm, much like a heart murmur before returning to normal.

Frost sighed, he hated to be interrupted, "No. If you'd let me finish...Steve and Brick are back, and they brought a cop with 'em."

"Fucking Christ, tell the dogs to fetch a bone, and they bring back a goddamn stick. Question him and then dump him. We don't have time for this crap."

One more for the pile. So much death today...they will pay.

"Gladly." Frostbite knew what she meant and half wished that Steve would be joining the cop. It was stupid to be bringing people in without permission or a heads up, doubly moronic it being a cop.

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

Rebecca jumped as someone rapped on the wall. “Who-?” she asked, turning to look at Jaunt. He shrugged, clearly having no idea.

Gulping, the young-looking mutant leaned against the wall and slid down until she was sitting against it- or against the stuff stacked against the wall. “What are we going to do?” But even as she asked, her mind was reaching out to the person’s beyond the wall.

It was like hitting a wall. Rebecca had experienced this before. There were minds that were made of sterner stuff than other minds. And this was one of them.

Fine, she thought and tried again – really tried. The effort had her gritting her teeth and then the nausea started. But the man’s mind opened to her, even as she started to shiver from the low fever plaguing her. First was eagerness: “Found them at last”. It was followed by concern “Hope they listen” and “Hope the fighting doesn't move this way.” He was also considering plans for getting them out to a safehouse well away from the MIC. But of greatest concern to her was the conflict within him. He was unwilling to force them or coerce them… mostly. That desire was balanced against how important keeping them safe was.

Keeping Becca safe. Stupid, Rebecca sighed to herself. Becca’s not the cure. She’s just as sick as the rest of us. “We should go,” she said, fear in her voice. But she already know what was going to happen: Jaunt would meet with him.

Click to reveal..

Rebecca’s Mind Reading Roll: 9 +4 Modifier = +13

Fenris’ Willpower save Roll: 13 +8 Modifier = +21

Rebecca’s second Mind Reading (Extra Effort)] Roll: 9 +8 Modifier = +17

Fenris’s Willpower check, MK II Roll: 7 +8 Modifier = +15

Rebecca’s Fortitude check Roll: 8 +2 Modifier -19 DC = -9 FAIL.

Rebecca’s Condition: Fatigued (Extra Effort), Dazed, -1 Damage (virus)

[Joani]

Once Frostbite was back the tall white-haired mutant gave him a frowned look. "She's one of us - she just took the uniform as disguise."

Frostbite's disappointment was obvious. He wanted to break something, someone to vent his anger and frustration but now things had gotten more complicated yet again.

Addressing Juno he cocked a brow still aiming his gun at her, "Then tell me, what's your story?"

"She knows the kids.", Steve answered quickly. "You know, the kids the boss is looking for. I thought she might be handy finding them.", the slim mutant added nervously his eyes glued on FBs gun.

"And do you have any proof she's telling the truth?"

Steve looked at Juno, suddenly realizing he never really asked her that or tried to figure out if she was just telling a story.

Once FB was out Sam had time to refocus on their hack. Mouse was smiling at her nodding at the screen where she could see that they had full access to the military network.

"So what's it gonna be, Boss?"

[SalmonMax]

"My story. All right." Juno yawned and stuffed her hands into her jeans pockets. "I met Adrian and Rebecca a couple weeks ago. They needed a place to crash, so I let them stay at a spot I know that's safe. Things were going fine up until this morning. Adrian and his sister went shoppig. I was out walking when all of a sudden all hell starts breaking loose over at the MIC. That's not too far from where Adrian was, so I figured I'd see if they were okay. Took a uniform so I could move around. Spotted your guy's van with mutants in it, so I used the cop radio to send everyone on a wild goose chase before going over and introducing myself."

Juno shrugged. "And now, here I am. Still just looking for my friends."

[Joani]

Originally Posted By: Rebecca Lee Howards

Keeping Becca safe. Stupid, Rebecca sighed to herself. Becca’s not the cure. She’s just as sick as the rest of us. “We should go,” she said, fear in her voice. But she already know what was going to happen: Jaunt would meet with him.

Adrian was tense and nervous and he had retreated back to his sister. Staying close to her gave him the feeling of being better able to protect her, just in case.

Jaunt looked at Rebecca briefly and the back to Adrian. "I won't take long, just check out what's going on there. You guys gather at the couch where Becca lies - if anything is goofy I'll be back and get you out of here in no time, k?", he didn't really wait much and plopped out of existence rephasing back just far away from Fenris to be safe but within reasonable distance to talk.

"Whadda ya want?", he asked him trying to appear calm and gathered. At the first sign of danger or any wrong answer he'd take the kids to safety but he had to know who found them... and how

[Grim]

"To help." The blond man in the corridor didn't seem too surprised to see Jaunt suddenly appear. He spoke with an English accent: a real one, rather than the Hollywood 'upper crust Englishman' accent. "Orphan sent me after she lost you during that EMP. My name's Alex Garm." The man was dressed in shapeless black fatigues with a police issue flack-vest and webbing strung across his torso. Pistols, knives and grenades hung from the webbing, and an MP9 SMG was suspended from a shoulder sling across his chest. Jaunt noticed that the dude was blood-splattered. Dried blood was forming a rusty-red crust both hands, and glistened slickly on the vest and clothing that he wore. Blood was apparent on his face and pale hair as well, as though he'd been sprayed with a plant mister full of it.

"I understand you don't totally trust anyone, and that's good. It's sensible." he told the younger man. "So I asked Orphan, and she agreed, to let me take you to a safehouse rather than Mu HQ. It's a lot like this fine bolthole you have here, only further away from the fighting. It's also disposable, so we don't need to worry about black-bagging anyone - no blindfolds, no earplugs. Once we're safely there, we can pow-wow this out." Garm looked down the corridor as a distant rumble of gunfire sounded from maybe a block away, then glanced back at Jaunt.

"My job is to get you and the kids you're looking after somewhere safe. I'm on your side here: I want to do this as peacefully as I can. But there's people hunting those siblings who don't give a tinker's toss about peaceful or about how you all feel about it. We've got AEGIS, UNISON, those goddamn Robot Wars knockoffs and Lord knows who else roaming the MIC with blood in their eye." His gaze was level with Jaunt's, his voice quietly urgent. "Let me help you all get the hell out of here, then you can decide whether or not I'm a friend for yourselves."

[Ira Sagebrush]

Originally Posted By: Joani

Once FB was out Sam had time to refocus on their hack. Mouse was smiling at her nodding at the screen where she could see that they had full access to the military network.

"So what's it gonna be, Boss?"

"First things first, we frak up those damn FMKs." Sam said, initializing the download of all the datafiles she had gained access to. They were heavily encrypted and would take time to break into and she couldn't spare the time right now. This system was near the best she'd ever seen and didn't want to risk the chance of the military (or whoever they were) to trace the intrusion back to the Underground.

O Holy night...the stars are brightly shiiiining...

"...It is the night of the dear Savior's birth..."

It only took a quick moment for Sam to relize that she couldn't control the Blackhammers directly, their systems were independent of the network she was in. However, they sensors and communications were all piped in through this signal.

"Long lay the world in sin and error piiiiiiining!"

Sam's hands flew as she typed out new orders to the Blackhammers;

RETURN TO BASE. REPEAT RETURN TO BASE. MUTANT FORCE BREACHED PERIMETER. UNABLE TO SCRAMBLE SQUADS. RESECURE GROUNDS. USE OF FORCE AUTHORIZED. ASSUME ALL ENEMY---

She cut the message off for dramatic flair and to give it a further sense of urgency.

"Till He appeared and the Spirit felt its worrrrrth."

Sam watched as all the FMKs stopped, almost seeming to ponder the new orders and a couple even started heading towards the base. If they took too long, she knew they would try and radio confirm the orders, so she cut off one of the FMKs that was hanging back, putting the unit into the darkness of visual-only Hell.

Immediately, as they saw the communications drop off their comrade, the rest started heading towards the base, blasting across the sky quickly.

"A thrill of hope the weary world rejooooiiices!"

Sam cut off the rest, making the unit dark.

I sow confusion and despair, and shall reap destruction and mayhem! Is this where I insert my mad scientist laugh?

"Sam, I love you girl, you know I do, but please stop singing." Mouse said, his voice coming over their connection.

"Everybody's a critic...aren't you inspired? Don't you feel the Spirit right now?" Sam sarcastically pleaded.

"I'm inspired to find out how far this connection goes before our time runs out or before those Hammers lay waste to Nellis."

Sam paused for just a moment, bubbling giddyness of success bursting forth in one last line, "For yonder breaks a new and glorious mooooorrrrn!" She smiled, nearly laughing at Mouse's cringe, "Alright, let's see where the brick road goes."

Even as the units moved in on their new 'target', Sam and Mouse also traced their line back to Nellis and started delving.

Faaaaallllll! ...On your kneeees!....

Click to reveal.. (1st Investigation roll)

Roll: 3 +16 Modifier +2 Circumstance Bonus -10 DC = +11 PASS.

Click to reveal.. (2nd Investigation roll)

Roll: 19 +16 Modifier +2 Circumstance Bonus -10 DC = +27 PASS.

Click to reveal.. (Further Decryption Roll)

Roll: 11 +18 Modifier +2 Circumstance Bonus -25 DC = +6 PASS.

[Joani]

Originally Posted By: Fenris

"My job is to get you and the kids you're looking after somewhere safe. I'm on your side here: I want to do this as peacefully as I can. But there's people hunting those siblings who don't give a tinker's toss about peaceful or about how you all feel about it. We've got AEGIS, UNISON, those goddamn Robot Wars knockoffs and Lord knows who else roaming the MIC with blood in their eye." His gaze was level with Jaunt's, his voice quietly urgent. "Let me help you all get the hell out of here, then you can decide whether or not I'm a friend for yourselves."

"Yeah, nice story - I couldn't have told it better.", Jaunt replied and Fenris could sense the kids' distrust and smell his adrenaline. One wrong step and the whole chase would start over again.

"But we'll do things my way... which means, we play reverse-strip-poker. Take off your clothes, I'll pick you up and we go inside. For every answer to our questions we'll give you one piece of your stuff - if I or my friends don't like what you have to say we're gone... and with gone I mean - you'll never see us again."

Fenris was too close to reaching his goal to let this fail because of some stupid decision and part of him understood Jaunt's protective measures. The tall blonde sighed and took off his clothes to his underwear and stepped back just us Jaunt told him to. Then something happened the old hunter hadn't expected... nor seen before. Before he could as much as blink his clothes were gone and then he felt his surrounding shift around him. A short moment of disorientation and he found himself inside a cage - opposite to his position was Jaunt, Rebecca and the two kids he was looking for.

It seemed he was inside Jaunt's little hide-out and the kid was prepared for this kind of situation which made him chuckle a bit.

"Alright, lets start with something simple - who are you?", Jaunt asked holding Fenris' pants in his hands and rising an eyebrow at the large blonde.

Click to reveal..

I apologize if I took too much freedom here - I hope for the sake of continuity that it is still ok, if not please tell me which parts need editing. For Rebecca - Things went pretty fast, Jaunt was in an out in under two minutes and you can hardly explain where the man in the cage had come from but it is very likely that he is the same man who's mind you scanned earlier

[Joani]

The Blackhammers all closed in to Nellis Airforce Base laying waste to most of the stationed Vehicles outside on their first swoop. Sam could follow how quickly they laid waste to the surface facility. It was a beautiful sight but unfortunately short lived. Something was jamming their signal, probably a very powerful EMP or some kind of white noise which apparently shut down the Battlesuits.

Mouse had stood up watching the action on the screen lifting his arms up and in a mock imitation of the Crow’s gang „Fire em up, Fire em up!“. He glanced at Sam with an apolegetic smile and sat down again, „I... decrypt this... file here... ok?“, and continued with his work.

But Sam barely noticed him, her eyes were glued on the file she just opened – Mutant Virus Project – Date 12-01-1990, Mojave-Desert Facility. The Decryption code was doing overtime but she slowly hacked through the file, revealing page after page of medical and scientific data about the artificial creation of the Mutant Virus...

Click to reveal..

Details shall be PMed

Originally Posted By: SalmonMax

"My story. All right." Juno yawned and stuffed her hands into her jeans pockets. "I met Adrian and Rebecca a couple weeks ago. They needed a place to crash, so I let them stay at a spot I know that's safe. Things were going fine up until this morning. Adrian and his sister went shoppig. I was out walking when all of a sudden all hell starts breaking loose over at the MIC. That's not too far from where Adrian was, so I figured I'd see if they were okay. Took a uniform so I could move around. Spotted your guy's van with mutants in it, so I used the cop radio to send everyone on a wild goose chase before going over and introducing myself."

Juno shrugged. "And now, here I am. Still just looking for my friends."

FB listened carefully looking at the white haired mutant every other sentence as if he was some kind of lie detector. White-hairs expression remained calm and featureless, though which seemed to be ok for FB since he slowly ´warmed up´ and got friendlier to Juno.

„I see, if they are really your friends I suppose they would be able to confirm your story.“, FB looked at Steve and beckoned him closer.

„Orphan sent Fenny after them, I guess he will find them sooner or later. Nice girlfriend you picked up there, Dickhead.“

Steve wanted to protest but FB was already waving him off. „Show her around the secure area, give her a bunk, she’s gonna stay here for a while until the Boss decides what to do with her.“

„Why can’t we talk to her?“, Steve almost regretted asking that as he saw the scold on FBs face.

„Because – she – is – busy, Fool!“

[Grim]

Quote:

"Alright, lets start with something simple - who are you?", Jaunt asked holding Fenris' pants in his hands and rising an eyebrow at the large blonde.

Inwardly, the large man sighed. He could have done this the impolite way: burst through the thin wall, flashbanged and tear-gassed the kids into submission, then whisked the younger two away. But no, he'd decided to play nice, and now he was mostly naked in a cage with a punk kid holding his pants and smirking at him whilst playing stupid interrogation games. He did a slow count to five before answering, squatting down on his haunches and watching the four young mutants outside the cage with a steady, patient stare.

"I go by Alex Garm most often, but that's a slave name." he said slowly, looking each kid in the eyes as he spoke, then returning the blue-green stare to Jaunt. "In the Mutant Underground, they call me Fenris."

[SalmonMax]

"Look," Juno said, planting a fist on her hip. "It sounds to me like I can make you guys' lives a lot easier right now. The reason Adrian and Becca aren't here yet is because they don't trust you, right? Let me talk to them. Take me to 'the Boss' and tell her I can smooth things over. Something tells me she'll magically become 'unbusy,' right?"

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

The mysterious Alex Garm. That’s why he looked familiar to me. Rebecca stared only to giggle a little as he finished talking. “So your slave name isn’t Toby?” she asked, then waved her hand in the air. “Sorry, bad joke.” Ugh, people and their made-up code names.

The timer on the stove buzzed and Rebecca rose despite feeling like shit. Food would help her keep up her energy and she would need that. She pulled it out and, as she started to slice, she asked, “How’d you find us, anyway? I thought Jaunt had covered our tracks pretty well.”

She handed plates to Jaunt and the siblings, then walked over to ‘Fenris’ and folded the paper plate to fit through the bars. He looked a little surprised to be offered food. “And do you want Mountain Dew or Coke?” She gave him a shy smile that she didn’t entirely feel; she was too afraid of him to be completely comfortable around him.

[Grim]

"Coke is fine." He smiled back at her, keen senses analysing her reactions, her fear and the way she masked it. Smart girl, smart and tough. He watched her as she went to grab the drink from the fridge. "Slave name sounds dramatic, doesn't it?" he said conversationally. "In my case, Alex Garm wasn't my 'slave' name. He doesn't even really exist. My human masters didn't even care what my real name was."

"You were a slave?" the younger boy asked, half-skeptical and half-fascinated. Fenris nodded, blowing a little on his pizza before taking a bite. He didn't seem at all discomfited by his near-nakedness, or by the cage. He may as well have been on a couch eating that pizza, so relaxed he seemed.

"I was, and for a long time. Thank you." he said to Rebecca with another smile as he accepted the Coke. She smiled back, still afraid behind it, and moved back to stay near Jaunt. "As to how I found you: that's what I do. I find people. And Jaunt did cover your tracks well - it took me hours. Normally, I'd have found you inside of sixty minutes." He nodded at Jaunt as he popped the tab of the can, saluted the young mutant with it, and took a drink. "I believe that's two questions answered?" he said mildly.

"Sure." Jaunt tossed him his pants and the black sweater, both of which had bloodstains and bulletholes in them. "Seen some action? And no, that's not one of the questions."

"A freebie, then?" Fenris said with raised eyebrow, pulling on the pants. "The answer is yes. I have. The guns and gear there came from a police death squad - sorry, 'special patrol'. They were going to execute a mutant woman for looting food." He didn't say any more, merely took another bite of pizza then pulled the sweater on.

"Okay, so what are you doing here looking for us?" Jaunt asked, holding up the soft-soled half-boots Fenris had been wearing.

"I've come to get you all out of the MIC and somewhere safe, and offer you the protection of the Mutant Underground. I won't lie, the reason they sent me is because two of you are supposed to be a clue to curing the virus. But I'm not here to kidnap or threaten you into coming with me, just to try and convince you." He took another sip of Coke. "That's why I knocked."

"So where are we going? Assuming we go with you, which I wouldn't assume right now." Jaunt said, tossing the boots into the cage and picking up the flack vest.

"A safehouse known to me, Orphan, and a couple of the most trusted Underground members. There's food, power, water, plenty of beds, and best of all it's well away from central Las Vegas." Fenris answered. "It's a compromise halfway house - for mutants that need our help, but aren't sure they want to go full-out and join the movement. When we're there, you can relax and decide what you want to do without AEGIS or UNISON busting down the door and carting you off, and without us worrying you'll run off and tell anyone about the secret MU headquarters. No black bags, no blindfolds, no earplugs." He sat back down again and picked up his pizza. "And you can keep the vest and weapons there, if you know how to use them and they'll help you feel safer. I'll be happy with what I've got."

[z-Rebecca Lee Howards]

“Becca has the Virus,” Rebecca said, and Fenris didn’t even need his special senses to know how disappointed she was to have to say that. As Adrian looked at her, getting angry, Rebecca said, “She’s not a cure or anything, it only manifests differently in her. She’s not the great hope everything thinks she is.”

“Rebecca!”

“What?” She glared at Adrian. “If people didn’t think your sister was the answer to stopping the virus, maybe they wouldn’t be chasing you all over the place. Maybe they’d leave you the heck alone! Maybe if you would let that get out or take some help from someone else instead of doing it all on your fudging own, you might not be in this mess or living hand-to-mouth on the streets. You can’t do this on your own, Adrian! The fact that Jaunt had to pull your behind out of the fire tells me that much!”

There was a beat of silence after Rebecca’s rant had run out. Then Jaunt said, “Did you just say ‘fudging’?”

Rebecca blushed. “Uh, yeah,” she said, realizing how lame it made her sound. “I’ve never really liked being more profane than that. Sooooooo… I’m all for getting out of here, but not necessarily to some halfway house.” She looked at Fenris. “Your deal is sweeter than the one that was given to us via iPod, but frankly, I don’t know if we can trust you. It’d still be easy for this… Underground to keep tabs on us, especially with someone on the payroll who can hack machines.”

[Grim]

"Listen." Fenris said with quiet urgency. "Rebecca, I believe you: that is to say, I believe that you believe what you are saying." He looked at them all, Rebecca, Adrian, Jaunt and 'Becca. "That doesn't really change my mission. If I'd learned that there were four young mutants trapped in the MIC with the flatscans going apeshit with their robot mutant-killer powersuits, I'd still be here trying to convince you to take my help."

"You say you don't trust us. What's the worst case if you come with me?" Fenris said after another bite of pizza. "We all go to the safehouse. Adrian and Becca let our science people look at them, we find out you're right, and that's that. You're still out of the MIC, fed, cleaned up, sleeping in beds and with your own people looking out for you. If you're nothing to do with a cure, even incidentally, then we'll let that word get out too. Then we run you guys wherever you want to go with false I.D's and some money, just like we do for dozens of other mutants who decide they don't want to live in ghettos in the United Reich of America." The large blond man shrugged.

"Or you can stay with us, live off the human-controlled grid and spike their wheels until we actually get some equal treatment. If you are a link to a cure for the Virus, then sure, we'll want to explore that, but not to the point of keeping you in cells. I doubt the humans will be so lenient." He gazed at them steadily. "Worst case if you don't come with me? You'll run out of resources, run out of options, and end up in human hands. If you're lucky, it'll be UNISON and they'll stick you in an MIC 'for your own good' so that next time the mutant-killers come, you'll be back in the line of fire. If it's AEGIS, you'll disappear."

"Dude, you played the Nazi card." Jaunt scoffed. "I like it - United Reich of America - but you lose the debate if you bring Nazis into it. Everyone always calls this shit Nazi-like. It's old."

"Young man, I am not familiar with that rule. But then, I fought against the fascisti in the Great Patriotic War when I was younger than Adrian." Fenris's eyes were ancient and cold as he spoke, the English accent slipping from him as he spoke, replaced with a Russian intonation. "I was on the march to Berlin. I saw the ghettos, empty with boarded up houses and the word 'Jude' stenciled over the doors. I saw the camps that you read about and hear about on History Channel. I talked to survivors who didn't believe they were in real danger in the ghettos until the stormtroopers came for them." Eyes blazing slightly, Fenris stared at Jaunt for a moment before picking up his drink and taking a big gulp. When he lowered the drink, he was calmer.

"So when I see these MICs, I speak with authority when I call them ghettos. When I see mutants being herded into them, forced out of jobs and into second-class citizenship, I compare the country that allows it with Nazi Germany, or yes, Stalin's Russia, which was little better. When I see 'policemen' who would beat and execute a hungry woman with green hair simply for stealing food, I call them stormtroopers or Chekists. And I challenge you to find me a single living Jew who was in those camps who would not do the same."

[Joani]

Adrian was torn between his instinct to run away and trusting Fenris. What he said made sense and running away hasn’t really improved his situation much. Especially since Becca started manifesting her powers...

„I... I’d give it a try.“, he hesitantly stated not sure if Jaunt and Rebecca would scold him for that. Obviously everything was circling around his sister and he promised to keep her safe but his options didn’t look so good lately. If he kept declining help he might end up in the gutter one day... but if he made a wrong decision his sister would be taken by the Government.

Everyone could see the conflict in his eyes and bodylanguage – Adrian didn’t want to show it but it was all too obvious.

[Jaunt]

After a long, silent moment, Jaunt let out a sight that broke the calm. "Well, it's settled then. If Adrian is willing to give you a shot, Ivan, than we give you a shot."

"Seriously?" Adrian said, a bit relieved that Jaunt didn't offer some smart-assed comment.

"Seriously." He offered back with a wink. As one brother to another Jaunt sympathized with Adrian and what the poor kid must be going through. "I'm just the guardian, kid. The choices are yours. I'll stick with you until Dolph gets you to his little hide out safely. Least I can do."

He folded his arms, as if to use them as a way of saying his choice was made and his decision was rooted. "Rebecca? What about you? Wanna come with, at least for the time being? I'll teach ya how to cuss all proper like." He shot her a mischievous smirk that told her he was in no way lying.

[Joani]

"I stay with you guys, though. I mean if you don't trust him, I trust you more than him...", Adrian added nervously. He really disliked the entire situation...

Originally Posted By: SalmonMax

"Look," Juno said, planting a fist on her hip. "It sounds to me like I can make you guys' lives a lot easier right now. The reason Adrian and Becca aren't here yet is because they don't trust you, right? Let me talk to them. Take me to 'the Boss' and tell her I can smooth things over. Something tells me she'll magically become 'unbusy,' right?"

There was a moment of awkward silence before FB decided to take a chance. „You better have something up your sleeves or the boss will make you feel really sorry for wasting her time.“

He led her through some corridors and Juno could tell that the entire facility used to be state of the art. It was still in a good shape but had that touch of having been abandoned in the past. What a strange thing that someone would build something like this under LV...

They reached an area which was heavily computerized. Lots of screens and terminals were creating something like a ´Think-Tank´. FB asked her to wait and the nullifier Mutant remained nearby but outside her reach.

„What?“, asked a rather unnerved female voice and Juno could see FB flinching under her one worded question.

„It’s that prisoner again – she’s a mutant... and she says she knows how to get the Kids...“