Mutants & Masterminds: The Unlikely Prophets - Issue #4: "My Own Private Kryptonite"

[IndyPendant]

Impulsively--and perhaps unwisely--Sharatur shifted position just enough to let her be seen by her two friends. "Francis! Terry! Over here!" Smiling, she waved briefly to get their attention. But she did take Necronaut's hand with her other, just in case they needed to retreat in a hurry.

[SalmonMax]

"We can make another hiding place," Hex said. "Really, anywhere we can get to. All we have to do is install a door that I'm familiar with. It doesn't even have to be a building, really. We could bolt a door to a cave somewhere. The risk of that is that we use it so often...it's possible they'll figure it out and come up with a countermeasure. I don't remember if anyone in the Order uses magic...but I don't think they'd market it that way even if it was true. They'd have some fake backstory."

[Charlotte]

"Something to work on, I guess. We'd have to figure out where to go, what the signals would be..." Matt trailed off. "Hex, you still go out on the missions, right? You'll be heading out again once they figure out the next step. Isn't that kind of risky if you're the only way to get anywhere?"

* * *

"... so I think that - " Terry paused in mid-conversation with Francis, and saw Sharatur.

"... holy crap it's - "

Francis slapped his hand over Terry's mouth. "Yes! Yes, I see it too, a 2011 Nissan. Wow." He had gone pale as a sheet and he'd clearly seen Sharatur as well. He looked around frantically, checking the tops of telephone poles for something.

After a quick look around, he released Terry, and the two of them jogged over to the alleyway. Terry followed Francis' lead. "Yeah, haven't seen one of those in forever. Woo."

Terry dug around in his pocket for a piece of paper, while Francis held a finger to his lips whilst looking Sharatur straight in the eyes. Terry quickly scrawled a note, and showed it to Sharatur.

they bugged our skin - they hear everything we say

[IndyPendant]

Sharatur glanced down at the note, then her eyes darted back up to Terry. In that instant, her eyes turned cold and hard as empty space. In short, Jade--the same woman that had calmly kicked Spartan's head in and walked away--was back. Did--They--Hurt--You? she mouthed slowly and with exagerrated care, her eyes flicking from Terry and Francis as she asked. From her expression and the tension radiating from her, she was almost ready to murder every member of the Order right here and now if either of them so much as nodded.

[Necronaut]

Norman glanced at the note and sighed. The security cameras suddenly jumped from 'irritating reminder of Order presence' to 'threat of impending conflict'. He resisted the urge to make eye contact with the nearest.

He pointed out toward the parking lot and spoke with half-heatedly feigned interest. "A client of mine had a 2010 Kia. One of the little ones. That was a classy ride." He cleared his throat. "You guys work here right? We've only got the day to see as much as we can. Any chance you could show us around?" His eyes narrowed slightly, "Maybe help us avoid the crowds?"

[Charlotte]

stung a little, wrote Terry. He showed Sharatur a small welt on his collarbone. didn't mind that - hate no privacy though

"Sure, we can show you around," said Francis, doing an admirable job of keeping the fear out of his voice. He waved towards an alleyway between two of the nearby buildings. "Crowds won't be around much this time of day, but - trust me, they'll be coming."

[Bodhie Armstrong]

"Hex - can't you create some kind of Talismans that let us use doors for one time. Like a throw away kind-of thing? Then we wouldn't be entirely depend on you alone.", Bodhie had no idea about magic actually but since it seemed to be able to do the impossible, why not creating throw-away stuff?

The question was a difficult matter actually since without Hex anyone would be stranded if they had no other means of transportation. The large woman didn't like this at all and she was one of the few on the team who had little options besides staying at the HQ. No one would take her exaggerated physique for natural even in her 'small' form she was freakishly muscular, more than any woman should have the right to be. One way or the other, Bodhie would be dependent on Hex, if not for the question at hand about their means of transportation but also for away to disguise her appearance.

[IndyPendant]

The fierce blaze of fury boiled off, lowering to a quiet simmer. She tossed Necronaut a quick grateful look before returning her focus back to her friends. "That sounds perfect. One of the reasons we came here was to experience that sense of isolation, you know? This is the Grand Canyon, there's got to be places where even reception--like, for cell phones--won't work." She forced a grin. "Thanks so much. Lead the way."

[Charlotte]

The two of them led Necronaut and Jade away, while Terry wrote some more.

some kind of RFID thing - they say they can track us anywhere - can you get it out?

Francis went into a rote recitation of the history of the Grand Canyon, that Sharatur knew by heart, having delivered it herself - though, it had to be said, a bit less nervously.

[Necronaut]

"So, smart guys" Norman pulled his own notepad from his cargo shorts as he spoke. "If the river is running and dust is falling then the canyon is still being shaped today. What is the approximate average change in depth over the course of a year?"

He punctuated his best obnoxious nerd-tourist impression by holding up his notepad, where he had written: "If your signals stop they will come for you. We have a safe place. Can you leave everything behind?"

[IndyPendant]

Sharatur craned her neck to read what Necronaut had written, and then nodded. She took the pad and quickly wrote, Can remove safely. Can't return till it's over if we do. Safe place big, with people, growing. Understand if you'd rather stay.

She watched them--not warily, but carefully, as they read the words she and Necronaut wrote. Searching for signs of doubt or reluctance.

[Charlotte]

will they track us there? they said not to run. we'd be found anywhere.

"Varies year by year. Pollution throws it all off, I'm afraid - there isn't really an average any more."

[SalmonMax]

Hex takes a deep breath, rolling the questions around in her head.

"Alright, first of all, yes...right now I'm the main way the team gets around. I'm not the ONLY way. Necronaut's plane can carry us when Radiance uses her powers to make more space for us, and Gloom can move through shadows...but I am the main way. And that is a pretty big risk, I agree. The door magic is just very convenient because doors are so commonplace, and the spell doesn't have the limited speed of the airplane, or the limited range of the shadow-thing she does."

She looked at Bodhi and chewed her lip thoughtfully. "I think it could be possible, yes," she said at last. "But it wouldn't be easy, or fast. To make something like that for everyone on the team would take me quite awhile. Plus...I think I could actually make something that would work better, and it would be easier."

"Bear in mind, this is just a thought right now...I haven't researched it yet so I don't know for sure how it would work...but I think it should be possible to use the totem as a kind of 'snap-back' point. I could take small pieces of it, nothing that would hurt it, and use them as sympathetic ties...magically intensify their natural tendency towards 'reunification,' so that when activated, they yank themselves...and whoever is holding them...back to the totem. Kind of like a panic button."

[IndyPendant]

Sharatur read the note, and then wrote We'll deal with it. Wait here. "We need to get our stuff, and put on some sunscreen. Give us a few minutes, and we'll be ready for the tour."

Once safely away, she said to Necronaut. "Let's signal Hex, and get Glitch's help with this. If anyone's able to help then, he will." She looked around for a suitable doorway that wouldn't be covered by cameras. "I wonder if a car door would be good enough?"

[Charlotte]

As Hex finished her sentence, Glitch's communicator chirped, and upon examination, read the message that Necronaut and Jade had sent to him.

Speeding things up and taking a few liberties. Also still have a goddamn cold' date=' so sorry again for the brief UPdate![/quote']

[Necronaut]

The Necronaut glanced around warily, following Sharatur. "It hadn't occurred to me that they could have connected us with our past lives. I... may need to pay a visit to the old mortuary after all. When this business is wrapped up."

[IndyPendant]

"Well, I don't know if you're in the same situation" Sharatur said reassuringly, as they waited for Hex and Glitch to show up. "I fought some Order thugs when I first got my powers, and was about to go on the run when you called me. It...wouldn't exactly have been all that difficult for them to figure out who I was. Not a lot of female teleporting martial artists out there, I'm betting. But it might be a good idea to check it out, just in case. Want me to come along? --Once Terry and Francis are safely settled, of course."

[Necronaut]

Norman didn't maintain eye-contact with Sharatur. He was too busy trying to keep an eye on the the security cameras while trying to look like he was sight-seeing.

"Yes, I would really appreciate it. You're right, there's not much of me to trace back. But if there is something going on back in Chicago, I'd definitely rather have you around than not."

[SalmonMax]

(OOC - What's in the message? I assume we're being asked to come help? I can use the same door I sent them there through, I suppose...)

[Charlotte]

Haven't gotten a message from Necro or Jade as to specific content' date=' so we'll say in the interest of speeding things up that they generally need help - Glitch specifically, because of the implants.[/quote']

[Thomas Froit]

When Glitch got the message, it took a few moments for him to read it over, then he got up and apologized for the beeping. "Hex, Gloom, can I have a moment outside?" When the three were alone, away from the meeting, he showed the two ladies the message from Sharatur and Norman. "I'd worry that this is a bit excessive... that we could give it time- but then I'd say I'd be a howling hypocrite. Your thoughts?" He'd done the same thing for his parents, of course.

[Charlotte]

Meanwhile

It was in the back room of a shop in London that she'd finally found it.

The world had been a blur, these many weeks, a blur of books. Scouring libraries, bookshops, even private collections, searching for something she'd know only when she found it. The books' cover was red, and yellow, and blue. It had a picture of an ancient temple, and a man with a shirt and tie. And she knew, the second she saw it, that it was what she'd left Blackjacks' town for.

Now she had it. What the angels had told her to find.

A way to widen the door just a little further.

[SalmonMax]

When Glitch got the message, it took a few moments for him to read it over, then he got up and apologized for the beeping. "Hex, Gloom, can I have a moment outside?" When the three were alone, away from the meeting, he showed the two ladies the message from Sharatur and Norman. "I'd worry that this is a bit excessive... that we could give it time- but then I'd say I'd be a howling hypocrite. Your thoughts?" He'd done the same thing for his parents, of course.

Hex sighed. On the one hand, she realized they probably couldn't afford to just move everyone they'd ever known to Australia. But on the other, where did one draw the line?

"Well, we can't just leave them in the cold out there," she said. "They're asking for help...lets give it to them. But then we need to work out some kind of rule or policy to govern this kind of situation, because we can't just move the whole world over here in secret. Sooner or later we'll have to turn this around, and start making other places besides here safe. We need a plan for how to do that. How can we take and hold ground from the Order? But yeah, for now, lets head over there. Did they send a picture of a door we can use?"

[Thomas Froit]

Glitch pulled one up while considering the question Hex was asking. "Remember, we can practically take care of all functional needs with the technology the Goldsmith left us and I'm studying. It's very likely that we could make bases in Antarctica or other desolate locations like the Gobi, because we have the power to do so and conceal them... and the Order wouldn't expect that. Of course, speed is also an issues... I need to look into pre-fabricating bases like what we're working on for this town."

[CyCo]

Meanwhile

It was in the back room of a shop in London that she'd finally found it.

The world had been a blur, these many weeks, a blur of books. Scouring libraries, bookshops, even private collections, searching for something she'd know only when she found it. The books' cover was red, and yellow, and blue. It had a picture of an ancient temple, and a man with a shirt and tie. And she knew, the second she saw it, that it was what she'd left Blackjacks' town for.

Now she had it. What the angels had told her to find.

A way to widen the door just a little further.

Jesus Christ! No. Seriously...Jesus Christ! What the Hell?! It would be in the last bloody place I look, wouldn't it? And of course, it would be in the city I lived in, the place You knew I wouldn't head to first, Bloody Wanker.

The miles disappeared under her feet as she ran across the Channel, then Europe, parts of the Middle East, and India. She stopped briefly in Sri Lanka before setting sail across the Ocean to get some food and some protection for the book. She didn't want to risk any damage to it from salt spray, but she also didn't want to delay herself further by taking a mostly land route. A water route would also give her some added stealth advantage. As difficult as it was to track her on land, it was nearly impossible to do it on open water.

She went over herself one last time, checking the LOOM-created costume for snags or tears. She wasn't exactly sure how damage would hold up under the speed; she didn't want to arrive in Australia in the buff, her clothing having disintegrated on re-entry from a light defect. So, with a slight paranoia, she went overherself, taking time to check the straps and buckles of her courier bags as well.

Happy with the results, she pulled her goggles off her head and eased them over her tired, dark eyes.

I need a nap. And a day at the spa. Maybe a week...one with a large male Bodhie-type...

Lost in her daydream, she set off, her footprints in the sand quickly washed away by the incoming tide. She started parallel to the beach, weaving between crashing waves until she got out beyond the break line. The water slightly calmer, she oriented herself and made a bee-line for Australia and its Rock.

~*~*~*~

Why couldn't he live in the nice tropical part of Australia? He has to live in the middle of nowhere in the desert.

More than once, in the brief time it took Cyco to make her way to the center of the Australian continent, she was forced to pause and wipe grime from her goggles, the dust of the desert making it too difficult to see.

Exhausted, she finally found her way back to AssJack's town, though she only really called him that out of habit more than annoyance. The emotion relating to Jack's attitude had long since faded behind thousands of miles.

A pass through the town found it much more populated than it was before, which in an of itself was surprising, but didn't really matter to her purpose. On her second pass around, she saw Hex & Gloomy-Gus standing with some guy outside a building.

Brilliant!

In her excitement, she forgot to slow down before she came up on them, which caused a cloud of dust and debris to wash over the small group as Cyco came to a halt, a fine layer of dirt over her body, "I found An Unlikely Prophet!"

[z-Gloom]

Gloom narrowed her black eyes at Cyco. This was in part because Gloom wanted to see better. It was also to protect her eyes from the dust cloud kicked up by Cyco. But mostly, it was because Gloom narrowed her eyes at everyone, all the time.

Another god-damned book? What the hell?

"Another god-damned book?" she rasped at Cyco. "What the hell are you talking about?"

[SalmonMax]

"Cyco!" Hex exclaimed, momentarily at a loss for any words more detailed. "I...wow...I didn't expect to see you again for...awhile, I guess. I don't know! Welcome back though!"

She looked at the book and frowned perplexedly. "Yes, what book is that?"

[IndyPendant]

Over at the Grand Canyon, Sharatur cast a puzzled, slightly concerned glance at Necronaut. "That's odd..." she said, using the device to send Er...hello? Everything all right over there?

[Charlotte]

At the noise, Blackjack emerged. He heard Hex's greeting, and smiled.

"Welcome back, kid. Good to see ya. ... so to speak."

Then he heard the buzz of an incoming message on Glitch's pager. "Aright - Cyco, tell me and Gloom what you found, then we'll get you set up at a place to stay and we'll tell you about the improvements we made. Glitch, if that's Jade or Necronaut, you and Hex help them out, aright?"

[Thomas Froit]

"Of course I will." Glitch said irritably at the interruption. "You didn't introduce me after all. Anyway, I need to grab something, Hex, be ready to go when I get back." As he went to his house to grab a few key construction items and a briefcase to help conceal what he would need, he tapped out a message back.

We're coming. Interruptus Cyco. Besides, I'm getting what you need for this, gonna have to do it soon after we get there.

Once at the house- he already knew what to get, and slapping it the injector was a cinch even in the rush. Then, with it in a briefcase he returned promptly to the group. "Au revoire. We'll be back soon."

Inventitude!

So it took me some time to work out... the Invented device is this:

Boost 30 ("Nanotech-Remover", Affects Others Only, Always On Side Effect: Target receives Stun 5 [Poison] when Boosted) [7.5 pp]

"Nanotech-Remover": Nullify 10 (All Technological, Power Resistance)

Design Check: Glitch takes a -5 penalty to halve the time and then takes 10 to auto pass. Because this is a primarily mental task, Quickness 6 makes it go x100 faster.

7.5 hr x 60 min/hr = 450. 450 / 2 = 225. 225 min / 100= 2.25 min.

So by now he should have figured out how to make it.

Spend an HP to jury rig. And Craft Electronics still auto-passes with that +21 check.

[SalmonMax]

Stung when Glitch reminded her of forgetting introductions, Hex said, "Sorry, I was just surprised...anyway, lets go for now. Introductions can wait until we're all together again."

Having studied the pictures on the phone, Hex had a good enough image of the door. She opened the Book of Keys and began her scribbles. A few seconds later, Jack's closet opened up onto an alleyway where Necronaut and Jade waited anxiously with their charge. Hex let Glitch through first, then stepped through after him.

"Sorry about the delay. Cyco came back and threw us all off balance."

[CyCo]

Cyco blanched at the lack of fanfare. Cyco's mouth hung open in shock as they walked away, seemingly uncaring for the monumental discovery she had made. Where were the trumpets? Where were the oiled bodybuilders to hoist her on their oh-so-sculpted shoulders and carry her exhausted form to the lap of luxury and a hot bath? Where was the modicum of curiosity at the mission sent to her by God; that she had finally completed?! Why did they barely glance at this heavenly gift?

She herself had barely glanced at the thing. She wasn't one for books, but she'd hope that the very booky Hex would have screamed in delight, perhaps even squeeled at the holy revelation. But, noooooooooooooooooo, she'd opened a door to some forsaken land of boredom, given her attention to drivel, and completely ignored Cyco.

"What the Hell?! Cyco yelled in frustration, her accent flaring. She deliberately stomped, moving at a rate that seemed like molasses to her. "I expect Gloomy to be grumpy, she's got that whole 'woe-is'me' thing going on, but come on."

I don't want to have to sit here and talk to Debbie Downer and Jack the Jerk via some comm.

"Whatever," Cyco said, dismissing them with a wave, "obviously vast resources of knowledge don't interest you. I'll go blow someone else's mind, thank you."

She turned her back to the door and moved to face Gloomy-Gussina. "Where is Jack? I'd rather not talk to him through some fancy wristwatch, if I don't have to. I'd rather talk to him face to face, for all the good it does me. Or you can take a look at the book and recite it to him if you like. That doesn't interest me particularly."

Cyco tossed the book towards Gloom, "Go ahead, take a look at it."

[IndyPendant]

"Okay, good" Sharatur says, relieved. "I was just concerned something had happ--Speed Demon's back? Hey, that's great!" She shook her head. "They're over here. The Order bugged them with trackers that can hear everything said around them, so let's be quiet while we remove them. They're on board with coming back to the town at least, though. Let's get this done." She paused, then added "Thanks, you two. These guys...they're all I have from...before. The thought that they came to harm because of me..." She trailed off, looking down at her hands, clenched tightly into fists of their own accord.

"There will be a reckoning" she vowed softly.

[Radiance]

Hikari smiled, Cyco had returned. This could only bode well for them. She looked to her and nodded. "Knowledge always interests me." She then looked to Gloom to see if she was going to read it.

[Charlotte]

Glitch and Hex emerged from the portal, and Francis and Terry fell silent as they beheld the two of them.

Glitch took the jury-rigged device out. As it turned out, it was rather overkill; rather than using nanotechnology, the implants were more crude - subcutaneous microphones implanted in the collarbones. But his device worked well enough, and as he waved it over their collars, Francis seemed to relax. Glitch and Hex emerged from the portal, and Francis and Terry fell silent as they beheld the two of them.

Glitch took the jury-rigged device out. As it turned out, it was rather overkill; rather than using nanotechnology, the implants were more crude - subcutaneous microphones implanted in the collarbones. But his device worked well enough, and as he waved it over their collars, Terry seemed to relax. Francis scribbled on a piece of paper.

is it out? are we safe?

Glitch nodded, and Francis just about exploded in response.

"HOLY SHIT you're Glitch and Hex I've seen the pirate video of you with the sound off like a hundred times - "

Terry sighed. "Thank you. All of you. Ah, where does that door lead...?"

* * *

Jack was not standing far away from Cyco when she tossed the book at Gloom. He frowned. "If you want to talk face to face, that's fine, I'm right here. I can't see it, though. What did you find? What kind of book is it?"

[Necronaut]

Norman nodded in greeting to Glitch and Hex, hanging back and trying not to look like he was listening for approaching helicopters, motorcycles and jackboots. ... Of course, he was doing just that.

He made a wary 'hush' motion with one hand at Terry's question. "Somewhere safe and far away. Probably better not to go into details until we're on the other side of it."

He turned to Sharatur with a sheepish smile, "I think we may have to wait on the tour de canyon. We should probably go find out what CyCo's been up to... Before the Order realizes their bugs got glitched."

[CyCo]

Jack was not standing far away from Cyco when she tossed the book at Gloom. He frowned. "If you want to talk face to face, that's fine, I'm right here. I can't see it, though. What did you find? What kind of book is it?"

Cyco avoided apologizing for her oversight, blaming it on her exhaustion and went straight to his questions, "The book I was sent to find. Not sure what it is, haven't had the time to check it out. It is called, An Unlikely Prophet. I figure, if He] says it's important, it is. Something to open the door a bit wider...whatever that means."

[IndyPendant]

Sharatur smiled. "What, no mad ravings for Jade?" she struck an absurdly dramatic pose, letting it lapse after a moment or two. "Yeah, sorry Necronaut. You'll get that tour one day though, I promise! Anyway. Guys, that door leads to your new home. It's safe, you can trust me. I think you'll like it, but I don't want to say any more until we're through. Just in case. So come on!" Urging, almost pushing them if necessary, she got them through the portal.

Once safely on the far side, she turned to them with a big grin. "Welcome to Australia, guys! You're going to have one hell of a jet lag from this trip. One moment." She quickly located CyCo bustling up and wrapping her in a bear hug. "Welcome back, Speed Demon! Dying to know what happened to you, but I've got to get a couple of friends settled, I'll be back soon." Then she vanished to reappear in front of Terry and Francis. "Oh sorry" she said, seeing their startled expressions. "I'm almost starting to take this for granted, can you believe it? Me! Anyway, let me take you around to your new home."

She took them into town, explaining the overall situation, and bringing them broadly up to date. "You'll need to share a place for now, we're still getting things cleaned up and organized here. But the climate here at least should be familiar, and look! Ayers Rock! I have got to show you around there one day. I think that artifact--the one that gave me my powers--came from there. Either that, or one like it did. Tell you about that later too. Terry, make yourself comfortable here in your new home, there's someone Francis has to meet right now."

Taking her somewhat overwhelmed friend with her, she said "We recently helped someone who might very well be a bigger superhero fan than you are, if you can believe that! He's got a pile these old thin picture-books he calls comics, though they don't seem to be all that funny really. They show stories of heroes from the past, though I have a feeling they aren't meant to be real. I mean, nobody would ever have really talked like they do, not even back then." She knocked on his door, and concluded "Anyway, he knows like everything there is to know about old-time superheroes, I know you're going to get along famously. His name is Eiko" she added, as the door opened. "Oh, and he's a real, live minotaur."

She took a couple of quick steps back, grinning as she watched the show.

[Charlotte]

"An Unlikely Prophet. There was a password int he Vault related to that, wasn't there... hmmm. Ah, you weren't here for that. We got the Vault open, Cyco. It... well, it has some information about the Gap. Some of which maybe should've stayed buried."

* * *

At meeting the two of them, Eiko brightened. "Face front, True Believers! This one is for you!"

"You're a minotaur," said Terry, flatly.

"I am!" Eiko beamed. "Keeper of the scrolls!" Eiko held out a fistful.

"Sharatur, I think I might need to see that room - wait, I remember this one." Terry took the comic from Eiko's grasp. "I think I do, anyways."

"So can you teach me super-karate?" asked Francis of Sharatur, appropros of nothing. "Or, you know, super-magic or how to talk to ghosts?" he amended, as he regarded the larger group.

[SalmonMax]

Hex tagged along with Sharatur and her friends for a few minutes, but after feeling a bit like a fifthwheel, she decided to find Cyco again. It didn't take long to find Jack, Gloom and Cyco together talking about the book she'd found. Hex hurried over to where they were having their council.

"Cyco...listen, I'm really sorry I had to disappear like that," she started, "you showed up literally right in the middle of a situation with Sharatur and Norman, and some friends of hers being in trouble. They needed me to get Glitch...oh, I think we found him after you left, but anyway...it's complicated. They had these tracking devices or something, and only Glitch could turn them off so we could get them to safety. It was kind of an emergency or else I'd wouldn't have run off."

She gulped a breath and let it out, her piece finally said. "I'm really glad you're back though. I'm not sure I understand the big deal about the book? Is it a code or something?"