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Mutants & Masterminds: Future Imperfect - Travis Kincaid


Travis Kincaid

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Christmas Eve, 2011

Travis stood on the roof of his condo building and looked over at the Las Vegas strip. The casinos poured light of every color into the sky giving the downtown a glow of frivolity and excitment. Travis stood and looked out at one Casino in particular, his view of the black glass pyramid of the Luxor Hotel was perfect, unobstructed. Travis marveled at the black form and its beacon at the crown that blasted a beam of light stright inot the night sky. Not for the first time in the past couple of months did he wonder if he hadn't bought this condo explicitly for this view.

He chugged back the last of the beer in the can. "A warm Guiness on a cool night does wonders for ones body and soul." Travis blinked, Where the heck did that come from? Hello? Me, am I in there? Travis shook his head and sighed, in the past three months he'd spent a very larger amount of time and money to find that Travis Kincaid was little more than a complex cover identity. He could, from time to time, recall bits and pieces of Travis's life, odd phrases that that, or dim cloudy memories, but of the man he was before, his parents, his childhood, he could recall nothing.

He released the can and it floated for a second in his "TK Wake" before it tumbled to the roof. He shook his head again, he'd explored his power extensively in the past few months, it had come back as naturally as riding a bike and he found it rather intimidating given what Ronnie had told him. He'd killed people, he'd used his gift to blast holes in property and persons in the name of his country. Part of him thought he should be mortified, but no matter how he looked at it he felt no remorse, he'd done what he'd done to protect himself, his teammates, and his country.

Travis decided a little night out on the town was in order, if for no other reason than pure boredom. There was only so much one could do to recover one's past. Travis was not through trying but he was willing to lay down his burden and live this life while he could. Besides, with the holdidays I'm not likely to make any progress for the next couple of weeks anyways. He briefly considered calling Ronnie but banished the thought, she's made it clear that they were partners not "partners".

He picked up the discarded cans and walked, on mildly unsteady feet, to the access door. He stopped at his condo to get rid of the cans and grab his car keys before thinking better of it, he wasn't sure how much he'd paid for the Porsche but he had no desire to drive it drunk and ruin it. He headed outside and into the cool evening air once more. It was only a few blocks away to the beam of light, the beacon that called to him. "A little walk will do me good ..."

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Even though it was holiday season the weather was rather mild. Travis couldn’t tell if he preferred this season or any other and trying to recall anything always ended in an headache and some kind of frustrating outbreak. His TK usually got out of control if he didn’t pay attention – not a good thing if he was around the wrong people.

At least he had managed to stay in a more decent part of Vegas. The city had some fabulous places – very bright and shiny but it also had very dark places you’d better avoid. Not really knowing where to go Travis stopped at showcase of an electronics market. Several TVs were turned on, some showing a movie from last year and others were tuned to the local news-channel. In between commercials and cartoons a newsticker informed about the recent death of Jason Estacado, last member of the Vigilante-Group named “The Supremacy”.

Travis eyes followed the newsticker and blinked several times as sudden pictures flashed into his mind. He saw a face, very vague, dark haired woman, a gorgeous smile, perfect teeth. He tried to focus on the picture but it slipped his mind. Angrily he clenched his fists and refrained from hitting the showcase physically but his impulse failed him. A wave of TK-energy hit the showcase and shattered the window and some of the TVs right behind it. A siren went of as the alarm was triggered and a pair of bystanders looked confused at him, getting a good look at his face before he could turn away.

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Aw, crap. Travis looked around, "Who threw that?" he asked in a loud panicked voice. After a few seconds he fled on foot cursing under his breath. Who was that woman? That face ... dammit. Travis made a beeline for the strip,it was close, only a block or two away. After a couple minutes he rounded a cross street onto Las Vegas Boulevard, commonly known as the Strip. He slowed down as he did and found himself staring up at the sleek black glass pyramid and its peak of white light blasting into the sky. Travis walked toward it, A little gambling, perhaps some food... Anything to take his mind off the feelings of loss.

Click to reveal..

The Luxor Hotel in the evening ...

las_vegas_luxor_hotel.jpg

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The Casino was unexpectedly full for Christmas eve which gave Travis a moment to consider if going here was such a good idea. However before he could decide to change his mind he heard an old couple, about 70 year-olds complain about the air-conditioning.

That as such wouldn't have been anything interesting beyond stating the obvious, they were hopelessly wrong dressed for the Casino. No - what caught Travis' attention was that they spoke german and he understood every single word of it.

----

Outside the Casino cold mechanical eyes scanned the area finding a shattered showcase window and an alarm. Distant sirens were closing in. A mechanical voice took in the details and commented:

ETA police car - 82 seconds. Scanning Video files. Replay. Zoom. Positive ID on Travis Kincaid. Initiating tracking routine. Use of Quantum detected. Tracing

The strange creature melted with the background no where to be seen.

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Travis just stood there his mouth agape for a moment. How the hell? He followed them, it didn't take much effort to shadow a pair of senior citizens and he was able to evesdrop on their conversation easily. In German. Fluently. After fifteen minutes he gave up, they weren't speaking anything relevant, except that he now knew he could speak German. He sighed and located the nearest bar.

A shot and a shot later he went to look for a craps table. In the past two months he'd figured out that he knew only a handful of casino games and he was terrible at all of them except craps. He was actually quite good at craps. Plus, if need be, he could cheat at craps with barely any effort. He kept it to a bare minimum and he made sure to never walk away from a table with more than a ten to twenty percent gain on his initial stake. That he moved from casino to casino helped to keep him on the level with the security forces as well.

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The ring of the German voices was still in his ears and Travis had a hard time concentrating on the game. Even if he had tried to go for big bucks this time he would’ve miserably failed. He simply couldn’t shake off the strange sense of Déjà vu he was having that kept him constantly distracted.

<I love you>, he heard a female voice speak in German, then he saw that face again briefly in a mirror. Travis stood up all of a sudden to see if he could find her but there was no one.

“Are you going to play, or what?”, complaint one of the men at the table waving angrily at him. Travis had a buzzing sound in his ears. Maybe he had drunk too much – or too fast? What the hell was going on?

Click to reveal..
Travis recovers pretty quickly. The sense of Deja vu remains, though

--

The mechanical creature followed an invisible trail until it reached the Luxor Hotel where it came to a halt and waited.

Trail leads inside. Awaiting orders.

”Wait until he gets out, then engage and neutralize.” a mechanical yet somewhat female voice answered.

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"Balls. No, I'm done." Travis grabbed the remaining chips from the indent in the edge of the craps table and pulled his bets down to just the line bet. The next throw was a seven and the shooter crapped out. With a grimace Travis turned and walked from the table counting his chips. He was only down half a grand so it wasn't too bad.

He shook his head and tried to focus on the image of the woman. Who is she? Why am I remembering her now? He headed for the bar and thought better of it. Instead he took the sky walk from the Luxor over to the Mandalay Bay. Once there he located a restaurant that was still open and got himself something to eat. He barely tasted the exquisite dinner however as he was focused on trying to remember the woman's features.

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No matter how hard he tried he couldn't grasp more than rough features of the woman's face. Dark hair... and a stunning smile but nothing more beyond that. The only thing he was sure he'd recognise under a thousand words was her voice.

"Excuse me?", he barely registered the woman standing at his table. She was tall, brunette with beautiful green eyes and a slight french accent.

"My 'date' walked out on me and I was wondering if you shared the same fate? You looked so sad, I had to ask you.", she seemed genuine and her black evening dress did much to enhance her natural beauty.

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Travis looked up from his neglected dinner, Wow. After a second he blinked a few times, color rising in his cheeks, "Umm, by all means please. I ... err that is ... I'm Travis." He stood and offered her his hand. "Can I buy you a drink?" He felt nervous energy well up inside him and the tableware began to rattle about randomly until he quashed the telekinetic leak with a savage focus of concentration. He wondered, no for the first time, if it was the virus that caused the random telekinetic leakage or if it was something else, perhaps even something to do with his memory loss.

Click to reveal..
Healthy / QP 28/28 / WP 2/3
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“Natalie”, the woman said, pronouncing it French and taking Travis’ hand like a lady. “I normally don’t do this but it is Christmas Eve and I don’t want to be alone.”, she sat down and smiled at him. “I’d like a Martini Orange.”, again her French accent shone through as she pronounced the word ‘orange’ in her mother tongue.

Travis quickly nodded at a waiter and ordered the drink. In the meantime the French lady fumbled around in her bag taking out a cellular and looked at the display. With a frown she took the call, <How dare you call me now! You walked out on me!>, she barely let the man on line answer when she continued, <No, I’m done with you! You kept me waiting for over an hour and now you call? We’re done Francoise, forget it.>

Natalie hung up and looked up at Travis who apparently lost control of his facial features for a moment. She was speaking French and he understood every single word of it.

“Don’t worry, I turn it off. We won’t be bothered tonight again.”, said the French beauty and put her phone away. Then she smiled at him hoping he won’t turn right there and leave her alone.

Click to reveal..
Language in <> parentheses is French
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Travis managed to smile and nod. What the heck is going on? He recovered after a moment and when the drinks arrived he quickly downed half of his. "So, you ah, your accent sounds French, Parisian I think, is that right?" Travis wondered if this was something he was going to have to get used to, if he was going to be discovering little bits and pieces of himself for the rest of his life.

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Travis shook his head and replied with a smile and a small laugh, <I can hardly remember!> The waiter came by and took Natalie's order and Travis ordered a bottle of French wine. <So, your boyfriend could not be bothered to show up for his date? He must be a blind man.>

Natalie gave Travis a quizzical look, <Why do you say that?>

<Clearly he must be, only a blind man could ignore your beauty.> Travis hoped he wasn't laying it on too thick. Finding that he could speak perfect French was as much a shock as anything else and proved to be a slight distraction.

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Natalie's expression turned from surprise to a slight blush as Travis flexed his charm muscles. <I... Francoise is... was my fiance. We wanted to marry in Las Vegas but two days ago we had a terrible fight.>, she looked down for a moment but retained her smile.

<Lets not talk about him. Tell me about yourself. What does a handsome and charming man like you do all alone on Christmas Eve?>

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For a moment Travis felt genuinely sorry for the woman. And then the moment was gone, passed like a fleeting glimpse out of the corner of his eye. He smiled. On the outside it seemed pleasant enough, with just a touch of sympathy. On the inside it was as lecherous as they came. Easy pickin's <Men like myself? I was waiting for you of course. It would be a shame, a tragedy, for a woman such as yourself to be alone on a night like this.>

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Natalie felt flattered and took another sip of her Martini. She was getting more comfortable even after that short brush with her fiance. She wouldn't hear from him tonight - she didn't want to.

She reached out with one hand touching Travis' gently and smiled at him. <I suppose I'm luckier than I thought.>, her eyes wandered over his fingers as she traced them with her hand. Then she suddenly stopped and looked up at him. Her smile briefly gone. <Are you married?>

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<Not that I am aware,> he replied with a laugh. <No, I'm not. I guess I've never been lucky enough to find somebody I clicked with.> He slipped his hand around hers and stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. Shortly the wine and food arrived. Travis scowled inside but noted that the wine was hardly a bad thing. All good things in time ...

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Natalie let her hand be guided by his for a short moment but then turned it around rather swiftly as she indicated at his ringfinger. There was a mark where his skin was less tanned than the rest of his finger - almost as if he was wearing a wedding ring there for years.

<So that's not from your weddingring?>, her question sounded as if she wouldn't believe if he denied it.

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Natalie looked at him with compassion, <I’m sorry – I went too far.>, she pulled back her hand and finished her Martini. Then she nodded at one of the waiters and pointed at her glass.

<Why don’t we just start over and forget our past? I spent 1.000,00 Dollars alone for this dress and almost as much for my hair and make-up, I’m not going to waste that without getting my due.>, she gave him a seductive smile and raised an eyebrow almost challenging him.

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Travis blinked, for a moment too stunned to reply, he's not expected that load of crap to fool a child. Hell if I know, just roll with it. He smiled, <I've been trying to do that all evening.> He looked down at the indent in his finger and the lighter skin, It's not cheating if you can't even remember being married right? Travis considered the thought as he took a bite of his dinner before dismissing it entirely, You're dead Travis, any marriage from before is over and done with.

<Natalie, normally I'd suggest some dancing, maybe a little gambling, before retiring to my condo. Tonight though why don't you tell me what you'd like to to do forget that bastard François.> He poured her wine glass full and returned her smile.

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<Dancing sounds wonderful.>, she extended her hand and expected him to lead her to the dance floor like a gentleman would. Standing next to her he got a better view of her. They were right about the French women – Natalie looked like she belonged on the cover of some expensive haute couture magazine and she moved with the grace of a diva. Once they reached the dance floor she turned around to face him coming close enough to almost kiss him and then the music started to play…

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Travis laughed and taking her hand led Natalie out to the dance floor. He surprised himself though, as soon as he took a moment to actually hear the music his body seemed to know just what to do. With the familiar pull of muscle memory Travis was soon gliding around the room with Natalie. He smiled, he had precious few good memories since he had awoken in the shelter, and now a new one was coming together.

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The music carried him away a little and he saw the room spinning around him while his eyes kept focused on her face, her eyes and her beautiful smile. Several eyes watched the dazzling pair dance leaving some extra space for their breathtaking performance.

One pair of eyes kept focused on the pair, disregarding the atmosphere, the laughter and the good time everyone was having. It refocused its lenses blending out any obstacle and took aim. With a low thud it released a hypervelocity round to hit Travis on his back.

Travis only heard a low sound as if there was a technical problem with the music. Surprised he came to a halt when Natalie went completely limp in his arms. She looked up at him with total shock and surprise in her eyes a faint ‘Travis’ escaping her lips before she slid down to the floor. He looked down in surprise and then felt an intense pain in his chest. There was blood all over and he stumbled backwards. Before he could react another thud was heard and hit him on his shoulder followed by yet another one which knocked him off his feet and he fell backwards and the floor. The mechanical creature dropped its cloak and walked towards the dance floor knocking people on its path away like they were insects. Once it reached Travis it picked him up and held him for a moment as if to ascertain if he was still alive.

Click to reveal..
Travis is not hurt but knocked silly. He is currently stunned, but conscious. The creature looks like it comes directly out of a Terminator-movie (just for reference) and is over 10 feet tall
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Travis dangled from the front of his shirt and coat. He was limp and his head lolled, his feet swung a good three feet above the floor. Chaos flooded the room as people fled or screamed or cowered. On the floor, in the corner of Travis' vision he could see the expanding pool of blood surrounding Natalie's body. the gaping wound in her chest called out to him like a cry of damnation.

He raised his head, his eye were bleary and he was forced to blink several times before he could focus on the machine that held him. Travis tapped into his power, reached deeply into the well of rage at his core. He poured that rage into a massive blast of kinetic force and held it for allowed it to blossom into a bolt of pure energy before he released it into the robot's body.

Click to reveal..

Power Max - spending 4 QP to activate all 4 Quantum + 2 QP to fire a Lethal Kinetic burst, all successes on the Max roll convert to damage.

Dice pools:

Max: Activating 4 Quantum; adding 2 ranks to EM and 1 Quantum; Cost 1 WP + 4 QP + damage

Blast: 11 dice +3 dice from accuracy + 1 mega dice

Damage: [10] 12L

Power Max Damage: [4] 0L

Virus Damage: 6L

Status: Healthy (for now) / 22/28 QP / 1/3 WP

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Travis' blast cut through the metal hulk like a knife through hot butter. The focus hit the robot square on the upper half of its chest ripping it almost in half down to its hips. The arm the creature held Travis with was blown away by the sheer force of Travis’ kinetic blast and hurled with him several feet through the air until he slammed into several tables and chairs. The creature slumped forward then to the side and with a mechanic groan went silent the red light in its eyes fading and sparkles of energy spit out if its open side.

Travis could barely see what he had done nor was he capable of forming any coherent thought as an unbearable pain flooded his mind and body. Blood spilled out of his nose, ears and mouth and he felt like his heart was bursting. With a faint smile knowing at least he destroyed that bastard Travis blacked out.

Click to reveal..

Dice pools:

Max: Activating 4 Quantum; adding 2 ranks to EM and 1 Quantum; Cost 1 WP + 4 QP + damage

Blast: 11 dice +3 dice from accuracy + 1 mega dice

TK blast roll (15d10.hits(7)=7)

Damage: [10] 12L + 5

Damage roll + 10 Autodamage (17d10.hits(7)=6)

Power Max Damage: [4] 0L

Virus Damage: 3L + 3 from Taint

Damage roll + 10 Autodamage (17d10.hits(7)=6)

Status: Crippled (6HL Lethal) / 22/28 QP / 1/3 WP

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