New Vindicators Academy of Europe #30: Allegory of Prudence (M&M 2E - IC)

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Gilliam
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #25 - Jeopardy! (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Gilliam »

Tamati "Taheka" Stevens


Following Prodigy more or less in silence Taheka didn't even object when Prodigy suggested leaving the old Chinese guy and the other guy to their potential deaths, after all that happen they had made their bed and could lie in it. He did give Cacophony's hand a squeeze of support when she protested the fact and then another as she shared her history.

"I am so sorry" was all he could think of saying as they entered the shuttle.
Prodigy wrote: There was a flash of light and Prodigy craned his neck to look through the windshield. "What is it?" Cacophony asked.

"Nothing," the American said. "There's nothing there. No Elpis. No other..." He trailed off then, realizing what this meant. He turned and looked to Taheka. "We didn't make it in time," he said.

Adela eyed him strangely. "What are you talking about? Did we fail? Did they destroy-?"

"No. Our dimension is still there, but... his..." Prodigy removed his helmet and gave Taheka a sincerely apologetic look. "Your world survived," he told him, "but... the bridge between our dimensions is gone.

"You're trapped on my world."
The words didn't make sense to Tamati, was Prodigy trying to be funny "If that is a joke .. it's not that fun .." The words died in Tamati's mouth as the school grounds they were landing on were not the fields in Sao Paulo but those of that other school somewhere in Europe on the other world. Pushing his way outside all Tamati could see were unfamiliar faces, some he had met briefly a couple of hours ago but the rest he had no idea.

Feeling dazed Tamati wasn't sure what to do, did this mean he would never see Kendra again, Arturo,his family and what had happen to his friends who had also gone to the ship were they okay or trapped here as well. He didn't even want to contemplate that they had ended up like Wally.
Violet wrote: Violet popped to her feet and started looking around. The ship was gone, as were the other Earths. But where was Merle? "Merle! Where's Merle?" He said he was taking her to the school. "Has anyone seen the tall, skinny boy or Eve?"
Hearing Merle's name being called out jolted Tamati into action of course Merle could teleport between worlds and if he was here then it will be okay. Heading in the direction of the girl's voice Tamati recalled she had been in one of the other teams.

"Merle is he here, he can take me home."
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #25 - Jeopardy! (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Michuru »

Thanks to Arkrite for helping me write this one.
Help. I have done it again.
I have been here many times before.
Hurt myself again today.
And the worst part is there’s no one else to blame.




Gaspar opened his eyes and saw a sky unblemished by the Elpis—just a slow moving wall of cloud painted metallic by the rays of a setting sun. Relief washed over him. “They did it,” he wheezed. He started to laugh, only to wince in pain. It hurt to breathe, he realized. Lexus’ father had gotten in his share of punches. Maybe his ribs were busted, or maybe it was his lungs…

He tried to sit up and found that he could not. He struggled to move his arms and legs. At first, he felt panicked, but then he told himself it was to be expected: the Rauf family’s ability left them quills coated with a neurotoxin. He remembered the pain he’d endured as he fought for his life; now, all that remained was to wait out the paralysis.

He had no way of knowing how much time had passed lying there. Once or twice, a bug crawled across his skin, and he found himself unable to scare it away with mere twitching. It was maddening—having the creature make its way over the ridge of his jaw and onto his cheek, and being powerless to swat such a minute annoyance off of him.

After a few minutes, he was able to flex his fingers, but still lacked the strength to lift his arm. Not long after that, he found he was able to turn his head and immediately wished the paralysis had not worn off. He looked to his right—to where Tevfik Rauf’s body lay—and remembered that had had taken another life.

Lexus would never be able to forgive him now.

Minutes more passed. How many, he couldn’t be certain. It felt like an eternity—eternity with his latest victim. “Aqui!” someone shouted. It wasn’t English or German, but Spanish he heard—Spanish for “Over here!”

“Dois corpos!” they shouted. It almost sounded like they said there were two bodies, but their Spanish needed work.

“Este ainda está vivo!”

He understood part of it—“this one”. “This one” what? He only understood every other word. It hit him then that they may not have been speaking Spanish; Spanish shared words with several other Romance languages: French, Italian, Portuguese—they might have been speaking Portuguese! Portuguese… Had the ship Rauf tackled him into carried them from Austria to Portugal?

A moment later, someone stood over him—between him and Lexus’ father. He could hear their shoes compacting the grass beside him; he could hear the rustling of their clothes; he felt the shade they cast over him. He turned his head to look up towards the sky—at them, but deliberately not in Tevfik’s direction.

“Mi nombre es Gaspar,” he said weakly. “Por favor, ¿me entiendes?”

No one said anything. Instead, they called in their location—requested a pickup. He only understood half of it, but the half he comprehended only made him panic all the more. “Where am I?” he asked them. “What’s happened? Where is the Armada? Did we win?”

Someone tried to help him sit up. “Answer me!” he raved. “Are the others-” He broke off into a fit of coughing. Someone began to beat their palm against his back, but the coughing continued. He suddenly felt woozy. He began to fall forward and slipped into unconsciousness.



Be my friend.
Hold me.
Wrap me up.
Unfold me.
I am small and needy.
Warm me up and breathe me.




He woke up in a hospital bed. He looked down his body. He commanded his arm to raise and was relieved when it obeyed him. He tapped his foot—first the right one, then the left. It seemed the effects of Tevfik’s neurotoxin were leaving his system.

“Hello.” The speaker startled him. Gaspar looked up and found a rather impressively-dressed man sitting in a chair by the door. “My name is Horacio Importuna. I am the headmaster here. Your name is… Gaspar?”

Gaspar nodded weakly.

“Which world were you from?”

Gaspar froze, unsure of how to distinguish his home realm from any other. “I… I’m not really sure. I-I mean, I… I’ve been…” His thoughts went to that world the Drifter had taken him to—to the moment he first learned that other Earths existed. Since returning home, he’d taken to referring to it as “Sophie’s World”; how should he label his? “My World” wouldn’t work. They knew it was his world. What set it apart from any others though? “I’m sorry. This is all pretty new to me.”

“I understand,” said a sympathetic Importuna. “This is all fairly alien to me as well.”

“I was part of the group that raided the ship,” Gaspar said. “We ran into resistance. I fought a man—Tevfik Rauf.”

“The dead man?”

There was a thickness in Gaspar’s throat suddenly. His chin trembled as he fought the urge to cry.

Importuna grabbed a box of tissues and crossed the room to offer them. Gaspar looked away. “The battle took us off the ship.” He tried to steel himself. He didn’t want to lose it in front of this person. “Somehow, we ended up here.”

“As I understand it, when the Elpis arrived, it acted as a bridge between three different universes.”

“Yeah, I… I caught all that.” Jason had explained it, but Gaspar hadn’t understood the bulk of it. “What happened to the Elpis? How do I get back home?”

Importuna looked at Gaspar so sadly. “The decision was made to untangle the three worlds. One world would be destroyed, but two others would get to live.”

Gaspar rolled to the side and emptied his stomach on the floor. Some of it was on the sheets of the bed—an act he found himself apologizing for as he tried to wipe his mouth on the back of his hand.

Three dimensions. One of them was gone. Everyone on it was gone. Was that his world? Tatjana, Lex, Kirstie, Lexus, Doug, Mike, Martin, Jack, Harry, Kas, Astrid… Were they all dead now? Was he the only survivor of his world?

“Did anyone else…?” He could feel the vomit rising up in his mouth again.

“I do not know. As I understand it, there wasn’t much time. From the moment the decision was made, my students had to evacuate and get back to their dimension, or risk being stranded.”

Stranded, like Gaspar now was.

“Were you from New York or Vienna?”

“Vienna,” he managed weakly.

Importuna breathed a sigh of relief. “That world was spared.”

The Spaniard had been on verge of choking on his tears. “W-what?” he asked between labored breaths.

“Three worlds, bridged at different cities. Our world, here in San Paulo, touched on another world’s Vienna, and another world’s New York City. It was that world that was wiped out.”

Gaspar shot out of his seat and found his knees did not want to support him. He told himself it was the neurotoxin he had been injected with, but deep down, he knew the truth. “I… I have to leave,” he said as he braced himself on the nightstand.

“Gaspar, the bridge is closed. They had to sacrifice a world to trap the Elpis—to prevent any other worlds from ever-”

He used the back of the chair as a crutch and tried to conjure the strength to leave. “I need to get back home! There are…” He was going to say that there were people waiting for him, but was there? His parents were dead. The family he had found after they left... Lex and Martin refused to trust him over Xun and Tatjana and Martin refused to trust him over Oscar. He had been wrong about Xun, but Oscar… For Tatjana’s sake, he prayed he was wrong about Oscar.

Tatjana… The last thing she’d said to him was fresh in his memory:

“If Gaspar can’t work with you,” Fach said to Oscar, glaring at her ex-boyfriend, “then he can find another team.”

After his parents’ deaths, grey clouds had gathered overhead. He didn’t have control over his abilities. He was found and brought to the school. He met Tatjana Nelson, and beams of sunlight pierced the clouds.

Tatjana was a bright spot in his life—someone who had given him hope for a better tomorrow. She had been the one to encourage him to work on his powers. She imagined a day when he could use his powers to save countless others. “Not as a Vindicator,” she’d told him, dismissing the idea that fighting super-powered terrorists was his destiny. “Two years ago, a hurricane hit my father’s homeland. It was devastating! If someone like you had been there…?”

Tatjana made him believe in himself. She had quickly become his best-friend. He saw so much of them in Lex and Kirstie. He wondered if his American friend had felt as sick to his stomach when he asked the blonde out; the butterflies swirling in his gut nearly caused Gaspar to bring up his lunch. Still, he had pushed through and asked the pretty redhead out, and the seconds leading to her smile felt like an eternity.

Spending the summer with her and her parents had been like a dream. They weren’t his parents, but Ronald and Nadja Nelson didn’t love him any less than his own. When Tatjana’s uncle and cousin show up and everything changed—when Ronald took him to the Netherlands to stay with Cornelis…

When he saw Tatjana again at school and she wouldn’t talk to him, it broke his heart. He couldn’t imagine a worse feeling. Then, he saw Lexus’ mother move in for the kill. He couldn’t imagine a worse feeling. Now, he realized that he would never see her again… and that would be alright by her.

He couldn’t imagine a worse feeling.

“You can’t!” Importuna was saying. “Don’t you get what I’m saying? When they untangled the worlds, everyone who was-”

Gaspar collapsed to the floor and started blubbering uncontrollably.

As the headmaster of the New Vindicators Academy of the Americas dropped to the floor beside his newest charge, the Spaniard tried his best to commit to memory the shade of blue that composed Tatjana’s eyes, the scent of her shampoo, her accent…

If this was to be his fate, he was determined to never forget the girl who saved his life with a smile.



Ouch, I have lost myself again.
Lost myself and I am nowhere to be found.
Yeah, I think that I might break.
Lost myself again I feel unsafe.




Hours later, Importuna led Gaspar through the halls of the dorms. “Here we are,” he said, opening the door. “There are some clean clothes already in the dresser. I hope we guessed your size right. If anything doesn’t fit right…” He held out a phone. Gaspar looked at it strangely. It was far fancier than his Sidekick. The screen seemed to take up the entire face of the phone. It was very sleek and very thin. He had to remind himself that it wasn’t 2009 here. A calendar in the infirmary said it was 2018. Not only was he in a world not his own, but he was nine years in the future.

Importuna sat the phone down on the bed and backed himself towards the door. “My number is programmed into it, Gaspar. If you need anything—if you have any problems—you can call me. I know how hard this-”

“I doubt that.”

Importuna simply nodded. “I’ll make sure no one bothers you. As I said, should you need anything…” When Gaspar didn’t speak, the man let himself out and shut the door behind him.

Merle Tremblay wasn’t bothered with silly things like doors.

Stepping out of the shadows where he had been waiting, he cleared his throat. “You are a hard man to get in touch with.”

Gaspar swung around and punched Merle. The taller teen barely had time to dodge and caught the blow on his arm. It was then that Gaspar recognized him—the tall, pale boy from Jason’s meeting was hard to forget. “What the hell is wrong with you!?!” he roared. “Who sneaks up on… Do you know what I’ve been through today!?!”

Making a serious note to keep more distance between them in the future, Merle rubbed his throbbing arm and looked at the muscular teen levelly. “The same thing I expect my friend is going through on your world: being told by everybody involved that they’ll try to get you home, and then doing very little to accomplish that while you’re forced to grieve for your loss.”

Gaspar eyed his guest suspiciously. “Did you want something, uh…” He wasn’t sure what the teen’s name was.

“Merle.”

“Gaspar.”

“Personally, I want to get him back,” Merle said, “and I was hoping that you, of all people, would be interested in helping me figure out how we do that. After all, if I can get him back to this dimension, then there’s no reason why you couldn’t…” He trailed off, letting Gaspar finish it for him.

“One of the students here is stuck in my world?” Gaspar asked, completely missing Merle’s point.

The thin man bit back a sigh. “Two, actually. Or at least two that we know of so far. Wally and Tamati were both working with a team from your dimension. Their mission must have been a success, or we wouldn’t be here, but they didn’t come back.

“Either they never made it off the ship, or-”

“Or they’re stranded in my dimension.” Gaspar ran his hands through his hair and dropped back onto his bed. “I’m sorry about your friends. Believe me: I know what it’s like to lose someone important to you.” A sigh escaped his lips as he laid back. “It’s too bad we can’t just call the Drifter—have her come straighten all this out.”

Merle’s eyes lit up. “This Drifter would just…” Merle waved a hand. “…Straighten everything out? Just like that?”

Gaspar sat up enough to look at Merle. “Well, not really just like that,” Gaspar said. He pushed himself back up to a sitting position and paused to consider how best to explain his adventure to Sophie’s World. “She has this magic doohickey that has a mind of its own. Basically, it pops her into our world, right? Grabs whoever’s near, and then drags them to some other random dimension. The first time she showed up, she took me and some of the others to this world where all of the world leaders were Neo-Sapiens. We stopped Evil Kas from starting a war over his boyfriend, and then we went home.”

Pursing his lips, Merle considered this. It sounded unreliable and terrible. It was also better than any idea he’d had so far.

“So, how do we get her attention?”

Gaspar shrugged. “Near as I can tell, she shows up when things are about to hit the fan.”

“So, then, the best way to find her is to wait for some kind of disaster?”

“I’m not sure,” Gaspar said. “I only really met her that one time. The others dealt with her more.” He shook his head. “It wouldn’t matter. It may be a different world, but it’s still the same size, right? The world’s a big place. If there were a situation big enough to draw her attention, there’s no way we could get there in time.”

Merle looked at Gaspar for a moment, then an eerie smile crossed his face—one that left Gaspar looking to the door. “I don’t think I properly introduced myself. My name is Merle Tremblay, but the students in this school call me Key.”

He waved a hand opening a portal to a beautiful seaside beach. “Because I can open doors.”

Gaspar’s mouth was agape at the sight of the beach. It was night here, but the sun was shining wherever Merle had opened a portal to. As the sound of waves crushing down on the shore hit his ears, Gaspar rose to his feet. He slowly approached the doorway, taking in the smell of the sea.

Tatjana imagined a day when he could use his powers to save countless others, if only he could get there in time.

“My name is Gaspar Zorrilla e Higueras,” he said as he continued to gaze through the portal. “Back home, my codename was Lluvia. It’s the Spanish word for ‘rain’. At first, that was all I could do—I could make it rain. When I lost control over my powers, I started to realize I could do so much more than that, though. I don’t simply make it rain: I control the weather.”

Though he was spellbound by the portal, Gaspar forced himself to look away. He returned to his bed and picked up the phone Importuna had left him. “How do you use this stupid thing?” he asked.

When Merle took pity on him, Gaspar began searching the internet for weather-related news. Sure enough, he found what he was looking for: a hurricane was descending upon the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

“Can you take me here?” Gaspar asked, his voice brimming with urgency. “I want to go home as badly as you want to bring your friends home, but we don’t know how long that will take… and we might as well do something productive in the meantime.

“What do you say, Key? Want to help me kick a hurricane’s ass?”

Merle hesitated. His honest answer was no, but this Drifter showed up at disasters, and if he wanted to find the Drifter, being at these disasters was the best way.

“Let’s go.”

Merle opened another portal—this time to a darkened street bombarded by torrential rains. Gaspar grinned, and moved forward.



Be my friend.
Hold me.
Wrap me up.
Unfold me.
I am small and needy.
Warm me up and breathe me.


...

The End of Book One
NVAE Setting - VP: 5
Michuru
Posts: 739
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:26 pm
Location: Illinois

Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Michuru »

NEW VINDICATORS ACADEMY OF EUROPE #26: The Persistence of Memory

September 3, 2009

VIENNA

Juozas woke to the sun lancing through the window of his apartment. It still felt strange—the notion that he had his own place. Dag had long ago left. He and his cousin had celebrated his graduation by touring the Mediterranean. His emails were getting far and few between now. Juozas hoped it wasn’t them growing apart and chose instead to believe his friend was just focused on settling in at Gothenburg.

Matt had returned to his native Estonia after graduation and Juozas had not heard from him since. It wasn’t that surprising, given how the Lithuanian had spent the last few years making the other teen’s life a living hell.

Venefica and Mira were still in Vienna. Much like Juozas, Newton had offered them jobs at the school. Both of the girls had turned him down: Venefica was dating one of the students—a relationship she would have had to abort if she were to join the faculty; Mira was more focused on helping her boyfriend and the custody battle he was gearing up for…

Gus had gone home to Egypt, no doubt seeking to put the memory—or lack thereof—of his time as Lacuna’s thrall behind him.

Juozas had stayed in the dorms for as long as Newton would allow him, but the headmaster had come to him a few weeks ago to officially evict him. Now, he was working as a trainer at a gym in order to afford the shoebox he now called home. It was worth it, though. Ever since Magnitude disappeared three months ago, Juozas had taken on the role as the Volunteers’ leader. He was proud of the work they were doing and couldn’t ever see himself stopping. That was one reason to stay in Vienna, but he had found another…

Juozas’ partner was lying in bed next to him. They had made a mess of the bed several times last night: the blankets and sheets were a tangle that barely covered them. After rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Juozas decided to rub his boyfriend’s exposed rump next. When that wasn’t enough to rouse his lover, he elected to brush his shaggy hair back and gently caress his neck with his lips.

The other man stirred and groaned as he was coerced out of his slumber. “What time is it?” he asked into the pillow.

“Time for round…” Juozas thought on it. “Four?”

“Mmm, shouldn’t this be round five?”

Juozas kissed his shoulder. The other shifted, rolling onto his back. Juozas wasted no time in pressing his lips to Lexus’. “For future reference,” the darker youth said, “breakfast in bed is an acceptable way of waking me up.”

“Is that a euphemism?”

“You’ll be my breakfast?” asked Lexus.

Juozas feigned to reach for the fridge and for the one-hundred and thirty-seventh time, he cursed that he was not telekinetic. “I think there’s some whipped cream in the fridge from the other night…”

Lexus let out a hearty laugh. “The four basic food groups, right? Whipped cream, soy sauce, leftover pizza, and beer.”

“And me.”

“And you.” Lexus kissed the older teen. “I love you, but you need to get groceries.”

“I need to do a lot of things,” Juozas confessed. “Unpack, laundry… you.”

“I’m serious, Juozas.”

“So am I.” Juozas kissed Lexus’ lips, then his chin, then his neck. As his lips found their way to his chest, Lexus’ phone began to ring. “Ignore it,” Juozas said as he continued to plant a trail of kisses down his boyfriend’s chest.

“Is that an order from my fearless leader?”

Juozas kissed his stomach. “Yup.”

Lexus reached over and grabbed his phone. “It’s Buddy,” he said. “Might be official business.”

Juozas let out a groan as Lexus took the call. “Buddy, what’s-? No, I’m not on campus. Oh, I got up early and went out for… Slow down, man, what’s-?” Lexus froze as Juozas continued crawling down his body, planting a trail of kisses. “I’ll be right there.”

He hung up his phone and swung his legs over the side of the bed. “Kas is alive,” he said as he scrambled to dress.

NVAE, FRONT QUAD (Kas; NPCs: Derryl, Paladin)
Beta Team was baptized in light. When it faded, they were on the front lawn of the New Vindicators Academy of Europe.

“-et,” Lex was saying. He blinked and looked at the school. “Huh. Neat.”

"I don't know how much time I have," the Drifter said. "Herr Murphy? Thank you for teaching me to play the guitar. I'm a bit out of practice." She smiled sheepishly. "I hope you won't scold me too harshly.”

“Hey, you play for you, Tabby-Cat. You ain’t got nothing to prove to me.” Lex flashed her a grin. “‘Course, next time you’re going to have to play a set with me.”

The woman returned the smile before turning to Otso. "Herr Karell, you vere the one who taught me how to defend myself." She looked to her father. "Vhen Hannah Garrastazu starts bullying me, don't get upset with Herr Flaegler for teaching me to fight back."

She hugged her father one last time. "Thank you for being the best vater a girl could have hoped for." She lingered for several moments, not wanting to let go. "Ja, ja," she said, "I hear you Lobby. I'm going, I'm going..." As she let go, the glyphs appeared once more. "Ich liebe dich." There was a blinding flash of light and then she was gone.

It was then that Lex noticed that they could once more hear. “Huh, where’s all the noise?” He looked to the sky and realized the Elpis and the other worlds were gone from the sky.

"It seems the others were victorious,” intoned Paladin. “I would like to see Harry. Could someone lead me-"

"Lex!?!"

“Sweet mama-jama!” The sound of Kirstie’s voice made Lex jump. Only a few hours ago, he had left her in England. His father must have brought her here...

Kirstie was standing outside the front doors, staring at Beta Team in disbelief. She was frozen on the spot, staring at him in wonder. Then she broke into a run and tackled him, sobbing quietly into his chest.

“Whoa, it’s okay, Kirstie,” he said. “It’s okay. Everybody’s fine. See?”

As he held her, he realized her hair was considerably longer since he'd seen her a few hours ago. "It's you," she said. "I knew it! I knew you'd come back!"

Derryl swallowed hard, terrified of the answer he was about to get. "What's the date?"

"It's the third of September," Kirstie said. She refused to let go of Lex. "You've been missing for three months."

“W-what?” stammered Lex. He looked up at the others. Otso transformed and ran for the girls’ dorms; Kas’ face was scrunched up in bewilderment; Derryl simply seemed agitated; Paladin looked positively alarmed. “We were just in the ship a few hours ago. We hopped over to destroy Argus’ factory… Three months!?!” He shook his head. When the initial shock wore off, he drew out his cell phone. He tried to call his parents, to no avail. “Oh, @#$%,” he sword, looking back to the clear sky, “I told Nate I’d help him save his family…”

Kirstie grabbed Lex by the cheeks and pressed her lips to hers. She kissed him long and hungrily. Her hands slipped down his neck and pulled her arms back over his shoulders. She hopped up, hugging his neck and locking her legs around him. Unprepared, Lex stumbled back and fell to the ground where Kirstie pinned him and continued to kiss him.

“Uh, we’ll just, uh, go find Herr Newton,” Kas said awkwardly. Leading Derryl and Paladin away, Kas realized that they were beginning to draw a crowd. Some he recognized; many he did not. “This is not good,” he muttered. “Three whole months? What about my family—the Volunteers!?!”

Once inside the school, the trio made their way to the headmaster’s office. Newton was ecstatic to see them walk in. “I had hoped this day would come,” he said, grinning at them. “Please, come in! Sit down! Can I get you anything?”

“Answers,” Kas said. “We’ve apparently missed a lot.”

Newton grimaced at that, unsure where to really begin. “Three months ago, two cities were invaded: the Aeolian Empire was repelled by the Vindicators in Chicago, while the students of several different universes succeeded in stopping the Armada. Still, both cities suffered their share of damage. Bridges are out, debris is being removed… but for once, we’re not getting the blame.

“The public has been speaking out about what happened. There are people who were saved in both cities who are telling their stories—talking about the good everyone did. Things haven’t just magically changed overnight, but… it certainly feels like we’re getting somewhere.

“Unfortunately, this may be because of a new target for mankind’s animosity: the refugees. We defeated the Armada, yes, but the cost was very high.” Newton looked at Derryl sadly. “I’m not quite sure how to say this: your world was destroyed, son.”

Derryl looked confused. “My world was destroyed a long time ago,” he said. “You mean my adopted world?” The teen shrugged. “I’ll find another.”

“What happened to Harry?” Paladin asked. “Tell me he’s alive.”

Newton nodded. “He is. He left the school almost as soon as Martin had him healed. He’s taken your place, sir. The Blue Knight has been fighting crime in London the last few months.

“Some of the others were not as fortunate. A member of the Armada defected to join us—Oscar? He was killed in the battle. We also lost some of the heroes from other worlds: Andrew Catargi and Wally Tremain, or Kelpie and Shakes, as they were codenamed.

“Otso’s father died fighting the Armada here on the ground; Vlad’s mother was killed aboard the ship. Eve Robbins was slain in battle, however…” The headmaster hesitated. “One of her teammates took her to the other school. He seemed to believe that their healer might be able to still save her.”

That worried Kas. The headmaster was an Esper—someone who could eavesdrop on the departed. If Eve had been resurrected, surely he would have known it. Kas had to wonder if he was being vague to try and bolster the spirits of his charges—as though he were trying to give them a reason to believe Eve might be alive and happy on some other world.

“And, of course, with your return, there is only one still missing: Gaspar. According to Martin, Gaspar became entangled in a brawl with Lexus’ father. The two were aboard a shuttle that left the Elpis. Unfortunately, we have no way of telling if Gaspar is alive or dead or even what world he landed on.

Knowing that his protégé was safe made Paladin breathe easier, but Kas still had questions: “You mentioned refugees?”

Newton nodded. “The teleporters from the world that perished—they evacuated the school on that world, then went back to evacuate as much of New York City as they could. They were able to bring over thirteen-thousand people from that dimension to this one. It’s created quite the legal quagmire. Some of those people exist as younger versions of themselves in this timeline. Others are the grown-up children of people who haven’t met yet.

“While the United States consulate tried to determine how best to deal with this, they were offered temporary visas for the European Union. Most of the faculty has been involved in an adult education camp over the summer. These people were just in an alternate reality’s 2026, and now it’s 2009, and recent history is different from what they remember. The trouble has been in figuring out the differences. We know how our history has played out, but we don’t know what is different for them.”

“And they’re receiving animosity for this?” Kas asked.

The headmaster shook his head. “There have been numerous hiccups with the city suddenly taking on this many guests. Fiore and Rose have been working tirelessly to try and increase crops to accommodate these people, but they have other needs. Housing, for one. Considering that the city is still recovering from the Armada’s attack, countless people are homeless at the moment. It’s led to a rash of crime that the Volunteers have been tirelessly working to contain, but… it’s still an issue.

“We’re also stretched thin where medicine and therapy are concerned. None of the refugees have any medical history we can access. Some are diabetic and in need of dialysis. Others rely on life saving medicine—some use medicines that don’t yet exist. Martin has tried to reconstruct some semblance of these medications by what was still in their system, but it’s not yet perfect. Others still haven’t been able to cope with the situation they find themselves in. For every suicide your classmates have prevented, there’s two they don’t.

“Still, the biggest reason for the burgeoning odium towards these poor souls is money. Even with the Caspians feeding them and Martin trying to replicate medications, they need money. They’re taking jobs. Some in Europe are complaining that they’re taking jobs from natural born citizens. Just last week the Volunteers stopped a riot outside of a grocery store. People were protesting the store’s hiring of twenty refugees and things got violent.”

“Sounds like it would have been better if they had died with their world,” muttered Derryl.

The headmaster shook his head. “It saddens me that more could not come over. Things may be difficult now, but… these are people, the same as you and me. They deserve the same shot at happiness that we all do. It’s just a matter of finding how to coexist with each other.”

Paladin rose up. “There’s not much that I can do about that,” he said. “I should be off. I’ve been away for longer than three months.” He extended a hand to both Derryl in Kas in turn. “It’s been… bizarre.”

“Mister Percy may not be here,” Newton said, “but some of your other former students are. Shelby DeGallow, Logan Decker, and Roslyn Arnett-Rexroth are all here at the school.”

Paladin grimaced. “There were two others…”

“Mister Catargi was slain aboard the ship, but Mister Blackwell is alive in the other dimension.”

Paladin nodded. “Good. He’s soft. He wouldn’t survive in this world. Maybe this other world will treat him better.”

As he moved to leave again, Newton again moved to stop him. “I imagine they’ll want to see you before you go.”

Paladin shook his head. “I taught them what I can. They’re all yours now.”

Without another word, Paladin left the school behind him.

NVAE (Lex; NPCs: Kirstie)
Kirstie grabbed Lex by the cheeks and pressed her lips to hers. She kissed him long and hungrily. Her hands slipped down his neck and pulled her arms back over his shoulders. She hopped up, hugging his neck and locking her legs around him. Unprepared, Lex stumbled back and fell to the ground where Kirstie pinned him and continued to kiss him.

“Uh, we’ll just, uh, go find Herr Newton,” Magnitude said awkwardly. Though he led Derryl and Paladin away, the couple was drawing onlookers. Kirstie appeared not to notice; she only had eyes for him.

“Mm, Kirfdie?” mumbled Lex around the kisses. “Kirfdie?”

She sat up suddenly and punched him hard in the chest. “Where the bloody hell have you been!?!” she roared.

“Ow!” he yelped. “Hey, wai-”

“Do you know what you’ve blood well put me through!?!”

“Ow! I’m sorr-”

She punched him again—this time slugging him in the shoulder. “All this time, we didn’t know if you were dead or still trapped on that stupid ship! Then the lot of you just show up like nothing happened!?!”

“It was onl-”

She punched him in the jaw and then her eyes bulged when he went limp under her.

“Ow! The hell!?!”

“I’m sorry!” she proclaimed, dropping down to kiss him again. And again. And again and again and again and again.

At first he flinched, holding his arms up in front of him to push her away weakly. “No,” he protested. “Off. Off.”

“I’m sorry, it’s… it’s been… You’ve been missing for months and no one knew if you were… Well… You know, and I… I… I’vebeenbabysittingourgrandsonalotandsometimesandthissituationisreallymessedup.”

“I get it. I do, but-”

Her eyes lit up with realization. “Your dad!” She fumbled about for her phone. “I have to tell him! Your dad is going to flip when he finds out!” She froze suddenly, with her fingers hovering over the buttons. “Actually, m-maybe I should just leave—let you tell… I… I mean, y-you…” She couldn’t make eye contact with him anymore. “There’s this little girl your dad… She…” She took a deep breath. “ShethinksJackandIareherparentsbutit’snottruesopleasedon’thateme.”

"Her name is Ultramauler and she's $*#(ing adorable!"

Kirstie shot him a deadpan look. “Doctor Bacon wanted to run some tests. She’s my daughter. Sure, she’s adorable, but she’s also…” She sighed and let her arms fall limp at her sides. “I don’t know how to explain it.”

Lex sighed and propped his aching head in his hands. “I get it, okay. I’m sorry. I know what it’s like. I’ve been there. I’ve lost somebody too.”

“You don’t get it,” Kirstie said.

Lex talked over her, holding up his phone so she could see the date and time listed. “But I saw you less than four hours ago, see? I’m not trying to be mean. I’m really not. I thought it was hours, not months. Drifter must have teleported us through time or something.”

“I don’t love her!”

Her exclamation took him off guard.

“Ultra Mauler. I… She’s adorable, yes, and according to Doctor Bacon, she is my biological daughter, but I’m not her mom, Lex. Her mom is some other woman in some other dimension and every time she sees me, she calls me that and I get that she had a rough life, but that doesn’t make her my problem, does it?” She was breathing heavy. She seemed on the cusp of hyperventilating. “Everyone acts like I’m a terrible person because I don’t want her around me, but I just…” She threw her hands up in defeat. “I can’t be who she expects me to be. I don’t want to be with Jack. I don’t want her to stay in my room. I…” She broke down crying. “Everyone keeps saying I’m a horrible mother, but I can’t be because I’m not a mother period.”

Shrugging off his jacket, he threw it over Kirstie’s shoulders, then slipped an arm around her. “You’re not her mother,” he said as he pulled her close, “and anybody who’s expecting that of you is either a scared, lonely little girl who means well but doesn’t know better… or somebody I’ma gonna punch in the near future.” His tone dropped dangerously low. “Who the hell dumps that on a sixteen-year-old girl?”

Kirstie shrugged. “Your dad, for one. He’s sort of unofficially adopted her. He has her calling him ‘Pop’—telling her that he might as well be her grandfather.”

“Look, I got your back, okay? However you want to do this, we’ll do it. The naysayers? #$*@ ‘em. It’s not fair to pretend you’re her mom and dump that responsibility on you. She’s got to know you ain’t really her mom, too, but you’re the closest thing to a family she’s ever going to have, ya know? She’s probably just clinging to that because…” He sighed, thinking back to his first semester here—his parents still in America. “…It’s not easy being alone.”

“It’s not that easy,” Kirstie said. “It’s more complicated than… She’s Jack’s daughter, right? I mean, biologically. Has his shifting powers? She’s been using them to make herself look older than she is, Lex. On the ship, she was taken out. A teleporter evacuated her to the school, but… when she was unconscious, she reverted… Lex, she’s only about six or seven. She tries to play like she’s older and more mature, but she’s just a little girl. She doesn’t understand the situation she’s in. She’s not…” An exasperate sigh escaped her.

Lex hugged her tight. “I know she wants her mom, but she can’t have that. Maybe we can talk to her, and you guys could be friends? You could be, like, a really cool older sister?”

“I don’t think she’ll settle for that,” Kirstie said. “Anyway, you should see your mom and dad. She’ll be with them, so… I’ll be somewhere else. Come find me later and I’ll catch you up on everything, okay?”

When Lex left for his parents’ apartment, he found Doug there, playing Candyland with Roger, Ultra Mauler, and a teenage girl with pink skin.

Everyone was smiling.

NVAE, GIRLS’ DORMS: BEATRICE’S ROOM (Otso; NPCs: Beatrice)
Otso's mind was nagging him about what appeared to be Kasimir's time—and dimension?—travelling adult daughter, but he was simply too damned tired to pay it much attention. Tired and anxious to get home. So when they arrived, he was looking around only to find no trace of the invaders. Tabitha's thank you about his tutoring her won a warm, if frazzled smile from the weary werebear.

Then they spotted Kirstie and Otso thanked whoever was listening quietly in his heart that they'd apparently in fact made their way to their home. But when the British girl got out in-between sobs and burying Lex under a fierce hug that they'd been gone for three months, Otso started casting alarmed looks around them.

The person he was looking for became obvious to all of them as he broke off into a full run towards the school building. "Beatrice! Bea!" He had to find her, and right now that lead to him being a very large and very concerned bear running full tilt through the school.

Otso transformed and sniffed the air. He caught Beatrice’s scent—it was different. It was her, but there was something new, like a change in perfume.

He followed her scent to the girls’ dorms—ignoring the shock and surprise the students had at the sight of him. Stranger still, he didn’t recognize many of them. They screamed in alarm at the sight of a bear charging through the schoolyard. He ignored them as expertly as he did those who recognized him and assaulted him with questions: “Where have you been?”, “Where did you go?”, “Have you seen Gaspar?” He ignored them all, determined to give his attention to only one young woman…

At Beatrice’s door, Otso shifted back to his human form and gave the doorknob a twist. He barely recognized the young woman on the other side.

Beatrice was thin. Gone were the chubby cheeks she was so self-conscious about. She was gaunt, and garbed entirely in black. It matched the colour of her hair—hair she wore in a pixie cut.

Between her fingers was a lit cigarette—the smell he’d detected amalgamating with her scent. At the sight of him, the cigarette dropped to the floor. She sat paralyzed, looking as though she’d seen a ghost. “You ‘ad better not be Martin or Dennis,” she warned.

Otso stood spellbound in her doorway, a nagging thought at the back of his mind reminding him that according to Kirstie, they'd been gone for three months. But he didn't care. She was alive. He'd been so scared to come home only to find her gone as well. Just like...

Tears welled up in Otso's eyes as he strode across the room to close the distance between them. He broke down completely when he embraced her, the bear hug surprisingly firm yet tender at the same time. "It's me Bea, I'm home. I... I'm home." It was all he could manage between sobs as he held her tight, scared to death of losing her if he let her go.

He wrapped his arms around her and she hugged him back. He heard her sniff. At first, he mistook it for a sniffle, only to realize she was sniffing him—trying to take in his smell.

His eyes went to her bed. There was a book open next to where she’d been sitting. It looked ancient: worn, yellowed parchment showed pages written in a language he wasn’t familiar with, showing a drawing depicting four robed men stabbing another figure—a naked man—and catching his blood in chalices.

Before he could question it, Beatrice grabbed his head and guided her lips to hers. “Tu m'as tellement manqué,” she said between kisses. “Tu m'as tellement manqué.”

SAN FRANCISCO (Dennis and Martin; NPCs: Abe)
Ignoring the catalyst behind the refugees' migrating to this dimension, Dennis was beginning to enjoy having Abe on hand. The young Neo-Sapien had a talent for spatial manipulation: with little more effort than he put into thinking, Abe was able to join Vienna with San Francisco, letting the three teens walk from the New Vindicators Academy of Europe to the Golden Gate Bridge--an icon that Abe could easily envision.

From here, Dennis was in charge of navigation. He'd spent the last three months working at the internship Mister Benson had found him...
I'll let EO summarize how he got to this point. Flynn, I've told you the gist of what you're doing here, but feel free to detail how Martin has spent the last three months.


VIENNA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (Jack; NPCs: Ellen)
Their luggage trailing behind them, Jack and Ellen made their way to the concourse. The last few months had been nothing short of relaxing.

Jack had fought his doppelganger, created a duplicate of himself to pose as said doppelganger, went to prison for his doppelganger’s crimes, saw the creation of the Armada, saw several dimensions destroyed, conspired to bring the Armada down with his father and step-mother, saw their rebellion quashed, saw his father killed, died himself, then woke up in his real body with conflicting memories of a year he never actually lived through, was mentally healed by a mysterious child who had appeared out of nowhere and disappeared almost as quickly, then repelled an invasion by the Armada, which saw the death of one of his classmates.

After all that, three months with his girlfriend and her mother were a well-deserved break, but now, they were a little over a week away from the start of another year at the New Vindicators Academy. It was the start of her senior year and his junior year.

The school had sent someone to pick them up at the airport. As they made their way towards the main entrance, Jack spotted their driver: JR Radikovich.

Ellen didn’t react: she had yet to meet the young man who claimed to be her son from an alternate timeline. Still, he knew her.

“Welcome home, mom,” he said as he approached. He opened his arms and moved in for a hug, only for Ellen to lean back out of it.

NVAE, NELSONS’ APARTMENT (Tamati; NPCs: Sarah, Shelby, Tatjana)
“I still can’t get over this,” Shelby said as she cradled the three-month old in her arms. “I’m holding myself as a baby.” She looked to Tamati. “Do you think the novelty of this will ever wear off?”

NVAE (Violet)
Given that there are a few different ways to go with Violet, I want to let you open this up, Shock, and describe the last three months for her. We’ll move from there.
NVAE Setting - VP: 5
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Arkrite
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #25 - Jeopardy! (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Arkrite »

Alex "Current" Murphy
HP: 6 CND: Staggered, Bruised

Lex leaned against the door frame smiling at the wholesome scene, then on a whime he pulled out his flip phone and took a picture of the group.

"Who's winning?"
EnigmaticOne
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #25 - Jeopardy! (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by EnigmaticOne »

Imago
HP: 6

In some sense, the arrival of the Armada and its after-effects had no change whatsoever. Dennis largely had spent the next days as he had the days before, with a heavy activity in the library, digging out and studying all the collective information on the arcane that he could find. The presence of likely at least one mage from the Armada who'd also escape had simply added extra reason (should any have been needed on top of Robor, Cormag McKinnon and the Faustian Society's activities) for him to learn and learn fast.

Finally, he was sitting in with a piece of paper in front of him. It was quite straightforward - Dennis had it all figured out now. And just to prove it, the illusionist had a basic ritual that he had found set up and ready to be used. Nothing complicated, just making some multicolored spheres of light. Dennis began to recite the lines carefully...

...and opened his eyes to find the ceiling staring at him, and the surroundings that of the infirmary. And sitting beside, him, Mr. Benson. It turned out that Dennis had somehow concussed himself, knocked over multiple full bookcases and a very loud thunderclap. Mr. Benson asked him about it, thought for a bit then asked if he'd been to the United States?


In San Francisco, Dennis led the other boys in the trek, starting down and through the Presidio. By now, having lived here for three months, Dennis was quite familiar with short cuts through the city.

The tutor Benson had found was was none other than Doctor Stephen White, the former Aurelius. Back on his old world, the doctor had passed on his position to Alan years ago. But here, until a year ago, he had been considered Earth's master mage. Then, he took part in a battle against an army of ancient Nephilim and lost his hand. Without it, he could not cast a single spell.

It was a destiny he had accepted until Dennis visited, and talk turned to the Armada, specifically, about the mage whom killed Kelpie...

"My boy," Dr. White gravely said when Dennis concluded his tale, "I fear that you have encountered none other than my nefarious brother, Peter, a man of terrible ambition and unbridled hubris. My brother believed he should be the Aurelius. Indeed, he devoted much of his life towards that very goal, only to see me chosen instead."

"Yeah. I learned about him in class. So it's not likely he went down with the Armada." Dennis surmised.

"No my dear boy, Peter is not dead. It's normal for him to prepare an animated shell that he controls from a safe place - a way of scouting out danger, if you will. Nay, you did not defeat him, but rather showed him your hand. If the Armada's arrival here has allowed him to return to this world, none of us are safe. We must be prepared... I fear that without my hand, he'll find me to be easier prey than when last we dueled."


That last line had lingered in Dennis' head for some time.

In exchange for telling the man what he knew about other dimensions, Dennis had been learning about the true nature of arcana. He learned that werewolves were creatures of mythology, but that King Arthur was very much so real and here in San Francisco, sleeping death off. Trolls were make-believe, but fairies were real--just not what Dennis thought. Dennis was learning the truth about the world--things few else knew--and picking up a new language along the way.

But recently, Dennis realized there was maybe something more he could do for Stephen White: he could introduce him to Martin Curie, a healer of unrivaled capabilities. Martin had apparently restored the castration done to Mike Mitchell - if he couldn't restore the Aurelius' lost hand, who could?

Dr. White had been informed Dennis would be bringing company to the Chapel - but not precisely why.
Games
Imago in New Vindicators Academy of Europe
Horsenhero
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Horsenhero »

Magnitude
Kasimir Flaegler
HP 3


Kas of course volunteered his services helping with housing for the refugees or moving supplies or anything he could do really. One thing his powers were uniquely suited for was playing pack mule. He could lift, move and carry supplies or people more reliably than any transport aircraft devised, whether fixed or rotor wing. Granted, unless he pushed his powers farther than was normally a safe level, his actual transport weight was substantially less than a great many aircraft, but Kas was handy to have around for the grunt work.

That was really all he could do before Newton dismissed them to deal with their various issues. Kas called his parents and siblings to let them know that he had not died, which was news his clan received well...or well enough. His mother, ever the diplomat and lawyer remained subdued, while his father had been effusive in his relief. There was an issue though. Apparently the news of his demise had not been well received by his sisters and both had manifested their powers in the high emotions that followed. Gitta, his elder sister manifested her powers in a manner very unlike his own. At will, she could increase her personal density, collapsing in on herself until she became a point singularity. She would then pull loose rock, metal or other debris to her and "rebuild" a humanoid form animated by her power. From the description it sounded a bit like Bulwark with stop-motion animation type movement. Gudrun, his younger sister had also manifested her powers and while they were closer to Kas's own, they were slightly different. Her powers manifested in such a way that she could invest objects with a gravimetric attachment to her, so she was almost always being orbited by objects she consciously "caught in her gravitational pull". Unlike Gitta and much like himself, she could also fly, but she required a platform she could stand on to do so. Gitta was older than Kas, so he wasn't sure if any time spent at the academy would be allowed her. She was already preparing for university. Gudrun was 4 years his junior, so he wasn't certain she was old enough. He supposed he could just pass on what he'd learned to the school administration and let wiser people than him work it out. At least neither had gone through trauma like his own...though he felt a bit bad for his father as the only "normal" person in the family now. His father was unflappable though. He was simply fascinated by the different ways the same root powers manifested, his engineers' mind studying what was placed before him. So far there powers were simple, but Otto being Otto was certain that much like Kasimir the powers were liable to have undiscovered uses. Kas wasn't sure. His powers were flexible because he was imaginative. His sisters didn't seem all that creative to him, but he wasn't going to say that out loud. He made plans to meet his parents and siblings to celebrate his not being dead and then wished them well.

One thing he avoided during the entire conversation was the fact he had been rescued by his parents granddaughter and that she was, at the time of that rescue, older than he. That wasn't even a discussion he thought he should have. Technically, at this point, she was only a potential person because he and her mother hadn't consummated their, admittedly odd, romance.

"Sometimes I feel I am going to haf an aneurysm from the strangeness uf it all." He muttered to himself.

Strangeness that included Newton's body language when he spoke about Eve. Kas would have assumed that Newton would be as clueless as the rest of them, given that Eve...if she was indeed alive...was in another dimension. Maybe the dead could travel from earth to earth at will though? Maybe she was dead and her spirit had returned to her home plane and spoke to Newton? Maybe. Maybe. Maybe. This was something for minds like Newton or Jason to consider, not him. Quantum mechanics made his head hurt.

Besides, Eve was a theoretical problem. There was a very real problem in the wake of the Armada's assault that was a far cry from helping refugees. What would the world do with Neo-Sapien criminals now? The Astral plane had been used as a prison and proved to be problematic. Pandora no longer existed. That dimension simply wasn't there. Normal prisons were inadequate for many SPB's and he'd find himself dragged over hot coals before he allowed the sort of nonsense he heard MI18 was doing to be enacted large scale. He had to think. The solution should come from SPB's not normal humans and it needed to be proposed quickly.

"There's only one thing to do Kas...a problem like this requires koffee. Strong koffee."

So he pulled some clean clothes over his newly laundered uniform, stuffed his helmet in a rucksack, slapped on dark glasses and grabbed the cane he hadn't used in...it seemed like forever. People knew Magnitude, but Kasimir Flaegler was less recognizable and Kas needed to be out in Vienna among regular people. He had to hear what the dime store novel detectives called...the word on the street.
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Gilliam
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Gilliam »

Tamati "Taheka" Stevens
NVAE, NELSONS’ APARTMENT (Tamati; NPCs: Sarah, Shelby, Tatjana)
“I still can’t get over this,” Shelby said as she cradled the three-month old in her arms. “I’m holding myself as a baby.” She looked to Tamati. “Do you think the novelty of this will ever wear off?”
Smiling Tamati shock his head [colkor=#400080]"No I don't think it ever will, it is just amazing..."[/color] reaching out Tamati gently tickled baby Shelby on her tummy making her giggle " .. look she is even tickleist in the same spot, oh she is so gorgeous Sarah." Tamayi finished saying to one of the other teenage girls in the room "Shelby is such a beautiful tamaiti."

While it had been 3 months since the invasion it had passed very quickly for Tamati and in many ways he was still trying to find his feet but if not for Shelby he would have been lost. In the first couple of days as he realised that he was trapped on this world she had been there for him holding him when he needed to be held, listening and somehow knowing when he really did need some space to himself and Tamati still felt guilty that it took over a week for him to realise that Shelby was also in the same boat as he was and that was when he started to give back to Shelby helping her as she had helped him and growing ever closer.

The other things that Tamati was having trouble adjusting to was the fact that they were now in the past and while Tamati had never been the greatest of students he had followed sports and did wonder if some of the big results would go the same way as back home, If he placed a bet or two he might make some extra money. And he did need some extra money after that incident last month, the gypsy had been so convincing she would be able to open a portal back to his home world which as far as he knew was still in one piece. All the gypsy needed was some money to bribe the dimensional guardians she made it sound so plausible then that night there was a lot of smoke and noises but nothing. Afterwards she said just a little bt more money would do it was when he rrealised he had been played. He had been too embarrassed to tell Shelby or anyone and the gypsy had disappeared in a cloud of smoke when he demanded his money back. He will never forget the sound of the mocking laughter as he lashed out in anger.

High school was always hard and it seemed to be trickier now that there were kids from other dimensions who were the parents or even grandparents of each other even though they were all of a similiar age. A bit like right now where Shelby was holding herself as a three month old baby and her mother was about the same age as Tamati and Shelby.
Last edited by Gilliam on Tue Jul 04, 2017 5:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.
McGuffin
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #25 - Jeopardy! (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by McGuffin »

Ursa
HP: 8
Cnd: Home


"Tu m'as manqué aussi, Bea, tu m'as manqué aussi." As he kissed her he gently guided her towards the bed. The need to hold her close was like a burning fire in his heart at this point.

Otso caressed Beatrice's cheek. "The Armada, the Elpis, other worlds. What stuck with me from all of that was this: There are countless worlds out there, but no matter the world it's always you. I always choose you Beatrice. I love you." This was all he wanted, she was all he wanted, and after the shock of the Invasion he'd enjoy her company for as long as he could.
Otso Karell/Ursa, student at the New Vindicators Academy Europe.
Kriv of Clan Myastan, Dragonborn Noble Paladin in On the Road.
Flynnarrel
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #25 - Jeopardy! (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Flynnarrel »

Fluxx

It had been a long three months. The mystery of Fluxx's escape from BetweenSpace had to be pushed to the back of his mind as there was too much to do.

With the influx of refugees from A-world, (it felt wrong that the naming of the world harkened back to the main threat to it - Apokalypse, but Fluxx heard that in passing and the name stuck with him), Martin volunteered his medical and chemical services. He was a mobile Dialysis machine that could perform in half the time. He was a walking insulin pump. He was a field surgery hospital that made house calls. The need was so great he dropped any pretense of sleep. Instead subsisting on an hour a day reverted to a warm golden protoplasmic form in which ripples danced and waves pulsed and undulated as dreams came fast and intensely. He preferred to spend this next to Tatjana, if she was available and would have him. And some days he could push even without that but was cranky and shorter tempered until he could next go dormant.

Throughout all of his administering and working with relief doctors to stock medicines and shelter-builders ('you would like 'ow much mortar?') he never forgot his own projects. Tracing Neo-sapien powers back to one of the original fallen angels meant a genetic component in common and Martin could take and mentally store a sample from every powered individual and family member he was asked to heal for common comparison. It would be better to get it from as close to the source as possible - the hellfire-wielding Nephilim, but those were few and far between. Still, it was satisfying his 'science' itch to be cataloging and trying to find genetic correlations to various kinds of powers. For example, were all beast morphers distantly related to this Leviathon that Martin had heard about?

When Martin had created enough stockpiles of medicines and nutritional supplements, provided enough raw materials to keep the builders busy for a while, and generally reduced the demands for his hands-on time. There was a project of immense importance to give thought to.... He presented Tatjana with a prototype.
cleared with Mich
Image
A shoulder strap held a cone about 12 inches in length and 6 inch diameter at the opening.
The insides were a molecularly smooth near-perfect sound refraction carbon-polymer and the outside was a lattice-strong structure of nanotube chains built off the current design for anti-earthquake bricks to be able to deal with any vibration leakage. (And when the first prototyped cracked, Martin designed into it tiny tin fins for heat dispersal).
The horn mouthpiece was meant to fit well over Tatjana's own lips and bore the incription 'For My Love, Please be ever eager for your voice to be heard.', and the resonance chamber was meant to shape Tajana's screams into a forward projection cone. He was looking forward to have her try it out...
Mich, if you deem this works I recommend adding to Tatjana:
Device, Easy to lose, [3pp]
Gives her sonic array a series of alternate powers changing area-explosion to area-cone.
EnigmaticOne wrote: Mon Jul 03, 2017 1:00 am Imago
But recently, Dennis realized there was maybe something more he could do for Stephen White: he could introduce him to Martin Curie, a healer of unrivaled capabilities. Martin had apparently restored the castration done to Mike Mitchell - if he couldn't restore the Aurelius' lost hand, who could?
Martin was all aboard this happening. Newton had first mentioned the maimed master mage last year. Martin had offered to see what he could do but the Headmaster got too busy to arrange it.

When approached, Martin requested that Tatjana, if she wished it, could come along. If so, he recommended she bring her new cone to get used to carrying it and maybe if there were a place to practice.

When the Neo-sapien, Abe, brought them to West America Martin had to shake his hand in thanks for letting him share this first view of the iconic landmark with his girlfriend.

Any wonder at this new vista became businesslike when confronted with Dr. White.

Martin examined the stump critically. If he was intimidated by standing in the presence of a man of great knowledge and power or what was riding on his success it didn't show.

"I will 'ave to dissolve ze scar tissue and necrotized cells." he says clinically. "I will zen convert ze end cells to an ephithelial or 'fetal' cellular state. Your genetic code contains ze blue print for your 'and - wiz ligaments and musculature, bone and nerves. My job will be to encourage replication and supply ze necessary base building blocks, oxygen, and sucrose for ze procedure. I will apply nerve conduction blockers at ze shoulder as nerves suddenly coming back on-line may provide too much of a sensory load to be... comfortable. You will not be able to move ze arm until we are finished."

He'll turn to a convenient spatial distorter. "Zere was a market on ze corner, yes? I'll need approximately two kilograms or 4 and a 'alf pounds, since we are in America, of animal protein - bone-in beef steaks would be preferred, raw, but not frozen, twelve-'undr.. err.. six CUPS of sugar, two liters of water, tap will be better as we can use the ions and trace minerals, and 3 'D' cell batteries, lithium ion, non-rechargeable."

Once the raw materials were arranged and Doctor White was laying down, Martin, for all of his complex explanation, didn't seem to do much. After a horror-movie-esque scene of Martin passing golden-jello hands over the raw ingredients leaving behind only the batteries, he then covers the stump with the same golden jello appendage. The semi-translucency takes on a pinkish hue for a brief moment which obscures the specifics, only that the blob pulses and grows. The mass of Martin's body hollows as he 'feeds' more of his own protoplasm into the process and the jello mass surrounding the arm elongates, becoming cylindrical - a protoplasmic incubation chamber.

For all the years of anguish, sorrow, and misery this injury has caused, it's surprisingly little time until Martin says, "Okay, I will now introduce an electrical charge to ze newly formed nerves and muscles. You may experience slight discomfort, even zrough ze blockers." He warns and he reaches for the batteries with his other hand. A ripple goes up that arm and down the other to the pale flesh of Dr. White's arm and it spasms and jerks wildly. Stephen might cry out at this point, revealing Martin's use of the 'doctor's lie' (it's never just a 'slight' discomfort), but it passes quickly.

Martin steps back, the golden gel resolving itself into his own limbs again leaving a perfect, unblemished hand. Martin regards it and frowns. "I tried to match ze dermal-melanin pigments. I do not zink I got it quite right." The hand is indeed a lighter shade than the arm it's attached to.

"Now I will counter ze nervine agent I administered previously. Take it slow and we will see if your 'and works." .... or if the doctor had a useless chunk of meat dangling below his wrist.

...
"Something pithy this way comes."
Shock
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Shock »

Violet Lear
HP: 9


Violet had slapped Jack when he bluntly told her that Eve was dead and not coming back. The rest of the week went downhill from there as she lashed out at those who tried to comfort her and spent as much time as possible alone in her room. Even texts from Jakob received only an occasional, terse response. Surprisingly, it was Rose that finally got through to her.

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

*knock knock* "Violet, are you OK?"

The door stayed shut. "Go away!"

*knock knock* "Violet, can I get you anything?"

The door stayed shut. "GO. AWAY."

*knock knock* "Violet, is there anything I can do?"

On the fifth day, the door opened. "I'm hungry. Can we get something to eat?"

Their uneasy truce evolved into a sometimes awkward friendship.

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

With limited structure during the summer months, Violet spent the next month raising hell across the NVAE campus and the city in general. She flouted school rules and treated curfew in particular as nothing more than an unwelcome suggestion. Risk-taking was the order of the day, both in occasional Wreck Room sessions and in the streets of Vienna. She even unknowingly interfered in a Volunteers' operation that resulted in some property damage. Nobody was happier than NVAE administration when Violet's father arrived to take her on his summer humanitarian trip.

On the trip, Violet found a bit of peace. Her father tried to keep her mind off recent events and the work they were doing held her interest. She learned much that she felt would be of help in her pursuit of environmental studies. Providing water to areas in need was one thing. Making that water source sustainable was a much bigger challenge. And throughout the work, Augustus stressed her need to focus her energy on more positive efforts. It was with that in mind that she returned to Vienna at the end of the month-long trip.

Unfortunately, her results didn't match her intentions. Within a week of being back, Violet had violated curfew twice, disrupted orientation for a new student and kept the temperature in her room so cold it caused the environmental controls to malfunction and turn the heat in the girls' dorm on full blast for a full night. The rest of August she was calmer but still a headache for administration.

A particularly stressful moment came during a visit to Jakob's house. They'd stolen a few moments alone and Jakob's hand was going up her shirt when his computer's screensaver showed a picture of Eve. Violet caught sight of it and pulled away crying. Soon after, she left alone. That night she stayed out later than ever and got a tattoo of Eve's name on her right bicep. It's not finished so she hasn't shown anyone yet.

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

Sept 3

Violet was eating lunch with Rose again. Her other friends were mostly tied up with their own problems to spend much time with her recently. Either that or they might have thought her recent antics were getting tiresome. But if that was the reason, Violet hadn't considered it. Between mouthfuls of her salad, she shared her next plans with Rose. "I'm going out again tonight. I have something to do and then I'm going to Jakob's. His mum is supposed to be out late."
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Michuru »

NVAE, MURPHYS’ APARTMENT (Lex; NPCs: Doug, Nicole, Murphy, Ultra Mauler)
When Lex left for his parents’ apartment, he found Doug there, playing Candyland with his father, Ultra Mauler, and a teenage girl with pink skin.

Everyone was smiling.

Lex leaned against the door frame, smiling at the wholesome scene. Then, on a whim, he pulled out his flip phone and took a picture of the group. “Who’s winning?” he casually asked.

His father looked up saw him. A smile spread across the mustachioed man’s face. He rose up—knocking the chair over—only to freeze at the spot.

Tears streamed down his cheeks.

Electricity crackled around him as he barreled forward. He almost tackled the prodigal son into the hall. Strong arms wrapped around Lex to keep him from falling back. The elder Murphy said nothing. He just held his son and sobbed.

Behind him, Doug looked to the young lady with them. “Nicole,” he said, “can you run and get Missus Murphy?”

The girl nodded and slipped out of her seat, heading for the Murphys’ bedroom. She knocked softly and called to the woman with a meek voice.

The big man had still not let go of his son.

“Don’t you ever do that to me again,” he blubbered.

THE AURELIUS’ CHAPEL (Dennis and Martin; NPCs: Abe, The Aurelius)
Tatjana would have been better company than Abe, Martin felt. Really, anyone would have been better company than the young man. Martin could appreciate his sullenness: Abe was one of the four people from the now-dead dimension who had pushed themselves to evacuate everyone that they could. With their classmates and their classmates’ families secured in this dimension, some of them had gone to start evacuating New York City. Eric, Eric’s mother, and Abe had been in this dimension when the Elpis’ shifted; Abe’s mother had just gone back for more.

She was dead. Gabrielle Chobanian was dead. Further complicating things was the knowledge that his mother still lived in this dimension—or at least, her doppelganger did. Her, she was a year or two older than Martin. She had not married yet. Here, she was simply Gabrielle Farouk, a former student of the American school, according to the headmaster. She had left to join up with some sort of group that was equal parts freedom fighters and terrorist cell, by the sound of it.

No one knew where the woman was.

Ever since Martin had thrown himself into helping with the refugee’s health care, Abe had volunteered to act as his personal transporter. Martin was running rampant, but with Abe’s abilities, he was able to save time on travel. Abe took him from the school to the camp and back. The instantaneous movement was nice, but it meant enduring Abe’s melancholy.

If anything, it made him appreciate how far Tatjana had come with regards to her own battle with mental health. She had been stable for months now. Some of that, he suspected, might be due to Sarah’s giving birth.

As Martin found himself busy with the refugees, Tatjana had busied herself with her cousin. She made herself available to babysit at all hours of the day. Sarah had begun referring to her as “Aunt Tat”—something that the older Shelby had taken to calling her as well.

When he implored her to join him on a daytrip to San Francisco, she brushed it off. “I’m watching Shelby,” she said. It was something that made Sarah, Shelby, and Tamati eye her strangely: they were still with her; Shelby had more than enough eyes on her.

Martin wasn’t sure what was creating her obsession with the baby, and secretly wondered if her Borderline Personality Disorder was somehow to blame.

In any case, it cost him this moment with her. Still, Abe’s abilities meant that they could create another moment together—perhaps one where he wasn’t regrowing a wizard’s arm?

Martin tried to put his girlfriend out of his mind for now and focused on the task at hand. “Take it slow and we will see if your ‘and works,” he told the magus.

The Aurelius rose up and flexed his fingers. He made a fist and opened it. He looked down at his shirt and rubbed the fabric, testing his tactile senses. Once he was satisfied with that, he reached down to pinch a stray thread and gave it a sharp tug. “Master Curie,” he said as he extended his arm out. He fanned out his fingers to examine the Frenchman’s work. “I once fought an ophanim—a being whose very image plunges some who look upon it into utter madness. I have born witness to men shrugging off death itself as though it were nothing more than a splinter. I spent years learning how to command the very laws of physics to do as I will, rather than how the universe would dictate them. I have seen things that beyond your wildest dreams, and yet… here I stand… in wonder at the work you have just performed here.

“Tell me: are you single? My daughter is a smidge older than you and dating some boy from Laos, but…” He grinned at Martin, as if to show he was kidding. Was he kidding? It was hard to read the man, due to his eccentricity. “I know you said to take it slow, but… may I try to channel arcana, or do you feel the somatic components of the simplest spells might be too much for me just yet?”

NVAE, FRONT QUAD (Kas; NPCs: Buddy, Juozas, Larrikin, Lexus, Rusty)
By the time Kas had made it out of his room and back to the front quad, some of his Volunteers had gathered to wait for him. Juozas was here, along with Lexus; Larrikin was present too—the Australian boy had voiced his intention to join up, but had not made it official prior to the Armada’s invasion; Buddy was here, scolding a young man a few inches taller than he was.

At the sight of him, Juozas called out. They all hurried over to greet him. “Where in the hell have you been?” Juozas asked as Larrikin patted him on the back. Lexus nodded curtly to him while Buddy continued to bicker with the unknown figure.

NVAE, NELSONS’ APARTMENT (Tamati; NPCs: Sarah, Shelby, Tatjana)
“I still can’t get over this,” Shelby said as she cradled the three-month old in her arms. “I’m holding myself as a baby.” She looked to Tamari. “Do you think the novelty of this will ever wear off?”

Smiling, Tamati shook his head. “No, I don’t think it ever will. It is just amazing.” Reaching out, the Kiwi gently tickled baby Shelby on her tummy, evoking a giggling from her. “Look, she is even ticklish in the same spot! Oh, she is so gorgeous, Sarah. Shelby is such a beautiful tamaiti.”

It was then that he realized Sarah was looking at the couple funny. “What’s wrong?” Shelby asked. “Oh! ‘Tamaiti’ means ‘child’. I think…”

“‘Ticklish’?” Sarah asked. “You two…? You…?” She looked from one to the other before dropping her voice to a whisper. “Are you two having sex?”

Shelby began to cough.

NVAE, BEATRICE’S ROOM (Otso; NPCs: Beatrice)
“Tu m’as manqué aussi, Bea, tu m’as manqué aussi.” As he kissed her, he gently guided her towards the bed. The need to hold her close was like a burning fire in his heart at this point… and fire had a tendency to spread…

Beatrice’s hand fell on his chest softly. As he caressed her cheek, he realized she was pawing at him. “The Armada, the Elpis, other worlds… What stuck with me from all of this was this: there are countless worlds out there, but no matter the world, it’s always you.”

His mind went to his conversation with Derryl. It had been just hours ago for him, but three months in reality. “You had your wife… When the Armada showed up, you two… You had a job with the military—head of the Finnish Defense Force, or something? Your wife went to visit family in France.

“I was trying to run away from it all,” the displaced teen confessed, “and then the Drifter showed up, and I ran, and… and ever since, I keep thinking about you. You, the guy who missed his wife and daughter and hadn’t held either of them in over a year, and you still just kept doing what you knew was right.”

In Derryl’s world, Otso and Beatrice grew up, got married, and welcomed a daughter into the world. That revelation had been hammering at him. Maybe it was because he had lost his father earlier. It felt like his family was being taken from him, but here was Derryl, telling him he was going to one day make a new family.

He remembered the promise he’d made to that family: “I swear, I’m coming back to you from this, Bea.”

“I always choose you, Beatrice,” he said. This was all he wanted. She was all he wanted, and after the shock of the invasion—after losing his father—he was determined to enjoy her company for as long as he could. “I love you.”

Beatrice kissed him and then pushed him back onto her bed. She avoided making eye contact with him and began to blush. She hooked a leg over his and shifted to straddle his thigh. Her arms crossed in front of her. She hesitated for a flicker of a moment. Then she pulled her shirt up and off. She tossed it onto the bed next to them—covering the books she’d been reading. She leaned down to kiss him again as her hands moved to where his uniform fastened.
We can curtail awkwardness by not RPing it all, McGuffin. Mostly I’m just looking to see if Otso stops her or not and then we can move on from there.
NVAE, CAFETERIA (Violet; NPCs: Kelly, Lena, Rose)
“You like Derryl?” Kelly asked Lena. The Irish girl raised an eyebrow. “Which one?”

“The nice one!” Lena huffed when she saw her friend roll her eyes. “Well, the other one has a girlfriend!”

“A girlfriend he hasn’t heard from in months,” Kelly argued. It was true: shortly after the collapse of their dimension, several students from the New Vindicators Academy banded together and devoted themselves to tracking down the criminals who crossed over from their world. Eric Vaugh, Miles Lancaster, Cyndi Brightman, John Saxon, Dirk Wolfram, Aisha Stein, Kim Forbes, Suzette Shaw, and Allegra Delgado had left on their own and no one had heard from them since.

Violet didn’t care about that. She had no interest in her classmates’ love lives, or lack thereof; she didn’t care about a band of teenage vigilantes hunting down criminals from an alternate future; she could barely bring herself to carry about anything these days. “I’m going out again tonight,” she told Rose around a mouthful of salad. “I have something to do, and then I’m going to Jakob’s. His mum is supposed to be out late.”

Rose forced a smile. “Tonight’s the night then, huh?”
NVAE Setting - VP: 5
Shock
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Shock »

Violet Lear
HP: 9


Violet grinned "That's the plan. I don't know why I've been fannying around." She shrugged. "I'm on the pill, I know he's clean. Why wait? I've got to stop holding back."
Horsenhero
Posts: 941
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 9:01 pm

Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Horsenhero »

Magnitude
Kasimir Flaegler
HP 3


Kas greeted the Volunteers with a smile and at that pertinent, but, awkward question, he sighed;

"I haf not been anywhere...exzept where I promised I would be. During the assault on the Armada, Otso, Lex und I fought our way to the dimension where the Artificial Intelligence Argus had its factory. We destroyed that facility und the gateway leading to it. We were trapped, but...the Drifter...appeared to rescue us und bring us home. There seems to haf been an unfortunate time distortion und our arrival vas...later than we expected."

He shrugged.

"For me little time has passed. The battle with the Armada is fresh, barely a few hours finished. I haf scarcely had time to report to Herr Newton und shower und change. He says you haf all been quite busy during the interim though. How are things out there...und who is Buddy squabbling with?"
Flynnarrel
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Flynnarrel »

Michuru wrote: Thu Jul 06, 2017 12:46 pm THE AURELIUS’ CHAPEL (Dennis and Martin; NPCs: Abe, The Aurelius)
The Aurelius rose up and flexed his fingers. He made a fist and opened it. He looked down at his shirt and rubbed the fabric, testing his tactile senses. Once he was satisfied with that, he reached down to pinch a stray thread and gave it a sharp tug. “Master Curie,” he said as he extended his arm out. He fanned out his fingers to examine the Frenchman’s work. “I once fought an ophanim—a being whose very image plunges some who look upon it into utter madness. I have born witness to men shrugging off death itself as though it were nothing more than a splinter. I spent years learning how to command the very laws of physics to do as I will, rather than how the universe would dictate them. I have seen things that beyond your wildest dreams, and yet… here I stand… in wonder at the work you have just performed here.

“Tell me: are you single? My daughter is a smidge older than you and dating some boy from Laos, but…” He grinned at Martin, as if to show he was kidding. Was he kidding? It was hard to read the man, due to his eccentricity. “I know you said to take it slow, but… may I try to channel arcana, or do you feel the somatic components of the simplest spells might be too much for me just yet?”
Martin holds up his hands in supplication, glad Tatjana didn't hear that. "I do not need your first born as eizer payment or gift and my list of enemies is extensive enough as it is; I do not need a jilted Laotian suitor to add to it - I imagine 'e is most formidable to win ze attentions of your kin."

"Yes, please, try somezing simple and remember you do not 'ave 'muscle memory' developed yet. You may even find it more limber zan you were used to."
Martin encourages.
"Something pithy this way comes."
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Tattooedman
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #26 - The Persistence of Memory (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Tattooedman »

Greystone:
[Jack Rexroth]
HP: 2

In the aftermath of the Armada Invasion:

Between Violet's slap to his face when he honestly answered her about Eve's whereabouts and Herta's series of high speed punches, elbows and knees when he tried to tell her what happened to the one world wasn't her fault, Jack was sore and tired.

He wanted to cry.

He wanted to sleep.

He wanted to scream.

He wanted Ellen.

That was the impulse he followed, after shifting his skin to mimic a chameleon's so he could go unseen, going to his room and pressing her cell number into the keypad. However, it seemed that the energies given off by the Armada's ship after dimension-jumping were messing with phone signals or something because it went straight to voicemail. "Hey darling, I made it back." He said quietly. "I hope you and your mom are ok, once things settle down here I'll try calling again."

He paused then added. "I love you."


A week after the Armada Invasion:

As he walked out of the terminal at Heathrow Airport, Jack spotted Ellen and an older looking version of her that he assumed had to be her mother. "Hi darling." He said as he got close enough to his girlfriend to be heard, not hesitating to step in close and give her a brief hug before turning his attention to the older woman at her side. "Ma'am." He said as a greeting as he tilted his head towards the woman with honey colored hair. "Nice to meet you, I'm Jack."

To which the older woman chuckled. "Call me Gemma. You say "Ma'am and I think of me Mum, she's the right proper one."

"Now come on," Gemma said as she turned, motioning for the two teenagers to follow her. "Let's gather up your things and get home. Ellen's told me a lot 'bout you, but she favors you a bit so I'm gonna have to find out how much of what she's told me is true over dinner."

The offer of a home cooked meal appealed very much to the American. "Sounds good Ma...Gemma." Jack said as he took Ellen by the hand and accompanied the Woolf woman to the baggage claim.


A month into Summer Break:

Jack leapt over a mob of people who were between him and the man responsible for them acting upon their baser wants and needs, landing a solid punch on the bald man's chin that sent him sprawling to the ground. "'Ow?!" The man questioned from the ground. "'Ow is a yank like you able ta resist me power?" The man's frustration making his accent thicker, and a bit funnier to Jack.

"Maybe I'm just too thick headed." The tattooed teen answered back before asking a question of his own. "Now, you gonna surrender or do I have to get nasty? 'Cause I'm pretty pissed I had to trash a nice leather vest to deal with you, and I don't like your name, so it wouldn't take much."

"Easy Greystone." Came the voice of Jack's impromptu partner, Excalibur, as he made his way around the mob that surrounded the American and his opponent, knowing that making physical contact with the victims of Anarchy Jack would cause him to be exposed to the mental virus the psychic infected people with that caused them to lose their self control and follow their impulses. "He could be trying to play you."

"Problem is I'm playing him like a drum." Greystone responded as his second punch landed and knocked his opponent out cold. It was only a few minutes later when the first of Anarchy Jack's victims began recovering and order was restored.


September 3rd:

Jack fought the urge to smack either himself or J.R. when the dimensionally lost teen tried to hug Ellen, instead he tried to distract from the awkward moment. "Hiw's thing been going at the school J.R.?"
Last edited by Tattooedman on Sat Jul 08, 2017 2:17 am, edited 2 times in total.
Jabroniville wrote: Tue Jul 13, 2021 11:45 pm
LOl- "The Tattooed Man"? What kind of ABSOLUTE DILDO would refer to himself as "The Tattooed Man" :P!?!
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