Epic M&M: Issue 5 (IC)

[buzzard]

"Well why exactly do you intend to put me in charge of a team if you don't think I'm gonna listen to your orders? I don't ask to be in charge of anything. I also don't intend to keep my yap shut if you are doing something I don't think is wise. If you just want a drone, pick somebody else. I'll pull my weight, don't worry, but don't expect me to follow blindly. I won't let our people down though no matter what the orders. "

 

[Calinon]

Mega-City of New York
EPIC Institute, On An EPIC Passenger/Transport Jet
The briefing over, and Michelle and Straightjacket talking privately in the hall between the passenger compartment and the cockpit, Cosmo squeezes between the two and enters the cockpit. His voice soon comes over the intercom.

"Ok, kiddies. Buckle up, or hold on, because we're going to be taking off shortly."

Vince
"You want to pet a grasshopper," she says with an arched eyebrow. "You know, he's not a dog. He pretty much eats stuff and keeps me company and..."

CHIRP!

"...chirps," she says. "Now, if you feed him something, he'll tolerate it I'm sure," she adds.

Michelle, Straightjacket
Cosmo makes it obvious he's listening in by pretty much turning his head to watch you. "Wow, you're both feisty," he says with a perfect smile. "Just remember, beautiful, we're not automatons. If he's supposed to help you lead, isn't it his job to question orders he doesn't think are good?" he says to Michelle.

Lancheng, China
Raisa, X12, Kevin
OOC: The katana's are all the same. The button is easily held down if you use a normal grip on the sword.

Kevin touches X12 and manages to mimic some of his abilities.

Kevin gains the following:

• Super senses +7 (flaw: scent only; extra: telescopic +2)
• Feats: iron will, immunity (electrcity), scent, blind sight, rapid healing
• Skills: listen (5 ranks)

X12 cracks the door a bit and sniffs the air. His nose seems to be working normally, but he smells nothing that he can identify as dangerous. He smells dust, lamp oil and some other scents he can't identify. He signals the ok, and you all creep out of the hall...

...and into a dark hallway. There is thick red carpet beneath your feet and the twenty foot wide hallway has dark oaken walls. Along the walls, oil lamps sit in holders, providing very little light at long intervals. There are suits of armor every twenty feet, and pictures of knights and ladies adorn the walls here and there. You can make out doors along the wall ahead, as well as to your left and right. Behind you, there is a wall where the door to the washroom should be, there is a window, draped heavily in red cloth curtains. The entire place is eerily quiet.

"It looks like a castle or mansion or something," Dara whispers, clutching her Katana, it's glowing blade providing illumination out ot about fifteen feet. "Hey, a window!" she exclaims, her voice ringing out. She tears the curtains aside to reveal a window and outside... a wall of shadow, impenetrable to sight.

 

[Deva]

A shudder runs up Raisa's spine when Dara pulls back to curtain to reveal the shadows. She grips the sword tighter. "Creepy castle, darkness everywhere, the way we came is cut off, rampaging monsters.... I feel like I am in some bad horror movie. We are so not splitting up, I do not care how much faster searching will be!"

She move past X, taking the lead. "Kevin, bring up the rear. You and I have the best defences against, well, everything. I do not think I have to tell you to keep eyes and ears open."

Raisa will look around, trying to spot any sign of which way Jackal may have gone.

 

[Mordane76]

Responding to Raisa's question--
"Calling him Father is both soothing to me and insulting to him; as soon as we get out of here, I'll tell you what other information I have that might put you more at ease and give you another name for him.

Outside in the halls...
X12 proceeds over to Dara quickly, shushing her. "Cheery decor," X12 whispers when Dara throws back the curtains. "I'm going to guess without a point of reference, you can't even try to contact one of the senior EPIC members, correct, Dara?"

Looking around at the pictures, X12 whispers, "Anyone a history or heraldry buff?"

 

[Elementor]

Vince
"You want to pet a grasshopper," she says with an arched eyebrow. "You know, he's not a dog. He pretty much eats stuff and keeps me company and..."

CHIRP!

"...chirps," she says. "Now, if you feed him something, he'll tolerate it I'm sure," she adds.

"He's not just a grasshopper. He's not like other grasshoppers at all. He's an outcast from others of his kind just like we are. I'm sure he wouldnt mind another friend would you Hoppy?" Looking around for something Hoppy might like to eat, Vince grabs the "in flight safety manual" and sees if Hoppy wants to eat it.

 

[Agamon]

"Ok, kiddies. Buckle up, or hold on, because we're going to be taking off shortly."

"Aw, geez, here we go..." Sanjay says, strapping himself into the chair and holding on tight in mock fear.

"So hopefully all of our contacts speak English, 'cause, and no offense, Vinnie, but we might have trouble if we need to rely on you as our spokesperson..." he says, finally getting a good look at Vincent's new form.

He adds, watching Vince try to befriend Hoppy, "Hey, don't go feeding Hoppy that. We'll probably need it, Cosmo's the pilot."

 

[Velmont]

Kevin York, HP:4, Condition: Healthy, Stun:0, Lethal:0

Kevin let the other pass, taking the rear guard. "I'll have my eyes and hears open, and even my nose, thanks to X."

Kevin starts to look at the painting. "Sorry. I have seen many, but I was never listening to the people when they were explaining who they were. But it is strange, it's look more like an European style of castle, not japanese."

Kevin stay alert, and try to detect any smell that could be left by someone else than the four of the group.

OOC:
Note about mimics:

Super-strength +8 (extra: protection +8, shockwave +8) [1]
Super senses +7 (flaw: scent only; extra: telescopic +2) [2]
Feat: iron will, immunity (electrcity), scent, blind sight, rapid healing [2]
Feat: durability [1]
Skill: listen (5 ranks) -> +7 [2]
Skill: spot (4 ranks) -> +6 [1]
Skill: medecine (3 ranks) -> +5 [3]

 

[Calinon]

Mega-City of New York
EPIC Institute, On An EPIC Passenger/Transport Jet
Vince
"Ahem," Tara says, poking vince in the head with one of her insect appendages. "Grasshopper does not equal garbage disposal. Feed him food if you are gonna feed him, not laminated books of paper."

Hoppy seems to agree with Tara and lets out a loud chirp, smacking the book from your hands with his forepaws.

"Besides, he's not an outcast. I grew him from a normal grasshopper. I just haven't quite got shrinking him back handled yet, but I'm working on it!"

Sanjay
"At least he isn't going to have to land vertically. I don't think this bulky thing can do that anyway," Monica says. She leans over and whispers into Sanjay's ear. "Hey, wanna check out the bathroom later?"

"Hey Vincent," Tara says, having overheard Sanjay. "Aren't you from the SAA?"

Take-off Eh
Take off is smooth and like any other passenger jet you've been on. After a ten minute climb, you level out and change course, heading southerly. A short while later, Cosmo comes over the intercom.

"Alright kiddies. We're at cruising altitude and the weather looks clear all the way to Brazilia. We should be there in about three hours. You can unbuckle and move around if you want. Oh, and someone wanna bring me a sandwich and orange juice from the fridge back there? I didn't get breakfast."

Lancheng, China
Raisa, X12, Kevin
OOC: Velmont, no need to post your mimicry really. I update your excel character sheet whenever you mimic someone.

Raisa, you look at the carpet, and with the help of Dara's lit up sword, you easily see recent depressions in the carpet. The depression are large and show evidence of claws, and one set is absolutely huge. They head down the hall.

Dara shakes her head at X12's question. "I can't pick up anyone but us. I mean, I should sense someone, but it's like there's something blocking me. It's really hard for me to detect people though, especially at range. I have to really focus on it and know the person I'm looking for and where abouts he is. It can take a long time to do."

As you all look at the pictures and items as you pass, you don't recognize the names, though you do recognize some of the more famous titles. There are dukes and lords of various english counties. Kevin's assessment of the style seems to be correct.

X12 and Kevin can tell, both by the now obvious trail and the scent that Jackal has passed this way recently. You continue up the hall and come to a large intersection. The room is round, about 30 feet in diameter, and there are four passages, one in each direction. Along the wall between each corridor are two suits of armor flanking an elaborate decorative tapestry, each depicting the same castle. Raisa looks at the tracks, and sees them split up. A pair of prints go to the right, and something was dragged between them. The same thing happens to the left, with similar drag marks. The drag marks could very well be a body. Jackal's prints go straight.

 

[Deva]

Raisa looks around the circular room, contemplating the three other corridors and reminding herself NOT to split up. "I do not think Jackal would want Michael out of his sight." She takes a couple steps down the corridor straight ahead, taking a closer inspection of larger prints. "We should go this way."

 

[Mordane76]

"It's alright, Dara. Once we find Michael and get out of here, we'll find a place to hole up and give you a chance to find Master Wen, since he should be located in a fairly narrow search area," X12 says. "He'll know what to do from there, I'm sure."


"I doubt there is anyone manning this castle, like serving staff, but there is always a possibility," X12 says, kneeling to inspect the drag marks closer. "Regardless, I agree with Raisa -- I doubt the actual Jackal would leave Michael with one of his accessories. We should follow the main tracks together; follow them as far as we can and backtrack if they run cold; we really need to be concerned about rooms like this -- large, difficult to defend properly -- and dead-end hallways, where they can block us in."