Kumata

IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America The Robo-Robber saw Shard coming and braced himself, aiming his weapons. Then Lord Death leapt seemingly out of nowhere and caught the villain off-guard, knocking him to the ground. The Robo-Robber cried out, struggling to try and get the monster off of him. His micromissile launcher went off in the scuffle, streaking in a random direction. He managed to twist his heat beam weapon toward Lord Death, firing a ray of fiery heat against his shoulder. Of course, this meant that the Robo-Robber Tragedy had initially been attacking was now free to get up and target another hero. With his suit still electrified, the Robo-Robber ran over to swing a 'shocking' punch to the weakened Soundsmith. And he activated the bright light function of his helmet visor so that the heroes would be unable to look at him without being momentarily blinded. For those heroes who were keeping track: after these two Robo-Robbers, the only ones remaining would be the leader, who was still hacking the bank's computer system, the one protecting him with a wall-to-floor forcefield. OOC: HD, there was only one Robo-Robber who fired both a heat beam and a micromissile at Soundsmith. But I guess Shard could've gotten confused; they all look alike after all. And to be honest I'm struggling to keep track of what's going on here myself. I thought not giving them distinct appearances/names would make it easier to IC them all, less details to remember... IC - Gadgeteer @ Los Angeles hotel I see it as unlikely that Hexas has other forces at her disposal, for it would have made a great deal of sense to utilise them to obtain the Operation: Lockdown files rather than demand it of the world's heroes. Unless she is enacting a much larger-scale scheme, but there is no evidence for that at present. She claimed that Lockdown was built to house General Warner's enemies, which I took to mean his own, personal foes, perhaps ones he had made during illegal or immoral pursuits. Source of funding is currently unknown, though that information may be present in said files. As Carapace's questions went on, Viktor became aware of just how much vital information he'd neglected to obtain during the underwater negotiations with Lady Hexas. He chalked the oversights up to exhaustion, and made a mental note to keep his tiredness in better check. The uneasy feeling that Hexas was manipulating the group crept into his mind. He refused to be taken advantage of, least of all by a talking shark. One other thing. I recall now that Lady Hexas referred to Baron Carchas as the rightful ruler of the oceans, or some such title. So, his domain of operation most likely being underwater, to have made an enemy of him General Warner must logically have worked at sea, perhaps on a submarine or battleship. IC - Apep @ New York As the vehicle subsequently swerved and crashed Apep was thrown against the wall with a wheeze. She picked herself up slowly. Alright, so her attempt to have the handcuffs broken hadn't gone exactly as she'd hoped. No biggie. As it turned out the two cops who'd been there to keep watch over her were now dazed by the crash, so they didn't try to stop Apep as she kicked the back doors open. She stumbled out onto a pile of rubble, noticing with glee that her attacker was mostly buried in the masonry, when with what seemed like a flare of orange light Omega rejoined them. It was hard to tell - what with his only visible facial feature being two white dots for eyes - but he seemed angry. The following energy bolt confirmed that. What felt like a miniature explosion knocked Apep off her feet and into the rubble. She lay within the shattered brickwork for a few moments, groaning, then rolled over to stagger to her feet. Then she noticed something. Instinctively she'd raised her hands to protect herself from the energy bolt. That, plus the force of hitting the ground must have been enough to break the cuffs, for the two metal bangles now hung from either wrist, unconnected. And what was more, they'd stopped nullifying her powers! Apep prised the remnants of the cuffs off, a grin spreading beneath her mask. Still, she was in no mood to battle Omega again, not after he'd trounced her before. She was still annoyed at how he'd tricked her, but revenge could be served at a later date. They say it's best to let it go cold anyway, thought Apep. Right now she had to seize upon the slim possibility that Shockhead hadn't quite made it out of Grand Central yet. Now was her chance; with Omega busying himself dealing with the guy with the hoverboard, she could slip away. Several paper tendrils launched from her shoulder, intertwining and becoming a rope that wrapped around a nearby fire escape and hoisted her up and away from the scene...

IC - Apep @ New York Apep didn't hesitate though. As soon as a hole was torn in the roof of her transport she leapt to her feet. She had no idea who this guy on the hoverboard was. He seemed to want to attack her, though, so she tried to use that to her advantage. As fast as she could, she jumped and swung her (cuffed) hands up toward the nonhuman creature in a sort of double-fisted haymaker. She was hoping he'd use his axe-like weapon to counter the blow, which would hopefully damage the cuffs enough for her to regain control of her powers. There was a bit too much hope required for her liking, but she figured a slim chance of escape was better than none. IC - Sluice @ Epsilon Sluice was quiet for a short while after Silver's 'memory projection' had ended. Notwithstanding the fact that it was extremely disconcerting to live the events through his eyes like that - especially without warning - but she (and Fellwyd, presumably) had gotten a hint of the pain Silver had experienced before and after the mutation, both physically and emotionally. And suddenly offering platitudes, telling him over and over that things would work out just fine, seemed a bit futile. The pain was over for her and Fellwyd. But it had dwelled in Silver's memory for over a month. What could she say? "Thankyou for sharing that with us. It... it helps me understand more what you've been through, and what you're going through now..." It wasn't sugar-coated; it wasn't any kind of assurance. It was just the truth...

IC - Gadgeteer @ Los Angeles hotel It took a while to acknowledge Carapace's reply, since Viktor had to divide his attention between reading the message on his HUD and listening to what the others were saying around him. So it took some time before he was able to respond with: We met Hexas in her underwater sub. She was accompanied by a psychic ally, Killer Mari. Hexas threatened to burst the sub and drown us, even willing to sacrifice her ally. We had no choice but to negotiate. Hexas has informed us that Lockdown is a prison, built in secret by General Warner to illegally house his enemies. Hexas' interest is in freeing a prisoner called Baron Carchas, her 'beloved'. Hexas offered to lay low for the next three days, not to obtain more allies or make any more threats, during which she expects us to obtain the files on Lockdown and meet with her again. While I am not ready to trust her word on this, I am ready to cooperate, given that the exposure of a General's corruption and freeing of those who have been illegally imprisoned is a much higher priority mission than stopping Hexas, whom by her own admission as no other allies or resources than Killer Mari and an old submarine. No digital copies or records of the Operation: Lockdown files exist as it is not a government-authorised facility, so we believe the files or a clue to their location may be concealed within General Warner's place of residence. Our aim is to perform a break-in as soon as possible and we are discussing that plan now. We took residence in a hotel last night. When we awoke Negafire had disappeared. He has given us no explanation as to his disappearance. I observed him to be anxious for most of yesterday, especially after the incident at the Sinful Saloon. I believe he may have gone into hiding, fearing retribution from a Coalition comrade. IC - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America The super-strong Robo-Robber growled and squirmed. Though Shard was heavy, and the Robo-Robber weakened, adrenaline was giving the robber that extra burst of strength needed to begin pushing himself up, ready to twist round and throw Shard off of him. But then he attempted a tactic which the others seemed fond of - he electrified his suit. He ought to have thought for a moment and realised that electricity would doubtless do little damage against a man made of diamond, if any, but he was desperate to obtain any advantage now, and it cost him. The damage his suit had taken didn't quite allow such a thing. There were several loud sparks and flashes as an arc or two of electricity leapt from the suit, and a couple of flashes that seemed to come from within the visor. Then the Robo-Robber crumpled limply, emitting a quiet groan as a wisp of smoke trailed from his back. The suit had malfunctioned and he had electrocuted himself. Across the room, Soundsmith's concentrated sound-blasts was enough to send the already-winded Robo-Robber sprawling, unconscious. His machine-gun flew out of his grip and clattered uselessly to the floor. However, from his position nearby, the Robo-Robber who'd been firing a heat beam at Caige had noticed the weakening of Soundsmith's armour. So, while Caige had dodged aside he took the opportunity to adjust his aim and launch a heat beam straight at Soundsmith. And, believing that there was no kill like overkill he drew a micromissile launcher and fired that, too. In avoiding the heat beam Soundsmith wouldn't have time to aim a blast to destroy the micromissile. And in aiming a blast to destroy the micromissile he wouldn't have time to evade the heat beam.,.

OOC: Correct on all counts, Rumpelstiltskin! I put Scarlet in there because I wanted two villains to be flirting, and neither Hivemind nor Gel are the type. Apep is, though it'd be purely for the fun of grossing out her partner with an unmasked kiss. Hence her mistletoe ploy... Half-Dragon, you missed my Robo-Robber IC directed at Shard. And this one's aimed at you too... IC - Gadgeteer @ Los Angeles hotel Gadgeteer sat back down, nanorobots concealing his form momentarily as he returned to his Urban Mode. "So our current aim is to travel to General Warner's place of residence, bypass the security measures however we can, and search for any clue as to where the files concerning Lockdown might be." As he spoke, he began to mentally type a message onto his HUD, a message that he planned to transmit to Carapace Information on General Warner's home address would be appreciated. It wasn't information that Viktor thought the group would be unable to discover for themselves, but a simple check to see if Carapace was still keeping an eye on the group after being silent for so long. As he awaited a response, he continued to address the others: "Apart from his own home, have we any further ideas about places General Warner may have hidden the files..?"

I have the book Quest for the Masks and can confirm that no Doom Viper ever appeared. However Onua Nuva did fight a giant worm. It wasn't given as name, but it wasn't described to be similar in any way to a Doom Viper (which hasn't even been made up at the time, I believe).

OOC: Drat... I'd hoped to have this image finished before the 25th... I guess it's still appropriate to be posted during the holidays though. It's a Christmas scene at the Sinful Saloon! Even villains need to take a break. Click the thumbnail for the full image! If you can identify all 25 characters... you're probably Rumpelstiltskin, he's the only one obsessed enough about this game to do so. IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America "Whoof!" The Robo-Robber dropped down from his pull-up position. His armour, already damaged, sparked a little more. The Robo-Robber's helmet jerked about, as he tried to think up another solution to his situation. He swung at Shard a few times, but all it took was for the diamond hero to adjust his stance to avoid the obvious blows. In the end the Robo-Robber went with drawing both fists back and punching the ground with all of his super-strength. IC - Sluice @ League HQ "If your business is done here, then I'll set a course for Birkholm," announced Esp. Her boarding ramp closed up as Sluice, Silver and Fellwyd took seats. With a shudder and an electric whine they were off. Sluice sat in silence for the first few minutes of the journey, staring at her hands, lost in thought. Soon she looked over at Silver. "I suppose while we have time - and privacy - I'd like to ask... well, it'd be nice if you'd explain some things to me... fill in a few gaps," she murmured. "I mean, regardless of the, um, side-effects, it's great that you escaped the Armada Mothership when it blew up, but how exactly did you manage that? When - when I left you, it seemed like... like there wouldn't be a way out..."

Hero Factory, 'cause that's what I'm getting paid for.

OOC: You know that's more or less exactly the image of it I had in my head, no lie. Love the look of those trees too. Might have missed it Zytrix, but there's a Robo-Robber firing a machine-gun at the real Centurion. IC(NPC) - Platinum @ Charlotte Carefully Platinum directed himself and Hanna downwards. He released her as soon as their feet were on solid ground. "Now you look after yourself ma'am," he said with a smile. "Try to stay away from crowded areas if it hurts. Oh, and also-" He produced a piece of card from his pocket and handed it to her. It was printed with the League of Salvation's logo, and had a telephone number and email address at the bottom. "It might be worth getting in touch. The League has a program to help people whose powers interfere with their day-to-day lives. I'd love to stay and chat more, but I'm needed back at the bank... take care!" He hovered into the air again, floating back the way he'd come. IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America The duplicate Centurion landed his blow perfectly; the Robo-Robber's head practically rattled around inside his helmet from the force of the strike. He swayed on his feet for a moment, then collapsed. Shard also caught the super-strong Robo-Robber off-guard, and in turn was able to get quite a few good hits in. The Robo-Robber was slammed into the ground a couple of times, each impact audibly damaging the armoured suit he wore... and then with a grunt he hoisted his torso into the air, in the same motion as a pull-up, and grabbed the fingers of Shard's hand and began prising them away from his leg, attempting to bend them back. Or snap them off. He wasn't fussy...

We know none of his powers transferred, GregF confirmed it I'm sure. Also he didn't want anybody to know he was a GB, otherwise why go to the trouble of putting his consciousness into a Matoran body just so he could blend in?

1) We don't know how powerful the GBs are 2) He transferred his consciousness into a Matoran body, so he wouldn't have had access to any GB powers anyway 3) He didn't want to do any of that, the GBs aren't 'good', they're neutral. He just wanted to observe what happened in the universe he and his comrades had created.

OOC: Updated Gadgeteer's profile to include info on all his modes, and noticed LoAB updated the frontpage, and then realised I didn't post Apep's profile at all! So here we are. Real Name: Kanika. Her other names (parental, surname etc) are unknown, even to her.Alias: ApepAppearance: Wrapped in long white bandages, Kanika resembles your typical mummy. That is apart from the sinister golden headdress/mask upon her face. Power: Papyrokinesis - the ability to create and manipulate paper. Kanika can only control paper that she herself has generated. She also possesses enhanced cellular regeneration. Technically she is undead - her default state is that of a partially-decayed corpse, so she cannot regenerate to a completely living body. As an aside, this also means that she smells pretty bad.In addition to this the mask Kanika wears functions as a sort of universal translator. When she is wearing it she is able to speak and understand all Earth-based languages without conscious effort. Without it, she is only able to speak and understand Egyptian, though her other abilities remain. The mask 'clings' to her face with an unknown force; it is possible to pry it off, but very, very difficult.Allegiance: Coalition of CorruptionArea: Alexandria, EgyptBio: Kanika was a street rat, an abandoned child who survived on the streets of Alexandria by pickpocketing and stealing food wherever she could. One day she made the mistake of pickpocketing a local antihero. A petty and self-important man, the antihero saw fit to fly Kanika into the middle of the Sahara desert and leave her to die there as punishment for her crime. Kanika wandered, and was scorched and starving when she stumbled upon an undiscovered tomb. Within the tomb sat an open sarcophagus, and in it a golden deathmask. Obeying a curious urge, or perhaps just not thinking properly in her dying state, Kanika put the mask on - and instantly energy flooded through her body, invigorating it like never before. She left the tomb, made the journey back to Alexandria and killed the antihero with her new powers. The battle was open and bloody, which drew the attention of local law enforcement. However, Kanika fought them off long enough for the Coalition of Corruption to take notice. A representative was sent and she joined at once, using as her alias the name inscribed in hieroglyphs upon the inside of the deathmask - Apep.Having seen little of the world, and having spent most of her life struggling to survive, Kanika is overwhelmed by the freedom granted by her new abilities. She is happy to work for the Coalition and, after being on the receiving end of oppression for so many years, actually enjoys inflicting pain and misery on other people. She is a little wild and overeager sometimes - though this makes her all the more dangerous, it does mean that it is difficult for her to exercise caution or restraint. As a fighter she is resourceful, and will use her environment to great (and often unexpected) effect. IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America Down the Robo-Robber went. Though painful, this shocked him back into action, and he flung his arm up, quickly aiming a heat-beam at Caige...

Because this isn't X-Men physics, this is Bionicle physics.

OOC: Gonna wait on Half-Dragon's verdict re: Ozo before ICing Apep. It's starting to get tricky for me to keep track of all these Robo-Robbers... IC - Gadgeteer @ Los Angeles hotel "Technically infinite. This mode converts nanorobots into bullets, and thanks to your nanoforge I have an unlimited supply of those. However, I will have to wait for new batches of nanorobots to be generated, so there will be periods in in which I am unable to fire." IC - Sluice @ Esp We'll soon find out, thought Sluice, but she didn't voice this thought. Partly because she was surprised how quickly it had come to her. Are our lives really filled with that much fighting? "Well, it's good to know that it works," she said. "Be sure to let one of us know if there are any problems with it." IC(NPC) - Platinum @ Bank of America "Hold tight." Platinum touched his belt, wrapped an arm around Hanna's waist and up, up they went. Not that she could see, but the soles of his levitation boots were glowing, propelling them at a gentle speed upwards. All the boots could do was go up and down, however - which was why Platinum extended his free arm and formed a large chunk of palladium, which morphed into a set of rotors. The rotors span, generating a strong enough current to propel the pair horizontally through the air. "Just point out where you want to be set down," said Platinum. IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America WHANG! The support beam hit the electrified Robo-Robber right on the head. His helmet crumpled, his visor cracked and he fell to the floor, groaning faintly. The one who'd loosed the support beam in the first place was momentarily immobilised by an oh-my-god-did-I-just-kill-Bob sense of shock, leaving him open to be hit if anyone felt like aiming for him. That didn't leave Soundsmith safe though. The Robo-Robber whom Shard had winded had recovered enough to - while still clutching his stomach in pain - aim his machine-gun and open fire at Soundsmith. Having surprised the Robo-Robber he was attacking, Tragedy managed to knock his target to the ground and get quite a few good claw swipes in. However, claws vs. armour didn't often do well, and after several moments the Robo-Robber's suit became electrified. The super-strong Robo-Robber withdrew, then lashed out with a kick of his own. Strangely his tactic was to try and meet Shard's punch with a kick. His logic was that the hero's momentum would add greater force to the impact, and with a few cracks already on him, the diamond man just might break...

OOC: I will address the Robo-Robbers & Apep in my next post, promise, haven't time to read through everything just yet! IC - Gadgeteer @ Los Angeles hotel "It might be relevant to mention," said Gadgeteer, "that the recent upgrade I applied to my armoured battle suit incorporated both a Stealth Mode and Artillery Mode." To demonstrate he stood up and gave the mental command for his armour to shift. A silvery cloud of nanorobots enveloped him momentarily, but unlike his transformation into Deep Sea Mode he appeared to be losing mass, shrinking in size and bulk until he was only just above the normal proportions of a human. The nanorobots retreated into the suit, and Gadgeteer's sleek black Stealth Mode surveyed them. He raised his right hand and extended what looked like a thin spike with several nodes jutting out of it. "My adaptable connection port becomes a skeleton key in this mode. I have not properly tested it, but - in theory - this device should be able to fit any physical lock." His entire body then became translucent all of a sudden. It wasn't quite invisibility - more like he'd turned into a glass statue of himself. "This mode is also far better suited for stealth requirements." He returned to visibility. "The capabilities of this mode combined with Lone's hacking skills gives us the potential means to disable every kind of security measure we may be faced with. If said security measures are too difficult for us to disable this way - or if we are confronted with guards - then I can switch to my Artillery Mode at the appropriate moment." The nanorobot cloud came back and Gadgeteer gained mass, becoming just a little bulkier than his default Urban Mode. Now a green giant of sorts, Gadgeteer willed gunbarrels to extend from both shoulders and both forearms. "In this mode I have great strength and wield many guns," he said simply... OOC: Here're Gadgeteer's remaining two modes. It should be obvious which is which:

IC(NPC) - Platinum @ Bank of America Platinum was starting to understand what was going on with Hanna. He put a hand on her shoulder again, squeezing it supportively. "I can get you out of the area fast, if you like," he offered. He was assuming, since she'd said she was psychic, that she was an inexperienced telepath and that the large crowd of people nearby was causing her pain. IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America The heat-beam user tried a different tactic; melting upwards into the ceiling, he loosed a metal support beam that swung down towards Soundsmith and the electrified Robo-Robber. The electrified Robo-Robber, after twisting to avoid Soundsmith's bolts managed to grab hold of the hero's arm. His plan was to just stand there and grip hard, electrocuting the sonic hero, but he was unaware of the support beam that was about to hit them both. Shard's blow connected, and he had guessed right; it hit hard enough to cause a series of cracks and a slight fizzle from the chest portion of the armour. It wasn't enough to disable his opponent just yet though - the super-strong Robo-Robber gave an angry grunt, grabbed Shard's right hand and yanked hard, attempting to toss him the length of the room and into a wall. IC - Sluice @ League HQ Sluice was so surprised at Silver's taking offense to her statement that she was temporarily speechless. It was a reaction so unlike him... she realised with a heavy heart that it was probably an attitude she would have to get used to. She boarded Esp and carried on to the room where Darkness was being held, whilst Fellwyd was presented with his new translator. Darkness was suspended in a tube of gel-like liquid, though at Sluice's request Esp drained the fluid, allowing Sluice to surround the villain in water molecules quickly enough to cocoon him in ice. "By the way, you might want this," said Esp, as a mechanical arm extended from one of the walls. "I found it in his possession, but unlike his clothing, it isn't composed of the same substance that makes up his body." Into Sluice's hand the mechanical arm dropped a small metal object. She turned it over and examined it curiously. "Odd... it looks like... like half of a key," she murmured. "Well... it doesn't seem overly special, but he must have been holding onto it for a reason. We can ask him about it at a later date." She put the half-key into the concealed back pocket of her supersuit, then, exerting her influence on the ice cocoon, levitated it steadily out of the holding bay and then the ship itself. There were no hints of a psychic assault upon her mind, so Silver was clearly doing his job, and for that she was grateful. The process of having Darkness detained in one of the mansion's force-cells was an unremarkable one, and one that the trio carried out in near-silence. Sluice was a little apprehensive about trying to start small talk with Silver, and was eager to get Darkness out of their hands so they could leave the mission and head for the xenobiologist Mentor had pointed them towards. That might lift Silver's spirits, she thought. So absorbed was Sluice in these thoughts that it wasn't until they were re-boarding Esp that she realised she'd been ignoring Fellwyd. "Sorry, Fellwyd, I didn't even bother to ask if your new translator is working okay! I was miles away... er, that means I was thinking a lot." IC - Apep @ New York "Hey - HEY! What is this?!" Apep's deathmask glanced to and fro as the energy bubble shifted into a sarcophagus shape. Her paper tendrils streamed outward and struck the edges of the container repeatedly, but to no avail. "Don't struggle. You'll only go to prison tired." Apep looked at Omega. After a few moments she spoke. "... well played, big guy. Nicely done, touche, yada yada. Either I underestimated you or you deliberately amped up the goody-two-shoes aspect of your heroism, but either way, didn't see this coming." She crossed her arms, and her paper tendrils appeared to retract. "I'll come quietly. I know when I'm beat. But it's a shame I don't get to watch you go up against Shockhead, y'know? I was particularly looking forward to watching her suck those silly little principles right out of your head..."

IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America The sonic bolts hit the forcefield, causing a slight ripple as the noise was safely dispersed. These were high-tech suits of armour, a soundproof forcefield was no issue when you had built-in communicators. The bolt aimed at the Robo-Robber was a bit more successful though; it made him recoil momentarily from the impact, but a few seconds later he was swinging again. And now another Robo-Robber was coming at Soundsmith, aiming a heat-beam weapon. "Ooof!" Went the Robo-Robber who'd received a diamond club to the chest. He doubled over and dropped his gun, wheezing. Another came at Shard with apparently nothing but his bare fists, and the hero responded with another swing of said club... only to have it punched upwards and off its intended path. This Robo-Robber's suit of armour was apparently calibrated for super-strength. "Bring it on," taunted the man inside the suit, and aiming a kick at the hero's chest. IC - Apep @ New York "Sure thing, big guy... well, the Coalition thought she was actually dead for a while; she did a good job of faking it. But then we learned that ol' Clara was alive and kicking, having created another identity for herself; Abigail Ostermann, big-name businesswoman of a company that doesn't exist. She's been moving around the states and meeting up with CEOS of every sort. My higher-ups have guessed that she's searching for something; something that only very powerful or very rich people have access to. No idea what. Thing is though, no matter how well-forged her credentials are, moving in such high-profile circles was bound to get her noticed sooner or later. So the Coalition noticed her, and decided to investigate her old self a little more closely to try and figure out what she was up to. That's when we learned of Diane the care worker and Clara the secret agent. I think the word 'spy' must have set off alarm bells 'cause I was given the order to assassinate her right after that." Apep stared up at Omega; again it wasn't clear what her expression was, but her voice afterward made it sound as if she were grinning. "Now the fun part. Remember what I was saying about her powers? As Shockhead she was able to pass as an electricity-user, but the stuff had some weird properties. When the Coalition was looking into her past they questioned some of the people at the care home where 'Diane' worked. And they, well... see, Shockhead's electricity comes from burning up the electrical charge that exists in the brain, that we use to think or access memories or whatever - I can't remember the exact explanation they gave, I'm no brain scientist. Anyway, what she was doing, heh, to 'refuel' after missions... she was draining it out of these kids she worked with. The process is permanently damaging, like a scar-free lobotomy, and probably painful too. And most of the kids were normal before she sucked 'em dry! And she picked the perfect victims too, I mean who's gonna believe anything a retard says? She got away with it for years. "So that's who we're after Mr. final-letter-of-the-Greek-alphabet, now why don't you try to justify, within your morals, why this woman doesn't deserve to be killed. Let me know when you can't, 'cause I'll be happy to help with the deed..." OOC: Shockhead's power isn't exactly like Darkness' force psychic lightning technique, I'm no thief!

IC(NPC) - Platinum @ Bank of America "Stop wha- hey, are you all right?" Said Platinum, noticing the pained expression on Hanna's face. "You're not a psychic, are you?" IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America After Soundsmith dealt with the first micromissile, Shard's needle spray triggered the premature detonation of a further two. These and the torchlight illuminated the entire basement area; it was filled with wiring, objects that looked like computer towers and several large cooling fans. At the computer terminal at the end of the room stood a man dressed in modified Robo-Robber armour; clearly he was their leader, and he appeared to be using several pieces of equipment to hack into the database of which this entire room consisted. Between him and the heroes stood eight more Robo-Robbers, not counting the one that had rolled off wrestling with the Centurion duplicate. Immediately the robbers went into action. An electrified one swung a fist at Soundsmith; two with machine guns opened fire on Shard and the 'true' Centurion. Another held out his hands to summon a bluish forcefield that stretched the entire length of the room, cutting him and the leader off from everyone else. IC - Apep @ New York "At least move this thing in the direction of Grand Central station," said Apep, once again gesturing around at the energy bubble. "We've wasted some time chin-wagging but unlike you and me she can't descend sixty-something hotel floors, or at least not without being noticed. I imagine she already had a train booked for an emergency like this, but if we get going now we might catch her before she gets too far. "Anyway, story time. She was once a member of the Coalition called Shockhead... and a care worker called Diane Scholz... and an agent of the German secret service known as Clara Christensen. Of all the names she's used Clara's the real one, or at least it's her birth name. She was a secret service member initially, then she quit and joined the Coalition. I dunno what happened there, she might have been fired actually, but I wasn't told so who knows. Regardless, at the same time she came to us as Shockhead she created the identity of Diane Scholz and joined a care home for mentally challenged - you know, retarded - kids, and worked there when she wasn't doing missions for us. She needed to, really, 'cause her power... we thought it was electrokinesis, and she wanted us to think that, which was why we didn't even know about her stints at the care home as 'Diane' until recently. See, during the big alien war against Techno-whatever his name was Clara decided to fake her death as Shockhead and Diane. I guess she got fed up of villainy. She pulled it off anAHM! HEM! KOFF KOFF KOFF!" Near the end of her last sentence Apep's voice had gotten increasingly raspy until she was forced to break down into a coughing fit. "... hem... man, all this talking really dries out your throat," she wheezed. "Let me get my voice back a sec. You following me so far, big guy? I'd hate to have to repeat myself..."

IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America The Centurion duplicate and the Robo-Robber crashed to the ground. Rather than try to struggle away the Robo-Robber gripped the Centurion duplicate close to himself, activated the electrification of his armour and rolled off to the side. The rest of the group wasn't given a chance to breathe. Immediately came the hiss of another micromissile from somewhere in the shadows; one could only assume it was aimed at the stairway where they all stood. IC(NPC) - Platinum @ Bank of America Platinum frowned at Hanna's comment. "Why? If you've got family or friends in there, I promise me and my allies will do our best to protect them. But going in yourself won't achieve anything, ma'am." IC - Apep @ New York "Hnk... heh... a ha ha hahahahaha!" Apep couldn't contain the eruption of laughter that followed Omega's words. "... eheh... boredom, that's what you threaten me with? You're actually endearing me to cooperate with you. I'll spill the beans, big guy, but get those cuffs on me first so you can feel safe enough to get rid of all this orange, eh?" She gestured at the energy bubble surrounding them. "I'm starting to forget what other colours look like." IC - Gadgeteer @ Los Angeles hotel "In my experience, men in a position of power with things to hide often store the evidence at home if they can, in a secret basement or safe or other similar thing." Gadgeteer neglected to add that in his experience had come from gathering information from corrupt CEOS for blackmailing purposes. He finished eating and his faceplate slid back into place. "I am sure that the location of General Warner's house will not be hard to come by. We would be foolish not to expect security measures, though..."

OOC: Any reason Caige hasn't joined up with the others in the Robo-Robbers plot? IC(NPC) - Robo-Robbers @ Bank of America In the lobby, the defeated Robo-Robber made no further attempts to resist capture, simply slumping dejectedly onto the floor under the duplicate Centurion's orders. The original Centurion might have wished he'd have waited for the other heroes to catch up with him as he descended a flight of stairs, for no sooner than he had reached the B1 floor an armoured, electrified fist introduced itself to his gut. "Looks like we got heroes coming, boss," said the Robo-Robber to whom the fist belonged. The B1 floor was darkened (presumably the Robo-Robbers' special visors granted night vision) and only the slight glow of a computer terminal could be seen some distance away. A voice from the vicinity of this glow said: "I'm almost done here. Stall them until we can make our escape." IC - Apep @ New York Apep scratched the forehead of her deathmask in mock concentration. "Hmmm... hmm... I guess it is on me to convince you... but truth's just never really been my thing. Give me a minute..." It wasn't clear with all her exaggerated gesturing whether she was deliberately taking her time to think, but eventually she answered Omega with: "Alright then, here's a freebie; a tip-off I've no other reason to give you. There's a Coalition safehouse hidden in Central Park, underneath the reservoir. We built it after the invasion tore the place up. I was supposed to head there to lie low after I'd done my assassination. It's probably empty right now, but I can't guarantee it..."

OOC: Hexas timeskip is a-go! Korkoa's been inactive for a while so I'm going to use this chance to eject his character from the plot. IC - Gadgeteer @ Los Angeles hotel Viktor Borislav stretched and yawned, inhaling deeply, savouring the refreshing sensation that followed a good night's sleep. After going through the necessary procedures to see that Captain Code saw due punishment. Saosin had used his League ID to request 'emergency booking' at a nearby hotel, giving each member of the team a room of their own. The hotel was frequented by heroes, it seemed, for the staff paid no attention to the group's varied outfits or Gadgeteer's armoured battle suit. Each had retired to their rooms and slept. And slept. And slept. After a good shower and a careful checkup of his armoured battle suit, Viktor had once again donned it, keeping it in Urban Mode for now, and travelled downstairs to the hotel's dining area where breakfast was being served. He collected a large bowl of cereal and a cluster of fruit for himself, then sat at a table where the others were eating. He counted. Saosin, Lone, Madness, The Whistler. They were one short. Where was N-Ber? "He took off during the night," Saosin explained, guessing Gadgeteer's unspoken question. "We checked his room but there was no sign." Viktor mulled on this disappearance. It raised suspicions in his mind that N-Ber might be acting as a double-agent for Lady Hexas somehow, but with no evidence he quickly dismissed those thoughts. He wondered if N-Ber had simply chickened out; he'd seemed quite on edge yesterday. If Viktor had known about the 'visit' N-Ber had had from Mr. Mystery, he might have pondered a more permanent exit for the fiery hero. Lowering the jaw of his faceplate in order to eat, Gadgeteer addressed the group. "We have all now had a chance to rest and clear our heads. We should recap. What is our aim now, and what suggestions do we have for how we should go about it?" IC - Apep @ New York "Well... isn't not knowing the fun of it?" The villainness chuckled...

OOC: The Lady Hexas plot seems to have stalled some way back; are we all ok to gently timeskip over the going-to-sleep-for-a-while and dropping-Captain-Code-off-at-a-League-Penitentiary parts, and get back into action? IC - Apep @ New York "See, and that's why all you Leaguers are so boring," Apep sighed. "Your behaviour, your views, they're all so uncomplicated. I mean that little speech could have been pulled from the climax of a film! You see the world in such simple terms I don't know why you aren't all diagnosed with learning difficulties. You-" She paused; with no discernible expression it wasn't obvious as to why. She placed a hand on the chin of her deathmask in thought, then looked up at Omega again. "...I wonder if all that would change once you get to know the woman whose life you've just saved," Apep said curiously. "You know, I - I want you to go after her now. I want to see how it affects your blinkered morals. So... I'm gonna make you an offer. I want to physically watch what occurs when you catch up to her," There was a tone of building excitement to Apep's voice. "You can, I dunno, put a tag on me or give me an escort or whatever you'd need to believe that I won't escape, but I'll only offer what I know about her - which is most everything - if I can accompany you on the way. Yeah, you might be able to gather the info you need without my help. But it'll be a lot slower, maybe waste enough time for her to cover her tracks or even disappear for good. Come on, can't I have a little fun before you toss me in jail..?" OOC: Totally up to you whether you seize this chance or not. I just love villains and heroes being forced to team up. Either way though it'd be nice if Omega (and/or some other PCs) could go after this woman eventually, as I do have a backstory planned out for her.

IC - Apep @ New York "Heh, sounds like someone paid attention in history class! But tell me, what's not to enjoy about doing what you want to whoever you want? I don't restrict myself with principles or rules like you heroes do. Now you, if you're with the League then no-killing's a default; I know they won't let you in unless you agree to that. But what happens when you meet someone that really pisses you off, do you just... bottle up your urge to kill them? Just let them continue being alive and existing? I've never tried to suppress that desire, so I'm genuinely curious here. Mustn't that like... suck all the time, stifling yourself like that..?"

OOC: To anyone involved in the Robo-Robbers plot - don't feel that you have to wait for me to progress. You've been told where the other Robo-Robbers are; go get 'em!IC - Apep @ New York"I'd be of a mind to kill her even if I hadn't been explicitly told to, but then again, that's my general demeanour toward most people," Apep said with a snigger. "It's a shame you're not solo y'know, 'cause if you knew anything about that woman there's a good chance you'd end up helping me kill her. But I'm afraid the vibes you're giving off are that of someone with too clean of a conscience. Pity. I'm speaking the truth here by the way. Sometimes honesty is the best policy, especially when you're frustratingly vague about it. I want this to gnaw at you for days, see, because the fact is there was someone of potentially great interest to you back there - oh and also, at great danger of a future assassination attempt from any of my comrades - and you didn't even bother to keep an eye on where she went. Or what her name was. Heck, can you even remember what she looked like..?"

IC - Bank of America"Go right ahead, ma'am," said the Police officer, who was feeling unusually cooperative. He stepped aside to let Hanna walk past. She got close to the blasted-open entrance of the bank when suddenly a hand clapped onto her shoulder."Miss, you need to get to a safe distance," said the man in the black and silver spandex supersuit. It was Platinum, though she likely wouldn't know him. Since Hanna was in ordinary clothes Platinum had taken her for a powerless civilian.IC(NPC) - Robo-Robber @ Bank of America lobbyStill experiencing an unexplained tinge of fear within his subconscious, the Robo-Robber wasn't in any mood to resist. Besides, he wasn't aware of Centurion's power, and seeing one of the duplicates apparently kill himself by jumping in front of the micromissile had unnerved him even more."A-alright, alright, jeez, take it easy, I surrender, okay?"IC - Apep @ New York"I'm guessing you're with the League?" Apep's voice was nonchalant; she didn't seem overly concerned with her impending arrest. "I say so 'cause a solo would probably have tried to question me by now, y'know, find out who I am, what I was up to et cetera. Usually a lot of them don't get on with the Police. I was kind of looking forward to feeding you false info, y'know, set you off on a wild goose chase. The professionals are just boring..."