[ We find Our Mutie Friends sitting on the floor around a large round table in the living room. The table itself is host to game boxes - scrabble, monopoly, pictionary, and others - as well as seeeeeveral empty boxes of Domino's pizza that you had delivered. ] [ You ate the pizza here, on the carpet, because you're the only ones here, which means nobody was around to tell you not to. ] [ You've been playing games for a while, now. ] [ It has, oddly enough, become a dark and stormy night. Cable's out, and so is main power; the building is running on backup generators, now. The phone still works, thankfully, which enabled you to order pizza, or something like it. ] [ Session... START! ] ( Cable! Bodyslide! ) ... geez. If Chuckles can afford this place, you'd think he could pay the electric bill. * Eric is lying on the couch. "What's this weird feeling? It's like... I don't want to eat." * Miya waves a cheeto at Eric. "Come on, Eric! Just one little cheeto! I can't eat it." [ Lightning rumbles outside, as if insisting that it recieve credit for putting the power out. ] * Eric looks at the cheeto. "Alrightie. Just one more." * Miya grins and flicks it at Eric. * Bob yawns loudly. Eh, Domino's ain't bad, but really... come to Red Hook some time, and I'll show ya some REAL pizza. With beets and mayonaise? ... * Daegal GLARES at Bob. "You. No pizza for you. EVER." * Eric grabs the cheeto and eats it. I don't mind. Pizza's not very good. [[[...]]] What? Beets give the pizza a nice fluctuation to the tang of the mayo. Just need some chicken and barbecue sauce, and bacon. Maybe if it had some eggs, and some vegetables. * Miya looks at Daegal. "Maybe he's gonna explode." ... okay. Bob's full time nigh-invincible, which makes reaping vengeance upon him is, at the moment, impractical. * Bob looks thoughtful. "Hmmm... eggs, cheese, mayonaise... what else?" *eyes Eric* You, on the other hand... *evil grin* * Eric leans back, looking up at the celing. "How about... What are you doing Daegal?" * Daegal noogies Eric. "NOOGIE!" [ Thunder rumbles again, so loud that you almost don't hear the phone ringing right next to Miya's elbow. ] * Eric is noogied. "Do you want to glow green Daegal?" * Miya half-jumps, but picks up the phone instead of panicking. She puts it to her ear. "Hello?" Noogienoogienoogiephonenoogie No thanks I already glow... *releases Eric* There. Justice is served. * Eric 's hair is a mess. He rubs his head as he looks at Daegal. "Oh, you sure you don't want to glow all the time?" * Daegal eyes Bob. "I'll let you off with a stern warning this time." *biggrin* Nah, red's more my color than green. A... warning? Why? Don't you like beets? Would you prefer corn? * Miya blinks and turns away from the boys in an effort to hear better. "Uh... no. He went out. Can I take a message?" * Daegal chuckles. "Joking, Bob. My family was Russian... I love beets. Just a bit of New Yawker humor... we're a bit feisty when it comes to pizza toppings." Yeah, we need potatoes also. What, you didn't say anything when I made my breakfast pizza supreme? Just pizza toppings? My information indicates that New York citizens are usually "feisty" about pretty much everything. * Eric snickers. ... you learn quick, Bob. *pats Bob on the shoulder* *turns to Eric* You were eating pizza for breakfast. That puts you as okay in any New Yawker's book, regardless of toppings. * Miya ticks something off on her fingers. "No, they're out, too. Um. Are you sure I can't take a message? It won't be any trouble." ( So first they asked for Blue team, and then Gold team... ) Anyone else wonder why the interesting people always come or call when the people they ask for are out? ( Dramatic Law? ) ( "X-Force? Power Pack? New Warriors? Heck, I'll settle for Slapstick..." ) ( W00t! Slapstick! ) Y'have a point. Figure with all the neat technology stuff here, they'd have one of those mobile phone thingees. * Miya blinks a couple of times, then hangs up. Who was it? Yeah, tell me about it. What's up Miya? I- I don't know. What'd they want? Uh. He asked if, um, Logan-san was in. And then he asked for some other people. Say what he wanted? ... No? But... um, he... * Miya frowns. "It felt wrong." Hmm? How d'ya mean? Like he thought it was funny. It felt... sick. ... well, either he has a morbid sense of humor, or... shit. Shit? * Eric raises an eyebrow. "Really? Well, let's assess the situation. We're in a giant house with no power, no cable, and a freaky guy just called on the phone. Oh, and did I mention the thunderstorm outside?" ( It's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses. ) [ Suddenly, the lights flicker, and then go out momentarily before the total darkness is replaced by the dim blowing of every other light fixture in the building. A recording of Hank's voice comes over the intercom, saying; "Okay, Hank, this one means the generator feeds have been cut, or else we're outta fuel. Prolly cut, considering the way these things work." ] Shit. Russian mob loved stuff like that. Call ahead, ask for the most capable guards at a place, and if they weren't there, they'd raid it. ... and that's an even worse sign. Shit. Everyone together, NOW. * Miya looks around, slowly standing. "We are together." * Bob blinkblinks, though it's kinda hard to see. * Eric gets up. "Well, that's not good." * Bob stands up slowly. "What's wrong?" Okay, okay, think... form a circle. Nobody sneaks up. Eric, can you give us some light? I... I suppose so. * Eric summons a glowing ball of plasma in his hand. "Just don't touch it, 'kay?" * Miya eyes the plasma. "Yeah." If the lights're cut, someone cut 'em. Which means either someone wants to steal the silverware, or... Wants us? Well, that's just great. ... doors. Gotta check the doors. All go together. When Chuckles get back, he and I are gonna have a long talk about skimping on security systems... ... * Eric nods. "Keep your eyes peeled people." There's someone here. And he, she, or it is after us. Yeah Bob. That's just *peachy* No, I'm telling you. This is a fact. We are currently being hunted. What, you have some sorta spider sense or something? Miya, Eric, if things get nasty, stay behind me and Bob. We regenerate. Okay? Alright. You- you don't need it. It's a feeling you get. * Miya frowns. "I can fight too. But okay." Spider Sense. You mean the danger sense, as exemplified by that of Spider Man? Well, I'm not getting any bad vibes. Maybe I just don't think the worst can happen? * Daegal grins at Miya. "Not sayin' don't fight. Just try'n stick and move." Yeah, or whatever it's called. Then yes. I possess a danger sense, though not strong. The doctors said it would grow as I gained my full physical development. ... alright. Stay here, or check th' entrances? Okay, if you say so. Just keep your guard up guys. I... either way, we're in trouble. * Miya swallows. We're not in trouble. Whoever dares to hunt us is in trouble. A great deal of it. * Eric looks around confidently. He's either A) done this before and is really good, or B) doesn't know what the hell he's doing. ... stay here, I think. Yeah. We wander around, they can ambush us. Here, we can keep watch on all the entrances... ( How many entrances to this room, BTW? ) (Let me guess. It's a big room, with a high ceiling, giant windows, and really big hallways.) ( Yeah, pretty much. ) ( Four. ) ... okay, everyone concentrate on an entryway into the room. Anything moves, run in circles, scream and shout, that sorta thing. (Help, I'm slippin' into the twilight zone. Place is a madhouse, feels like being cloned o/~) (/me smacks his head. Right, rule 3. Never give the GM ideas...) (It's Lufia 2!) * Miya nods and fixes her eyes on the entrance she faces. * Eric looks down the entrance he faces, and raises his hand so the glowing light covers a large deal of the room. [ More thunder, and this time it almost covers the sound of a window breaking in the kitchen. ] * Miya starts. ... shit. Defense or offense, people? [ The kitchen, by the way, is directly reached by one of the exits to this room. The only thing between you and it is a wall, a pantry, and a restroom. ] (Which one of us is facing that?) When in doubt, attack. * Eric jumps back a little, the ball flashing brightly then dimming by the time he regains control of it. * Bob begins walking swiftly towards the kitchen. * Eric looks at the ball. "Wew, that was close. Best defens is a good offense." (defense) * Miya blinks and spins. "Bob?" She bites her lip. Com'on, let's get'em. * Miya looks at Daegal, then scrambles after Bob. ... I like how you guys think. *runs after the others* * Eric lowers the light, the runs after Daegal. [ As Bob passes the restroom door, he hears chuckling. He now needs a melee defense roll at +3. ] ( +3? Dayamn. ) ( The element of surprise is strong. ) (The stupidity is strong in that one.) ( Shoulda remembered... defense wins championships. =P ) [ A large hand with nails like claws smashes through the restroom door and grabs Bob by the head. The hand pulls and twists, but Bob manages to slip free without anything worse than some scratches on his forehead. There's more laughter, and then a sound like something climbing. ] * Miya stares at the hole the hand left. "Um. Um. Um." ... Yeouch. You okay Bob? Bob, back off! Back into the room! Everyone! * Bob spins around on the floor. "I'm fine. Who the hell was that?" * Eric listens for where the climbing noise is. I do- I don't know. [ The climbing noise has disappeared. If whoever's hunting you is still at it, he's doing it with a great deal of silence. ] * Miya swallows again, then runs back into the room. * Bob stands back up and opens the bathroom door. Seriously, everyone wide circle where I am. Watch the ceil- Bob! * Eric runs back into the main room. ( I know who it is! ^_^ ) ( No shit. ) (Duh. ^_~) ( I HATEHATEHATEHATE this guy. ) [ There's nobody in the bathroom. There are clawmarks leading up the wall, and a hole in the cieling that Daegal could easily fit through. ] (I can kick his butt! Well, try, anyway.) * Daegal runs over, GRABS Bob my the collar, and drags him back into the room. "Stay together! We can't get picked off one by one!" * Bob totally does not move. (We're split up!) [ Daegal fails to drag Bob. ] (Let's split up gang!) * Daegal drags harder. "Dammit, Bob! He's in the ceiling! Back in the fucking room, NOW!" * Bob still doesn't move. "...why?" Because unless you're planning to take a shit, standing here in front of the bathroom in a narrow hallway is just asking to be killed! He's not here anymore. He's preparing to attack somewhere else. * Bob turns around and walks back to the others. * Miya is in the room, looking around and wide-eyed. She's obviously having a hard time keeping things together. * Bob wipes his eyes. No shit! And we wanna be to- Jesus fucking christ, Bob. Think tactics. If we're all together in a large open space, he can't separate us, corner us. * Bob rubs his fingers together. "..." * Daegal walks back to the center of the room. "Just everyone keep your eyes open. We can deal with this." * Miya spins, looking at Bob. "Are you okay?" * Bob moves his hand up to his forehead and rubs. ...My forehead is wet. Uh. * Miya blinks. "Wait. Blood?" That'd be blood. * Bob blinks. That's definetly blood. * Miya hurries over to Bob, slides a finger against his forehead, and licks her fingertip. ( Eeeeeeeew... ) (Tell me about it.) ( Miya's a vampire! ) * Bob rubs his forehead clean on his sleeve. Oh great, now it looks like you got hit by a car. Don't worry, man. You saw how I was bleedin' after the training session. s'no biggie. You... don't understand. Just stay focused... this fucker's good. Hits and runs. s'quiet. * Miya checks Bob's forehead again. "He wasn't hurt." * Miya wipes her hand on her pants leg. "But that was definitely blood." * Bob has already healed. He barely touched me. I shouldn't be bleeding. I don't think you are. [ Daegal needs ranged defense at +2. ] Sharp implements do that to peaple. Not to me. I'm sure I could make something that'd make you bleed, but you probably wouldn't want that. [ A rock falls from the ceiling and hits Daegal on the head. It seems to have writing on it. ] Ow. Shit! *picks up the rock* ... the fuck? Writing? *reads* * Eric looks at Daegal What's it say? [ The rock has hastily been carved with the message "Are we having fun yet, kids?" ] This guy... has a sick sense of humor. He must be from New York. Either that or Quebec. ... right. Eric? *points up at the ceiling; mouths 'Boom'.* * Eric points both of his hands up, and a ball of plasma flies from his hands straight up. * Daegal grabs Miya and Bob and moves them outta the way. * Miya yelps and is pulled. @_@ This way! * Bob flies off down one hallway, pulling Daegal behind him. [ There's a big boom right before Bob shouts that, and some of the cieling comes down. ] Ack! ( Actually, Daegal had ahold of both Miya and bob, so Bob is dragging Daegal who's dragging Miya. :P ) * Miya grabs Eric, then, and is dragging him. :P ( Daegal needs to get over this notion of "dragging Bob" ^_~ ) * Eric is dragged. @_@ ( Daegal's stubborn. =P ) [ Our Heroes are dragged down the hall! As you pass a hallway intersection, a hand lashes out at Bob, who needs an unarmed defense roll! ] [ Bob swerves and barely avoids the claws that catch! And now you all finally get a look at your assailant. ] [ What you see is a very large, thickly built man with long, unkempt blonde hair and sideburns. He's wearing an outfit that conveniently lets you know that he's probably a supervillain. He grins at you all, and you can see that he has abnormally large and pointed canine teeth, like the fangs of a great cat. ] * Bob lashes out with his own fist at the man. Heh. Caught up quick. * Miya stares up and up at the man. * Eric 's hands glow green as he looks at the large adult. "What the hell are you trying to pull?" * Man gets a fist in the chin and a busted lip, but that doesn't make him stop smiling. He attacks Bob back, instead, with an amazingly savage ferocity. Well... Um, if you want to waste him, that works too. * Man tears a gash in Bob's stomach, which immediately begins bleeding. You may roll initiative now. AUGH! * Bob screams like he's never been cut this badly. Claws. Why does it always gotta be fucking claws... No! * Miya doesn't hesitate any longer, running forward and jumping for a kick to the solar plexus. (Solar Plexus!) ( I want to work for Plexus making solar powered devices. Will I be a Solar Plexus then? ) (It's fun to say. ^_^) * Man gets kicked, and lets out a small grunt. * Miya drops to the ground, attempting a sweep. * Man is kicked in the leg with a solid *thwack*, but is not tripped. * Eric points his glowing hands at the Man, emitting a bright green ray torwards the unfortunate sap. (Is it a bad thing if "Another one bites the dust" just came on in my playlist?) ( Yes. ) * Man dodges out of the way, ending up just next to Daegal! * Bob jumps at the guy, throwing a flying (literally) kick right past Daegal's shoulder into the guy's chest. [ Bob's foot slams into the guy, driving him through the wall at the far end of the hall. It's raining on the other side of the hole. ] (Remember, according to ND, walls don't do damage. ~_^) * Bob stops in midair, hanging right over Daegal's shoulder, still in the flying kick pose. (Zing!) ( Well, yeah. This is a superhero comic. ;) ) ( Showoff. ) ( They don't. How many times did we go through walls in the Danger Room and take no extra damage? ) (And we crashed into a cement wall back when and didn't care.) * Miya yells, "And stay out!" * Eric smirks, then looks at Bob. "What a ham." * Bob flies out into the rain and looks around, wincing as the water seeps into his cuts. [ You can't see the guy who was attacking you. Maybe he's under the pile of rubble where the wall was busted, maybe not. ] Bob, y'oka- dammit! *runs after Bob* (You know he won't be.) ( Not unless you don't check. ^_~ ) * Eric runs out right on Daegal's heels. Eric! Blast the debris! On it. * Eric launches a ball of plasma at the debris. If anything was in there, it isn't anymore. ( Hah. ) [ There's an explosion, and a shower of debris that doesn't include any chunkypeoplebits. ] Crap... Bob! Fly high, see if you can spot him! Miya, Eric, stay with me! * Miya peeks out of the hole. "I- I don't know if going out there's a good idea." * Bob flies straight up about fifty feet and looks around. * Eric nods. "He's gone, and he won't want to come back anytime soon." We gotta find him if we can. Can't let him start sneaking around again, ambushing us at every corner. Where do you think the wires were cut? No freakin' idea. * Eric hmms. Bob! Anything? No. He's still here, though. * Bob flies back down and in through the hole. ... back inside, I think. Y'okay, Bob? No. But I will heal. * Bob touches the cuts and winces. * Eric goes back inside. "Com'on in. Let's see if we can't put some bandages on that scratch." * Daegal mutters. "Bet people don't just waltz into Avengers Mansion like this..." (Sure they do!) That guy didn't look like he was waltzing, eh. ( Well, they at least have to deal with a couple of locked doors! =P ) Waltzing involves a partner, does it not? I'll waltz on his goddamn nuts if he comes back... * Eric shrugs, and heads to the kitchen. ( Tsk, Eric. It's *always* the kitchen with you. ) How do you know where he keeps his nuts? (Well, yeah.) Between his legs, Bob. Remember our conversation on other words for the cajones? * Daegal follows Eric. * Eric comes back to the room in very short order, carrying a sandwich containing just about every kind of meat, cheese, sauce, and some stuff you wouldn't normally put on a sandwich. ( Another round of mind rolls, please. ) You hungry Daegal? [ Those of you who make it realize Miya isn't with you, anymore. ] (I am silent, like the ninja!) * Bob blinks. Miya? ... where the fuck's Miya? [ Daegal additionally realizes she hasn't been with you for a while. ] * Eric happily munches at his sandwich, completely oblivious to the situation. "Mrflme?" Shit. Shit shit SHIT! Miya's gone. Been gone since Bob flew outside, I think. GodDAMMIT. * Eric finishes his bite. "Well fuck. Miya? Where the hell are you?!" Outside again. We search every goddamn INCH of this place 'till we find her. [ You hear no response from Miya. ] * Daegal heads for the hole in the wall leading outside. "C'mon! MOVE!" * Bob shrugs and follows Daegal. * Eric runs out the hole, then runs back, grabs his sandwich, then runs out eating away. * Eric scarfs down his sandwich. You didn't think he could eat faster, but you were wrong. * Daegal searches semi-frantically. "Dammit dammit dammit... getting lazy, Daegal. How didn't ya notice... stupid stupid stupid." Great, now if I were a psycho man who thought I was still stuck in the sixties, where would I be? The Danger Room? Fuck him. We're looking for Miya. It could be on a seperate generator. Sounds plausable too. And why the hell would he go there? Get in some sparring? Well, we don't know where he is, we don't know where Miya is, and we know he was trying to kill us! Because it's a big metal room with nowhere to hide? So let's find her, then find him, then tear out his eyes and fuck the goddamn sockets. Okay? * Bob starts walking towards the Danger Room. * Eric scratches his head. Think, think, think. * Daegal throws his hands up in the air. "Of course, he'd go to the place where there's nowhere to hide. Brilliant." * Daegal spits and follows Bob. * Eric hmms, the follows the other two. You don't see hide nor hair of Miya or the man outside. Not immediately, anyway. * Daegal keeps looking, then. [ You reach the Danger Room! There's a little light over the entrance reading "Power Disconnect". ] * Bob tries opening the door. I knew it. I bet they're outside. [ The door doesn't slide itself open like it should. ] * Bob tries opening the door the hard way. If the door isn't opening, Bob, how would he be in there? [ Bob successfully forces the door open. Inside, the room is completely dark; not even the grid of lights is on. ] Goddamnit, Bob, think about it. Why would he run to a room with only one door and no lights? * Bob shrugs. Fine. outside. * Bob starts walking quickly to the nearest exit. ... thank you. *follows Bob* Well, we're not doing anything just walking around, eh. [ You make it to the nearest exit, conveniently made by Bob earlier. ] So, where is he? * Eric scratches his head. "I have... no clue. Daegal?" [ Lightning splits the sky again. ] No idea. Bob, fly up again, see if you can see Miya or that bastard. We'll follow along on the ground. * Bob flies straight up fifty feet or so again and takes a look around. * Daegal follows along on the ground as Bob flies around. * Eric does the same. Nothing yet. Fuck. * Daegal keeps looking. "Goddamn superhero team, and they have backup power where this putz can easily cut it. Fucking brilliant." I'll have to change that. But first we gotta find Miya. I know, I know... Got him. He's on the roof. The roof? How the hell are we supposed to get up there? Is Miya up there? * Bob swoops down and grabs Eric and Daegal by the back of their shirts. "Like this." Yes, Miya's there. * Eric is pulled up. "Urk... well, that works." * Bob flies up to the roof and drops down a fair distance from the man. [ Indeed, once you're a good thirty feet up, you see the man and Miya on the roof. The man has one hand covering Miya's face and holding her quite securely; the other is holding a claw up to the side of her neck. ] *lands on the roof* ... let her come over to us. NOW. Don't push him. No telling what he's going to do... ( Daegal has learned the first rule: Never say "Let her go!". =P ) * Man bares his teeth in a grin. "Well, your response time wasn't *too* bad. And no, I like having her where she is, for now. I still have one more thing to wait for." * Bob walks forward slowly. * Miya stays right where she is, doing a wonderful impersonation of a statue. Bob. Don't. * Man grins more. "Ah-ah-ah, no you don't." The claw doesn't even seem to move, but a tiny bead of blood gathers where it touches Miya's skin, before rolling down her neck. * Eric points his two hands at the man, palms first. * Bob stops. What do you want? * Miya tenses slightly at that, but doesn't make any other movements. Well, the first part is that I wanted you here. I wanted to have a little fun, see how the new kids on the block are. As for the other part... mmmmmm, not gonna tell ya'. * Daegal narrows his eyes at the man. "So you're good at hiding and sneaking up on people and generally fighting like a little sissy. Taking hostages too. If you wanna see what we can do, release her... then we'll be more than happy to show you what we can do." I know he'll be here. I smelled him out in the forest. He's good, but he's not better than me. * Eric begins to form a pulsating blue energy in the palms of his hands. "Who are you... oh, you're waiting for Logan, eh? Well, what if he wasn't here?" * Daegal spits. "We're here. He's not. Why not try some new dancing partners?" Um... I don't know how to dance. * Man laughs loudly. "Oh, give me a break, kid. You couldn't take me if you were packin'! Him, maybe," he nods towards Bob, "if I was having a rotten day. But really, you don't have a chance. 'S why I'm not taking you seriously." ... Bob, you're killing my monologue here. Um... I thought we were having a dialogue. * Man rolls his eyes. "He's a hero-type. He can have monologues in the middle of dialogues if he wants." * Eric stares at the man. "Nope, that was most certinly a monologue." ...oh. I'm sorta new to this whole "hero" thing. Sorry. He has a point though. I'm doin' too much talkin'. You think I can't take you? Prove it. Right. Now. LOGAN! I KNOW YOU'RE HERE! [ Lightning splits the sky again! Dramatic, no? ] (I can't see it!) ( No. You mean non. :P ) * Eric lets the blue energy die down. "I'm telling you, he's not here!" * Man stands there with his claw to Miya for a while longer. He seems to be growing impatient. "SHOW YOURSELF! Or you wanna watch while I kill 'em all?" ... and you said I was getting cliched. Yelling out for your arch-rival in the rain as lightning crashes in the background? Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaame. Terribly cliched. * Man shrugs at Daegal. "I do what I gotta. What, you think I pick the weather?" How many times has that happened? All you need is a cape and a cheesy goatee. But it don't matter. Looks like Logan needs more incentive. Well, no you don't. What you gotta do is eat and sleep. None of what you're doing right now is neccessary. * Man looks contemplative. "Y'know, when someone's gonna die, before their time is up... I think some appropriate words should be said in memorial." * Man grins. "There once was a girl from Nantucket..." * Eric 's hands glow green. "You hurt her anymore, and you're going to need to be taken in for Kemo, got it?" [ And then a voice comes from behind you. It sounds a great deal like Logan. ] "I." "HATE." Oh geez... listen, if you wanna fight Logan, leave a fucking message, send an engraved invitation, a singing fucking telegram... "...Limericks." ...now THAT'S original! Well speak of the devil. ... about fucking time! [ Another flash of lightning splits the sky, and Wolverine stands there behind you, claws bared and facing the man. They stare at each other for a while, and then the man lets go of Miya and shoves her towards Daegal. ] [ Session End! TO BE CONTINUED! ]