"Giving it to me straight is always the preferred approach, I get enough attempts at obfuscation when I'm dealing with dignitaries to prefer straightforward answers.  I agree on all counts, she is ill suited to either field work or a position as a trainer, and she has been removed from both duties until her psych reports indicate that she's ready.  I don't know how long that will take, but with the right treatment I'm sure she'll become a productive member of Utopia." The flash drive lifted from Dragon's hand and inserted itself in Imp's computer.  "Take the time off that you need, hopefully you won't have to be recalled, but If we need you, your vacation may get cut short." He took a pull from his mug, from the scent it seemed to be mulled wine, "Now, is there anything I can do for you to make you feel more at home and comfortable around here?  I understand that the smoke alarm in your place has been going off at night occasionally.  Anything we can do to get that fixed?"

Dragón chuckled, embarrassed.  "No sir, it was only once," he said holding up a finger, "the next day I had the switch moved to the outside of my quarters."

"It was the night of the battle with Crimson Dawn," Dragón said, his face growing more grave.  "The stress of the battle and the intensity of his flames unlocked my fire nightmare again."  For a moment, the horror of that memory passed behind his eyes, but it was quickly and effectively hidden away.  Then once again with an embarrassed grin, he said, "Because it had been so long since I'd had the nightmare, it kinda grabbed me...and with my reflexes being so much faster, I get a lot more done in that moment of awakening than normal, y'know?"

"Anyway," he continued, trying to reassure Impetus, "I've put the exercises that suppress that nightmare back into my meditation for the time being and it hasn't recurred."

"I understand, He's manhandled me a few times over the years, and it's been truly unpleasant every time.  Hopefully this is the last time, he's getting the attention he needs now."  If Imp noticed the look in Dragon's eyes, and he almost certainly did, he made no sign.  "If you have problems with fire, how do you deal with Flare?  when she's really pushing hard she can achieve staggering levels of destruction, melting tanks, destroying scenery and, if she ever makes a mistake, killing baselines in seconds.  I need to know if I can count on you to keep it together in the field, or you're going to be moved to full time training and psychiatric treatment until I know I can count on you.  There's too much at stake for a member of T2M to lose it in the field, and no doubt in front of the cameras as well."  As he spoke he leaned forward, elbows on the mirror polished surface of his overstated yet somehow tasteful cherry wood desk.  His eyes, currently sapphire blue, regarded Dragon intently.

The intensity of Impetus' question and his gaze rocked El Dragón back in his seat for a moment.  Emotion welled up in his chest and his impulse was to hurl it toward his commander.  But he knew that would do him no good.  With a deep breath, he mastered himself and said, "Sir, my head was set on fire.  That has inspired a few nightmares as you can imagine.  If you'll check my medical records, you can read the notes of the psychiatrist who put me through exposure therapy to remove my aversion to fire."

He thought about the question again; the way it was phrased and the threat of being pulled from active duty and stuck in psychiatric treatment.  It felt like nothing less than an assault on the very thing that gave him his identity in this stage in his life: his ability to serve.  The emotions welled up within him again and some of it crept into his voice as he said, "Sir, if you've looked at my record, you know that in the course of more than sixty major ops - fifteen since I erupted," he leaned forward and put his hand on the desk, "I have never...lost focus or control in the field or in front of the public.  Including, he added, pointing his finger for emphasis, "running into a burning aircraft to rescue two crew members."

Dragón subsided and settled back into his chair with a sigh.  "The truth is, sir," he said, not meeting the other man's eyes, "the Army had pulled me from doing active missions a few months back.  They were shipping me around doing promotional work and exhibition fights where I'd go in and politely trounce the local nova to show how awesome the US Army was.  They had never let me do a balls-to-the-wall attack, and I hadn't needed to exert myself much in the exhibitions.  I was resting on my laurels and let my training slip," he concluded, sounding slightly disgusted.

"Good." A mountain's worth of appraisal, judgement and approval, resided within that single syllable.  "It is by facing our fears that we overcome them, that we learn to be more and overcome our limitations." He grew pensive, "Most of what we do here is exhibitions, helping build houses, dams, evacuating people affected by natural disasters.  Sometimes though, the shit hits the fan, not like Colombia, but still pretty hard.  We lose people.  We see terrible things and are still expected to come shining through, to be the bright, noble face of this brave new world that we novas are forging for mankind.  I hope we never experience things like the EQ wars, or Iraq, or Sao Paulo, but I fear we will.
Never forget that we can be rescuing a troop of boy scouts who got lost on a hike one day, and have to face three nuclear detonations the next day, or have to face off against someone like Crimson Dawn, someone who's been in the trenches fighting other novas and entire armies for years.  I need someone like you, someone who's seen combat, who's seen the horrors that humanity does to itself, and who is resolute in their decision to help those who cannot help themselves.
Flare's a great kid, but she gets traumatized pretty easily.  Johnny's young, reckless, and looking at this as an amazing ride, just like I did when I first started, maybe he'll grow out of it, maybe not.
 We've lost three of the heaviest hitters on earth in the last year, we both know that Utopia is looking for someone to fill those shoes, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were looking at you.  Be ready, stay sharp, never forget that tomorrow everything can go horribly wrong.  I'll see to your vacation time. Dismissed."
This message was last edited by the player at 09:03, Tue 16 Aug 2011.

Standing and coming to attention, Dragón said, "Understood , sir, I won't let you down."  Then he snapped another salute, executed an about-face and strode out of the office.

No, his training wouldn't slip again; not now that he had discovered how much he missed having that edge on.  Knowing your body was fit and your skills were sharp. And now his quantum-enhanced body was suddenly getting stronger.  Apparently it hasn't yet reached its full potential.

Then as he rounded the corner into the residential area, his mind turned back to his family and the trip he had to take.  He could understand the kids making this kind of bonehead move, but his father?  The man who, all his life had talked to him about the "Devarga legacy?"  His fist clenched and tiny ripples and arcs of quantum energy rolled around it, unconscious, physical expressions of his anger and frustration.  They were supposed to be using the extra pay he got from his promotion to major (and soon after to lieutenant colonel) to pay down the premium on that loan, nibbling away at it.  Now unless drastic action was taken, the loan was going to devour the entire Devarga legacy.

Imp reclined in his chair, Flare's file lay on the table next to a large plate that, up until quite recently, had been filled with an alarming amount of falafel. The plate whisked itself into a receptacle in the side cabinet as an insouciant rap on the door announced Flare's presence.

Despite all her time in T2M and her growth in confidence, she couldn’t stand being called out to the Nova equivalent of a principal’s office, even if it was in regards to 'Kaze's whacked out antics.  Faking a pleased smile she ambled in and nodded to the chair, requesting permission.  Imp was one of her favorite Nova’s, and she trusted him with her life.  She didn’t like or trust being called into a supervisory meeting with him.  Oh well.

“Yo, Imp. How goes?” With a heavy sigh she slid into the seat in front of him. Trying for casual and failing.

Imp dusted the crumbs from his meal off his bulging chest.  For this meeting he was wearing a tight-fitting, royal blue t-shirt with a superman logo on it, and a comfortable pair of khakis.  "Pretty well, all things considered.  Would you like a drink?" He gestured to the refreshment cabinet on the west side of the office.  After she answered, and the drink started readying itself for consumption, he continued.  "Feels like the principal's office doesn't it?" He grinned an infectious, self-deprecating grin.  "I always used to hate getting called down to the office, be it in grade school or grad school, I hated the worry that even though I knew I had done nothing wrong, they might tear into me anyways."  He took a sip of his water, and ran a hand casually through his hair. "So, how're you doing these days?"

She gulped, both the drink and her nervousness, down.  Imp was always the hardest team member to deal with, and not just because he was anatomical perfection.  Was he psychic or just so adept at picking up social queues that he might as well be? Did it even matter when the results were startlingly similar?

She grinned at the Superman shirt while trying to ignore the perfection underneath.  So damn hard. “I’m pretty good.  Been running around a bit, trying my hand at a couple of projects, and working with Comstock on his hospital.”  Not wanting to dwell on herself anymore than necessary, Flare switched to what was likely the point at hand, thank goodness she’d gotten her report in on time.
“So like I wrote, ‘Kaze is a loose cannon.  She is a deadly opponent, which makes her a great ally, but most of the time I don’t know what will set her off.  I don’t think she does either.  If she’s so whacked out that she’s attacking her own team mates over imagined slights, she probably needs to be taken off the field.” 

Flare had really been expecting such since ‘Kaze befriended Freak, who she thought was named Annabelle or something.

"Just to reiterate, Johnny didn’t do anything that merited that kind of force. He was being a bit sarcastic, but less so than Dragon to me, and didn’t need to get belted like that."

Flare slumped a bit in her chair, frowning as she realized she sounded like the school tattletale. She chewed her lip a bit and thought of how to rephrase.

"I don't think 'Kaze is necessarily a major risk, and I definitely wouldn't call her a bad person.  I just think she might need to loosen up a bit, and maybe get used to the idea of everyone being equal, and not to be bossed around, screamed at, or beaten up.  Maybe some team building exercises could help."

Maybe Flare herself needed another psych eval.  Offering to spend time team building with Kaze. Damn.

[Private to Impetus: I figure with your mega-social everything, Flare is going to ramble a bit to try and give you any info that might be relevant.  She is also going to try her best to get out of talking about herself, but I figure you can persuade her easily enough. ]

"Kaze has been taken off active duty, training or field, until she earns a green light from the therapists.  If you want to be a part of the process that helps her heal, that's great, you have a real gift for soothing people." Flare was clearly nervous, but his gestures towards deformalizing the situation looked to have taken the edge off, which was all he wanted.  There should be a bit of trepidation about coming in for a formal meeting with your superior.
"I agree that she's not ill intentioned, if she was we'd have to take stronger measures, as it is, she's still on base, and has a fair bit of free time, if you want to talk with her.  I'd avoid any mention of her former affiliation, or her status here unless she initiates, those topics appear to be very sensitive."
"But, enough about her, my time away has left me out of touch regarding a great many things, I'm curious about how you're adapting to the new team, and life in general after Colombia.  How's your family, and tell me more about your charitable works, and the solo missions that Utopia's sent you on.  I've been read in on it, but I'd like to hear it from you." He finished with a warm grin, sparkling blue eyes fixed on her with an intensity that might have been unnerving if he wasn't able to make people feel like they were the center of the universe.
[Private to Flare: The problem I have playing Imp is that his socials skills can make people feel like they're losing agency when they interact with him, that he can manipulate people like they're puppets.  Which he can RAW, but I don't like doing it to PCs.  However, since you're amenable, figure that Imp has something around 20-30 sux on most social rolls, and has both seductive (charisma) and seductive looks (appearance), making him more seductive than anybody has any right to be.  He's using both right now (in addition to things like natural empathy and natural agitator, but not awe inspiring)]

Suzukaze returns to base walking slowly through the entrance her head hung low. Her mind a mess of thoughts. The incident moments before with her cousins pushed back the thoughts of the training incident, her probation and the possibility of her getting kicked out of Utopia. She had to keep her work for Proteus hidden. The assassins were after her and would possibly use her family against her. She wanders the halls mindlessly even bumping into a few things. Perhaps other people but it paid her no mind. Somehow she wound up in the common room and took a seat on a sofa. Did I just do the right thing. I've probabaly just hurt them more. She puts her elbows on her knees and rests her head in her hands. Can I protect them or am I just truly useless?

Flare had started this meeting with the idea of being circumspect, but for some reason that seemed to make no sense anymore.  Of course she’d share with Impetus.  He was awesome, amazing, and there for her.

Flare describes in great detail working with the hospital.  She shares that she has gotten her GED and is taking a few classes toward the possibility of medical school.  She feels that if she could treat people with modern medicine, helped along by her nova powers she could do a great deal of good in the world, and it would even be sustainable.  As it is now she can heal a handful of beings, but then is wiped out of quantum.

Flare chews her lip a bit as mulling over how to explain her help with the military. “I’ve been doing some…well scouting I guess.  They had just been telling me to go to various places and watch what other military units were doing.  It didn’t seem like any big deal until last time.  I was in, well, Sri Lanka, watching people, and the leader of what I assume to be terrorists was unprotected.  They…they had me attack him. I never even thought to say no.  I guess I’m just used to following orders.  As it was he had been less unprotected than I had thought, and they just about blew me to kingdom come before I got out of there.”  As usual, Flare replaces ‘murder’ or ‘burn to a crisp’ with attack, distancing herself from the death that most likely occurred during the aforementioned attack.

Her speech becomes more careful as she broaches more personal matters.  “My mother-” She was shocked at the venom her voice was capable of expressing, and she took a deep breath and started again.  “My mother is remarrying.  I assume to a decent man. I will likely attend her ceremony.” There, short and to the point.  The fact that that…woman could so easily forget Flare’s father, could legally marry the man she’d likely been carrying on with for years…it pissed Flare off so royally that she was half tempted to engulf the whole ceremony in flames.

“Beyond that, I’ve been working a bit with my uncle.” Flare’s voice softened with a respect that Imp had only heard directed at himself. “I’ve been helping out with the police…I’ve really enjoyed it.”

“Not much else to tell really.” Though Flare was fairly certain that was more than enough. Really, what was it about Impetus that made her just spew out everything that went through her head?

"I'm glad to hear that you've been getting up to speed on things around here. I'm willing to do anything I can to help."

Imp nodded, made the appropriate noises of compassion, understanding, or mutual distaste as Flare told her story. That the project was using her for wetwork was reprehensible. She was one of the least able to deal with killing people of the entire compliment of novas on T2MA. He'd have to put a stop to that, for the rest though, "Working at the hospital sounds great, as does learning medicine. With our capacity to channel the power of our node through our various attributes you could be one of the world's leading surgeons in no time. I can give you some help if you want, I've developed a training regiment aimed specifically at making myself smarter, faster on mental processing, and improving my memory far above what they were when I was a baseline. Also, I've go this trick of doing things far faster than baselines ever could, which is useful when it comes to writing reports or building a school, but less so in the bedroom. World's Fastest Man isn't always the best moniker," he said with a self deprecating grin. "Seriously, if you put some work in there I bet you could become a one woman trauma center who can perform miracles when even your transhuman skills aren't enough." he smiled, he'd always liked Flare, she was such a happy, friendly person. The thought of her using her powers to heal, rather than melt people like wax, was a happy one. "Also, helping your uncle sounds like a great way to help the community, I'm not even close to being an expert, but the deductive skills you acquire in either the hospital or on the force can only help you in the other, and here too of course. However," and here his voice grew slightly serious, "if you do go to your mother's wedding you should really try to limit yourself to the candles on the tables, you'll be the prettiest woman in the room by a mile and there's no sense scaring off all those handsome young men in tuxedos." he took a drink, "Is there anything I can do to help you out?" he finished earnestly.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:14, Mon 05 Sept 2011.

Flare thought about the stress she'd been under, and the family problems that she thought would go away but hadn't.  Ah well, life wasn't meant to be perfect.  Just livable.  She could handle what was being thrown at her.

"No, I don't think there's anything specific I need help with, but I would really like trying training regimen though, it could help me better."

It was pretty great that Imp was willing to help, or even just listen though.  Well, never let it be said that Flare was unreciprocating.

She leaned forward over the desk and and grinned her face propped on her hands.

"So what about you, boss? You came back superawesome from chrysalis, so how does it feel to be better, faster stronger? You need any help yourself?"

 Imp smiled, a thoughtful, serious smile.  "Remember how everything was different after you erupted? How your body responded differently, how colors, smells were different, and food tasted different? How people reacted differently to you, and you to them? It's the same when you come out of chrysalis. Colors are brighter, tastes and smells are deeper and more complex, textures are far more fascinating.  People, for me, and others, are another arm's length away, their needs, wants and weaknesses more distant. Also, and most profoundly, my thought processes have shifted.  Emotional responses that were once powerful have softened, others intensified. Basically things have either been turned up to eleven or turned way down. Honestly, I'm still getting used to it." He took a drink of water, "Enough about me, I'll schedule some time for us to train together, maybe in two or three days?"

El Dragón flowed through a series of Tai Chi exercizes at the foot of his bed in the infirmary.  According to one measure, he was being hit hard by whatever was effecting the novas from the reunion.  All the mental and physical tests they had given him showed a greatly reduced capacity, and his body no longer stored the quantum energy to fuel his "powers."  He could if need be, use his meditation techniques to get his chi to hold a small amount of energy, but the most he had been able to gather in the latest tests was barely a quarter of what his body had sub-consciously stored before.

But as he flowed through the forms and his mind found its center, he didn't feel ill.  He felt...normal.  There was a part of his mind that found a great sense of peace and relief in that feeling.  It was the part of his mind that sought to balance itself in perfect unity with the body, a goal he had sought all his life through martial arts.  When he erupted, both his body and mind grew in power and ability, but it felt artificial...as if his new abilities were somehow alien to him and part of him wanted to reject them.  His sense of duty forbade that, however, because there was so much more he could do for others with those powers; his quest for balance was thrust aside.  But the embers of it never gave him peace.

He could imagine the peace now, however.  Compared to baselines he was not mentally impaired in any way, and he would pit his physical conditioning against any soldier wearing the uniform.  He retained a small fraction of his superhuman strength, and in an emergency he could reawaken some of his nova powers.  Somehow he knew that if his condition never improved, he could learn to find a balance in how he was at that moment.

But could he really let go of his powers so blithely?  He thought of the good he'd been able to accomplish with them.  The question troubled him for a bit and his brow furrowed in serious thought.  Then memories of missions he'd done or led before erupting reminded him that there had been a lot of good he could do, without nova powers.  His power had come out of nowhere, seemingly, and if it disappeared into the same place, he would do what Rangers are trained to do:  he'd make do with what he had and accomplish the mission with honor.

The summer of 2005 was a bonding time for the new Team Tomorrrow: Americas.  The roster finally settled down.  The core of the team was small, but functional.

• Impetus, pratically a walking divinity and new leader of the team.
• El Dragón, the second in command, real American hero.
• Binary, the boy wonder, master over data and computing.
• Flare, America's new sweetheart and the raw firepower of the team.
• Johnny Afterburner, the human rocket.

Others were scheduled to be added early the next year, around January of 2006.  New recruits, needed to sell action figures and ensure Team Tomorrow still had strength.  Despite Director Laragione's public statements about Utopia's new focus, in private, with Impetus and others, Project Utopia could not afford to look powerless.  The Project's ability to act as peace brokers and nation-builders depended on it being able to defend itself.

• Ricardo Montoya-Bernal, a veteran of the Colombian Conflict, potent fighter and olympian, meant to replace Comstock as muscle on the team. [PU: pg 132]
• Melissanda Estevez, a youth from Colombia almost finished with training, meant to appeal to youth and show Utopia's success in Colombia. [PU: pg 134]
• Lynelle "Virtue" Johnson, a middle aged Iowa born nova and natural peacemaker, perhaps one of the last true idealists in the world.

They'd make a solid team.  Pre-orders of their first action figure sets had already sold out.  The old Kenner trick of selling an empty box with the promise that the figures would be shipped out when they were finally done was revived.

Still, in 2005 there was not much call for Team Tomorrow.  The Summer passed without incident, just more training, occasional patrols of the Vegas area, occasional charity or publicity events.

---

Then one evening in October, as Devarga returned to his room at the T2M Campus north of the city, he felt himself attacked from behind.  A tremendous cloak of eufiber leapt from the shadow of the wall to enclose tight around him.  Claws and fangs sank into his skin, and he recognized the glint of a needler, a hand-held tool Elites sometimes carried to deliver a tremendous dose of nova strength sedative in less than a second.

"Think fast, Dragon, the assailant mocked casually.

He didn't have to think.  "What to do if you're jumped on from behind," is the subject of countless martial arts techniques, and El Dragón knew more than a few.  At the same moment he launched his counter, he popped a force shield next to his skin that pushed out to a solid six-foot sphere then retracted back to his skin.  He finished his blindingly quick actions by turning on his opponent and lashing out with a side-kick aimed at his hips, to knock him off-balance and drive him back.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
This is a rather unique grapple and a rather unique escape technique (as far as grappling rules are concerned anyway).  How do you want to handle it?  Assets I have are Martial Arts 5, Dex/M-Dex 5/3, Str/M-Str 5/2, and Force Field Mastery 3

---

Dragón's scales repelled the sharp edges of the eufiber cloak, and his anima of force drove his attacker back.  The follow-up blow connected roughly with the receding eufiber cloak, achieving only half the intended effect.  The attacker grunted in suprise and frustration.

"Makin' this hard, huh."  Telegraphing wildly, the shadowed attacker delivered a brutal haymaker.  It lacked finesse; Dragón moved around it on instinct, feeling the powerful shock of the nova's mega-strength upon the air.  They were well matched.  The nova's other hand held the needler now, and as it jabbed upward Dragón struck first, weakening the assailant's grasp and knocking the needler to the floor.

"Sonova-"  It was a man, Dragón was certain now, and his movements grew increasingly stiff with frustration.  He was not used to such disciplined resistance.  As Dragón felt himself about to regain the initiative in the fight, the attacker improvised again: the black sheath of eufiber that the man wore surged to life again, unfurling in a sheet before the man, one-hundred tiny blisters across its surface shimmering for a moment before erupting in tiny spouts of flame.  In the flash of light and heat, Dragón briefly caught the man's masked face and shape; his eufiber colony had grown to a full-body suit, fangs and barbs shaping and dissolving as if on reflex.  Like a second skin, it blended into the background, constantly adjusting to camouflage against nearby surfaces.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
OOC: Neat.  As for how to resolve that grapple, I've rolled your Force Anima plus mega-strength, contested directly by your attacker's power plus mega-strength.  The net result being a near tie, with you prevailing in the end.  A follow-up attack also failed by a significant margin, so enjoy the disarm as a bonus.

---

Fire.  It was almost predictable really.  An enemy studies the record of El Dragón, sees that he was treated for a phobia of fire and comes after him with a fire attack.  The mask shielded his eyes and he covered his lower face with his arm to protect it.  This time, the fire didn't frighten him, it made him angry.

That didn't mean it didn't hurt.  He leaned back, angling his body to let the flames wash across him and go up.  He took the heat of the flames and put it with the heat of his anger, balling them in his center, drawing energy from them.  When the man resumed his physical assault, it was like punching at water.  Dragón employed Tai chi chuan's "pushing hands" technique to take control of his opponent's center of gravity using his own momentum.

The cloaked man tried to follow up his flame attack with a haymaker that rose almost from the ground, but assisted by a gentle nudge on the back of his elbow, he is sent stumbling several steps away.  Dragón, using all the quickness he could muster, tumbled over to the needler and palmed it in his right hand.  Then he stood up, placing himself between his enraged foe and where the needler had lain so that he wouldn't expect to see it there.  By the time the black-cloaked man got his stumbling feet under him and turned back, Dragón was standing casually a few feet forward of the spot in the "Stance that is no stance" with the needler hidden from view.

"What's the matter pendejo," Dragón asked with a crooked grin in a tone that was light, yet dripped with scorn, "rented feet?"  His senses were all attuned to reading his opponent, reading every movement and every shift in his center of gravity.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
The idea is on his next attack, flow around it, bump him off balance and try to tag him with the needler.  If it misses, I'll do it again, hopefully getting him more and more angry.

---

"Laugh it up, asshole."  He tapped a watch or communicator at his wrist.  "All your fancy Bruce Lee shit only goes so far."

After a moment of trying to fight conservatively, the attacker started swinging wildly again.  It was clear that the other man was slightly stronger, but Dragón had a slight edge in speed, and a great deal more raw skill.  Haymaker; flow away like water.  A whipping eufiber attack; casual low dodge.  Finally, the man kicked roughly to his front, to shove Dragón to the floor.  And Dragón was beneath him, and the needler hissed as it injected a high-velocity stream of liquid through the attacker's eufiber and skin.

The man grunted in surprise and suddenly his eufiber erupted in spikes and barbs again, but Dragón managed to release his grip and regain his footing.  He growled in frustration and rubbed his leg.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
OOC: Another pair of die rolls, and a knowledge check later.  This guy is a brawler and a good one, and letting a hit land would have tipped the balance in his favor.  But you suspect his may have called in help, so you aren't out of the woods yet.

---

Dragón keyed the radio function of the phone in his suit.  "El Dragón to HQ, I'm in hostile contact with an unidentified nova.  We're in the residential area in front of #2 Zashima Place.  Contact may have called for backup."

With an assumed "time limit," it was time to shift tactics.  With a chi-stirring shout, Dragón stomped into a Shotokan-style hard stance and flooded his body with quantum energy.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
16:41, Today: El Dragon rolled 3 successes using 6d10 with the Target Number system with a target of 7 with rolls of 6,10,8,7,6,5. To activate Boost.  M-Str and M-Sta are now both 5.

---

For a moment, bluish-purple quantum energy discharges danced across his body like tiny electric arcs as he felt himself flooding with a rush of power.  He approached his foe cagily, trying to assess what effect the needler was having on him, and listening for sounds of someone else approaching, maybe by stealth.

"So, Mr. Bat," Dragón said, mocking, "let me get this straight, somebody actually hired you to do this?"

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
My plan at this point is:  if he holds back, hit him hard with combinations; if he attacks hand-to-hand, counter-attack; if he uses the cloak, melt away.

Just curious, I have the Health enhancement for my M-Sta, would the drug in the needler have effected me?

---

This message was last edited by the player at 22:15, Fri 08 June 2012.

"Cockscuker," the nova growled.  He moved to attack again, and Dragón hit him.  Several times.  Hard.

Dragón felt powerful.  Warm.  Burning ...

But his attacker was gone.  There was little more than a smear of blood left to show the man had ever been there.

Then things did not seem to match up.  When had he fallen to the ground?  He'd been winning.  He would damn well have remembered something like falling to the ground.  And his boost had worn off.  He felt depleted, his quantum expended.  Impossible!

"Dragon!"  The phone on the wall had been turned to emergency mode and the video mode turned on.  "Dragon are you alright?  What happened?"  Binary was on the other side.  There were boots stomping down the hallway, Utopia security officers racing to investigate.

---

Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
OOC: You certainly stand a better chance of resisting than the average nova.

---

"I think his backup arrived and blind-sided me with something," El Dragón said, standing up and pulling himself together.  "I don't suppose you caught anything on camera, O genius that you are?" he asked, flashing Binary a crooked grin.

He only staggered a little as he made his way over to find a piece of wall to hold up, and started checking himself for injuries.