After Kongotron's final defeat in 1983--at the hands of Infi-Knight, Sister Salem, Profesor Titanium of the Astral Guardians, Carbine of the Exemplars, and Pyroclaw, a young student at Phoenix Academy--the cybertronic giant gorilla was remanded into the permanent custody of M.E.T.I.S., who hold him to this day in an undisclosed location. Government black sites aside, this was not the end of the Kongotron threat. His son, Kongotron Jr., escaped from captivity.

Over the next 39 years, Kongotron Jr. expanded Clan Kongotron to unheard of heights. Despite public concerns about the cultural sensitivity of the use of this name, the Kongotrons perpetrated a number of prominent heists and attacks throughout the city for years on end. Although many members of the clan were captured, several members of the clan remain free today.

It was your team's bad luck during a routine patrol to come upon Kongotron IX, a super-strong Bonobo ape with extending arms and rocket feet, at the docks. The heroes found themselves hidden under cover of dark from behind a shipping container, watching as the dark horse of the Kongotron family stuck up some dock workers.

Or, well, they were under cover of dark. Another of the Kongotrons, Kongotron LVII, howled with anger from atop the shipping container, hoisting his infamous Displacer Beam overhead and firing a shot into the sky. The air crackled with white fissures in the wake of the beam, which sealed up with loud audible pops.

Looks like it's on!

OOC: So, I'm gonna tell you how this Play-by-Post thing works. Generally, everyone will update once, and then I'll respond. You can adopt a post order, or not. Occasionally, I'll respond to some posts between major updates.

These types of games work when everyone is both invested and willing to make bullshit posts to keep things going.

I intend to have personal scenes, but let's tackle this when we come to it (which may be relatively quickly, to be honest!).

In Masks play-by-post particularly, it's vital that you not see your character as your self, but as a character you're writing in the service of a story we're all telling together.

So, a major problem in PbP PbtA games is people wanting to roll a move with every post. You should not do this, because we'll never get to the end of the first issue before your characters are retired. Don't screw the game like that, please. We'll use moves sparingly, when they're called for. You should not roll social moves constantly--if you have any doubt about whether it's been long enough since your last Pierce the Mask, just ask me.

This does mean that, sometimes, I'll roll on your behalf. If you're pretty sure you'll need to roll, but don't know what roll to use, just roll 2d6 and I'll apply the correct labels.

I'll help keep your conditions, labels, etc. in the other thread up to date, but please help me out.

Now, this is important. When you make Out Of Character comments, you should use Orange text and the "OOC:" tag to denote that. When your character speaks, you may consider coloring your text to make it easier to parse dialogue out from the rest of the post. I can't tell you how many times I have missed entire lines of dialogue because a post didn't have consistent coloring.

Also, please put the reason for roll in the field, and please do use a digital roller I can see the output of if you're not rolling on-site.

This message was last edited by the GM at 10:38, Sun 13 Mar 2022.

Hunter sighed at the sight of Kongotron LVII's show of force.

"Alright, team! Looks like we're not avoiding a fight... Form up!"

Stepping out from behind the shipping container, Hunter holds an arm to the sky, lightning crackling at his fingertips.

"COME NOW TO MY AID, ABSOLUTION!"

The light bends around him, and his mecha forms around him from it, Hunter sits within, ready to fight. He reaches a hand out from Absolution and takes aim at Kongotron LVII's Displacer Beam, he's not trying to harm Kongotron, rather disable his weapon.

OOC: 06:28, Today: Ironforged Hunter Graves rolled 7 using 2d6 ((6,1)). (Unleash my powers)

That's a 7, I'll take unstable or temporary.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:33, Sun 13 Mar 2022.

Sage, seeing that Hunter is handling Kongotron LVII, refocuses their attention onto the Dock workers. They attempt to send a large gust of wind toward Kongotron IX in hopes of throwing them off balance so that the dock workers can escape.

OOC: Ahh Post

Trouble smiles, determined. Her wings flutter a little nervously but also with excitement. Trouble looks at Imp and says,

"Isn't this so exciting? We get to show off our stuff!"

Then she's going to help Sage in the focusing of the dock workers by trying to make sure they have a clear path as they escape. Basically moving anything that would be in the dock workers way so they can run to safety.

OOC: i'm just making sure that I'm doing the OOC thing correctly, don't mind me.

Imp looks far more serious, and scowls a bit after Trouble.

“Exciting yes, after victory! Now- stay careful!”

She leaps over the shipping crate to another high ledge, and calls out to provoke Kongotron IX into moving away from the displacer.

“Over here! Stupid fuzzy robot!”

OOC: Imp rolls a 5 to provoke Kongotron IX.
Aw well, free potential babyyyy

OOC: Both of those actions by Trouble and Imp fall under the rubric of helping Sage Finch out here, drawing the largest part of the group into conflict with Kongotron IX. I'll let Imp keep that potential because I'm nice, though. :)

Let's calculate Team! One team at the start of the session.

Two Team to the pool for being in a battle.

• If the leader has Influence over every
teammate, add another Team.
• If everyone has the same purpose
in the fight, add another Team.
• If any team member mistrusts the
leader or the team, remove a Team.
• If your team is ill-prepared or offbalance, remove a Team.

So, there's at least 1 Team. Your team leader, who you all should decide on, may take  Condition to avoid removing Team from the pool.

I rolled this for Sage: "00:00, Today: Secret Roll: Master of Ceremonies rolled 8 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,3.  roll for Unleash Your Powers (Sage Finch). – 8"

How things go in the next beat will largely depend on whether or not we're treating this roll as a 10+.

Wildfire rushed into action against Kongotron IX, crossing around to the other side of the shipping container and approaching the customs office. Coming in behind them, the freakish duo of Trouble and Imp leapt into action as well.

First, Imp caught the attention of the hyper-intelligent ape. Following up, Wildfire surged forward, blasting a targeted gust of wind at Kongotron IX, and knocked the cybertronic ape off of his balance, providing an opportunity for the scared workers to begin rushing away under Trouble's direction.

"You dare to call me fuzzy robot, false ape?!"


Ironforged found himself separated by circumstance, with further circumstances soon developing. Firing an expertly-placed lightning bolt at the Displacer Beam held by Kongotron LVII, Ironforged found that the results were unpredictable. The Displacer Beam started surging in various directions, first propelling Kongotron LVII to the ground, where Ironforged caught him, preventing any harm, and then a further surge sent the two of them rocketing dangerously across the ground, sliding out onto a dock, where eventually the two came to a halt, skidding apart at last.

Gathering themselves to their feet, they were joined by Kongotrons LV-LVI, who were armed with bludgeons. Kongotron LV said: "The metal boy takes exception to our actions?"

OOC: Y'all are separated by a beats' worth of action at least. :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:42, Mon 14 Mar 2022.

Hunter furrowed his brow in annoyance at the 3 Kongotrons before him.

"Yes, the metal boy takes great exception to terrorizing innocents! Are you going to tell me what it is you're doing here? What is worth all of this trouble, huh?"

Hunter hoped for a genuine reply, but anticipated an attack. His grip on Absolution's controls tightened.

OOC: I feel like Hunter is the leader of the group out on patrol, he does have legitimate tactical experience after all. Ill prepared? No. Off balance? At the moment I would say so. I believe our purpose would be protecting the innocents on the dock, and secondly, ascertaining why the Kongotrons are here.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:35, Tue 15 Mar 2022.

OOC: I too think Hunter is team leader and he does in fact have influence over and is trusted by Sage. Unless Hestia and Imp spend team to help Sage I’m gonna say that she does in fact mark a condition (Guilty).

Trouble makes sure the scared workers get out safely, but is distracted by the fact that Kongotron IX is focusing on Imp. Trouble prepares to back up Imp if Imp gets attacked/jumps into the fray, having her back.

"I got your back, Imp!"

OOC: I agree, Hunter is the leader in this situation. as for the other questions, I think we all have the same purpose in the battle and I don't feel like we're off balance? Trouble doesn't mistrust Hunter either. And Trouble's gonna spend team to help Sage.

Imp smiles to her, and looks more at ease knowing that Trouble is there for her. Nonetheless, she raises her hackles and leaps a little farther up, trying to keep this kongotrons attention on her.

“Imp dare yes! Imp also says fuzzy robot just angry because tail envy!”

OOC: oh yeah, Hunter is the leader. He also has influence over Imp if this silicates everything.

Seeing that the workers are getting away, Sage, just for a split second, turns his attention back to Hunter only to see him not there. Looking around frantically they spot him on the dock.

Sage yet again makes the assumption that Hestia and Imp can handle helping the dock workers finish their escape and attempts to temporarily stall the attack on Hunter. They try to do this by making a wall of fast flowing water appear between Hunter and the apes.

OOC: Since only one person would be helping Sage I’m gonna keep that condition marked. Also lmk if this is even possible Sage has an ok range but its not like insane, also her powers weaken the further away she is.

OOC: So, as I mentioned above, it'll take a beat to bridge that gap. That's just the price you pay for switching out on a situation. :)

Kongotron IX cackled at Imp. "Those in this world with intellects as prodigious as mine do not envy others, false ape."

Making no move to stop Wildfire from departing, Kongotron IX paused for a second, inching back and forth between the two of them. The workers had all left the area, but Kongotron IX remained in the customs office. With startling speed, he reached up to the desk, grabbing onto a coffee mug while his extending arm shot out towards Trouble.

Kongotron LV-LVII circled around Hunter, Kongotron LV retrieving his own bludgeon. The three monkeys cart-wheeled to confuse Hunter's senses and then leapt forward, swinging their bludgeons all at once.

OOC: So, now that you've all allowed me to attack your characters, who does something? :)

Hunter's eyes narrow, he has to think, quick! He couldn't take three at once, could he? He spotted Sage making their way towards him... maybe he could help bridge the gap!

"Here goes nothing!"

Hunter, throwing caution to the wind, charged forward with his mech, he had faith that he could break through and get himself off of this dock. Absolution would hold, right...?

OOC: 05:31, Today: Ironforged Hunter Graves rolled 8 using 2d6 ((2,6)). Unleashing my powers!
I'm going to mark a condition to make that work, marking angry.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:36, Wed 16 Mar 2022.

OOC: So, Hunter went out onto the dock, Sage/Trouble/Imp went perpendicular down the way to the customs office--the shortest line between the two of them is across the water.

Sage, please roll to Unleash Your Powers to keep Hunter afloat as he leaps out onto the water.

Trouble notices the coffee mug Kongotron IX is holding and says, "What, you need coffee just to keep up with us?"

And as Kongotron IX extends an arm towards Trouble, Trouble's going to attempt to catch the arm and tear it off of him.

OOC: if I need to roll, I'll just take the L if it's a mixed success (or just an L if I gay up fail)
This message was last edited by the player at 15:39, Wed 16 Mar 2022.

Sage, seeing Hunter leap onto the water, quickly changes their plans and allows the water directly under Hunter to act as a solid keeping him up. If Hunter chooses to move, the solid water will move with him, Sage informs him of such.

OOC: 17:09, Today: Sage Finch rolled 9 using 2d6+1 ((3,5)). Unless someone uses a team to help I'm gonna mark another condition, this time Afraid.

OOC: As we wait for Imp to re-write the update, I'd like to remind some of our ranks that, as this is the opening action scene, you're more than capable of whooping ass if you try. :)

Imp takes the opportunity while he’s distracted to leap behind him. Using inhuman might, Imp leaps on to Kongotron IX’s back, wraps her prehensile tail around his arm and wrist that’s holding the mug, and then proceeds to make him hit himself over and over again while she cackles. The mug breaks on his head.

“Why hitting self? Why hitting self? Why hitting self? Ahahahaha~! Who false ape now?!”

OOC: Imp rolled a 9 to engage a threat, so I pick to suprise, impress, or frighten the opposition.

Ironforged soared out from the ranks of the Kongotrons LV-LVII. Wildfire balanced Ironforged in the water, providing strong upward pressure to keep him afloat. The gambit paid off, as the Kongotrons all leapt into each other, crashing against one another violently. They rose up from their humiliation, however, and brandished shipping crates around themselves, which they threw into the air at Ironforged and Wildfire. They howled angrily as they hefted the crates.

Behind them, Ironforged and Wildfire simply heard a small pop and some babbling voices--nothing alarming, of course. Well, except for Imp and Fiend, for whom it was extremely alarming.

But, let's step back--Imp is cackling at Kongotron IX, bashing him over the head repeatedly with his own hand. Fiend attempts to grapple with the extending robotic arm, but the flexibility of the thing surprises her as it wraps around her throat and pulls her across the floor back towards Kongotron IX.

"Impressive, false ape. But consider this!" Rather than continuing on with some salient point immediately, Kongotron IX reached up, grabbing Imp by the nape of the neck powerfully. Then his rocket feet activated--the rockets were very quiet, actually, making almost no noise for the intensity of the propulsion they offered. The haphazard trio of friends and enemies rocketed forward, crashing through the window of the space with a weirdly satisfying pop! "Anything you can do, I can do better!"

They soared through the air, struggling together as they soared past rows and rows of buildings, placing an impossible-to-bridge distance between the two halves of the team.

Then he said this: "Allow me to demonstrate!" He turned to the ground, rocketing with incredible speed towards the roof of a brick building.

OOC: Imp, since you picked nothing, I select Impress.

"02:31, Today: Secret Roll: Master of Ceremonies, on behalf of Trouble, rolled 3 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 1,1.  this is Directly Engage. – 3"

So, I am going to need Trouble to mark off the condition Afraid.

Kongotron IX marks Angry.

Finally: Sage and Hunter, please tell me how you defend yourselves or one another (defending yourself is Unleash; defending another is Defend); Trouble and Imp, please roll to Take a Powerful Blow, pick your options if necessary, and then tell me what you do afterwards.

OOC: okay I'm gonna roll to Take a Powerful Blow and use my move, "I am not my body" which allows me to roll as if I have two fewer conditions marked than I do.

"09:32, Today: Secret Roll: Trouble rolled 11 using 2d6 with rolls of 5,6.  Take a Powerful Blow. – 11"

I rolled a 10+, so I have to choose to lose control of myself in a terrible way.

Hestia is so afraid, she begins to act on instinct instead of thinking through her actions. In a panic, she begins to tear at Kongotron IX, trying to tear off his robotic parts to get his to stop. She's just blindly tearing at him, so she doesn't even see Imp as she attempts to tear off the arm that is holding Imp in a desperate attempt to stop Kongotron IX.

"We've got this, Wildfire!"

Hunter positions himself in front of Sage, attempting to catch the shipping crate(s) heading towards her with his mecha.

OOC: 11:34, Today: Ironforged Hunter Graves rolled 11 using 2d6+2 ((6,3)) Defending Sage.

Since that's a hit on defend, I'm going to clear that Angry condition I marked earlier.

OOC: Hey Imp, treat your roll as one result higher. E.g., 2-6 = 7-9 results, 7-9 = 10+ results, 10+ = knocked out.

Hunter, as I discovered the other day, you'll be able to unmark at the end of the scene.

Realizing that they are not in immediate danger, thanks to Hunter's actions Sage decides to help Hunter in turn.

Using one hand to focus on keeping Hunter afloat, Sage uses his other to direct some tendrils to rise up out the water beside Hunter. They use these to catch the barrels flung at Hunter, so that Sage can be throw them back at the apes.

OOC:22:51, Today: Sage Finch rolled 7 using 2d6 ((5,2)). this was to directly engage.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:53, Tue 22 Mar 2022.

When the trio collides with the ground, Imp scrambles out of the Kongotron’s grip. As the dust is still kicked up, she reaches for Hestia and tugs her away from the crash, trying to calm her down and regroup. She is wincing and holding her side however.

“Trouble, you ok? How bad hurt? You be ok, we stick together!”

OOC: 14:30, Today: Imp rolled 6 using 2d6 but it’ll be treated like she got 7-9. I choose to struggle past the pain, marking off Angry and Afraid

Unthinking, filled with barely-contained panic, Fiend tore at Kongotron IX as they coursed through the air, ripping at Kongotron IX--but also at Imp.

Imp and Fiend crashed through the brick roof of the building, coming down roughly onto a metal cat-walk over an out-of-use assembly line. Imp gathers her sister up off the ground, pulling her away from the crash. Both Imp and Kongotron IX were dripping with blood now.

Well, pulling her away until noticing the extending cyborg arm still wrapped around Fiend's neck. "Do you yield, false ape, butterfly girl?" Kongotron IX yanked hard, ripping Fiend off her feet and into the air towards him.

***

Meanwhile, Ironforged with little apparent effort reached into the air, knocking shipping crates out of the air like an expert dodgeball player.

And Wildfire followed up by gripping onto the same crates with his own power of elemental control, water pressure holding the crates in position and then violently launching them across the way, where they crashed against the dock where the Kongotrons LV-LVII were.

Panicked and battered, the Kongotrons LV-LVII tried to dodge the crates, with little success. The crates, for their own part, shattered on the docks, lawn gnomes spilling out all over the dock. (Come to think of it, it was a good thing no faculty member knew about this whole thing, wasn't it?)

The Kongotrons LV-LVII regrouped and rushed away off the dock, escaping into the night.

OOC: So, who does what? Keep in mind that to defend yourself, you roll Unleash Your Powers. :)

Sage, since you told me verbally what you'd pick for Directly Engage, I've proceeded with this in mind.

but plz tell me what options you pick for your level of success

“I don’t yield to villains,” Fiend’s voice quivers and chokes as she’s yanked towards him.

Fiend tucks her wings behind her to keep them from being torn any more than they are as she’s yanked towards Kongotron IX. She aims to punch him hard enough to make him let go of her and, hopefully, knock him out.

OOC: I think I reading comprehension-ed correctly. If not, let me know and I’ll edit it.

Trouble rolled 10 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,5.  Directly Engage Kongotron IX. – 10 and actually, coming back, I have Afraid marked so it should be -1 so that's actually an 8 not a 10.

Since I rolled a 8 I want to take his arm from him (the one around Trouble's neck)
This message was last edited by the player at 17:39, Thu 24 Mar 2022.

Hunter regretted endangering all of those innocent lawn gnomes, but at least those Kongotrons were dealt with. He turns to Wildfire with a grin on his face. "You did great, Sage! We really showed them what for!"

His expression became a bit more serious as he pressed the communication device on his ear, trying to patch through to Imp and Trouble. "We're finished here. How are things on your end?"
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 09:51, Thu 24 Mar 2022.

As The Kongotrons escape into the night, Sage looks around for their friends. He isn’t too concerned as the two of them can probably handle any trouble that comes their way. Having said that she does give Hunter a quick nod of acknowledgment before returning to her search.

Imp gnashes her teeth and screeches. She slashed her claws to the ground in panic and before Hestia and Kongotrons eyes her flesh transmutates until she becomes bigger, more monstrous. She glares at Kongotron, before charging towards him.

No! Nonononono! You let go! No hurt her! Now Imp hurt you!

17:13, Today: Imp rolled 6 using 2d6+3 ((1,2)). Oof, I fail that roll, and according to the power “Be the monster”, “they react with violence, hatred, and paranoia, and you suffer the brunt of it”. More potential woooo

Hunter and Sage phoned out to their friends--no response, yet.

They did see the returning dock workers in the distance. And then they heard the sirens--being a mere Clique, the two understood acutely that to be found at the scene of a crime like this would invite scrutiny and possible consequences. They had to get out of there, and fast.

***

As the two struggled to separate themselves from Kongotron IX, Fiend found herself being strangled by the ape's arm, and with a panic, she tore the arm apart. However...

...Imp rushed forward at the same time, attempting to threaten Kongotron IX. He shouted, "Fool!"

A metallic fist crashed down into Imp's skull, flattening her to the ground. Kongotron IX lifted Imp by the back of her neck and, spinning around, launched Imp at Fiend, who was still extricating herself from the metallic arm. The two crashed, tumbling to the ground.

Kongotron IX looked down at the two of them with contempt, before activating his rocket feet and flying away through the air.

Sirens screamed by outside, the police apparently unaware of whatever struggle had occurred in this brick building.

OOC: So, course correction and mea culpa: Defend conditions are unmarked immediately.

That being said: Imp and Fiend, please mark conditions.

Trouble groans as she sits up. She frowns guiltily, upset with herself that she wasn't able to successfully take down Kongotron IX.

Trouble stands up as she presses the comm, "Kongotron IX got away, but not unscathed. The police are here, should we scram and meet back up at the school?"

Trouble offers a hand to Imp, to help her up.

"Are you okay?"

OOC: I had Fiend mark guilty

Hunter, about to high tail it from the scene, patches through to Fiend.

"Affirmative, get out of there and get back to school, Sage and I will be there."

Hunter turns to Sage. "Come on, let's go."

Imp groans and takes Hestia’s hand, holding one clawed hand to her head. She’s upset with herself, as her sister ended up getting injured. She blinks away stars and gives a shaky thumbs up. She starts walking away from the scene while tugging Hestia along.

“Imp ok. Fuzzy hit hard, ouch. Hestia hurt?”

OOC: Imp marks off Insecure. She is now angry, afraid, and insecure

Sages nods in return

"Ok"

And also proceeds to flee the scene

And so, the clique escaped from the scene of the crime, none the wiser as yet to the full import of that evening's activities. It would, of course, be only a matter of time before the clique discovered everything.

Although they found themselves licking their wounds, it soon became clear to Imp and Fiend, as well as Sage and Hunter, that this was a major accomplishment for a gang of freshmen. not only had they squared off against the Kongotrons, but they had driven them away from the scene, arguably in defeat.

***

The clique found themselves meeting up again, back at Sage's dormitory on Academy Island, a building designed by the Greloots, a reclusive group of alien sages invited to Academy Island by Infi-Knight in years past. Being constructed by the Greloots, it exhibited difficult-to-understand alien characteristics.

(The dormitory itself was, of course, named after the chief engineer on the project, one Bineex--the dormitory hall was therefore referred to as Bineex Hall.)

From the outside, the structure resembled a huge sphere set in a large glowing demisphere impression in the ground. In the side, an entrance extended into the center of the sphere. Up close, however, one could see that the sphere seemed to be endlessly rotating in different directions, without moving the location of the entrance.

Spot sat, resolute and loyal, at the entrance to the dormitory building waiting for Sage's return, and quite simply and without substantial fanfare returned to Sage's side at his return.

Once inside, the clique gathered in the communal living room in the center of the structure, consisting of an entirely open sitting room/kitchen/dining room.

Around them, the sphere itself continued to rotate, although the thin, honeycomb-shaped inlets which impossibly contained the dormitory rooms sat flush against the surface of the sphere, remaining stable and connected by a strange black latticework. Every time a student needed to make it to their room, they stepped onto the latticework, at which point the gravity relative to their body altered, ensuring their ability to walk up and around the sphere.

OOC: I think several of our heroes have homes to return to at this time, so do think on that.
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:16, Tue 29 Mar 2022.

Hunter smiled at the rest of the clique, then spoke. "You did great out there tonight, all of you. It may not have been a decisive victory, but we protected those innocents from harm."

Hunter began to yawn, but continued speaking through it. "Now then, I'm tired, and I have a sleep schedule to maintain. We should all get some well deserved rest. That's just a recommendation of course, I'm not your mom."

He chuckles, mostly at himself for saying something like that. He waits to see if the others have anything to add, or to talk to him about.

Hestia hunches her shoulders and reaches out to squeeze Imp's hand, seeking comfort.

"But ... if they're still out there? Won't they hurt other innocent people?"

Hestia looks at the group, looking for any answers they have.

Sage reaches down to pet Spot, but looks up to respond to Hestia

“I mean…maybe? But we did our best and hey we saved those dock workers and there wasn’t much else we could really do and ya know. We'll get 'em next time. Plus if we’d stuck around, well, we might have gotten the school in more trouble.”

They return to petting Spot

Spot wagged his tail, appreciative of the pets.

OOC: So, for all-together social scenes like this, the scene will typically continue until y'all need me to change scenes. :)

Hunter nods to Sage. "It's like Sage said, we did our best out there, and we protected who we meant to protect. It may not have been a decisive victory, but it was by no means a defeat."

Hunter pauses. "As for whether or not they're still out there, I'm sure that they are. But we won't let them accomplish whatever it is they're trying to do without putting up a darn good fight. You really should all be proud of yourselves for what you did tonight, okay?"

Trouble reluctantly nods, but doesn't seem too convinced.

"Okay. I guess Hunter does have a point, we should go to bed so we don't mess up our sleep schedules."

Imp squeezes Hestia’s hand back, finally speaking up. She bumps her head gently with her to get her attention.

“Sleep, yes. Hestia no worry more. We kick ass hard first try. Next time? We finish job!”

She turns to Hunter and Sage and grins toothily

“Kongotrons won’t get away next time, we stop for good.”

Hunter smiled softly, and departed to his dorm for a night's rest.

OOC: I'm ready to change scenes when y'all are.

Trouble smiles at Imp, feeling a bit better.

OOC: i'm also ready to change scenes whenever :)

Sage nods and beckons Spot to follow him, heading back to his room.

OCC: SCENE CHANGE
This message was last edited by the player at 04:36, Sat 02 Apr 2022.

OOC: So, for the first round of trying to figure out how to manage this, I'm going to ask for a couple of things.

1.) Please tell me about your home or dorm life.

I've decided that the two other dormed players are housed in the Roundabout, otherwise known as Hawthorne Hall. This hall is a dimensionally transcendent space, and contains an elevator leading up through one hundred identical halls. Each entrance on each level leads in and out to the same place on the bottom level.

Being a dimensionally transcendent space, this hall externally only takes the space required for the bottom floor.

Only the twenty-third and twenty-fourth floors are used for dormitories, with floors above and below being a variety of class-rooms and extra-curriculars, including Clubs (being a Clique, y'all don't get a room).

Floors 80 and higher are, however, cordoned off for secretive reasons.

2.) Give me a suggestion for Sage's short personal scene (this is not a prompt for Sage, but Sage should describe the room.

You should probably also include some stuff for the next personal scene, Imp and Trouble.

Spot followed Sage back to his room, and when they came to the wall, he looked up at Sage. After all, only she could activate the netting on the wall that would allow the two of them to climb up the wall.

OOC: Well, I imagine that Imp and Trouble live in the dorms together (maybe the same room? or at the very least next to each other). Trouble's brother also lives in a dorm (but perhaps not in the same area - probably on the other floor). Trouble definitely visits her brother when she can, and definitely doesn't visit him just to hang out with one of his friends who she definitely doesn't have a crush on.

Anyway, yeah Trouble lives with/close to Imp and tries to spend almost every second with Imp. If she's not hanging out with Imp, she's hanging around her brother. I think that is all the info that should be included in information about her dorm life ... yes. Anyway anyway, time to include stuff for next personal scene.

As Trouble and Imp head back to their room(s), Trouble holds onto Imp's hand and stands as close as possible. She's still feeling very guilty and a little afraid from their fight.

Trouble mumbles quietly to Imp as they walk, "I know it's probably silly, but I still kinda scared from the fight, even though I know we're safe here. And I can't help but feel like I didn't do enough during the fight. I just ... I don't know, Imp. I'm worried I'm not good enough at this whole hero-ing thing."

OOC: Team Move: When one of you shares moment of vulnerability or shares a triumphant celebration without the other one present, mark a condition to mark a potential. So ... I think we both mark a potential regardless?
This message was last edited by the player at 17:53, Wed 13 Apr 2022.

OOC: Trouble, that'll be your team move. Please edit in the team move so we can all know the repercussions of it. :)

Hunter returns to his home in the city, a quaint two story abode, where he lives with Carnavas, his adoptive mother. He unlocks the door and heads inside. He leaves his boots in the small shoe rack next to the door, and hangs his jacket on the coat hanger. He heads inside, and says hello to Carnavas before heading upstairs to his room, "Evening, Miss Hay! School was nice today." He makes his way into his room, and settles down for a bit. Eventually, he reaches for the pill box near his bed, ever since his accident, he's needed to take various medicines to keep his brain... stable. Taking a bullet to the head will do that to you. Eventually, he finds himself laying down in bed and drifting off to sleep.

(I like to think that they share a dorm- Hestia has her side of the room, and Imp’s side resembles something more like a nest. A mess of blankets and pillows take up her bed, a sensory swing hangs in one corner, and her wall is littered with family photos of she and Hestia’s childhood)

Imp pouts and furrows a brow, and bumps her head into Hestia’s as a way to comfort her. Her tail also wraps around her wrist.

“Huh? Why Hestia think that? Imp think Hestia do great! Maybe stupid bot escape. But we rescue workers! We stop bad guy mission! We get them next time, Imp knows it.”

Imp pulls out the key to their shared dorm. She guides them both in, and motions her to sit on Hestia’s bed while she produces a hair brush.

“Sit, sit. Imp brush hair now- Hestia too stressed.”

So uhh Sage lives in a single dorm that they got due to their time shenanigans and a little bureaucracy.
The room itself is seemly split into two halves one for Sage and the other for Spot. Sage's side looks rather cramped mostly due to all the books, board games and clutter littering the desk and shelves. Meanwhile Spot’s half is covered in dog related accountment namely toys, a bed, food, that sort of stuff. The one thing tying the whole room together seems to be the white walls and red carpet.

During Sage’s free time he mostly reads books and tries to learn new games.
They also are trying to adjust to this era and getting to know this version of the school’s new student body. She has gone about this by talking to the other dorm dwelling freshmen and hanging out in the computer lab while pestering the teacher for help.

OOC:Some ideas for some personal scenes could be asking some students to play Arkham Horror or pestering the computer lab teacher. Also brain dead this is best I can do.

Trouble let's out a sigh as she lets the brushing sooth her. She relaxes as much as possible, part of her knowing she won't fully relax until the Kongotron's are found and locked away.

"Thanks Imp, you're the best."

Trouble begins to doze, tired from the day's events, but then jolts awake.

"Oh! Imp is there anything you wanted to talk about? It was a pretty scary day, so I don't know if you want to talk about anything or ..."

OOC: For shame! Give suggestions for Sage's room and personal ASAP, if you haven't. I

Sage will, of course, reserve the right to tell us what the room looks like based on your suggestions, and I will reserve the right to remix any ideas y'all throw at me for neighbors or events.

We'll proceed through personal scenes one by one, starting with Sage, then...Imp/Trouble, and finally Hunter (because Caden's my veteran PBP player).

Spot looked up at Sage, and licked his nose. He licked his nose several more times, and then finally gestured with his nose, quite expectantly, at the mesh on the wall, which they had not yet ascended.

Sage smiles at Spot and proceeds to ascend the wall

He heads toward his room and grabs a game off the shelf proceeding to read it.

OOC:Also my suggestion for Imp and Trouble is someone forces them in a game of tetherball
Or uhh something comes crashing through a window
Maybe they go get snacks and hijinks ensue as they find a pirate looking for lost treasure

As sage came into their room, Birdie the Thinking Wall-Clock chimed in with a, "Welcome back, Sage and Spot! I have set the lights to--Night Light Setting. Would you like me to check prices on your--To Buy List?"

Sage picked a book off the shelf at random, alighting upon a second-hand copy of Boot Hill, in the third edition rules. This was a wild west RPG which, more than anything else, simulated gunfights with a great deal of simulationist realism. It was not the most imaginative game that she had, but then again--if you just want to play a two-pistoled western hero, what better game?

OOC: Is a fairly crunchy game with high realism factor to Sage's taste?

***

Imp and Trouble didn't make it right into their dorm. On their way in to the building through the field out front, a fellow student ran up to intercept. "Hey, Imp, Trouble! Come and play some touch football with us. You owe me for the dock tip, right?"

The two recognized him as a member of a fellow Clique, Blue Bee from the Xeno-Hackers (a Clique of students with alien tech and other body mods). He was out of his super gear, but the two knew that his gear was only seconds from fully materializing at any given moment.

OOC: So, there was some confusion. What I wanted with the personal scene prompt was something along the lines of what Sage has given. Ideas for things that can happen during a personal scene, complications and bumps in the road. These don't need to be anything special--the idea is just to keep y'all involved while others are doing their personal scenes.

Speaking of which, now accepting suggestions for Hunter's scene. I'll start giving prompts. What kind of unusual activity could Hunter's adoptive mother be engaged in when Hunter comes into the house? Is it possibly spy-related? Does she just have an unusual hobby?
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:50, Thu 28 Apr 2022.

Trouble looks at Imp then back at Blue Bee.

"Sure! I'm down if Imp is down. Sounds like fun, and we do owe you."

Trouble looks back at Imp to see if she's up for it.

OOC: ohhhhhhh. I've connected the dots ... about what you meant-

Imp considers it a moment, before she breaks out in a chaotic and toothy grin.

“Ha! Sure! Imp feel like kicking nerd butt tonight! Imp hope blue butt like way defeat taste.”

As it turned out, Blue Bee wound up on your team in the game of touch football.

OOC: Imp, Trouble: What sort of strategy do you take in this game of touch football? Do you excel at defense or offense?

And perhaps more importantly, how do you plan to tackle the threat posed by the speedster on the other team, a kid named Robby who has not yet gained a name?

(I will not make you think about the actual, quite complicated, rules of touch football. You're welcoeme.)

Sage: plz answer prompt :D

Trouble laughs when Blue Bee ends up on their team, high fiving him as he walks over to them. "Hopefully Blue Bee doesn't taste defeat today."

When the game starts, Trouble is immediately goes on the defense, doing her best to protect her teammates. Trouble is a firm believer that the best offense is a good defense.

Trouble is hoping to tackle the Robby threat by strategically leaving herself vulnerable for an "attack", and then doing a reverse uno cuz she was prepared for it from Robby.

OOC: I was gonna have Trouble flirt with Robby to trip her up cuz that was my first thought (and Trouble's a lesbian) but I'll try this instead XD

Also thank you for not making me think of the rules of touch football ... I don't even know how to play regular football-

OOC: Ok ok prompt ideas for Hunter

What if she is just like obsessed with baking and has like the counter littered with baked goods because today was an “off” day or something( she's never really off but you know)Or maybe she knits idk
I like the idea of her doing a rather mundane hobby to balance out all the spy shit.

Imp still sticks her tongue out at Blue bee, teasing him.

“Later maybe, night still young.”

When the game starts, Imp is gonna be the complete opposite and go full offensive and aggressive. She uses her dexterity to her advantage, faking people out and making impossible and wacky maneuvers. If Trouble’s fake out doesn’t work, Imp will focus on playing mind games and taunting Robby, trying to get a rise out of her so she focuses on Imp instead of the game.

OOC: I hope I understand contact football. Also, I think I made Imp a little shit on accident >:)
This message was last edited by the player at 02:14, Tue 03 May 2022.

OOC: Alright, so from the two of you, I'll need:

Trouble: Provoke.

Imp: Directly Engage.

It sounds like you'd like to maybe provoke if Trouble's provoke fails. I'll allow you to do that if things work out that way, but it's pretty likely your rolls will decide the outcome of this game.

OOC: alright provoke is superior ... and I have guilty marked so let's see how this goes. and to no one's surprise: 02:43, Today: Trouble rolled 4 using 2d6-3 ((4,3)). yeah that's how I thought it'd go

OOC: oki doke, with a -2 from having afraid marked, Imp rooooolllllllssss… 2d6-2 ((1,3)) with a total 2
Damn, free potential I guess ;-;

Well, in theory it would have been an even game. The speculation of historians would one day be that this was probably a particularly off day for Imp and Trouble.

At the lineup, Trouble tried to bait Robby--she thought it seemed successful, at first, but Robby slowed her roll at the last moment and then threw a wink as she stopped on a dime. Trouble, expecting Robby to advance just then, stumbled and fell on her ass.

Imp, meanwhile, deployed an aggressive strategy immediately, going for various expert tricks and attacks. Unfortunately, this left the team split--unable to fully commit to either approach, Blue Bee tried to switch back and forth between the two strategies. Robby's team crushed.

Minutes later, the game finished with an excellent pass from Robby to her teammate Big Booster, which flew dramatically right through Imp's arms. Robby, Imp, and Blue Bee all hit the ground, skidding to a halt.

The two teams took a moment to rest. After a few moments, Blue Bee started laughing and said, "Good game."

***

When Hunter came home, he noticed two things. First of all, there was no coat-hanger. This was especially surprising because it wasn't freestanding, but was usually screwed into the wall. The second thing was the smell of something sweet baking.

When he came into the kitchen to inspect, Hunter found that Carnavas had covered the counters in paper, pastries, cookies, and so on. Looking over, he could see that the coat-hanger was now screwed into the side of the cabinets, and it seemed to have several heavy-looking bags hanging over it.

Carnavas was deep in thought, but responded to Hunter quite promptly: "Mr. Graves, I'm glad to hear it." She looked around. "Would you like to take some pastries for your friends? My casework is trying me today."

OOC: Trouble, you should know...Robby is going to take influence over you with this. :)

Imp, Trouble: Feel free to drop a post to wrap up the scene, but this post marks the transition.

Note also this custom move, which I will soon throw out into the other:

Whenever you spend your time enjoying hobbies with friends who understand your current struggles, clear a condition.

Since we're not dealing with your very dramatic backstories yet, you have triggered this move.

If anyone asks, Trouble will claim that her face is flushed just because she was running hard. It had nothing to do with the wink, she swears.

Trouble laughs with Blue Bee, and shoots smiles a at Robby. "Good game." and then turns back to Blue Bee. "Thanks for inviting us to play! That was fun."

Trouble stands up, brushes herself off, and offers a hand to Imp.

"Let's go home and get some rest, I think we've earned it."

OOC: Alright, this is my wrap up scene post. Also, Robby should take influence over Trouble, it's important that she does. Also Trouble definitely doesn't have a crush on Robby she does

Hunter entered the kitchen with a grin on his face, enticed by the smell of baking.

"W-wow! This smells incredible!" Hunter dashed to the counter and stuffed a chocolate chip cookie into his mouth. "Tastes incredible too..." Hunter savored the sweet before suddenly standing up on alert. "Oh! Er- yes! My friends would love some pastries! I'd be happy to take some for them."

Hunter's face shifted to one of inquisitiveness, as he turned his attention to the oddly placed coat hanger.

"What's with the bags, ma'am? Why'd you move the hanger in here?"

She was working hard on a new batch, and when Hunter started asking about things, Carnavas stopped suddenly and looked over at him. She was crouched over the bowl as she spoke, her hands palm-down and pressed tightly against the countertop to either side, so that Hunter could see her fingertips turn white against the spotted gray counter. Her voice was, as always, sharp and a little critical.

"Don't ask questions, Mr. Graves. I'm not in a questions mood today. The coat-hanger is in here because I ran out of room on the counter."

She eased up a bit and got back to mixing.

"How was your day at school, Mr. Graves?"

This last time she spoke, Carnavasspoke in a very mild tone of voice.

"I had a good day! My team and I fought some of the Kongotrons down at the docks. They were harassing the workers there, we aren't exactly sure what they wanted out of it. We chased them off."

Hunter pauses. "I suppose you could also frame it as 'they got away' but I like to look on the bright side of these things."

Carnavas Hay narrowed her eyes when she heard mention of the Kongotrons, as she was wont to do. She looked over at Hunter sideways--in a way which would be highly concerning if Hunter did not understand her intentions to be quite precisely good.

"Mr. Graves..."

She thought on what she was going to say for merely two and a half seconds.

"...be careful about the Kongotrons. Their cachet has depleted, but they are not pushovers. If they did not accomplish their task, and...if they were on official business, you can expect a counter-attack."

Carnavas spoke seriously, in an even tone, and without apparent concern. This, of course, meant that she was expressing her concern.

Hunter nodded firmly once she was finished speaking, "I understand, ma'am. We'll have to take caution, then."

A counter-attack? If the Kongotrons are the types to hold grudges, then Hunter should make sure his team is ready for them.

Wiping one hand clean over the course of roughly ten seconds, Carnavas reached out and grabbed Hunter's shoulder with her fore and middle fingers and her thumb.

"I will put these cookies in some tupperware containers. You'll take them to your friends."

OOC: We can end this scene now, if you like, or you can drop a final bit to close it yourself.

"Thanks, ma'am!"

OOC: Yeah, we'll end the scene here.