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Xselcier
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As the formerly small woman

As the formerly small woman jumped back to her feet and closed with Scaleback again, more cautiously this time, the leader had taken advantage of this and continued skirting the room. Unaware of Mentalian's ambush, he came around the corner and found himself face to face with dozens of floating weapons.

Whipcrack nodded to Stingray and hared off towards Gayle. He leapt, shot out a strand, and swung for her cyclone. At the last second, he let go and stretched his psionic armor to create a windsuit. This allowed him to ride the eddies of the wind funnel and get fired out the other side, directly at the old man.

Putting yourself in another persons shoes emotionally is something that everyone has to experience eventually. It's part of learning to be a human being. Roleplayers do it for fun.

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Seeing that the apparent

Seeing that the apparent mastermind had already snuck through the opening where her cyclone was churning, Gayle cursed, sighed, and began unwinding its energies. So as not to let all that power go to waste, she used the wind to send hammer blows of air at the leader's back. Remembering what she had learned from Sheena, she bracketed the shots across an area so that the fellow would find it difficult to slow or escape the onslaught.

The way she threw them, they should just about run out of serious energy by the time the blasts reached Mentalian and his arsenal. Almost.

For good measure, she siphoned a portion of the windstorm back into tougher shields for herself and Whipcrack.

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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With the not-so-small woman

With the not-so-small woman coming at her, Scaleback falls back on years of training and experience fighting.

there's an interesting thing in boxing - people measure their overall reach in armspan, fingertip to fingertip. A lot of heavweight boxers have around 70 to 77 inches to play with in terms of armspan, and the larger you are, the longer your arms are, the more of an advantage you have, as you can control how people approach and strike them outside of their reach and thus ability to counterattack. A difference of a few inches is a small edge that can be a massive hindrance to someone trying to get around it. Even as bulked up as she is, the villainous woman should only have a slightly above normal reach - perhaps around 80 inches or so. But Scaleback is not bound by such problems. Instead, her reach is something around 144 inches, over double that of the average boxer. That's an entire extra person away she can fight from, and with her downright unreal size and bulk, he fists hit like trucks when they do hit.

The woman is going to be getting a crash course in this idea in a moment, as Scaleback's reach allows her to start laying into the other woman the moment she's in range. A giant scaled fist, moving fast enough to shatter rock, moves to intercept her and deliver a stunning blow to the head, intent on laying the villain out.

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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Just as the chronomage skirts

Just as the chronomage skirts past the cyclone, Mentalian's black spear is lanced towards him at highway speed, with seemingly instant acceleration. Mentalian notices Whipcrack flying towards their target, and takes a brief moment to do a moral calculation: the chronomage MUST die, but getting a hero caught in the massacre seemed too much, even a redblood hero.

Mentalian decides. He drops the smaller pistols and non-automatic rifles and keeps automatic weapons aimed more accurately at the leader. The SMGs and assault rifles fire, sending dozens of bullets per second at the chronomage's chest. At the same time, a depressive wave is sent to both the mage and Whipcrack, to demoralize and dull reflexes. This fills the corridor with a indigo light, purple for telekinesis and blue for depression.


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Stingray examined the nearest

Stingray examined the nearest of the cryo chambers, looking for handles, electrical plugs, how it was - or was not - secured, and whether or not it had any buttons labeled "Convenient Quick Defrost Cycle".

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Scaleback's flurry of savage

Scaleback's flurry of savage blows did exactly what was intended, sending the other brawler off to la-la land and laying her out full-length.

Even as Mentalian's wave washed over both of them, it was just one of several things that happened at once. Whipcrack, flying through the air, slammed into the old man just before the black spear, taking him off his feet. The spear actually grazed Whipcrack instead, carving a grey furrow across Whip's amber armor. Gayle's attempts to slow the old man with her mini-cyclones actually helped, throwing Whipcrack and the old man into cover behind a displaced barricade.

But they were still outside the door, pinned down by Mentalian and his small arsenal of assault rifles. Whipcrack looked back towards the opening and then down at the slowly closing gap in his armor. "Okay, let's get a little crazy here..." he muttered to himself. With a little scooting and leverage, he lifted the old man up and laid him on his own legs so that they looked like a luge team. He then expanded his armor to create a shield between them and Ment, then shot two strands back through the door.

"Gayle, on my mark, I need some extra speed. Give my strands a good yank. Scale, if you're able, get to the door and get it closed or at least make the gap smaller..."

"Here goes nothing... three, two, one, MARK!"

At his own mark, Whipcrack changed his strands so that they were elastic and generated a low-friction field underneath the both of them. They hoped-for effect was accomplished and the two men accelerated back towards the gap at terrific speed.

Putting yourself in another persons shoes emotionally is something that everyone has to experience eventually. It's part of learning to be a human being. Roleplayers do it for fun.

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Whether or not Scaleback

Whether or not Scaleback actually follows through on the order may affect what the group does; after all, given the fact that she picks up the unconscious woman like a toy and starts rushing off, a low growl in her throat that almost makes her sound like a motor as she moves after the direction she'd seen the old time mage move. Given the careless way she's carrying the unconscious woman, how she's gone completely nonverbal despite being reasonably eloquent (if gravely-voiced) before, and completely ignoring the heroes, he may realize something is up.

Everyone else may realize something is up when she goes to roughly shove Whipcrack out of the way to grab the unconscious main and crush his ribcage in her hands. Whether she succeeds or not depends on the heroes around her, but suffice to say her focus is most certainly not on Mentalian. Her mouth is stretched into a rictus grin, stretching her lips out of the way of immense, dangerous teeth.

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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The magazines quickly empty

The magazines quickly empty from the rifles into the barricade and psi-shield. Mentalian drops them with a sigh, "The Redeemers would like you, Whipcrack" Mentalian says aloud, betraying a slight scottish accent.

He demanifests the spear, It'd served him little, then his focus returns on the locus of rage across the room. "Maybe the indirect path" he thinks, again fueling the rage. With his left hand he sends more rage, and with his right hand he maintains the wave of despair over whipcrack and the chronomage, while Scaleback scraps through the forced open door into the blue and red light.


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Gayle continued to wind down

Gayle continued to wind down the tumbling cyclone, but had someplace new to direct the energy. To meet Whipcrack's apparent intent, she bubbled him and the man he had apprehended together, strengthening it to form a hard shell of air around them for protection and an air cushion underneath for ease of movement. She used another jet of wind behind Whipcrack to accelerate him in the direction he wanted to go, and guided him back through the doors with a continuous tug of air on the strands.

"Scaleback? What are...? Damn!" She frowned and cursed as she realized that Scaleback was apparently out of control. When the reptilian woman tried to shove Whipcrack out of the way to get to the chronomage, she found the two of them bound together. Her lunge and grab was more likely to make Whipcrack and his charge skitter about the floor of the big control room like an air hockey puck than to actually separate them. Contained in the package of the hardened shell of air, the two bodies were slippery.

The cause of none of this was visible, however. The shell, the jet, the lift--it was all just... air. Mentalian was obviously doing something, glowing like a demented disco light show, but he would have to wait.

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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In addition to Gayle's 'air

In addition to Gayle's 'air hockey' effect, Whip's armor was also still generating the low-friction field. Between the two, Scaleback's attempt to grab them was ineffective and damn near comical. Whip and the old man popped out of her fist like soap in the shower and rocketed halfway across the room, only to continue sliding like butter on a hot plate after landing. As they bounced around the room, they're only recourse was to hang on for dear life and hope the raging crocodilian regained control before the effect was spent.

Putting yourself in another persons shoes emotionally is something that everyone has to experience eventually. It's part of learning to be a human being. Roleplayers do it for fun.

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Mentalian sighs aloud,

Mentalian sighs aloud, putting a telekinetic wall in the corridor in front of him, trapping those within. Remembering Whipcrack's psionic shielding, he gives up on the depressive wave, and switches to a mania inducement on Gayle, intended to hinder focus and dexterity, all while maintaining the rage inducement on Scaleback.

Along with the mania inducement, he says to Gayle telepathically, "the prisoners! Stingray is struggling!"


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Finally skidding to a halt

Finally skidding to a halt near the cryo chambers, Whipcrack released his expanded armor and kipped up. He hauled the dizzy chronomage to his feet, then threw him only mildly delicately into an open chamber. Even as Scaleback was bearing down on them, Whip kept his back turned and sealed the old man inside. Lastly, he hammered the activation button, watching as the chamber retracted into the rack with the rest of them.

Turning to face the charging Scaleback, he generated leg extensions to raise himself to her height. As she closed, he reached back and grabbed a piece of Nebraska, then hauled off and smacked her open-palmed with all his strength and psionic willpower poured into the blow. "SNAP OUT OF IT!"

Putting yourself in another persons shoes emotionally is something that everyone has to experience eventually. It's part of learning to be a human being. Roleplayers do it for fun.

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Scaleback staggers in a way

Scaleback staggers in a way that has nothing to do with how hard she was hit there; with the effect on her disrupted, she's taking confused control of her actions again, but stumbles midstep and collides headfirst with the wall beside Whipcrack.

Coughing, she slowly hauls herself up to her hands and knees, rubbing at her scaly noggin, "Ugh... he... someone was in my head." she's not in much of a position to keep fighting now, discombobulated as she is by running headfirst into the wall - not only is she fast, but she's got a lot of mass behind her strides, so no doubt she'll be seeing stars for the next little bit.

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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Mentalian releases his hold

Mentalian releases his hold on both Scaleback and Gayle, since attention is already on the chambers. He hovers confidently to the entry he'd forced open. "I'm not going to stop until he's dead, and now you've put him by innocents!" Mentalian yells. He reaches out his arms to lift the chamber, but then he stops.

A smirk goes across his face, he puts down his left arm then begins to pull his right arm in, using his telekinesis to pull the chronomage against the inside of the wall, intending to crush him. He readies his left arm for a defense spell, a go-to for Necrobians.


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Stingray had decided that the

Stingray had decided that the individual cryo-containers were most likely individually, internally powered, which meant getting them out, into trucks, and driving them to the NERD for experts to figure out how to release the prisoners should be a good plan... He'd tuned out the exchange between Whipcrack and Scaleback. Then he heard Mentalian's exclamation, realized that the innocents he meant were the people in these containers here and pulled himself up to the top of the stack to see what he could do. From his vantage deep in the storage room, Stingray couldn't see Gale Force, but he could see the other three - well, he was now fairly sure that Mentalian wasn't a hero... He was too far away for a straight lunge, so he called up one of his few ranged offensive cantrips, and a bit of ball lightning charged with his own bio-electricity streaked out towards the mage. It wouldn't be much more effective than a standard taser, but it might fix Mentalian's attention on Stingray and away from Gale Force. To help Mentalian's decision, Stingray leapt forward down the row of containers, drawing even with Whipcrack and Scaleback at about the time the ball lightning reached Mentalian.

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The lightning reaches

The lightning reaches Mentalian soon after he'd readied his spell, just before the ball struck him, he draws his left hand across his front, revealing a teal barrier in front of him with random, overlapped images flickering in and out, an Arcaulian Barrier. The lightning sinks into the barrier, and out the other side an array of bullets speed past Mentalian, some grazing his robes. Startled, he lets down the barrier, but maintains his pull on the slaver.


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Gayle shook her head and

Gayle shook her head and reeled, not really sure what the conflicting urges and messages and feelings were. She got Whipcrack out of the way... or did she? Was Scaleback still enraged? Where was Stingray? What was Mentalian trying to do? And what was going on with the prisoners? Cryocells? There were too many decisions, and she hated having to choose which one to make first. A surge of anxiety wrapped around her chest like a claw. The winds began smelling strongly of sour milk as her nervousness and anxiety climbed higher. Every muscle tightened and her mind raced, but that triggered her therapy. She knew what to do first. When the attacks came, she knew what to do.

She closed her eyes, wrapped a muffling shield of air about her body, and sang softly to herself. "Justice." It was one of her biggest hits. It had inspired millions of people. It had beaten an untouchable archvillain. It took away the rage and the hate and the fury, letting something bigger blossom. Through the fullness of time, that song had allowed the man who was a villain become someone who would willingly sacrifice himself to prevent a terrible tragedy. That was the man who then became her husband. All because of that song and because she had stopped trying to fight the world with strength against strength. There were better ways, sometimes. Justice. It was a strong song. It was also her "happy place," centering song. She could handle this. She just needed some time.

The churning chaos of the cyclone and the uncontrolled tornadoes that crashed about the chronomage's lair began to ease as Gayle sang to herself.

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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Whipcrack looked to either

Whipcrack looked to either side of him, at Stingray and Scaleback as they peered across the room at where Mentalian had finally shown himself again. He then looked over to Gayle, curled up into a half-fetal position with her eyes closed. "Alright, I'm done with this guy. This ends now... GET 'IM!"

With that said, Whipcrack threw out a strand and then ran along the wall to pick up speed before vaulting off of it and heading straight for the evil mage.

Putting yourself in another persons shoes emotionally is something that everyone has to experience eventually. It's part of learning to be a human being. Roleplayers do it for fun.

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On the command, Stingray

On the command, Stingray lunged low and to his left, rolling to come to a quick stop before lunging again, directly at Mentalian's right side, leading with a very strong punch with a heavy electric charge.

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Still startled from the

Still startled from the Arcualian Barrier bad luck, Mentalian was unprepared for Stingray's lunge, he sends a telekinetic wave roughly in Stingrays direction, dampening the physical blow, but not effecting the electric charge: he's struck on his right side, releasing the pull on the slaver and staggering him back through the doorway.

He snaps, and with a flash of violet light, he sends a telekinetic wave strong enough to send the blast doors flying into the room.


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Scaleback, not amused at all

Scaleback, not amused at all with this particular turn of events, and dealing with a splitting headache from the mixture of a psychic attack and collision with the wall, is right behind Stingray, her heavy footsteps loud and powerful. She's pissed, and if she comes within range of Mentalian, will proceed to punch him right into a wall.

Should Mentalian try to get into her head again, he'll find she's ready for it, and not willing to let herself be affected again.

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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"At the end of day, don’t we

"At the end of day, don’t we want to treat each other
Just the way, that we want for ourselves?
It can be, light up the sky, the darkness gone, but it’s up to us
In the end, it’s all up to us!
And we'll bring justice!"

As Gayle sang to herself, her voice grew stronger. It was still for her own sake and at no concert volume, but she had to breathe to sing. Breathing and the lyrics and music calmed her. She bobbed in the air. As she finished the line, the telekinetic wave burst the blast doors, as if to punctuate the song. Her eyes flew open. The green-clad heroine yelped and ducked back as one of the strained and twisted doors flew past her. It missed her by inches and its wake set her slowly spinning in the air. As they continued their instant passage through the lab, the doors plowed through equipment and broke pipes and conduits against the far wall. "Shit! That's one pissed bad guy! Looks like he's got a thing against heavy metal!"

The melody and rhythm kept flowing through her head and she laughed, "But no one is unbeatable!"

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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Foreseeing up to three melee

Foreseeing up to three melee combatants, Mentalian conjures a black shield and sword: in his left hand a hexagonal black plate serves as a shield, with an umbral rune to attempt energy absorption, and in his right hand a sickly elongated gladius serves as a sword, it's crossguard almost nonexistant, so it may be easily lanced.

He takes on a wide fighting stance, weapons far to the outside, with the shield slightly forward, hoping his little weapon training pays off.


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As Whipcrack came in on

As Whipcrack came in on Mentalian's right, he fired a 'splat' at Mentalian's face to confuse him, then suddenly fired a strand further right to yank him out and around the mage. Swinging in on the villain's flank, he landed and fired a concussion charged fist at his kidney.

Meanwhile, for anyone who was playing close attention, a silver and red blur kept streaking in and out of the room through the blown open doors. Each time it came in, one of the cryo-pods opened and was emptied. Over the TitanNet comm channel, Overdrive spoke up in his characteristic drawl. "Ya'll keep playin' with the badguy. Ah'll git the civvies out."

Putting yourself in another persons shoes emotionally is something that everyone has to experience eventually. It's part of learning to be a human being. Roleplayers do it for fun.

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Mentalian had prepared for an

Mentalian had prepared for an energy projectile, he barely blocked the splat with his shield, as Whipcrack swung around Mentalian, the mage tried to channel a telekinetic wave through the sword, but missed, merely pushing against the wall, then off-balance, he was in no position to block the blast to his kidney. It hit him full force, sending him spiraling up the corridor back towards Stingray and Scaleback.

He recovers from the spin to lift both arms up in an upward swinging motion, generating a wave upward throughout the hall strong enough to slam a fully grown man to the ceiling. He'd hoped not to catch the speedster in the wave, hoping more that the blur would continue to avoid combat. Mentalian felt a pang of relief that the slaves were released, but their captor deserved worse than he'd gotten thus far.


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Stingray twisted in the air

Stingray twisted in the air as the wave caught him, and he tumbled on the ceiling for about a half second before the wave passed and he fell again. He shifted in the air, manta wings catching the air to convert some of the fall into motion toward Mentalian, then back to almost fully human before lunging again to finish closing the gap with another electrified punch.

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"Huh?" Gayle muttered as she

"Huh?" Gayle muttered as she saw the red and silver blur. "Oh, Overdrive! Cool!"

"Let's see... Ment's using energy creations or something. Not much I can do directly to those with air. Aha! Thickening!"

This was something Gayle had learned not long ago, as she had begun her studies of fluid dynamics, aerodynamics, and viscous flow states at Titan City University. Taking these classes was more out of curiosity than an intent to get a formal degree. She was finding the math incredibly hard and the concepts fascinating. She reached out a hand toward the psychic whatever-he-was and increased the resistance and "thickness" of the air surrounding him. Not actually affecting or targeting Mentalian himself, but the air around him. The air quickly grew more resistant than water, and then to the consistency of molasses. She licked her lips determinedly and concentrated. This was a new skill and it wasn't easy to keep a grip on air itself without anchoring it to the slippery, magically-protected villain she was trying to impede.

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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Mentalian had chambered a

Mentalian had chambered a block after the lifting attack, so as Stingray came lunging, he tried to lower his shield, but he was unable to reach the fist in time. It struck his jaw forcing Mentalian backward, but not far due to the thickened air. The force of the punch sank entirely into his body and could not be dissipated into momentum. Mentalian sends a wave to push Stingray off of him, then reconsiders his position. He's in close range with a melee combatant, an agile combatant behind him, and a massive beast in front of him. This position was entirely indefensible. He pointed his sword toward Scaleback's knee, then lanced it with telekinesis, hoping to cripple the beast. The mage then dissolved into shadows.

He reappeared behind Gayle, musing "kindred spirit! Likes to interfere!" as he throws the shield at her head, discus style. He places telekinetic walls on each side to try to impede the speedster, if he decided to engage.


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(( Gayle gets hit by the

"Damn!" The wind controller frowned in confusion as Mentalian disappeared. Then she cried out with pain as the thrown shield struck her from behind a moment later with a dull *thunk*. "Ow!"

Her own shield of hardened air prevented serious injury, but the blow had hurt, even through the air cushion. That was going to leave a bruise. She spun about to face Mentalian, having already lost control of the thickened air where he had just been, not that it would do any good with him in a different part of the room. Gayle growled in frustration. Switching and swapping from technique to technique at this power level was tiring. On top of the battering she was taking--both physically and emotionally--she was getting worn out.

"Fine! How about a little dust in the wind!"

She threw up her arms and a shroud of dust, dirt, and debris--whatever was available in the damaged lab--swirled about Mentalian. She might not be able to grab him with the wind, but maybe she could make it impossible for him to see. She bobbed away from him and higher into the air, in case he started swinging that sword at her.

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Mentalian was also beginning

Mentalian was also beginning to tire: an electric punch to the side, an energy punch to the kidney, another electric punch to the jaw. He struggles to perform advanced magics, and is mostly down to his psionics and telekinesis...which are considerable.

He blasts away the debris, then charges Gayle flying. He carries a telekinetic wave in front of him, intending to slam her against the ceiling, then let her fall.


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Moving with the distraction

Moving with the distraction provided by the swirling dirt and debris, Scaleback moves up towards Mentalian, her boxing stance impeccable, before she deliver one hell of a haymaker toward him. If it hits, it'll have enough force in it to slam him into the floor hard enough to dent steel, so he better hope he's got some way of avoiding it even when half blinded.

Given Mentalian is charging as Scaleback lashes out, he may not even have time to properly defend himself.

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Scaleback strikes moments

Scaleback strikes moments after Mentalian's charge, catching him midair. By reflex, the telekinesis used to fly is instead used to dodge the push by a close margin, his momentum ends just above Scaleback, his feet dangling by her head. The wave carried, not by reflex, continues toward Gayle with similar force.


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Scaleback will try to disrupt

Scaleback will try to disrupt his charge further, bringing her other hand up towards the mentalist, but even if she hits, the awkward angle means she won't do much damage. She skids to a stop, waiting for the other heroes to act so she can move with whatever plan they cook up.

The astute may notice that her massive form is now also blocking the path away from Whipcrack and Gayle.

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Stingray comes up behind

Stingray comes up behind Scaleback, judging the possibility of a leap up to attack Mentalian en passant. It doesn't seem likely, so he asks Scaleback, "So tell me, camarada, have you ever heard of the pelea de gallinas, the chicken fight?" He's looking up at her shoulders, and judging both their suitability as a place to stand and the distance from them to the ceiling...

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Putting faith in the wave

Putting faith in the wave bursting towards Gayle, Mentalian changed focus to the beast. He fell onto her, with his hands at the sides of her head, as he had done to the Scorpion trooper with horrific results. He mustered the strongest depressive wave he could, hoping to functionally disable the reptile. The wave was sent with a bright flash of blue light.


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"Ah, it doesn't matter, then.

"Ah, it doesn't matter, then." Mentalian was low enough now, so Stingray leapt up, attempting to grab him at both wrists, ready to unleash a massive surge of electricity.

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The telekinetic wave hit

The telekinetic wave hit Gayle, flinging her the rest of the way to the formed concrete ceiling of the command center, another three meters up.

"Gaaah! Ooof! Ow! God dammit!" the singer protested after being blown about like a leaf in the wind for a second and smacking hard into the unyielding surface above her. She winced and shook her head. Still bobbing in the air just below the ceiling, she re-oriented herself and scowled. She muttered to herself, "It may not have worked once, but that doesn't mean I can't try again."

As the villain was dropping on Scaleback and Stingray was reaching for him, Gayle shot out her arm, clenched her fist, and jerked it back, grabbing at all of the air in Mentalian's lungs to rip it from his body.

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Just after the blue flash,

Just after the blue flash, Stingrays bio-electricity went off, surging through Mentalian's body. He's repelled off of the reptile and into the air, making attempts to right himself mid-air while still being electrified, then he had his breath taken....

He tried to use telekinesis to reclaim the wind, but with the electricity locking his breathing muscles, it did more harm than good: the air rushed out of him with a cloud of blue-tinted blood. Mid-air he glanced at Gayle, saying telepathically "your mother raised you well." He then drops to the concrete floor with a loud thud. Blue blood slowly drains from his mouth.


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With the sudden convulsions

With the sudden convulsions of Mentalian's body throwing Stingray away before he could get a grip, Stingray landed and watched until Mentalian came down on the floor. Then looked around, and remembered the closing of a cryo chamber door. "Which chamber had the bad guy in it?" Noting how many chambers now had their doors open, Stingray felt a pressing need to learn where the mad scientist was...

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Whipcrack dropped into a

Whipcrack dropped into a crouch next to Mentalian and quickly bound him with strands, then checked for a pulse, followed by examining him for damage to his cranium or neck. Once satisfied that the evil mage was still alive and not significantly injured, Whip wrapped strands around his upper head, from crown to mid-nose. He then touched those strands and performed a new trick he'd been working on. As his fingers laid upon the constraints, they began to darken, shading from the typical amber coloring all the way to pitch black, thereby obfuscating Mentalian's ability to physically see with ANY of his eyes.

Standing up, he looked over to Gayle. "You okay there, Windy?" he asked, concern evident in his voice. As he did this, one of the container lids suddenly began darkening, rusting incredibly quickly. It soon fell apart and the chronomancer sat up, his arms raised. However, before he could do anything else, he found his arms pinned behind his back, fingers interlaced and held by the now stopped Overdrive. "Can't have ya doin' that, hombre. Ya ought consider comin' 'long peaceably 'fore ah have ta let Whip or Gayle put hands on ya."

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Scaleback moves back into the

Scaleback moves back into the room with larger room, looking to tussle with the chronomancer, but... oh. He's already been handled, then?

Scaleback sinks into a sitting position against a wall, holding her head in a massive hand. Her skull is throbbing from the mix of things that had happened tonight, and she's approaching her limit for what she can really manage to do.

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"Thanks, Whippy. Doing okay

"Thanks, Whippy. Doing okay here, but damn tired for this early in the day," Gayle said. She hovered a bit lower and resummoned her phantom army, replenished air cushions around the heroes, and kept a watchful eye on the scene. "And that stuff Ment was slinging is going to leave a mark or three. I'm already uploading all the data we got on him and his Necrobians, or whatever he said they were. They must be new, 'cause I got nothing on them when I ran a check when Ment first showed up. Nothing on the artifact, either, which is weird. No, wait... if it was stolen from the unknown bad guys and it was in their hands for a long time, then I guess there's no reason anyone else would know about it."

She frowned and shook her head angrily. "If I wasn't a hero, though, I would kick the shit out of Mentalian!" the green-clad heroine spat. "As much as I hate teleporting villains, I hate mind controllers, worse!"

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A wrought iron construct

A wrought iron construct began to emerge from the floor of the doorway, sending green sparks around the entry, it rose to the ceiling quickly. A similar cage formed around Mentalian's bleeding body. "Then I'll take him off your hands" a voice filled the room. A green-tinted apparition slowly formed at the entryway, a somewhat oversized figure in black robes with white runes, wearing a necklace of a jackal. He had stark white skin and dark hair, with small blue eyes. The apparition slowly walked over to Mentalian.

"Well done" it announced, then swung it's left hand across the air. Iron coins manifested in front of the heroes (except Overdrive, who never interacted with Mentalian). "I advised him not to engage you directly, but he just can't help himself" it continued. He reached Mentalian's body. "Some of you seem..." he paused, feigning a search for words as he turned to Whipcrack "...overtly moral, and might be comforted knowing he'll be back to health soon." The apparition remained a moment, baiting curiosity.


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"Oh, for the love of...,"

"Oh, for the love of...," Gayle grumbled. She recognized a villainous escape when she saw one in motion. "I hope you give him a good spanking. What are these things?" she asked, gesturing to the iron coins.

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"Ah, they're [url=https:/

"Ah, they're trinkets " the apparition began "Trulain here is formitable, but you especially wounded him. Mortally I might add." The apparition conjured his own medal to admire then continued "the iron will never rust by the by," he felt the engravings on the medal, then demanifested it.


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Stingray examined the coin on

Stingray examined the coin on the floor carefully, without touching it. He'd heard all sorts of things that could use innocent seeming coins as gateways, traps, teleport beacons, possession vectors...

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Whipcrack stepped up. "That's

Whipcrack stepped up. "That's a no can do on taking him away, big guy. At least, not without us along as escorts. I understand he needs healing, but he's broken a great many human laws, one of our worst repeatedly, and will need to be extradited once he's healthy again."

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The apparition looks at

The apparition looks at Whipcrack with a blank expression, half glare, half befuddled. "I don't think you understand the forces at play, redblood" it began, then it points to the red dust Mentalian was so concerned with "that pile of red dust was one of few ways to access our nation. As such, we deem them our property and guard them fiercely." It sighs then continues "I suppose I'd rather one be destroyed than fall into abusive hands."

"On the matter of extradition..." it continues, walking closer to Whipcrack "Trulian is on the Necrobian Council, so I would suggest he has 'diplomatic immunity', like those Vatican dogs" it says with a grimace.


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Scaleback, from her place on

Scaleback, from her place on the side of the wall, says "Diplomatic immunity only applies in the case of a sovereign nation or recognized religious group, and near as I can tell, the USA has yet to recognize you guys as either. It also only applies to low level criminal offenses, not murder."

Her voice is rougher than it was before. Given the way she's holding her head, she likely still has a migraine.

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The apparition, still close

The apparition, still close to Whipcrack, replies "yes, I suppose this country wouldn't recognize us as a sovereign nation, despite our land, government, military, and economy. I do wonder how diplomacy operates with trans-dimensional territories." He begins to motion a spell with his arm closer to Mentalian, turning back to Whipcrack "but under no circumstances will any of you be allowed into Necrobia" it states, sternly.


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"Yet you guys can come here,

"Yet you guys can come here, freely? Bit of a double standard there." Not quite satisfied that the coin wasn't a trick, Stingray made certain his glove was intact before picking it up, avoiding contact with his bare skin.

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"Bad guys are full of double

"Bad guys are full of double standards," Gayle added. She tapped two fingers to her right eyebrow in a sort of salute. "Thanks."

"Oh, no, wait. I got this," she said with a sniff. She struck a dramatic pose and called out clearly, pointing at the apparition, "Halt, evildoer! Stop what you are doing! This man--such as he is--must face justice! You cannot have him!"

She flexed a couple of times and posed for effect. Then, she looked expectantly at the Necrobian. "Okay, your turn."

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"Uhm" the apparition mumbled

"Uhm" the apparition mumbled with a blank expression at Gayle, befuddled enough to stop his spell for a moment, the runes remain in place rather than dissipate. "On the topic of 'bad guys', do a search for the Order of the Chalice in that device, before you assume us marauding sorcerers" it says, before continuing the spell where he left off, one-handed.


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"So, is that your crew? And

"So, is that your crew? And is it the chalice with the palace?" Stingray entered the search on his phone, suppressing the urge to add "Danny Kaye" to the search terms..

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Whipcrack, fatigued from the

Whipcrack, fatigued from the drawn-out fight, still hadn't noticed the apparition's trickery.

"I don't care about any of the extenuating circumstances, Green Jeans. Your compatriot is guilty of murder and I'm going to see to it that he's arrested for it. Now, are you going to get out of the way or do we have to take you down too?" he threatened, his psionic armor snapping into place on the last word.

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The apparition chuckled

The apparition chuckled through his mouth wrap, "unless you have something clever, you'd struggle to affect me in this astral state." As it began to finish its spell, Mentalian's body began to glow with pale red light. "Now, I think I've revealed enough. Maybe, if you can stop the Order's crusade before I do, some redblood lives can be spared" the apparition continued. Once the many runes stopped forming, the astral being brought its fist to its chest swiftly, and Mentalian's body disappeared in a flash of red light, binds and all, leaving an empty wrought iron cage.

The apparition then floated over to the time-mage, still held by Overdrive, and said angrily "you owe these 'heroes' your life!" It suddenly disappeared into shadows. The wrought iron at the exit and over the pool of blue blood slowly receded into the floor, disappearing into green sparks. The iron medallions remained, a souvenir for their hard work.


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"... what an ass," Scaleback

"... what an ass," Scaleback rumbles out, frowning at where the apparition was a moment ago. Well, time to see to the captives, even if her head is still killing her.

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"Yeah." Gayle shook her head.

"Yeah." Gayle shook her head. "We have other work to do."

She looked over at the cryo-containment room to see if Overdrive was still removing captives.

"Well, I'll keep tagging the bad guys, or what's left of them." She wrinkled her nose. The smell of a fresh spring rain started wafting about the underground chamber. "And clearing the air."

So saying, she reapplied air cushions on the team members, resummoned her phantom army, and began the wrap-up.

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When 'Green Jeans' and

When 'Green Jeans' and Mentalian both disappeared, Whipcrack simply did a slow facepalm and let his head rock forward so his chin rested on his chest. A muffled "...goddamnit." emerged from behind his palm. He scooped up the trinket and slipped it into a belt pouch, then set off to finish clearing things up.

When Gayle looked over at the cryopods, Overdrive had finished and was leaning against one of them, whistling a low tune. He grinned. "How ya doin' there, pretty lady? Need a Superade?"

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Meanwhile, at the Quartz

Meanwhile, at the Quartz Palace in Necrobia, Galrithius leaves his astral emanation chamber and walks to Mentalian's body in the Cinnabar Room. Two guards lift his body and carry it to a life bed, still bleeding. Galrithius first applies umbral magic to absorb the energy of the strands, converting them to tangible elastic binding. He then applies ice magic to freeze them, then strikes them, causing them to shatter. Galrithius then raises his arms and the room fills with green light as the life bed is fueled with vital essense. The life bed regenerates Mentalian's ravaged lungs and lost blood. In moments, he's revitalized.

Before Mentalian can get up, Galrithius says with a snarl "you're lucky Counselors are an elected position."


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Gayle grinned. "Hiya,

Gayle grinned. "Hiya, Overdrive! Sure won't refuse one, thanks. Where did you put them all? The prisoners, I mean."

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"Ah got 'em all out. They're

"Ah got 'em all out. They're recoverin' behind a police cordon. Be right back!" Overdrive disappeared in a flash and was back in just a few seconds, now bearing a pack with several Superades. He ran up the wall and gently deposited one in Gayle's hand, her favorite flavor no less. He then did a circuit of the room, leaving one each with Whip and Stingray. Lastly, he placed the pack in Scaleback's outstretched hand, leaving her with four of various flavors.

Coming to a stop back in his original spot, he slowly sipped at his own drink and tipped an invisible hat at Gayle. "Enjoy."

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"Gracias, camarado."

"Gracias, camarado." Stingray took a long draught, then replaced the cap for later. "We will give statements, then I think La Guantanamera for dinner. Or maybe it is breakfast now."

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Scaleback takes the Superade

Scaleback takes the Superade with thanks, drinking them down one after another heedless of the flavor. She's a massive woman, and needs a ton more food and drink than a normal sized person, so this isn't unreasonable for her. When she's done, she stands up, looking at the assembled heroes, "I think I need to give the police a statement on what exactly happened, but I don't really have anywhere in the city to go after that. Do any of you have any ideas?"

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"Thanks, Speedy!" Gayle

"Thanks, Speedy!" Gayle opened and sipped the drink. "Delicious! I've burned a lot of energy on this. I think it's still heading toward supper time." She checked her clock display. "Yeah."

At the reptilian woman's question, she answered, "Oh, yes! There are several meta-assistance agencies and a good dozen or so meta-friendly residential places. It all depends on what you want to do next. I've got a guest apartment at Riverhaven where you could crash for a while, if you want."

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"I'd appreciate that. Thanks;

"I'd appreciate that. Thanks; just until I've got a place of my own - the kidnappers burned my last place down - not that it was much of anything to begin with," Scaleback shrugs, "I'll definitely look into one of those agencies."

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Mentalian got up from the

Mentalian got up from the life bed, "Thankfully my constituents aren't as soft as you" Mentalian replied, after a welcome breath of air.

"Do you realize it was your dispel that shattered the Disc?!" Galrithius shouted. The guards left the room.

After a pause, Mentalian defended "well if the slaver hadn't taken it, no dispel would have been needed." His eye glowed faintly blue as he tried to calm Galrithius, to no avail.

"Also, you murdered dozens in front of those self-proclaimed heroes." "Don't tell me you care for spilled slaver blood" "No. I doubt even the 'heroes' truly care for them, but as you have surely noticed, 'heroes' can be meddlesome."

Mentalian feels his side, expecting bruising, "yes...they can be. Especially those with willpower."

Galrithius continued blithely "thankfully none of them were particularly magic inclined, but we have plans for Overworld, and we don't need any heroes interfering."

"I'll be sure to kill everyone next time" Mentalian replied sardonically, leaving the room, without thanks for the revival.


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Though he'd been up for more

Though he'd been up for more than 24 hours, Whipcrack refused to leave until all the slaves had been cared for and released or relocated. He circulated amongst them, trying to be a comforting presence while also keeping a vigilant eye out for threats. Nearly an hour after dawn, the last slave was finally picked up by their grateful family and Whipcrack was thanked profusely for what felt like the millionth time.

He leaned heavily against a police cruiser hood and stroked the blond stubble decorating his chin and cheeks. "Maybe I should grow a beard..." he muttered randomly as he looked around to see if any of the other heroes were still on site.

Putting yourself in another persons shoes emotionally is something that everyone has to experience eventually. It's part of learning to be a human being. Roleplayers do it for fun.

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Gayle stopped by to check on

Gayle stopped by to check on how Scaleback was doing. She had arranged for the tough reptilian woman to take one of the Riverhaven guest apartments on the first four floors of the 40-story tower. As a high security metahuman-safe residential community, the management--and the League of Titans supergroup that backed the project--had long had procedures in place to aid displaced metahumans.

Stopping at the apartment door, the strawberry blonde wind controller touched the infopad. "Scaleback, if you're available, I'm just checking on how you're doing. Let me know if you need anything. I've got a performance tonight in the Event Horizon. You've probably seen the community notices for that. It's down in the club side of the tower space, other side of the clinic, if you're interested. I don't know what kind of music or scene you like, but there will be a healthy mix of metas and regular folks."

She tapped the "deliver message" icon to let the apartment share the information with Scaleback now, or when the woman was available.

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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Gayle will likely hear heavy

Gayle will likely hear heavy footsteps and creaking floorboards coming around the corner before she sees the source. Around the corner tromps Scaleback, carrying bags full of groceries in her arms. While she'd been bald before due to her scales, she has a head of wavy black hair now - perhaps a wig - and she's dressed in a hoodie and jeans, both sized for someone that's obese, though they still don't completely cover the large hybrid, with the hoodie's sleeves having been torn off to make room for her arms, and it doesn't come down all the way to cover her stomach, and the pants are more like jean shorts than full size for her.

"Oh, hey Gayle," she says, hefting up her groceries to open the door to the apartment. She has to turn to the side to squeeze in, carrying the groceries to the kitchenette to start putting them away, "If you'd told me you'd be coming over, I'd have made something for you." With her great bulk, she looks more or less like an adult in a child's playhouse; needing to stoop under the eight foot roof to avoid banging her head, and with all the appliances looking too small for her massive hands, "Come on in. I had to get rid of most of the furniture, unfortunately; just not a lot of space in here. You're welcome to sit anywhere you like while i get started on lunch."

The living room is odd looking; while the television is still there, she's replaced the couch with a beanbag chair of legendary proportions, and against the far wall is a pair of queen mattresses laid out end-to-end to make something approaching a good size for the mutant. there's places along the ceiling and walls here and there where a scrape or dent can be seen in the drywall - probably due to Scaleback's size making it difficult to live in a space like this.

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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"Oh, no problem! I'm just

"Oh, no problem! I'm just checking in." She followed Scaleback inside. "Leia in the office said that they are getting that bigger-sized place ready for you and that it should be ready on Monday. One thing, though... she said she needs to ask you whether you want an actual lounging-slash-bathing pool, or whether you're not that alligator-ish. Everything else is set to be sized comfortably."

She watched her putting away the groceries. "You can have the building order groceries and stuff, too, if you want. The Riverhaven A.I. and the concierge service can handle any kind of custom or special order, if you don't feel like going out."

She grinned. "Oh, yeah... Should I keep calling you Scaleback, or do you prefer something else?"

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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"Emily, when I'm not going

"Emily, when I'm not going out to beat up villains," the massive woman says as she sets a pot on the stove, her voice a quiet rumble that nonetheless carries across the entire apartment, "I like to swim, but I don't actually need a pool. A shower my size would be fine. I'm more of a mutated human than a real hybrid. As far as the concierge goes... honestly, I just don't trust them to get the food I want. I'm a little picky. I know it's a bit snooty to insist on getting my own groceries, but quality matters, and I'm best at judging that for myself."

Emily lays out her series of ingredients along the counter. A veritable plethora of different vegetables, different meats, some oils, spices, and more. She quickly washes her hands, shaking them off after just a moment, "For now, just sit and wait; I never have guests over without cooking something for them," She sits down cross-legged in the middle of the kitchen, extends her hands out to her sides so long they can reach anything within the kitchen in but a mere moment, and breathes in a manner that may bring to mind martial artists.

'Seduction is the essence of cooking. Preparation is the first step.'

What did she know of Gayle? She was impatient, friendly, good-natured. No doubt she'd like anything Emily made because it was made by someone she friend, but Emily isn't one to simply leave it at that. Just 'good enough' is never appropriate when more can be done. A look over Gayle showed a composed attitude, and the confidence that comes from self assurance in your power in every small movement. Unfortunate, as that meant Emily was working at a disadvantage; self-confidence was hard to shake into the vulnerability necessary for a grand presentation. Oh well.

The windy hero standing nearby would be looking for promptness, no doubt. She dressed for the event, showed her face even during her hero work... yes, presentation was as important to this path as anything else, as Gayle had a well defined sense of style. 'Another disadvantage, but I'll make do.' She checked her knives. Razor sharp. Excellent.

Gayle was a physical person. Even if she didn't dedicate time to her training like a martial artist, her work still required much of her stamina and ability to operate. Something high in carbs, in protein, would be appreciated. 'That would mean... ah, yes. I'd been hoping to save it for tomorrow, as part isn't at its best yet, but it will do.'

With her left hand the mutant draws a cookie sheet from under the oven, and her right hand draws an impressive slab of beef to the fore, laying them out one after another. As her left hand works to spread spices upon the beef from all sides, her right hand readies a skillet, putting olive oil in to keep from sticking, and setting it to searing hot. Once seasoned, the beef is sent spinning through the air to land in the pan, and immediately begins sizzling.

'Mystery must be maintained at all times,' Emily thinks to herself, her master's voice echoing within her mind, 'It is the key to seduction in any form.'

Before Gayle has a chance to process this, Emily's hands are already moving onto the next part of the project - a series of mushrooms are drawn forth, and laid out upon the cutting board. Her hands are a blur as she cuts the mushrooms down to size, her knives echoing throughout the apartment like the sounds of an automatic rifle. A second skillet is prepared upon the stove, and the finely chopped mushroom descends into the heat. Her hands don't remain idle, as her left moves to produce thyme, her right moves to crush garlic and then spread it into the mushroom mix. Cognac and heavy cream are the next additions to the mixture, and sauteeing begins.

There's is a quiet moment here, where Gayle has an opportunity to say a few words before Emily moves onto the next portion of the meal.

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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As Gayle watched the enormous

As Gayle watched the enormous mutant cook, her eyebrows climbed higher and higher with surprise. Eventually, she commented, "If this is you just throwing something together, Emily, you must be astounding when you have a plan!"

"I can see why you'd want to be picky about your groceries."

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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The edges of Emily's mouth

The edges of Emily's mouth tug up into a smile, "Anything worth doing is worth doing right. Cooking is no exception, particularly when you're someone as large as me. I need a lot of food, you know?"

As the mushroom mix is cooked, Emily pulls a bit of parma ham from the countertop where it'd been placed. With a flick of her wrist and a flash of the knife, the seal goes flying off... to land in the garbage bin next to Gayle. With a flourish, she pulls slice after slice of the ham upon a plastic sheet, and then spreads the mushroom mixture upon them. Next comes the beef, quickly freed of the strings that bind it with a single swipe of the knife. A brush is used to oh so carefully paint it over with english mustard, and then she uses the plastic wrap to fully wrap the mushroom pâté and parma ham around the beef, sealing it inside a mummy-wrap of impressive food, to be cooled in the fridge.

But as she places the meat and seasoning to cool, she pulls another thing from the fridge that likely spent the night inside - a slab of some off-white substance, perhaps bread or butter, or both. It's laid upon the countertop and a floured rolling pin is used to push it into a much flatter slab, stretched out across another piece of plastic wrap to keep it off the counter. 'Perhaps it's time to reveal part of what this is.'

"I hope you're not dieting at the moment; this would no doubt break any kind of diet you could bear to name. Two thousand one hundred eighty-seven layers of butter and flour went into this mixture, folded to perfection over and over again to work out all sense of separation between them."

As the incredibly fattening and gluten rich bread mix is finished being stretched out on the countertop, Emily once more reaches into the fridge to retrieve the wrapped beef. Freed from its plastic prison, it's coated once more in the wrapping of the bread mix, creating a thing that looks almost like a loaf of bread if one didn't understand the meaty prize within. After a bit of work with the plastic wrap to make certain it's completely contained within the bread layer, the plastic is once more cast aside to lay the fattening meal into a pan, and slotted into the oven.

From there, it's only twenty minutes before the entire thing is finished cooking, and Emily lays out what is quite possibly one of the most delicious looking meals Gayle has ever seen before her. "Beef Wellington. One of my favorite dishes."

'Let's see if you can resist this, hmm?'

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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"So... that's a performance

"So... that's a performance skill, the way you do it, huh?" Gayle asked with a smile. She was thinking of her favorite chefs from Marty's and the Green Line. "I can tell that there is an art there."

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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For perhaps the first time

For perhaps the first time since meeting the large woman, Gayle will see the sides of Emily's mouth tug up, and may get the sense that this is the crocodilian woman's equivalent of a grin, "Nice of you to notice. You've gotta customize it to the person you're selling it to, but if you do," she spreads her hands, "Absolutely wonderful. I had to make a few guesses as to your tastes, but eh, hard to find someone who hates this dish."

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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"Oh, definitely! I don't

"Oh, definitely! I don't think I know more than maybe one or two people who could do that kind of thing--just "whipping up Beef Wellington from scratch, no recipe"--and even they wouldn't put the kind of flash into it that you did. Impressive!"

She grinned. "Is there a restaurant somewhere missing its head chef?"

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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"No. Not yet at least," Emily

"No. Not yet at least," Emily says as she cuts apart the meal to serve half to herself and half to Gayle, "Crime fighting may be what I do with my time, but cooking is my passion. I intend to eventually start up a gourmet restaurant once I have the money for it, and do meals specifically for metahuman clients. Unfortunately, I've gotta start from scratch again after my last place got burned down, but... eh. It was just things. Things can be replaced."

"Eat as much of it as you like; I'll eat whatever you don't finish."

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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The singer nodded

The singer nodded thoughtfully. "Marty's is a meta-oriented place downtown. I think he has 110 seats, between the main floor, balcony, and deck. Might be good to chat with him. There's definitely a market here that isn't saturated, yet. I'm a co-owner of the Green Line, a nice eco-club and music/dance spot in north Alexandria. That isn't meta-specific, but it's meta-friendly. We went fully-sustainable, locally-supplied, and everything."

She dug into the meal. "Oh, yeah! This is delicious!"

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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The giant woman beams at the

The giant woman beams at the praise, "Always nice to hear your cooking's appreciated," Emily will sit down across from the heroine with her own plate to dig into her half of the wellington, savoring its roasted flavor and sweet, sweet carbs.

"Sounds like a good place to start again for me, then. Gotta get some money in so I can start doing the hero thing again."

An infinite number of tries doesn't mean that any one of those tries will succeed. I could flip an infinite number of pennies an infinite number of times and, barring genuine randomness, they will never come up "Waffles".

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"Oh, geez, Emily!" Gayle said

"Oh, geez, Emily!" Gayle said around a mouthful, "This is too good for words... really!"

The air swirling gently around the mutant had slowed to the pace of a lazy afternoon's breeze. It was now wafting the complementary scent of a hearty, fresh-baked, multi-grain bread about the apartment. Reluctantly, the singer stopped after reaching something close to a 12-ounce portion, leaving a substantial portion of the initial roast for Scaleback to finish. She grinned.

"Anything I can do to help... make introductions, find a place, get you financial backing, write a song, whatever... just let me know! This is phenomenal!"

A Wing and a Prayer, A Strong, Strong Wind, All Forests are One, Power Struggles - Venture City metahuman novels in the spirit of City of Heroes and other comic book superhero fiction. (http://bit.ly/sdpbooks)

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