Wolfram

Cadre, 4/1/12
Pest Control

Evening found Nadja, Deva, Byrne and Hank at the bar in the Devil's Candy, where they were met by a mysterious figure seeking to enlist their help. The Hand of Saleth's hopes that he would allowed to murder the newcomer on general principles were dashed when the man - who at first refused to identify himself at all, before grudgingly allowing himself to be called either The Orchestrator or Steve - offered to work for free as a mercenary with the Cadre, in order to earn some good will before sharing the nature of his plans. To try out Steve's skills, the Cadre took on a job from the Arachnos-sponsored biologist Dr. Vernon von Grun.

Von Grun had developed what he claimed was the answer to the problem of the Devouring Earth. He sent the Cadre to Woodvale, Paragon City, to retrieve core samples from the Hire Spires that grow there, broadcasting the Hamidon's control to its creations. The Cadre demolished several spires and returned the biological matter from each to von Grun, who used them to complete his weapon: a bomb that would send the Devouring Earth into a fevered frenzy of destruction, causing them to tear apart half of Paragon City before burning out and dying in droves.

The Cadre boarded the Arachnos flier again to return to Paragon and distribute the hefty bombs throughout Woodvale. That done, they beat a hasty retreat back to the Isles, counting on the bombs to be detonated once they were safely in the air.

Things went wrong in a slightly unexpected way; the bombs didn't go off at all. Feeling the chill of the executioner's disruptor mace on his neck, von Grun hastily came up with an explanation of why it wasn't his fault: the ghost of the well-known hero Woodsman still lingered, bound to Woodvale, and could be using his influence to prevent the detonation. Exasperated, but always happy to accept more payment, the Cadre flew back to Eden yet again and engaged the Woodsman in battle. They prevailed easily, and once Deva deemed the ghost sufficiently discorporated to be unable to interfere, they flew back again, determined not to get caught in the chaos.

Except that again, there was no chaos. As von Grun floundered for an explanation, Hank cut him off, leaving him to deal with the mess he'd gotten himself into. Deva took the opportunity to depart, and Byrne, concerned about her, left shortly after.

Militia Academy

Congratulations.

The renovation of Atlas Park had brought many benefits to the local area. To the Crimson Archer, it brought new challenges – new heights to scale, rewarded with new vantage points from which to look out across the city. It still took her breath away.

And still, she felt the instinct to spread her wings and soar above it all, hear the wind in her ears. Before she'd been the Crimson Archer, she'd grown accustomed to that liberty, the gift of her mutation.

And then, just as suddenly as she had gained that freedom, it had been taken away.

She didn't have to imagine that it had been like losing a part of her body. The weapon that had taken away her powers had cost her her wings, too. There were side benefits to that – the world wasn't built for people with wings, as she'd discovered in the early days after her mutation manifested – but they seemed like small consolation now, compared to what she'd lost. It frightened her a little to imagine that she would one day get used to this, just as she'd been used it before she ever got her powers.

How was that fair? Those who broke the law, she arrested, and sent to prison – where they served out a term, and were released. For her selfless service to the city, the Crimson Archer had lost something she might never get back. She couldn't count the days, or try to get out on good behaviour. Only a miracle – not that those were unknown, nowadays – would let her fly again.

But the fairness of it wasn't the point, she knew. Before she'd ever put on a costume, she'd been a cop. Before she'd ever had powers, she'd made the choice to stand up for law and order. To make a stand – it meant nothing if you were prepared to sacrifice nothing. She'd seen people die or suffer permanent injury in the line of duty. None of them had wanted to make that sacrifice, any more than she'd wanted to sacrifice her powers. That was just part of the responsibility she and they had accepted.

As heavy as that responsibility was, she couldn't imagine refusing it. The moment she was sworn in as an officer of the law, she'd given up some of her freedoms – the freedom to look the other way, to keep her head down and stay out of trouble. She'd taken an oath to stand for something greater than herself – an oath freely taken, an acceptance that she would sacrifice whatever was necessary.

She would always miss what she had lost, the freedom she had sacrificed. But freedom for its own sake was an empty thing. She had seen it, over and over, in criminals and supervillains, people who harmed others in the name of their own freedom. Freedom that had no meaning, until one finally accepted responsibility.

* * *

If I am a winner, I permit NC Interactive, Inc. and NCsoft Europe Limited to use my name, likeness, photograph, hometown, and any comments that I may make about myself or this contest that I provide for advertising and promotional activities. I also certify that I am at least 13 years of age and am eligible to participate in this contest.

((Originally posted by Dante))

The Militia Academy
26 October 2011 - Rite of Passage

Last night saw the first meeting for the third year of the Militia Academy, set up in response to the tragedy in Galaxy City. With Hero Corps flooded with people stepping forward to help the city in its hour of need, including some former foes, the Militia had been asked to set up a trainee program for heroes wanting to help.

The Amber Banshee met the prospective students in a garden in Atlas Park, stressing the teamwork and collaborative nature of the team. Coming to register were a number of keen individuals. Maiden of the Abyss, Duplikate, Integro, Gothic Nova, Eternally, Dead Chilly, Ironhawk and Acumen arrived and introduced themselves, some sparks already flying as expectations were met… and dashed. Silver Herald, already a member of the Militia, came to assist with their first task although without his sister to communicate for him, the mute hero was forced to rely on gestures and his notepad.

The Amber Banshee briefed them on their first task, meeting the threats that had built up in the sewer system that the Militia had encountered during their efforts in the rescue operation. Many of the gathered heroes didn’t appreciate the idea of getting filthy on their first day but accepted the challenge nonetheless. Splitting into two teams, they pushed back the threat, returning to the surface more confident than before. Despite initial differences, they seemed to work well together as a team.

Challenge over, both teams returned to their new, only just set up base. The refurbished warehouse was… grim. With bare walls and only the minimum of refreshments, the team had to cope with cold benches, value brand drinks and a medical facility that looked like it had been designed by Dr Vahzilok. The latter came into use when Gothic Nova removed a bullet from Ironhawk’s arm, unconfident in his abilities as he was used to working on corpses. Maiden of the Abyss stood by and used her powers to heal Ironhawk’s wound but was surprised when drawing vitality from Nova that his Nictus symbiote bit back.

Speaking of which, while the impromptu surgery happened, Eternally explained her Peacebringer powers to the other heroes, some who weren’t sure what having a symbiote entailed. Nova listened to all of it while she explained, noting a distinct lack of conversation about Nictus. Meanwhile, Dead Chilly, having revealed his scarred face to the team with no revulsion, began compiling a list of things the base needed to be presented to their sponsors at the next opportunity. Acumen commented on why playing poker with him would be a bad idea given his mind altering powers, a challenge accepted by Integro, who as a sentient AI from the Architect Entertainment system, would seem to be an ideal opponent.

Duplikate continued sketching, noting that both she and Maiden were students. Maiden requested that Integro help her with her homework, given his ability to access computers so swiftly, although it was noted that an internet connection would be needed for the base. Ironhawk stoically listened to the conversation but, being unfamiliar with the language, did not understand everything that was said, especially the jokes. Eternally double checked the list of required things while Silver Herald did his best to make sure the new students were settled.

As night drew in, the new heroes retired, some to bed, others to nocturnal activities.

((For an alternative overview of events, see Duplikate's notes and sketches.))

Knights of Albion
25/10/11 - The Sum of Our Fears

((With thanks to Bunny and Dante for filling in the gaps))

Tonight, a team of the Knights of Albion - the Dolmen (Ash), Dragon Chief (Griff), Fairy Thunder (Agatha), Folk Tale (Caitlyn), Ryan Moriarty, the Sherwood Ranger (Ray) and Union Rose (Rachael) gathered at the castle for an important annual duty: the Halloween party. At least most of them did; a bemused Agatha had to have this newfangled reinvention of Samhain explained to her.


This done, the Knights prepared to move on to the drinking and revelling stage, but duty called, in the form of the PPD. A Halloween party in the suburban neighbourhood of Shady Acres had turned bad, and so the Knights went to investigate, expecting some kind of hoax or practical joke.

Instead, they found that every child in the area had become possessed, by some kind of malignant spirits. The Knights very carefully subdued the possessed children, freed the unaffected adults trapped by them, and located the root of the problem: an enchanted urn that was acting as a beacon to hold the rogue spirits on this side of the veil. Breaking the urn left the spirits with no way to hold on, and they were drawn back into the spirit world.


The Knights set off to resume the evening's festivities before stumbling upon another impending disaster. A local shop was hosting a "haunted house" event; several citizens had gone in, but none had come out. The Knights investigated, and found the shop empty - spookily so. Stranger still, Rachael, who had seemingly entered with the rest of the group, was nowhere to be found.

The Knights found themselves able to communicate with the missing Rachael via their linked brooches, but neither they nor she had an explanation for what had happened. Searching the shop, they came upon a a strange onyx statuette of a vaguely humanoid shape, its limbs elongated and uncomfortable looking. At this point, ghosts started to manifest and attack the Knights, who fought them off to move further into the shop. In the back, they found an old stone tablet on display, bearing a short poem:

Thy soul shall find itself alone
'Mid dark thoughts of the gray tombstone
Not one, of all the crowd, to pry
Into thine hour of secrecy.

Be silent in that solitude.

The Knights could only surmise that Rachael - and the other missing people - had been affected by the tablet, transported into the space between the physical and spirit worlds. At the same time, a powerful ghost appeared in the shop's lobby, and the Knights were forced to defend themselves against it. As they battled, Agatha and Griff started to suspect that this was, somehow, Rachael, and the Knights allowed the ghost to flee. At the same time, a note appeared on a noticeboard in the shop, seemingly mocking the Knights and suggesting that they were somehow being tested. Following the ghost outside, they found a confused Rachael only vaguely aware of what had happened.


There was still no time for rest, as another supposed haunted house had become the site of a disaster. Ray had reached her weirdness limit for one day, and instead opted to return to her camp in Perez Park. Ryan, having had more than enough of ghosts himself for one evening, volunteered to stay behind and study the stone tablet in the hopes of figuring out its properties. Cait stayed with him, and the two discussed...

...costumes, while their friends battled the forces of evil.

Entering the supposed haunted house, the Dolmen, Union Rose, Dragon Chief and Fairy Thunder found little but bad props and out of work actors dressed up as ghouls. It all seemed tame until they came across patrons of the house being attacked by the undead. Although it took a few minutes to convince Griff that the monsters were real and not more actors, the threat became real soon enough.

Fighting their way past the undead, they defeated a number of macabre creations of some mad scientist when they came across a crate that apparently had been shipped from Britain according to the postmarks. Scrawled on one side was the word 'FAILURE' in angry letters. Making a note of the box and remembering to come back for it later, the Knights pressed on, confronting the scientist and his monsters. On his fall, he muttered something like, "the King will be very unhappy about this..." but would say no more when pressed.

Having had enough of haunted houses and having secured the safety of the patrons, they returned to where Ryan and Caitlin were waiting. As Ryan and Cait had inexplicably failed to find out anything much at all about the stone tablet, the group decided to transport both the crate and the tablet back to the Castle and study them in safety, after they'd finally had the chance to relax and rest.


Fate had other things in mind, of course. As the Knights tried to enter the Castle, the stone tablet carried by Ryan triggered again, this time transporting the entire group into a world of illusions forged by a primal spirit of fear. Ryan's psychic mind was an open book to the spirit, which drew upon his deepest fears to create a shape for itself: Legion, the man possessed by many spirits. The Knights descended into a decaying tomb, infested with insane spirits, where the darkness closed in around them like a fog.

The Knights remained resolute, and fought forward through the ranks of angry ghosts, battling Legion's psychic projections and twisted echoes of the other Knights. Finally, they confronted the fear spirit itself, and despite a difficult battle managed to banish it. As they did, a familiar figure appeared: that of the witch Mistress Skye, or at least her ghost. Skye confessed that she had manipulated some of the night's events to "test" the Knights, to prove their worthiness to train her descendant Sage. She was unrepentent in the face of the Knights' anger, telling them that adversity would only make them stronger.


With the fear spirit gone, the illusionary world unravelled and the Knights wearily entered the warmth of the Castle at last. Most decided to call it a night, and departed for home.

((For more, see the Knights Scrapbook Entry by Bunny.))

((Originally posted by Romanov))

The Cadre
October 19 - Midnight Raid

**SPOILER ALERT - this update features information from the second SSA - Who Will Die?**


Members of The Cadre and associated mercenaries Nadja Romanov, Warplocke (Hank), Third Degree Byrne (Julius), Devestatia (Deva), Gunslinger Ace and Operative Rain met in the bar of the Devil’s Candy strip club in Port Oakes. They were joined by butterfly-winged exotic dancer Emerald Esoterica who had previously met with Nadja Romanov to enquire about the possibility of work as a dancer at the club and as a mercenary with the Cadre. She introduced herself and it was agreed she would be given a trial. She was unexpectedly joined by an associate Spirit Wolf and the offer of a trial was extended to him - although he was advised by Nadja to clean up his appearance if he wanted to stick around.

Nadja told the group that she had visited her father Alexander Romanov the previous day. She had secured something to help with their fight against the mysterious and manipulative Mason and also announced that she had a baby brother Maxim Romanov. When asked how she felt by Deva, Nadja said that she had no desire for inheritance or affection from her father and felt indifferent about her sibling.

Nadja went on to say that while at her father’s offices she learnt that one of his former aquaintences known as Vladimir was hawking an opportunity that might be of interest to the Cadre. She had arranged to meet him at the docks in Sharkshead island and, after a few catty exchanges between Operative Rain and Deva, the group left the club.

At the docks, Vladimir told the group about a group of cultists called Rulu-Shin who were planning a raid on one of the vaults of the mystical Midnight Squad. The Cadre quickly saw the opportunity to hijack the raid and escape with valuable magical items while leaving the mysterious cult to face the wrath of the Midnight Squad. Arriving at the Midnighters Club, the Cadre did battle with the cultists before making their way to the vault. There they found two things - a giant portal and a baseball cap through which the deceased Tommy Arcanus (father of the hero Numina) was communicating.
At this point, the Midnight Squad, including Montague Castanella and Kadabra Kill, ambushed the vault raiders. Operative Rain elected to escape through the portal but the rest of the Cadre could not resist the chance to beat the living crap out of the Midnight Squad.

During, the operation it was obvious to Nadja that Deva had something on her mind, or more tellingly her finger, that was preoccupying her thoughts. But there was no opportunity during the battles, portal hopping and thievery to enquire what it was.



After admonishing Operative Rain for doing a runner, Nadja Romanov led the Cadre on an adventure in pursuit of magical items, the kidnapped spirit (or skull) of Tommy Arcanus and the giant monster feeding cultists. It ended with them facing a Rularuu guardian and, after answering three questions they were granted passage to where the cultists were preparing to feed Tommy Arcanus to the Hamidon.



After a battle with the Rulu-Shin, the Cadre secured the skull of Tommy Arcanus - just in time to strike a deal with his daughter Numina. Nadja accepted a powerful item from Numina which, with the help of Warplocke, she intends to use to empower the fragment of obelisk they plan to use to destroy Mason.



It was agreed that Emerald Esoterica and Spirit Wolf had perfromed well enough to be considered for future work with The Cadre.

Later, with the mercenaries paid and dismissed, Nadja invited Deva to make her announcement. Hank, Julius, Deva and Nadja met beneath the Devil’s Candy where Deva announced her engagement to Julius. Expensive champagne was opened, congratulations were offered, and Nadja accepted Deva’s request to be her maid of honour.

The night ended with the four agreeing to meet the following day to discuss a final solution to the Mason problem.

Knights of Albion
18/10/11 - The Missing Skye
Fairy Thunder, Union Rose, London Brawling and Dragon Chief gathered at the Castle to find Ryan Moriarty facing a bit of a mystery. His Tarot readings indicated that someone was trying to make contact with him, but he couldn't make sense of the message. Ryan and Griff agreed that the Hero's Handbook might be helpful, so the Knights reconvened at the library. There, as the Magician card was brought into contact with the Handbook, the Knights found themselves faced with the apparition of an elderly witch.

The witch identified herself as Mistress Skye, and admitted that she was familiar with the Knights of Albion... as one of their former enemies. Now dead, she had no particular desire for revenge, only to protect one of her descendants who had fallen into danger.

An amateur mage herself, Sage Skye had attempted to break up a ring of Mu cultists in England, only to be captured and brought to America along with a cargo of other Mu descendants. The Knights followed Mistress Skye's directions to Striga Isle, where the captives had been brought ashore, and after defeating some Family goons found clues leading to a dockside warehouse.

The warehouse was a hideout of the Malleus cult, who showed their displeasure at the intrusion in no uncertain terms. The Knights fought their way through the Mu guards and rescued several captives, including the hapless Sage Skye. They also found evidence that the Malleus maintained a temple to Hequat nearby, and a hangar filled with military aircraft and other hardware, for some unclear purpose.

Raiding the Mu temple, the Knights were joined by Lord Britanic, who confessed that he had lost his communication brooch. The Malleus guards put up a fierce fight in defense of their temple, but paled next to their leader, a juggernaut of a man armed with an electrified scepter who proved strong enough to overpower even the toughest Knights present. After regrouping and refocusing their efforts, the Knights defeated the Mu leader and easily mopped up his remaining followers.



The Knights took the time to admire the rather elaborate Mu temple, in particular the quite impressive if evil throne, before returning to the Castle. Mistress Skye grudgingly acknowledged that the Knights had done all that could be expected of them, and, her role as their advisor ended, began to fade away. But she made it clear that the Knights would be hearing from her again.

The Knights chose to celebrate with tea, crumpets and biscuits. Griff had a minor argument with Agatha over Agatha's attitude towards him; Jim and Rachael reminisced some more over their time at college together; and a consensus was reached that while everyone except Agatha naturally had faith in Griff's abilities, he wouldn't be allowed to try and restore Thames' faehood if there was any risk of her exploding or even evaporating in the process.

Finally, Agatha left for the library, Ryan went to meet with Sage Skye and "check her out in a totally professional and appropriate manner", and everyone else went home to sleep.

((For more, see the Knights Scrapbook Entry by Bunny.))

Well, a shadowy invasion from another dimension tells me that Bureau 17 would like to intervene, while on the invading side I can offer an alternate version of Edgar "Captain Maximus" Suarez as a bit-part Strongman.

August 25 2011

Police Suspect Supervillain Involvement with "Earthquake" in Colorado

Police investigating the site of an apparent earthquake in the city of Boulder, Colorado, say they suspect the event was caused by a superpowered attack by unknown forces. Though eyewitnesses say the earth shook violently for several minutes, seismic readings indicate that the earth tremor itself was not powerful enough to have caused such widespread destruction, leaving several buildings almost completely destroyed.

The Boulder area experienced sporadic power cuts in the minutes before the quake became noticeable, and an office building outside of the hardest-hit area abruptly collapsed. City officials have so far refused to comment on the building's structural soundness. The area has been cordoned off by police as a crime scene.

There have been unconfirmed reports of "stone men" appearing amid the rubble of the quake-damaged area, some claiming that a group of unidentified superheroes arrived to combat these creatures. Police spokesmen have denied the involvement of the "Devouring Earth" terrorists in this incident, but say that other avenues of investigation are being kept open.

Several Boulder residents are still unaccounted for and it is thought that many may be trapped in the rubble.

On day one of the first Rikti invasion...

Sebastian Wolfram was in his study at the Exemplar Investments building in Steel Canyon, unaware that it was about to be destroyed around him.

Jennifer Sula was watching the news in her home city of Providence.

Hank Delacroix was lying low after a successful con in upstate New York, cut off from the outside world and only vaguely aware of news of some great disaster.

Zajin was literally a world away, still in training at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

The man who would become the Portent was living rough on the streets of Baumton, lost and without purpose... but not for long.

It didn't surprise Alex exactly that her errand was over quickly. Finding herself at a loose end, she headed to the library Harlan had talked about to see how that bit of recon was going.

She didn't have much trouble locating two of the others. Adam had done the best he could with his modified uniform, but he was a long way from blending in with the casually-dressed students wandering the university. Still, he was inconspicuous next to Harlan's new costume.

Adam looked up from the book he was reading. "Hey there Alex," he said.

Alex grinned. "Hard at work, huh?"

"Yes, more or less," Adam said. "Looking at all the books..."

Harlan looked up from his own book. "Hey, 'Lex," he said. "How'd your errand work out?"

"Not bad," Alex replied. "Grabbed anything that looked like it'll last. Tinned stuff. Don't wanna have to make too many trips." She appraised the two men. "We definitely need to get you guys some new clothes..."

"I think I stand out a little, yeah," Adam said.

"Not when you're stood next to Harlan," Alex pointed out.

"I saw a suit that looks like my size," Harlan said. "In a place called a pawn shop. I'll go get it later."

Alex frowned. "Did you say a porn shop?"

"Uh..." Adam trailed off.

Harlan shrugged. "That's what is said over the door," he said. "Pawn, like the chess pieces, but no sign of games in the winnow"

"Right..." Alex said. "Well, clothes are clothes.

"Thing is, if you watch the docks a while, people flyin' past in gaudy outfits don' get much attention," Harlan said. "I reckon a flyin' beardy in a suit is gonna get noticed way more."

"Right... So there are lots of them about, then?" Adam asked.

"Yeah, dunno if they have a powers division, but they sure got a lot of candidates fer one," Harlan said.

"Have either of you seen anything in the way of police?" Adam asked.

"I ain' sure," Harlan replied. "Seen a lot of those Spider Uniforms aroun', an' there's some kinda gold colour uniformed guys around a lot of the rooftops."

"There's a few security companies I've seen in different uniforms," Alex put in. "Didn't go close enough to check the names."

"So they've privatised security here?" Adam mused.

"Book I got says that each island has a kinda ... dual government," Harlan said. "A civil and a military or Security. The spider suits are the military I reckon, under a Marshall according to the guide book."

"And the civil?" Alex asked.

Harlan shrugged. "Not seen enough to tell yet."

"Probably just a puppet anyway," Alex said.

"Guidebook mentioned some guy called Aeon," Harlan went on.

"The hooded men don't seem to like him," Adam said.

No-one seems to like anyone that much here," Harlan replied.

Alex shook her head. "Wonder if this whole world is like this?" she said. "All... crazy."

"It's no Praetoria, that's for sure..." Adam said. "I know there are other islands. We're only a few miles off the coast of the USA."

Alex nodded. "There's an America still here, right," she said. "Maybe there's a Mexico too. I've only ever seen pictures."

"Yeah, here..." Harlan pulled an atlas from the shelf beside him."We got one of these back at the warehouse too."

"Does it let you know what these places are like?" Adam asked.

Harlan gestured to books on Italy, France, Great Britain, and others, lining the shelves.

"Hard to imagine all those places still existing..." Alex said.

"Looks like this world only ever fired three nukes in action," Harlan explained. "There's a history section over there I raided last time. No Hamidon war, no nuking of cities all over the world."

Alex shook her head. "Makes no sense."

"An' yet, there's a kinda world peace," Harlan continued. "No real wars other than with something called a 'Rikti'. Not a lot on that. Seems to be too recent fer the hsitory books."

"There'd have to be peace," Alex said, "before they could plan to invade Praetoria."

"Hey, tha's an idea ...," Harlan said. "Whatcha think they might have on Praetoria? Anythin'?"

"I got no idea..." Adam said.

Harlan turned to him. "Adam, can yer find yer way aroun' these computers they got?"

"Ah, of course!" Adam made his way over to one of the library computers, and began getting to grips with it.

Harlan frowned at the screen on display. "What the Sam Hill is a 'Google'?"

"A really big number, basically," Adam said. "I assume... Maybe it's a search engine..?" He began typing in the search bar. "Hrm... Shall we try Praetoria?"

Harlan shrugged. "Yeah."

Alex leaned back against one of the bookshelves as Adam went to work.

"Well, looks like we're known as some sort of 'evil twin dimension'," Adam said at last.

"I never met many evil twins back there..." Harlan said.

"I don't know," Adam admitted, starting a new search. "Let's try 'Howling Storms'."
Alex looked up. "Anything?" she asked.

Adam studied the search results. "Holy cow..." he muttered. "You ARE someone's evil double!"

Harlan leaned close, peering at the screen. "**** you. I'm the good 'un."

"This guy died in a war saving the world," Adam continued. "Honestly? I'm a bit suspicious of you right now. You are slightly shifty."

"Heh, see. He wuz an amatuer," Harlan countered. "I survived the Hamidon Wars."

"So this is the same guy?" Alex asked. "Harlan in a different world?" She clutched her forehead. "Everything about this freakin' world is messed up."

"Hey, think we could like, fake his ID?" Harlan suggested. "Make out he was only missin' presumed dead?"

"He's MIA, so maybe," Adam said.

"I mean, if he died in a war," Harlan mused, "maybe he had some sorta military clearance or somethin' right?"

"Hrm..." Adam started another fresh search.

"What about you?" Harlan asked. "You got a ... double?"

"Lemme see..." Adam typed his name into the search bar. Alex couldn't see what came up on screen from where she was, but Adam's reaction made her move forward. "...I think I do," Adam concluded, staring at his alternate-universe self.

"Ho-lee," Harlan muttered. "Whut is he?"

"It seems I'm basically evil," Adam concluded.

Harlan grinned. "Figures."

"You guys are world-famous here?" Alex groaned. "There's no justice."

"We ain' checked yous yet, Alex," Harlan pointed out. "Uhh, jus' a thought, but don' mention this ta Zoe fer a while."

Alex looked at him. "Why not?"

"If she has a double I swear it'll cause us untold problems," Harlan said.

"Yeah... I can't see her taking it well," Adam agreed.

"She'll either wanna commandeer tha' body o' the livin' one fer 'Police Business'," Harlan explained, "or we'll end up wit' two of 'em both freaky."

"I think you're readin' too much into it, hombre," Alex said.

Harlan sat down at the next computer along."Is ... I jus' type into the box, right?" He struggled with the unfamiliar interface until he managed to type in his own search. "We need somethin' like this at the warehouse," he said. "Where we got some privacy."

"We could always get a computer and wire it to the internet here," Adam suggested.

"Y'can do that?" Harlan asked? "Great!"

"Well, we need a computer and some wire," Adam continued.

"I bet we can buy one somewhere," Alex said.

"Right," Harlan said. "There's some kinda market in a truck by the dock. I didn't see any computers, but they did have all sortsa stuff..."

Originally posted by Ammon

Harlan slept fitfully in a chair, a book still open beneath his hand in his lap. Perhaps his colleagues would assume his age was responsible, but in truth he'd barely slept in the past few days. Finally, all the efforts and trials of recent days had caught up, now that things seemed past any point at which wakefullness could immediately help. The kids would wake him if anything happened, he reasoned.

The scouting had been useful. Taking the opposite direction from Lieutenant Black when she'd suggested scouting, Harlan had come upon a university campus and not been challenged at all in going in. He'd managed to borrow several books from the large library that looked as if they may be helpful. 2 from the History section and a couple on Geography, topped off with an almanac of world facts, and a book about engineering that he hoped might give them an idea about the technology differences here. The ancient history seemed much as he recalled it, from a brief skimming of the chapters, but the book about recent history, well, most of the latter 20th Century read like fantasy.

Harlan had fallen asleep with the Atlas on his lap. His dreams were filled with images of lands he barely recalled from the days before the Hamidon Wars. Places he'd visited once or twice, like Paris, and Hong Kong, before the wars had made such places nothing but a vague memory. In dream, he once again soared across foreign skies, wearing the bright costume of a hero, occassionally seeing people below waving up to him.

Originally posted by Dante

Sorrowshade was reading. Sat in the corner of the abandoned warehouse, she had considered standing guard but as Alex clearly needed something to do, she had decided to embark on some information gathering.

Once the team were settled, she had performed a sweep of the area, getting a feel for their location. From the central, elevated city to the somewhat unusual power plant situated on the mountain, Zoe had reconnoitred until she was satisfied that she knew the lay of the land. Feeling geographically more secure, she then begun the second stage of her information gathering. Locating a news vendor, she had robbed them at gunpoint, choosing only to steal a copy of each publication while they cowered in their stall. She had returned to the warehouse with a bundle of newspapers and magazines and a small, portable radio that the news vendor had been listening to.

She had taken to a small part of the derelict office and then began to read, the radio chattering away in the background. If Zoe was at all concerned by their sudden displacement, she wasn’t showing it. The dead are rarely surprised by anything and so she had taken to establishing their position with machine-like efficiency. Clearly the Etoile Isles were a questionable place, ruled with an iron fist by Lord Recluse and his private army. Zoe considered briefly whether it was worth trying to infiltrate such an army but logistically, it seemed like a dead end. Far better to exacerbate their continuing feud with the other private army in the area, Longbow. If she was to create chaos and disarray amongst the Primal Earth armies, some work on either side would be needed.

Her other mission seemed far more interesting to her. She had no time for traitors to Praetoria, their fate was virtually sealed as far as she was concerned. Although she would offer them a chance to repent, their loyalty would always be in question as far as she was concerned and if they had proven to be disloyal once, could they be trusted in the future?

She looked up over their temporary base and wondered if anyone that she had travelled with could fit that description. Only time would tell, she thought and went back to reading.

Adrift

Alex's body didn't create energy from nothing. The demands of her speed and strength, and above all her rapid healing, came at the cost of a ravenous appetite that would seem surprising on someone with her build. On the plus side, she was able to store energy pretty well, so as long as she remained at rest she could keep going without food or sleep better than most.

Right now, the problem was remaining at rest.

Alex leaned against the warehouse wall, keeping guard over the door for her shift. Technically there was no need for shifts, since Zoe far surpassed Alex in her lack of need for sleep, but Alex couldn't sleep anyway. The wrongness of this world, of... everything gnawed at her mercilessly.

Julio. That had been her first thought, when AC talked about her family waiting. She could miss Julio waking up. She could miss him dying. It had been maddening to have no control over which of those was the final outcome, but that was nothing on what she felt now.

And the place... ruled over by those Arachnos scum. Surely the people here lived in terror, although the strangely dressed, shaven-headed men who patrolled the docks with placards and pamphlets that meant nothing to her seemed to have no fear of standing up to the authorities. It was like a bizarre, twisted mirror of Praetoria, a place where the government promoted suffering and lies and those who stood against it were the heroes...

...or perhaps just selfish cabrónes who thought Lord Recluse's throne would fit them better.

She wanted to go out there and start killing men in black-and-red armour and not stop until she found a way back home. But how many were there? In Praetoria they'd been in small strike teams, staying under the radar, unprepared for the wrath of Powers Division. Here, they were an army. She'd seen another of those huge, eerie gunships, like the one that had attacked the power plant in Neutropolis, cruising the skies in the distance; it couldn't have been alone. No, she had to keep a low profile, protect the others.

A small part of her wondered who was going to protect her, but she silenced it. She had to be strong, now more than ever. She couldn't show weakness. Everyone was counting on her. She had to do what Julio would have done.

He would have known what to do...

On 22/03/2011, the Powers division team of Precinct 7 was ordered by Praetor White to apprehend a Resistance leader known to have passed intelligence to Arachnos insurgents.

The team - Active Current, Adam Sparks, Forceburst, Howling Storms, La Zorra, Street Spartan and Sorrowshade - pursued their target, Firebrand, through a portal to an Arachnos laboratory on Primal Earth, just as Firebrand detonated a series of bombs that destroyed the portal back.

Lost and alone in an unfamiliar world, the Sevens fled the collapsing lab before Arachnos reinforcements could arrive, and found an abandoned warehouse on the Cap au Diable docks in which to lie low.

Their story continues...

Return of a Legend?

When people hear the name "Crimson Archer", there's no doubt who they think of: a man who rose from humble origins in Memphis, Tennessee to become one of Paragon City's most admired heroes. But Jamie Reynolds was not the first man to carry that name. Nor, it seems, was he to be the last.

There's little to say about the original Crimson Archer, a.k.a. Herbert Vraney, who used the alias during a crime spree in 1959. Most people had forgotten about him completely, and would have continued to do had he not attempted to sue his later namesake in a high-profile court action. All things considered, the lawsuit will almost certainly end up being Vraney's greatest claim to infamy.

By sharp contrast, from the day he first appeared in costume in Paragon City, Jay Reynolds never had trouble capturing the public's attention. The archetypal champion of the average guy in a world of supermen, Reynolds proved to many that it doesn't take superpowers to be a hero - anyone can do it as long as they have the skill and determination. Winning the lottery first doesn't exactly hurt either.

But Reynolds was and is more than just a crimefighter. Never disguising his identity, he was a charismatic public figure, a philanthropist, sharing his wealth with those who needed it most - investing in the future of Paragon City. From supporting the Militia supergroup, to running the FBSA housing project at SwallowTail House, to appearing on the cover of Paragon Pride magazine, he was a tireless worker and a role model to many.

All of this meant that Reynolds' move away from the limelight, and eventually out of Paragon City altogether, left a void that would be very difficult to fill. Yet, someone seems to have decided to try.

Reports have emerged that the Crimson Archer is back on Paragon's streets... and unless Reynolds undergone some startling changes since he was last in the public eye, we can be fairly sure it's not him. Details are sketchy, and the woman now calling herself the Crimson Archer certainly isn't making it easy for the press.

It's hard to blame her. As if a newly-fledged hero didn't have enough problems to worry about, the Crimson Archer name is owned - as the aforementioned lawsuit proved - by the Raymond Free Press group. Only time will tell if they decide to enforce their claim.

Regardless of how this turns out, one thing is clear: the legacy of the Crimson Archer lives on.

- Hermes King

Sorry I can't be there for the launch. Have fun all.

Ah, fair enough. Again, I haven't really had the misfortune of meeting them. I guess I'm in for an unpleasant shock at some point.