Mr_Grey

I might be supplying my Widow for some of these, but for the most part, it'll be me Bane that fights the battles!

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This is my second SUPER CONSPIRACY THEORY in the same number of months.

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and probably your 200th pointless thread in the same time frame.

Gratz!

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Pointless threads are the best threads.

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Great way to get up that post count to get that shiny title of Forum Cartel and Cuppa Incarnate...

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With the upcoming announcement of power customization in Issue 16, which we were told was "impossible"...

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Never impossible. Never.

"Unlikely" was the word used when the Developers were down to a skeleton crew and they, frankly, had bigger, better things to create and develop (regardless of the opinions of them, if you're still here, it's obviously not that big an issue), so they had to keep putting this heavily requested item on the back-burner or shelf. Even saying it was on the back-burner indicated that they were toying with the system to see if they could get it to work.

I remember Positron explaining that they'd run into the wall of "We can make it work from the skeleton, but not the collision" (HEAVILY paraphrased; it's more of a summary, actually, and not a particularly accurate one, either).

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1. Paragon Studios is now going to license the "new" Champions Online game engine from Cryptic instead of the one they are using now.

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God dammit... How is this even remotely likely? You do realize the amount of work it would take to not just transplant, but completely write over the game engine with another one, right?

For instance, their bundles of numbers for characters aren't the same as our bundles of numbers for characters. In order to keep things as they already are (assuming players would want to keep their 50s, enhancements, Invention Origin buffs, etc.), the developers would have to go through each and every possible power combination and enhancement slotting and find the proper translations between one set of code and another.

And for every minor flaw, the rightly angered cries of the playerbase will scorch these boards to smoldering cinders.

What this idea proposes is an extremely massive undertaking that I would recommend to Satan for tormenting embezzlers. But for Mortal Earth, this would simply be a death knell for the game and company.

I don't buy the "Maybe the Fifth Column is an elite organization in Axis Amerika Earth" explanation.

The elites have already been described for us in our history. Amerika Korps is the elite force that serves Reichsman, not the Fifth Column. Source

I can picture Reichsman being contacted by the Fifth Column and getting them to serve him, Hell, I can even see him installing them as the elite faction on Axis Earth out of gratitude for covering his escape.

None of that, however, explains why he's wearing their damn uniform as soon as he's out of the box.

And the emblem on his chest is just plain ugly. Such a thing makes sense for Statesman's spandex outfit (like Superman's "S"), and like I mentioned earlier, Recluse's symbol is severely muted. Plus, Reichsman is supposed to be wearing some kind of military uniform. I have yet to see a military uniform with a big fat bullseye on its chest like that. A small badge over the heart or in his hat, I can picture that, but the big symbol is just... It's like a glaring "Screw You" to the game's canon.

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Also, Reichsmann having a "Fifth Column" log on his chest is no surprise- the old Axis Amerika map was liberally festooned with Fifth Column banners, which actually makes some sense- you're in the alternate Paragon City, and the timeline appears to have diverged during WWII, when the Column was active in the States. Hmm... wonder if Axis Amerika was created when Ubelmann succeeded?

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Ubelmann lived in a time when Statesman existed.

The divergence between Axis Amerika Earth and Prime Earth is Marcus Cole, not Ubelmann. Ubelmann would have had to do something TO Marcus Cole to turn him into Reichsman, and I just don't see him having that kind of influence.

Another thing bothering me about this whole incident is WHERE THE HELL ARE THE COUNCIL!?

Why isn't Requiem getting super-ticked that Reichsman just showed up out of nowhere and absconded with his private army? All of his plans have been thrown into utter and complete disarray and he's done NOTHING!

Yes, I know Positron has arrested him... I would suppose as we start battling with Reichsman in Boomtown, he's still trying to get the Zig's proverbial "revolving door" to spin. However, at some point, I would think there would be some form of massive reaction from the Council. The Fifth Column and the Council have interwoven histories, and I really don't see the Center standing idly by as this lunatic rushes in and jeopardizes everything he's worked for, nor do I see Nosferatu reacting kindly to "Schadenfreude" trying to take his place.

There are a LOT of ramifications to this story, but what we have is a cliched "Stop the ridiculously supercharged bad guy" motif. His supercharging isn't even adequately explained (which we're still debating here)!

And what is with the Arch Villains in the last mission of the Kahn TF?

Nemesis is understandably insulted because Reichsman is utilizing his grand power like a club. Frankly, I'm surprised he even helps him fight us in that battle. You have one megalomaniac supporting another, and he's hardly intimidated into doing it (Nemesis isn't intimidated by an entire WORLD of super-beings thirsting for his blood, why would Reichsman be any different?).

Countess Crey, Vanessa DeVore... They strike me as tossed in because they're "underused." Why would Reichsman even consider them as necessary? He could always nationalize Crey Corporation (with the Countess being "disappeared" into her own Paragon Protectors), and there are only a few reasons I can think of as to why he would want Vanessa around (the most dignified is that he wants to use her to combat psychics like Sister Psyche and Kalinda; the other reasons deal more with her physical "assets").

And Gyrfalcon? Who is that guy? On the same note, who's Slinger (Recluse Strike Force)? The Malta Group's biggest strength has been their anonymity and the fact that we have no way of figuring out who they are/were because they've got their fingers in every aspect of the government and the law-supporting agencies. However, Gyrfalcon's the only one in that group who makes at least some sense as to his presence in that battle. I can see the Malta Group trying to gain influence in the Reichsman-led Fifth Column.

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I assumed he'd always had been draining other Reichmans (Reichmen?) for their power, which is why the Freedom Phalanx had to imprison him in stasis rather than actually defeat him and lock him up.

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You mean an alternate Phalanx?

Yeah... That would make more sense. Except the original lore explained that he was "as powerful as Statesman," while his entourage wasn't nearly as powerful. Meanwhile, the Blueside Kahn TF still has the "Draining alternate Marcus Coles" explanation... There's the problem of which Marcus Coles, because not all of them can be like himself, Tyrant and Statesman, and if they ARE, then it certainly can't be as simple as rounding them up and putting them in a big box the way the missions simply gloss over.

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As for his loyalty to the 5th Column and the symbol on his chest. Maybe Axis Amerika have their own 5th Column? A sort of elite group within the standard troops. Like SAS or Navy Seals or whatever.

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One of these is not like the other...

You'd have been better off referring to them as an "Inner Circle," but that's hardly the case here, either. His loyalty is, first and foremost, to himself. The Fifth Column serves HIM, not the other way around. He is a conqueror, every bit as much as Tyrant. He rules his world with an iron fist, and a man with that much power and abuses it for his own gains simply should not make any indication of bowing to another group.

He's not a part of Big Brother, he IS Big Brother! He's as long-lived as it ever will be, and will probably even live long past it! He's what Axis Amerika and the Fifth Column emulate, the Ubermench who has taken his rightful place over the rest of the teeming masses of humanity and lords over it as he rightly should. The idea that he would even humor the thought of "serving" another, in any capacity, is insulting to the idea of such a monstrous villain.

And the emblem on his chest is simply ridiculous. Statesman's got a star on spandex. Recluse has a muted spider worked into his armor as an etching or filigree. Tyrant doesn't even have a symbol. Reichsman has a regal uniform that is marred by a big ugly oval slapped over the top of it with an emblem of a group he hadn't even HEARD of before he was locked in the freezer.

Oh, and a better explanation as to why Reichsman's able to curb-stomp the team "out of the box."

The whole "siphoning power from Alternate Mark Coles" thing isn't doing it for me... Especially when he's curb-stomping players as soon as he's out of the box!

And get that Fifth Column emblem off his chest! He's Axis Amerika, not Fifth Column! They come to him, not the other way around!

"Explorer"

Grey's Army

Randall and company investigate the possessed old man's apartment. The apartment is barely furnished, and there don't seem to be any enchantments, save the residues of illusions. It's very perplexing for Cory, though the body's laptop seems to have the information they're looking for...

I decided to have a little focus on Cory Simmons on this go. I like writing the guy, I like his noble, calm mindset. I wish I could get into the mystical aspect of this game more so I could write him more often.

Cory had hoped that the dwelling of a Circle of Thorns spy would yield more information and artifacts. He was disappointed, however, for the apartment was Spartan and devoid of all but the extremely basic necessities.

Randall had described a rather plush living room when he’d first arrived. Apparently, the entirety of the furnishings were magic-based and illusory. They were probably strong illusions, capable of supporting weight, but the wizard had probably done away with them once he was free of company.

“I certainly wish I could have spoken with him,” Simmons sighed as he continued to trace his fingers along the walls, following the patterns of residual mystical energy, “Perhaps we could have arranged an information exchange…”

“You don’t trade with demons,” Randy grumbled from the reinforced steel chair he sat on next to a cooler in the center of the living room, “And there ain’t no good deals with the Circle. They’re one and the same!”

“I know, Mister Grey,” a young woman said tersely, “What Cortland meant was… Well…”

“The exchange would have been very little from our part,” Cory finished for his girlfriend, Gertrude Youngs, “And very much from him. There are ways of torturing demons that don’t necessarily involve harm…”

“Psychological damage,” the big old tanker growled happily before popping open a can of beer, “So much more powerful…”

A pale-faced woman in a black dress joined Cory in the bedroom. She was shaking with her disturbed sensation.

“That man is a brutish sort,” she whispered, “It’s hard to believe he’s really a hero…”

Cory nodded. Early in Randall’s career in Paragon, he had helped numerous heroes thrash through the Cabal in an attempt to help save Salamanca. He gave it up when his efforts seemed to just be the same fight, over and over. It wasn’t until Cory gave the region a look that somebody was able to explain things in a manner the big man could understand.

Even then, Cory feared he only just barely got through to his boss. Randy had his mind on other things, though, and had moved on to more personal goals. As such, he was hardly a hero of the city, but more just trying to get by in the small community. He left the hero work up to people who were better suited for it, like Kipland and Cory.

Still, every so often, he stumbled on a situation like this. The sorcerer and his semi-spectral girlfriend started scanning the chambers more closely. Behind them, they could hear the rhythmic tapping of fingers on a keyboard.

“Woah!” Roland suddenly shouted, “Uh… Dad? This guy… Whoever he was… He was bad. Really bad.”

“That kind of bad, huh?” Randy’s previously jovial voice had turned dangerously cold.

“Yeah. I want to delete this whole partition, then set fire to the motherboard.”

“Can’t. It’s evidence.”

Randy obviously sounded like he agreed with his son.

“Rest assured he’s suffering a terrible penance, son… Or at least his body was destroyed.”

Growling to himself, Roland went back to typing into the laptop and trying to find how the Circle wizard had stayed in communication with his fellows.

Cory couldn’t understand it. There were no parchments, no books, no crystals, nothing. He’d incinerated the futon that had been the man’s sleeping pad and all that remained were ashes. While most wouldn’t understand the idea of setting fire to something that may contain flammables, even the weakest scrying scrolls had enchantments on them to protect them from flames. It took effort to make the pages, and wizards weren’t about to let something as simple as a misplaced candle destroy hours, if not days, of work.

But nothing remained. There were no artifacts here. Just a telephone, a laptop computer, and a futon.

“HA!” a female voice shouted from the hall.

Cory narrowed his eyes in consternation, and looked away from where he held his fingertip. Randy’s boisterous laughter filled the apartment and he could see a young woman walk uncertainly into the living room with two small daggers in her hands.

“Uh…” the girl said timidly, “Didn’t an old man live here?”

“Yeah,” the big tanker grunted, “And he got killed when I was trying to find out what he was doing here.”

“What!?” the girl shouted, horrified, but not because she was opposed to the wizard’s demise, “But I wanted to kill him! I had it all planned out…”

“You were gonna burst through the door, shout ‘Ha’ and stab him repeatedly?” Roland queried in his usual stoic, dismissive tone, “Don’t get me wrong, it’s a solid plan, but how’d you know he was worthy of death? We only just found out ourselves…”

“Then why’d you do it?” the girl asked.

“This little guy chewing on a steak thought the interrogation had gone on long enough. Ripped a chunk clean out of the wizard’s hip.”

Cory could just picture the big man scratching the little bear’s head. Leaving a scorch on the wall to mark his place, he decided to go out and have a look at the young female heroine.

“Iron Spyke, right?” Roland asked.

“Yeah…” the girl replied.

“I think I found what we’re looking for, Dad,” Roland showed his father the laptop as Cory walked into the living room.

Iron Spyke whirled when she saw the sorcerer, then held up one of her knives defensively. Simmons waved casually and a light film of frost coated the blade.

“You have much to learn, young avenger,” he said smoothly, “I recommend you first learn how to relax. We’re all friends here.”

“I don’t trust wizards,” the Spyke hissed as she hastily wiped the blade of her knife on her pant leg, “The whole lot of you can burn in Hell…”

“I suppose you trained under Gregor Richardson, then,” the sorcerer sighed as he walked over to where Roland was frantically pulling up files for his father to see, “So, the demon kept all of his information here?”

“Where a wizard probably wouldn’t look,” Roland replied, “There’s information here on Iron Spyke, a guy in the building across the street called Arcane Blaze… There’s even a note here on Fire-Shield.”

“A note?” Randall asked.

“More like a ‘who is this?’ kind of note, but it shows they were taking interest in her. It seems everybody in the files is some kind of little-known magician.”

Cory scratched his head. He was about to ask if he were on the files, but Roland shook his head before the question was even half-finished.

“You’re not exactly a celebrity, Cory, but you’re known. The people in this, the wizards didn’t know them. Hell, almost nobody does…”

“Um… I’m right here,” Iron Spyke sheathed her knives, rested her fists on her hips and started tapping her foot as she glared pointedly at Roland, “And I don’t appreciate being called a magician…”

Cory didn’t have the heart to tell her she had an easily identifiable mystical aura. It looked like it sped her up and heightened her senses, much like the enchantments bestowed on Mattock McGinty. He supposed the source wasn’t so much her cold iron knives, which must have been her namesake, but really the dull bronze amulet on her neck. The flows of energy seemed to use that as a nexus. It must have been a deeply personal heirloom.

“A wizard of some kind did something cruel to your mother, correct?” Cory asked.

Iron Spyke stared at him in shock, the color draining from her face. Gertrude walked into the room and clucked reproachfully.

“Cory, that had all the tact of a cannonball…”

The young female scrapper backed quickly out of the room. As she ran away down the hall, Randy, barely able to keep himself from laughing, shouted that he’d get her a copy of the police report.

It was the least he could do for mucking up her first real investigation.

“There’s information on thirty or so mystical heroes and heroines here,” Roland muttered, “And another forty or so of mystics who were just passing through. This demon… We’re using ‘demon,’ right?”

“Yes,” I replied, “For the Circle, it’s more appropriate.”

“Well, this demon was keeping tabs on the local magic-based heroes. The young ones, new ones, or ones that have up-until-now stayed off the radar. At least, that’s what I’m getting from this summary. There are a few notes on us, Dad, but they don’t seem too concerned with our involvement. I suppose they either figured we weren’t a threat or we wouldn’t get involved.”

“They figured wrong,” Randy burped, “They weren’t counting on how bored I’ve gotten, lately.”

“Having you daughter kidnapped left you bored?” Gertrude asked worriedly.

Randy leveled her with a grim stare.

“When he said bored,” Simmons explained, “He meant he’s been itching to break something apart.”

Grey nodded and sipped his beer with animosity. It was hard to believe it could be done, but the big man did it anyway.

“I’m sorry,” Gertrude apologized quickly, “I didn’t mean to offend…”

“No offense taken,” the big man growled, “So, how’re you here, anyway?”

“This ring,” she explained, “Normally, the Cabal doesn’t craft or hand out relics like this often… But… My romance with Cory here… Well… It could be useful to us. Mary MacComber herself decided I should have the ability to be with him outside Salamanca… Even if it’s only for a few days at a time.”

“We were lucky,” the sorcerer chuckled, “The Circle destroyed the last one they gave us.”

“Foul beasts,” the slim girl whispered, “Cory… I don’t think we need to check for anymore wards, glyphs or enchantments. I believe the Circle was trying to keep its investigation of this area secret from mystical eyes.”

“But what were they looking for?” Roland asked, “There’s nothing in here about an overall goal. Just the dossiers of these different heroes.”

“Maybe he didn’t have the chance to share his findings with his fellow demons,” Cory offered, “Or perhaps…”

Cory and Roland both looked at the telephone.

“Ah, it makes sense now,” the wizard sighed, “The information is wherever he phoned it to…”

“I’ll get on the horn with the telephone company,” Randall grunted, “Find out where this phone was calling to.”

“You can do that?” Roland asked, “I mean… You’re a civilian…”

“I’m the custodian for this building and two others in the neighborhood, son,” the big tanker pushed himself out of the reinforced chair, “On top of that, I’ve got a top-level vigilante security identification, which puts me on par with most of the rest of the law in this city! I’ve got every right to find out everything I can from the local utilities about the resources being leached from the buildings under my protection!”

“Okay,” Roland muttered, “But it just strikes me that this would have been a good time to still be under Freedom Corps’ influence. They could have smoothed things over with the phone company for us…”

Randall was about to say something very foolish, but stopped when he saw Cory and Gertrude both shaking their heads at him. Instead, he just grinned satisfactorily at his son, who was looking back up to him impassively.

“Well, that ain’t the case, son. For the little good they do for us, I ain’t havin’ them tell me what to do. I can deal with small discomforts like this for the freedom of being able to do what I want, when I want.”

And with that, the big man left the apartment. Shrugging, Roland shut down the laptop and started bundling it up.

“I’m getting this to Joe and out of my hands,” he explained before Cory or Gertrude could ask, “He’ll be able to find who to take it to. That thing was lucky it got killed by Barry, there…”

The little bear was finishing the steak Randall had given it.

“If dad had found this, the demon’s death would have been slow and agonizing…”

“Merely a prelude to the interminable and agonizing torment that awaited him,” Simmons added, “Demons don’t treat failure kindly, and this demon had certainly failed. If it had been more successful, there would certainly be something in that laptop more than some threadbare vigilante dossiers and unmentionable filth.”

Roland nodded and started making his way out of the apartment. Barry scampered after him and attached himself to the portly man’s back. The round man grunted from the sudden added weight, but kept strolling as Barry crawled up to his shoulder.

Cory and Gertrude followed their friend, hand-in-hand. Gertrude didn’t know why Cory had been so against the speech Randall had been prepared to make against Roland’s suggestion that they regain ties to Freedom Corps, but she could sense a sudden spike in frustration, from both young men, and had decided to help solidify the front. She’d been surprised Roland was able to keep his appearance so calm, but she knew both of them had expected the same thing from the big man.

“I’ll explain some other time,” he sent to her mentally through the Aether, “Roland has a bit of a complex relationship with someone of importance in Freedom Corps, and Randall keeps ribbing his son about it.”

“A complex relationship? Is it romantic?”

“Not to hear Roland explain it… But he works so hard to control his emotions, it’s hard to tell what the whole story is. The other… She’s not very talkative to the rest of us.”

He didn’t have the heart to tell her how close the portly hunter was to some of the most dangerous operations in the world. It would depend how things progressed. While he knew Roland certainly believed that things had settled, he knew that these sorts of situations could be chaotic with the smallest elements involved. Indeed, his own relationship with Gertrude had suffered once or twice already simply because other women had made mention that they knew him.

Fortunately for the warlock, though, he had the benefit of the Aether to convey the truth and sincerity of his innocence. Roland was not so lucky, however, and had to struggle in the same dramatic way most other mortal men and women had to when social relationships were the slightest bit damaged.

In the streets of Kings Row, they ran into Cedric Grey. The eldest of Randall’s children had just finished talking to the patriarch before the big man had left. He was still wearing the singed remains of his roadwork outfit.

“Yo, Cory, why didn’t you tell me I’ve got an aura?”

“I thought you knew,” the dark-skinned warlock replied, “Why?”

“Turns out my Praetorian is still sending magic energy my way,” the tanker grunted, “While M.A.G.I. studies my axe, he’s got me dangerously close to violating my suspension. I’m not really complaining, though… I was able to help some people today and avoid getting burned up for it. It’s just a little unexpected is all…”

“But your suspension…” Roland started.

“Yeah, like the authorities are going to tell me I shouldn’t be helping people…”

Roland frowned, but nodded to his brother. It was a fine line.

“I suppose, so long as you didn’t harm anybody, things should be fine,” Cory offered.

“Oh no. I hurt people. I hurt a lot of people. Hellions. With my road work shovel.”

“Then there will be issues…”

“I don’t think so…” Cedric shrugged, “I was acting in self defense. It’s not my fault I know how to fight a group of unruly high school dropouts.”

Cory didn’t know what to say about that. He supposed they would have to wait until the reports came back from Cedric’s incident in Steel Canyon.

It reminds me of Night Watch.

Moo... You're having a sensory overload.

Take a deep breath...

Calm down...

Then place a plastic bag over your head and take many sharp, panicked breaths...

Wait, scratch that last instruction.

You already did it?

Um...

*walks away, whistling as if he were never there*

Perhaps it could be an Alternate Eagle Claw...

I never had a problem building Fury on my EM.

Still, Trick's making a really nice point about Claws' viability...

Think of it as being like Wolverine, building himself up into a frenzy as he tears hundreds of Hand ninjas apart...

Okay... Now I'm worried.

I run an extremely casual, largely utility supergroup. I'm always willing to help players who aren't keen on "Supergroup Politics".

We've got most of the teleporters throughout CoH (especially the troublesome ones, such as Dark Astoria, Perez Park and the Hollows), and we've amassed a decent collection of Invention Salvage so you can probably find whatever you need to build your Invention Origin enhancements.

Though if people is what you're looking for, I recommend DJKyo's Teamsters SG. As I understand it, they're friendly and quite active.

Better come up with something Midas. FUSION's got a bit of a leadership issue at the moment...

I think "black" might be the color you're looking for. For instance, when you use "black" on the auras, they tend to simply disappear.

We've already covered Yellow Ice (blast/control/armor/etc.) before...

And Yellow Power Blast (ugh... So wrong... So very... very wrong... Though in actuality, it'll probably just look like the Legacy Chain blasts)

I recommend Brown Tar Patch.

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im looking forward to the new difficulty settings. not sure how much i'll use the customization. wasnt there talk sometime back that said if you change the color of your powers, they aren't as powerful?

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I suppose so...

I changed my broadsword black and it hits less...

Ah, I can't go on.

No, so far, the link between the colors of your powers and their strength is nonexistent.

*drool*

:b................

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Suggestions?

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Spend more time with your dogs.

Learn to cook Korean.

Wash your driveway with just a hose and scrub-brush.

Come to Chicago.

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Those all sound like WORK!

Well, except the part about the dogs. That could be fun!

My Beautiful Misery

A rather dry chapter... Malaise has to do some research to locate the proper facility in which he can find more interdimensional technology.

((I hate chapters like this. They're so dry and unentertaining, but it's necessary stuff. It's the "C" and "D" on the way between Points "A" and "F" (with "B" being an initial conflict and "E" being a final conflict). I'm glad to have this bit out of the way, though...))

Despite the decrepit state of things in much of Praetorian Earth, there seems to be enough of an infrastructure to support a working “Internet” of sorts. I’m able to run a quick check of the area and find a map to a Steel Canyon lab which supports Antimatter’s interdimensional experiments. Maybe I’ll be able to find more devices like the one they’d sent with my counterpart and get myself, Calvin and Cheryl out of here.

Maybe I can rob a whole bunch and get more than just us away from here…

There are a few articles I run across as I look for directions. It’s all pretty weird, considering what I’ve heard about the Praetorians. It was one thing as I walked about and looked at this city, but what I’m seeing in these articles… Public works, reconstruction, economic goals… It’s all contrary to a group of people who have spent their known lives (well, as far as we’ve known them) grinding the people “beneath” them underfoot.

“Atlas Park’s reconstruction is almost complete?” I whisper aloud.

“Yes,” Demetrios says behind me, causing me to nearly jump out of my skin, “It was a surprising move from Emperor Cole… Apparently he initiated the project after losing your Emperor…”

“Statesman,” I correct him a little more angrily than I probably should have, “He’s not a king by any form of logic… What are you doing here? How did you get in my chambers?”

“As Chief Orderly, I have a key to every room in the building. I can come and go as I please…”

“As a spy for whatever resistance effort there is against Cole, I guess that comes in handy.”

Vasilikos looks about nervously. I have to assure him that nobody can hear our thoughts outside my chamber.

“Have you found what you are looking for?” he finally asks once his fears at being discovered are allayed.

“I think so,” I reply, indicating the facility in one of the other browser windows on the computer screen, “You know anything about this place?”

“Oh, that’s a recent building. Antimatter hired a lot of people for it… Many in the resistance never expected to see them again, but were amazed when they came back out…”

“Probably hired meta humans exclusively…”

From what I’m seeing in these articles, the Praetorians seem to be trying to set up their world as a haven for super-powered individuals. It’s not the first time I’ve seen this sort of idea, but it is the first time I’ve seen a determined and thought-out effort for it.

The question, I suppose, is how they’ll treat the people who don’t have powers. Chimera probably stands out as what an exemplary human can achieve, but from what I read on the dossier about the guy, he doesn’t have half or even a quarter of the personality Manticore does… And since Manticore doesn’t have personality (heh-heh-heh), that means there’s only a few paths for normal humans to take, all of which have to be “of use” to those with power, and none really allow for any individuality or life.

I wouldn’t be surprised to find the normal people being used as slaves in Emperor Cole’s utopia.

“Well,” I continue, “I guess that’s a dead end. Antimatter’s more likely to use his robots to build the new portal stuff, keep any future invasion plans a secret from the general populace. I guess I have to keep looking.”

“You could probably find what you’re looking for more easily in there,” Demetrios suggests, “I’m sure they have information on all of Antimatter’s facilities.”

I hadn’t thought of that…

“Good idea…” I gasp and Vasilikos seems surprised I would admit it, “Thanks.”

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It takes me a little while to determine the best approach. Of course, since I’m “a major player in the Praetorian echelons,” I’m able to walk right into the building. That is, if I’m wearing my costume.

Instead, I opt for the incognito approach, with the same outfit I’d used to make my way through Independence Port (or whatever it’s called), and carefully watch the individuals as they go in and out of the building. I notice a lot of multi-colored skinned people, and I don’t mean brown and peach tones. Blue, red, pink… It’s a veritable fruit drink mix walking in and out of the building, with only a few normal-toned people. Well, I’m pretty sure that’s what I’m seeing… All gray, remember? Still, there are certain shadow behaviors colors make that normal skin tones don’t. I bet those few “normies” had to pass some pretty stringent tests to get this job.

I find someone on their way out and decide it’s time to copy them and make my way into the building. I’m not like that movie monster, the machine that can change its form to certain individuals and kills them to avoid complications. I don’t need to do that. I can change my appearance, cloud people’s heads to think I’ve been a different individual the whole time, even though I was someone else for most of the meeting.

It sounds more complicated than it really is. Of course, once the person has a chance to think about it later, they’ll notice the glaring alteration to their memory. One of my previous victims explained it to me as “I saw you in my memory, only your outfit and hair kept changing.”

It’s not the sort of illusion I should engage in often. I risk driving a lot of people insane, though I probably just give them whanging headaches for the most part.

Well, I fashion up a lab outfit, make my skin tone bluish (maybe) and head in. Everybody acts like I belong at first, and when I get close enough to a security badge, I form up one for myself and make it look like one of the higher-ranked ones. It’s not so high that it will make me seem like a big shot, nor is it so low that I won’t be able to fake my way past most doors…

At one point, I have to get through a door to get into the labs. I sweep a credit card through the reader a couple times and ask the security guard why it’s not working. He apologizes, and says the readers have been a bit wonky all day (they haven’t, I just made him think that), and he sweeps his own card through the reader to let me through. It’s so funny it hurts not to laugh.

Once inside the labs, I find a computer and start looking up information. There are actually five facilities in Steel Canyon, alone, but this is the first fully-functional one. One, however, has no requisitioned human or meta human involvement. It seems Antimatter is utilizing his robots only, so I’ll check there for more interdimensional devices first.

As a back-up plan, I try locating any information involving “Portal Corporation.” What I find is something called “Gateway Industries, a Collaborative Venture of Antimatter and Neurodyne Incorporated.” Some equipment from their facilities in Peregrine Island was requisitioned for the place I’m about to check, so I guess it’s as good a place as any to check out.

Now, however, I need to locate someone useful to get me past the robots in this facility. I have doubts I can fool Antimatter into letting me take Calvin and Cheryl on another attempt. I mean, I could work up some weird claptrap about messing with Aurora’s head, but what would be the final goal?

Oh crap!

How is Aurora going to deal with this!? She never had the opportunity to have a child back home… And she and Calvin are still happily married!

Oh man, I didn’t think this through… But…

Cheryl’s a powerful psychic…

I simply can’t leave her here… And Calvin here is going through madness the likes of which nobody deserves.

I guess I’ll have to deal with it when I get home. For now, it’s back to the drawing board…

[ QUOTE ]
I think Malaise got harder because he is the only guy in an all girl SG.

Also don't forget we did take a slight detour into Bloody Bay.

Yes it was fun, got a sense of how they story plays out.

[/ QUOTE ]

Infernal's in that group, too, just not that mission (you fight him five or six times in the normal arcs, I think; he's probably convalescing by the time the LRSF occurs). Malaise is hardly the only guy in the Vindicators