Shae_Firewarder

At first it was only noticable as a breath of cold air....swirling around the statue. Then there was a sudden jolt of magic, the lights went out, and there was a tremendous sound of glass shattering. The temperature in the garden plunged, and a gust of wind blew...outward from where the statue had been. In the suddenly dark garden, snow began to fall.

The girl in an archaic Russian festival gown stared at the man in front of her, who had apparently just kissed her. He was huge, and a stranger, and she was already in mid step...

She ran.

The old fashioned streetlights that had lit the garden slowly flickered back to life and their glow lit the icy landscape of the garden, the tiny ice crystals on the tree branches, the snow gently covering the ground, the empty pedestal...

Brianna knew she had the prize tonight, and she was planning on defending her position on Alex's arm with all the charm and beauty she could muster. It was unfortunate that her main rival for his attention seemed to be completely immune to anything she could do, as only a statue could be. Alex had found an excuse to head to the clearing in the garden where that statue was a number of times already this evening, and Brianna was getting tired of attempting to retrieve him to the party.

She let go of Alex's arm at his unspoken signal and found a fresh glass of champagne as he spoke to a gentleman she didn't know in Russian. She could hear their voices, but couldn't follow the conversation. Still, she could tell when they spoke of the statue. She narrowed her eyes, and if her look could have killed the statue would have been a pile of pretty ice colored shards in that moment.

Finally, Brianna saw Alex step reluctantly away from the statue to mix with his guests and moved to join him, wrapping her arm possessively around his, and smiling up at him. She flipped her golden hair in a fashion that anyone who had watched Charlie's Angels would recognise, and assured of his attention for at least the next fifteen minutes, led him away to the dance floor.

<At least that damn statue can't do the hair flip...what would I do without it? Probably watch him stare at that thing for hours as if he was in love...I wonder if I can bribe one of the more muscular and large men here tonight to "trip" and break that thing...?>

Looking behind her she saw a woman wearing a form fitting red and black outfit that she recognised as the Stilettos' colors step up on the short pedestal that the statue rested on and touch the statue's cheek...and she found herself hoping that somehow the woman would have a fit of clumsyness and tumble the statue down to the ground....

The caterer looked at the waiter as he returned with the tray of food she had helped to rescue from falling just minutes earlier, then she looked at the tray.

The waiter was looking a little shaky and his uniform had some bits of shrimp and caviar splattered on it...The tray was slightly bent, as if it had softened a landing...and the food on it was ruined. She closed her eyes and sighed, "Take 5 and get a spare jacket from the van...but I need you back here in 5, got it?" She opened her eyes to see her waiter nod, and then walk carefully out of the kitchen.

A new tray was prepared complete with caviar. The missing caviar had simply been placed out of sight, thank heaven. Then she sent the waiter back out with the new tray....

((This is something that was sent to me in a private message and I convinced the author to let me post it. ))
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KB TOYS Corporate Headquarters 4:15 Friday, September 16th.

“Sir, a moment of your time?” A sharp dressed young man wearing a charcoal pin striped suit tailored
perfectly, steps half into a glass office marked “Richard Crawlie -President”.

“Tinker Bell?” the only other person in the building dressed in a suit responds in an exasperated voice.

“No Sir, James Lewis”

“I know who you are James, I was there when you married my daughter, but aTinker Bell tie?”

“Yes Sir, and you won’t believe how many other people got to learn my name again today.”

“Ok, got it. So you learned something in that college after all. Close the door, pour us some G&T’s and tell my why you aren’t on a golf course somewhere spending the company's money.”

“Well Sir. Yesterday Tinkr Toy got an invitation to go to a birthday party”

“So, happens all the time. Tinkr Toy loves parties. If you can fit it into his schedule send him along. It’s great publicity, and as I’m sure you learned in your fancy college, publicity is good.”

“Ok boss, Ill set it up then. Guess I’ll just see if I can catch the back nine then”

“Wait a minute you little punk, sit back down. Might I inquire who’s party you felt it was important enough to bust into my office on a Friday afternoon?”

“Well sure Sir, if you think it’s important and all. . . . Alexandre Ivanovich.”
A cream colored invitation gets slid across a glass topped desk.

“Um…I don’t know James, this is a suit and tie formal event, and we’ve never even been able to get Tinkr Toy to wear clothes, let alone a suit. Also, since Ms. Galatea moved on, we haven’t been able to find a spokesman for him, that he doesn’t lose”

“Well boss, I was thinking we could confiscate his invisibility cloak just for this event. Heck he won’t need it. We want him to be seen there.”

Richard Crawlie blinks for a minute then smiles.

“What’s so funny boss?” James responds knowing he’s not in on some joke.

“James. . . Son, let me explain something to you. We make toys here at KB TOYS. As a matter of fact, we even have the number two selling action figure of all time on the market in the form of Tinkr Toy.”

“Yes Sir, I’m well aware of that?”

“Do you really think we invented an invisibility cloak, a floating targeting drone, and miniature jet boots, not to mention tiny little caltrops that giant robots say ouch when they step on?”

“Um…. Well Sir…he has them, so I kind of assumed…”


Laughter can be heard outside Richard Crawlie office for at least 200’

“Let me explain how this works. Marketing comes up with some new gadget that they think will sell as an accessory. They make it and show it to Tinkr Toy just to make sure he wants it. Then a few weeks later they give him a prototype for him to test before all the Tinkr Toy action figures get one. If, and we have no idea how, or why, the new high tech gizmo works for him, we go into production, and we sell the “All New Tinkr Toy with X.”

“You mean those things don’t work? . . . Then, how does he do that stuff?

“We don’t know. We just know that sometimes he can make a solid chunk of plastic that looks like a ray gun, actually shoot disintegrating rays. But, enough for tonight. I have made up my mind. Tinkr Toy will unfortunately not be able to attend the party. Please send our regards to Alexandre Ivanovich, and also, make sure Tinkr Toy will be patrolling that night. We don’t know how many heroes will be tied up at this affair, and it might get ugly out there. Oh, and one more thing. Take off that tie."

The caterer thought she was holding up pretty well all things considered. She had several different serving locations with differently themed foods in each, two kitchens and a wet bar to run and all the emergencies so far had been minor. The blinis were the best her kitchen had ever turned out tonight and it looked like a packed house so if the party continued well her reputation might be made.

And then someone asked about the ice carving.

She didn't HAVE an ice carving out there tonight. She had meant to have one. They were elegant and popular and had almost become mandatory for a party like this. However a rival catering outfit had poached her carver away and she hadn't been willing to use an unknown talent. This had been disaster number one. It had been fortunate that Mr. Ivanovitch hadn't specified an ice carving in the contract...possibly because of all the real statuary in the house and garden.

The man speaking to her was gushing about the quality of the ice carving, the detail, the texture. The caterer made a mental note to find time to seek this marvel out sometime between putting out fires in the kitchen and squabbles amongst the staff. She thanked the man for his compliment and before she could try to pry the location of the carving out of him without giving herself away, she saw a server almost lose a tray...She quickly caught and steadied the edge of the heavily loaded tray that the passing server had been about to drop. The sweating server got the tray under control and then the caterer heard her name being called again to deal with a shortage of caviar.

Alexandre Ivanovitch took one more walk around the garden before his guests arrived. Everything looked to be in order for the party. The caterers were set up. He could hear the musicians tuning their instuments and running over bits of songs. The old fashioned streetlamps used to light the garden glowed like multiple small moons across the grassy lawn and in the carefully manicured "woods." He strolled slowly down the path examining everything, looking for anything that might be out of place, and then he came to the clearing.

It had been his destination all along, actually. He looked at the statue in the grassy clearing. There were statues all over the garden, but this one was different. This one could almost be a real girl frozen in mid step, looking over her shoulder. She appeared to be somewhere around 17 or 18 years old, and she was dressed in a very old fashioned Russian festival gown. He touched the cold stone, ran his fingers over the sleeve of her dress. Then he stepped back and looked at her again. He could see why his father had insisted on acquiring it, on sending it over to America. The art historians that had looked at it thought it modern...and possibly not even stone. The other statues in the garden were classical Greek or Roman nymphs and nyads. Their marble showed the wear of centuries, of their travel from the gardens of the Mediteranean to this garden in Paragon City, but this one...this one statue's icy white stone showed no wear at all, though Alex's father had insisted that the statue was nearly 200 years old. The brocade design on her gown could be traced. The texture of her skin...

"Alex! There you are darling!" The voice of his latest conquest rang out in the clearing, and he snatched his hand back from the statue, and then turned to meet the woman aproaching. He admired the gold dress that showed off her form, then his eyes slid up to her hair, her face. Finally he shifted his attention to what she was saying, "...and we were all wondering where you had got to."

He threw his arms out wide and said, "Well, you found me. Let's go back in before people start arriving." He took her hand and tucked it securely into the corner of his arm. Together they walked back up the path to the house, leaving the statue alone in the clearing...frozen in midstride as if she were fleeing something or someone...looking over her shoulder....

[ QUOTE ]
((This thread is getting so cool. I wonder what all is going to happen at the actual party?))

[/ QUOTE ]

((You are all incredible...and all I put out so far was an invitation. I am speechless.))

((For those inclined to dig for information, I'll try to get back to you soon.))

((OPEN ROLEPLAY))

<a crisp cream colored envelope with this invitation inside>


Alexandre Ivanovich

invites you to celebrate his birthday with him

on Friday the twenty-third of September

two thousand and five

at seven o'clock in the evening

at his residence at 1256 Founder's Street

Paragon City, Rhode Island






((You get to pick whether your character or NPC would be invited or not, either as a hero or as a civilian. Invitations to Heroes whose public personas have no known address might get to you through Freedom Corps, as I imagine they have ways of finding you, or calling you to pick something up...))

((Alexandre Ivanovitch is new to the city, about to turn 27 years old, and his father supposedly made a lot of money doing something in Russia(Industrialist?Import/Export?). Alex has just finished setting up his house and he spent a large amount of cash setting things up the way he wanted. He hired a decorator for the house, and the garden is very large with formal courtyards in the front and back of the house, and "woods" with clearings and paths beyond. There are marble statues that mostly appear to be Roman or Greek in the garden and in the house. ))

((Alexandre Ivonovitch's goal seems to be to make a big splash in Paragon City, and in Paragon City at least, heroes are celebrities, therefore his party would not be complete without at least a few big names, if he can get them to come...))

((He's cast a wide net, invited a large number of folks, and is prepared to feed an army very well. There will be a variety of foods available in different rooms of the house and in the main courtyard of the garden. There will be a small orchestra playing in the large front garden courtyard, and a DJ and dancing available in the back garden courtyard. The house is large enough that the different music sources will not interfere with one another.))

~edit~((This is a story thread...as I am not actually planning to have the event in game, though individuals are as always encouraged to RP scenes as they wish to.))

Shae pronounced the last line of the spell, and listened to it resonate. Then the air seemed to shimmer in the center of the circle. She heard a rumbling like the sound of a thunderstorm aproaching, and the air grew heavy with static electricity. A large glowing green figure appeared in the center of the protective runes.

Shae bowed to the figure and said carefully, "I greet you."

The Lord of Destruction and Chaos returned her greeting calmly, "Greetings, Djinn."

Shae began to relax slightly. Although it wasn't comfortable being only a few feet away from a being that felt magically very similar to a large and very powerful thunderstorm, he seemed benign at the moment,"I hope my request did not inconvenience you,"

"Inconvenience is not a concern for this one." He continued, "Your suplications shall be heard. You are favored among the Lords."

Shae Firewarder blinked. She did not think she had asked for anything yet...

He continued, "You would know the location of my former host's mortal remains."

Shae Firewarder answered, "I would. I would have his human body returned to him if it is possible to do so." Shae could feel the energies barely contained within him shift as he considered her request.

Eventually, the storm energies subsided and the being answered her, "The human entity... Roy.... must find his magic. He believes it dead. He has ceased believing in anything he cannot touch."

Shae Firewarder murmered," Ah," and considered his answer carefully.

"When he finds his magic, he will find his mortal body. Albeit, it was grievously wounded."

"A sniper shot can do that..." Shae said, regretting once more that she had left the sniper alive. She sighed, and then said, "Is it healed enough to survive now? "

"It has been months, perhaps years in the other place.Time is not a concern of this one anymore. Perhaps it will survive. The robot form is stronger..."

Shae commented, "The robot form was made to be stronger than a human body, physically."

"He will survive indefinitely in the robot form. As a human, he has no such promise."

"Usually, I am more concerned with the soul, however." Shae said.

The figure said consideringly, "The soul..."

Shae Firewarder continued, "Destroying the body...that was meant to weaken him...was it not?"

"Yes." he answered then seemed to change the subject slightly,"I gave him over to the Dream Bringer. It seems that other mortals have interfered with the Dream Bringer's plan for him. I only instructed that he should be made happy."

"I had heard that he was in Dream...but I did not expect him to stay. Happiness..." She paused, thinking.

"Yes. I fear he would not be happy, given the choice. It is no wonder Lord Strife smiled upon him."

"It is something that cannot be imposed on another I believe," Shae said.

"Yes, quite," he agreed. Then he looked at her seriously, " Know you this also, Shae Firewarder... Many there are among the Lords who resent the... ...alterations I forced to their plan."

Shae Firewarder nodded, " I expected that even the small distractions that I managed would displease someone powerful. "

"Yes. It seems that the leanings of the Lords may soon veer away from giving favor to the champions of this world. The balance of Order and Chaos has not been served by the actions of mortals, no matter how well-meaning." His eyes seemed to bore a hole in Shae as he warned her," If you cast your lot with them, Shae Firewarder, you may well lose favor also."

"I can only do what I must," she said," I act according to my nature. Whether that wins me favor, or disfavor, only time will tell. I thank you for your warning.""

The Lord of Chaos and Destruction nodded, "Know one thing more, Shae Firewarder...I have not forgotten all that I learned from sharing Roy Kirby's sentience. I have not forgotten the meaning of the word... Friend."

" If you consider me such, then I am honored," she bowed her head.

He looked at her for a long moment, " There is one more favor I may grant you..."

"A favor?" She looked up at him.

"Step closer Shae Firewarder..."

Shae Firewarder looked at him...then stepped slowly closer, careful not to smudge the protective runes. She felt very nervous, being this close to a being of chaos, however well intentioned it might be.

"This is not done as an act of the Lord of Chaos Destroyer... This is an ability I became aware of when I was called HEROID..." The Lord transmuted the toxins that he had seen in Shae's system to harmless minerals that her body could dispose of, "If I had known of this ability sooner...the mortal body of Roy Kirby need never have left this realm." Shae Firewarder felt a slight change, as the being pronounced, "You shall again attain balance, Shae Firewarder."

Shae Firewarder felt something shift inside her, and suddenly felt more...grounded. Something that had been slightly askew had been shifted back into place. She asked, "What was that?"

"There were... toxins in you system. You have enemies, Shae Firewarder. And some of them still find favor in the Infinite."

Shae felt her magic shift slightly as her body adjusted to the change in her.

The Lord of Chaos and Destruction smiled almost imperceptibly.

Shae said humbly, "I thank you again."

"You have the pebble?"

Shae Firewarder looks down at the ground at the center of the spell circle, " I used it as the link to send the invitation. "

"And it is now no longer?"

Shae Firewarder smiled, "It was at the center of the circle, therefore if it exists, you may be standing on it."

He lifted a foot and looked down, "Ah."

"It is yours to do as you wish," Shae said, "I was pleased to be it's carrier for a short while."


He reached down, picked it up. examined it. "Such a small thing... Well...I have no use for it. See to it that it remains safe, for you may need to call upon me again... ...or I, you."

He looked at her again, "Farewell, Shae Firewarder," Then he said softly," I shall miss the mortals."

Shae Firewarder: "Farewell Lord"

The Lord of Chaos and Destruction faded to a subtle green glow...and then vanished, leaving a green pebble where he had stood.

Shae Firewarder picked up the pebble and tucked it carefully away

Meanwhile...


In a deserted spot somewhere...

Shae finished drawing the last rune, and took a deep breath. She looked over the spell diagram and then stepped carefully to the center of it before her courage failed. She set the pebble in the center, where the being summoned would be most protected, and then stepped back to her place.

She felt exposed. The one she summoned would be more protected than she, here, but that was the way a djinn of her kind summoned...or rather invited.

Shae began the spell, carefully enunciating the words, inviting the one who had been the Gem entity, who had been the pebble in the protected center of the diagram, to come and speak with her here...

Shae had stopped by Steel Butterfly's workshop to pick up something she needed for a spell. When Steel Butterfly told her what she needed to finish the robot repairs and get it running, and who would likely have it, Shae had called in a friend who knew the inside of Crey's computers better than Crey did themselves. Together they had hacked into the Crey inventory database and found the location of the last piece Steel Butterfly had needed...the one physical component that had been missing.

A power source. One developed from Doc Werner's research. Crey had all of his notes on HEROID's original powersource as well, and had started to synthesize them. One of those powersources...well...maybe just one...was going to be coming home with Steel Butterfly.

Then they had parted ways.

Shae had taken the pebble that she had retrieved from Dream; She was heading off somewhere private to cast a spell. Before her courage failed her, she had said.

Steel Butterfly had headed off to raid a lab.



-------------




Much later she had returned to the workshop, exhausted, battered and bruised...but triumphant and holding two of the powersources.

One, she installed immediately in the red and white robot shell. She closed the panel carefully and waited...and then sighed. She kept expecting him to move, and he didn't. She felt the weight of the day's battles suddenly descend on her, and she stumbled up the stairs and fell into the hammock. She was asleep before her eyes closed.

-------------------------


Steel Butterfly stumbled down the stairs rubbing the sleep from her eyes...she'd been asleep...an hour? Not enough to recharge...but she'd had a dream...that she could barely recall, and now she needed to check on HEROID again...she couldn't really remember why. The dream was fading fast.

She opened the panel to check the powersource, and then ran her hand over the red and white metal, tracing the signatures and running her fingers over the little gold phoenix.

"Roy...Where-ever you are...you have a place to come back to...if you want it...I know it isn't a human body...but it's the best I could do...."

She sighed and rubbed her eyes. Trying to remember the dream.

Steel Butterfly, sometimes called Jenna...or Steely...walked down the stairs from the platform that was her bedroom to the darkened workshop below. She hopped up on the workshop table and sat with her head on her knees looking at the gleaming red and white robot.

"Well..." she started, and stopped uncertainly.

" I don't know if you can hear me wherever you are...in Dream..." she looked at the still figure, and sighed.

" I haven't slept for more than just a nap since you ...well, since I brought you here to work on. I couldn't sit still I had to keep my brain moving or I might think...uncomfortable things."

" I went to the park today, after I finished putting you...the body back together. I guess I had been hoping for you to just wake up or something. Or I was still trying to not face the possibility of you not coming back. Sitting here and staring at ...you...and you not moving...I couldn't face it so I left for a bit." She chewed her lip a moment and looked at the moon just showing through one of the high windows.

"I talked to someone there about Dream...he was wondering why we were all so fired up to get you out of what he considered to be a lovely place...his home..more logical to him than here. I can't fault him on the logic part. Gemini was strange tonight...."She smiled a little, remembering the conversation, and then she grew thoughtful again.

"And I met your son...."

"He's a cute boy. The resemblance between you two isn't just the physical...or the enhancements that Doc made for him to replace his arms and legs. Someday I expect to hear that story, one way or another...."she paused. "He's on the right track already. You'd be proud of him. You might be worried, too, though, since he isn't going back to Georgia. and, he watches too much TV..."she smiled in spite of herself. " I hope you'd approve...I gave him one of the communicators for the supergoup, and the badge. Hopefully you don't think I am encouraging him to get into something dangerous. I think he was already planning the dangerous part...he is taking after you already...and I figured that "The Other Guys" could be part of his safety net..."

"He could use a Dad though..." She blinked and rubbed her eyes, "And I could use my friend back...if you decide to leave whatever sweet dream you are having up there..."

She looked at the robot one last time, and then she headed back up the stairs to go to bed.

Shae had warded the workshop first. She didn't need any stray magic interfering, or anyone interfering on purpose....

Then Steel Butterfly and Shae moved a few things around in the workshop to clear a large open space.

When the room was arranged to Shae's specifications, they moved the original, damaged breastplate to the center of the cleared area, and Shae began to draw on the floor of the workshop. Steel Butterfly watched for a short while but realised that she wasn't going to be able to stand still long enough to stay out of Shae's way without something to occupy herself. So, she grabbed the one robot arm that had not been reattached yet, and carried the heavy object carefully upstairs to tune it up and polish it where she didn't have to watch and her fidgeting would not interfere with Shae's work.
---------------
Later...

"You can come down now," Shae poked her head over the edge of the platform and smiled at Steel Butterfly.

Steel Butterfly climbed down the stairs as Shae finished sweeping up the last of the chalk. The breastplate was still on the ground where the center of the spell circle had been, and she knelt down to look at it. It was pristeen...except for the signatures...and a small drawing of a phoenix in gold under the right arm...it almost looked like gold wire embedded in the titanium of the breastplate..

Shae noticed her looking at it, " Well, I was preserving all the signatures for him...and, I couldn't resist adding my own mark, as well."

Steel Butterfly ran her finger over it lightly, "It's pretty...is it symbolic?" Her fingers tingled very slightly after she pulled her hand away from the breastplate.

Shae nodded, "Very...The phoenix is a creature of fire, of course...but it is also symbolic of rebirth." Shae looked distant for a moment, " I chose to start using the symbol at a time in my life when I was coming back from the ashes...it is a hopeful symbol. Something I try not to lose sight of." She looked back at Steel Butterfly and smiled. " I am feeling a bit more hopeful today..."

Steel Butterfly opened the door and let Shae in.

Shae stepped into the workshop and looked around. She could smell the machinery and the metal, but no dust. The sunlight from the high windows shone on the polished metal of the machines, and on a very large, nearly assembled red and white robot. On a table near the robot was a board she recognised. It was the board meant to hold a soul: the one that she and Steel Butterfly had modified to also hold a certain green pebble that Shae had found in Dream...The board that they had used to return a player to the game that the Lord of Chaos thought he had destroyed...

When she had seen it last, the robot shell had been dented and pierced, and the board had been broken. The board had been repaired...or replaced. The circuitry drawings on the table were intricate, but there was nothing there beyond Steel Butterfly's skill to make.

Steel Butterfly had followed Shae over to the robot. She flipped through the drawings on the table restlessly as Shae examined the robot shell, "Did you learn anything? Did you talk to him?"

"I found the Lord of Dreams, yes," Shae said as she ran her hands over the smooth metal. The breastplate was still not replaced. She could see that the original, damaged one was lying flat on the other table. There was a second breastplate painted to match, but neither had been installed. Shae indicated the two breastplates, "You haven't replaced it..."

Steel Butterfly sighed, " He'd want the signatures...I haven't figured out how to reshape the original and keep them intact."

Shae nodded, "I will need to help you with that, then. It will take a bit of magic to reshape that as well, but it will not destroy the autographs..." She tapped her fingers on the metal thoughtfully...

Steel Butterfly looked at Shae, "And? What did he say?"

"Lord Morpheous says that the Gem entity was the one that Ascended, and the Lord of Chaos became his broken wheel of destruction...It wasn't exactly the way the players of the game planned it, but, it will be better for those of us still on the gameboard..."

Shae heard Steel Butterfly shift restlessly, and continued before she asked again," And Roy is in Dream." Shae looked up and met Jenna's eyes.

"In Dream? Does that mean he isn't dead or is?"

"Hm....well, the Lord of Dreams seems to think he has earned a final reward of sorts..."

"Final...?"

"I suspect that Roy may yet overturn a plan or two...but that isn't up to me..." She looked at Jenna. "I would like to keep all his options available for choosing...so, I'd like to take a look at that breastplate and see what a bit of magic can do?"

Jonah watched Steel Butterfly as she examined the diagrams. He could tell she was upset, and hiding it.

She was usually busy taking something apart or putting something together; she was always excited about how things worked, but, ever since she had brought that robot back to the workshop...It was obvious to Jonah that she was trying to keep from thinking about something, or feeling something.

He had recognised Heroid from the pizza ads on TV when the truck delivered him. He had almost asked Steel Butterfly, or Jenna as she sometimes let him call her, what he was doing here, but then he had gotten a look at her face. He'd bitten his tongue and stayed in the background, just watching, and occasionally moving a tool to a more convenient place or putting food in her way so she might possibly eat something. He hadn't meant to get attached to the girl, but he found himself worrying about her, almost like a daughter.

There had been some people here from Georgia yesterday...a Ma and Pa Kirby. They were apparently Heroid's parents, though Jonah hadn't figured out exactly how they had become the parents of a robot. They had brought a huge box of notes and technical data from a Doctor Werner, along with his apologies for not being able to come himself. Jenna hadn't known what to do with either of Heroid's parents. Pa Kirby had looked so devastated that he could hardly function, and Ma Kirby obviously didn't really believe that Heroid was dead. Between them Jenna had looked so trapped that Jonah had had no choice but to take them both off to his tiny apartment and serve them coffee and listen to them until they finally went home to Georgia.

He was happy he hadn't let them come back to the workshop for "just one more look" when he got back there himself. Jenna had thrown herself into working to distract herself, and she was obviously set on repairing the robot. In the time he had been gone she had somehow managed to completely disassemble Heroid and she was so wrapped up in the project he thought she might not even notice a Rikti invasion.

He knew she could work mechanical miracles. He bounced a little on his "feet." She had made the "feet" for him a couple months ago. When they had met, he had been stuck in a wheelchair...or rather would have been in a wheelchair if the clockwork hadn't stolen the chair itself to make more cogs. She had rescued him from the clocks and then had bartered for the use of the workshop. It was a bargain he had never regretted. The "feet" though...she had just presented them to him when she finished them. She had made them, as far as he could tell, because the challenge of getting something like that to work properly was "fun" for her. It had been a puzzle to get the balance right, and the fit. Now he could use his own machines again, without worrying about making any special modifications for his disability.

Jonah watched Steel Butterfly as she reassembled the huge robot, piece by piece...

Now she was trying to work another miracle.

This time the city had called Steel Butterfly rather than try to move the 900 pound robot to the impound yard...

...and Steel Butterfly had called Shae Firewarder, since she wasn't sure she could handle seeing him there ...or moving him.


--------------


Steel Butterfly chewed her lip absently as Shae cast a spell to cause the ground under Heroid's body to become slippery. The movers Shae had hired pulled on the ropes they had tied to him, and they maneuvered the battered robot body carefully out the door of the arena to the truck. Steel Butterfly gave the driver the address of her King's Row workshop and then she watched them drive away down the road.

Shae sighed, and turned to Steel Butterfly, "Would you fix him...the body up, please? The board...if you would repair that in particular...."She trailed off, noticing the distant look in Steel Butterfly's eyes.

Steel Butterfly pulled herself back with an effort, "Hm? Yes...You didn't feel that...thing in there did you? When you were checking him?"

"There was a magical residue...of that...but that is not in there."Shae tapped her fingers thoughtfully on her thigh. "There are things I need to look for...a few questions I need to ask. Fix the body up...please...just in case...and I will contact you with what I learn."

Steel Butterfly nodded and looked away again. Her mind was already wrapped around the problem of machining the replacement parts...powering up the board...that particular board that was meant to hold a soul. She couldn't think of Roy as dead. There wasn't room in her head to think of him as dead. If she filled her mind with technical diagrams and the logistics of the repair work she wouldn't have to think of missing him...of never hearing his voice calling her Steely again.

Shae watched the tears slowly drip down Steel Butterfly's cheek and then looked away.

Steel Butterfly looked at the modified board in her hands. She held it so the morning sunlight could shine along the little metal pathways and spark off the chips. It could be her imagination, but it seemed to feel different now.

Shae Firewarder had showed up at Steel Butterfly's workshop and asked to see the board again. They had talked for hours about circuits, and about magic, trading information and ideas till Steely's head felt like it would explode.

Then they had modified the board, together.

Steel Butterfly didn't think what she was feeling right now was hope..nor was it resignation. She almost felt ...serene?

The die was cast.

Now she had to find Heroid before the wheel turned again.

She had sent the young woman home, hoping that no one had seen her come. Shae knew that her Founders' Falls apartment was being watched by Crey and hoped that Steel Butterfly hadn't brought more trouble on herself by finding her here. However, she understood why she had come. Roy needed help and she only hoped that what she was about to try would give him some breathing room at least.

Shae drew the lines carefully across her floor with the white quartz sand. She stepped to the center of her elaborately drawn labyrinth and sat down, closing her eyes.

The labyrinth was one that a firebird had shown her once, long ago. The maze had belonged to the Koschei. It was a Russian monster, often called the Koschei the deathless. She was hoping that the pattern that the firebird had shown her could prove useful here.

She stepped into Dream and went looking for Roy...


She didn't find him. She found someone else entirely.



----------------------------


She didn't recognise it at first, and that cost her a moment of time.

It did recognise her. Shae was struck down, her hands closing convulsively on the "ground" in the dreamscape. She levered herself upright as fast as she could, and barely dodged its next blow. The Lord of Chaos was readying another attack, and from the darkness gathering around its hands she thought she would rather not find out what that would do to her.

Now that she had its attention, she ran.

She led her pursuer to the maze that she had set up and mentally kept count in her mind. One right, one left, skip a turning and then one left and one right. Two rights and a left, skip one and then two lefts and one right. Three rights and a left, skip a turning and then three lefts and one right....

Hopefully the chaotic nature of the demon following her would hide the patterning from it. Hopefully she could get far enough ahead that she could lose it, and not have it follow her out.

Hopefully it lost track of time as well as she had planned it to, and didn't just rip the maze apart...

It wasn't a permanent solution, but, as long as it was chasing shadows through her elaborate slightly time warped dream maze, it was not damaging Roy further.



----------------------------



She reached the center of the maze alone. Pausing to catch her breath, she looked down at her hands. Her hands were bloody from when she had caught herself after the Lord of Chaos had struck her to the ground, and there was gravel caught in her sleeve.

No, not gravel...a pebble.

A small green pebble.

Shae turned it over in her hands thoughtfully...

Steel Butterfly hated being intimidated. She looked out at the water in an undisclosed location and rubbed her fingers over her short green dreadlocks. She had been pretty certain the situation was beyond her depth before, and that was with Heroid pretty much as himself. The thing he had just turned into in Talos when she had finally convinced Roy that his memories had been messed with had scared her silly. She wasn't a very mystical minded person; she didn't understand magic and that tended to make her uncomfortable. However, she thought she could recognise a demon when her friend turned into one...

She had tried to cover it with bravado, of course, but sticking her tongue out at a demon thing and then running looked pretty darn silly to her in retrospect. Well, the sticking out her tongue part looked silly. The running still seemed sensible. Now, though, she had to figure out what to do next.

Well...the logical thing would be to find someone who would be at home with the magical stuff. Roy had mentioned a woman named Shae Firewarder. Perhaps she would have a few ideas about what to do about the Roy/not Roy thing.

Shae clicked on the link in the email. What had her hacker friend decided to point her at this time? Usually he was looking at computer toys that he might want as payment, or news stories he thought she might have an interest in.

She looked at the ebay auction that appeared on her screen....and then looked closer.

Photographs...of Ireland love fighting Heroid. Shae looked closer and recognised the green form of Heroid when Roy was not the being in control of himself....

She could use those pictures.

She clicked, "buy now."

Once she had arranged the purchase, she set about getting access to Joe Reed.

Steel Butterfly stared at the set of schematics in front of her, then she ran her fingers over her short purple dreadlocks and looked around the room. From where she was she could look down on all the machines she had put back together for Jonah as part of her "rent" for staying here. The other part of her rent was her efforts in keeping the clockworks out. Her traps and eradication efforts had kept the entire block clockwork free for a while now and the machine shop had taken on a number of homey touches...since that was what it was...her home.

She was sitting in the corner of the warehouse that she had made her own. She had built a platform up above the machines to use as her "livingroom." The platform was solid; she'd found an old church that was being demolished and had managed to purchase the old wooden beams and floors for a song. She'd had fun installing the beams and the wood floors, and polishing them. In the sunlight the old oak fairly glowed.

The light was good up here as the light from the Northern set of windows streamed in over her shoulders and over the denim hammock and wooden bookcases she had installed. It also lit the drawings in front of her on her drafting table far too clearly. She sighed. The drawings were beautiful, in a way. They were detailed, incredibly detailed...as she would imagine anything intended to do with a human soul might be...

Her mind turned back to the day before when Heroid had given the drawings to her...

She had run into him in Galaxy city near the park there. He had been in amazingly good shape; the metal and paint polished and gleaming, and no sounds of wear or signs of damage on him. But then he had asked her for a favor...

He had given her a set of schematics and a circuitboard, and said, "I got these from th' bunker me an' th' doc had in Boomtown... It's fer th' Newmotronic... It's fer th' motherboard that holds my... ...soul 'r whatever..."

She had blinked. Though she worked with machines all the time it hadn't really occurred to her to wonder how her friend had managed to be a machine with a soul....

"This circuit board here... It wuz in a box labelled, 'HEROID failsafe'. I uh... I want ya ta look at these plans... An' this board..."

She had nodded, thinking only of the drawings...the things she might learn from something so unique and then..

Heroid had continued to speak, "See if it would shut me down permanent-like. An' if it would..."

Steel Butterfly had felt time stop a moment. She couldn't have heard that, "Permanent? ..."

"I want ya ta install it with a switch t' activate it."

Steel Butterfly had stared at him.

He had looked back at her, "It's fer a reason..."

She had managed to ask," ......why?"

"Because." then he'd stopped, "Yer mortal an' I can't tell ya th' because. I just need it done."

Steel Butterfly suddenly realised just how out of her depth she was, adrift in the black depths of something dark and dangerous.

"I ain't gonna off myself... Not unless it comes ta it. Just......take a look at it. Lemme know if it's what I think it is."

Steel Butterfly:" ...ok. I'll look at it...and I'll see if it is meant to do that."

"Thanks. Yer a real friend." He'd said, and she could almost see him smile.

She had taken the drawings and the board, and sighed.

"It'll be all right, Steely. I won't need it. It's a... ...a just in case."

Steel Butterfly had found herself filling in the term, "A failsafe, the contingency you hope you don't have to use. I'll look at it."

"Yeah. Thanks.One other thing..."

Steel Butterfly: "Yeah?"

"I want a switch I can activate... An' I want a remote control....Just in case."

Steel Butterfly: "a remote?"

"Yeah. In case somethin' keeps me from throwin' th' switch myself." Heroid had looked at her steadily, "Look... I'll be honest with ya... I got some... ...issues. Sometimes lately I ain't been in charge o' my own self. If it happens again, an' I can't stop myself... ...somebody's gotta. I ain't askin' ya t' push th' button... ...only ta make th' button."

Steel Butterfly had looked down at the drawings and the board.

Distantly, she had heard him say, "I got somebody that'll push it, I'm pretty sure."

Steel Butterfly had said quietly, "ok" She had looked up in time to see Heroid nod, and then she continued softly, "Then I guess I had better go look this over."

"Thanks, Steely. Ya don't know how much this means ta me."

She had left him then, and carried the package back to the workshop. The drawings were intricate...they were beautiful...like an angel of death. She could almost feel the wings beating near. She wanted to throw something...she realised she was hoping to startle the dark wings away, like crows hovering near...

[ QUOTE ]
I was wondering if some of you who have long stories for their characters have run them over with anyone else or just wrote it and thats that.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sometimes I run them by someone else before posting them.

The times when I definitely have someone else read my stories before posting is when I am using someone else's character in a story of mine. I don't post things like that without consulting with the player of the other character first. They always get veto rights, and I want to know if the dialog is right as well.

I also save them in a word proccessing program instead of just writing on the board.

((a portion of an RP in game that I just had to share...))

Shae Firewarder: Hello
HEROID: Hiya, Shae.
HEROID: Nice cap.
Shae Firewarder: How have you been?
HEROID: Works fer ya.
Shae Firewarder: Thank you . i got it today at the game
HEROID: Game?
Shae Firewarder: A friend felt it was neccessary for me to go see a baseball game. <smiles>
HEROID: Really?
Shae Firewarder: So...he took me over to New York to see a game there...
HEROID: Wow!
HEROID: Geez!
HEROID: Yankee Stadium!
Shae Firewarder: New York Mets versus the Los angeles Dodgers....
HEROID: Oh...
HEROID: Shea...
HEROID: Shea...?
HEROID: Heheheh.
Shae Firewarder: Yes...somehow he found that amusing...<grins>
HEROID: Heheheh.
HEROID: An' who wuz ya pullin' fer?
Shae Firewarder: I think he said the other new york team was playing in California this week
HEROID: Ah.
HEROID: Ain't looked at th' schedule in a week 'r two.
Shae Firewarder: He bought me a Mets cap...and jersey....and insisted that I try the hotdogs and beer....
Shae Firewarder: To get the full experience...
HEROID: Yeah, ain't nothin' like it.
Shae Firewarder: You sound better....
HEROID: Oh. Yeah. I'm much better.
HEROID: I... we...
HEROID: We decided ta work t'gether an' keep th' other one in check.
Shae Firewarder nods
HEROID: Ma an' th' jewel ennity, that is.
HEROID: Still can feel th'... bad one... tryin' t' come out sometimes...
HEROID: But it's more like...
HEROID: I dunno...
HEROID: It's like he's kickin' around but can't get out.
Shae Firewarder: I hope that he cannot.
HEROID: Like a baby kinda...
Shae Firewarder: ah
HEROID: Ah?
HEROID: Glad ya unnerstood that, cause I didn't...
HEROID: I think some weird [censored] sometimes now...
HEROID: Like "strings"...
HEROID: Everything is made o' strings...
Shae Firewarder: strings...<thinks a minute>
Shae Firewarder: ahm...not like yarn, strings...but the physics term?
HEROID: Yeah...
HEROID: But like th' yarn thing too...
Shae Firewarder: Connected.
HEROID: If ya pass a thread through layers o' cloth, they're all connected...
HEROID: But they're still separate layers o' cloth...
HEROID: But if ya travel on that thread, ya travel from layer ta layer...
HEROID: An' that's how portals work...
HEROID: Ya find th' right string...
Shae Firewarder nods
HEROID: I wouldn't 've never knowed that on my own...
Shae Firewarder: In this universe, that is more common knowledge for physics proffessors rather than the people you usually run into
HEROID: Yeah.
HEROID: An' I ain't never been accused o' bein' a perfesser.
Shae Firewarder: I know it partly because...it fits with how I got here too...and there are magic theories that operate similarly
HEROID: Yeah. Physics an' magic 're kinda alike when ya get down ta quantum levels...
HEROID: Geez...
Shae Firewarder: Yes
HEROID: I don't even know what I just said.
Shae Firewarder smiles
Shae Firewarder: I think you will...
HEROID: Heheh...
HEROID: Yeah.
HEROID: Maybe go t' college an' get my P.D.A.
Shae Firewarder: I think i heard someone say that sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
HEROID: Yeah... It wuz Sigitir th'...
HEROID: No...
HEROID: Wait...
HEROID: He said it but in another universe...
Shae Firewarder: hm.
HEROID: I might have ta maybe focus a little t' keep my thoughts in this universe...
Shae Firewarder: That is...a problam I do not have, and i am thankful for it...
HEROID nods.
HEROID: Yeah, well...
HEROID: My mind might be in two universes, but yer heart is...
Shae Firewarder nods and looks down<most perceptive lately>
HEROID: Is it hard ta live in this mundane universe when the one ya come from must be so much more than this?
Shae Firewarder: It isn't mundane
HEROID: Compared ta where ya come from?
Shae Firewarder: It is different...
HEROID nods...
Shae Firewarder: What seems exotic to soemone depends on where they came from originally
HEROID: Yeah...
Shae Firewarder: To me...a baseball game is exotic and strange...
HEROID: Oh... It is ta me too!
HEROID: It's like...
HEROID: It's like th' whole o' life compressed inta nine innin's...
HEROID: Sometimes ya gotta play yer part in th' bigger picture...
HEROID: But sometimes...
Shae Firewarder: I have not learned the game's rules well enough to see that...
HEROID: Bottom o' th' ninth...
HEROID: Down by one...
HEROID: A guy on third...
HEROID: An' th' bat's in yer hand...
HEROID: It's just you an' th' pitcher...
Shae Firewarder blinks
HEROID: It's not a team sport right then...
HEROID: If ya lose... yer th' one who didn't hit th' ball...
HEROID: If ya win, it's th' guy on third who scores...
HEROID: It's like real life...
HEROID: Ya think we're all in it t'gether...
HEROID: But sometimes, it all gets put on yer shoulders...
HEROID: An' ya better get a hit.
Shae Firewarder says softly, "that is true"
HEROID: It's a deep game...
HEROID: Right up yer alley, really.
HEROID: Curses an' lucky bats...
Shae Firewarder smiles
HEROID: More magic than science in baseball.

((Only a portion. I may post the rest. Or not. I'm tired now and I'll think on that tomorrow.))

Shae hadn't followed Joe Reed. It wasn't her specialty. It was Thomas's. His ability to blend into any crowd or to vanish in the shadows was very handy in a place like Paragon City. It was also very handy for following someone like Joe Reed. Shae had been hoping to acquire information by talking to Joe. However, part of the information she wanted was the information she knew he wouldn't tell her...not in words. However, by talking to him, asking questions, and spooking him a bit, she might be able to learn who he was working for. That was the reason that Thomas was following him after Shae left. Thomas would follow, and listen, and perhaps he would acquire a few more pieces of the puzzle...

He had blended into the scenery at the tram station. Just one more faceless commuter. He had blended in so well, that Joe hadn't even glanced at him twice. However, he hadn't had a chance to change clothes from the outfit he had used to blend in at the tram station while he had been following Joe Reed down here. He'd never pass himself off as a dockworker in the neat jacket, T-shirt and jeans, so, right now Thomas was pretending to be a shadow. Just a drainpipe along the side of the bar's brick wall...

This shadow happened to be watching Joe Reed, who happened to be waiting in an alleyway outside a bar called the Wharf Rat. The shadow watched him bring the cigarette to his face. Joe inhaled, and the tip of his cigarette illuminated his narrow, hard, face. Then he lowered the cigarette and stared at a door...waiting. The shadow, however, was more intrigued by the way the uniform jacket moved...or didn't move...over a certain spot. Thomas knew a bit about holdouts and concealed weapons. His quarry tonight didn't seem to know much about hiding that gun though, as his every move betrayed it's presence...and the fact that Joe was considering using it.

A blonde woman stepped out of the bar. She moved like a dancer, even though she was obviously tired. Probably she was an employee, a waitress, and had just finished her shift. Joe Reed tossed the cigarette down and stepped on it before he moved out of the shadows of the alleyway towards her.

Thomas slipped silently closer to keep Joe in sight. He watched the two greet each other, but something was slightly...off. He found he was still thinking about that gun and who Joe might have planned to use it on. He needed to get closer. He wasn't even close enough to hear, let alone intervene...yet. But he dare not reveal his presence either. He concentrated on closing the distance as rapidly as he dared while still blending with the shadows. The two were arguing now. Apparently the man wanted to leave town. That seemed like a sensible thought considering the half of a phone conversation that Thomas had overheard earlier. The woman was refusing to go, however.

Joe pulled the gun suddenly, and the woman seemed frozen in place. She would have been an easy target. Point blank range and still staring at Joe in disbelief. As he was pulling back the trigger, however, a part of the building's shadow seemed to detatch itself and a fist struck Joe Reed in the face. The gun went off, the woman screamed, and Joe fell unconscious to the ground.

Thomas made sure that Joe was out cold, and then looked to the blonde woman. She was holding her arm, and blood was seeping from under her fingers. She looked stunned. She looked like she was about to cry.
She said softly, " I can't believe he was going to shoot me."
Thomas looked at her and said carefully, "Pardon me, but, he did shoot you."
"But...he meant to shoot me. How could he shoot me?" and then she broke into tears.

Shae left with more information than she arrived with, but she still wasn't happy. She had a sinking feeling that this sniper was out of her reach. It wasn't that she didn't know who it was. She knew. She had been to the tower at the Ziggurat that the shots had been fired from. It wasn't a crowded place nor an active one. It had not been difficult to sort through the images of recent occurances to find the one image of a figure firing a rifle out at the street. Even without the image, she might have been able to figure out who it was from what Heroid said while he was showing her the tower that the shots had been fired from.

Heroid had said, "I man these towers sometimes. Spend alot o' time here...They ain't got enough guards t' man all th' towers. Crazy. Gotta good friend who works as a guard here...Name o' Joe Reed. He said nobody wuz assigned here that night. Felt real bad about it."

Noone had been assigned, but someone had been in the tower anyway. Someone in a guard uniform, with seargent stripes, and a sniper rifle. Someone who knew about Roy's human form, from drinking coffee with him on breaks. Someone Roy trusted.

Shae's problem was that she could not deal with the sniper the way she was used to. She didn't have sufficient proof for the courts, and even if she did, that wouldn't get her what she needed. She needed the next link in the chain she was following. She wanted to know why someone that Roy trusted would shoot him.

Soon she was going to have to tell Roy about Joe Reed as well. She wasn't looking forward to that. She hated to see someone's trust shattered. She hated that someone that would betray that trust like Joe Reed had could be outside her reach for retribution as well.

Well, outside her reach for now. She could be patient. She had time.

But first to find the next link in the chain...