>>1777967
You are currently Izumi Yayoi, on mission with Miranda Styles, Lorelei Vedder, and your newest recruit, Mono, a young wolf-girl, and at the moment you’re investigating a kidnapping and hostage situation in an abandoned apartment complex- the location had been the last known of two heroic contacts, which had offered assistance in locating your primary target- an insane power thief known as Siphon. Your team had been tasked by the mysterious Night Watch in locating and eliminating him. You’d come close earlier, only for misfortune to strike and allow him to escape.

Afterward, you had all gotten wind of the hostage situation, and had split with Miranda and Lorelei, taking Mono with you as you and she offered to check the situation out. Sadly, while your entry was silent enough, that failed to last long, as Mono’s nerves got the better of her upon contact with the enemy, and you’d been found out. Now, she’s injured, and you’re in a race against time before the hostage takers do something...drastic.

You’d tried the elevators earlier, only to find that they’d been shut down, either a long time ago or as soon as they’d gotten wind of your presence for security. The only thing that makes you happy about that is the fact that it’s unlikely the kidnappers can use them either. The trouble with that, however, is that you’re getting met with more and thicker pockets of resistance. It’s not an entire army, perse, but it’s certainly more individuals than you’d have expected for someone just wanting to trade someone for cash.

There’s something more to this, clearly, but if you don’t catch them...

A quick sniff reveals that you’re getting closer- surprisingly, they hadn’t left immediately. They’re...two floors down, you think. Sad thing is, that only tells you that they were working on something time sensitive and were trying to rush things. Not good in any sense most likely. You need to speed things up somehow…

>Extreme Tension. If speed is key, then with this, they won’t even have time to react.
>Maybe Mono can help do something about this? She’s still nervous and part of why you’re moving like you are.
>You hate taking a page from Miranda’s playbook so liberally, but it might be time for explosions.
>Other

>>1777984
>>You hate taking a page from Miranda’s playbook so liberally, but it might be time for explosions.
They're two floors down so let's just take the shortest route. Maybe mono can mask the sound and damage

>>1777984
>>You hate taking a page from Miranda’s playbook so liberally, but it might be time for explosions.

5 more minutes due to start of thread.

>>1777984
>>Extreme Tension. If speed is key, then with this, they won’t even have time to react.

going with the path of explosives might compromise the hostage or whatever we are trying to protect/get.

Boom boom.

Locked, and writing.

>>1777984
>>1778040
>>1778064
>>1778124
You inwardly sigh. “Mono, prepare yourself.”

She gives you a strange look as you face back to her briefly as you descend the stairs. “Why?”

“Because we’re going to blow some things up.” And hopefully not just cause more issues in the process. She DOES have a rocket launcher, after all...high time it got some usage. As you approach the next corner, you’re quick to peek out, and a flurry of gunfire tells you that they’re waiting. Too bad you’ve already seen what you need to. “On my mark, fire to the right of them. Understood?”

“I...got it!” She’s quick to unsling and prime the thing, and you nod in confirmation. Alright, deep breaths.

“Three.” Focus. “Two.” Serenity. “One.” Balance.

“Fire.” You flow like water as you both round the corner- the girl immediately pulls the trigger on her weapon before diving back, letting the missile fly clear, and you’re quick to take advantage of the sudden panicked state of the defenders as they they’re thrown to the side, gunfire singing out and providing a ringing melody to the backbeat of the massive explosion and its aftereffects. “Move now!” You shout in fevor as the smoke billows and yells of pain and scream ensue. It’s unfortunate, but necessary, and you and your ally are quick to race forward in the hole you’ve created, Mono panting with nervous energy.

As you race into the innocent homespace, you quickly aim a hand downwards towards the floor. Your magi-blasts don’t quite have the pop of Miranda’s, but they’ll certainly do for this. A repeating series of blasts causes a shower of wood, tile, and other such debris to pop up, much to surprised yells from further below, and you’re quick to hop down in the hole you just made, catching a following Mono with speed. You then repeat the process, and you hear the footsteps before you see them as you dive through.
Landing, you find yourself in...what to your surprise is a fairly empty room- you can see Gravimetra and Smog in one corner, passed out and gagged. There’s a young individual in the middle there, tied down on what you’d call some type of medical operating table. She’s a redhead, with dimpled cheeks and curly hair and overall looking like a very sweet young girl.

She’s also screaming her head off, staring down some strange machine that looks like some type of energy weapon combined with an all-in-one surgical tool.

This is all taken in in about a half second, because the majority of your being is focused on the two individuals trying to escape- one in doctor’s scrubs and wearing a mask, and the other in what seems to be a business suit, but with some sort of iron mask over his head. You’re quick to catch up to the both of them- they barely get a hand on the door before you’ve got a hand on both their necks.

>Interrogate them here and now.
>Knock them out and save them for later.
>Other

>>1778521
>>Interrogate them here and now.

>>1778521
>>Knock them out and save them for later.

>>1778521
>>Interrogate them here and now.

Locked, but got a bit delayed, so will resume tomorrow.

>>1778521
>Knock them out and save them for later.

Rapid extraction time.

Writing. Was filling out work apps.

>>1778521
>>1778549
>>1778691
“Alright, the both of you. I’ve got questions, you’ve got answers.” You must be steel, in both voice and action. “I will know what you’ve been doing here, and I will know NOW.”

“Lady, if we told you what we’re up to we’d all be up to our necks in trouble!” the suited man yells as he struggles uselessly. “Now back off, go take those two troublemakers, and-” You’re quick to crack their heads together, causing a yell of pain from each.

“Ok, oka-okay, look!” the doctor starts, his voice muffled by the mask he wears “I’m just the hired help, I’m just here for the extraction purposes, okay!”

The struggling of the masked businessman starts shifting in a new direction. “Shut UP, you incompetent piece of-”

“YOU’RE the one that wouldn’t listen to me! I TOLD you the process was a slow one, and-” They’re both interrupted again, but not by you- there’s suddenly sirens out now, and furthermore, you can hear the pattering of feet as Mono comes in, carrying the young child. “I untied the other two. Wha-what do I do with this one?”

“Let the police handle it, ideally,” you respond. “As for these two…” you only have a few minutes at best before said police show up...you’re going to have to ask quickly, and carefully.

>What was the machine for?
>What’s your plan?
>Why take this girl and call it hostage?
>Other

>>1782675
Ok, taking too long then. I thought we'd have a minute at least... They're noncombatants, just conk them out and carry them off. If we can only carry one then take the suit.

>>1782675
>What’s your plan?
I wish Miranda was here. She's the type that would use The Dentist's methods to extract truth and teeth.

>>1782706
You've got a little time, just not enough for extensive details.

5 more minutes.

>>1782675
>>1782721
>>1782706


“Just what IS your plan?” Shaking around the guy a little should do. The doctor’s lips seem far looser than his compatriot’s, and perhaps a little more jarring will get them wide open…

“It’s-I-” You have to spread your arms after the suit ends up kicking the ‘good’ doctor in a rage. “Look, I dunno what it is exactly, I swear! They don’t keep me in the bigger picture! I just know it’s supposed to be something about making the ultimate supers, that’s it! I’m just doing this in the name of science! She would be a martyr!” he says, looking at the girl who shrinks from his gaze besides Mono, who’s fixing the man with the mother of all glares.

“P-please don’t leave me with him...” the little girl beg with tears in her eyes. “I don’t- I’m scared. Please can we go?!” Suddenly, Mono groans a bit, and her legs buckle.

“Hey, yeah, can we hurry this up? She’s...getting really heavy for some reason…” The sirens are outside now, and you can start to hear shouts. You’ve got two villains that need restraining, police on the move, a young girl who may need care, and a low-profile you need to STAY low.

>How are you going to handle this?

>>1782987
Cut the Achilles' tendons of both of the men. Call in to Nightwatch to have their local contact in the city PD make them available to use for later questioning as well as fabricating credentials for us.

Then get out of here, supporting Mono as need be.

>>1783010
Supporting, and the tendons to their fingers as well, don't want them pressing buttons or climbing away.

few more minutes, then lock.

Ugh, will resume later tonight for sure.

>>1782987
> Get Mono to sing them into a nightmare

Physical pain is one thing. What about how nauseating Blue is when seeing it sound like screaming in your toes and then your fear smells like gasoline and needles.

Also we should cripple the suit to make the doctor talk. Show him who is actually in charge here.

>>1783051
Just saying. If we're going to torture them we have better options than cutting them up.

Especially if she can change their perceptions of time or of self.

And back. Writing.

>>1783834
I'm grouchy I keep missing votes when only two other people vote.

>>1783834
Now I'm sad that there's no post at all. That's really much worse. I hope life isn't kicking your ass too much at the moment and if the quick votes with fewer players is what let's you get it done then that's cool.

But if you could toss a note down as to around when the next bit would be out so I could get in on it I would really appreciate it. Not just to vote, and with only a couple votes I'd probably just go along with it either, but also because your quest has some of the best write-ins and discussion during votes that you're great at working in to the quest.

>>1783405
>>1783408
We don't have the time to further interrogate them, with Mono slowing us down and the police already close by.

>>1784810
We have super strength and super speed.

Kill or capture the Suit, but for Gods sake take the doctor with us.

I mean.

Doesn't leaving them for the cops just scream "they're going to disappear before they can be interrogated" to anyone else?

Leave the two superheroes, they're clearly victims and can be rescued. Also not our problem.

>>1784812
Honestly it's this world's problem and not ours, whatever they're doing it won't be complete or get in the way of us killing our mark.

Mono is getting woozy from blood loss and she's a lot more important than some evil genius plan that has little to do with us.

>>1784817
I mean.

Capturing heroes to make the "ultimate" superhero. Doesn't it sound like they might have something to do with our target? Just a little?

Mono can drop the girl here and let her be a witness for the police. I mean. Right now the plan is apparently for Mono to carry the girl so she should be good to get away while we carry the doc.

The Doctor guy is mission critical.

>>1784817
>>1784810

Look. If you guys really want to rescue the girl that's cool. I'm not saying we should leave Mono behind at all, I agree with you there.

But rescuing he girl won't really help her, the cops can probably get her better and faster medical treatment than us anyways.

But if we CAN take someone it should be the Doctor.

Personally I would vote for also at least knocking the Suit out if not killing him so he can't cause trouble. I'm not worried about his physical capabilities, more so that he might lie to the cops or contact whoever he works for.

>>1784829
I subscribe to the idea that we just kill him totally dead and be done with it. If Izumi is able to safely extract both Mono and the Doctor, who is just doing the job and don't have the details, and likely neither do the suit, sure. Otherwise forget these people.

You're looking at two low rung lackeys, at best we're going to have to bite and claw our way up a conspiracy ladder, one mook after the other, when we can instead focus our efforts on putting enough fire on Siphon to turn him to glass.

>>1784836
I never said anything about the girl either. I thought we'd have more time before getting interrupted and I'd take one of those guys with me if possible but we're out of time and Mono is in a really bad way that we need to get out and stabilize her quick.

>>1783010
>>1783021
>>1783405
>>1784810
>>1784817

“Hmm.” Damnit, you don’t have time anymore to be graceful. You’re not a fan of inflicting wanton damage, but...needs must, you suppose.

Part of you hopes you’re not diving too far into the same waters Miranda has. Capable soul, but her brutality on the job...you’re not entirely sure if it’s something you’ll ever get entirely used to...or even something you WANT to get used to. But… “Cover her eyes, and start moving.”

Mono’s quick to nod, and she’s quicker to start away. With that, you draw your sword. A bit of slicing to the Achilles tendons, and...

Well, such injuries are hardly fatal, but they DO tend to hurt and bleed a lot. The screaming makes that fairly obvious. It’s also a reminder that you need to get out of here asap. As you move, you’re quick to ring up your contacts. “Anyone there?”

Fortunately, a lady’s voice is quick to respond. “Yeah, you’ve figured anything out?”

“Trying to exfiltrate. Got the hostage, will drop her somewhere safe. Any way you can get the two responsible parties set up so we can have some alone time later?” Hopefully yourself, Miranda, and Lorelei can do better with interrogation once they’re behind bars.

“I’ll see what we can do,” is the response.

You’re quick to catch up to the wolf-girl and normal girl, and you’re needed to quickly shush the poor thing as you reach out to her sobbing form before you hit the rooftop, Mono's panting providing a ill-desired backbeat to your rushing attitude, and you're quick to take the child from her when she stumbles over a step.

“Shhh, sweetheart, we’ll get you safe, I promise...we just need you to stay quiet for a bit. Can you do that?” As much as you wanted to coo and coddle the little girl, you don’t exactly have the time. And leaving the poor girl in there with those villains, bleeding out…?

"I-I-I just wanna go hoooome..." Gods. Why would they even TAKE a child like this? Gah, questions for later. You have to figure out what you're going to do with her, and fast.

>Tell the girl to wait on the rooftop, send a signal before you leave.
>Take her yourself and get her back home privately.
>Other

>>1784839
The only reason I want the Doctor is because he clearly knows stuff about what might have been done to the target.

So maybe he can tell us how to block his leech, or overload it etc..

Hell maybe there's even some sort of counter agent, or a weakness to certain types of energy, or he has to take medicine every so often or something.

The Doc might be low level, but if he was doing the work on the superheroes here I think it's a safe bet he has information we need.

I could care less about his organization.

Howdy, folks. Apologies for the random disappearance- I've been trying to get better at headsupping.

>>1784846
Can't we just drop down quick and leave her by the street and tell her to go talk to the policemen surrounding the building? We're not finding her mother, here.

Drop her and find a cozy place to heal Mono

>>1784839

Well I'm not going to bitch about what is done.

> Other

Take her with us for now. Point out we have another person bleeding out who needs care.

Also if they took her once there's a good chance her home isn't safe. If we take her there they might attack her parents to get her again.

>>1784855
If we take her with us maybe we can find out why they took her. Or at least get her some protection from our employers for her first.

>>1784846
>>Tell the girl to wait on the rooftop, send a signal before you leave.

>>1784854
The last thread isn't archived btw.

>>1784865
>>1784846
Can we call Nightwatch, they should have a safehouse or agents somewhere we can drop her off.

If so I'm changing >>1784855 to that

>>1784878
Now it is! Also is plausible.

Anyway, 5 more minutes in case anyone wants to back anything else.

>>1784889
Get Mono to sing a lullaby to the girl.

>>1784889
>>1784846
>tell mono to sing her a lullaby. sing her to sleep with her powers if possible.

Sleep and more phonecalls, then.

Writing!

>>1784846
>Other
Call Nightwatch for a local safe house or secure location. Take the girl with us to determine what powers she has.
Take her picture with the phone and send the photo to Nightwatch for analysis.

>>1784909
Hopefully we keep her with us for a bit.

I mean.

One vote for each different thing, and us directly interrogating the girl is what I wanted.

Pretty sure "don't trust your corporate employer to be honest and open about all they know" is a pretty basic rule.

>>1784976
well, i think we dont really care about them being honest(unless it directly interferes with our contract). We already proved that we can finish siphon with our current methods. the only thing that fucked us up was that mono got startled by the sniper fire.

>>1784991
I'm honestly pretty skeptical about planning for the previous battle we fought, not the next.

Like.

That's how you become Vichy France.

That plan almost worked last time, but I get the feeling that the guy *might*, in turn, come up with his own plan to deal with us trying it again.

Personally I would like to have as much information as possible about this dude.

It seems like he could seriously fuck us up if he surprises us. Like. Mono got shank-ka-bob'd by a Mook.

The girl’s not really letting up, although she tries a bit...still not enough, though, to get out of here without being noticed. “Mono, can you do me a quick favor!? How good are you with lullabies?”

Without even responding, she’s quick to start a simple humming tune as you carry the girl upwards. You’re...can you see snow? It’s a very gentle, very slow snow, but that’s strange- it’s not quite cold enough for that; not to mention you’re INDOORS. Why’s it…

...oh. Huh. Her singing works like that, too? Well, that’s good to know. And if nothing else, it seems to shock the girl into wonderment, her eyes going from red, teary, and puffy to sparkling and surprised. Hopefully that means good things in the future...but before that.

“Problem?!” is the worried response- you calling so soon right back normally wouldn’t portend well, no.

“I need a safehouse.” is your quick response. “Got a person of interest we need to keep safe.”

“No normal hostage situation, then, I presume.” the lady responds. “Alright, we’ll work something out. Give me a few minutes.” The line goes dead again, and as you recheck the girl, she’s at least cuddled up to you a bit better, and most importantly has quieted down.

This, at least, gives you enough time to hit the rooftop, and then get out the back of the apartment complex- at the very least it seems like no one’s gotten around to that area yet- probably because there’s very little ‘back’; you’re near a large drainage ditch, and that’s good enough for you and Mono to hop down thanks to the windowsills, and start walking. Mono flinches as you land, and you take a second look at her- only to notice that she’s leaning over a bit more and her mouth’s a bit more open. As soon as she sees you gawking, however, she closes it and fixes you with a hard look. “I’ll be fine. Let’s keep moving.”

You’re not so sure about that, though…

>Reconvene with Miranda and Lorelei first. Need the extra hands.
>Find a safe spot to rest and help heal Mono.
>Head straight to the safehouse once it’s reported where.
>Other

>>1785031
>>Find a safe spot to rest and help heal Mono.

5 minutes to go!

>>1785031
>Find a safe spot to rest and help heal Mono.

> Call Lori and Mirada to pick us up.

>>1785031
>>Find a safe spot to rest and help heal Mono.

Gentleness. Writing!

Someone please remind me, didn't we buy magical walkies-talkies? You know, for these exact circumstances.

I don't see any misc equipment in any of the pastebins but I'm sure we bought them at the same time we grabbed the mana condenser.

>>1785117
Yes, they're called Murmur Stones.

>>1785031
>>1785045
>>1785065
>>1785079
“Careful, now. You’re new. Don’t try to be a big hero.” You’d heard a lot of stories about people thinking they’d be a burden now, only to be a burden later. Heard and...well, happened to you more than once. Pride can be an insidious foe… “We’ll get clear enough of all the fuss, and then I’ll patch you up.”

“Well...I mean, if you’re- ah, sure.” She winces as she says this when the two of you take a turn, making sure to stay on the sides of the ditch as opposed to splashing about in the small stream of runoff water still flowing. There’s a great deal of hurried sounds and you can hear people wondering what’s going on outside of windows as you do your best to stay below notice.

You end up moving for at least a good few minutes, before you finally find a overpass that the ditch runs under- makes for a convenient bridge for you to sit for a spell and not be too obvious. It’s more fortunate that the west end entirely seems to be a lesser populated area of the city- you’re not sure if you’ll exactly be noticed, but hopefully they’ll just think you’re bums or something of the sort. “Alright, we should be fine here for now. Sit down, and don’t move.” The little girl thankfully is still asleep, although she’s frowning hard, and tossing and turning here and there now- bad dreams, no doubt. One of the few things you can’t just up and fight off…

“I still say I could’ve made it…” she says, but doesn’t further question you as she unwraps the gauze you’d given her- shit.

You don’t swear lightly, but from the looks of things, she’s bleeding a lot more than you’d hoped. Seems like her moving like that tore the wound open more than you’d care to have., despite the bandaging. Definitely a good idea to have stopped when you did. “This tells me otherwise,” you say, meeting her defiant eyes with your own. “Sit still and let me heal you.”

“Alright, alright…” she slumps down, and closes her eyes, and you prepare yourself in a meditative position, doing the same. “Hope this won’t take too long.”

Unfortunately for her, it always takes a couple minutes for you to find that perfect center, that balance of being one with everything and nothing, to let yourself flow freely and express that freedom outwardly. Nature and life itself is you, and you it...and for some moments, you are wellspring, a fountain of peace and serenity. Your mind the sky, your body the earth, your soul the oceans.

You are whole.

(cont.)

>>1785344
And then you are not. With an all too familiar jarring sensation that you refuse to let reflect on your face, you’re dragged out of the place of perfect contentment, and dragged back into the waking world. Mono is staring at you with an awed look, though, and to be honest it kiiiinda makes you squirm a bit. “Yes…?”

“I...uh...wasn’t expecting THAT.” she admits sheepishly. “I thought you...sorta had some kinda bandages or some kinda kit or somethin’. How do you…?”

“It is a delicate process, really.” you say with a smile. She’s always so amazed at new things, and it’s really pleasant to see. “It involves a great deal of focus and understanding of yourself and your place in all things. Perhaps later we can discuss it more.”

“Y-yeah, sure. Buncha things I’m wondering about, really. But enough about that for now. You kinda sound...out of it.” Hm? Never noticed that. “You okay?”

“Absolutely fine,” you reassure. “However, you’re right. We should-” a call interrupts you. “Yes?”

“Hey, got a place for you.” Ah, Night Watch. “221 Burning Road. Then look to your left, it’s an old abandoned-looking house.”

“Excellent. Miranda and Lorelei?” you ask.

“They’re still hunting down the target, at last check-in. Seems he really booked it. They did say they might have a good idea of where he’ll be next, though. Wanted to talk with you two about it privately.” Oh? Very interesting…

“Can we get going now?” Mono asks impatiently, and you sigh. Hopefully, the girl will stay asleep until you arrive...

>Stay with Izumi.
>Switch to Lorelei.
>Switch to Miranda.
>Switch to Mono.

>>1785348
>Switch to Miranda

>>1785348
>>Switch to Miranda.

Miranda it is! Back to the bruiser. Writing!

>>1785348
>“Excellent. Miranda and Lorelei?” you ask.
wait, did izumi called them by their true names? wouldn't they be confused?

>>1785423
I do that sometimes, sorry.

>>1785348
>>1785356
>>1785361
>You are once again Miranda Styles.

And things might’ve just gotten worse, as you stare at the lifeless body half roasted. “Hey, cut it out.” Not that Lorelei seems to notice, what with all the poking it she’s doing.

She turns back to you with a pout that’s barely visible in the darkness of the old building. “Hey, I’m just making sure there’s nothing else interesting on him!”

Hm. Well, his ID was certainly fortuitous. Egon Pal. Now EX-administrator for McCormick Construction, thanks to what was very clearly an unfortunate run-in with your target. Hell, it’s even still got blood splatters on it. That, and the note he had on him with a date, and a time. Tonight, 11:40 PM. “Just make sure it’s quick since apparently we need to get to our safehouse now. Can’t believe they didn’t give us one off the bat.”

“Maybe they thought we’d be quicker,” Lorelei offers as she tugs a gold wristwatch off the man. She quickly flips it hither and thither, making a few taps on the back of it. She frowns briefly...rubs a bit more on it, then nods in approval, shrugging and stuffing it into a skirt pocket. “Right, I’m set!”

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

The place looks like an absolute dump...at least at first glance. Seems like a blown out office building, but you soon hear some noise coming from appears to be a closet. You’re quick to open it and search around, and find out there’s a hidden stairwell that leads to a basement-style area that’s actually rather well furnished with a couch, a bed, a refrigerator, a computer, and an old-fashioned radio.

No, seriously, they could’ve said something before. Ugh. Incompetents. Izumi and Mono seem to be fairly well, all things considered. And the little girl must be…

“Looked like she was about to undergo some type of surgery when we found her,” Izumi explains. “One of the doctors said something about ‘extraction.’”

“Right. And we found a couplea things on a dead body,” Lorelei starts. “Miranda found one of these…” and here she motions to you as you pull out the note, which you do. “Belonged to one of the guys on Siphon’s list. Apparently he worked for ANOTHER of the guys on said list. But that’s not all! I found one-a these!” And then she pulls out the watch, to Izumi’s consternation.

“Really?” but before she can continue, Lorelei shows her the back of the watch- and now you have a clearer view, too. Subtly engraved in the back end of it, is the circles trapped by a triangle- the symbol of the Ariadne Collective. “Methinks it’s pretty clear now Siphon wants to hit back at them for whatever reason, and he’s draining supers to do it.”

Sounds plausible. “And the girl?” you ask.

“Mmm...what about me?” you turn to see the little girl rubbing her eyes sleepily. Well, points for bravery. “Can I go home now?”

No matter what you said, the answer was probably ‘not right now’. “She’s still sleepy, it seems,” Izumi notices.

>What questions do you have for her? She’s just a kid, so you’ll need to be specific.

Called into work early.

>>1785604
ask who her parents are and what is their jobs.

>>1785643
That sucks man. But hey, getting paid!

>>1785604

Start with easy things to make her feel comfortable. Her name, where she's from, what grade she's in, if she likes school, what kind of school she goes to.

Then tell her you want to make sure she's okay, so you need to know if she's ever had to go to a hospital or somewhere for testing, or if she ever got really sick.

Tell her that sometimes little girls have to go for tests because they think that they might be sick, but it actually turn out that there's something special about them. That they can do something better than anyone else, or even something nobody else can do.

Tell her that In fact all 4 of you were special little girls too! Then make a ball of light or something to show her.

Tell her that sometimes people tell special little girls not to let anyone know what they can do because bad people sometimes want what makes them special.

Tell her that's what we do, we protect special little girls like ourselves from the bad people. We think that she might be a special little girl and that's why she was taken to that awful place. If she isn't one that's okay, we'll still protect her, but if she IS special then they might have done something to her that could make her sick.

We need to know if she is a special little girl like us so that we can help her.

Then after that we can ask her to help us protect other special little girls by telling us if she remembers anyone dressed funny or using a special ability like ours. If she can remember what they were called.

We can ask her if there were other special people there who were taken away, and if she heard where they were going.

Was there anyone extra scary or mean there? Was anyone really nice to her? If so, does she remember their names too.

We want to make sure that her parents and her will be safe, so we would like her to tell us what happened when they took her. If she was with anyone she knew, friends or a teacher. Was she at a place she often went to like a store or a park.

And if she is special, is she sure nobody knew? Can she remember where she used her powers? It's okay if she did, we know how hard it is to not use them or tell anyone, so we won't be mad at her.

And all the while have Mono humming or singing quietly to calm her down and make her a little more receptive.

Also if she has powers maybe we could teach her how to do something with them to help her get away or draw attention if someone tries this again. Or how to shank a dude with her powers

>>1785770
>>1785853
ah, the duality of man.

>>1785604
>>1785853

Point form

- Basic information to find out who she is and where she spends her time. If she's in any clubs, what school she goes to etc. Places where they might have had someone watching her.

- If she has any powers. Since heroes are known about by corporations here, there's probably some sort of screening process or testing, so she may have been checked for it. Alternatively, her parents may have told her she had to hide it if they don't agree with it.

- Ask if there was anyone who looked different there, ie not a guard. Maybe their boss came down, or they have a superhero working for them, or someone secretly connected to them.

- Get descriptions and possibly names of other heroes that may have been processed before we got there. Maybe we can track them down and see if there's a pattern or if they're on Siphons list. Maybe there's a pattern to how they were grabbed.

- Anyone that treated her differently. Someone dressed like everyone else may have tried to interrogate her, or scare her on the down low. Maybe they said something to her that we can identify them with. I would assume that they wouldn't want regular workers interacting with her. oh!

> Add ask if anyone gave her anything while she was there. Anything to eat or drink, or something to hold on to like a toy or a pin or a sticker etc.

Because they might be tracking her.

- find out where and how she was taken. Was anybody she knew around her? Someone who knew her parents? Where she was taken - was it somewhere she doesn't go very often (if so why did she go)? Or was it somewhere she went all the time? They might have just been shadowing her waiting, or created an opportunity to grab her, or might have a Mook working at a place that looks for kids like her secretly.

- Finally if she had powers, who else could know? Did she tell anyone? Where does she normally use them, did she use them out in public or maybe when she thought she was alone in a park or at a friend's house, or did she tell any friends or adults about it.

> Oh right, one other thing I forgot to ask if she has has any brothers or sisters because if she does they might also be in danger.

That's all I can think of to ask.

>>1785900
Something is fucky when having robots do all the work is the greatest threat to our economy.

Honestly if we lived in a post-scarcity world, or even one where we just worked together to make sure everyone has food, shelter, and cat girls health care, then think how much more quests like this we could have.

>>1785853
Wow that's detailed. Miranda never struck me as the type to be like that though. She might be a secret softy but I don't know if I would call her good with kids.

>>1785604
1. What's your name?
2. Where's your home?
3. What's your superpower?
4. Who are your parents, and what are their jobs?
5. How were you kidnapped?

>>1785919
...what.

File: 1445670531454.gif (485 KB, 500x316)

485 KB GIF

>>1785853
Tentatively seconding.

>>1785997
We're using our Secret Customer Service: Pretending to Care.

Or fuck get Loerelei to do it. It's her skill subset. Why do we have to do all the work.

>>1787304
The act of labour as having a transitive, objective moral quality is a concept from slavery.

Working harder instead of smarter is an indulgence in vanity and worse, comfort. Ideally people would only work labour jobs for the benefit of doing the work itself, for health, for meditation and reflection, or for simple enjoyment.

Because there's a million other things a human can do better, or at least enjoy more, than being deliberately inefficient so they don't have to question the subjective nature of their identity and value to themselves and others.

Like. Not only do robots do it for people, they do it *better*.

Howdy folks. Up, and writing. Might...take a bit, though.

>>1788922
I mean. You gave us free reign on questions lol.

>>1788992
No, I did. Just saying.

>>1785604
>>1785770
>>1785853
>>1786865
>>1787999
Well. Might as well see how she fits into all of this. “Not yet, kid. Sorry. Mind if we ask you some questions?”

“What kinda questions?” she asks curiously. Dang, girl can’t be older twelve… “I’m not s’pose to talk to strangers…”

You sigh. “Well, we did help you, right?” She nods. “Trust me, we’re not like those guys. We’re here, because…” ah, crap. How do you explain-

“We’re just trying to keep you safe, sweetie,” Lorelei explains, a soothing tenor to her voice you’ve not heard from her before. “And to do that, we’re going to need to know a few things. You don’t want those bad men coming back, do you?”

At THAT, she shakes her head vigorously, and Lorelei smiles softly. “Right. So can you tell me your name?”

“I...I’m Millie.” she says quietly.

“Well, Millie, I’m Sugar. And yes, that's actually my name,” she says with a feigned laugh. “And I'm very pleased to meet you. Where are you from?”

“Just...here, I guess.” she shrugs. “I dun get to go anywhere ‘cept school and my aunt’s house.”

“Aw...that’s sad.” Lorelei offers, giving the girl a gentle pat. “Is school at least okay? Where do you go?”

“Uhhh…” she seems to think about it for a bit. “North Street Elea-elam-”

“Elementary?” Izumi finishes. Millie nods with a blush. “Do you like it there?”

She nods. “I’m in the fifth grade. It’s...it’s nice.”

“Good.” Izumi nods. “School is important. And should be fun.”

“Yeah, I got lotsa friends, but I can’t play with them a lot.” she frowns. “Momma doesn’t like me goin’ outside a lot.”

“Why not?” Lorelei asks gently.

“She...she’s scared, she said. ‘Cause I’m weird.” At this, she slumps. Huh. According to Mono and Izumi, the two they cornered DID imply… “Cause I get weird dependin’ on stuff.”

Strange. “What kinda stuff?” Lorelei asks. “Like, you know about powers, right? Cool things some people can do and are on TV a lot?” She nods, faintly. “Can you do stuff like that?”

She nods again, but she has a downcast look to her. “S’not fun stuff. I just...get weird sometimes. Like if I’m really really happy sometimes an’ I start flyin’. Or if I get really really mad an’ no one wants to hug me or nothin’. Or if I get really really sad an’...Iunno.” She shrugs helplessly as Mono sits the girl in her lap, humming lightly and brushing her hair back. “It-it doesn’t happen alla time. S’why I’m weird. Momma doesn’t like it, so I don’t get ta go outside alot. An- an I can’t be too happy at school. Or sad. S’not good, she says.” She perks up a bit at that word, though, looking up. “Sometimes, thought! When I’m really really really good at school, she- she’ll take me to the zoo. We were there today, but- but then I got lost. An-an then...” It seems for a second she’s about to start crying again, but before she does she notices the gentle snowfall yet again.

(cont. 1/3)

>>1789297
“Well, that’s good of you to tell us, sweetie!” Lorelei says, a bit more perky. “Cause we can do stuff, too. Some of it’s cool, and some isn’t, but...it’s all to help little girls like you, okay?” Here, Lorelei gently takes Millie’s hand. “So we need your help, okay?”

She looks nervous, but at least she’s not on the verge of crying anymore. “Uh...okay...how?”

Here you take over. “If you can tell us anything about what happen at the zoo, that’d be fantastic. Any strange individuals come up to you? Maybe in a suit? Or dressed funny? Or maybe anyone who was...call it extra nice or extra scary?”

“Uh...uh…uhuh!” She suddenly nods. “There was an extra-nice lady by the zebbas, an’ she looked like Momma does sometimes, an’ she said she works with Momma, an’ she got ice cream, and she lemme have it.”

“Oh? What’d she look like? What was her name?” Please, please, please, please say this kid actually remembers…

“Uh...she was pretty! Like, really really pretty!” There’s a brief pause as the kid tries to remember. “An’, an’ she said her name was- was...uhhh...

Maybe you can help jog her memory another way… “What color was her hair?”

“Uhh...Brown! It was really really long. I could touch it!” She says happily.

Okay, that might be something… “And...what did she have on?”

“Uhh...red stuff. A lottta red stuff. She had a pretty dress, and it was kinda scary cause it had faces n’ stuff on it, but she was pretty, so it was okay.” Faces? On a dress? Hm. “I...I don’ ‘member much else, cause I was getting sleepy. She said she’d take me back to mommy, an’...”
She trails off. It’s fairly clear what happened from there. Ugh. You’d tell her to not listen to strangers, but then again that’s what you are right now. “Oh! I ‘member her name now! I called her Miss Betty.” Hmmm.

Izumi frowns, but not at the girl. “No last name?”

She shakes her head yet again. “Uh-uh. She jus’, she said she was really big in Mommy’s company.”

Come on… “And what is your mom’s company?”

“She- she used a big word for it. She makes people pretty, she said.” Ahhh.

Before you can ask anymore, you get a sudden ringing in your ear. “Ladies! We think we have a target!”

About time they did something of note.

(cont. 2/3)

>>1789301
“There’s going to be a opening tomorrow morning of a new wing of the Haven City Heroes’ Museum. Going to have a number of heroes there for promotional purposes, and the whole thing is sponsored by the city and Angel Line Cosmetics- the company Alice Copple runs. Seems like it’d be a good place for Siphon to strike.”

“Possible,” Izumi notes, to the confusion of Millie. “But I’m wondering if perhaps that’s a bit too obvious.

“Yeah, that’s a worry.” the lady agrees. “But that’s the biggest bait possible for a power thief like him. Might be too tempting to resist.”

Well...your job isn’t to solve any major conspiracies, it’s to ice this one troublesome super. Still, if it DOES end up a bad lead...

>Follow it up. Set up positions for tomorrow, and get ready to kill him as soon as he shows.
>Keep following this lead. You don’t think he’s quite crazy enough to go for bait this obvious.
>Other

>>1789307
>Follow it up. Set up positions for tomorrow, and get ready to kill him as soon as he shows.

If he shows and we're not there, he could become exponentially more dangerous. He's probably crazy enough to go to a trap, he's got a lot of hard evidence saying that he's unstoppable.

>>1789307
>Follow it up. Set up positions for tomorrow, and get ready to kill him as soon as he shows.

>>1789307
>>Follow it up. Set up positions for tomorrow, and get ready to kill him as soon as he shows.

5 minutes to go.

>>1788621
no, i get that. my what is related as in how is that related to the quest at all.

>>1789307
>Follow it up. Set up positions for tomorrow, and get ready to kill him as soon as he shows.

>>1789307
>>Follow it up. Set up positions for tomorrow, and get ready to kill him as soon as he shows.
Lets finish this

Righto. Time for setup.

>>1789307
>>1789316
>>1789320
>>1789330
>>1789379
>>1789381
“We’ll look into it,” you assure, looking around the room.

“Alright. I’ll let the guys upstairs know you’re on it. Don’t be afraid to let us know if you need anything. We’ll be in touch.” And that’s that.

“Alright, so. Big fancy event happening tomorrow, then.” Lorelei opines. “So we’re gonna case the place, right?”

“Of course,” Izumi notes. “We’ll have to if we want a comprehensive plan of action- failing here even slightly would be absolutely disastrous.”
“I have to agree,” you say. “Lorelei, if you can, go and get an inside look at the area. Any estimates on guards, and the like. The rest of us will get a map of the outside and we’ll go from there.”

She salutes. “Might as well get to it right now, then. Getting later in the day, after all.” She starts to step out, but then pauses briefly. “Oh, but what about the little sweetheart?” She’s quick to dart back. “Can you tell us where you live?”

“Uhh...335 Southpark. It’s...blue. And nice.” she says. “Pleease can I go home now?”

Right...there is that.

>Sure. Everyone’s probably going nuts about where you are by now. Lorelei, take her home on your way. And be careful about it.
>We’ll get in contact with your parents. Let them know you’re safe, but in danger if you come back home right now.
>Call the police, tell them a location, and have Izumi or someone else escort her to the location before the cops get there.
>Other

>>1789535
>Sure. Everyone’s probably going nuts about where you are by now. Lorelei, take her home on your way. And be careful about it.

>>1789535
>>Sure. Everyone’s probably going nuts about where you are by now. Lorelei, take her home on your way. And be careful about it.

>>1789535
>We’ll get in contact with your parents. Let them know you’re safe, but in danger if you come back home right now.
Seems p important, might end up being a bargaining chip if we have to talk it out with siphon.

>>1789535
>>Call the police, tell them a location, and have Izumi or someone else escort her to the location before the cops get there.
have lorelei deliver the kid to a police headquarter or something. they can deal with the rest and we focus on the mission.

>>1789561
>talk it out with siphon
what? we need him dead. The moment he stops to talk is the moment we make it rain on him.

>>1789535
>Call the police, tell them a location, and have Izumi or someone else escort her to the location before the cops get there.

Tie, huh? I'll let this one linger for a bit since I'm hungry and I'm going get takeout, won't be more than 15 minutes. Will lock when back.

>>1789584
It's entirely possible we could be incapable of killing him (he gets some sort of energy deflecting ability that counters nebula buster) and be forced to improvise. The point is to always have a backup plan, not like we're planning to not kill him or anything.

Rolled 1 (1d2)

Hm. Flipping, then.

1: Take her home.
2: Call and drop.

File: HavenCityMuseumMap.png (198 KB, 1040x768)

198 KB PNG

>>1789535
>>1789544
>>1789556
>>1789608
“Sugar, do what you can to get her home.” you decide. “Keep it careful, keep it quiet.”

“Sure thing. Come on, hun.” Millie doesn’t seem to be willing to question anything about the situation, and she’s quick to hop up to Lorelei’s position and accept Lorelei’s hauling her up. Honestly, it’d be adorable if you weren’t incredibly worried about the girl’s strange trust towards strangers…but, hell, you guess you won’t complain for now. “Don’t worry, she’ll be back home before she knows it!”

The last thing you hear from either of them is talking about what kind of dresses they like.

“Well. She’s a pleasant sort.” Izumi admits. “Shame she was targeted. But, I believe we have work to do now, right?”

“Right.” you nod. “Let’s get to planning.”

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

A few hours later, and you’ve got a pretty good idea of the layout of the surrounding area, along with the inner layout of the museum. It’s nestled on the north end of town, alongside a fairly busy street. Altogether, the area’s fairly open, with a number of vantage points and escape angles, thanks to the fire exits. With all the supers and civilians bound to be there, it’s going to be a hot area, and at heavy risk of massive casualties. In fact, they’re almost guaranteed. If you don’t want undue panic before it’s time, you’re going to have to be careful. If you don’t mind- well, they didn’t buy the rider, so that’s on them. Either way, if you want this operation to succeed, you have to hit him hard, fast, and thoroughly- if he even shows up. There’s some major points you’re going to need to solve. First...

Izumi speaks up right as you're thinking about it. “If you want me sniping again, then I’d prefer to set up on the Hotel Grand, the business building across the street, or perhaps the Furniture Store rooftop. All of those areas keep me well out of the line of fire while still having a shot."

>Where will you have Izumi go?

>Hotel Grand
>Business Building 1
>Furniture Store
>Other

>>1789792
>Hotel Grand

>>1789792
>>Hotel Grand

>>1789792
>>Business Building 1

5 minutes.

Alright, that's one!

>>1789792
>>1789811
>>1789821
>>1789825
It takes a bit to consider. “Alright then. Hotel Grand should be good enough. You sure you can get eyes on him from there, though? I know there’s windows and all, but…”

“Don’t worry, my gun’s pretty good,” she says with a smile. “I’ll be fine with it. Especially if you can get him around the corner. Absolutely nowhere to run.”

“Alright, then.” Next up...Lorelei. She’d be better off inside, but…

“You want me to set up charges? I can do that. Might take some people out alongside it, but it’s a thing. Or I could try to just focus on defense- he knows my face, sorta kinda. So chances are I can get him to focus on me. Try and drag him wherever, as long as supers aren’t around.”

Hm…

>The charges idea sounds good. Can’t let him get away this time.
>Don’t wanna risk any supers getting caught and giving him a free power. Keep him occupied.
>Other

>>1789935
>>Other. Plant them, but dont detonate them until i say so. until then, keep him occupied.

>>1789935
>>1789945
Backing this.

>>1789935
>Don’t wanna risk any supers getting caught and giving him a free power. Keep him occupied.

Locked!

>>1789935
>>1789945
>>1789954
Well, couldn’t hurt to have some insurance. “Plant them, but don’t set them off until I give the say so. Until then, keep him occupied.”

“Roger that!” She salutes lazily.

“Uhh...and me?” Mono asks. “I’m...kinda still new, so…”

Very good question. She had a rocket launcher, but her singing could come in very handy, perhaps...the question, however, is how…?

>You stay back for insurance. Post up on a building. If you get an opportunity, blast him.
>Stay nearby, and inside. You’ll be the backing theme to this little crescendo. (How?)
>Other

>>1790040
>Stay nearby, and inside. You’ll be the backing theme to this little crescendo.
Move the landscape around, keep the locals away and set up distractions and decoys to keep Siphon occupied.

>>1790040
>>1790050
Backing this, but we need to make sure Siphon is kept well away from Mono. If he manages to drain her powers, shit will hit the fan real quick

>>1790061
Well, we should have mono set up a barrier for herself and preferably have earmuffs or something on to get not distracted by any sound. Maybe she can sing herself (and maybe us?) to be invisible?

>>1790040
>>You stay back for insurance. Post up on a building. If you get an opportunity, blast him.
Do something like on the first encounter. Clear up any places he could hide up, for izumi to line up a good shot.
that, or:
create a death trap for him that cannot be escaped from.

>>1790040
>>Stay nearby, and inside. You’ll be the backing theme to this little crescendo. (How?)
Anything to distort his sense of place and distance, so something like a maze maybe. If that's too much the idunno, go with >>1790050

...I'm super tired now. I'll be back tomorrow bright and early.

>>1790040
>>Stay nearby, and inside. You’ll be the backing theme to this little crescendo. (How?)
this: >>1790129
>Do something like on the first encounter. Clear up any places he could hide up, for izumi to line up a good shot.

Up, and writing in a bit! Seems like staying inside to provide a suitable soundtrack is the winner.

>>1790040
>>1790050
>>1790061
>>1790132
>>1792346
“Take a position inside the museum, or close to it. You should be able to get away with it.” Perhaps if she hangs around one of the doorways closer to the entrance... “Might need you to sing a song, provide a little background beat to this whole thing. Make him start wondering where he is, if you get my idea.”

“Oh? Uh...yeah, I think I can do that…” she seems kind of concerned, but she’s not arguing. “Anything in particular?”

“Something that’s not easy to escape from. Some kind of trap, or maze would probably be best- just make sure to keep a line of sight so that Izumi can take the shot. It might be best if we have a way to clear that path, honestly…”

“Think me and Mono can handle that,” Lorelei says confidently. “What about you? You’re a bit...conspicuous in that getup, but physically you’re probably the best choice to handle him. You thinkin’ breach the wall and raid? Pretty sure that’ll surprise the heck outta him. Or are you gonna post up somewhere inside? I’m pretty sure I can get you in tonight, and if you wanna find somewhere to hide out…

“Why doesn’t she just take off the suit?” Mono asks.

“Because I don’t have anything on underneath this,” you answer. You’re not running around in your underthings!

>Wait for Lorelei’s signal, breach and try to trash him. Strong collateral damage.
>Hide out somewhere inside the museum and take him by surprise once he shows up.
>Other

>>1792804
>>Wait for Lorelei’s signal, breach and try to trash him. Strong collateral damage.
>other

As soon as you can catch him unawares just nebula buster his asshole.

>>1792804
>>Wait for Lorelei’s signal, breach and try to trash him. Strong collateral damage.

>>1792804
>Wait for Lorelei’s signal, breach and try to trash him. Strong collateral damage.

>>1792804
Supporting >>1792822

>>1792804
>Hide out somewhere inside the museum and take him by surprise once he shows up.

>>1792804
Timing is everything. Writing!

>>1792804
>>1792822
>>1792823
>>1792824
“At any rate, I’ll wait for your signal.” You decide. “Once the target shows up, we make sure we’ve got him right where we want him, Izumi takes the shot, Lorelei triggers the breach, Mono starts her tune, and I’ll keep him in the middle of everything. Ideally, there’ll be so much chaos he won’t be able to react fast enough, and we’ll wipe him off the map in less than five seconds.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Izumi admits. “Once the civilians are clear of impact, then I’ll take the shot as soon as possible if and when he shows up.”

Lorelei gives her a funny look “...oooor you could take the shot once you know you could hit him regardless.”

“Why would I do that when there are innocents around? I have to use explosive rounds- I don’t like risking anything less for such an individual. If any civilians got caught in the blast...” Oh for- not this old song and dance again.

“They didn’t buy the ‘be careful’ rider, fuck ‘em,” Lorelei instantly responds with a casual shrug. Mono rears back at this, wide eyed, but says nothing. Izumi just scowls heavily, and Lorelei- actually she blushes, quickly putting up her hands in a supplicating position. “Okay, okay, maybe that was ultra harsh, sorry. Not like I want a mess of things either, mind ya. It’s more like, this guy seems super bad news to these folks, right?” Her uneasy grin isn’t doing a grand job of convincing anyone right now, but... “We need to ice him asap. Sounds like he could do a whole lot more damage in the long run than we ever could if we screw this up- again. Heck, the job app pretty much said we could handle it however. We could probably blow the whole museum up and they’d still pay us, even if they cussed us out while doing it.”

“Uuuhhh...are you real? Like, that many people just…” Mono seems a LOT less sure of things now.

“I mean we’re NOT gonna do that. You’ll be in there!” Lorelei points out. “I’m just sayin’, if a few people have to go to the hospital...or I guess the morgue…in exchange for a psychopath power thief gettin’ put out of commission for good, then it’s acceptable losses, according to like, everyone.”

cont.

>>1792985
Izumi still scowls...then turns away and sighs deeply. “I do NOT approve of such a heedless state of mind…”

“Buuuuuut?” Lorelei presses. Izumi turns to you, and you simply cock an eyebrow.

The two of you lock eyes briefly before she turns away. “...I-I will...I will do what needs be done. It is...as you said earlier, I suppose. Omelet.. and eggs, and all that...” Seriously not happy about it, though, if she’s having trouble finishing her sentences. Mono in particular looks increasingly unsettled, like she’d never expected to ACTUALLY have to do something like this. You hear her mutter a bit to herself, something about ‘mercs do this it’s normal’ before she quickly shuts up.

“Anyway, methinks we should get some shut-eye, huh?” Lorelei suggests. You can’t say you disagree with the idea.

The couch folds out into a bed, big enough for two. You and Lorelei take the couch, Izumi and Mono the bed. Lorelei’s quicker to nod off than you. About a half-hour later, you’re still going over possible approaches when you hear a *thump*, and the sound of footsteps. A quick glance over reveals Mono, still up and walking around. Judging from the look on her face, she’s having trouble sleeping. It seems to shift between a determined look, and a sorrowful one at random- it's clear she's trying to work something out in her head.

>Let her work it out on her own. Better she figure it out herself.
>Reassure her that she'll be fine tomorrow, so long as she follows instruction.
>Tell her she's not horrible for helping take down a psychopath at all costs.
>Other

>>1792985
Mono has the best senpais. A psycopath, a sociopath and a hypocrite.

>>1792991
Wait, which is which?

>>1792990
>Reassure her that she'll be fine tomorrow, so long as she follows instruction.
>Other: The Rules of Engagement, and what are considered acceptable casualties, are up to the Outgoer. But above all else, come home with the paycheck. That's the only thing that matters.

>>1792997
Miranda, Lorelei and Izumi in that order

>>1792990
>Tell her she's not horrible for helping take down a psychopath at all costs.
>These people would be dead regardless if no outgoers had taken the job. You signed up for this, from now on you do jobs and get paid or you get erased from existance- I told you this already. Get reassigned to courier work or get a job in the intersection if it's too much for you.

>>1792990
>>Reassure her that she'll be fine tomorrow, so long as she follows instructions.

>>1793015
izumi isnt a hypocrite. she is the one that might as well be the moral compass of the team.

>>1793028
She goes against her own moral compass. Binge eating ice cream after the job and feeling bad doesn't make her less of a hypocrite.

>>1792990
>>Reassure her that she'll be fine tomorrow, so long as she follows instruction.

>"Mister Pfitzer."

>"Hm? Who're you two?"

>"I and my associate are here to grant your...request. I believe your made an arrangement with our superior about a trade?"

>"? ...Ah! Yes, yes, the Staff of Excellia. You have it, then?"

>"Indeed. And on your end?"

>"Ahah, right, right, I DID state that I would pay my mint's worth of gold for such an artifact, yes...however, I am afraid the mint itself is undergoing renovations- quite dangerous down there, you understand. I'll be happy to bequeath you the contents once we're finished with-"

>"Unnecessary. Surrender us the mint and it's contents to us NOW."

>"Well, look, madame, you must understand-"

>"It's really a better idea if you fork it over, Mr. Pfitzer. We don't take kindly to be swindled."

>"SWINDLED? Now listen here you- ah...hm. Apologies, I AM a gentlemen, and one who should not be so easily riled. Look, I can see you're rather nettled about the situation, and should you refuse to accept my conditions, I'm sure my...ahem, associates here could convince you to see it my way? Brutus, Leo?"

>"Yessir. Alright, ladies, now, time fer the both of you ta- AARRHGHGHGG!!!"

>"OH, LORD!"

>"Yes, that's me. Thank you, love."

>"Not a problem. I can keep this up all day! It'll be a great test of how continuing, fluctuating current affects shock crystal resonation! Keeping things steady to be painful and incapacitating, but not lethal is sure to be interesting..."

>"As we said earlier, Mr. Pftizer, we are not keen on falsehood. Now, will you keep your end of the deal, or shall I have to get creative in repossession tactics?"

Also, writing.

>>1792990
>>Reassure her that she'll be fine tomorrow, so long as she follows instruction.

>>1793052
but she isn't going against her moral compass here. she is still trying to cause the least ammount of civilian casualties.

>>1792990
>>1793010
>>1793023
>>1793015
>>1793064
>>1793088
“Kid, go to sleep,” you mutter. She jumps slightly at your voice, then looks at you with a bit of shock. “You’ll be fine tomorrow just so long as you keep to instructions.”

“Ah- yeah. Right.” She nods, but the conflict doesn’t melt from her face. “Thanks, I guess…”

“Also, stop worrying about the civilians.” The visible jolt through her body tells you you hit the mark that time- although it’s not like that wasn’t obvious, you were kinda hoping you’d misread. “If you HAVE to justify it, these people would most likely be dead regardless if no Outgoers had taken the job. Thought I told you this already.”

“No, you did!” she says a bit too loudly, causing Lorelei to stir briefly. The two of you quickly quiet down before she resumes. “I just...it’s not like the idea of killing people ain’t new to me- I’ve heard about it before, and where I’m from it’s not like it’s uncommon- you should know that. Just...takes a bit ta settle, y’know? Especially when they ain’t done nothin’...”

“Hm. Well, look. Get reassigned to courier work or get a job in the Intersection if it's too much for you. But I let you know up front, and I shouldn’t have to keep reminding you. You do your job and get paid or get removed.”

“I know, I know…” she sighs. “I guess...gah, I guess things are really REALLY different out here. I...forget it, I’ll do it. I’ll probably throw up later, but I’ll do it.”

That’s not surprising. “Sounds familiar enough. Trust me, you get used to it.”

Mono just barks out a soft laugh. “Trippy.”

She returns to bed, and the rest of the night is restful enough.

>(Brief pause, will resume in about a half hour or so.)

>>1793234

It’s early morning, and it’s time to get to work. There’s always a certain point after the sun goes down, but riiight before it rises where most cities seem near-dead. The streets quiet, the noise a minimum, and it just feels like nothing and no one exists.

The perfect time for individuals like yourselves, that SHOULDN’T exist, to move. Izumi shoots off ahead to get into position, yourself and Mono staying behind, and Lorelei doing her best to be a casual, blending in sort by strolling along just so, walking out the safehouse like she hadn’t a single care in the world.

You’re not jealous. You just wish she wasn’t smirking when you headed off.

At any rate, the museum was to open in two hours. The grand opening of the wing in three. You wanted to be ready a half-hour before showtime.

“So...when we kill ‘im, that’s it, right?” She looks at you curiously. “Just get the paycheck and get out?”

“Yup.” you nod. “We’re done here. Anything else is their problem.”

“Oh…well, I hope it works out for ‘em.” Honestly, so do you.

Wouldn’t do to lose a potential repeat customer.

About an hour and a half later, you hear a response. “Sugar here. Place hasn’t opened up yet. Already a bit of a crowd. Two supers keeping the masses happy. Will keep updated. Out.” She quickly ends the call, and you nod in relief.

“Shichimi here. In position.” Huh. Well, that was quick.

“Come on, Mono.” You’re quick to stand up. “Everyone else is set. Let’s move and get you out there. Remember, you’re just a wanderer, a tourist, and are interested in history, if anyone asks.”

Nodding, she follows you out, and wordlessly slips into your hold once you begin to bound atop the city roofs. It’s a fairly quick trip, even accounting for careful movements to prevent any wandering eyes, but you have practice in this. Eventually, you slip past the museum’s rooftop from an eastern direction, slipping past and around the back of the institution in order to find a decent place to stake out- ah. Alleyway, not too far behind the parking lot. Perfect.

Well...as perfect as a waiting spot can be. With little fanfare, you let go of the wolfgirl, who gives you a nervous nod, and starts ambling out towards the museum itself.

And waiting...is boring. Nonetheless, you’re tense the whole time. It’s just a matter of when he plans on showing up, you’re sure…

>Roll 1d20, please! Best of 3.

Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>1793441

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>1793441

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>1793441

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>1793441

Unusually crap rolls for this Quest.

>>1793499
RNGsus is mocking us for some reason.

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>1793501
let's see what could have been

...Yikes. Writing. Sorry for the delay.

>>1793441
>>1793457
>>1793474
>>1793484
It’s just past midday. And you’re still waiting. So far, nothing, not a peep out of place. Mono reported a few odd looks, but as she did nothing in particular, they left her alone. “I’m startin’ to wonder, guys…” Lorelei whispers over comms. “Maybe we screwed up divin’ on this.”

“That’s distressing,” Izumi says. “But have there been any other notifications of Siphon’s presence elsewhere?”

You shake your head, despite being the only one around. “None that I’ve gotten wind of. We’ll hang around for a bit longer before we exfil. Give it a half-hour.”

“Understood.” “Roger that.” “Gotcha.” come the confirmations, and you let out a muted sigh of frustration. If that boy doesn’t come out soon…

*CRASH* And as you think that, you hear something LOUD go off- a muffled explosion from your position, but you know it had to be loud otherwise as your heart starts racing.

“CONTACT!” Lorelei yells out, headless of the surroundings now. “HE WAS DISGUISED! TOOK OUT HALF MY SETUP EARLY!” There’s a few coughs, before she keeps up.

“Trying to get eyes on the situation, there’s a lot of smoke!” Izumi yells.

“Vanilla, NOW!” you yell as you break cover.

“I-I’m going for it!” You can hear her breathe deeply as she begins.

>If you want a maze-like area, then that’s (Resolute) and will be easier because of Mono’s desire to stay away. Won’t help with injuring him, though.
>If you want a house of dangerous traps, that’s (Aggressive) and will be harder because of Mono’s shaken state. Likely to give you a solid advantage in combat, though.
>If you want (Soulful), well, that could be interesting to say the least.

>>1793713
>If you want a maze-like area, then that’s (Resolute) and will be easier because of Mono’s desire to stay away. Won’t help with injuring him, though.

>>1793713
>>If you want a maze-like area, then that’s (Resolute) and will be easier because of Mono’s desire to stay away. Won’t help with injuring him, though.

Miranda and Izumi can more than take care of him if they can get the drop on him.

>>1793713
>>If you want a maze-like area, then that’s (Resolute) and will be easier because of Mono’s desire to stay away. Won’t help with injuring him, though.

Fair enough! In that case, I need 3d20.

DC=35

Rolled 15, 6, 1 = 22 (3d20)

>>1793759
You're welcome

Rolled 8, 7, 7 = 22 (3d20)

>>1793759

Rolled 15, 2, 9 = 26 (3d20)

>>1793759
can other people roll too?

>>1793765
>>1793778
It's official, the quest is cursed guys.

>>1793784
I blame Star

>>1793784
i blame it on the crossover.

>>1793788
I blame THE JEWS star too.

Nooot quite.

>>1793788
>>1793794
>>1793798

I'm sure things will get better!

Maybe.

Rolled 3, 1, 1 = 5 (3d20)

>>1793759
Let's see what I would have gotten.

File: IMG_9152.png (138 KB, 442x480)

138 KB PNG

>>1793834

Rolled 9, 1, 8, 13, 15, 16, 13, 7, 3, 6, 19, 15, 9, 12, 2, 6, 2, 17, 8, 13 = 194 (20d20)

>>1793834
holy shit. i'm purging the dices.

>>1793713
>>1793765
>>1793778
>>1793780
You’re quick to turn the corner and run full tilt towards the area; part of you groans at the sight of the massive hole in the side of the museum- but another part of you is actually relieved- since that’s on the north end of the room- right in Izumi’s line of sight. You can hear some crazed laughter, and a shriek that sounds distressingly like Lorelei’s as a plume of fire goes up. The question here, though, is where’s Mono’s singing…?

As you race in, you find out quick enough- Mono’s crumpled on the floor, with Lorelei standing watch over her, trying her best to get her up, as three other heroes- two in matching blue suits, one of them reminding you of a marble sculpture- do their best to waylay him amidst the fallen bodies and panicked people. The flashes of energy and speed of the moving bodies are enough of a reason for Izumi to have issues targeting him, much less the smoke that’s still not entirely clear.

From the few seconds of battle you see, it’s clear he recognizes Lorelei, at least, and he’s trying to make a beeline for her- only to get stymied by the trio of heroes, and Lorelei’s own occasional sparkling blast of magic. Why he isn’t using his speed, you’re not sure, but you’re not one for giving him an opportunity.

>Plant a Light Barrier in front of Mono and Lorelei, let those three try to corral him.
>Join the fray- see if you can hold him still long enough for Izumi to cap him.
>Fuck all of it, Magiblast at full power. It’ll likely take out the remaining wall and collaspe the roof, too, but...Lorelei’s quick.
>Other

>>1794000
>>Other
Flux wave. Yell at lorelei to get down or some shit, I'm not really sure if there's a way to aim or have people avoid it. Then magi-blast the shit out of siphon

>>1794000
>>Join the fray- see if you can hold him still long enough for Izumi to cap him.

5 more minutes until lock. This'll be the last one for tonight.

>>1794000
>>Join the fray- see if you can hold him still long enough for Izumi to cap him.

>>1794000
>>Plant a Light Barrier in front of Mono and Lorelei, let those three try to corral him.

Yeah, no. he aint getting anywhere near mono.

>>1794000
>Plant a Light Barrier in front of Mono and Lorelei, let those three try to corral him.

...well that's timing for you.

>>1794028
>I'm not really sure if there's a way to aim or have people avoid it.
No, there isn't. We've been over this multiple times. It affects everyone in the area of effect, including Miranda.

>>1794118
can we cast an orbital ring on him after the light barrier? i think it has no cast time.

So much for that time limit...

>>1794127
Orbital Ring does have a cast time. You can do it, but you'd have to aim it and he'd have to not dodge it.

Rolled 2 (1d2)

Rolling.

1: Melee
2: Light Barrier

Shit just hit the fan real quick. Let's just hope we can get a kill off of Siphon quickly without having any of our team's powers drained. Everything else is collateral.

>>1794119
You forget we worked on it during the trip to sky world, and I'm not sure what upgrades it got after that. I don't think Miranda's affected by it anymore.

>>1794201
No, I'm not forgetting that.
All that did was let Miranda resist the second pulse, which is what's needed to actually knock people out.

>>1794235
What I mean by affected is put out of comission, which Miranda never was. Doesn't matter anyways since we aren't doing it.

>>1794000
>>1794033
>>1794110

>Mana: 10,000/11,000

With little fanfare, you’re quick to leap to Lorelei’s side- a Light Barrier is up, and none too soon as a blast of fire impacts it and fans out in a flowery conflagration. “How’s she doing?” you ask once the heat’s passed. She’s groaning, so you don’t think she’s unconscious, but she doesn’t look in a good spot at all.

“She’s rattled at the least, from the looks of it. Was a bit too near one of the explosions, got clipped. Tried to get clear afterwards, but Freako beaned her with a statue. I got worried, but then those three managed to drag him offa her.” You take another look at the three-on-one. The two matching suits are lithe and nimble, and move like their bodies are rubber, constantly slipping and sliding around Siphon, who’s honestly just laughing like a kid in a candy store as he alternates between trying to fry, freeze, explode, or catch them. The marble man seems a bit rougher for wear; several parts of him are chipped off and ultimately you can tell he’s not going to last much longer, by how he’s panting. He’s doing his best, however, using his marble creation abilities to conjure large shield defenses, and sling marble discs at the madman- who has to alternate his abilities in order to keep up, it seems. For a second, you see him tense, grin at you, and LEER at Mono- the moment passes as one of the rubber energy twins swipes at him and he’s forced to dodge again, cackling like a loon.

You REALLY hope you can kill him personally.

Done for tonight. Will resume tomorrow. Let's see if you manage to take this guy down.

We should probably put up an Energy Channel throughout our body so that Siphon can't touch us.

>>1795790
we already have a master chief armor on us, so we are fine. the problem is the other girls. mono in specific.

>>1795885
It'd be funny if he siphons Mono only to find out that he can't sing so her power has no effect

>>1795885
I'm leery of depending on just the armor when Siphon has ferrokinesis.

>>1795944
i hope we don't reach that point.
>>1796000
there are non magnetic alloys. i wanna believe that the makers of the armor had in mind the possibility of being trapped by magnets

Allo. Will be resuming shortly.

>>1796058
cool.

>>1794341
>>1796142
>>1795790
>>1795885
>>1795944
>>1796000
It’s not very long before the tide turns, however- the marble man gets literally blown aside as an explosion sends him flying. How he’s not shattered into pieces from it is remarkable, but it doesn’t mean he’s not in danger; Siphon is quick to sense weakness, and with a quick duck and a somersault from a desperate twin attempt at a high-low attack to defend their comrade, he vaults away- and you see him breath deeply.

You’re quick to cover your ears, as is Lorelei. The other two aren’t so lucky.

A wicked scream, worse than nails on a chalkboard, erupts from his mouth in a manner that reminds you of Izumi’s own roar, and hands over your ears doesn’t prevent the strange rumbling bass feeling in your chest, almost like someone’s trying to shake you apart. It’s more than enough to send the duo flying, their energy winking out, and you and sense that your own barrier is faltering, too.

In only seconds it’s over, and Siphon stalks towards his new prey with a near-feral grin, and you get a sinking feeling that if he gets hold of any of them, he’s gone. “Can you take the shot?!” you whisper-yell as he gets closer to the trio of fallen heroes.

“...yes.”

>Roll 1d20. Best of three.

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>1796143

>>1796143
can we prepare the orbital ring now? or put him on a box of light barriers and then ring him? (of course, after the shot)

Rolled 12 (1d20)

>>1796143

>>1796148
I was thinking about asking for an action anyway, so I'll allow something like this if others back it.

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>1796143

Quest is literally confirmed cursed. Rip half of our MP since it's siphons now.

>>1796165
this is the moment i regret not asking quest sooner if we could take the couriers with us for that cosplay mission.

>Alright, then. I think that takes care of our acquisitions...shame the man was so belligerent.

>Eh, he'll recover. Eventually. I think. Mind-numbing crystals aren't something I had a lot of time to really straighten out, I mean I only had the two made...anyway, I feel like we're missing something...

>Nonsense, dear, we've scoured this place top to bottom.

>I know, just...y'know, old habits popping up. Welll, we've got what we came for. Deal's done, let's get back home and get our share.

>Do you think the others are back yet?

>We'll see. If not, well...I daresay we can spend some nice, private time alone, hmmm~?

>Oh yeah! I've love to compare notes on where you think we can go with this and- wait. Oh. Ohhhhhhhh. Y-yeah, I mean, I mean yeah, we-we could. We could do that. Can we do that? We could do that.

>Hmhm.

>>1796179
We'll have to find at least one dude for the squad to add some variety to this taco hoedown.

Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>1796143
Are the dice really that bad?

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>1796196
Absolutely

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>1796196
They're pretty cursed.

>>1796196
>>1796205
>>1796210
Hey guys
what if...
just listen for a second

WHAT IF

what if starborn quest stole our good rolls and gave us THEIR SHITTY ROLLS?

>>1796212
If thats true we should also get a "nosell" option like in starborn.

>>1796212
I motion for d100s

Rolled 75 (1d100)

>>1796224
That just gives us more numbers to fail with.

Rolled 47 (1d100)

>>1796224
>>1796235

Well hold on there, while I still promote no selling stuff, that might be the trick.

Rolled 10 (1d100)

>>1796224
lets see
>>1796235
on the other hand, its more numbers to not fail with.

Rolled 15 (1d100)

>>1796237
>>1796242

You know what nevermind d100s.

Rolled 17 (1d100)

>>1796248
>>1796242
well, if these rolls were translated to a d20, they would we a nat 1 or a 2. its bad, but not THAT bad.

Rolled 16 (1d100)

You guys are all just awful

Rolled 34 (1d100)

>>1796263
wellcome to the club

File: High-Protein-Foods.jpg (44 KB, 493x335)

44 KB JPG

>>1796258
>>1796263
These rolls all need to eat more. we need [T H I C C] rolls.

>>1796143
>>1796147
>>1796149
>>1796160
There’s a split-second between her answer and a shot reverberating throughout the air- a thunderous explosion rips through the room and a number of shouts ring out at the same time. For a second there’s silence. You know he’s not dead. The question is how damaged is he.

As the smoke clears and the laughter begins, you can see the answer is ‘not enough’. He’s missing a hand, and the side of his face reveals a mess of viscera, bone and sinew melting forth like something out of a horror movie. The duo heroes don’t look much better- one of them is now contorted in a strange pretzel, and they’re bleeding pretty badly all over- one of them even seems to have embers glowing on their suit, which in their unconscious state they’re unaware of.

“Juuuuuuust as I figured…” Siphon’s exposed eye lazily turns outwards, the eyeball barely staying in its socket as it twists and focuses outward- towards the Hotel Grand. “Tryin’ that same song and dance again, huh? You gotta MIX IT UP A LITTLE!”

“Shit. Repositioning.” Is all you hear before the line goes dead. And then he turns to you. His muscle is already growing back, little by little. Flesh knitting itself together. Without taking his eyes off you, he leaps back, finally settling on one of the fallen duo as he eyes your barrier.

“I bet you’re gonna turn tail, huh, little soldier? This ain’t a war you can win. Seen your type before. You, you got nothin’ without your little buddies providing backup. You’re just all bullets and grit, riiight? Well, go on. Shoot me. TRY IT! Of course…” and here he grins at the fallen Mono, who’s only just starting to truly wake up. “Nothin’ saying you could actually HIT me ‘fore I turn your little friend there to ciiiinders. It’d be a sssssnap.” He hisses out the word like a crackling fire. “And I mean that in more ways than one.”

Hm. It’s true, at this range? You’d barely have time to drop the barrier and take aim before he could launch a plume of fire at you three. He’s clearly not so far gone he’s going to leave himself open for five seconds; he’s just standing over the two fallen kids, not even bothering to touch them yet. Izumi wouldn’t even be able to hit him from here, either...

>Snap...snap! If Lorelei’s triggers are still in place, that might catch him by surprise. But that’s risky, at this distance. They might not even do much damage.
>He’s fast, but not that fast if he has to switch between powers, right? But would a quick shot actually kill him, or stagger him long enough is the question…
>Maybe you can stall for time somehow and let Izumi get into a better position. That’ll be hard to do no doubt, and if he gets away…
>Other

>>1796315
>>Snap...snap! If Lorelei’s triggers are still in place, that might catch him by surprise. But that’s risky, at this distance. They might not even do much damage.

>>1796315
>Other
Act like you're going ham and fire off a bunch of magi-blasts, giving lorelei time to reposition. try and kite him into a wall I guess.

5 minute warning.

>>1796315
>>1796330
We can go with this. Pretend to panic.

>>1796315
>Snap...snap! If Lorelei’s triggers are still in place, that might catch him by surprise. But that’s risky, at this distance. They might not even do much damage.

Hmmmm...what do here...

I'll let it lie for a bit because I'm going across the street to get a chicken burger, that's what I'll do. I'll come back, call it, if it's a tie, then I'll probably roll.

>>1796347
>>1796330
>>1796326
can they be the same action?
I feel they can be done in the same action.
>miranda pretends to panic, then when she yells now, she unloads the magic blasts on him and lorelei blows the charges.

Back, and yeah I guess both can happen. Writing!

Faces forwards and prep dice!

Rolled 14, 20, 7, 7, 13, 13, 7, 8, 20, 13 = 122 (10d20)

Prepping

Rolled 177 (1d200)

Locked and Loaded

>>1796315
>>1796326
>>1796330
>>1796347
>>1796348
>>1796359
You let yourself growl a bit- you can’t even say it’s entirely faked. He’s a remarkable dick, and you can’t wait to bury his busted and broken body. He’s hardly moving at all, stupid shit-eating grin on his face, bloody though it may be, and a quick glance at Lorelei shows she shares your sentiments. A snap, huh? You’d love to snap HIM in-

-wait. Snap...And then you remember the charges. Lorelei had said that she still had a few primed. If you could activate those...but no, chances are it wouldn’t do enough- not from this distance. But if you could corral him closer…

Thank goodness you have a helmet. “Sugar, I’m gonna try to pin him down,” you say as low as possible. She gives no indication she hears you- good. “I give the signal, you blow what you have left ready.” Soon, you hear a moan come up as Mono looks up cautiously. "Whaaa...?"

The only sign is a slight squinting of the eyes, and Siphon seems to notice. “Weellll? Made your big decision yet? ‘Cause I gots people to k-”

“SHUT UP AND DIE!” you roar, and again, not falsified, if perhaps a bit exaggerated. A gatling salvo of magi-blast erupt from your hands as the barrier falls, and you have the exquisite pleasure of seeing a blast of surprise cross his face before he leaps out of the way- a pitful attempt to get towards you- you have to think the only reason he’s not making tracks is because your barrage is too voluminous to risk not activating his durability. Either way, his frantic run leads him carefully towards the east end of the building- just as you’d hoped.

“NOW!” And Lorelei snaps her fingers with a vicious grin as the temperature drops massively.

>Roll 1d20, Best of three.

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>1796434

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>1796434
i'm afraid.

File: 1445548754803.jpg (36 KB, 500x494)

36 KB JPG

>>1796438

...i think we should stop rolling and leave that 17. is a sexy 17. A very good number i you ask me.

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>1796434

>>1796439
Be not afraid. You have done well.

Writing!

>>1796438
>>1796449
We're like the antiques roadshow of cursed rolls. Thanfully I think Handler only accepts nat 1's and 20's as overwriting other rolls.

>>1796468
I used to not take crit failure overrides at all, but I'm trying to see if I can't implement them in a more interesting manner these days. I'm still not entirely sold on them, but I want to experiment a bit now that stats and whatnot are getting crunchier.

>>1796434
>>1796439
>>1796438
>>1796449
The series of three explosions tears through the small busts they’d been planted in- and the explosions and debrie tear through Siphon as well, sending a shower of ice and body pieces flying- you’re positive you saw a part of an arm go, bone and all. Again. There’s a massive thump as a body hits the floor, and you’re ecstatic to see Siphon hit the ground just as Mono manages to get herself up off the floor.

“Talk about timing,” Lorelei mutters good-naturedly as she helps Mono up.

“What...what happened? Did we get ‘im?” To answer that, you look over towards where the body landed. And there is indeed a body. Most of him is torn up and apart, but to your non-surprise, he’s still somewhat mobile, and still largely in one piece, if a groaning mess. Fortunately, he seems in no real condition to move judging by his rolling and jittering...at least not at the moment, and like hell you’re going to let that chance go.

...At least right before a rumbling sound emanates from the building and pieces start to fall.

Izumi’s voice comes through suddenly. “You all need to get out of there! I’ve got incoming supers, and the whole place looks like it’s about to come down!”

Well, damnit. You can’t exactly take your time, but...

>Get out of there before you risk being spotted and confronted.
>Always confirm the kill. ALWAYS.
>Have Izumi take one last potshot just for security purposes.
>Other

>>1796547
>>Always confirm the kill. ALWAYS.

>>1796547
>>Always confirm the kill. ALWAYS.
We'll be fiiiiiinnnneeeeeeeeee...

>>1796547
>Always confirm the kill. ALWAYS.
Turn him to glass

>>1796547
>>Always confirm the kill. ALWAYS.
vaporize his head first.

>>1796547
>Always confirm the kill. ALWAYS.

Make him SUPER dead. Like the deadest sonbitch you've ever seen.

>>1796574
also, we havae the power armor. it should protect us or alarm us of immnent damage, having that AI and stuff.

...R-right?

>>1796547
>Always confirm the kill. ALWAYS.

...Boom.

Writing!

>>1796547
>>1796558
>>1796559
>>1796561
>>1796574
>>1796580
>>1796586
Nope. Not letting this one get away. “Job’s almost done,” you note over the comms, looking at Mono. “You good?”

Her eyes widen a bit, but she nods. “Then time you put that launcher to use.” Amidst the crumbling ruin of a museum wing, your hand shines brightly. Mono brings her launcher to bear, and Lorelei’s hands crackle with spheres of light, a sparkling inferno ready to be loosed. “Set.” The body struggles upwards, a noseless and shattered face bowed.

“Aim.” He lifts himself up, practically spilling blood like a fountain from gaping wounds.

“WASTE ‘IM!” And at once all three of you fire- and you even hear a *crack* from the distance.

The conflagration is enormous, and the combined massive explosion blows the back out of the building entirely- as well as a goodly portion of the roof as you hear screams and shouts only barely above the cacophony of noise the combined strike makes. The backlash is great enough that you actually have to cast another Light Barrier just to be safe from the results, such is the shrapnel that detonates from the blast.

It takes a full ten seconds for you to feel even remotely safe in bringing down the barrier...so you don’t, just to be sure. What you see before you is utter carnage. Essentially the entire wing has been basically wiped out- only a small portion of the front half remains. You can see pieces of the marble man scattered about- as well as the fallen bodies of the two heroes. It’s clear they didn’t escape the blasts, or the resulting destruction they caused.

Siphon...well, you can see bits and pieces of him. There a foot there. Some bone fragments you think are ribs. Skull parts- that’s definitely part of his brain there. Some muscle pieces, and so on. For the most part, though, he seems utterly decimated, and you can’t even smell any energy from him, no less.

“What on Earth…” aaaand now you have this to deal with. You turn to see a group of seven individuals- two of them being Smog and Gravimetra, no less. All of them dressed for action, and the leader- lantern-jawed, barrel chested, gold and blue spandex, about as expected- staring at you incredulously, and the rest of them with shock and not a little disgust.

“Who...who are you. What did you DO?!” the man asks. Gravimetra just looks pale, clearly locking eyes with Lorelei.

“Kill confirmed. I’m calling in an extract.” Izumi says over the line. Great. That means you need to stall…

>What to say…?

Ugh, work. But, I'll try to be back tonight to hopefully finish.

>>1796632
we gotta whip out some edgelord-ass edgelord shit.

"We're just mercs here to finish a job you couldn't possibly hope of completing. Nothing personnel kids"

Gotta play it up so Mono feels like we're cool dudes.

>>1796632
Just cashin' in a check.

>>1796632
"we eliminated a particular difficult target with the least ammount of force required"

Then we let them take us for interrogation or whatever.
Then: either Sal beam us up and return us to Overwatch(...i forgot the name of the organization).

Or, the organization gets us out of prison.

or we break out.

>>1796632
"We did what you couldn't, and made sure that Siphon couldn't steal your powers when you arrived.
"You may as well have brought a pizza and a soda with how you were just delivering your powers to him."

>>1796649
>>1796685
I dont really see miranda acting like that. you don't stay long in the business by being an edgelord.

>>1796708
Are..... you sure about that? IRL hey're stupid, but with superpowers and shit they probably aren't the worst at what they do. Also it's meant to be an act to buy time, it isn't meant to be a reflection of her personaloty.

>>1796718
if we want to make time it would be best to make a discussion with them. Not aggravating them, or making fun of them. Just something like:
"if your friend was in grave danger, wouldn't you just do the same?"
If we want to buy time, that's the best way to do it. Bait them into debating against us, and keeping them somewhat levelheaded.

>>1796757
They're hero types, if they actually bothered talking to us instead of attacking on site, they clearly have some stake in getting an answer. Besides, edgelords are simple and come up in this type of setting pretty often, I'm sure they'll try to convince us to be reformed or some shit.

>>1796632
> "We used the absolute minimum amount of force possible. We had hoped to use less, we TRIED to use less, but 'less' wasn't enough."
Completely honest, no excuses or apologies needed. We did the job right, we did the job well.

>>1796649
>>1796651
>>1796679
>>1796757
>>1797148
I'm back. It's late. But I have poptarts. I dunno if anyone's here, but I'll at least write this entry.

>>1797284
Ya boi's still here boss