Once and Future (WormxFate)

Voting

[X] [Glory] Melee
[X] [Power] Chivalry (B)
[X] [Hate] No
[X] [Adventure] Explore the Woods
-[X] [Woods] With Erin
[X] [Activity] Dating
[X] [Social] Parents

Gifts

[] [Parents]:
-[] [Framed Photo] Yes.
-[] [Fine Clothes] Yes.
-[] [Jewelry] No.

[][Dean]:
-[] [Coffee] Yes.
-[] [Video Game] Yes.

[] [Amy]:
-[] [Jewelry] Yes.
-[] [Fine Clothes] No.

[] [Victoria]:
-[] [Fine Clothes] Yes.
-[] [Academic Journal] Yes.

[] [Erin]:
-[] [Jewelry] No.
-[] [Fine Clothes] Yes.
-[] [Hawking Book] Yes.

[] [Megan]:
-[] [Cosmetics] Yes.
-[] [Fine Clothes] No.

[] [Chelsea]:
-[] [Cosmetics] Yes.
-[] [Fine Clothes] No.

[] [Caren]:
-[] [Book of Organ Music] Yes.

Healing

Recover 5 hit points via Natural Healing. HP: 32/41

Snow danced on the night wind, spinning and twirling as if ballerinas in miniature, finally settling down to cover the road.

Snowfall had not been heavy the last few days, just a light dusting at any given time, but neither had it ceased. A constant flurry, just enough to feel ever present, slowly coating the city in a deepening frost.

Amidst the sea of white, the lights of the Dallon house stood out like a beacon in the night.

"There's no need to be nervous," Dean said as we pulled to a stop. "It's not like it's your first time visiting."

"I am not nervous."

"Ellie, I can literally see that you're nervous."

"You are supposed to allow a lady her fictions, Dean," I said, directing a gimlet eye in his direction.

"Sorry, sorry, my mistake!" he laughed. "You're not nervous, you're very dignified."

I punched him in the arm before stepping out of the car, careful not to let my heels slip on any ice. My clothes tonight leaned towards the conservative. A simple white blouse with a blue skirt, a light jacket thrown on top. They were not the same clothes that Rin had given to me in another lifetime, but there was still a faint nostalgia to the outfit. A similarity that could be mistaken if one squinted, like a reflection in distorted glass.

The outfit was very much like my own self in that regard.

My brother and I walked up together and Dean knocked on the door. There was a moment of us just standing together, waiting in the cold, before I finally heard multiple locks slide out of place and the door opened. Carol stood in the entryway, her gaze lingering sternly on the both of us.

"Hello Ellie. Dean. Come on inside. Dinner should be ready in about twenty minutes."

"Thank you Mrs. Dallon," Dean said. "I'm looking forward to it."

Carol just scowled at him and turned away, allowing us in.

I was not sure what the reason for it was, but Carol had always disliked Dean. She always seemed to find some flaw in what he did. I would have thought it was just her being an overprotective parent, since my brother was dating her daughter, but I had not suffered similar treatment after I started dating Amy.

Some people just did not get along.

Victoria and Amy were both waiting for us in the living room, wearing matching Christmas sweaters. Victoria grinned and jumped up to hug Dean. Meanwhile, I found myself watching Amy, drinking in every detail of her features. Lost in her eyes.

I knew intellectually that nothing had happened to her, but after the encounter with the ghouls, it was reassuring to see her in person. To see that she was safe.

Misery is cured.

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"Merry Christmas you two!"

"Or Merry Christmas Eve, rather," Amy added sarcastically.

"We're celebrating Christmas, so it's Christmas," Victoria stated, sticking her tongue out at Amy. "One day hardly matters."

"Well, I can hardly argue with that logic," Dean said, pressing a quick kiss to Victoria's cheek. "Merry Christmas."

"Come on," Victoria said. "Let's go talk up in my room for a bit."

With that, she began leading Dean up the stairs, only for Carol to call from the kitchen, "Leave the door open, you two! I don't want any funny business in my house!"

Victoria just rolled her eyes and kept pulling Dean along behind her, leaving me and Amy behind. Amy frowned at their retreating backs for a moment before muttering under her breath, "Like it'd be the first time."

"What was that?" I asked.

"Nothing." She sighed and looked back at me, a tremulous smile forming. "You want to come up to my room until dinner is ready?"

I met her smile with one of my own and reached out to thread my fingers through hers. "I would like that."

She led me up the stairs. No similar call came from Carol about keeping her door open. In fact, as soon as we were in her room, Amy closed the door and then shoved me up against it. Time dissolved, replaced with a smear of sensation. Her tongue in my mouth. Her fingers in my hair. Her breath on my skin.

When Carol called that dinner was ready twenty minutes later, I was laying on the bed, my clothes thoroughly disheveled. Flushing, I quickly began trying to put myself back together into a semblance of respectability, while Amy just watched, radiating smug satisfaction.

Gain a check to Lustful.

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"Well," she said," I think this might be the best Christmas I've ever had."

"You mean Christmas Eve?" I asked archly. That set her off into a fit of giggles, as though it were the funniest thing she'd ever heard.

"Yeah. Best Christmas Eve."

"And here, you have yet to even receive your gift."

"You mean that wasn't it?" Amy smirked and leaned in, stopping just short of kissing me.

"Cease tempting me, woman. We still need to go downstairs soon."

"So you're saying you are tempted then?"

"Of course I am. You are the one tempting me, after all."

Amy blinked and looked away, suddenly shy in the face of my honesty. I took the opportunity to slip her gift from my pocket and put it on her. She flinched at the touch of the cold metal before looking down, staring at the pendant that now hung from her neck.

Her gift was a heart-shaped locket. Silver filigree formed an intricate cage around a small garnet, the gemstone glinting blood-red in the under the light.

She lifted the pendant to look at it, her eyes widening. "Elaine, this is too much."

"You have my heart and my love," I said simply.

Bond with Amy increased to 10.

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"I – You shouldn't – I'm not –" Tears welled at the corners of Amy's eyes. Suddenly, she lunged forward to wrap her arms around me. "You should find someone else. I'm not worth this. Not worth you."

I stilled, my embrace of tightening. "Are you breaking up with me?"

"...No. I'm too selfish for that." She pulled back, her smile crooked as she stared into my eyes. "...but Ellie – I'm not good for you. I'll only hurt you in the end."

I raised a hand to stroke her cheek, watching her brown eyes catch the light in a way that turned them red. "That is my decision to make. Now, what do you say that we join the rest of your family for dinner before they start wondering what happened to us?"

She nodded tremulously and I took her hand in mine, leading her back downstairs. Dean shot me a look as we entered, but Amy shot him a glare so fierce that he quickly turned away, whatever question he had left unsaid. Victoria must have noticed something though, because she shot both of us a wide smile.

"You took your time coming down," Carol commented.

"Sorry," Amy replied meekly, ducking her head down.

"Just sit down. Your food is getting cold."

Amy did so and I followed and everyone began eating. No one prayed. The Dallons were not a religious family. Instead, I cut into my slice of ham, looking around the table.

Trusting: 14 | 10 || Suspicious: 7 | 10
>Suspicious succeeds.

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There was a strange current of unease to the table as we ate. When Carol would ask Victoria questions about school and about her patrols as a hero, there was a warm tone to it, the gentle inquiry of a parent. Yet, when she asked similar questions of Amy, somehow it turned into sharp criticism of Amy for spending all of her time inside on the computer.

Nothing she said was obviously untoward, but… There was a difference in treatment. Nor was I the only one to notice. Victoria's smile grew increasingly strained as dinner wore on and Dean looked as if he'd rather be anywhere else.

Mark, Amy and Victoria's father, seemed to barely pay attention, only bothering to talk when someone directly asked him a question.

My lips drew thin. If she acted this way in front of guests, then how did Carol behave when it was just the Dallons and no one else?

When dinner finally finished, we all moved to the family room to open presents. Amy practically shoved her gift into my chest, muttering, "It's not as good as what you got me, but I hope you like it."

I carefully undid the wrapping, trying not to tear the paper as I uncovered the present. Inside, lay a glass phial, filled with clear liquid. A golden band ran around the top of the phial, stamped with the company's logo. Curious, I unscrewed the top and sniffed, taking in the scent of vanilla with a hint of something else I could not place underlying it.

Perfume added to equipment.

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"I love it," I said, leaning in to kiss her cheek. "I shall be sure to wear it for you from now on."

Amy just blushed and ducked her head. I pulled her into a hug before sitting down with her to watch the rest of the proceedings.

Victoria had ended up sitting in Dean's lap as the two opened up each other's presents. For Dean, Victoria had gotten a leather jacket, something that was entirely too stylish for my brother to pull off. Victoria, on the other hand, received a bracelet that looked like a series of linked diamonds at first glance. The gemstones in question were actually zircon, which I knew purely because Dean had consulted with me on which jewelry to buy.

When it came my turn again, I undid Victoria's present to find a shimmering, white dress. It was soft to the touch – silk, or perhaps satin. I was not sure without checking the tags, but… "This is too much, Victoria."

"Don't be silly. You need something to wear next time you take Amy to a dance, right? Just think of this as me chipping in."

Fine Clothes added to equipment.

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I huffed but accepted her reasoning. "Very well. Then go ahead and open my gift. Gifts, I should say. I was not sure if you would like the first one, so I got two."

Victoria raised an eyebrow curiously but opened her first gift, revealing a blouse and skirt combo. It was nothing on the level of the dress she had gotten for me, but she seemed happy enough with it. "This is great, Ellie. But if this is the first gift, what's the second?"

I passed her an envelope. "I'm aware you've been enjoying your college courses. I was not sure if it would help or not, but I purchased a subscription in your name, for an academic journal that studies parahuman psychology."

Victoria's eyes widened. "That's… Wow. I mean… Thank you, Ellie." Her smile lit up the room. "You wouldn't believe how much of the dumb blonde stereotyping I get from people. It's really special having someone remember that I have a brain too."

She floated over to hug both me and Amy, squeezing the both of us tight.

Bond with Victoria increased to 3.

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The night outside pressed dark and cold against the windows, but here, in this moment, pure warmth suffused me.


For all that I had enjoyed my Christmas Eve with Victoria and Amy, I could not say the same for Christmas Day.

"Elaine, fix your hair. You have a bit sticking up. I want you looking perfect for our family photos."

I bit my tongue and did as my mother said, reaching up to try and tame the stubborn lock of hair, though it resisted my every attempt.

"You should probably wear something nicer too."

"It's a Christmas photo, Mother. A little bit plain is good."

My mother paused before finally sighing. "I suppose you're right. I really wanted to show Evelyn what you look like in your new dress though."

What she meant, I interpreted, is that since Dean and I had declined to go to the Christmas Eve Gala with our parents last night, she felt like she'd missed a chance to use us for social clout.

"I am sure she will see me wear it eventually."

"Fine. There probably isn't time to change anyways. Fix your hair."

With that, she walked off, leaving me to my own devices. I grimaced and gave up on fixing my hair, stalking to our home theater instead and flopped down onto the couch next to my brother.

Dean turned the volume down on whatever show he was watching and glanced over at me. "Mom giving you trouble?"

"Yes," I bit out.

He smiled empathetically and reached over to squeeze my shoulder. "She's just a little stressed out. You shouldn't mind it too much."

"If that is the case, then stress is simply her natural state," I scoffed. "You just escape the worst of it as her baby boy."

Dean gave me a troubled smile. "She does try, in her own way."

"Just turn on the television."

My brother shrugged and turned the volume back up. Why he had chosen to watch the Charlie Brown Christmas Special, I was not sure, but I allowed myself to lose focus and simply vegetate, the colors and sound blurring to background noise.

For whatever reason, the memories of Artoria were far from me today. Usually, they seemed more real than my own of this life, as if the girl I was before my coma had been little more than a passing dream. Today however, I was steeped in the bitterness that girl had once felt.

I stewed in every failure, every missed performance, every broken promise. My assessment was not completely fair, I knew, but a part of me did not care. I was not in the mood to be charitable.

"Hey kids," our father said, poking his head into the room. "The photographer is done setting up. You two both ready?"

"Sure," Dean answered easily. "We'll be there in just a sec, Dad."

Our father gave a thumbs up and retreated, leaving just me and Dean. Slowly, I gathered myself out of my malaise, putting up the walls around myself that I had grown so accustomed to. Dean was watching me, a vaguely concerned look in his eyes, but I simply patted him on the shoulder. He worried too much. I was fine.

"Once more unto the breach?" I asked.

"Once more," he replied and helped me to my feet.

The family photos were exactly as exhausting as I expected them to be. Our mother had hired a professional photographer, but she insisted on looking over each shot and fussing over some perceived imperfection. She would ask for adjustments and then we would need to get into position for the next photograph.

The poor man looked more than a little put out by the time we finished an hour later.

Then came time for presents. There were the usual assortment of gifts, most of which seemed aimed at the tastes of the girl I had once been. A great many pink clothes, cosmetics, and stuffed animals. Had they not even noticed that I was not wearing any of this any more?

Unfortunately, I suppose I was truly their daughter, because I could not figure out what to get Dean for my gift to him either. I grimaced internally as I handed him my gift.

"Hero Fighter IV and… a bag of premium coffee grounds?"

"For when your job has you working late nights," I explained.

Dean snorted softly. "Well, I'm sure some of the other guys at the 'office' would enjoy playing this with me sometime. Thank you, Ellie."

Bond with Dean increased to 4.

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"I am sorry I could not think of anything more personal," I apologized.

"Don't worry about it. This is good." Dean smiled and pulled me into a hug. "Anyways, go ahead and open yours as well."

I took the package he handed me and carefully undid the wrapping paper to reveal its contents. A book.

"The Art of Public Speaking?" I asked.

"Figured our Student Council President could make use of it," he winked.

The Art of Public Speaking added to equipment.

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"Thank you," I said simply, my chest feeling tight.

With that, there was just one present left. My gift to my parents. I handed it to them wordlessly.

"Oh! It's one of those digital frames that you can load pictures into!"

"It should get some use with how many pictures we took today," my father joked.

"Oh quit it," my mother replied, swatting at his arm. "The picture turned out good, didn't it?"

The two of them laughed, all easy smiles. I swallowed, a painful lump suddenly in my throat. Maybe Dean was right. I was not sure how long it would last, but maybe they were actually trying now.

Gain a check to Love (Family).

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"Alright, we've got one last gift. This one wasn't in the pile. Ellie, you want to come out to the garage with me?"

I tilted my head quizzically, but followed my father out, only to come to a stop as we ducked into the garage. Sitting there was a sleek, silver motorcycle. For a moment, my head went blank, and I simply analyzed it dispassionately. It was smaller than the one I had ridden against the King of Conquerors in the Fourth Grail War. Less powerful. Still, it represented something. Freedom. Independence of movement. I no longer needed to rely on anyone else to transport me.

"You actually purchased a motorcycle for me?"

"It's not every day your little girl turns sixteen." My father grinned and dangled a set of keys. "Merry Christmas, Ellie. Why don't you take it out for a spin?"

A wide grin split my face as I took the keys and slid into the motorcycle's seat. It was the work of a moment to rev the engine. Once the garage door finished opening, I was out to the street like a shot from a canon, a laugh escaping my lips as the wind danced through my hair.

Motorcycle added to equipment.

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The Hunt

13: Tracking a Supernatural Creature
10: Gargantuan Animal
17: Fox

Elaine invokes passion: Honor : 13 | 15 = Success.

Elaine Hunting: 3 | 2 (+10 Merlin)(+5 Inspired) = Success
Elaine Movement: 15 | 17 = Success
>Position #2

Round 1

Elaine Hunting: 5 | 2 (+15) || Fox Avoidance: 7 (+1) | 21
>Encounter an Obstacle.
>>A fallen tree leaves only a small passage. Roll Hunting to find a way through or move back one position.
>>>Elaine Hunting: 2 | 2 (+15) = Success
>>Elaine maintains Position #2.

Round 2

Elaine Hunting: 18 | 2 (+15) || Fox Avoidance: 16 (+1) | 21
>Move back one position.
>>Elaine falls to Position #3.

Round 3

Elaine Hunting: 17 | 2 (+15) = Critical! || Fox Avoidance: 11 (+1) | 21
>Gain a check to Hunting
>Encounter an obstacle and advance two positions.
>>Thorny bramble bushes. Make a CON roll or take 1D6 damage.
>>>Elaine CON: 4 | 16 = Success
>>Elaine advances to Position #1.

Round 4

Elaine Hunting: 3 | 2 (+15) || Fox Avoidance: 11 (+1) | 21
>Encounter an Obstacle
>>Confusing tracks. Succeed at a Hunting roll, or lose track of the prey and move back one position.
>>>Elaine Hunting: 15 | 2 (+15 Merlin) = Success

Round 5

Elaine Hunting: 16 | 2 (+15) || Fox Avoidance: 9 (+1) | 21
>Encounter an obstacle and advance one position.
>>A fallen tree leaves only a small passage. Roll Hunting to find a way through or move back one position.
>>>Elaine Hunting: 1 | 2 (+15) = Success
>>Elaine finds the Prey.

The Abay

Elaine Melee: 7 | 17 || Fox Avoidance: 6 (+1) | 21 = Tie!
>The prey escapes; return to position #4. Roll Hunting next segment with a +5 modifier.

Round 6

Elaine Hunting: 19 (+2) | 2 (+20) = Critical! || Fox Avoidance: 14 (+1) | 21
>Encounter an obstacle and advance two positions.
>>Hunting horns or barking dogs in the distance! Make an Awareness roll to follow the sounds; if you succeed, move to the quarry's position.
>>>Elaine Awareness: 1 | 4 = Failure
>>Elaine advances to Position #2.

Round 7

Elaine Hunting: 2 | 2 (+15) || Fox Avoidance: 16 (+1) | 21
>Encounter an obstacle.
>>Hidden ditch or sudden precipice. Roll DEX to avoid a fall doing 2D6 damage.
>>>Elaine DEX: 8 | 14 = Success

Round 8

Elaine Hunting: 5 | 2 (+15) || Fox Avoidance: 18 (+1) | 21
>Encounter an obstacle.
>>The prey comes charging back! Advance to "The Abay".

The Abay

Elaine Melee: 10 | 17 || Fox Avoidance: 3 (+1) | 21
>Inflict normal damage. The prey fights next Round unless badly hurt, in which case it Avoids again.
>Elaine Damage (8d6) = 25 (-8 AR) = 17 Damage (24/41 HP)
>>The Fox takes a Major Wound.

After Action

Gain 40 Glory for killing the Gargantuan Fox.

Snow crunched underfoot as I crept through the woods. Despite the bare branches and the ice that hung in place of leaves, the woods had grown thick and tangled in the last few months. There was a wildness to them that had not been present before, a savagery that reminded me of my childhood in the Forest Sauvage.

Magic lingered in the air, twisting the world into its primordial shape.

Crouching, I traced a finger through the snow, following the shape of a paw print the size of my torso.

"A fox, I think, though one far too large. It could be something twisted by magic, or just a faerie assuming the shape of an animal."

"Definitely unnatural though?" Erin asked.

"Without a doubt."

"Best to cull it then." Erin sighed and pulled her gloves tighter. A hawker's bracer covered one forearm, my own Christmas gift to her. I was not sure how much she truly needed it, given her falcon was intelligent, but I suspect she enjoyed the costuming of it. She held her arm up and Merlin landed upon it with a flap of his wings.

Bond with Erin increased to 7.

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"My Lady, do you have need of me?" Merlin asked.

"There's a large fox somewhere in these woods. Coordinate with us and help us hunt it down."

"Understood."

Merlin launched himself with a flurry of feathers and we began following the tracks as best I could manage. Funnily enough, while Artoria was certainly a better tracker than Elaine had ever been, even she was not particularly skilled in the art. On the rare occasion I had to go on a hunt, it had been as a King. It had been an occasion with an entire train of people, including my personal Huntsmaster.

Moreover, foxes were notoriously wily animals, difficult to pin down at the best of times.

"The fox must have picked up on something. It's begun to flee."

"Then we must move quickly if we are to catch it."

I sprinted into the woods, but the underbrush seemed to actively fight against me. I ducked under a fallen tree and tore through a patch of brambles, trusting in my armor to protect me. Jump over another log. Overhead, Merlin cast a long shadow across the forest and I tracked him more than the actual fox in chasing after the beast.

Bursting into a clearing, I saw the fox. It was massive, easily taller than I was, even standing on four legs. It had already begun to move to escape, so I surged forward, bringing my sword down to try and cut off its path, only for the beast to spin, jumping to the side with a yowl that sounded suspiciously like laughter.

Hissing in frustration, I leapt after it. If only I had a spear. It had just avoided my sword by a hairsbreadth. A bit more reach and I would have had it.

A sword was not an appropriate weapon for a hunt in any case.

Charging once again through the thicket, I tried to focus on any sound the fox might be making in its haste to escape, but… Yes, there. I ran forward, only to find the ground missing from beneath me. A deep ravine stretched below, disguised by the wild wood. I began slipping down it, only to hurriedly grab hold of a branch, halting my descent.

Grimacing, I hauled myself to safety. I was allowing my annoyance to get the better of me. I had moved recklessly and almost paid the price for it.

Merlin fluttered down and landed on a branch above me. "My Lady. The target is still nearby. If you move to the north, you should find it."

Rolling to my feet, I followed the bird's instruction and stalked northward. There, the fox had gone still, looking in each direction, trying to determine which way it should run. I tensed, waiting for the moment it moved. As it tried to duck into the underbrush once more, my sword flashed out, catching the fox in the neck.

It fell with a final yelp. Sighing, I sat down, letting my heart calm. It had just been an animal in the end. A clever, obviously supernatural animal, but just an animal.

When Erin finally caught up, I waved tiredly at her.

She grinned and sat next to me. "I was worried it almost got away for a minute there, but perhaps I shouldn't have."

"It was closer than I would have liked. Despite its size, it was not especially dangerous; but it was good at running."

"Mm. It's concerning though. First the wendigos, now this. The Reverse Side is leaking like a sieve here."

"The recent weather has to be related, yes?" I asked.

"Definitely. I suspect all the seasons are going to show stronger effects as long as this continues. More ice and snow in the Winter, more growth in the Spring. Hotter Summers. Any symbols and trends associated with the seasons will become more pronounced."

"Is there a way to stem it?"

"I'm not sure. I asked a friend to come visit, both for the Dead Apostle problem and to take a look at this, but they aren't able to spare the time to come here for another few months."

"I suppose we shall simply have to hold out, then."

"Well…" Erin hedged, "There's likely a faerie associated with the season that's crossed over. A frost giant, or an unseelie. Something like that. Slaying it won't stop things, but it might weaken the season's effects at least temporarily."

Adventure Discovered: The Heart of Winter.

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Such a task would be… difficult, to say the least. It would be one that I would need to thoroughly prepare for.

"We can worry about that next time though," Erin continued. "I'll clean up the corpse so that no hunter stumbles across it or anything. Tell me about how your Christmas went while I work."

"That eager to live vicariously through me?" I asked.

"A little," Erin admitted. "I'm living out here alone, away from my family. You're my only real friend that I can be honest with in the area. So yeah, sue me."

"...I apologize. I did not mean to sound judgemental. Where should I start?"

"Just wherever feels right."

So I told her. Of my dinner with Amy and her family. Of my frustration with my own. Of how I had given a small bag of cosmetic items as gifts to Chelsea and Megan before school had let out. The two girls had been completely blindsided by it. They had not had anything to give me in return, not that I minded.

Bond with Chelsea increased to 2.
Bond with Megan increased to 2.
Gain a check to Loyalty (Friends).

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I even told her about how I had purchased a book of modern organ music for the nun at a local church. Caren had looked vaguely offended at the idea of playing anything that was not a hymn, but perhaps I was simply projecting my expectations onto her, as she had promised to play from the book the next time I visited the church.

"It is well that you gave of yourself so generously," Caren had told me. "For it is more blessed to give than to receive. The Lord loves a cheerful giver."

Bond with Caren increased to 3.
Gain a check to Generous.
Gain 100 Glory.

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It was higher praise than I truly deserved. I had exhausted my pocketbook, but at the end of the day, all that money had been spent on friends and family. People that I knew and was invested in personally. Still, I accepted her approval in the spirit it was given.

"I didn't know you went to church," Erin commented.

"I do not attend mass, if that is what you mean, but I do occasionally visit for advice."

"You said it's just a nun taking care of the place?"

"For now. She is supposed to have visitors arriving in January."

"Hm." Erin grunted as her spell activated, dissolving the fox's corpse into naught but motes of dust. "I hadn't looked into the local church before now. Maybe that was a mistake."

I arched an eyebrow. "How so?"

"A bunch of people from the Church show up when there's a Dead Apostle running around? Chances are that they're Executors."

"Vampire hunters?"

"And mage hunters, when it suits them," Erin said bitterly. "Almost certainly trouble, at any rate."

"We will manage it," I said, projecting confidence for Erin's sake. "Whatever comes our way."

"Yeah," Erin smiled. "The two of us against the world, right?"

"Does that mean you plan to join my team?" I asked playfully.

Leadership: 3 | 6 (+7 Bond) = Success

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Erin laughed. "Sure, why not? I'm already playing the part of a parahuman. Adding Nimue to your roster shouldn't hurt. Have you come up with a name?"

"I'm still thinking things over."

"Well, let me know when you come up with something."

"Perhaps I could run a few ideas past you. I–"

I cut off as my phone started ringing. Fishing it out of my pocket, I blinked as I saw the number. Why was my school calling me?

"Hello?

"Miss Stansfield? Sorry to call you during your holiday off, but we're asking for the Student Council to come in if possible. We're in a situation that needs all hands on deck."

"What happened?"

They told me. Taking a sharp breath, I told them I would be there shortly and hung up the phone.

"Well?" Erin asked. "Don't keep me hanging."

"Winslow High School burned down this morning. We're going to have a mass influx of new students at Arcadia this next semester."

---

Rolling the fox was a bit troublesome. They're not hard to kill, but they do have a really high avoidance that makes them hard to hunt.

It is January of 2011.

We have arrived at a rest period.

Checkmarks

Lustful: 11 | 10 = Increased by 1
Energetic: 20 | 15 = Increased by 1
Generous: 1 | 12 = No Increase
Prudent: 14 | 11 = Increased by 1
Reckless: 2 | 9 = No Increase
Spiritual: 2 | 11 = No Increase
Honor: 4 | 15 = No Increase
Loyalty (Friends): 18 | 11 = Increased by 1
Love (Family): 1 | 12 = No Increase
Amor (Amy): 17 | 14 = Increased by 1
Heroism: 1 | 17 = No Increase
Station: 14 | 12 = Increased by 1
Etiquette: 2 | 8 = No Increase
Hunting: 1 | 2 = No Increase
First Aid: 6 | 4 = Increased by 1
Flirting: 7 | 1 = Increased by 1
Fashion: 13 | 4 = Increased by 1
Finance: 15 | 2 = Increased by 1
Technology: 6 | 1 = Increased by 1
Lore: 12 | 2 = Increased by 1
Strategy: 17 | 4 = Increased by 1
Brawling: 13 | 15 = No Increase
Melee: 20 | 18 = Increased by 1

Personality Traits

Choose two personality traits. Each trait will go up by one.

[ ] [Trait] (Trait1)
[ ] [Trait] (Trait2)

Training and Practice

Next is training and practice. You may select any one of the following improvements:

Change a Passion
You can add or subtract one point from any Passion.
-OR-
Change a Characteristic
Players may add one point to any one of STR, DEX, CON, or APP.
-OR-
Train Skills Up to 15
Add 6 points to any number of Skills under 15 in any combination—all points may be added to one Skill, divided between two Skills, or more—as long as the values are not raised over 15.
-OR-
Train a Skill Up to 20
Increase one Skill over 15 by one point, up to a maximum value of 20.

Please structure this vote as:
[ ] [Training] Skills 1, Skills 2, Skills 3, etc.

Glory

Gain 145 [(15 x 4 Famous Traits or Passions) + (10 Fair Appeal) + 75 (Heroic Ideal)] Glory

We have hit a new Glory milestone.

First, you may increase any Trait, Passion, Characteristic, or Skill by one, ignoring any usual restrictions.
[ ] [Glory] (Write-In Increase)

Second, you get another Parahuman Power upgrade:
[ ] [Power] Chivalry (A)
>Gain an additional 3 armor, 1 Healing Rate, and increase Major Wound threshold by 3.
[ ] [Power] Mana Burst (D)
>Gain an additional +1d6 Weapon and Charge damage and +3 to Movement checks.
[ ] [Power] Instinct (D)
>Enemy attacks suffer a -5 threshold penalty.
[ ] [Power] Riding (E)
>Knockdown Threshold increased by 3.
[ ] [Power] Charisma (E)
>Roll Parahuman Power at -10. On a success, gain a +5 threshold bonus to any Social roll.
[ ] [Power] Magic Resistance (C)
>Roll Parahuman Power opposed to parahuman powers that target you. On success, the effect is negated.

Team

This will be the elimination round for team names. Top three votes will go on for a final round.

[ ] [Team] Court
[ ] [Team] Brockton Knights
[ ] [Team] Paladins
[ ] [Team] Round Table
[ ] [Team] Grand Order
[ ] [Team] Grand Company
[ ] [Team] Dawnguard
[ ] [Team] Carador
[ ] [Team] Trailblazers
[ ] [Team] Flame Chasers
[ ] [Team] Guardians

Income

Next, you receive your monthly allowance. Given your status as a Wealthy Heiress, you earn $200.

Shop

Remember, if at any time you wish to buy something from the shop, please do a write in as below, and I will add it to the next vote.
[ ] [Shop] (Write-In)

Adventure

What adventure do you pursue next?
[ ] [Adventure] Recruitment
>Reach out to other Parahumans about joining your team. More possible recruits may become available based on progression of other quests.
[ ] [Adventure] The Heart of Winter
>Travel to the Court of the Unseelie to weaken Winter's hold.
[ ] [Adventure] The Damsel of Distress
>The villain known as the Damsel of Distress is causing trouble in a nearby town, Durham.
[ ] [Adventure] The Uncatchable Undersiders
>The Undersiders have proven to be masters of escape. Can you catch them?
[ ] [Adventure] Takedown the Clown
>Circus is out robbing various stores. A clown can't be too hard of an opponent, right?
[ ] [Adventure] The Dog Rings
>Hookwolf supposedly runs dog fighting pits. Close him down.
[ ] [Adventure] To the Victor, the Spoils
>Victor is known for stealing the skills of minorities. He must be stopped.
[ ] [Adventure] The Merchants of Death
>The Archer's Bridge Merchants are a relatively weak gang. If you were to take out their leadership, they may fall apart.
[ ] [Adventure] Twisted Metal
>A deadly street race is being run on the outskirts of town. You can go shut them down – or try to win for the prize money.
[ ] [Adventure] Vampire Hunting
>Hunt for clues about the vampire that is haunting the city.
[ ] [Adventure] Patrolling the City
-[ ] [Patrol] With Victoria
-[ ] [Patrol] With Erin
-[ ] [Patrol] With the Wards
-[ ] [Patrol] Alone
>Go on patrol to stop criminal activity. Roll the random encounter table.
[ ] [Adventure] Explore the Woods
-[ ] [Woods] With Erin
-[ ] [Woods] Alone
>Search the woods for supernatural activity. Roll the random encounter table.
[ ] [Adventure] None
>Hold off on adventures to rest up. Gain a second Activity vote.

Activity

Choose an activity to participate in: You have a job to do this week. You will need to forgo Adventure to participate in any activity other than the Student Council.

[ ] [Activity] Focus on the Student Council
>You will be doing work for the Student Council regardless, this is to spend extra time devoted to the task.
[ ] [Activity] Study Group
>Spend some extra time studying for your classes.
[ ] [Activity] Party
>You've been invited to a house party by Chelsea and Megan.
[ ] [Activity] Dating
>Go on a date with Amy. Victoria's been trying to get you on a double date for a while now.
[ ] [Activity] Gala
>Your parents want you to attend more high society events.
[ ] [Activity] Modeling
>You were offered to make regular appearances with the modeling agency. It would be good for PR, maybe, and they'd pay you.
[ ] [Activity] Charity
>You could do volunteer work at the local homeless shelter.
[ ] [Activity] Sparring
>You have people you can practice your fighting with now.
[ ] [Activity] Church
>Visit Caren at the church.
[ ] [Activity] Sports
>You could use the exercise and it'd help blow off steam.
[ ] [Activity] Browse the Internet
>Amy spends a lot of time on the Internet. Maybe it'd be worth browsing.
[ ] [Activity] Research Parahumans
>Do more research on Parahumans in the area.
[ ] [Activity] Study the Occult
>It might be good to brush up on your faerie lore.
[ ] [Activity] (Write-In)

Social

Choose someone to spend time with.
[ ] [Social] Dean Stansfield
[ ] [Social] Victoria Dallon
[ ] [Social] Amy Dallon
[ ] [Social] Erin Archelot
[ ] [Social] Vedika Dhawan
[ ] [Social] Chelsea and Megan
[ ] [Social] Theo Anders
[ ] [Social] Tammi Herren
[ ] [Social] Madison Clements
[ ] [Social] Caren Ortensia
[ ] [Social] (Write-In)

Voting

[X] [Trait] Lustful
[X] [Trait] Honest
[X] [Training] 3 Hunting, 3 Leadership
[X] [Glory] Melee
[X] [Power] Chivalry (A)

Appleton, Wisconsin was a pleasant little town. Picturesque, even. The sort of scenic place that Jack loved to visit. Small town folk liked to believe in the goodness of their fellow neighbors. Big cities tended to have less illusions about what people were like. There was a certain delight in stripping those illusions away, to show what lay in a person's heart to the rest of the world.

In short, a perfect place to start the new year.

He idly flipped a butterfly knife open and shut in one hand, his other hand on the steering wheel as he drove into town. The group had split up for their initial approach this time. Chuckles had gotten stuck driving the more monstrous of their little crew, and Shatterbird had Burnscar. It was just Jack and Bonesaw in the car, and Bonesaw had long since nodded off, snoring softly in the passenger seat. They'd been driving overnight and the sun was just now beginning to peek over the horizon.

Jack eyed her for a moment, a smile pulling at his cheeks. She was his progeny in a way that no mere flesh and blood could match. He had created her, molded her into what she was. One day, after he was gone, she would continue his legacy. It was enough to bring a tear to the eye.

Laughing softly to himself, he slowed the car, pulling into a gas station. Bonesaw stirred, the change in motion waking her.

"Are we there?" she asked, still half asleep.

"Not quite yet, Poppet. Go back to sleep. Good girls need their rest, after all."

She nodded and closed her eyes again. Jack brushed a hand affectionately through her hair before getting out of the car. Whistling to himself, Jack headed towards the convenience store, the heated air of the interior washing over him as the automated doors slid open. He wandered past aisles of junk food on his way to the counter. He grabbed a few bags of gummy bears on the way past. They were always a favorite of Bonesaw's.

The cashier was asleep on the job. Her head lay across the counter, drool dribbling out of the corner of her mouth. For a moment, Jack reflected on how easy it would be to simply slit her throat. A woman gone to sleep peacefully, only to wake up choking on her own blood.

His knife flashed and the store was painted red.

A minute later, Jack strolled out of the store and used the cashier's own credit card to pay for the gas. Purchase finished and gas tank filled, he slid back into the driver's seat and tossed the bags of gummy bears into Bonesaw's lap. The girl drowsily blinked before suddenly snapping awake as her enhancements kicked in, only to squeal in delight as she saw what he'd gotten for her.

She didn't even look twice at the blood on the packaging as she tore into it. His perfect creation.

With that, he drove off, heading to the forest just north of town. Paved highway eventually gave way to dirt road as he wound his way to the campsite that they had chosen to meet up at.

Only, despite being the first to arrive, the campsite wasn't empty. A tent was sent up at the edge of the woods. A man sat in front of it, stoking a small fire. The man's clothes had obviously seen better days. His coat was worn and threadbare. His shoes had holes in them, where Jack could see yellowed socks sticking through. What skin was exposed was dirty, as though the man hadn't seen a bath in some time.

A hobo living in the woods. How charming.

Jack stepped out of the car and Bonesaw hopped out behind him, a wide smile on her face.

"Hey there, stranger," the man said as Jack approached. "What brings you to this neck of the woods?"

"Oh, you know how it is. The family is meeting up to camp out a little. Do a little hunting," Jack grinned.

"Bit of a bad time of year for it. Most of the animals have gone to ground for the season."

"It just depends on what you're looking for," Jack said knowingly. "Some game is year round."

"Well, no skin off my back if you want to go walking around in the snow."

Not a bad idea, that. It'd been awhile since the last time Jack had properly flayed someone.

The hobo shivered – perhaps from the cold, or perhaps some instinctive part of the man's brain was aware of the malice he was seated next to. Jack smiled and crouched near the fire. "It'll be good family bonding."

"Well, keep an eye on the little one if you do. There's a cave system in the area, and it runs pretty deep. Easy for a kid to get lost in."

"A cave system?" Jack asked. "Where's it at?"

"Walk about ten minutes past the ridge in that direction," the hobo pointed. "There's a crevice in the cliffside. You should find it."

Jack nodded and looked at Bonesaw. "I'm going to go take a look. Why don't you keep our friend here entertained while I do?"

"Sure!" Bonesaw chirped. "I'm sure I can come up with lots of fun games for us to play!"

The hobo eyed Jack as he left. Had he realized something was off? Perhaps leaving a child with a stranger whose name he didn't even know was a bit much. It hardly mattered though. Even if the man had grown suspicious, it had come too late. He shouldn't have let Jack or Bonesaw get close to him to begin with.

A scream rang out from the campground behind him and Jack walked on, unconcerned.

Just as the hobo had said, Jack found the cave system easy enough. The entrance wasn't massive, but it was large enough to draw notice. Large enough for two men to walk through together. Large rocks littered the area, having fallen from the top of the cliff above at some point. It would be simple enough to roll one in front of the entrance and block someone inside.

Humming to himself, Jack poked his head in. He didn't have a flashlight with him to explore fully, but the way the tunnel wound and branched off was a good sign. Perfect, really.

What better place to play a game with a mouse, than inside a maze?


Nearly a week later, their game was ready. Capturing Mouse Protector had been the hardest part. The heroine was a teleporter, one who didn't rely on line of sight. Tricky to work around. She had a limited number of tags she could set that she could teleport to however, and couldn't teleport to them if she was too far away.

In other words, it was simply a matter of having Hatchet Face disable her down before knocking her out. Once the initial capture was finished, she would be too far from her tags to teleport away and the game could begin.

"Wakey wakey," Jack said, injecting the stimulant Bonesaw had provided him with. The heroine came to with a start, reaching for her sword only to find it missing.

"Fuck," Mouse Protector said, immediately looking around to take in the situation. "I'm not dead, so I guess you're playing with your food, huh?"

"Language!" Bonesaw called. It was the sort of thing she always would have said, but something in the tone…

Jack frowned. Bonesaw had been distracted all week, ever since he'd come back from the caves to find the hobo had somehow managed to escape her. At the time, she'd just complained that he'd been faster than he'd looked, and Jack hadn't bothered prying further. The hobo was just a nobody, after all, not worth the effort of chasing down.

Something though was nagging at him. The hair prickled at the nape of his neck.

He eyed Bonesaw for a moment, trying to place what his gut was telling him exactly, but… Well, he could worry about it later. A conversation for after their current game was finished.

"You can think of it that way, if you like. I'd personally like to think of it as giving you a sporting chance," Jack said, tossing a flashlight at her. "It's no fun otherwise."

"And what's the game?" the heroine asked.

"Simple. This is your labyrinth and we are the nine minotaurs who will kill you if we find you within. If you can escape the maze before we find you, then you get to live. Otherwise…" Jack drew a finger across his throat.

Mouse Protector slowly got to her feet, hissing for a moment as she tried to put weight on a leg, only to realize it had been broken. "Seems a bit rigged."

Jack just smiled. "Any injuries are yours to deal with. You'll have a five minute head start." The heroine glared at him and Jack tapped his wrist. "The clock is ticking, by the way, so best get moving."

Mouse Protector scowled. "Minotaurs, huh? Guess I'd better start hoofing it then." With that, she turned and began limping her way into the darkness.

He did so enjoy heroes who had a sense of humor. They tended to last longer but break harder when the time finally came. She was right that the game was rigged, of course, just not in the way she thought. There was no exit, after all. They were all sealed in here. The Nine would harry and harass Mouse Protector until she was too tired to run any more, slowly taking piece after piece from her until their game reached its conclusion.

"Well then," Jack said, looking at the rest of his Slaughterhouse. "Who wants to chase her first?"

Before anyone could answer the twang of a bow echoed through the cave Jack felt an arrow drive through his throat. That wouldn't be enough to kill him, not with the enhancements Bonesaw had made, but it made talking difficult. A second arrow quickly followed, splitting through Mannequin's chest.

Jack hissed and spun, shining his flashlight down the tunnel the arrow had come from, but whoever had been there was gone.

Jack frowned. Mannequin wasn't getting up. His casing shouldn't have been easily damaged, but the arrow had split clean through. Dark fluid leaked onto the cave floor.

Shatterbird began to scream, only for the bow to twang again, this time from a different tunnel. The room went silent as she fell, an arrow through her eye. Jack caught a brief glimpse of a figure ducking away before vanishing into the maze. Hatchet Face roared and ran down the tunnel, chasing after their intruder. Jack tried to call after him, but – The damn arrow through his throat.

Growling, Jack yanked it free and tossed it to the side. He wouldn't be able to shout, but he could at least wheeze instructions to the rest of the Nine until Bonesaw fixed him. Before he could say anything though, the sound of something snapping came down a tunnel and a moment later, Hatchet Face's body came flying past to hit the opposite wall.

A log hung suspended from the ceiling. A simple trap, but not one someone could have set up on a whim. Something was off about it too. Hatchet Face was a Brute. He should have been able to take a simple log to the chest and get up again.

Fire lit up in both of Burnscar's hands, ready to be thrown, only for another arrow to follow. Burnscar fell, the missile lodged in her brain.

The lights, Jack realized. Their hunter was using the darkness to hide his approach and aiming for the lights.

"Lights off and spread out," Jack gurgled.

They were already down four members and had not even properly seen their attacker. That would change. With the lights out, his vision slowly adjusted to the darkness. Bonesaw had upgraded their eyes to see in the dark ages ago. Nominally, it still needed at least a little bit of light – complete darkness was still darkness, but that was easily handled. Jack rolled a flashlight to the end of the tunnel, leaving it illuminated while casting the remaining five Slaughterhouse in the dark.

Jack grabbed Bonesaw's hand and began dashing down the opposite tunnel. They could not afford to stay still if they were being hunted. They had to stay mobile and turn this ambush around on their attacker. Crouching down, he pointed to his throat, and Bonesaw quickly went to work, stitching his vocal chords back together. It was a rush job, but it would serve for now.

For a moment, the cave was still, everyone huddled, hiding in the dark.

"Well, well!" Jack called out, purposefully letting his voice echo. "It's been a long time since someone has gotten the better of the Nine like this. Who are you, stranger?"

A man's laughter echoed in return. "Nobody of import. Just someone with a grudge."

Jack grinned. He wouldn't personally be able to track the man's voice, but Crawler had better senses. The monstrous cape began creeping his way down one of the tunnels, surprisingly quiet despite his size. The Siberian split to go the opposite direction and surround the man from both sides. Jack just had to keep him talking.

"Well, Nobody, what grudge did we inspire? A dead friend? A lover? A child?"

"It hardly matters does it? I doubt you remember the countless faces you've killed. At the end of the day, you're just a rabid animal that needs to be put down."

A bit of aggression there. A child then. Something about the voice niggled at Jack however. He recognized it, but from where?

"You'd be surprised," Jack answered. "I like collecting stories. I like seeing people as they truly are – and people show you who they really are when they're about to die. In that sense, I probably knew your kid better than you ever did. You want to know if he died a coward?"

An arrow flew from the darkness, but Jack had been anticipating it this time. He'd ducked low and the arrow hit the stone just above his head. Crawler surged forward however, having zeroed in on where Nobody was hiding. For a brief moment, Jack saw the man slide under Crawler's body, knife ripping up into Crawler's belly.

Acidic blood poured out, but the man simply flung off the cloak that covered him once he was clear, the cloth quickly sizzling to nothing. Crawler however, groaned. He should have healed up instantly from something as unremarkable as a knife cut. A knife cut shouldn't even have done anything – Crawler's skin had long since evolved to ignore something as mundane as a bladed edge.

Instead, the monster's skin churned and writhed, a constant battle between restoration and decay. It began to bubble up, cancerous growths growing along Crawler's body as his body struggled to repair damage that refused to be mended.

The man didn't have time to celebrate however. He was in the open now. Exposed.

The Siberian lunged from the darkness, her clawed fingers raking along the man's cheek, spattering blood across the stone as he quickly back-pedalled. Nor was Jack stationary. He swung his knife to take pieces off of the man from a distance. Yet, somehow, even between the two of them working together, none of the cuts seemed to ever amount to anything. The man took superficial damage, yet he always managed to be one step ahead, ducking and weaving through the Siberian's attempts to grab hold of him while using her body to block Jack's own hits.

That could only last so long however. Even if he didn't die instantly, he was still taking damage. Eventually he would slow down or get unlucky and then everything would be over.

"Now," Nobody said, turning to shoot an arrow through Jack's hand. Jack growled as his knife went clattering to the floor, but the man had left himself open in order to eliminate one of his opponents. The Siberian's claw descended and – never connected. The tiger-striped woman simply vanished mid-strike.

"That woman almost gave me a heart attack with how long she took to find where the Master was hiding," Nobody complained, slowly getting to his feet. "Still, I have to give her some kudos for the work she did on the knife."

Crawler was still writhing on the ground behind Nobody, moaning in a mix of pain and ecstasy. His limbs had grown bloated past the point of movement. Not dead, but not capable of being a threat any longer. Chuckles – Wait, where had Chuckles gone? Jack snarled. Had that idiot clown run away rather than fight?

"Well, you have me at something of a disadvantage, it seems," Jack said, motioning subtly to Bonesaw. The man was good. Very good. This ambush had been perfect. But Jack still had his trump card to play. No matter how well a man could fight, there was little he could do when his lungs melted from the inside.

"Of course. The game was rigged from the start."

Jack frowned. What did he–?

Jack felt a prick in his thigh and looked down in shock at the syringe that Bonesaw had pushed into him. Before he could so much as utter a word, his muscles stiffened to stillness, paralysis overtaking him. His body fell to the ground like some glorified log.

"I don't play fair, after all."

"Sorry Jack," Bonesaw said sweetly, her eyes strangely empty. "But Mommy and Daddy said it's time for you to go away."

Nobody picked up a flashlight and flicked it on. Jack stared, unable to speak, as he finally saw the man's features. The voice he'd been speaking to this whole time finally clicked. The hobo from a week ago?

That was… Jack wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it. He couldn't, of course. His lungs were paralyzed as well. Still. This man had managed to deceive him from the very moment they met. A born liar. He'd even managed to turn Bonesaw into his very own Trojan Horse.

How appropriate. Jack couldn't have wished for a better killer to take his life. Ah, if he had one wish to add, it would be that more people should have witnessed the confrontation. The death of Jack Slash should have been a spectacle for the world to witness.

The man simply tousled Bonesaw's hair, in much the same way Jack had once done, and turned away. "Come along, Riley. Your Mommy is waiting for you."

The girl simply nodded happily, her eyes vacant. The two walked away together, hand in hand, leaving Jack to slowly suffocate to death in the dark.

---

This one fought me a bit, not going to lie. A part of me wants to scrap and rewrite it, but that way lies writing paralysis, so better to move on.

Team

The final Team Name vote.

[ ] [Team] Round Table
[ ] [Team] The Grand Order
[ ] [Team] Trailblazers

Voting

[X] [Adventure] The Merchants of Death
[X] [Activity] Focus on the Student Council
[X] [Social] Caren Ortensia
[X] [Team] Grand Order

Healing

Recover 6 hit points via Natural Healing. HP: 38/41

The Battle of Bedegraine was a bloody affair. The initial ambush took the armies of the eleven kings off guard, but by the afternoon they had rallied around King Lot, the man throwing himself against the forces of Arthur with unmatched fervor. He had almost cut his way through to Arthur when Pellinore drove into the man's flank, laying waste to Lot's soldiers. The two did mighty battle until Pellinore struck Lot dead, cleaving Lot from skull to teeth.

With his death came the end of Lot's Rebellion. His eldest son, Gawaine, soon presented himself at court to be sworn to knighthood. For the sake of reconciliation, he was given the honor of being the first knight given a seat at King Arthur's Round Table, a place where all who sat would be seen as equals.

With the death of the rebellion however, new murmurs emerged. The King should have a Queen. The Royal Line needed to be secured. Thus came the marriage of Arthur and Guinevere.

It was a three day long affair, with new spectacles and wonders shown each day. During the giving of gifts, a young lad asked to be knighted. The King granted his request, and Sir Tor rose, destined to become one of the finest knights in the King's service. Troupes of minstrels and troubadours played, many of the songs never heard before by those present. A white hart burst into the feasting hall, leaping down the long tables before dashing through the doors.

The girl wished she could remember it all with joy. However, only bitterness remained when faced with the wedding's conclusion.


The house was old and showed serious signs of disrepair. The paint was peeling. The gutters were full. Snow covered the yard, but I suspected that if it had not, the yard would be overgrown as well. A rotten step nearly gave out under my weight and I quickly lifted my foot again, hopping past it to the porch.

A strange disquiet filled me. A home would inevitably reflect its owners. It made me worry about the spirit of the people who lived here.

I raised my hand to knock on the front door, only for it to open before I could. A dark haired girl stared out from the crack, not opening the door enough for me to look inside.

"Who are you?" she asked suspiciously.

"Miss Hebert?" I asked, waiting for her nod before continuing. "My name is Elaine Stansfield. I am the Student Council President at Arcadia High School. Do you have a moment to speak?"

The girl opened the door a bit wider and I got a better look at her for the first time. She was on the taller side for a girl our age, but not especially so. Thin and gawky, with wide lips and wider eyes, the latter magnified by the thick glasses she wore.

There was a long moment of silence, the girl's eyes flicking up and down, taking me in, just I had with her. Eventually she said, "Sure. Come inside."

The living room of the house was in better shape than the exterior had suggested, and it eased my concerns somewhat. Everything was old, well-worn, but clearly taken care of. This was a house that had seen better days, but what was here was still cherished.

"Did you want anything?" The girl asked. "Tea?"

"That would be lovely. Thank you."

The girl ghosted into the kitchen and I divested myself of my jacket and gloves before gingerly taking a seat upon her couch. No sign of either of her parents yet, which likely meant they were working, despite the holiday.

When Miss Hebert returned, I took my cup of tea with a grateful smile, letting the warmth soak into my fingers. The girl herself did not sit, so much as she perched upon the edge of her chair, her legs drawn up as if ready to launch herself off at a moment's notice. She peered over her knees at me and asked, "Why's the Arcadia Student Council President visiting me?"

"Miss Hebert – ah, do you prefer Miss Hebert, or would you rather I call you something else?"

"Taylor is fine."

"Taylor then. The school should have reached out by now regarding what happened at Winslow. I am trying to make an effort to meet with all of the students that will be transferring to us, in order to introduce myself and to hear any concerns you might have."

Taylor's eyes widened slightly. "That must be a few hundred at least."

"Two hundred and thirty seven, to be exact," I said, giving a rueful smile. "Thankfully, the student population is getting split between the various other high schools in the area and not all going to Arcadia."

"That seems like a lot of effort just to introduce yourself."

"Each of you are being thrust into an unfamiliar environment, into a system that will be under great strain to help accommodate you. I have utmost faith in our school staff to rise to the challenge, but you deserve an advocate. Someone to listen to you and make sure that you are seen and heard."

Taylor did not move, hardly seemed even to breathe. Her lips parted, as if to say something, only to close again. I waited, giving her time to find what she wished to say. She pressed her lips tight into a thin line and drew a deep breath before finally speaking.

"If I give you a few names, can you make sure I don't share classes with those people?"

"I can," I replied. The schedules right now were still in flux. Asking for a small adjustment should not be difficult. "May I ask why?"

Another long silence. Taylor seemed to be full of those. "We just don't get along."

I took a sip of tea and studied her over the rim of my cup. I was not so dull as to miss the obvious connotations. "I will ensure they do not share classes with you. If they should bother you outside of classes, please do inform me. I shall take steps to resolve the issue. It is my desire that every student at Arcadia should feel safe."

Taylor told me the names. Emma Barnes. Sophia Hess. Julia Roberts.

Madison Clements.

There were other names too. A surprisingly long list of them. I sighed softly and committed them to memory, dismay tightening my chest.

It was one more burden on a long list of them. Taylor Hebert's had not been the first house I had visited, nor would it be the last. I had heard similar stories many times over the past few days. It painted a picture of Winslow as a place where lawlessness ruled, where might reigned over right.

Gain a check to Leadership.

Click to expand...

Click to shrink...

Stepping outside, I took a moment to let the cold wash over me and sharpen my senses. I still had one hundred and sixty-nine houses to visit and a limited time to do so. There was no time to dawdle. Mounting my motorcycle, I sped off to the next house.

Perhaps I would be lucky and talking with Gregory Veder would go quickly.


Arcadia was awash in a flood of new students. Class sizes had exploded. The teachers looked ragged just trying to watch the halls, much less perform the rest of their jobs. The Student Council had been excused from classes for our first day back so that we could assist with the paperwork and onboarding involved.

It was a good thing we had been. The sheer number of reports of students being sent to the office for wearing gang colors or spray painting graffiti and defacing the building were staggering.

Shouts filtered into the room from the hallways outside and I stood up, leaving the paperwork behind.

Outside, two boys had gotten into a fist fight. It was the third one I had needed to interrupt this morning. There was no need to take time to observe and assess the situation. I had enough experience with combat by now to do that in an instant.

Stepping in, I grabbed one boy's wrist as he threw a punch, before he even realized I was there, and yanked him forward, flipping him to the ground. He squirmed to try and raise himself to his feet, only for me to plant a foot on his chest and shove him back down.

The second boy laughed as he realized what had happened. "Hah! You're so weak you got taken down by a girl – Urgh?!"

I jabbed him in the sternum as well. He wheezed and joined the first boy at my feet. "Jasper Waller and Tao Zhen. There is to be no fighting in the halls."

"Don't you look down on me. Don't you know who I am?"

I gave Jasper a flat look. I had just said his name, after all.

"I am low on patience. You have a single opportunity to submit and go your separate ways. Should you waste this opportunity, there will be consequences."

"Fuck that! This gweilo thinks he can talk shit and get away with it!"

If the look I had given Jasper had been merely flat, then the look I gave Tao was withering by comparison. "This is not Winslow. You do not need to respect your opponent, but you will respect the peace. Else, we can arrange for you to leave and try your fortune outside this institution's walls."

Leadership: 19 | 9 = Failure

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Tao quailed under my glare, but Jasper leapt to his feet, a knife flashing in his hand. "Let's see how high and mighty you are with your face cut up, bitch!"

Combat

Round 1

Elaine Brawling: 6 | 15 || Jasper Brawling: 7 | 5 (-3)
>Elaine Damage = 6 Damage (22/28 HP)

Round 2

Elaine Brawling: 12 | 15 || Jasper Brawling: 10 | 5 (-3)
>Elaine Damage = 6 Damage (16/28 HP)

Round 3

Elaine Brawling: 14 | 15 || Jasper Brawling: 16 | 5 (-3)
>Elaine Damage = 6 Damage (10/28 HP)

Jasper Valorous: 13 | 10 = Failure
>Jasper Surrenders

After Action

Gain 5 Glory for defeating Jasper.

Despite the advantage the weapon gave, it was horribly obvious that Jasper had no idea how to use it. I leaned ever so slightly to the side and let the knife sail past, only to respond with a hook to Jasper's jaw. He stumbled, clearly surprised by the blow, but I did not give a moment to recover. I stepped into his guard, delivering a second punch to his ribs.

His eyes went wide, clearly having expected an easy victory, but I would not be so easily bested by an untrained boy. He swung at me wildly and I stepped back out of range, only to grab hold of his wrist. My fingers pressed down on the tendon until his hand spasmed and the knife fell to the ground.

The crowd around us roared its approval. I shoved Jasper back to the ground and knelt to take his knife, spinning it loosely in my hand as I looked back over my shoulder.

"Would someone kindly call security to escort these gentlemen to the Principal's office?"

Cheers ran through the hallway, so loud as to drown out any other noise. There was a current in the air, an electric feeling that danced in time with the people's mood. Today, I was Arcadia's champion. They saw themselves in me and I was their hope of a better future.

Arcadia would not descend into chaos. I would not allow it.

Security came and collected the two boys and I began making my way back to the Student Council room, only for Megan and Chelsea to rush up before I could push the door open.

"There you are! We've been looking all over for you!"

"You're not going to believe what's going on with some of these Winslow girls!"

"Like, oh my god, these girls need to chill. I was talking with one for all of five minutes before she started talking about what a whore some other Winslow girl is. Like, why would I even care, you know?"

"A girl in my second period literally threw pencil shavings on another girl. Who even does that?"

"Pretty sure there was a group talking about how they were going to hunt someone down on our way up here."

Just: 16 | 16 = Critical!
>Gain a check to Just.

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"Where?" I asked, cutting into their rant. Something in my face or tone must have given Megan and Chelsea pause, because they paused and shared a look before answering.

"Uh… The second floor, I think? They were planning to check the bathrooms."

Squaring my shoulders, I set off at a brisk pace, a low growl rumbling in my throat. Megan and Chelsea fell in to flank me, though I quickly outpaced them and they were forced to jog to keep up. One by one, I visited the school bathrooms. The first two were empty. The third had a student smoking in it. I made a mental note of the student's face, but did not have time to deal with it right now. The fourth had an entire gaggle of girls giggling inside.

Two girls were standing up in stalls on either side of an occupied one in the middle, lifting juice bottles over the edge of the stall. A third was holding the stall's door shut.

"May I ask what it is you think you are doing?"

My voice cut through the bathroom and every girl inside froze. The girl in the rightmost stall yelped and ducked her head down, as if hoping she could simply hide. The one holding the door shut just smiled and sauntered forward, tossing her red hair back over her shoulder.

Emma Barnes, I mentally catalogued. That likely made the black girl who had hopped down off her toilet to join her Sophia Hess. One of the few students who had not been home for me to speak to when I had made my visits.

"Is there a problem?" Emma asked sweetly.

I narrowed my eyes and stepped forward. "I would say so, Miss Barnes. I believe I made my stance on what kind of behavior Arcadia would tolerate quite clear when I visited you on Sunday."

The redhead gave a fake laugh. "We weren't doing anything worth talking about. Just playing around a bit."

"This is your first strike, Miss Barnes," I said, stepping into her space. Sophia tensed and looked as though she wanted to intervene, but I simply shot the other girl a look, daring her to do anything. "There will not be a second. Perhaps you were someone important at Winslow, important enough that you could do whatever you wished. That protection is gone. This is my domain. Here, you do as I command. Do you understand?"

Emma backed up, face twisting with anger. "I don't know where you get off ordering me around. Just because what, you're on the Student Council? Who even cares about that? Bet you sucked the football team off to get the position anyways."

My jaw tensed and my vision narrowed. My annoyance with the entire day focused to a single point, my anger boiling over at this girl. I lifted a hand, stretching out to grab hold of Emma, only for Sophia to bat it away.

"Back off."

"I would think very carefully about what you intend to do next, Miss Hess."

"Not trying to start anything, just won't let you mess with my friend," Sophia said, her eyes flicking to Megan and Chelsea. It seemed she was at least smart enough not to do anything with hostile witnesses present.

"Your friend should learn to watch her tongue then," I replied blandly.

"Why?" Emma asked sweetly. "Did something I say hit close to home?"

"Pfft," Chelsea laughed, breaking into the conversation. "You really think Elaine is out there seducing people? Girl's a prude. I'm not sure she even knows what sex is! You're soooo brave though, Emma, wearing a shirt like that. I mean, I could never show off that much skin to just anyone passing by."

Megan tittered. "I know, right? You've got to tell me your morning routine, girl! It must take you hours to put that much make-up on!"

"And those shoes! Ugh, so jealous. You must have gotten a great discount on them when you fished them out of the bargain bin."

Emma bared her teeth in an expression that no one would mistake for a smile and snapped, "Madison! Get out here. We're leaving."

A squeak came from the rightmost stall and Madison Clements scurried out of hiding a moment later, falling into Emma's shadow. I spared her a single look of disdain before stepping aside to allow the trio of girls to vacate the bathroom. Silence fell in their wake and I took a moment to calm myself before turning to Megan and Chelsea.

Forgiving: 16 | 10 || Vengeful: 4 | 10
>Vengeful succeeds.

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"Dig up anything you can. We are going to bury her."

Gamemaster said:

Adventure discovered: The Wicked Witches of Winslow.
Madison Clements is removed from Associates.

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Vicious grins spread across their faces, like sharks that had caught the scent of blood in the water.

"Oh, we will. No way a girl like that doesn't have some sort of dirt."

"What do you want to bet she's been sleeping around?"

"She does seem like the type."

"Let's not theorize," I interrupted. "Just find out what information you can."

"Sure, sure. Kill all my fun, why don't you?"

Despite her words, Chelsea smiled as she and Megan turned to leave. I watched them go, the bathroom still apart from a faint dripping breaking the quiet.

"I am the only one left. You can come out now, Taylor."

The center stall creaked open, revealing Taylor. A puddle of red cranberry juice had formed around her, trickling from her hair and clothes both. It made her look like she had been drenched in blood. Her face screwed up, a mix of anger and embarrassment and something else I could not identify.

"How did you know it was me in here?"

"A guess. You had pointed those three out to me specifically when I visited you. I am sorry I arrived too late to actually stop them."

"It's not your fault. You can't be everywhere."

"Even still." I took a deep breath. "If you would like, you may come sit with me during your lunches."

"What?"

"It is true, I cannot be everywhere. However, as long as you are by my side, then I can protect you."

"That just means they'll target you too."

"That hardly matters." I stepped forward and held a hand out to Taylor. "Until they are defeated, I shall serve as your sword and your shield against them. This I swear to you."

Taylor stared at my fingers as if they were a coiled viper waiting to strike. Slowly, hesitatingly, she reached out and took my hand.

Thus, our contract was complete.

I pulled her to her feet and helped her wash her hair in the sink as best I was able. It was a simple kindness, one that ought go completely unremarked, yet I saw tears well up in her eyes at one point as I gently used my fingers to comb out her hair.

Afterwards, I asked the office to excuse her from classes for the rest of the day and let her sit in the Student Council room with me. It gave me time to observe her. She was a study in contradictions.

A girl who was starved for touch, yet would instinctively flinch away when I offered it.

A girl who would hesitate to offer anything, for fear of exposing vulnerability, only to take a firm stance once pressed for her opinions.

A girl who believed in justice, but did not think she could ever be its recipient.

By the end of the day, I was left with a boiling anger that had no release.

"I will admit, I do not have much experience with this sort of school drama. I was taught entirely by the Church, after all."

Caren's words were not a surprise, though a part of me had hoped she could provide a bit more advice. The Church sat silent, as it always did when I visited. Come to think of it, I had yet to see another parishioner here.

"I suppose it was too much to hope that you would have some insight."

"I am afraid not. I have faith that you will be able to navigate this current without my help, however."

I let out a frustrated breath and closed my eyes. Schoolyard drama was not the same as court politics and that had always been closer to Guinevere's realm than my own anyways. The King had stood a step removed from her subjects. I did not have that luxury any more.

"There is one thing I might do for you," Caren offered.

"What is it?"

"I have been practicing the book of songs you gifted to me. If you would like, I could perform for you."

A small smile crossed my lips. "I would like that."

Bond with Caren increased to 4.

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Hours later, the wind howled around me in time with my motorcycle's roar, eager for the night's performance. I wished my costume allowed for it to dance through my hair, but alas, considerations had to be made for practicality. Instead, I simply contented myself with how it rushed past me, the streets blurring by as I moved through the city.

It was almost enough to drown out Erin's voice.

She clung hard to my back, screaming into my ear as I drove us to our meeting point. "Slow down, you bloody madwoman! We're going to crash at this rate!"

"Cease panicking," I said simply, taking a sharp turn, my motorcycle drifting almost sideways across the ground for a brief moment before the momentum righted it again to zoom along in a new direction. "We're fine."

"We're not fine! You're going to kill us both!"

It was beneath my dignity, but I could not help but roll my eyes. At the very least, no one could see it. Still, we were already almost to our destination. Erin really needed to get over it already. Turning a final corner, I spun the motorcycle to bleed off momentum, coming to a stop in front of the same pharmacy where Victoria and I had arrested the Merchants the last time we had searched together.

There, Victoria sat on the edge of the roof, amusement dancing in her eyes as I tried to shake Erin's arms off of me and dismount.

"So who's the friend?" Victoria asked.

"Glory Girl, Nimue. Nimue, Glory Girl," I introduced, still trying to pry Erin loose. Honestly, we weren't even going that fast. With a bit of mana, I could have really pushed the bike's limits.

"Nimue, huh?" Victoria looked over at me, the question evident in her features.

"She has agreed to join my team going forward," I explained.

"Ah." A complicated set of emotions flashed across Victoria's face. "Well, you did say you were planning to recruit. I'm going to miss it just being the two of us though."

"I, as well. You need more than just two people to effect true change however."

"I know, I know." Victoria floated down from the roof and put her hands on her hips. "So! Nimue! What can you do, exactly?"

Erin finally let go and hurriedly straightened herself, smoothing out her robes. "Oh, I'm actually a Sorceress," she said, wiggling her fingers.

Victoria laughed. "Okay, but what are you really?"

"I'm something like a Tinker," Erin grinned. "I've got this bracelet that can shoot different types of energy at people, and I can do a few other things here and there."

Victoria's eyes lit up. "A Tinker? Really? What's your specialization?"

"I'm still… figuring things out. I know I can't build a suit of power armor or anything like that," Erin laughed. I did not think Victoria saw it, but perhaps because I already knew Erin, I did. The slightest bit of hesitancy applied, the self deprecating laugh; all of it was just a performance that she was layering on for Victoria's benefit in order to paint a picture of a Tinker who was new and unsure of herself.

The deception left me uncomfortable, no matter how necessary it might be for Erin. I cleared my throat to interrupt the conversation.

"We know that Skidmark tends to roam this area," I said. "With Nimue's help, I believe we can finally pin him down and see him taken off the streets."

Hunting: 5 | 5 (+10)(+5) = Success

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Erin nodded. "Merlin has reported what looks like a bunch of people going in and out of a warehouse north of here. A lot of loud music, clear signs of intoxication. Good chance it's a party being run by the Merchants as a way of selling their product."

"Merlin?" Victoria asked.

"An autonomous drone, I made," Erin waved the question off. "It's not combat capable, but it's useful for scouting."

Victoria nodded, showing clear signs of wanting to ask more questions about Erin's 'tinkertech,' but I decided to head that off. Best to keep things on track.

"Skidmark has proven elusive in the past. Glory Girl and I will focus on breaking into the party and arresting gang members. Nimue, I would like for you to focus on cutting off lines of retreat. Make sure no one can slip out the back and escape."

"Sure, I can do that."

"Glory Girl, I will take the vanguard and draw their fire. You make an entrance once they have been distracted."

"Are you sure?" Victoria asked. "I know you've got some proper armor now, but I'm actually invincible. I can take some heat for you."

"You are not always invincible, Victoria. I would very much like to see you in armor of your own for those times you are not."

Victoria shifted uneasily. "That's… Special power interactions. I don't think it's a concern with the Merchants."

"You and I both know that is not the case," I murmured.

"El – Pendragon." She shot a look at Erin before sighing. "Talk about this later, okay? We'll go with your plan for now."

Nodding, I said, "Take Nimue with you," before mounting my motorcycle once again. There was a thrum of energy beneath me as I switched the engine on, the machine purring in anticipation.

"Sooo… Do you prefer piggyback or bridal style?" Victoria asked.

Whatever Erin's response was, I did not hear it, my motorcycle drowning out their words as I rode off into the night. The dark shape that was Merlin blended in with the night, nearly invisible in the darkness, but he ducked and dove under the occasional street light, careful to lead me to our destination.

As I drew close, the heavy thumping of music split the night. A bassline so loud it reverberated through the stone beneath my feet and made my bones shiver. There was no chance that no one had noticed something like this, and yet…

No police had been called for the disturbance. No Parahuman Response Team vehicles had pulled up. People lived in the area, but they lived knowing that they had been abandoned to lawlessness.

Tonight, we would cut out at least one of the tumors growing in the city.

Combat

Skirmish: 3 Encounters
Battle Intensity: (2d6) = 4

Encounter 1

Intensity: 5 | 4 = Failure
Elaine Strategy: 4 | 5 = Success
>Elaine chooses Encounter: Mush

Posture: Valorous

Elaine invokes passion: Heroism: 16 | 17 = Success.
>+5 to Charge

Round 1

Elaine Charge: 9 | 5 (+5) || Mush Slam: 17 | 16 (-3)
>Elaine Damage (10d6) = 37 (-20 AR) = 17 Damage (27/44 HP)
>>Mush Knockdown: 7 | 10 = Success

Round 2

Elaine Melee: 14 | 20 || Mush Slam: 20 | 16 (-3)
>Elaine Damage (8d6) = 29 (-20 AR) = 9 Damage (18/44 HP)
>>Mush Knockdown: 18 | 10 = Failure

Mush Valorous: 5 | 6 = Success

Round 3

Elaine Energetic: 16 | 16
Elaine Valorous: 11 | 16

Elaine Melee: 11 (+5) | 20 (+5) || Mush Slam: 15 | 16 (-8)
>Elaine Damage (8d6) = 28 (-20 AR) = 8 Damage (10/44 HP)
>>Mush falls Unconscious.

Encounter 2

Intensity: 11 | 4 = Failure
Elaine Strategy: 7 | 5 = Failure
>Forced Encounter: Six Merchants

Posture: Valorous

Round 1

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 15 | 20 (-10) || Merchant1 Bat: 5 | 8 (-3) = Critical!
>Merchant1 Damage (5d6) = 14 (-30 AR) = 0 Damage (38/41 HP)

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 12 | 20 (-10) || Merchant2 Bat: 19 | 8 (-3)

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 7 | 20 (-10) || Merchant3 Bat: 17 | 8 (-3)
>Elaine Damage (4d6) = 18 Damage (10/28 HP)
>>Merchant3 takes a Major Wound.

Round 2

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 11 | 20 (-10) || Merchant1 Bat: 14 | 8 (-3)

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 18 | 20 (-10) || Merchant2 Bat: 19 | 8 (-3)

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 9 | 20 (-10) || Merchant4 Bat: 1 | 8 (-3)
>Elaine Damage (4d6) = 14 Damage (14/28 HP)
>>Merchant4 takes a Major Wound.

Round 3

Elaine Energetic: 5 | 16
>Gain a check to Energetic
Elaine Valorous: 15 | 16

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 15 | 20 (-10) || Merchant1 Bat: 13 | 8 (-3)

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 17 | 20 (-10) || Merchant2 Bat: 17 | 8 (-3)

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 11 | 20 (-10) || Merchant5 Bat: 6 | 8 (-3))

Encounter 3

Intensity: 14 | 4 = Failure
Elaine Strategy: 2 | 5 = Success
>Elaine chooses Encounter: Skidmark

Posture: Valorous

Elaine invokes passion: Honor: 9 | 15 = Success.
>+5 to DEX

Round 1

Skidmark Power: 20 | 14 (-13)

Round 2

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 3 | 20 || Skidmark Power: 10 | 14 (-3)
>Skidmark Damage (7d6) = 24 (-30 AR) = 0 Damage (38/41 HP)
>>Elaine Knockdown: 8 | 14 (+5) = Success

Round 3

Elaine Energetic: 14 | 16
Elaine Valorous: 2 | 16

Elaine Melee (Blunt): 12 | 20 || Skidmark Power: 6 | 14 (-3)
>Elaine Knockdown: 12 | 14
>Elaine Damage (4d6) = 21 (-2 AR) = 19 Damage (12/31 HP)
>>Skidmark takes a Major Wound.

After Action

Gain 100 Glory for defeating Mush.
Gain 100 Glory for defeating Skidmark.
Gain 30 (15x2) Glory for defeating Merchant Mooks.

Victoria gains 135 (15x9) Glory for defeating Merchant Mooks.

My motorcycle roared as I burst through the warehouse doors. The terrified screams of men came from all around me. They scrambled out of my way, too intoxicated to mount an effective response. For a brief moment, I held the floor.

Then, Skidmark's voice rang out over the din.

"Get that fucking cocksucker! No one crashes on the Merchants' turf!"

I scanned the mob, looking for any signs of Skidmark, but the crowd was too thick, too many people crammed into too small a space. Another figure became immediately apparent however. Tentacles lashed out, gathering up broken bottles and discarded syringes, building itself to a figure that towered over the rest of the crowd.

Recognize: 19 | 6 = Failure

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Frowning, I cast my thoughts to see if I could remember any cape with a power such as this. Nothing came to mind. No matter. The cape had simply made themselves into a larger target. I gunned my motorcycle forward, careless of how Merchants had to throw themselves out of my way.

The detritus strewn cape reared a giant fist back and I spun my mount at the last moment, my sword flashing as I carved through the giant's knee. The giant screamed and fell to one knee, struggling to refill the debris that had scattered under my blow. No blood stained my blade however.

Good. That meant I did not need to hold back.

Kicking off the back off my bike, I launched myself upwards, bringing my blade down like a guillotine to decapitate the giant. A panicked scream came from inside the giant's chest and it scrambled backwards, trying to escape. I had no time to indulge the pageantry however. This cape was not my only target tonight.

I drove my gauntleted fist into the giant, trusting in my armor to see my safe, and pulled a creature who looked more goblin than man free of its depths. A single blow to the head saw him slump unconscious.

That left me surrounded by the minions however.

Baseball bats slammed against my shoulders, sending me stumbling. I responded in kind, laying about me with my sword. I was careful to use the flat of the blade, but I did not have time to be gentle with these men. One fell, his leg crushed by the strength of steel. Another found his wrist snapped.

Then, a rolling wave of fear came over the crowd as Victoria entered, giving me time to push myself free of the throng. Men parted before me, allowing me to catch sight of Skidmark, trying and failing to escape through the back door.

I broke through the Merchants' ranks and charged forward. Skidmark saw me before I could reach him however. With an aborted cry of, "Shit!" he grabbed a bottle from the floor and threw it at me. Halfway to me, it passed through some sort of heat haze in the air, a shimmer of color that did not belong, before suddenly accelerating to dangerous speeds. Whatever its speed however, it did not help his inherent aim, and the bottle broke against the far wall, having come nowhere close to me.

He quickly scrambled for something else to throw, but by then I was upon him. I brought my sword down, only for it to divert at the last moment, as though someone had placed a hand against it and pushed it aside. Skidmark quickly threw a broken pipe at me in the space my near miss had bought him and the blunt instrument thudded against my armor, hard enough to force me a step back, but no more than that.

No matter. I had his measure now. I brought my sword down once again, only to loosen my grip as I met the expected resistance. I allowed the force of Skidmark's protection to flip the sword, the blade slipping past him only for the pommel to make contact with his temple.

The cape fell in a heap. The Merchants had already been routing prior to his defeat, but with their leader defeated, those who were still left standing quickly surrendered.

It was nearly another twenty minutes before the PRT made their appearance, a red costumed hero running alongside the vehicles as they pulled up to the warehouse.

Recognize: 4 | 6 = Success

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"Good evening Velocity," I said simply as he approached. "It has been some time."

"You too, Pendragon. I see you've updated the costume since last time I saw you."

"It remains a work in progress, though it is much closer to my vision now."

Velocity grinned and took a look around. "It looks like you and Glory Girl did clean work here. This makes your first major takedown, right?"

"It does." The Merchants were fairly minor, all things considered, but even still. This marked our first real unequivocable victory.

"Hey, I'm happy for you. Your first takedown is always something special. Of course, my offer from before is still open, if you wanted to join the Protectorate now that you've got your name out there."

I shook my head. "I am actually starting my own team. Of course, the offer to join is open to you as well, should you wish to leave the Protectorate."

Velocity laughed. "Sorry, kid, can't really take you up on that offer. We'll go ahead and get these guys cleaned up and out of your hair though. By the way, what's the name of this team of yours?"

I smiled slightly. It had taken some thought. What did I want my team to be? What did I want it to ultimately represent? At the end of the day, while I wanted to restore order to this city, that was not my final goal. Erin had said it, had she not? Reality was fraying at the seams. The world was ending.

Our mission was no less than to prevent the extinction of the human race.

"We are the Grand Order."

All team members gain 200 Glory for completing Merchants of Death.

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---

As a small note, I have made an edit to an earlier chapter. For the purposes of reducing future cast bloat, I've cut down the number of pseudoservants from fourteen to seven.

It is January of 2011.

Shop

Remember, if at any time you wish to buy something from the shop, please do a write in as below, and I will add it to the next vote.
[ ] [Shop] (Write-In)

Adventure

What adventure do you pursue next?
[ ] [Adventure] Recruitment
-[ ] [Recruitment] Glory Girl
-[ ] [Recruitment] Gallant
-[ ] [Recruitment] Sere
-[ ] [Recruitment] (Write-In)
>Reach out to other Parahumans about joining your team. More possible recruits may become available based on progression of other quests. You may face increased difficulty if you try to recruit someone who is already part of an existing team.
[ ] [Adventure] The Wicked Witches of Winslow
>You need to put down Emma's little rebellion before she has time to gain traction among the students at Arcadia. Difficulty will increase with time.
[ ] [Adventure] The Heart of Winter
>Travel to the Court of the Unseelie to weaken Winter's hold.
[ ] [Adventure] The Damsel of Distress
>The villain known as the Damsel of Distress is causing trouble in a nearby town, Durham.
[ ] [Adventure] The Uncatchable Undersiders
>The Undersiders have proven to be masters of escape. Can you catch them?
[ ] [Adventure] Takedown the Clown
>Circus is out robbing various stores. A clown can't be too hard of an opponent, right?
[ ] [Adventure] The Dog Rings
>Hookwolf supposedly runs dog fighting pits. Close him down.
[ ] [Adventure] To the Victor, the Spoils
>Victor is known for stealing the skills of minorities. He must be stopped.
[ ] [Adventure] Twisted Metal
>A deadly street race is being run on the outskirts of town. You can go shut them down – or try to win for the prize money.
[ ] [Adventure] Vampire Hunting
>Hunt for clues about the vampire that is haunting the city.
[ ] [Adventure] Patrolling the City
-[ ] [Patrol] With Victoria
-[ ] [Patrol] With Erin
-[ ] [Patrol] With the Wards
-[ ] [Patrol] Alone
>Go on patrol to stop criminal activity. Roll the random encounter table.
[ ] [Adventure] Explore the Woods
-[ ] [Woods] With Erin
-[ ] [Woods] Alone
>Search the woods for supernatural activity. Roll the random encounter table.
[ ] [Adventure] None
>Hold off on adventures to rest up. Gain a second Activity vote.

Activity

Choose an activity to participate in:
[ ] [Activity] Focus on the Student Council
>You will be doing work for the Student Council regardless, this is to spend extra time devoted to the task.
[ ] [Activity] Study Group
>Spend some extra time studying for your classes.
[ ] [Activity] Party
>You've been invited to a house party by Chelsea and Megan.
[ ] [Activity] Dating
>Go on a date with Amy. Victoria's been trying to get you on a double date for a while now.
[ ] [Activity] Gala
>Your parents want you to attend more high society events.
[ ] [Activity] Modeling
>You were offered to make regular appearances with the modeling agency. It would be good for PR, maybe, and they'd pay you.
[ ] [Activity] Charity
>You could do volunteer work at the local homeless shelter.
[ ] [Activity] Church
>Visit Caren at the church.
[ ] [Activity] Sports
>You could use the exercise and it'd help blow off steam.
[ ] [Activity] Browse the Internet
>Amy spends a lot of time on the Internet. Maybe it'd be worth browsing.
[ ] [Activity] Research Parahumans
>Do more research on Parahumans in the area.
[ ] [Activity] Study the Occult
>It might be good to brush up on your faerie lore.
[ ] [Activity] (Write-In)

Social

Choose someone to spend time with.
[ ] [Social] Dean Stansfield
[ ] [Social] Victoria Dallon
[ ] [Social] Amy Dallon
[ ] [Social] Erin Archelot
[ ] [Social] Caren Ortensia
[ ] [Social] Vedika Dhawan
[ ] [Social] Chelsea and Megan
[ ] [Social] Taylor Hebert
[ ] [Social] Theo Anders
[ ] [Social] Tammi Herren
[ ] [Social] (Write-In)