The NEW Vanguard! Kyoko Issue 1 "The Enemy of My Enemy..."

Kyoko was not certain of the meaning of some of the slang they used, but the intention was clear enough. "Stand down? I haven't stood up," Kyoko responds with a look of confusion. "I've made no hostile movements nor gestures, and I haven't threatened you, any of you, nor made any demands, or told you to step aside from what you are doing. Instead, I've responded to your questions fully and honestly. So, I hope you are as desirous as I am to keep this to a peaceful discussion."

She pauses to let those words sink in and then continues, "You say you were made aware if the threads. By whom? Did they follow them themselves to determine more? If not, why not? You say you think it is a trap. If that's so, then I thank you for keeping me from it, but what led you to that conclusion? What evidence is there that it actually is a trap, and not a warning or an actual call for aid? What if you're wrong in your belief? Without proof it's a ruse, the consequences are unthinkable enough not to at least examine the possibility that there's a greater evil out there growing stronger and preparing for ugly action."

She looks them over and beseeches, "If I and others came to investigate, then still more will as well. Either you'll eventually be bested by someone, or someone will slip by or power through, and so you've not been successful in your aim. Or maybe you will stop everyone, but for how long? How long do you keep `misguided' individuals imprisoned? That's hardly just or right to lock someone innocent away indefinitely on only a belief of yours. What gives you the right? Instead of simply preventing anyone from investigating, why don't you come with me? We can determine the truth of the matter, and if it is a trap, then perhaps our combined abilities will be enough to overcome it. And this way, the matter is resolved once and for all, and you won't have to keep keeping others away anymore, as there'll be no more reason for anyone to come, and you can get back to what you were doing before this happened."

(ooc)
In the box showing Kyoko's resistance/health values, it should be a 9 for spirit, not an 11, since she had taken points out of spirit earlier. Hopefully though the points she had in aura will help her now!

Kyoko

Body	4 (5)
Mind	4 (5)
Spirit	9
Hero Points	0

Power Reserve: 5 in Aura (making it an 8, 1 in Spirit (making it a 9)
Sorcery: Dispersal 5, Magic Sense 3
Flight is an 8

The leprechaun arched an eyebrow... then burst out laughing!

"My, you are a feisty one, an' full o chatter lassy! To answer a few o ye questions, we saw the message when th' evil creep sent out them threads earlier, to be sure. An' while I and mine can't stop everyone from goin' to th' villains aid, we CAN enforce th' boundaries of this here Island. OUR Ireland, regardless o the British claims. An' I reckon ye're as near as dammit stood on our Ireland, makin' you a trespasser... or a guest. Seein' as ye seem ta be misguided in that ye're headin' off ta help a bad un, we'll treat ya as a guest an' make a friendly suggestion."

His eyes narrowed. Kyoko could fair sense the power around this one! All of the group had their power from mystical origins, but this man was the most powerful of the lot, and then some!

"Turn round! Go back tae where ye came! No good will come o ya bein' taken by th' forces o darkness! If th' thread comes over our Island - an' the one you followed did - that makes it our responsibility ta stop them we consider bad uns, and turn away them's we figure need settin' on th' right path!" He softened somewhat. "Now lassie, if ye agree ta turn round we'll say nowt of it an' ah'll even send ye back th' way ya came with a lil magic tae speed ya on ya way. If not...?"

Green Djinni spoke up. "The girl is young, and I sense no malice in her. Quite the opposite."

Meteor Mary looked angered as she spoke up "All the more reason ta set her back tae where she came from! To protect her!"

Limestone spoke for the first time, with a booming voice that sounded like it run from a deep cavern "I say let her go her own way. Make her own mistakes. Best way to learn."

Leprechaun glanced from each team mate and seemed most surprised by the words coming from Limestone, though there was no mouth from which sound could issue. "Ye don't speak often, me old friend, an' wi that in mind I'm of th' inclination tae agree wi' ya."

Meteor Mary was about to raise her voice and argue, but the diminutive man waved her silent. He turned back to Kyoko. "Followin' th' thread is foolish, girl. That said, there be no malice in ya, an' wi that in mind ye can pass in safety over our lands this time. Know that we protect this land and will do whatever needed against ANYONE, friend or foe, that threatens the Emerald Isle. Bear that in mind if ye ever return. An' I wish ye well. In fact..."

He waved a hand, and what looked to be a clay urn filled to the brim with gold coins appeared from thin air! The gold glittered and Kyoko had no doubt it was real, and very valuable! More than that, she could sense it possessed powerful magic, and the Leprechaun scooped up a coin, bit into it, polished it on his sleeve and flicked it through the air towards Kyoko... she reached out a hand instinctively... but it never landed, instead rotating in the air unsuspended!

"Hahaha!" laughed the little man. "Forgive me little joke missy!" he waved a hand and the coin dropped into her hand. "Wherever ye are, if ye find yerself in trouble an' up tae yer neck in th' brown smelly stuff, flick the coin inta th' air an' call out Seamus! Tis me! Ye'll be transported right here, tae this spot, an' hopefully outta whatever mess ye seem determined tae get yerself in. Mind that th' coin only works once, an goes back inta me urn, like." He stared at the coin in Kyoko's hand longingly, as if drawn to it. "Make sure no badduns get it! Though if they do, I'll come lookin' fer me coin..." he added, with a growl.

That said, the Gaelic Knights stood back, as if giving Kyoko leave to journey on. Green Djinni added "Beware young one. You have the potential for great power, but with great power comes the need to use it responsibly."

The Leprechaun frowned "I've 'eard that before methinks..." he muttered.

OOC Looks like they are happy to let Kyoko continue, and she has one of Leprechauns gold coins which can be used as a way to recall her instantly to the spot she now stands in, from wherever and whenever she is. The command is a flip of the coin and shouting 'Seamus!' as the coin spins... Continue on, following the thread to its conclusion?

Kyoko was silent as they spoke. She did not agree with all of what was being said, but she recognized sometimes it's better to remain quiet, especially as they worked out their internal discussions. If they found in her favor, then she need not have said anything. If they did not, then she could work at attempting to change their mind. But she thought it was funny that he thought her chatty. Perhas it was true, but the Irish were known for their gift of gab. Perhas she will have to come back to kiss the Blarney Stone at some point, she thought.

She was surprised when Limestone spoke, not knowing it was possible. And intelligently as well, so her initial thought that he might be a golem of some sort proved unfounded. It would be nice to know more about all of them, she thought, especially as she could feel the magic coming from them.

When the leprechaun stated he would allow her to pass, she replied gratefully, "Thank you. And trust that I don't bear your homeland any ill will. I hope that I'll be able to prevent it, and that'll keep others from disturbing you. Thank you for your help." She looked at the gold coin in awe, holding it with both hands, as if it was a business card. She had seen gold jewelry, and gold art pieces in museums, but this, this was different. Looking at it, she could see why some people would risk so much for something so beautiful. And she resisted the urge to bite the piece and see if it could be bent, like some people do on TV, even though he had just done so moments before. It seemed disrespectful. "I'll take very good care of it. If all goes well, I can return it to you myself."

With a slight bow, she said, "Thank you all again." And then with a slight turn towards Limestone, she added, "I will do my best. Thank you for your confidence." And with that, she would be off, Green Djinni's sage words echoing through her mind as she travelled on to follow the thread.

She believed they had said that the threads went towards Edinburgh, which should be in Scotland across the channel, she thought, so she should be safe to teleport for a bit, but for the moment, she would fly dispersed to follow the thread, as the prospect of teleporting into the ground was an unnerving thought. It was possible while dispersed and likely safe enough, but mentally disturbing. She thought it better to fly for now. Once the thread came above ground once more, she could teleport again.

Kyoko

Body	4 (5)
Mind	4 (5)
Spirit	9
Hero Points	0

Power Reserve: 5 in Aura (making it an 8, 1 in Spirit (making it a 9)
Sorcery: Dispersal 5, Magic Sense 3
Flight is an 8

The Gaelic Knights watched the young woman leave...

"Will we see her again?" asked Green Djinni.

Meteor Mary shook her head and rounded angrily on Leprechaun. "You realise you probably condemned the girl to death?"

Leprechaun turned, and Mary paled under his gaze. "Ne'er ferget lass, to who ye speak. I AM Ireland. I am th' livin' spirit, th' guardian, th' protector. Ye all are me understudies, an' you'd do well tae respect me thinkin' in this matter. Our duty is here. We tried tae warn th' lassie away. She would'n have it, an unlike th' others there was no malice in her. She has her eyes wide open, wits about her. She's got raw power, though maybe not th' skill tae use it to it's potential... Yes, there is danger. But if she comes out th' other side, she'll be stronger fer it, an' we all know what's comin'. We need more like us, an' not just in Ireland, where we are blessed with mystical protectors."

Mary sucked in a deep breath, then added quietly "She's probably goin' to die."

"We all die lass." he turned to watch the distant dot vanish into the mists over the sea. "But this one? Not yet, I think. Besides..."

He grinned again, and the others relaxed a little. "She has me coin, an' I'll be wantin' it back, so she better well not croak!"

Green Djinni's impassive eyes turned to the direction Kyoko had gone, and he stared long after her...

=========

The trail led on, over the Irish sea and over land. It was hilly here, and so Kyoko needed to increase the depth of her magic sense to continue to read the thread...

Even so, it ran true and straight, and before long she saw another thread, converging with this one. And another... and another...

In the far distance, over rolling green hills and fields, criss-crossed by roads and peppered with towns and villages, the threads looked to finally meet at a castle on a hillside, though she was still to far away to make out details, being some 20 miles or so off.

Would Kyoko enter the castle or take precautions? Who knew what surprises waited within its ancient walls?

Having passed through and out of the rocks, the dispersal was no longer needed, so Kyoko let that magic end. And she used that power to boost the magic sense to best follow the strand.

Arriving within sight of the castle, she wondered how many others had arrived here before her. Of course, the Gaelic Knights had stopped several, but that would perhaps only have been those crossing Ireland. Those coining other directions, such as from the continent, would they have been stopped? She was unsure. However, if the Gaelic Knights had stopped several, it stood to reason that several had also come from other directions. And if so, then those on the castle would have already been alerted. And since the strands were still here, perhaps they were hoping for more to show to utile their power as well. She suddenly felt very inadequate and I'll-prepared for this. But what else could be done?

With a sigh, she knew she wiuld gave to continue, she dropped the magic sense, since she was now here, and put the full amount of her sorcery into danger sense. And she would fly forward, stopping when there seemed to be a hint of danger, but no closer than a half mile in any event. At that point, she would end the danger sense and would transition get sorcery into x ray and telescopic vision. She would look into the castle, hoping to see where the man who sent the summons was, and if there were other prisoners. And perhaps see what was holding him or them hostage as well.

(ooc)
She will start with telescopic vision of 3 and X-ray vision of 5, but if that is not enough, she will take 1AP out of the other power each round and increase the one that is lacking until she is successful, or realizes it is impossible. If the latter, she will have to try something new.

Kyoko

Body	4 (5)
Mind	4 (5)
Spirit	9
Hero Points	0

Kyoko gazed with with the aid of sorcery upon the distant castle...

It looked like a ruin, but she was still too far away for the X Ray vision effect to penetrate rock. The Thread led directly to the castle gates, albeit there were only remnants of them still remaining in the archway.

Her sorcerous danger sense told her danger was present in the castle but didn't seem to be too eager to hand out details...

OOC Danger Sense 2d10 → [2,3] = (5)

Even so, she approached unmolested and stood within a couple of hundred yards of the castle. From here it seemed deserted, but there was something else. A bubble, a sphere, of magical energy surrounded the castle from 100 yards around. It was so intense that it was difficult to look at. Kyoko knew that simply touching the sphere would invoke some effect, and it was not one that might be favourable!

Other than that, the castle seemed ruined, deserted...

OOC This bubble of pure magic power encapsulates the castle and the surrounding land, above, below and around it. It's not solid, but touching or attempting to pass through it will trigger something...

'Very curious...' She thought. There were better ways to go about this perhaps, but she was perhaps a bit too impulsive. She wondered if teleportation or warp counted as passing through, and hoped not, since yo do not actually go through the intervening space. So, to be safe, she moved all of her sorcery into a force field protecting against magic, and would try to teleport to the inside of the sphere. If that was successful, and there were no ill effects or attacks afterwards, she would move her sorcery to life sense and see if there was anyone in range.

Kyoko

Body	4 (5)
Mind	4 (5)
Spirit	9
Hero Points	0

Kyoko teleported closer... into the dome of magical power that she could sense...

Even though she'd taken a precautions - a spell to create a field that repelled magic attacks, the realization dawned on her as soon as she appeared that something wasn't actually attacking her, as such, it was attacking her powers!

OOC Neutralize attack. And it's a powerful one too. It first attacks Sorcery... Roll 5,6 (11) 11RAPs. Sorcery is reduced to zero and must be recovered before you can use it!

Kyoko *felt* different all of a sudden, and realized that the field surrounding this place had sapped her ability to cast spells! Was it permanent?

What if...?

Her worst fears were realized when she saw movement in the gaps of the ruins! Robed figures moving quickly! They would soon be out in the open and moving towards where she stood some 90 or so yards away from the castle! Somehow she knew that the longer she stayed inside the field, the more likely it was to drain her other powers too!!!

Taken aback by his, she took her first instinct, which was to teleport to safety. And provided it worked, she would be 30 miles away from the castle, back the direction she came. Provided she was away, she would take stock of her situation once again. She felt blunted and less in touch with Creation. It was a numbing feeling, a loss of something she could not adequately describe, like going blind but not having other senses to compensate. And she was at a loss as to what to do next.

She took stock of what she knew, and attemted to come up with a way to proceed.

What had affected her was non-magical, at least that she was able to tell, as her shields were not overpowered, they were completely useless. That meant that things here were not all that she had been led to believe. This was not strictly a supernatural threat that might bring on other supernatural threats. This was a non-magic threat preying on supernatural, or at least a supernatural one quite familiar with science or the like. But then she was doubtful of even that. It could be a magic she simplt was not familiar with and that worked on other principles.

She checked the time, to have a rough idea of how long it would be before school let out back in New York. That would help, but she suspected that even at full power what she had faced was more than she could handle. Still, it would help, and she could think better and more clearly at full power.

She tried again to sense herself and her nature. Maybe she was just jarred and it was not disrupted.


(ooc)
Ouch!

Are you certain about the results? Kyoko had had 5 APs of Power Reseve in Aura and 1 in Spirit. Due to the Split, she had an Aura of 3, which gave her a total of 8 Aura. Her sorcery is double linked with the bonus, so she had a Sorcery of 16 (likely automatically lowered to 15 since we cannot go past that limit). She was only actively using 8 APs of that power at the time, since her spirit would not allow her to use more than that without damage, but she actually had a higher total, and that would have been the AV/RV, would it not? And if it was a result of 11 RAPs, then she would still have 4-5 APs left of sorcery left, which will be lost when she takes her Power Reserve out of Aura.

Since the magic field did not help her at all, since it did not affect her RV at all, my assumption is that the neutralize was not a magic effect, but a scientific one. If it had been magic, then the magic field would have helped protect her, or am I misunderstanding the application? That is quite possible. My assumption was that this would have counted as a mystical attack, but if you rule that it only protects against attacks that cause damage to Spirit, that is not an unfair interpretation. If so, my question is what would then protect against mystically freezing or controlling or other similar attacks?

Those questions obviously matter quite a bit for what she does next, so I will wait for a response on this before continuing in earnest.

Taken aback by his, she took her first instinct, which was to teleport to safety. And provided it worked, she would be 30 miles away from the castle, back the direction she came. Provided she was away, she would take stock of her situation once again. It was a numbing feeling, a loss of something she could not adequately describe, like going blind but not having other senses to compensate. And she knew if she had not left, she would have lost the connection entirely. And she wondered what to do nexct.

Perhas it was best to take stock of what she knew, and attempt to come up with a way to proceed. What had affected her was exceedingly powerful, more than she normally commanded. Clearly, the frontal aroach would not work.

She checked the time, to have a rough idea of how long it would be before school let out back in New York. That would help, but she suspected that even at full power what she had faced was more than she could handle. Still, it would help, and she could think better and more clearly at full power.

The first thing she needed to do, she thought, was restore herself and her connection. She concentrated on healing and restoring her loss. Whether she was successful or not, she would begin to come up with a new plan of approach. the neutralize had happened when she entered the sphere, so perhaps she could approach, observe, and act without activating it, as long as she stayed outside of it.


(ooc)
Losing much of her power caused much the same reaction as what had been posted. Losing 8 APs, even if they weren't being used, is a tremendous loss, and would certainly mean she would have lost the rest, so it necessitated a different

I believe losing 8 APs of sorcery means she should still have 8 APs. The loss of an AP due to split is already being accounted for and included with the loss of aura she suffered, and that caused her to lose 2 points of sorcery due to the split (from her normal 8 to a 6), not just the 1 point (from an 8 to a 7).

If a magic field does not protect against a magical neutralize power, then what would assist her against that? A magic field with a bonus?

Kyoko first uses all her power reserve to boost her aura to a 9. That makes her regeneration a 9 as well, lowering time for recoveries from 1 hour to 8 seconds (10 AP to 1 AP time, so 2 rounds). If this works, then she is will roceed from there. If regeneration cannot be used to recover powers, then she will shift her points back as they were, 5 in Aura and 1 in Spirit, and use the 8 APs of sorcery to to duplicate a regeneration power with a bonus that does work for powers. (10 AP to 2 AP, so 4 rounds.)

And I just noticed I became a cronie. Again, I wonder of those titles are really improvements!

Kyoko teleported 'blind' some 30 miles away....

Appearing where she had been moments ago, she considered the ramifications of what had happened. The thread had led directly to a trap, which was clearly designed to draw power from whoever entered that deadly field! If some mind were controlling it, watching whomever came into the field, it would be difficult to get in. She shifted her powers about and boosted her ability to heal, then settled on the ground to wait for the process to take place...

OOC Roll 10,8 (18) Success. Recover all lost points successfully.

She felt that peculiar shiver that told her body and powers were back 'up to speed', and considered her next move. Those mysterious beings that had come from the castle would clearly have approached her and tried to restrain her, then the field would have done it's work, sapping her of power and leaving her helpless. How many more had been dragged in that way? An option would have been to leave the field well alone, but the power behind it was clearly collecting - or eliminating - sorcerers and probably gaining from it in some way. That meant it had to be dealt with sooner or later! Could she do it alone?

She looked about. Fields, moorland, wooded hills, and in the distance, a city which she guessed was Edinburgh. Did this country have superhumans on the side of good that might provide assistance to this problem? Did they even know such a problem existed in their land, with the awful web radiating outwards, and in the middle...? Whatever it was, perhaps some great fat spider that fed on the 'flies' it pulled in, or some group of beings, they were clearly dangerous and a force to be reckoned with - that null field would have, Kyoko felt, drained her powers completely given time!

=========

Elsewhere at that moment...

"Did you feel that, master? The girl has power! Aye, and spirit! She was not like the others, and did not panic when the null field was..."

Whack!

The snivelling hooded figure was clattered across the room by a casual backhand!

"FOOL!" roared the 'master'. "YOU UNDERESTIMATED THE GIRL! IGNORE HER APPEARANCE - SHE CLEARLY IS MORE VERSED IN THE MYSTIC ARTS THAN YOUR FEEBLE MIND COULD COMPREHEND!"

"But... but master I..."

"SILENCE!" bellowed the towering dark figure. He pondered for a moment. "FIND HER. RESTRAIN HER WITHIN THE FIELD. USE IT TO ITS FULL POTENTIAL NEXT TIME AND DRAIN HER, OR *YOU* WILL BE A VICTIM OF IT'S... OF *MY* POWER!"

The snivelling hooded figure wiped a smear of blood from his face and crept from the room as the huge dark figure turned to look out of the window of the castle...

Kyoko was strongly relieved to feel herself whole once more. The disconnect was like losing a limb, and sensing the phantom tingle. One could think they had it and could feel it, even though it had been gone. But now she was restored. Still, the problem remained. The field was stronger than herself and her powers. Even boosted, she did not think she could be a match for it. However, perhaps there were other ways, other things she could do. And she began to fly back towards the castle, thinking over her options. She did not know of other heroes here, and she was not certain if the Knights also kept any of out Scotland or just Ireland. She might have to find allies to solve this once and for all, but for now, she had not exhausted all her options. And perhaps any prisoners they had already taken could be allies. Perhaps she could not stop them on her own, but if she could save prisoners, that would be worthwhile.

Once she arrived back at the location of the castle, she would stay a good 100 yards from the null field. The magic energy had been about 100 yards from the castle, so it was hopefully a safe distance, far enough to not be affected, and also to react if any of the inhabitants came out for her again, 100 yards from the field and 200 yards from the castle. And then she would shift her abilities again in preparation for what she had to do next. (3 points in Aura to make it an 6, 3 point in Spirit to make it a 11). She then used her Sorcery to determine how many life forms she could detect in the castle. (Duplicating Life Sense at 10 APs. No mystic bashing damage since she has an 11 Spirit.) Once that was determined, she would try to use that life sense to determine the specific location of Niles Quentin-Abaddon.

If she was successful in doing that, and had not been approached or attacked by anything, then she would end the life sense and use a remote se+nsing (10 APs), focusing in on Niles, so she could see the trouble and difficulty he was in, how he was held, and what might be with him. From this distance, she would have about 1 minute of scrying time, but since she would know his location, that would be all she would need, she hoped.

<OC>

Aura	3 (6)
Spirit	8 (11)

Power Reserve: 6- 3 in Aura (making it an 6), 3 in Spirit (making it a 11)
Sorcery: 12 (due to aura 6)- used for Life Sense 10, initially
Sorcery: 12 (due to aura 6)- used for Remote Sensing 10, after ending Life Sense

No mystic bashing damage for 10 APs or less of Sorcery./


As for the neutralize discussion, I am fine with how it was finally determined to work out. And Dunecat solved the problem, as Drain Resistance would have been what was needed, but that was not what Kyoko was using. It still remains an issue for her though, since even using it against a force so powerful, it would likely require her to use all her sorcery, leaving her none for anything else significant, or perhaps it would only slow the loss, not protect against it entirely. So, she will have to save that as a last resort.

However, when you ask this:
`Kyoko threw all of her sorcery into a Magic Field (16APs) so the Neutralize power was attacking the Sorcery/Magic Field anyway as they are the same power, just with variable effects. You're not saying you get to add Magic Field of 16 to your Sorcery of 16 for a total of 32, are you...?'

If Kyoko used some of her sorcery to duplicate Drain Resistance (not a magic field, shield, or other power), then I would believe that ~would~ add to her sorcery, even though the drain resistance is the same power. If it does not, then the power drain resistance is essentially useless as it is not adding anything, and it should do something, protcting her from power loss. However, this is mitigated by two things. The first is that is unless you have made a change, the cap is 15 APs for a power, so she could not get quite so high. The second is that if she was using that many APs of sorcery at once, she would be unconscious in 1 round from mystical bashing damage, as she does not have enough power reserve to power that much sorcery and Spirit at the same time. And given how much she has mystic linked, while things might change, I do not forsee her raising those powers anytime soon, so she is likely as powerful now as she will be in the future, and will instead be rounding herself out with experience to gain other abilities (such as magic sense, etc.)

Kyoko flew closer to the castle, but stopped short of actually entering the field

Whipping up another magic spell, she tried to detect life signs within the field...

If nothing else, she should easily detect the people she'd seen moving through the ruins to come get her...

OOC Roll 2d10 → [4,2] = (6)

...but there was nothing... No life signs were detected around the ruins.

Or so it seemed. What did that mean? Were the people somehow not 'alive' or had they gone somewhere? Perhaps they had some resistance to her power - after all the strange field she'd entered had started to eat away at her magic power and would have drained her in moments had she lingered longer! If nothing else, perhaps there should've been animals, insects...

It was unsettling. The man she sought to rescue - and perhaps any others that had been trapped could be freed as well - had been led here she assumed, in exactly the same manner that Kyoko had. Maybe she was different from those others though. There was far more to Kyoko than just her sorcery abilities, and that fact had, perhaps, saved her life...

OOC Kyoko hasn't detected any life signs in or around the ruins, and the beings that had come out to retrieve her have vanished from view, nor can they be detected. Depending on what happens with Stormbreaker, he may turn up shortly so there may be a joint thread between the pair of you. Will advise - it will be later on today as my head is all over the place from crazy sleep patterns this week. Night shifts... ugh!

It was strange, she thought, that she could detect no life at all. She doubted they had gone anywhere, save inside the castle. Perhaps the inside existed extradimensionally, she thought, and so protected them from being detected? She was unsure. And perhaps the field also helped shield them. Perhaps because she had tried to be general in what she attempted. So, she tried again, this time to specifically locate Niles Quentin-Abaddon.

(ooc)
Power Reserve: 6- 3 in Aura (making it an 6), 3 in Spirit (making it a 11)
Sorcery: 12 (due to aura 6)- used for Life Sense 10, bonus: Misc- Trans-dimensional variant. (Trans-dimensional is for physical powers affecting dispersed and similar targets, she is using it to detect things that might be mysically out of synch with the real world).

I do not expect she will succeed at all, but she must be thorough.

I understand the situation with Stormbringer, so I will see how that works out.

And please, take care of yourself and work on your sleep. It is healthier, and you'll feel better in general.

OOC In the 'other' game a rule I've used is that any additions, bonuses or limitations can be applied but will lower the APs of the power being used. Basically, take 10APs (power being used in this case) at FC4 (64HP), then apply the advantage. Trans dimensional is +3FC. 64HP at FC7 buys 7APs of Life sense...

Kyoko wove a spell and subtly shifted it to detect objects or beings that might be 'out of phase' with this dimension...

As she expected she detected no life signs but... the additional aspect of the spell detected something not of the material world. Not a living being but perhaps... a gate? She narrowed her eyes. Might the castle then be a front, the ruin housing a gate to somewhere else?

OOC Perception 2d10 → [6,9] = (15) Success

Before she could consider what was happening here, Kyoko turned.

Someone else was approaching. A flying man, with a great sword in hand! Who... who was he? Friend... or foe? He was some 400 yards from where Kyoko was, and it was clear he'd seen her... He wore a costume, a mask and the sword looked dangerous - the real deal and not some cheap prop. Besides that, he was flying. A local superhero... or villain?

OOC Dunecat, jump in - Kyoko and Stormbreaker will merge into this thread... If need be, Kyoko gets Initiative 9, Stormbreaker Initiative 6

Stormbreaker

Alex had been about to call a warning to the girl when she pulled up short of entering the dome. He didn't know precisely what it could do but it wasn't something he was comfortable with just entering. By extension he couldn't let someone else wander in either. Since she stopped he was left with two conclusions, she knew what the dome could do.. or she could sense it and was trying to work out what it did like he was.

Standing around wont work anything out..

With that thought he drifts down to her, making a show of sheathing Stormbreaker. He needed only to have it on his person to take advantage of its power after all. The girl was an conundrum, she radiated power, in ways that he rarely saw. Either she was a magical being on he own, or a true magician who worked with magic directly rather then through artifice like he did.. Either way he would need to be cautious. Not exactly his strong suit.

"I'd warn you to stop, but I'd guess you can see that." He nods to the barrier enveloping the castle. "Who are you and what brings you here?" He was curt, but not quite rude in tone. He'd already been tossed around by one opponent whose abilities he didn't know today. He wasn't keen to have a potential repeat performance.

(O.o she beat my Initiative? Jeesh Dee, what have you been feeding Kyoko? Liquid Lightening? )

With the approach of the flying man, Kyoko was about to cast something defensive, but he sheathed his weapon, and started to talk, so it seemed it would be unnecessary. "Thank you for the warning, but yes, I do perceive it, as well as the threads that led me here to it. Are you here to keep people out?" Since the Gaelic Knights had been trying to keep people from following the threads, it stood to reason someone else might try to do so closer to the source as well. "I'm, well, I suppose for now you can call me Jinni, although a recent encounter suggests I should think of something else. And you are?"


(ooc)
Admin, I would request you relook the way the bonuses reduce it. That works in the other game for Force Manipulation, but it does not work in this one for Sorcery. Force Manipulation and other similar power duplication powers do not mention the addition of bonuses or limitations to the power, however, sorcery does specifically state that bonuses and limitations are part of the determination of the effect and so can be added and used, so adding them is inherent in the power, and thus should not lower her ability in that manner, especially when the factor cost of the duplicated power is still lower than the factor cost of her sorcery. She paid well over 800 points for the power after all, and is limited with mystic bashing damage, so adding another restruction seems unnecessarily burdensome. It also is unreasonable to think she can use sorcery to cast a spell of something that is FC: 10 like split and can do so at full power, but if she casts a spell of something that is FC: 3 such as an area effect projectile weapons, she would be limited in doing so. While it allows you to do so, Sorcery is inherently not a power duplication power, like Omni-Power is, or a creation of oobjects that have powers, like Force Maniipulation is, it is a power of effect. You choose the effect you want and go with the powers closest to it to simulate it, so that effect should not be limited, save by her APs of power and the mystic bashing damage.
If you still wish to add this limit, that is your prerogative, but I ask you to relook this.

Dunecat, I suspect Kyoko cannot defeat ~anyone~ in the game in initiative without a massive expenditure of hero points.

Alex frowns at the mention of 'threads'. "We are Stormbreaker, and no I'm not here to keep you out. I'm investigating for a.. friend. One of his acquaintances went missing around here." He again introduced himself in the plural, either he thought of himself as royalty.. or something else was prompting it. Or he's just that special kind of strange.

"You say you followed a thread here? Then it's a trap.. Can you make out the purpose of the field? It's beyond my understanding unfortunately.." While asking this, he again turns his attention to studying the field, looking for some clue of its point of origin..

((I'd like to try and specifically look for any kind of origin point for the field if possible? Magic Sense operates on Inf/APs for AV/EV))

(I guess you'll need some kind of haste spell then Dee! Or to cook up something else for that!)

She caught that he used we when introducing himself, although he immediately followed it up with I. So, it was unlikely he was using it as a royal we. And that prompted her to ask, "We are Stormbreaker? Is that the name of your group? Are there others about?" It had been another group she had just met, after all, so that was the most likely reason for the use of the term. "Was your friend's acquaintance an occultist or magician, by any chance?" she asked.

Looking at the field again, she replied, "Yes, it's definitely a trap. I was inside of it a moment ago. It drains magic, and rapidly. And when it's drained you, the ones inside come out and take you prisoner, or at least that's what it seemed to be like. I was able to get outside of the dome though before they could reach me and renew myself. Let me show you."

She fired a mystic bolt at the castle, assuming it would be negated by the field before reaching its target.

"What do you know about this place? What did your friend tell you?" She thought about the gate she had perceived, but elected not to mention it yet, not until she understood his reason for being here. It could after all, be a trick of those inside, although she doubted that was the case.


(ooc)
Kyoko is using Sorcery to create a mystic energy blast of 9 APs and firing at the castle, and looking to see if it hits or if the field negates it before reaching the structure.


Dunecat, a haste would do any good. While it might be enough to overcome some in initiative, and even that is doubtful given the number of superspeedsters, it would also leave her with no sorcery to be able to do anything with the initiative.