The NEW Vanguard! FROSTBITE ISSUE #13 "Heavy is the head that wears the crown..."

Admin wrote:FROSTBITE

OOC Was Nowhere Man switching sides???

You should be able to aim for at least a couple of them if you don't go for any acrobatics dice (and pour it all in attack) to take out these guys. Nowhere Man seems to be trying to persuade the telekinetic guy to accept his help and vamoose.

You're up...

Caldwell was a frosty fish, and coming from Frostbite that was no pun. But in the heat of the battle, Frostbite had to face facts everything he had known about the man served a purpose he felt ended in benefiting the most and cost to the least, and sometimes himself. If he was playing his part or indeed both sides, there seemed little point in wasting his breath to try and assuage him now. After all, he'd been cast as the villain by Frostbite, who knew what he might do to play that part to the hilt.

Instead of focusing his attacks, he aimed at the next two biggest threats, his hope being that the others might start to turn tales and run.

OOC: OK go for a team attack on the next two badest bad guys who pose the biggest threat to me.

Sj

FROSTBITE

The Vanguardian turned UKChampion targeted what he (and Frostbot) thought were the biggest threats to him. #2 and #3 were targeted...

OOC Energy Blast 26 + 2D Accuracy (2D Acrobatics) + 4d12+0 2,6,5,10+0 = 16 (42) vs
OV12 +2 Multi + 2D Acro (3D M Arts) + 4d12+0 2,8,10,7+0 = 18 (32) Success +4
EV26 +4 (EV30) vs RV20 (14 of which is Force Field) + 2 Multi (RV22)=8 RAPs. Both villains go down!

"gott in Himmel!" screams the man next to Nowhere Man. "Get me out of here! I cannot go back to prison! I won't! I WON'T!" he screams.

Nowhere Man puts a hand on the fellows' shoulder and Frostbite sees - at the last moment - the dark clad vigilantes' twitch of the head and glance in his direction before both vanish!

"What!" splutters the Icy remaining villain. "WHAAAAATTTT???" he screams...

He licks suddenly dry lips and calls out to Frostbite. Unfortunately Frostbite can't hear what the man is saying...

[The mans' body temperature has lowered. He is using his powers to either build up to an attack or to use defensively.] said Frostbot.

The Prime Minister, Callum Hinds, calls out to Frostbite but it comes out as a muffled noise due to the hero being deaf.

=========

Half a mile away on a rooftop...

"Wha... I can't... his power! They never said! They never..." huffs the forcefield wielding villain.

"I got you out of there. Right now those others are having their backsides kicked and are being fitted for power sapping cuffs." rasped Nowhere Man. "You owe me."

"Yeah?" sneered the villain. "What can YOU do to hurt me? You are an outlaw, hated by BOTH sides! You are weak! No combatant!"

"You are right." said Nowhere Man. "I'm no combatant. More like... an assassin." he hissed, vanishing!

The villain spun, looking about... then looked down. A black garbed hand and forearm jutted from his chest! He gasped in panic! "Ahhh! AHHHHH!" he cried, then heard a voice in his ear as Nowhere Man leaned in. "I am an assassin. They hate me because I play by my own rules. I choose who to help, who to leave alone and who to kill. They can't control me. Right now all I have to do is alter my body density slightly and I'll leave an arm shaped hole where your heart used to be...."

The arm withdrew. "But I'm not doing that. I saved you for you to gain the chance to earn a free pass, to get out of this mess. Tell me where Eurotrash are holed up. I want to have a word with them..."

"They... they'll kill you!" said the unnerved German. "They'll kill me for telling you!"

"Not if you have a head start. I'm letting you go if you tell me. Mark my words though... if you lie, or BS me I know where you are." he tapped the side of his head. "All I need is a touch. Wherever you go, I know and I can teleport past any forcefield... THAT is why they hate me..."

The German turned white as a sheet. "You... you can't do that! How can... you're just a man in a black suit... who needs a bath!"

"I'm done talking to you." snarled Nowhere Man. "Time to die!" he hissed!

"Wait! WAIT!" screamed the villain...

=========

Frostbite saw the downed final villain - a pale imitation of himself - slide off the wall.

His blast had beaten the villain to the punch. Whatever he'd said was a ruse and Frostbite was faster on the draw. Stronger. Tougher. Smarter.

He saw the four villains sparked out and quelled some annoyance. Nowhere Man had vanished with the...

Behind him the Prime Minister and his staff came tentatively into the corridor... and Nowhere Man reappeared!

The German villain was unconscious at his feet. As Frostbite saw the mask on his sometime comrade moving there was a sudden flood of noise as his hearing returned! Frostbite saw Nowhere Man and the villain dripping wet leaving a pool of water on the floor!

"...made a deal with him to find out where Eurotrash were hiding. He made me promise to take him far away, somewhere safe that Eurotrash wouldn't find him. I did do, but he wasn't ready for the pressure of the ocean depths like I was." Nowhere Man shrugged.

The Prime Minister looked at the villain at Nowhere Mans' feet then at Nowhere Man. "You gave this man your word then betrayed him! You can't be trusted! You come and go as you please! I know you have accessed Government secrets! You are a traitor to your country and the people who..."

"I serve a higher power." hissed Nowhere Man, snarling. "And yes, I broke my word to this man. I don't make deals with murderers other than one. They are going down, and staying down. Only reason he isn't dead is because of this man." he said with a nod to Frostbite.

He turned to Frostbite "What do you want to do? I know where Eurotrash were but the situation is fluid, changing. You want to go after them or wait till your protege gets back? And what about him and his staff?" he added with a nod to the Prime Minister.

"Show some respect!" hissed a bodyguard, pulling a gun on Nowhere Man!

Admin wrote:FROSTBITE

He turned to Frostbite "What do you want to do? I know where Eurotrash were but the situation is fluid, changing. You want to go after them or wait till your protege gets back? And what about him and his staff?" he added with a nod to the Prime Minister.

"Show some respect!" hissed a bodyguard, pulling a gun on Nowhere Man!

Frostbite turned to Nowhere Man, "You'd do well to remember if you win, these people are here to run things when this is all over." Turning back to the PM, he said, "We might not like his ways of doing things, but he does get the job done. And right now we can't afford to be choosey, can we? Sir, I think I am going to have to leave to try and face this at its source. Time is of the essence, so I suggest you sit tight here and intact whatever protocols a situation like this calls for."

Motioning to Nowhere Man, Frostbite walks back the way they came over the scattered villains, securing them in ice before he makes his way to the main street. "I don't like this, but I see no choice but to strike whilst we can. I've no doubt that without Battle Bug, we are going to be severely hampered, but they know his weakness so it might just be as well we go it alone. I'm sure you would know better the outcome than I! Anyway, we've got to try and stop fighting a war on more than two fronts and get things back under control. So I see no choice but to follow this lead you've come across."

OOC: OK once more unto the breach dear friends, let's hope 'fortune favours the bold!'

Sj

FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN

"I voted for the other guy. Or would have done, had I voted." hissed Nowhere Man.

"Wait!" shouted one of the bodyguards. "You CAN'T leave us here undefended! I DEMAND you stay here and protect your Prime Minister! That is an ORDER!"



Nowhere Man stood aside and folded his arms.

The PM and his staff had gone back into the safe room but the bodyguard - some high ranking protection officer of some kind or other - was in shirt and suit trousers, loose tie and sleeves rolled up. From the size and shape of him, he was a man used to being respected for his physical abilities. The gun remained holstered at his side but it was a big one, twice the size of ordinary pistols and the man himself stood about 6'6" high and nearly as wide.

"And you can't be telling me that you intend on working with this... this criminal!" he snarled at Nowhere Man.

"We don't have time for this, Frostbite. I do think he has a kind of point though..." rasped Nowhere Man, not intimidated by the hulking bodyguard. He looked to be in his thirties and with close cropped hair every inch the military veteran, but Frostbite got the idea he was something... more.

"I can teleport the PM and his staff to somewhere safe..." suggested Nowhere Man.

"What? We can't trust him! Frostbite! You have your orders! I've seen the paperwork - you are about to be inducted into the UKChampions which means you fall under the remit of the PM's office! Again, I am ORDERING you to take this man into custody and escort us to another safe house!"

"If need be I'll beat this fellow into the floor and be happy to do it!" snarled the bodyguard.

"You weren't this... 'big' before, in the room." asked Nowhere Man. "Who are you?"

The bodyguard turned his gaze to Nowhere Man and stepped in, looking down. "I'm the man who is going to beat your scrawny ass into the floor if this man doesn't do his duty!" barked the bodyguard.

OOC Frostbite sees this fellow moves well for a big guy. He's just about to swing at Nowhere Man!

Admin wrote:FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN

The bodyguard turned his gaze to Nowhere Man and stepped in, looking down. "I'm the man who is going to beat your scrawny ass into the floor if this man doesn't do his duty!" barked the bodyguard.

OOC Frostbite sees this fellow moves well for a big guy. He's just about to swing at Nowhere Man!

"Wait!"  The word came out with an echo of annoyance and authority mixed together.  Frostbite wasn't about to walk out on anyone, but neither could it harm to take a moment to stop Eurotrash before they relocated and caused even more irreparable harm to an already traumatised country.  However, the man was right.  NO 10 was in no fit state for the cabinet or the Prime Minister.  But then, with Eurotrash around, where would be safe.  Nowhere Man, knew hundreds if not thousands of places to go and right now anywhere would be safer than here.  

"Stand down, we need to get the PM somewhere safe, this isn't it.  But if we do not tackle Eurotrash now, we will be in a far worse state if they are allowed to strike again at a compromised England whilst we are left cowering.  We will go together...but we must go on."

OOC: I am going to suggest that Nowhere Man transports us all to wherever he thinks we'll be safe, but also able to manage running the country safe from Eurotrash and my counterparts more importantly.  We'll go together, make sure all is secure and then go after Eurotrash.  

Sj

FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN

"Somewhere safe? I would suggest that there is nowhere right now! Somewhere the country can be run from? Pffft." he shook his head.

"So you're useless?" asked the agent. "Besides, what makes you think the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is going ANYWHERE with this... " he trailed off but Nowhere Man chuckled.

"Whatever you were thinking of calling me, I've been called worse. Water off a ducks' back." He sighed. "Alright. The safest place I can think of right now is Caer Alwyn. The Castle, heck, the entire village and surrounds is protected by a magical field. These alternate versions of you and Lionheart have technology in their own Britain that..."

"That's GREAT Britain you scumbag!" hissed the agent, struggling to maintain his temper.

"How GREAT does it look to you right now? The PM hiding in a cellar? Villains running amok, the main superhero team in this country in disarray? Electromagnetic pulses going off that look like nukes and silence all the electronics - which I might remind you is what society is based on!/ This country is under siege, sir, and I would suggest you wind your neck right in and appreciate that you have two people who are on YOUR side prepared to help you out!" spat Nowhere Man through the full face mask.

The agent was taken aback and the Vigilante turned to Frostbite. "As I was saying. Frostbyte and Saladin will, right now I suspect, be coordinating these numbskulls" he said with a nod at the downed villains "to areas of key strategic importance. GCHQ, MI5, MI6, SMITE, SPRITE, DICE and any other acronyms the Government don't want us to know about." he said with a glance at the agent who turned away. "That buys us time, but we need to use it. Get the PM to Caer Alwyn, have Justin St John organise protection..."

The Agent was about to speak but bit his words down.

"...then we get your attack dog and set him on the bad guys. Saladin is the big problem. He sees danger coming. Magic is the best bet to take him down. Caer Alwyn might provide that if we can get someone rustled up. At the moment we are scattered, disorganised, weakened and on the defensive. We shouldn't forget one other thing."

"And that is?" asked the Agent.

"ADVENT is waiting in the wings, willing and ready to step in to 'help' us with our problem and show strong leadership when the Government has clearly been overrun. I'm pretty darn sure that's along the lines of what happened in that other timeline. Not exact of course but like a ship unable to steer from an iceberg, you can bet they are ready and waiting to land on these shores with a paramilitary force for our 'aid and protection from rogue elements.' You'd be daft to see it otherwise."

"What? That doesn't make sense!" said the Agent. "These villains you mention... they'd be throwing their villain buddies, their Eurotrash strike force, under the bus!"

Nowhere Man looked at Frostbite. "What do you think?" he asked.

Admin wrote:FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN

"What? That doesn't make sense!" said the Agent. "These villains you mention... they'd be throwing their villain buddies, their Eurotrash strike force, under the bus!"

Nowhere Man looked at Frostbite. "What do you think?" he asked.

Frostbite turned the agent, "Sadly it makes all too much sense, the enemy of my enemy... Let's not be naive here, power corrupts some faster and more surely than others. And some having had a taste for it, will do and say anything to get more. Surely you must see that, even within the hallowed halls of Whitehall?"

Turning back to Nowhere Man, "I've seen what protection exists at Caer Alwyn and to be honest, right now it's the best place to go that might yet prove our only stronghold from which to fight. But the PM is a big boy, let's appraise him and let him decide. He can try and rule the country from here...or from a ruin that itself has withstood the tests of time and troubles many times over."

OOC: OK let's do that, appraise the PM, and then see if we can tick things along toward getting things sorted re Eurotrash.

On a separate note, I am getting married in 23 days' time. 4th June, after which I will be on Honeymoon for over a week or so and also moving house. As a result, I am going to be all kinds of upendedness. The week before I am setting up the hall for our reception and also packing stuff up here at my house. I will be in touch as best I can till the 3rd June and then probably you'll not see me till late in the 2nd or even 3rd week of June. So much has happened but sometimes when you sit close to these things you forget who you've told and in this case not told. So I wanted to let you know, of the change in circumstances. I intend to be just as regular afterwards, so never fear.

Sj

OOC Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials Dave! Lots of work involved but it's all towards a happy ever after so it's all good All the best mate...

We'll be here when you get back at any rate. Despite the 'stuff' real life flings at me I find I cling to this place as a way to to unwind so I'll always want to GM/Play as long as you guys want me to!

Back to our scheduled programming...

FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN with... THE PRIME MINISTER!

"He's right. I CAN make my own decisions. Stand down agent." said the Prime Minister, walking once more into the corridor flanked by nervous looking bodyguards.

"Beside that the serum you take to enhance yourself wouldn't matter if you decide to take on either of these two men. I've seen the files. This one..." he said with a nod towards Frostbite "Is one of the most powerful Superheroes outside of America. I'm just glad he's on our side."

"I can't go into hiding and the files I have on this 'Caer Alwyn' place are a foot thick and still tell me nothing concrete about it. The SPRITE lot - or the 'odd squad' as we call them - go bananas every time the place is mentioned and rattle on about destiny, fate, ley lines and Lore Knights. The last we have more files on but as far as we know they haven't been active in years."

Nowhere Man stayed silent but there was a twitch from him when the PM mentioned the team, as if he felt responsible for the eventual dissolution of the group.

The PM considered. "SPRITE."

The slighted bodyguard bristled then raised an eyebrow. "Sir?"

"They'll know how to cover my tracks. Get in touch with them. That's an order." he added to cut off any argument the Agent was about to make. Professional, the man saluted then marched off to where one of the other members of staff in the room stood at his approach.

"Good man. They all are - men and women - but this is unprecedented. We're under attack from all sides and its clear ADVENT are waiting in the wings to 'Save' us. If we don't turn this around in the next 24-36 hours the public will turn to ADVENT and I'll be running a puppet government for ADVENT - if I'm still here." muttered the PM with his voice low.

"Frostbite. Find whomever you can - the UKChampions, The Executive, Lore Knights, 'Brummie Battalion' whoever. Merge them with your 'Vanguard' and put yourself at the head of the army with my authority to get the job done no matter the cost. Stop Eurotrash and be very public about it. We'll concentrate on getting the Government and utility services back up and running but we can't do that if that lot..." he nodded at the unconscious villains direction "keep shutting us down like a whack-a-mole. I'd have suggested the Ultrahumans but they are as much in disarray as we are."

Nowhere Man rasped "You might almost think this is some coordinated strike to bring the two most powerful Western gatherings of Superheroes and their countries to their knees. Fancy that."

Frostbite also knew that - on the moon - were a race of mystical beings who were planning their own strike. If Frostbite and whoever he could muster didn't set things right, they'd be coming down here and attacking whoever ADVENT left in charge!

"Is Judith Morris still in charge of SPRITE?" asked Nowhere Man.

"What? Why yes, but how do you know who..." spluttered the PM.

"I know." hissed Nowhere Man. "There are few secrets from me. I'll take myself and Frostbite to her and we'll get something sorted for you. From there ...? Well 'boss', what's the plan?" he asked Frostbite.

"What about them?" asked the Bodyguard to the left of the PM with a hand pointed to the downed villains.

"I can... dispose of them permanently of drop them off at that place in Hereford that you think no one knows about..." hissed Nowhere Man. The Prime Minister turned a shade of red and looked away....

WOW!!! congrats from the creaky ole bachelor! Remember the old saying, "If she really loves you, she will play the game too!"

[quote="Steeple_jackuk"]

Admin wrote:FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN

"

On a separate note, I am getting married in 23 days' time.  4th June, after which I will be on Honeymoon for over a week or so and also moving house.  As a result, I am going to be all kinds of upendedness.  The week before I am setting up the hall for our reception and also packing stuff up here at my house.  I will be in touch as best I can till the 3rd June and then probably you'll not see me till late in the 2nd or even 3rd week of June.  So much has happened but sometimes when you sit close to these things you forget who you've told and in this case not told.  So I wanted to let you know, of the change in circumstances.  I intend to be just as regular afterwards, so never fear. [/i]

Sj

Admin wrote:OOC Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials Dave! Lots of work involved but it's all towards a happy ever after so it's all good All the best mate...

We'll be here when you get back at any rate. Despite the 'stuff' real life flings at me I find I cling to this place as a way to to unwind so I'll always want to GM/Play as long as you guys want me to!

OOC: Thanks mate, really very excited it's an amazing privilege and I'm really excited about marrying such a lovely loving lady.

Admin wrote:
FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN with... THE PRIME MINISTER!


"Is Judith Morris still in charge of SPRITE?" asked Nowhere Man.

"What? Why yes, but how do you know who..." spluttered the PM.

"I know." hissed Nowhere Man. "There are few secrets from me. I'll take myself and Frostbite to her and we'll get something sorted for you. From there ...? Well 'boss', what's the plan?" he asked Frostbite.

"What about them?" asked the Bodyguard to the left of the PM with a hand pointed to the downed villains.

"I can... dispose of them permanently of drop them off at that place in Hereford that you think no one knows about..." hissed Nowhere Man. The Prime Minister turned a shade of red and looked away....

"The plan is that we drop these thugs off to this deep dark secret hold you seem to know about. With them out of the way we'd best enlist whatever support we can gather up, starting with Sprite. But we'd best be quick about it, Eurotrash aren't going to sit around waiting for us to drop in. We've got a lead, a slight advantage, let's not squander it."

With a nod to the Prime Minister and his body guard, Frostbite prepared himself for whatever needed to be done.

OOC: We'd also best get Battle Bug as well, I don't want to go far without him.

Sj

Nowhere Man and Frostbite with... the Prime Minister!

The Prime Minister seemed very uncomfortable at the thought of dealing in any capacity with Nowhere Man but had to concede that in the situation they were in he had little choice.

"Gather them up." he rasped at Frostbite with a nod at the downed villains. "Sure you don't want them dropping at the bottom of the ocean or on the moon?" Before Frostbite could answer he held up a hand "I know, I know, you don't do that kind of thing. Look at him though... if he could order it, he would..." he said towards the PM, adding to the mans discomfort and causing bodyguards to bristle.

Moments later with the villains bound hand and foot with ice manacles that would last hours, maybe longer, Nowhere Man vanished and returned a few moments later to place a hand on two more to teleport them.

"Idiots started shooting at me. Luckily I'm not too bothered about bullets." muttered the vigilante.

"Frostbite!" said the Prime Minister. "When this is all over and done with I'll need you back at 10 Downing Street to discuss in more detail your relationship with this ... this man. I'll also need details on Justin St Johns' dealings with him. He was a trusted adviser until we knew about his connection with this fellow. Don't let your association with this vigilante tarnish your reputation son - the media love you and with the right positioning and support, you can go a long way."

"Even with the country falling down around his ears the man has no shame and plays the political card. Let's go." muttered Nowhere Man.

He put a hand on Frostbites' shoulder and the pair teleported...

... to the grounds of Buckingham Palace.

The guards at the gate were down.

Frostbite looked about and moved quickly over. They'd discharged their weapons until they were empty judging by the casings and each had been blasted quite neatly by some high energy beam that had left a cauterised wound through their chest.

"Dead?" asked Nowhere Man from where he was stood twenty feet away. Frostbite nodded and the pair turned to the palace itself.

The main front of the building billowed smoke and small fires still burned. There'd been a battle here, clearly.



There was no sign of Battlebug and Bombardier but the Palace was a big place. They might have to go looking. Frostbite scanned about and saw in the distance scattered people - tourists and the like as well as motorists who'd found their vehicles suddenly slowed to a drifting halt with plenty of low speed fender benders. Some were in shock, others petrified that more villains had turned up. Some might have information on what had happened but it would take time to ask them...

Admin wrote:Nowhere Man and Frostbite with... the Prime Minister!

There was no sign of Battlebug and Bombardier but the Palace was a big place. They might have to go looking. Frostbite scanned about and saw in the distance scattered people - tourists and the like as well as motorists who'd found their vehicles suddenly slowed to a drifting halt with plenty of low speed fender benders. Some were in shock, others petrified that more villains had turned up. Some might have information on what had happened but it would take time to ask them...

Frostbite moved forward his form changed again so that he became like vapour though to look upon him it wasn't obvious that his molecular mass was more dispersed. He flew forward to the main entrance looking for signs of the other team, allowing Nowhere Man to do whatever it was he did. He was on high alert, but equally aware that without the means of modern communication stumbling about in the wreckage looking for a way to find the other members of the team with no idea what predicament was before them.

Sj

There were dozens of downed soldiers here.

Not just the traditional ceremonial types but actual DICE or SMITE agents with high powered weaponry. Spent casings littered the floor and holes riddled the walls of the gate entrance to the courtyard.

A glance revealed that the brave men and women had paid the ultimate price for their courage and bravery. Not all of Eurotrash were killers but it was known there were a few who took particular delight in suffering. It was that along with other divisions that caused their relative ineffectiveness over the years as they argued, bickered and fell out. This time though, it seemed they were on a mission and the naysayers had been warned or threatened to keep quiet, effectively 'unleashing the dogs of war' on a shell shocked nation.

Nowhere Man looked about. "Any left alive?" he rasped.

Frotsbite scanned with his thermal vision which wasn't so effective during the day but it revealed cool blue when it passed over corpses. With a shake of his head the dark clad vigilante grunted in reply. "I'm going to take a look about."

He vanished before Frostbite could reply and left the Vanguardian alone.

Hovering over the scene he moved from the courtyard to the palace proper. There'd been a retreating, running battle as guards, soldiers, police and DICE/SMITE agents fought off as best they could the oncoming Eurotrash tide.

Here at least there was hope. In the stairwell of one of the main entrances some of the guards were alive but severely injured with cuts, burns and what appeared to be no wounds but looking like they were frightened almost to the point of death.

Frostbite knelt by one, lifting her head. She coughed, then opened her eyes. "I... what? You... I know you. Frostbite." she coughed again. Blood ran from the side of her mouth. By the insignia on her dark blue jumpsuit she was a DICE agent. "Too many." she stated with a croaking voice. "Eurotrash. A dozen of them. Some bad ones." she rasped as she glanced at the gaping holes in her chest where long claws had punched through the kevlar and now soaked the front of her uniform. "Where were... were you? The Champions? All comms down. Some of our weapons were ... inert. It was like firing blanks. Had to use... use guns. Useless against... against these monsters. Listen..." she coughed, trying to summon up strength for one last moment. "Eurotrash... new leaders... but still... same idiots. Divisive. They hate each other... use it! Save the... the Royal Family. Evacuation protocol was... useless when the vehicles wouldn't start." she coughed.

Then the agent died in Frostbites' arms.

=========

"Signs of similar battles all through the place. No sign of your boy and the idiot." rasped Nowhere Man from behind.

He'd arrived without a sound and Frostbite whirled with energy ready but relaxed when he saw him.

The 'idiot' must be Bombardier of course. There was no love lost there.

"The kid is a loose cannon. One with a one hundred megaton punch. Literally. I've seen the seismic readings. Keep an eye on him." advised Nowhere Man. "If he flips sides for WHATEVER reason we're all in trouble. Never seen his like before."

"Come on. I want to show you something." he said, moving to put a hand on Frostbites' shoulder.

The pair vanished and appeared instantly in the great throne room.

A war had been fought here. Dozens of downed agents had paid for every inch of space with their lives. It was impossible to step anywhere without disturbing the spent casings on the floor and the place stank with spent ammunition. The tapestries, fittings, finishing on the brightwork, windows, walls, ceilings and floor were chewed up, burned, holed, crunched up.

"Big battle fought here. The last one." said Nowhere Man, sombre tone to his voice. There was no need to check the agents and soldiers here.

"They protected someone or something and it got away I think." he said. "Just needed time to activate or whatever."

"Still doesn't explain where the kid and Bombardier are." he added. "I suspect... he can track right? I think he's gone after Eurotrash. If they get hold of him and turn him... all this..." he looked around. "Is over. Done. The UKChampions are already scattered and fighting dozens of fires all over the place, figuratively speaking. If they turn the boy he's enough to add to your evil twin and that speedster Saladin and that's all she wrote."

OOC You have a number of abilities and skills that may help you determine where next to search. Realise you are enjoying your nuptials and it may be a while before you check in so I wish you all the very best mate and see you when you get back!

OOC: OK without my character sheet I'm at a loss as to know what abilities might help, it's been a while since looking at it. But making using if Frostbot, is one thing I'd do, and using any skills I've got to determine what clues we can get. The other issue is that Nowhere Man did get the last know position of Eurotrash, so if so else fails going their next might be a worthwhile idea.

Sj

FROSTBITE

The Vanguardian frowned and considered.

Then he turned intangible and rose through the ceiling, next floor and several more before flying out above the palace and looking down from below.

Nowhere Man joined him in the air a moment later, just as intangible.

"What is it?" he rasped, looking down.

Boosting his intelligence with Frostbot the hero considered the area from high up, tracking areas of smoke, smashed walls, bodies that lay about and ran dozens of different scenarios through his head with Frostbots' aid.

They came in the front. Running battle, the Royals would escape to the back or another direction. A tunnel perhaps. Yes. Any other direction would be exposed. The security would be clever, dispatching decoys to draw attention. A tunnel would be short, not draw attention. Royals didn't skulk through sewers. Even so, when needs must any chasing villains would expect that and look elsewhere, so perhaps then the sewers?

Without internet access it was harder but Frostbot boosted his intelligence to suggest and predict the path of sewers and where they might come out. He saw manhole covers in the roads by switching to Thermal Vision and seeing variations in heat - colder, warmer.

Frostbot overlaid maps, scenarios, superimposing arrows, lines, diagrams, theories, running probabilities, the lay of the land, surrounding structures, the nature of buildings he could see in line of sight.

OOC Frostbot boosts Frostys' intelligence to beyond calculable levels! Then using the clues - where a battle took place, what damage was inflicted, the buildup of traffic, the lie of the land, 'he' can run through the scenarios and predict a course of action.

Int 19 (boosted by Power Reserve) + Detective 2D + 4d12+0 8,11,11,8+0 = 22 DOUBLE plus 2d12+0 10,3+0 = 35 (54) vs
OV14 + Go for Broke 4 + 2d12+0 2,10+0 = 30 Success +7
Will 8 +7 (EV15) vs RV14=1 RAP

1) It's a slim chance. Less than a mile from the palace. St James Park, a heat source as he flies over with Nowhere Man behind.

St James Park is bordered by Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament and St James Palace itself. Frostbite soared over and around, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Some... escape route. Away from the streets. A place that in the dead of night in the pitch dark where fleeing royals and nobles might escape into the undergrowth away from prying eyes. It was a long shot but the heroes swooped down and through what appeared to be a grassy knoll. Neither had any fear of emerging into anything dangerous, being invulnerable for the most part.

Both men hovered in a dimly lit corridor, water on the floor and a damp smell in the air. A ladder led up to the 'grassy knoll' which was a fake barely covered area fenced off above with flowers and the like so as not to be trampled on.

Frostbite lit the way even more with his chestplate and Nowhere Man muttered "not exactly the sneaking about type with that are you? Smart thinking though. I know you are ... more than capable but how did you know about thi..."

He trailed off. Sounds! Sounds of battle from down the dark corridor!

OK Frostbite will try to discern where about the sounds are most obvious and attempt to get through at that point dispersed and then ready to defend if possible.  Points to whatever would most help.  If that isn't going to fly we go in through the entrance and see if we can't help assuming it's not too late?

Sj

FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN

"I'm here, just... unseen." said Nowhere Man as he faded from view...

Dispersed/phased Frostbite floated up the corridor and heard laser fire echoing in the damp rough cut corridor.

Speeding up he rounded a bend and used his thermal vision to see in the near darkness.

A group - several - heat signatures all blurred together and blocked the few but he picked some others up behind. There were several figures on the floor and from here he couldn't make out details but he was behind whoever was attacking the group beyond.

Then he heard "Boing, boing, boing! You idiots really are gonna get the ass kicki...urrrk!" as it echoed down the corridor mingled with gun/laser fire!

That was Battlebug!

OOC Frosty is about 100 yards away, so a heartbeat at fly speed. He's not exactly stealthy with that blue chest plate but should get a shot off before he's discovered. The problem is the narrow (ish) corridor is about six feet wide and makes it hard to pick out targets with his thermal vision which isn't precise.

Admin wrote:FROSTBITE and NOWHERE MAN

That was Battlebug!

OOC Frosty is about 100 yards away, so a heartbeat at fly speed. He's not exactly stealthy with that blue chest plate but should get a shot off before he's discovered. The problem is the narrow (ish) corridor is about six feet wide and makes it hard to pick out targets with his thermal vision which isn't precise.

Knowing where his keen and earnest sidekick and teammate was, trouble would be sure to follow.  Frostbite thought there was little point in aiming to delay.  Besides which if Battle Bug gets really going there would soon only be a sizable crater in the midst of a royal park!  

Moving at speed was a risk, but nothing to be gained from holding back.  His heat signature wasn't sufficient to target no combatants, from those hostile.  So speeding forward in all haste, he prepared to join the battle.  

OOC: OK going to avoid the obvious freeze everything that moves, too dangerous to non-combatants until I get eyes on the situation.  So going to change to fluid form fly-in and then being ready to decide when I've got the measure of the situation.

Sj[/b]

FROSTBITE

...flew down the dark tunnel, speed piling on but capped by a need for caution.

It was long, sparsely lit with flickering bulbs (thanks to the power cutting out and emergency generators having to made do) and damp on the floor.

Using his thermal vision to close in on the mess of orange and red shapes he had to switch to ordinary vision when closer - within fifty feet - and slowed to take in the situation.

Clad in various dark blue/black shades were five people - men and women. One woman was gesturing and saying something in French. Beyond them were two floating forms with what looked like orange energy bands around them and some kind of pattern on the floor like a star or.. no, a hexagram or something similar?

A shiver went down Frostbites' spine.

Magic.

Bombardier and Battlebug were frozen, immobile and floating off the floor in the darkness!

The five people were conversing in French and one moved to step by the two immobilised heroes only to be sharply admonished by the spellcasting woman!

Taking greater care the man and another started to inch past the two frozen heroes, careful not to disturb the spell that had them both immobilised!

Beyond them, at the end of the corridor and running back the way they'd come were more shapes of people but it was too far away to make out who they were.

'possibly the Royal family' suggested Frostbot. 'Be careful. You are as vulnerable to magical forces as your young protege. They do not know you are here - yet - it may be wise to attack them at a more opportune moment with less of them to target at once.'

Admin wrote:FROSTBITE

'possibly the Royal family' suggested Frostbot. 'Be careful. You are as vulnerable to magical forces as your young protege. They do not know you are here - yet - it may be wise to attack them at a more opportune moment with less of them to target at once.'

Frostbot was probably right, but it didn't make it something that was easy to swallow for Frostbite.  He moved to grab some soil and muck from the floor, covering as best he could the glow from his chest plate.  And then moving forward floating above the ground so as not to give any reason for the assailants before him to notice his presence, he waited taking in what he saw and what he could hear.  

OOC: Ok so Frostbite will seek to appraise the situation.  I am wondering however that since the special sigil on the floor mustn't be disturbed, whether doing so would break out Bombadier and Battle Bug, even if at the risk of alerting the magic-user.  She, I want to keep a close eye on her so that if I can take her out first I will do so.  But it all depends on what happens next.

Sj

OOC playing catch up. Out on bike for an hour to see a friend for his birthday, yesterday had to write my cv from scratch and apply for a job when I'd already had it in my head that I was going to tough it out where I am, next week have the rules exam and haven't done a scrap of revising because I wanted to finish the loft and reclaim the bedrooms! Done some of that, need to do some of it and putting off as long as I could the other bits! Arggh!

Anyway, my 'release' is here, and let's see what happens with Frosty...

FROSTBITE

With mud and a hand held over his glowing breastplate the hero floated through the darkness and nearer the group. He couldn't speak french, only bits. Without the internet, Frostbot couldn't do much either about it. He was starting to get the gist though.

The plan had been to grab the royal family - a symbol of authority and one the British public could recognise/rally to. When Battlebug turned up everything changed. He was a high priority target/one to avoid, they'd been told. Frostbite heard the word "Frostbyte" and "Saladin" mentioned.

Frostbyte. An identical albeit darker, more... skewed towards fascism and evil, version of Frostbite himself. Clad in white, perversely, because they represented 'purity' and 'good' in that strange warped reality he'd come from.

Frostbot reminded Frostbite 'The ability to transform the molecules of your attire extends to anything basic including an all white costume'.

An option? Could he pull that off? What if the villains mentioned something that Frostbyte would know and he, Frostbite did not? If they knew about Battlebug they'd know about him. It was a risk.

The villains moved about, looking at Bombardier and Battlebug. One started off down the corridor leading back to the palace to apprehend the fleeing royals who'd been told to run by the captured heroes.

This could end in disaster if Frostbite was captured as well as Battlebug! Where was Nowhere Man? As usual he'd run out in times of trouble. Sometimes he turned up to help, other times he suited his own purposes.

Four villains now. One - at least one - magic user among them. Two heroes at stake, one his young friend and team mate, the teenager who relied on Frostbite to teach, lead, and guide him.

The woman was chanting something else now. The others inched away, glancing at each other. Whatever was going to happen next, they didn't want much of a part of...

Admin wrote:OOC playing catch up. Out on bike for an hour to see a friend for his birthday, yesterday had to write my cv from scratch and apply for a job when I'd already had it in my head that I was going to tough it out where I am, next week have the rules exam and haven't done a scrap of revising because I wanted to finish the loft and reclaim the bedrooms! Done some of that, need to do some of it and putting off as long as I could the other bits! Arggh!

Anyway, my 'release' is here, and let's see what happens with Frosty...

FROSTBITE

The woman was chanting something else now. The others inched away, glancing at each other. Whatever was going to happen next, they didn't want much of a part of...[/b]

OOC: First of all mate, so sorry to hear the rough time you've had of it, trying to keep all the plates spinning is hard, especially when real-life issues like work and needing to find another job, etc, start to raise their ugly heads.  

Whilst I see the point of trying to act as Frostbyte, in truth I do not see it working without problems that I cannot foresee, and the fact that right now there is a lot going on.  I am also off again on Friday to the Lake District so I'm not in a place where I can think deeply about what to do and how to best do it.  So I am going for the quick approach to this, rather than the subtle.  If things go wrong I can at least deal with that whereas trying to think about the subtleties of trying to pose as a doppelganger is beyond me right now.

OK so knowing I am weak against magic means that I have to play this very strategically, but given I am against four villains, and one has gone off to retrieve the royal family, I need to strike whilst I can, and try and break my allies out pronto.  Since I now know who the magic-user is I will target her first.  And see if I can go for the others at the same time.  So lead in with Energy Strike on full power, devastating attack with all points thrown in.

Frostbite didn't see little choice but to act.  Whatever this mage intended to do was going to happen now and although he had got some measure of his 'twin' he had little skill in acting or deception.  Trying to pose as himself one step or more removed, might not be as difficult as he thought, but one slip could leave him and his teammates totally exposed and exposed to a magic user which was potentially fatal to them all.  Seeing little choice, he felt he had to act and act without further hesitation.

Sj[/b]

FROSTBITE

Targeting the villains Frostbite knew he might get only one shot at this before the magic was turned on him...

OOC Energy Blast boosted to 26

AV26 + 4D Accuracy + 6d12+0 1,7,9,6,4,9+0 = 18 DOUBLE plus 2d12+0 11,8+0 = 37 (63) vs
Highest OV 13 + Multi on four +4 + Dev Attack +8 - Blindside 2 + 2d12+0 3,11+0 = 14 (37)
Success + 7
EV26 + 7 (EV33) vs Highest RV 18 + Multi 4 - Dev Attack 12 (RV10)=23 RAPs.

All four villains are blasted from their feet and clattered through the tunnels like pinballs!

With a single powerful blast Frostbite targeted all four and unleashed his most potent attack! A blast so potent it could smash through a steel vault, reduce a battleship to scrap, punch through a mountain!

"Remind me never to get on your bad side." said an invisible voice to the side of Frostbite. He started but remembered Nowhere Man had done his usual vanishing trick! "Saves me having to reach into someones' chest and squeezing. Despite what the press says it's a last resort."

Bombardier and Battlebug thudded onto the floor. Both rose as Frostbite floated up and Bombardier looked at the scattered villains in the tunnel. "Did you... did you kill them?" he asked.

"Dude! The boss just rescued us from the magic ladies freeze ray! Who cares if they are alive? They are trying to kidnap the royal family!" said Battlebug.

He turned to Frostbite "Boss! Boy I'm glad to see you! Tough guys I can deal with, but magic...? It gives me the creeps! The scientist in me can't get my head around how they do what they do and... well, if you hadn't turned up when you did..."

"They are still alive." said Nowhere Man, materialising next to one of the downed villains. "Some - like the 'Magic Lady' - will be out for quite a while. Others like 'Crâne de fer' here or 'Iron Skull' won't be out for too long. Healing factor." he rasped.

Bombardier bristled. "Now is my chance to bring you in, villain! I'm sure you're working with this... this trash!"

Battlebug sighed. "Boss, it's been like this all the time. He won't shut up about code of honour and mixing with bad guys and ... seriously. Bombardier dude, give it a rest!"

"You are leading this boy astray!" barked the UKChampion with a finger in Frostbites' face. "Mixing with known felons, traitors, vigilantes! He should be under OUR tutelage and ..."

"Someone is coming." rasped Nowhere Man. He vanished again.

The trio of heroes were stood in the tunnel/corridor. Behind them, the way out (which Frostbite had entered from). The direction someone was coming from was the palace. Now the heroes could hear someone french speaking and shouted protests "Unhand me! I am the KING! How dare you place your hands on my royal persona... owww!" he cried as a loud SMACK rang out.

The sounds of someone being dragged along the corridor could be heard in the near pitch darkness.

Admin wrote:[b]FROSTBITE

"Someone is coming." rasped Nowhere Man. He vanished again.

The trio of heroes were stood in the tunnel/corridor. Behind them, the way out (which Frostbite had entered from). The direction someone was coming from was the palace. Now the heroes could hear someone french speaking and shouted protests "Unhand me! I am the KING! How dare you place your hands on my royal persona... owww!" he cried as a loud SMACK rang out.

The sounds of someone being dragged along the corridor could be heard in the near pitch darkness.

Frostbite was as surprised by the potency of the blast as was the rest. But right now, he didn't have time to consider what had happened. Allowing Bombardier to finish his piece, Frostbite, swiftly said his, "Right now the enemy of my enemy is my friend and, in a world, desperately short of friends I don't have the luxury of being picky and nor do you. We've got the Royal family to save not play policeman as if we have the luxury to do that right now. Now this is your play, how do you want to deal with this situation, and we can worry about who gets punished for past misdemeanors and what not later, right?"

Sj

"If I may?" rasped Nowhere Man.

He turned to Bombardier. "Regardless of how you think about me this man and his protege are the nations best hope for getting out of this mess. The UKChampions are compromised. Who knows what your former member is telling Eurotrash right now? GET YOUR HOUSE IN ORDER!" he hissed, leaning in and making Bombardier start before he bristled and puffed his chest up, scowl on face.

"Before you can do that though, we need the Royal Family safe. I can do that. There is no safer place than ..." he paused.

"Caer Alwyn?" growled Bombardier. "If you think that I'm going to..." he started, raising his fists and stepping in...

Battlebug was there.

A heartbeat before, he'd been stood feet away. He caught Bombardiers' wrist without effort and held it as Bombardier quivered with all his strength and not a little rage!

"Think about it." said the youngster with a calm voice. "Once there we can turn our attention to hunting down these guys and getting our hands on the guy that betrayed you. Then we can deal with who doesn't play well with who. Frostbite is my boss, and he's my ONLY boss. I won't be in 'your gang' or follow your orders. If he says do something that's what I do. If he told me right now to pound you into a smear on the floor you couldn't do anything about it. He won't do that - he's not that kind of guy. Would I do it?"

He looked at Frostbite then back at Bombardier, and leaned in to hiss at the taller man. "Let's just say I USED to look up to you guys. Now? I see a bunch of egos running around and making things worse! You need to go back to what you were, be the heroes you can be! Be that guy again and I'll never lift a hand against you. Right now? You're as big a problem as the Eurotrash dudes! At least with them we know where we stand! Right now with you... who knows?!?"

He released Bombardiers' wrist and the hero rubbed it, having felt the vast superhuman strength in that grasp! Superhuman strength as had never been measured - perhaps it was limitless?

Bombardier snarled, about to answer and Nowhere Man said "We ARE on the same side. We want the same thing. Eurotrash are our enemy and they win if we are divided. THIS man..." he said with a nod towards Frostbite "Is the leader the country needs, the UKChampions need and maybe the one I need. He never gave up on me even when I did things I regretted or that made me a traitor."

Bombardier sucked in a breath ... then sighed it out. "Alright! ALRIGHT!" he barked. "Get them to Caer Alwyn. I'm trusting YOU to make sure HE doesn't do anything... ANYTHING that endangers the Royals! This is on you Frostbite!"

Nowhere Man turned to Frostbite. "Say the word, I'll see them safe."