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

Admin wrote:"If I may?" rasped Nowhere Man.

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."

With a look that said, no funny business, to Nowhere Man, Frostbite nodded. He knew what this mattered in terms of what the Royal family and particularly the Queen meant to the nation, especially at a time like this. Her stoic, faithful, long-suffering had more than leant credence to the nation despite what tide, storms or politicians were in government.

Once that was dealt with the second thing they had to get onto was Eurotrash. They still had a link, albeit one that was getting colder by the minute. Having secured the PM and the Royal family gave them time, but Frostbite didn't know how long. And all the while, Advent would seek to use every moment to sweep in offering to save the day. But all the while their 'good Samaritan' act being the front for a much worse devilish scheme.

OOC: OK with the royal family away safe, we best follow up on this link we've got from what Nowhere Man found out and hopefully catch up with Stone Lord and his new pals. Good to have you drop back in Paul.

Minutes passed...

"Do you think...?" asked Battlebug.

"I mean, he's your, uh, friend. I ... well, he's ... apart from needing a bath. Two baths..." said the youngster, wrinkling his nose under his full face mask "Pesky super nose..." he muttered. "Everything they say though, in the papers. He's been public enemy number one whenever he turns up and..."

"and what?" said a voice, stepping from the shadows.

"Wha...? How do ... I mean, I see around me with..." started Battlebug.

"Sonar? Kid, I'm intangible. I 'see' the pulses coming from you, and let them slide right through me. You're good but you have a lot to learn. From this man." he said with a nod to Frostbite.

Speaking of which he turned. "The King* and his aides are safe at Caer Alwyn. The staff will see they are catered for but they'll have to stay put for the time being. I know where some of the Eurotrash people are holed up. One of the Oligarchs in London is... 'away' shall we say and the place is big enough to house a dozen of these goons. They are waiting for the next stage of the plan. Problem is, Eurotrash are impatient, unsociable and don't play well with others. A bunch of loners and losers drawn together because they finally got sick of being beaten up and thrown in jail."

"They are a joke! We've always beaten them!" scoffed Bombardier.

"Yeah, and that joke - with a little solid direction and a plan - has brought this country to it's knees, infiltrated and betrayed it's supposed 'Premier' superhero team and brought the capital city to a standstill! The Government is in hiding, joined by the head of the Royal Family though who knows where the others are and whether they are safe... The next stage of their plan will include a media address. Best place to do that is Salford, the BBC. That gives us a choice."

Nowhere Man turned to Frostbite. "Do we stick together or split up? Also, are we ready to take on Frostbyte and Saladin PLUS any tough guy Eurotrash they decide are worthy of tagging along? I think they'll be ready to make a move soon and that will be to address the nation, instil martial law and reel off a list of what's going to happen next."

"What about the army? The police?" asked Battlebug.

"They have their hands full. A single Eurotrash villain will have enough power to ignore most things the army can throw at it. DICE and SMITE are key here. Getting hold of Dawson or whoever is in charge at SMITE these days might be an option to coordinate things. We also have this 'safe house' in London full of Eurotrash villains living it up and waiting for the call to instigate the next part of their plan."

"Those... are hard choices." said Bombardier. "I still think we need to find my people, gather them together and coordinate. There is Stonelord to find too. Who knows what damage he's able to cause with the information he has! If he's not stopped the UKChampions may be no more! Adjutant! He's out of action - injured - but maybe we can... his power might swing the battle our way."

OOC Choices, choices!

1) Salford, the BBC. The head of this snake will be making a nationwide broadcast to 'bring the country under martial law and instil a new government'. With just the four of your though - do you think you could take on Frostbyte and Saladin plus whoever they have in tow?

2) The villain safe house in London, one of several. Make no mistake - that will be a straight up scrap but you'll take out a chunk of the players from Eurotrashs' board of play. If you can.

3) Find Dawson and the other heads of SMITE/SPRITE/DICE and coordinate with them. They have the training and the equipment to take on villains up to a certain power level and certainly the means to incarcerate those taken down, removing them from the field of battle.

4) Find the scattered UKChampions as they whack a mole against villains and criminals all over the country. Without communications they will be limited, ineffective. Formed together, they are a formidable army of super heroes!

5) Adjutant. Injured, he's still one of the most powerful superheroes in the world! That said Frostbite isn't far behind him and Battlebug, in a straight up fist fight, can take down anyone! If he gets chance... Saladin has already proven too fast for him, taking him out in heartbeats before he can even summon up that otherworldly power that makes him invincible!



* our game takes place in the near future, so assumes the Queen has retired or died peacefully from old age after a lifetime of unselfish service to our nation!

Admin wrote:

OOC Choices, choices!

1) Salford, the BBC. The head of this snake will be making a nationwide broadcast to 'bring the country under martial law and instil a new government'. With just the four of your though - do you think you could take on Frostbyte and Saladin plus whoever they have in tow?

2) The villain safe house in London, one of several. Make no mistake - that will be a straight up scrap but you'll take out a chunk of the players from Eurotrashs' board of play. If you can.

3) Find Dawson and the other heads of SMITE/SPRITE/DICE and coordinate with them. They have the training and the equipment to take on villains up to a certain power level and certainly the means to incarcerate those taken down, removing them from the field of battle.

4) Find the scattered UKChampions as they whack a mole against villains and criminals all over the country. Without communications they will be limited, ineffective. Formed together, they are a formidable army of super heroes!

5) Adjutant. Injured, he's still one of the most powerful superheroes in the world! That said Frostbite isn't far behind him and Battlebug, in a straight up fist fight, can take down anyone! If he gets chance... Saladin has already proven too fast for him, taking him out in heartbeats before he can even summon up that otherworldly power that makes him invincible!

OOC: Wow this is hard choices.  Well my initial thought would be to go for the head of the snake, the longer this goes on the worse it gets both in terms of long-term damage and any chance of recovery let alone standing up to Advent.  Then there is the issue of rescuing Steph and the aliens set to invade with magic (ptah!) as well.  I am going to think about this some more because I think scooping up the UKChampions or as many as we can, plus, advent might be the way to go.  But time is of the essence, and if we can also usurp things so that we can show that the government and King are safe, from whatever Frostbyte and Saladin plan, we can then put a spanner in their works to make people capitulate.  I've got the beginnings of a plan, but like all plans, there are so many variables it is hard to decide if it is even feasible let alone fly with you.  However, let me get my thoughts together and I will reply properly later.

Update below


Sj

OOC: Update

OK, I think we ought to stop the broadcast as it will cause nationwide panic. But tackling Saladine and Frostbyte without support (see further) would only compromise our ability to secure the future and stop them completely. So I am wondering firstly when they are planning to broadcast and *if* with the help of say Wandafar and the royal family/PM we can interrupt their broadcast and call the nation to fight on, and know that in this darkest hour hope has not been extinguished nor indeed have al our options been exhausted.

I think in the meantime, we might as well ignore the wack-a-mole game of keeping Eurotrash down and gathering the UK Champions together. However, I've another suggestion. Magic is clearly as big an issue for us as it is for them. Since Smyth was already gathering forces to attack the 'Moon Children' I wonder if we can't use what he has got to help us take out these guys. No point sorting that out if we can't sort this out first. And finally, I propose we get in touch with Adjutant, even weakened he can be of significant help as a figurehead at a time like this along with the royal family. I realise that this is more of a strategy that involves RPying and not action, not yet anyway. But I want to play it smart so that when we do go against Frostbyte and Saladin we can win, playing our strongest hand, not our weakest or mores desperate. If along the way we can gather in Smite, Dawson, so much the better. But I think we've got to stop reacting and start responding, or else we are going to be forced into a corner it will be hard to get out of.

Sj

"The broadcast will be useless until ALL power is restored." rasped Nowhere Man.

Battlebug laughed "Yeah that makes sense. They'll be talking to themselves."

Bombardier shook his head. "They'll record something then play it over and over from every channel. BBC, ITV, Sky..."

"So even if we stop them broadcasting live from the BBC in Salford they'll record a message and play it on loop?" asked Battlebug.

Bombardier shook his head. "It's a fools errand. Even if we turn up and disrupt them, they'll either capture us..."

Nowhere Man glanced over then looked down.

"...or record a message and send it on every channel, on the radio, block the internet save for the message..." said Bombardier.

"ADVENT has the technology to transmit and over ride everything else." rasped Nowhere Man.

"They aren't working with Eurotrash! They... they might help us if we reach out to them?" spluttered Bombardier, unsure of his own argument.

"Huh." snorted Nowhere Man. "Even now you deny the obvious. That's exactly what Saladin, Frostbyte and Eurotrash want! Advent to rush in and save us, replace the government, restore order. ADVENT are working with Frostbyte and Saladin. In their home timeline that was the beginning of the end for our way of life. Eventually they usurped the ADVENT hierarchy and created their new order. If you want that to come to pass, get on the phone and call ADVENT now and tell them to set up shop."

Bombardier opened his mouth as if to reply then frowned and nodded.

"So, how about this?" asked Nowhere Man, turning to Frostbite.

"Wandafar can figure out a way to override the broadcast. Probably between meals and Eastenders episodes and with some wires and used batteries and an old iphone or something." said Nowhere Man. "We make our own message, with the Prime Minister, the King and the leader of the UKChampions..." he started. There was a pause then he added "And you Frostbite. The media see you as the guy who gets things done when his lot... " with a nod at Bombardier "have public fall outs, failures and mess ups. The Stonelord debacle is going to bite you guys hard assuming we get out of this mess alive. One thing is for sure."

He looked at the heroes gathered "If Frostbyte and Saladin take out Battlebug and Frostbite, there'll be no one to stand in their way to conquer and control the United Kingdom!"

Bombardier looked about to argue but turned away, shaking his head. "So what... we don't go to Salford because it's a trap? They can record a message anywhere with a mobile phone and beam it out. If Wandafar can find some way to override it, we can beam our own message out. That means... we need to delay the restoration of the power until we're ready?"

Nowhere Man looked about then to Frostbite "I'm no leader, don't claim to be. Make the call, and we'll go our separate ways to shut down the power to the whole of the country until we're ready to restore it on OUR terms...?"

Admin wrote:Nowhere Man looked about then to Frostbite "I'm no leader, don't claim to be. Make the call, and we'll go our separate ways to shut down the power to the whole of the country until we're ready to restore it on OUR terms...?"  

Frostbite thought for a moment and then nodded. "Yes we need to delay the broadcast that gives us time to regroup and then take charge of their message. If we can interrupt their efforts it also shows that they are not all-powerful and can be resisted. It in effect means the good guys are not out and the country isn't in the state they want us to believe of capitulation. Not yet anyway. Moreover, until we've got our own strike force ready, with Magic users and whatnot, we need to buy ourselves time. If we get located, found, or taken out it's over for our little plan before it can begin. So strange as it seems, for now, we need to stop power going out widely so we can stop access to communication and buy back some time. "

OOC: OK, now we've got a plan in the mix, we need Bombadier to gather his team, Nowhere Man to get a message to Smyth and his magic users for a side quest to help us stop Frostbyte and Saladin, and hopefully send them packing to where they came from. And BB and I to stop power so as to stop a potential broadcast going out, with a side trip to find Wandafar and brief him and the rest of our team.

Sj

Nowhere Man nodded. "Keep the power off, get them running around on a wild goose chase as we use the time to gather ourselves."

Bombardier shook his head. "The people will panic! Without their phones, the media, they... society will collapse!"

Battlebug chuckled. "Hey, I'm a teenager and I have friends who think the world is over if they haven't got a decent connection, but you know what? Maybe it'll be a good thing, if only for a short time. If people have any brains they'll get into their cars and turn the radios on. We can get a message out that way instead of TV or Internet."

Bombardier shook his head and was about to argue then muttered. "Actually, that might work."

"Let's not waste time then. We need to gather a force of heroes to battle Eurotrash and the threat on the moon. One at a time. If we lose this fight it won't matter what the moon lot do when they make a move." rasped the Vigilante.

"I'll drop you off." he said to Bombardier. "Meet at Caer Alwyn in a couple of hours?" he said to Frostbite. "At your speed..." he said to the hero and his protege "you can be there in moments."

"Where to first Boss? Do we split up, take a power station each? What's the plan? I mean... do we turn up and say 'Hold off on restoring the power, we'll let you know or... I don't know. Pull a fuse?'" asked the youngster as Nowhere Man and Bombardier left, with the vigilante giving a nod and the UKChampion wearing a frown and shaking his head.

'The nuclear power stations are key. They supply 18.7% of the nations power. Restoration of the energy on those will essentially resupply power to central and southern England.' stated Frostbot. 'There are Heysham, Hinkley, Torness in Scotland, Hartlepool.. Sizewell B...'

=========

"Fences." said Battlebug. "Sooooo many fences. Cameras too."

The pair stood waiting for a security van to drive up to where they stood.

Two security guards got out. Frostbite prepared to give the same speech he'd given at the last site. They'd been all too happy to hold off and a bunch of the Nuclear site staff had recognised Frostbite.

"You're the guy on the news."

"Edinburgh."

"Yeah, you got the job done. UKChampions... those guys... I heard one had gone rogue. You can't trust 'em."

"Who CAN you trust these days? The Prime Minister said..."

"You trust HIM? I voted for the other guy."

"Look where that got you..."

And so on. They would wait for 'the word' from Frostbite or Battlebug, after he'd established that Frostbite flying or Battlebug leaping could be at any point in the country in heartbeats.

Country?

He glanced at the youngster. Solar System. Beyond. Frostbite was the same. His power had grown so much since that time at the old Battersea power station when...

"Thank goodness you're here!" hissed one of the security guards. "They have the staff holed up! They are doing something! Something bad!"

"Wait... who?" asked Battlebug.

"Men ... and women!" spluttered one of the guards. "In black suits. They weren't... they could..."

"You! You're Frostbite! Bug buddy too! I Saw on the news, before it went off! You... you're the good guys! We can't raise anyone - no one is responding. We're expecting the army, police, special forces but no one... You have to help us!"

"They got here an hour ago. Rounded the staff up. We have armed guards but... bullets just bounce off them. Some kind of ... of energy field. Jumping... flying... crashing through walls... they are doing something to the reactors..."

Admin wrote:"They got here an hour ago. Rounded the staff up. We have armed guards but... bullets just bounce off them. Some kind of ... of energy field. Jumping... flying... crashing through walls... they are doing something to the reactors..."  

After calming the guards down and telling them to await further orders and or direct any responses to the perimeter of the base, to minimize casualties, Frostbite directed Battle Bug and himself toward the reactor. As he drew near, he tasked Frostbot with using whatever systems remained on to find out as much information as possible and render cameras or other alarms inert until they had passed. That way, at least, they might continue to keep their presence a surprise, at least for now.

Moving toward the location that the Guards told them, would be easy. What wasn't so easy was moving into the beating heart of a nuclear reactor where one false move could start something of much greater concern to the long-term well-being of the nation if nuclear contamination of fuel were to leak out. More pressing as well was the fact that Battle Bug for all his power, still had his Achillies heel - his weakness to radioactivity. This was going to test them, once again, but any thoughts of self-preservation didn't feature in Frostbite's thinking where seeking to help and harm those whose best efforts were inspiring harm.

OOC:OK so we move in as stealthily as possible. We might need to see if we can get BB a radioactive suit to protect him at least a little if need be. Meanwhile, we try to locate the prisoners and set them free before we tackle what must be Eurotrash, who are trying to keep the power on long enough for Frostbyte's message to get out.

Sj

OOC Some of the stuff we put in here seems oddly prophetic at times. Thank you for your gracious lifetime of service your Majesty, may you rest in peace... God Save The King!

And now back to our scheduled programming.

"Bug Buddy." muttered Battlebug. "I mean, come on! I may need to ... I dunno, go on talk shows or hire a PR guy or something."

One flew, the other hopped in a single bound to the largest building in the sprawling grounds of the nuclear facility.

The reactor would be easy enough to access for people with superhuman abilities. Crash through walls or doors or simply - in Frostbites case - destabilise his molecules enough so that he passed through the structure without physically touching it!

In a minute or so they were inside, hovering above and crouching on a walkway looking down a large area of pipes, tubes, machines, control systems and more. Frostbot overlay a schematic based on information gleaned from the internet whilst tit was still able to.

"So who do you think we're looking... there!" hissed Battlebug, crouching in the shadows. The power for this site, like much of Britain, had gone down but independent backup generators provided safety lights and the like and the reactor machinery would always keep working with its own backups otherwise the superheated water would not be pumped away and a meltdown would occur*

Frostbite followed Battlebugs pointed hand. Black jumpsuited individuals - men and women judging from the body shape - operated the machinery at the far end of the long building. They appeared to know what they were doing but what looked like Civilians - workers of the plant - were being ordered at gunpoint to cooperate.



Three villains stood out. There was no rhyme or reason to their costumes and they looked bored, as if this whole process was 'beneath them'. One (the guy with the laser blast on the right) 'juggled' a sputtering ball of energy between his hands, clearly mindless of the fact that should it damage any of this machinery in this large building that something 'bad' would happen. He was loud as well, complaining in French to the other two 'capes' whilst those in black jumpsuits guarded and went about their business.

Switching to his thermal vision Frostbite saw a strangely cool 'aura' about those in the black jumpsuits. Some kind of protective forcefield? That tallied with the guards description outside.

What were they doing here? Simply ensuring that the power didn't get turned back on to the parts of the country that it supplied or was there something else going on?

"What's the plan? Get down there and sock em in the mouth?" asked Battlebug, rolling his neck and preparing to leap from his crouch into the thick of the action.

OOC *At this stage I'm happy to admit I am not an expert on power stations or nuclear reactors!

Admin wrote:[color=#0033ff]OOC Some of the stuff we put in here seems oddly prophetic at times. Thank you for your gracious lifetime of service your Majesty, may you rest in peace... God Save The King!

OOC *At this stage I'm happy to admit I am not an expert on power stations or nuclear reactors!

Frostbite considered what he saw about him and the need to get the battle away from the civilians let alone the reactor. The fact the villains seem unconcerned suggested they had a means that meant this was insignificant to them.

Whispering to Battle Bug, Frostbite spoke quickly and urgently outlining his concern not to let the reactor go off, nor indeed leak out so either one of them ended up incapacitated by either heat or radiation their twin weaknesses.

He then added, "Get around from behind without being seen, I will fire a wide pattern blast and see if we can sweep up the main ones with it. You then come in from the other direction. Pay special attention to the guys in black. I am concerned that they might not be low level thugs and that the garbed gang are a decoy. I could be wrong, but Frostbyte is a strategist like me so he doesn't do obvious and might have a trap in mind to capture us. With us out of the way he is free to pursue his course since the rest of the opposition at this stage is in disarray. And be careful, remember great though your power is, you do have limitations as well."

With that, Frostbite let BB get into position before he to sought a good place to fire and sweep in his blast the three garbed villains seeking to do as much to stop them before they could get a attack back at him.

OOC: OK so multi person wider area blast on the three villains, all points into it from power reserve. And then movement I will go and close up the gap. I am especially mindful of the other villains without costumes as I am wondering if there are any nasty surprises awaiting us when we inevitable reveal ourselves.


Sj

Battlebug sneaked off. Whilst he was 'very good' at being stealthy, his heightened agility (even before he boosted it to cosmic levels) meant he was extremely difficult to detect.

Frostbot spoke up 'It would do little good to deprive the nation of power at this point - many of the towns and cities are without power because of the Electromagnetic pulse that has gone off, crippling the infrastructure. To be able to control the power, at will, and command the populace through compliance seems more likely.' Frostbites' inner vision popped up with an overlay thanks to his computer companion and highlighted a large (several feet square) black metal box on the floor with cables trailing from it into the bank of computers along one wall.

'That may somehow interface with the servers that run this place.' stated Frostbot.

Frostbite didn't have the means to 'zoom in' with his vision and get a closer look (OOC possibly on the shopping list, would eliminate range penalties for attacking at a distance) but anything the enemy considered important enough to stand guard over would be of interest... If he attacked with his wide angled blast he'd have to be very careful. First, not to strike any hostages. Second, that box might have some answers that a hand placed on it and transferred Frostbot could interpret.

He looked into the shadows and switched to thermal vision. There he saw the heat source of his sidekick/team mate/protege. Battlebug was giving a thumbs up. He was in position. He wouldn't know about that 'black box' and though incredibly accurate, his seismic levels of strength could be a problem in here.

Glancing about, he considered the problem at large. Stray blasts, city shaking punches, powers unleashed in retaliation could make things VERY complicated inside a nuclear power station!

OOC You can still attack (as is your right) but the slightest misfire or blast in the wrong direction or earth shattering punch (BB) might split pipes, crack walls, break containment chambers... Your call!

By the way, thanks again for your patience mate. It's hard when players/GMs go AWOL but this has been the hardest year I can remember for a while. Even when I left my wife in 2015 I managed to find time to post in this place and retain my sanity. When it's someone else (Girlfriend) and having to support them as well as juggle work and seeing my youngest son (who still, thankfully, wants to spend time with his 'old man') my free time shrunk to nothing. Even now I'm rushing about with limited time but it feels so good to be posting again...

Admin wrote:OOC You can still attack (as is your right) but the slightest misfire or blast in the wrong direction or earth shattering punch (BB) might split pipes, crack walls, break containment chambers... Your call!

OOC: [i]OK so let me know if this plan would work. Given the variables and the danger inherent in doing our usual attacks, I am thinking of something a bit more stealthy. So I would like to go dispersal and see if I can't arrive at the centre where the black box is, and transfer Frostbot to it so he can do his bit. I would then like to try and do what I did with Eurotrash at that warehouse where I encased everyone in ice. Only this time radiating out from the black box and stopping where the personal are. If that can't be done then encasing all and breaking the personal out first. BB can then act to mop up any who escape as it were.

I am seeking to try and envelop everyone who is a threat or impede them so we can try and take them out without sending this facility into meltdown. If that is a bust from the get go, then I will have to rethink the plan.

Sj

Using his Thermal vision (to detect heat signatures) revealed some of the Eurotrash 'Supers' (as opposed to the 'enhanced' agents who would be superhuman or near superhuman but a much lower level) gave off strange 'readings'.

'Possibly one or more of the Supervillains are phased as you are able to do' suggested Frostbot as Frostbite himself lowered his body density and prepared to make his way to that Black Box.

The Supervillains continued to argue in French and the Vanguardian leader glanced at Battlebug to make sure... where had he gone?

Frostbite blinked again and looked up. There in the darkness! A heat signature! Battlebug was clung to the ceiling in the deepest of shadows, invisible to normal vision and super stealthy at a level which would evade even most superhuman senses!

Except... he was waving? At Frostbite? Trying to get his attention?

He started - slowly - crawling across the ceiling and down the wall, watching the Villains and agents as he moved and going slowly. With emergency lighting there were 'pools' of light the youngster had to avoid.

Eventually, minutes having passed, the youngster dropped silently in a crouch next to his friend, leader and mentor.

"Boss." he whispered, eyes on the villains in case any had enhanced hearing.

"I can't be sure because ... there was a hot chick in my class and she was really distracting. I think she was an exchange student from Australia and..." he glanced at Frostbite who was raising an eyebrow. "I mean, uh, my French isn't great but I think those..." he pointed to the Supervillains "guys aren't getting on. Like, arguing about doing what they are doing. You think... I don't know... maybe chat to 'em, I stay in the shadows. If it goes south I..." he made a punching motion. "Looking around this place I need to back it off. A lot. These pipes and machines look like there's a lot of radiation that could leak out."

The youngster was uncomfortably aware that ANY breach that released even a tiny amount of radiation might rid him of his powers! A radiation suit might stop him from dying but his powers were another thing. A powerless teen in this situation would be a bad thing!

In a way it was good - he was using that smart brain of his instead of punching his way out of problems.

Frostbite glanced at the black box. They still had time. Whatever they were doing was taking the Agents a fair while as they attached wires and pulled the back off servers to examine the cables they needed to patch in.

The French supers were getting more heated in their arguments... Gesticulations, shouting, waving hands... glowing eyes...

Battlebug whispered "Want me to get back into position to punch? I promise not to..." he glanced about "Punch so hard this place falls down."

'The youngster has a point. His punches have triggered a number of seismic sensors in Japan and California according to Wandafar.' stated Frostbot.

Admin wrote:Using his Thermal vision (to detect heat signatures) revealed some of the Eurotrash 'Supers' (as opposed to the 'enhanced' agents who would be superhuman or near superhuman but a much lower level) gave off strange 'readings'.

'The youngster has a point. His punches have triggered a number of seismic sensors in Japan and California according to Wandafar.' stated Frostbot.

Thinking about the unusual situation and the way that Eurotrash often fall out without forceful leadership they might well fall apart at the seams, Frostbite considered his options. If he could get Frostbot to the black box as a fall back option, should it not be possible to exploit the natural rifts between the super villains.

Moving so that his ghosted form sank beneath the surface and seeking to appear near the black box without being seen by those who are trying to plug different cables into the box. Having deposited Frostbot, Frostbite withdrew back among the pipework, from where his presence might not be so easily detected, staying in a ghosted form, he spoke out.

"So it seems that you are not all as sure of this plan that Frostbyte and Saladin have sold you, perhaps what they say about the members of Eurotrash isn't true after all. And why should you be I mean here you are in the heart of a nuclear reactor and they are far away safe, if it all should go wrong. After all there isn't much you can do if you're caught in the heart of a radiation leak or nuclear meltdown! Perhaps you are wise to ask why are you here and not them, if its such a critical part of their plan."

OOC:I have written this from the ideal point of view but I'll leave it with you to sort out what goes down or not.

Sj

Frostbite boosted his dispersal and dropped through the floor, relying on his internal 'display' overlaid over his sight to tell him when he'd moved far enough to get to the black box, within an inch or so!

Raiding his hand up Frostbot confirmed 'I can enter the device. Reclaim me by touching the device again' and he/it 'jumped'!

Moving back to where he'd been he rose up and floated to a height where he'd be seen!

The surprise was immediate with the black jumpsuited agents (male and female) yanking hi tech pistols and pointing at the hero! The trio of French squabblers stopped and brought their own powers to bear!

In the shadows Battlebug crouched, ready to pounce! He sure hoped Frostbite knew - admittedly as he always seemed to - what he was doing!

The fellow with the helmet (OOC on the right hand side of the pic) took to the air, looking around. His fists glowed and he looked ready to fight!

The woman in the dark jumpsuit (OOC middle) seemed to crouch, looking about. "il n'est pas seul ! il doit y avoir quelqu'un d'autre ici !" she declared!

OOC Feel free to run that through a translator though Frostbite can't understand it of course!

The woman with what looks like magical power forming around her hands gestures and a light starts to glow around Frostbite... this can't be good!

She speaks in accented English... "Who are... ahhh! Frostbite! The 'Good' version eh? We have our own Frostbyte of course... tell me, English... why should we not capture... or kill you right now? We are all wanted criminals and declared enemy of your state... You are foolish indeed to come here alone..."

"He's not alone!" hissed the woman in the Jumpsuit. "I sense someone!"

"Whoever zey are I vill flush zem out! Ve ave eard of ze Vanguard! You are powerful but ve are Eurotrash und..." he started...

"Ze Vanguard?" interjected the woman in the jumpsuit. She suddenly looked uncertain. "EVERY time ve have faced zem ve have our esses kicked!"

"Pah! Zey ver amateurs! Or... are you scared?" sneered the man. The woman was not impressed! She was about to turn and fire off an angry retort when...

"POWER DOWN!" barked an agent in black, pistol pointed at Frostbite. "Our weapons have been made to take on opponents just like you and we are very, very good shots!"

Eight pistols were brought to bear on the Vanguardian!

Looking into the deepest shadows Frostbite saw his young protege ready to pounce!

Admin wrote:"POWER DOWN!" barked an agent in black, pistol pointed at Frostbite. "Our weapons have been made to take on opponents just like you and we are very, very good shots!"

Eight pistols were brought to bear on the Vanguardian!

Looking into the deepest shadows Frostbite saw his young protege ready to pounce!

"Of that I have no doubt, but its a whole different ball game to shooting at me in here a live reactor. I am sure they are paying you handsomely, that is assuming the electronic bank transfers work. But it won't do you any good if you go up in a nuclear inferno or worse still die a slow painful death from radiation poisoning. See people like us get the orders but not the goods. We do the grunt work but nothing of the glory! We get told what to do as if we are mere fodder for the meat grinder or whatever else someone else has dreamed up to throw us into in the hope that our bodies will pile up high enough to stop, steal, or strike whatever bargain we are being used as barter to get.

Sure go ahead and prove you can shoot me, but before you do do you know who you've signed up with? Because if you win today, what of tomorrow? What have your grand masters promised you?

You know they have already failed on their home world, don't you? Advent won there, and they had so many other heroes that we don't even have and still they lost. So what makes you think that they will do a better job here? What makes you think will make good on their promises?

Sure they are scary, Saladin is nothing short of a psychopath, which should make you question anything he promises. And as for the other-one he is me, only with a lot less backbone. If it gave out before, can't you see how he's got form? Selling allies down the river is his thing isn't it? Look how he turned on his own world, turned on those he lead there and now this here? Surely you aren't so innocent or ignorant to trust them are you?

After all do you really know them, do you really trust them? And even if it doesn't and somehow you win today, then what? How many battles, before you get what they promised? How much blood will you have to wade through just to get to what you want? All they know is the thrill of war, they don't know what peace looks like. Just so you know, what you're signed up to, because there will be no coming back from that bridge when its burned to the ground. I guess just make sure you standing on the right side and not on it when they pull the trigger? Oh and don't miss, or else its your blood we'll be wading in for a nanosecond before it all ash and dust.

Frostbite let the words finish reverberating around the room. He seemed relaxed, but his inner posture was anything but.

OOC: OK I wrote a lot for you to play with as you see fit, use what you will. But I figure the villains often get to monologue now its my turn. ;-)

Sj

The Agents were firm, disciplined, resolute.

"You don't scare us." snarled one. "We know all about you. Moral code. It's your weakness, Hero."

Another Agent piped up. "See, we took precautions. There are workers locked up in this place with explosive devices ready to decorate the place with their bodies... what do you think about that?"

Frostbite glanced at the red/orange form on the wall. Battlebug was doing well, keeping it together.

One of the Supervillains, a woman with a cape, floated into the air with eldritch glowing symbols about her hands.

Magic!

"You're in the line of fire!" called an Agent. "Get out of there Sorcière" shouted a black garbed agent. They adjusted position, trying to train their weapons on Frostbite.

"I want more details from him. Ee is an 'ero. They do not lie. It's part of what makes zem so... predictable. Saladin said someone would come. Eee said to take you alive. But why? My country 'as 'climbed into bed' as you say viz Advent. Zis... is not right. Too many times we surrender, do not fight! Non! You though... you know zis Saladin and your...counterpart. Frostbyte."

"Get out ze vay!" shouted the man in the helmet. He had a different accent. German? Eurotrash were, as their name suggested, the 'Trash' of other European countries thrown into the same bin. Half of them would just as easily turn on each other. It was a miracle that Saladin and Frostbyte had moulded them into a coherent team. Or perhaps, a stick and carrot approach. Frostbite had a sour taste in his mouth when he considered his natural leadership and charismatic qualities 'dark mirrored' in his evil twin.

"I want to eer!" shouted the woman, turning to stare at the flying man in the suit and helmet. "Zis man is ze same as von ve eard from, took orders from a few days ago!"

"Well? Zey are doing vot they said! We are so close to beating this country into submission!" shouted the man.

The woman in the black suit snarled "But for whom? Eurotrash? Us? Or Saladin and Frostbyte... and ADVENT?"

That gave the man in the armour pause.

"YOU HAVE YOUR ORDERS!" barked an agent in black, and he turned his gun to point at one of the trio of supers!

The other agents spun to cover them... that left two guns on each - including Frostbite - with his ace in the hole of Battlebug waiting in the shadows!

A wrong move, a twitch, a misspoken word and this place would light up like a warzone!

Admin wrote:A wrong move, a twitch, a misspoken word and this place would light up like a warzone!

Making no sudden moves Frostbite continued in his soft American accent. His manner though not hostile was clearly one that didn't give the impression of being nonchalant.

"Your right we don't lie, why would we need to? Look at you, you've been used as pawns in a game and it's you who are here with a nuclear reactor for company, and members of a team who could set this off with one punch. You tell me whose interests as best served here. If by causing a fight, I get killed, leaving your 'companions' a moment to grieve whilst they crunch your bones under their heel and lay waste what remains of Europe where once we stood together against despots, like them. If they really cared about you, would they let you go alone? And if you care to ask, should you get the chance, ask them when the time was running out, how in their own world, they also threw their team under the bus and jumped ship. See I don't have to lie to you, nor try and convince you, what I see being played out here is that you are expendable and they aren't so that is why you are here and they aren't. I know there is no honour among thieves, but surely you guys aren't this naive to believe this was going to go any other way than you being here to bait the trap to kill me and if you are collateral damage they won't lose...well let's say I don't see them losing a wink of sleep! Do you?"

Frostbite gave no indication or acknowledgement that Battle Bug was near, he didn't want to spoil the element of surprise if it was needed, should things go that way. But he could see time was running out, and he had to do something if this wasn't going to convince them, they'd got in with men, trashier than their own crew ever were.

Sj

The fellow in the armour hissed "You are supposed to be on ze same side as us! How DARE you!" to the black suited agents.

"You have your orders! Follow them!" barked a female agent.

"Who are YOU to order us?" spluttered the woman with the energy around her hands. "Do you not know what..."

"HE has a point" said the second female with a nod to Frostbite. "We are being used. They are no better than whoever rose to the top of the cess pool that is Eurotrash. They bully us, threaten us, offer us promises, rewards, but it will all boil down to ze fact we are expendable assets, numbers, a pawn in ze game."

"These weapons can take you down. ALL of you!" said an Agent. "We were told to use them on you if you went 'off piste'. So, do you want to live and face Saladins' wrath or..."

There was a blur of motion.

The agent was there one moment then heaped in a corner the next. With the others. The weapons were neatly stacked up against a wall and Battlebug stood there, dusting his hands. All of the agents were unconscious.

Every now and again, despite being close when the youngster let go with a punch that would collapse mountains and smash windows hundreds of miles away, Frostbite was reminded that the youngster possessed physical speed, agility and strength that would go off ANY chart. If he could get the drop on him, Frostbite figured he could even beat Saladin. Unfortunately they'd done that once already and Battlebug came off very second best indeed. Only Lionheart had any chance because of Saladins' speed. That or trickery of some kind. The mans ego was colossal, and he thought himself unbeatable.

His friend Lionheart had proven otherwise by merging with him and...

Frostbite was a smart guy, enhanced to genius levels by his robotic symbiote. Was Lionheart somewhere inside Saladin and could he be coaxed to the fore somehow?

He blinked and looked back.

"The boy!" said the man in the armour. "We were to capture him and..."

"And take him back to their overlords so they could pat us on the head and make nice noises for five minutes before sending us back out again?" said the magic wielder. "You know this is the Vanguard, yes? They keep a low profile but WE know all about them. Eurotrash would have won time and again if not for them! If these two are here... the others can't be far away..." she looked about.

The woman in black turned to Frostbite. "We are talking. The Agents are... indisposed." she said with a nod to the pile of prone forms. "We might be able to cause you problems, we were advised of your weaknesses and have prepared but..."

The man in the armour seemed to snarl, then look away and wave a hand for her to continue.

"Is there another way? A proposal you have for us?"

Admin wrote:"Is there another way? A proposal you have for us?"

"Yes" Frostbite said, pondering the change of events.
"Look I know you got into this gig for reasons best known to yourself. Maybe the money, the attention, maybe noble purposes...but consider this. Right now Europe is like one huge concentration camp, and Hitler is played this time by Advent. So you've got no home there, here, well things are in a mess. Sure, but you know that one side or the other is going to win, but then what? Unless we restore things, whatever you got into this gig for, isn't going to be there for you when its all over. We've already got Advent baying for blood. And then there is an issue on the moon...but lets face it when isn't there. Here is my proposal, imagine this is a war, and we have a common enemy, its therefore in all our best interests that we fight them, before we go back to fighting one another. So I am suggesting a truce, come work for us, you never know it maybe the calling you've been looking for all along. And if that doesn't float your boat, just stay out of the fight, don't chose a side, but don't get in the way. At least with me you know I won't throw you under the bus, you can't say that will ever be true for those who sent you here at a time like this. So what do you think want to take being the heroes out for a spin!"

Frostbite wasn't sure if they would go for it, but desperate times once again called for desperate measures, and thinking outside the box. Besides with resources stretched so thin, and nothing much holding things together, he had to recruit all the help he could to have a shred of hope of wining back the country let alone facing up to the battles he knew must surely be coming very soon.

Sj

Battlebug leaned in "Boss! How do we know we can trust these guys? I mean, they were about to booby trap a nuclear power station!"

"Your young friend is correct." said the man in armour. "Trust is an issue. How do we know you vill not simply turn us in to ze Uk Authorities? We are, after all Euro 'trash'. Such a demeaning title, I don't know vy I stoop to debasing myself viz..."

"You mean stooping so low as to work with us?" spluttered the woman with magic at her fingertips (Sorcière).

The woman in black shook her head. "Look at you both! You cannot stay in ze same room without arguing! No wonder this group of... of rank amateurs never got anywhere!"

"You are calling me, ME an Amateur!" spluttered the man, rising in the air with hands outstretched. "You DARE, woman?" he bellowed.

The magic wielder shook her head, pursing her brow and started muttering in French.

Battlebug frowned. "I see why you kicked their butts these last few years boss. I mean, they only need a wrong word to start fighting amongst themselves, right?"

Frostbot spoke up 'Should a superhuman conflict break out there are many hazards in this place which will create a very dangerous situation both for you and Battlebug. Extreme heat and fire, radiation... I am sure you know the risks.' 'he' said as Frostbite leaned in to touch the device. 'The Explosive device was not rigged to explode immediately. Instead it was designed to remain hidden and cause blackouts and 'brown' outs, triggered remotely. If required it could have been used to instigate a nuclear meltdown. All of these occurrences would be effective population control methods. Restore the power to calm the populace. Cut the power to increase disruption and unrest. I have planted a virus within the device. Even if it is reinstated the device will not function as intended.'

"Hey come on you guys! If we wanted to kick your butts we'd be already..." started Battlebug.

"SILENCE CHILD!" roared the fellow in the armour. "YOU will NOT address your betters until spoke to, UNDERSTAND?"

"You are an oaf! Rüstungsmann (OOC Translation 'Armour Man') stand down! You need to..." started the woman in black.

Sorcière shook her head, throwing her hand up. "Work viz you and run ze risk of being arrested, or vork viz zese buffoons und fight amongst ourselves? It seems I am better off alone!" She started walking out...

The woman in black and Rüstungsmann faced off. The armoured man buzzed about in the air whereas the woman in black hopped and spun about acrobatically with moves that would put a Parkour 'free runner' to shame whilst she moved into place to land a strike. Battlebug leaned down to flick (with his fingers) a stirring agent in black. The force field flickered around the agent with the impact and he slumped back, unconscious.

"Any time you want to say the word Boss..." said BB with a wave at the two Eurotrash villains jockeying for position.

The Sorcerer was close to the door now. She looked back and threw up her arms in frustration then turned to leave...

Admin wrote:

"Any time you want to say the word Boss..." said BB with a wave at the two Eurotrash villains jockeying for position.

The Sorcerer was close to the door now. She looked back and threw up her arms in frustration then turned to leave...

"WAIT!"

Frostbite said, interjecting himself physically between the possible hostile fight that was about to be unleashed.

"Apart from the fact you might only succeed in blowing us all up to Kingdom come, this isn't going to achieve anything. Your right, Eurotrash is a bad name. But you succeeded when someone could direct you and you were willing to put aside your own concerns for something greater. I'm appealing to you to do that now. If money, power, or your image was all you were about before, well now that means nothing. If we lose here, we all lose. Yes there are outstanding warrants on you, but in a time of war...which this is, such things can be wavered under certain conditions. Look right now I could bring you in, but we've neither the facilities or the means to keep you. You can walk away, I haven't the time to stop you. Or you can do something meaningful with your lives here that you can proudly tell your grandchildren, because your help will ensure they have a future, which right now is looking decidedly shaky. You chose, only don't stand in our way as that won't go well."

Sj

"Ve can still take you" said Rüstungsmann, energy around his fists.

"In your dreams." said Battlebug. "Boss, any time, just say. This guy? I'll peel him outta that suit."

The woman in black sighed. "Stand down. We know ALL about these two. The agents were to keep them busy and we were supposed to... I don't know. Frostbite IS the Vanguard and we have been beaten. Soundly. Every time we faced them. I am sick of losing. Getting beaten. Eurotrash is a byword for failure. We are being used. NO MORE!" she hissed.

"You dare to...!" spluttered the Armoured man.

"Sorry Boss!" said Battlebug as he leapt at the armoured man, grabbed his arms... and got a full energy blast in the chest!

Battlebug ignored it. Unless it was radiation he was practically immune and he grabbed the helmet of the armoured man with one hand, adhered with his fingers and plucked it off!

Metal clasps shattered and wires sparked!

"No! I cannot control! We are fallin..." he screamed as his armour went 'dark'.

Battlebug landed on his feet with the armoured man in his hands. He set the villain down and tossed the helmet on the floor. Rüstungsmann staggered towards the helmet and dropped, his armour losing all coordination and power, becoming dead weight!

"Thank you." said Sorcière. She sighed and came forward. The woman in black spoke up "I am Araignée noire, Black Spider. I surrender or... I am willing to hear what else you have to offer. A new name, a new home. A new team perhaps."

"A new start?" asked Sorcière.

Rüstungsmann spluttered, struggling with the weight of his armour. "Saladin... will kill us... for ... betraying him!" he gasped. "Frostbite... he is powerful, yes..." he said with his Germanic accent. "But he cannot protect you!"

"What about you?" asked Battlebug of the armoured man. "Frostbite knows a really smart guy who could make you badass. Really fix your armour up."

Battlebug moved over to stand by Frostbite. "Sorry boss. I tried. That guy though..." he muttered.

Sorcière and Araignée conferred in their native tongue (French) and it seemed hushed, rushed, serious.

The armoured man sighed. "Can I have my helmet back? Please? I am... "

"We agree to your terms." said the sorceress. The woman in black nodded.

The armoured man sat on the floor threw up his hands. "I am not a stupid man! I see the wisdom in this, and the danger. I... also agree."

"I say we don't ask those guys." muttered Battlebug with a thumb at the pile of unconscious Eurotrash agents.

Admin wrote:"Ve can still take you" said Rüstungsmann, energy around his fists.

The armoured man sat on the floor threw up his hands. "I am not a stupid man! I see the wisdom in this, and the danger. I... also agree."

"I say we don't ask those guys." muttered Battlebug with a thumb at the pile of unconscious Eurotrash agents.

Frostbite considered the men that Battle Bug and only moments before disarmed.

"I think we will drop them at the local police. I suspect that their loyalties with lie with Saladin and the others. Having no powers save that which these guns give them, I think they will feel no choice but to stick to those whom they take orders from."

Frostbite spoke to the others, glad to have recruited allies albeit ones who might yet bend with the wind given half a chance. But at a time like this he had to find as many allies as he could. With the Power Plant secure, Frostbite gave orders for personal to be freed and things brought back on line. Their remained the issue of security, and that Saladin might just seek to destroy the plant out of spite and a misplaced need to feel he was back in charge. He wasn't sure if his opposite could control him for long. A confrontation was surely coming, and Frostbite wasn't sure if he could be sufficient to the task when it came.

But dismissing such dismal thoughts, he was grateful for the win they could chalk up this day. But sadly there was yet a war to be fought and that was still very much in the balance. With the royal family, the PM and now this power source secure, there was still hundred of smaller disasters to sort out. But chief of them all was Saladin and Frostbyte. Rather than worrying about the smaller issues, perhaps it was time to stop this at the one place that was going to matter. Dread though, he might, the confrontation with an older more experienced version of himself together with a ruthless powerhouse like Saladin, Frostbite wasn't sure of their chances save what a plucky unexpected attempt on their stronghold might do. It was a do or die situation, but first he ought to make sure that the rest of the team was OK, and Rüstungsmann or Armour Man, Frostbite remembered from his pigeon German he knew from the war, had a suit which could help them.

OOC: OK I think its time we checked in on the team get Rüstungsmann sorted with armour that won't be used against us, dropping off the muscle that was against and and letting Wandafar see if the weapons they were gifted with could be used for us rather than against us. It might be worthwhile regrouping the team and getting ourselves together before Frostbyte and Saladin move on again and try and catch them unawares.

Sj

Battlebug carried the immobile armoured man who constantly complained that he could have travelled under his own power had the youngster not severed his comms cables.

"Ah quit your whining. That was the least I could've done. You prefer to be stood in your long johns holding the remains of the suit I just crumpled into a ball?" he replied, part of the conversation Frostbite caught as the youngster was in mid leap.

Sorciere used her mystical abilities to give her former Eurotrash team mate Black Spider a lift, telekinetically.

"Is the boy really as powerful as they say? Are you?" asked Black Spider of Frostbite.

OOC Feel free to interject with answers.

"We'd been warned not to get into a straight up fight if you did turn up. There are other teams, dispatched to booby trap all the other power stations you know." she paused and looked up. "Amazing."

Frostbite had constructed a holding cell from harder than steel ice for the agents. Their suits should protect from the cold but he'd 'shackled' their wrists and ankles into the small shed size box like structure and carried it above his head as he flew.

"We really never stood a chance against you did we?" asked Sorciere. "Of course, most are vulnerable against magic but all the stories we'd head about the Vanguard... they are true. All this time you have been the true protectors of this country whilst the UKChampions turned up to talk shows and hospital openings and posed with children for photos whilst giving lectures on road safety... but every time we thought we were going to win... the Vanguard stopped us."

"Classic misdirection. The media concentrates on the UKChampions with their corporate sponsorship and Public Relations people. Adjutant wasn't like that. He smiled for the cameras but got on with things."

"I hear he's in a bad way."

"He wouldn't last two minutes against Saladin. The man is a monster."

That last rung true. Eurotrash had been beaten into submission by Saladin and Frostbites' evil twin Frostbyte. Evil? Perhaps it was a matter of perspective. ADVENT had won in their timeline and they'd come round to the alien way of thinking. Maybe things were better but there was always a cost. Free will usually when it came to fascists.

The group headed towards a large police station...

=========

"How are we supposed to hold these, sir?" asked a Police Sergeant.

The lights were flickering on and off and they'd had to push through crowds of people to enter the place.

"Without reliable power our comms are down, we've lost the internet, the ..." The lights came back on.

"Oh well that's something. For as long as it lasts."

"Sarge! We got something!"

Eyes turned to a tv set on the wall of the waiting room. The shed sized block of ice holding the prisoners was outside and hadn't started to melt yet, Frostbite saw to that. Civilians crowded around it, frustrated because most of their phones were flat and those that did show power were intermittent. The EMP had really done a number of a permanently online country...

"...if you are receiving this, BritSky News has just had a message from the self proclaimed 'Rulers of the country'. A man named Frostbyte read a statement out. It states... 'The vigilantes known as the Vanguard are to be treated as dangerous and not to approach. All law enforcement authorities should report their location immediately and not engage these criminals. You have been deceived. They have worked to undermine the government and destabilise the country before they stage a coup. The UKChampions have also been compromised. I have invited ADVENT peacekeepers to restore power and order and will see results in hours if these criminal elements can be brought in. Report their location and we'll see it done. You deserve better than this. We will ensure you get better than this. A new way of life awaits. It may seem chaotic now but the night is always darkest just before the dawn. Thank you.' "

Eyes turned. A dozen armed cops, dozens of civilians, all looking at Frostbite, Battlebug, Arnour Man, Black Spider and Sorciere.

The sergeant looked torn. "Right then, who am I supposed to believe now?"

"Sarge! You 'eard im!" said a cop with a machine gun pointed at Battlebug. "All this... it's THEIR fault! THEY are behind it, they are pullin' the wool over our eyes!"

"Down with supers!" cried someone in the crowd.

It started with a few voices and got louder, more boisterous, pushing and shoving, bellowing... pointing of guns...