World War II - Lionheart Issue #1

Lionheart and Saladin

Days passed.

The crew became more nervous, more convinced this mission was cursed. The so called 'ubermensch' had died at their own hands, under a hail of bullets when they'd come across the fisherman in the boat. Then the Captain had been acting strangely, staring for hours on end through the periscope and barking out orders that made little sense - weren't they supposed to be sinking allied shipping?

The chief of the watch had started an investigation after a routine check of the firearms had found the entire cache completely dismantled, including the deck gun. And several sailors were missing, as were lifejackets - had they simply jumped overboard, without word?

At least the engines were working properly. The 1st officer had planned to question the captain about his strange choices, only to be found beaten in his his room, leading to unrest as the Chief of the Watch accused anyone and everyone of possible mutiny, and all the while, the Captain cared not one jot.

=========

Lionheart stood in the shadows, hearing the Chief of the Watch rant at the Captain. He ate rations he'd smuggled from the galley. Slowly but surely his strength had returned. it hadn't been easy to make all of this stuff look like an accident, but his superhuman speed and agility helped no end - in many cases he was there one second, gone the next. Saladin, having been patched up by the amazed Doctor, who couldn't believe the man still lived, was improving in condition though he appeared to be in some kind of coma. Then something happened to suggest that Saladin wasn't quite as helpless as Lionheart thought.

The Captain pulled his sidearm and shot the Chief of the Watch through the head, with the stunned crew looking on. He barked an order, and they stepped to, working harder than before. Lionheart paled. Saladin really DID have different powers to him, and it also brought up another important question - when it came to killing, would Lionheart do it? This was, after all, war.

The the 1st rule of war was - kill or be killed.

Troubled, he slunk into the shadows, ready to continue his role as 'spanner in the works'.

=========

Several days later...

The Captain looked like a zombie. He'd gone without sleep, rest of any kind, barely eaten. The crew looked at their wits end but the man drove them mercilessly, bypassing all allied shipping and heading straight for the south coast of England.

To all intents and purposes he intended to sail the U-Boat up the Thames!

Lionheart opened the door to the brig, having long since secreted the key from the Chiefs' body. With all that was going on, the prisoner had been forgotten about, and the Doctor had worked well. Saladin looked up from where he sat on the bed. Heavily bandaged, pale looking, he seemed to slur his words when he spoke. "Oh... it's you... we are... only a day or two away from England... what are your intentions... regarding ...Werden Sie zurück zu arbeiten oder ich werde Sie haben geschossen haben!" he bellowed, eyes wild.

Saladin blinked, then looked up, dreamily, to Lionheart "Heh... I couldn't speak... German before."

*OOC translates as "get back to work or I will have you shot!". Apparently.

Lionheart and Saladin

Admin wrote:Saladin blinked, then looked up, dreamily, to Lionheart "Heh... I couldn't speak... German before."

Lionheart sighed, he really didn't know his enemy as he should and he knew Saladin had made a remarkable recovery but he couldn't be trusted. Although he was weak, his mind was still strong. IN some way he clearly had melded with the captain such that he could command him to do whatever he wished, including go without sleep.

"We're close, but I'm aware the crew are on the very of mutiny or worse. Did you have a plan, cause as good a job as you've been doing, I can't take them all out at once. And things could get ugly if they kill the captain?"

Lionheart didn't like things as they stood, although neither did he like the idea of releasing the Uboat back into the shipping lanes to blow up ships with impunity. Having got the boat this far, he felt that if at all possible he had to get the ship impounded. The men would see out the war as British Prisoners, but they'd go a lot less harm and be treated humanly at least.

They had to get a signal out, if they could contact the British, tell them too meet them then perhaps they could bring things to a halt. If the crew didn't know till it was too late, perhaps they'd surrender out of exhaustion if nothing else.

Lionheart thought about telling Saladin, then thought better of it. "Rest up, you've done you're part. Now I've got a part to play. And look after the Doctor. You owe him your life."

With that Lionheart went to find the radio room.

OOC: Ok its about time I contacted the British and let them know that I am working for secret service as an undercover agent with a captured Uboat and crew in tow. I will give our present course, speed and heading and they can make the arrangements. I will also make it clear what that the crew are not aware of us being onboard so they're not to take any chances. But that there are civilians onboard - namely the doctor and us.

Sj

Lionheart and Saladin

"Plan?" laughed Saladin. His eyes looked wild, bloodshot. "Get us to England... after that? The Captains' natural paranoia is starting to override my control. He fears everyone... everything. His subconscious mind is trying to break me, every second of every minute of every hour of every day." he giggled, running hands through his hair. "I can't... keep it up much longer... too many *tee hee* bullet holes.. pain... hehehehehehe" he grit his teeth, clamped his eyes shut "Nnnngh. I will lose control of him before we get to England. It may be up to you."

Saladin nodded to the part about the Doctor. "He is no fighter, and worse, for him, a Jew. If the Nazis knew, they would shoot him. Their evil knows no limits. Ha! Rich, coming from me. He is an honourable man and deserves life. Unfortunately, what one deserves, and what one gets, are often different, and despite our best efforts, sometimes impossible to achieve. Uhhhh... the new first mate is pestering the Captain..." His eyes assumed a faraway look and he sagged back onto the bed, staring up.

=========

British Intelligence - Radio traffic Interception division codename "Ultra" - Bletchley Park

The young woman frowned. "Sir? She called over her commanding officer. We've picked up a fragment of a radio message, sent to us from a station on the south coast. Very faint. Message is NOT coded, sent in morse. It reads ... 'the chicken eats shrimp on every alternate racing car?' ... Some kind of..." she paused. "uh, code? Most of it is jumbled up letters in a random order. That was the most sense I could make of it..."

=========

On the U-Boat

Lionheart glanced in the corridor, then back at the machine. His morse code was rudimentary at best. There was little call to study it save for historical purposes in the 23rd century, and certainly no call for it in his mission to go back in time to the early 21st century to track Saladin down. Still, he was fairly confident his message would get through, and they'd know he was coming.

Elsewhere on the U-Boat

The radio officer frowned. He looked at the words that had been written quickly on the jotting pad, and wondered what they meant. Calling the first mate over, who'd backed away from the Captain when the man had pointed the luger in his face, he showed him the pad. "Chicken...? Racing Car?" (OOC translated from German) "Where did the signal come from?" He looked at the notes made on the strength of the signal. "Here? Get everyone looking... something strange is going on..." he glanced back at the Captain. "this misison has been cursed from the start, it's about time we took action..."

Back at the room...

Lionheart put the parcel of food down, looking at Saladins' dark rings under his eyes. "Eat." he ordered, then the pair looked up. Outside, in the corridor, they could hear booted feet on the walkways of a group - or groups - of men as they checked each room, calling out that a room was clear and moving onto the next one! They were searching the ship!

Saladin suddenly gasped, clutching his head! He fell to the side and looked up, his strength gone. "The Captain... I believe his brain just collapsed. Psychic backlash..." His eyes rolled in his head and he fell back, comatose!

The booted feet got louder...

Lionheart and Saladin

The booted feet got louder...

"Oh Uh" Lionheart said to himself out loud. Looking quickly back to Saladin, he though that things could only go from bad to worse if they discovered him. Could he hide him, lead a chase and starting taking out the crew, trying to hold them off until the British discover them?

He had to think fast.

OOC:
Ok mate what I do next depends on what is available to me.

1. I guess we're in an enclosed room, with no other exists.
2. Assuming that is the case I will move out into the corridor and attack the men, hoping superior speed, agility and strength can make up for them and the fact that they'd dare not fire within the sub.
3. If possible once I've taken them out, I will tie them up and place them in a secure room.
4. Then I will get Saladin to a safe place (I should know the ship well enough by now - perhaps the Captains cabin - somewhere no one would think to look type of thing).
5. And go on the offensive. I need to get the sub to rise, to create a diversion big enough for us to get off and get away safely. Don't know if I can pull this off, but thats what I want to try and do. If that means setting fire to the engines, or something as drastic, so that whilst the crew are fighting fires, I can get us off then so be it.

Let me know what else you need from me mate.

Sj

OOC The thing with Lionheart is that he is a full fledged, powered up Class 3 superhuman - in other words, against soldiers, and we're talking only 3 or 4 able to get at him at a time in an enclosed space, it's a walk in the park. Quite literally, he could wade through them and take one out with every punch. So I figure that's what he'll do. Cue... 'Matrix fight scene music'...

Lionheart and Saladin

Lionheart stepped into the corridor, surprising those sailors nearest. All had guns drawn. Time seemed to slow for the man from the future. A step, duck, drive a fist into a solar plexus, spin on the heel to deliver a kick to a jaw, don't waste any time admiring the accuracy and power of the blow against the chin of the enemy. Drop to the side as gunfire rings out. Ignore the cry from behind as a bullet impacts with yielding flesh, drive a heel into the shin of a sailor, duck and rise with a fist as he drops down. Pull the fist away and block a blow, another, turning the clumsy fist away, grasping the thumb and breaking it, eliciting a scream. A karate chop to the collarbone sends the man down. Another sailor rushes in, but his speed is laughable. Ram head forwards, catching him off guard as forehead drives into bone cartilage, spin and use a charging mans momentum to drive him into a low iron beam, wincing at the sound it makes, then using his falling body as a springboard to somersault over and between two men, grabbing heads and driving them together, once, twice. Spin, slam a knee between another mans thighs and step back, pulling the knee up again to catch him in the face on the way down. The ratatatatatata of a machine gun sends sparks and bullets flying everywhere. Ignore the screams, duck to the side as a stray bullet pings from a wall and speed up to the firer, twisting the gun with psionically enhanced super strength, and flinging it away, fingers and all as the man screams. His cries are silenced with an elbow to the face.

Then the corridor was silent, save for the cries and groans of the injured or dying. Lionheart had used non-lethal force. Those he had taken down would have lived - if stray bullets hadn't then peppered them.

Using the gunsmoke as cover Lionheart stepped into the small room, scooping Saladin up and over his shoulder, then moved down into the bowels of the ship. The Captains room had been the obvious choice for Saladin to rest - too obvious as it turned out - crewmen were gathered outside and several were inside. Minutes later he dropped one of the engineers aside, the man having been downed by a fist from Lionheart, and left Saladin to rest in a room off the engine room. Noisy, smelly, not that comfortable, but safe. And for what he had in mind, the last place the crew would look.

He moved to the large engines, looked at various dials.

"HEY!" screamed an engineer. He strode towards Lionheart, brandishing a spanner. Seconds later he was down, and the spanner became a weapon in Lionhearts hands as he attacked the metal pipework of an engine. standing back as it sprayed hot oil he watched as gauges shot into the red. And suddenly, across the ship, alarms began to wail!

=========

The Bridge...

The first mate kicked the prone body of the Captain aside "Get him out of here." he snarled and looked over to his new first mate. "How bad is it?"

"We're losing pressure. At this rate we will not be able to pump water from the ballast tanks. We need to surface, NOW!" cried the other officer.

The new Captain cursed and shouted "Periscope depth!"

Someone repeated "Periscope depth!" and there were several pings of confirmation. Sliding the tube up the Captain folded the arms out and started to look around.

He stood back, quietly. "Damn." he muttered. "Get the machine. As soon as we surface, toss it overboard!"

=========

The engine room...

Lionheart watched form the shadows. A dozen men fought a losing battle trying to keep the engine and the associated pumps alive. Suddnely a fire broke out, and men screamed. Sad, he turned away. They would soon surface. That's when he would have to hope he had a stroke of luck - either they were in swimming distance of the shore or another ship was close by!

Or they would drown!

OOC any other plans for the pair of you before the U-Boat surfaces?

Admin wrote:OOC The thing with Lionheart is that he is a full fledged, powered up Class 3 superhuman - in other words, against soldiers, and we're talking only 3 or 4 able to get at him at a time in an enclosed space, it's a walk in the park. Quite literally, he could wade through them and take one out with every punch. So I figure that's what he'll do. Cue... 'Matrix fight scene music'...

In one sense though I realised this would be the case, I was playing up the stealth and vulnerability side. Besides I don't want the Doc to be killed and if they knew about him, all the powers in the world might not save his life.

Lionheart and Saladin

OOC any other plans for the pair of you before the U-Boat surfaces?

Moving swiftly through the cover, Lionheart propped Saladin up, leaving him to one side whilst he checked ahead, moving at speed, never stopping, a shadow in the peripheral vision whilst minds were take up with saving the ship.

As he went, he caused more chaos. Trying hard to find areas that would not stop critical functions, but increasing the need to surface. He was careful to avoid damaging communications to before moving on toward the helm. He was intent on making sure the ship got them where it needed.

The time for subtlety had passed, the days had given him time to rest and now he had to make good on what he gained or all would be lost.

OOC:
1. Ok I think you get the gist of where I am going with this.
2. I'm trying to make sure Saladin isn't a liability to me, by being used against me.
3. If need be I will use my Telempathy to detect where people might be if I am not sure, so that its harder for me to be taken by surprise.
4. Where possible I will take out crewmen, I won't want anyone creeping up on me. I will make sure they are Coup de grace where I can for obvious reasons as well.
5. If I see the doctor I will tell him to keep a low profile, if he is seen with me, they will use it to their advantage. If nothing is suspected he should be safe.
6. When I get to the bridge, my aim is to make sure that we get to the surface, then I knock them all out and hope we can get someone to spot us before we're blown to bits.

Sj

Lionheart and Saladin

Moving with superhuman speed and agility, a keen mind often hidden behind jokes and banter came into play, pulling pipes here, there, wires by the handful... And all of a sudden the Submarine was having the hardest time staying under the water! Lionheart paused for a breather - he was superhuman, but he wasn't omnipotent. More than that, he hadn;t come across the Doctor, but that wasn't surprising with the pandemonium he'd caused!

With a crash the U-boat broke the surface of the water, and was immediately fired upon by that which had caused the new captain most concern! HMS Blanche, a 'B' Class Destroyer, came about and let rip with all that she had!



=========

The u-boat shook with every impact, and Lionheart hung on, grim, to railings as german seamen were tossed about like rag dolls. Having used his formidable mental powers to avoid direct contact with the enemy, there was little need now as panicked men ran here, there, desperate to find some means of getting off the doomed submarine! Pulling Saladin up, Lionheart pushed past crew who valiantly tried to plug holes or repair burst pipes. They were doomed, one way or the other...

BANG!!!!

There was a huge crash as a large calibre shell punched clean through the hull and caused the lower decks to fill with water! Suddenly it was a race- to get off the submarine before it sunk!

Lionheart turned a corner... and saw the new captain, the first mate as was, barking orders! He turned, seeing the superhuman with realisation. "Who...?" and his eyes widened... "YOU! You are behind this! A spy!" he hissed, though his words were drowned out by another impact on the hull, sending him sprawling. Lionheart pushed by him, heading for a means to get onto the deck.

And he passed a broken form, familiar to him.

The Doctor. He'd died in the initial round of shelling as a metal beam had come down on him, crushing his chest. The little man had honoured his Doctors' vows, been of great help to the hero and his unlikely ally, and now he was dead.

Water gushed in all around as men ran past, shouts and screams of panic ringing out around the U-Boat. With sadness in his heart Lionheart straightened, giving the little man a last glance before he headed for the steps. Water was knee high everywhere now, and a terrible groaning sound suggested the vessel would soon break in half!

"STOP!" screamed a voice behind Lionheart. He heard the click of a luger. "You will drown, with the rest of us!" spat the new Captain.

Burdened as he was with Saladin, in a crowded space with water filling up all the time and panicked sailors dashing to and fro, all the while with the vessel under constant fire from the Destroyer alongside, could Lionheart somehow pull off the impossible and get out of this alive?

OOC Lionheart is metres away from the steps leading to a deck hatch, He's holding an unconscious Saladin and near waist high in water. A few metres behind him the Captain points a gun at the back of his head...

Lionheart and Saladin

"STOP!" screamed a voice behind Lionheart. He heard the click of a luger. "You will drown, with the rest of us!" spat the new Captain.

OOC Lionheart is metres away from the steps leading to a deck hatch, He's holding an unconscious Saladin and near waist high in water. A few metres behind him the Captain points a gun at the back of his head...

Lionheart could feel the corridor fill with tension, the man was at breaking point. Days of stress and trauma and no this had caused unending problems for him. Now burdened with a ship that was fast sinking. Lionheart's first thought was to lash out with his mind, but the seaman might, in his madness be have a greater resistance so instead he opted for pushing the gun away aiming high instead.

OOC: I think I will take no chances and go for 5 psi points so he gets a -5 to hit, hope that spoils his aim sufficient for me then to leave, or attack if not. I am happy to go on the offensive if necessary, perhaps with the spoiled aim using my Psi attack on his mind if need be. Or alternatively pulling something from the metal frame work above or around onto him, with telekinesis if that would work better.

If I get off this boat, I am going to give the captain of that boat, presently attacking us a piece of my mind - no ideal threat. Sad about the Doc, though. Not entirely surprising giving the attack though.

Sj

Lionheart and Saladin

The Captain fired - at this range, he couldn't miss!

Lionheart swayed back into place, Saladin still over his shoulder. The Captain gaped, mouthing "It's not possible...!" (OOC in German). He fired again... and again! Each time there seemed to be a flick of his wrist, sending the bullet skewing off. He slumped, sitting in the waist high water up to his shoulders and sobbed...

Lionheart had no time to give the fellow any further thought! He clawed his way up the ladder, felt the sealed hatch above and with a superhuman SHOVE he slammed it open, breaking the lock and seal, allowing seawater to crash in from above!

Clambering out onto the deck he saw a British Navy destroyer nearby, and small boats in the water with armed seamen aboard! In the distance he saw land, and landmarks that suggested they were on the south coast, probably near London!

"Ho there jerry! Surrender or we shoot!" shouted a sailor on one of the incoming boats. Several were training weapons on the stricken U-Boat, struggling to keep their balance and their aim. Lionheart glanced about. Thus far he was the only one to have emerged on the deck. A look at the distant shore made him uneasy - if he had to, he could swim, but Saladin was still unconscious and wounded.

The Navy rowing boats closed in...

Lionheart and Saladin

"Ho there jerry! Surrender or we shoot!"...The Navy rowing boats closed in...

Shouting out loudly so he could be heard, Lionheart said, "I'm not a Nazi. But I think you higher ups are going to want to meet me and my fr...companion here. But the rest of the crew below might not be so cooperative."

As the little boat drew alongside, Lionheart kept a grip on Saladin, the waves sweeping over the deck could easily sweep a unresisting Saladin into the waters otherwise, whilst keeping a eye on the open hatch. The last thing he wanted was for a firing match to start all over again.

As soon as the Soldiers were onboard, Lionheart couldn't help but say,

"Take me to you leaders, they are going to want to meet us." And by way of an example, he choped down on one of the iron railings sweeping his hand clean through the bar, to prove his point and finished with.

"The Allies have got some new allies to bolster the war effort. We are part of a new Vanguard."

OOC:

1. Ok hopefully this is enough to demonstrate what we are and get both me and Saladin medical attention.
2. Once aboard the boat I will ask questions of my companions...did others like me suddenly turn up. Stormwarden, Frostbite, Putty etc?
3. I will want to keep a close eye on Saladin, I don't imagine that he will remain here for long if he regains his strength and I've yet to get to the bottom of some of his cryptic statments about our former masters and his current intentions.

Sj

Lionheart and Saladin

The sailors exchanged confused looks. "You speak English." "Queens bloody English!" "Who are you? How did you get on board the sub?" "You some kind of bloody Nazi Spy?" "Who's ya mate?" "Look's like an Arab!" "We'll ask the questions 'ere mate!" "Get on board an we'll see to you once we've sorted ya mates out."

The sailors came thick and fast with their queries. Lionheart was bone tired but had priorities of his own. As his boat was rowed back to the destroyer he wondered how the others were getting on, and once hauled on board - covered all the while by guns at point blank range, the ships Commander came across "Well old chap, you'll be sitting out the rest of your war in a... gods! How many times has that man been shot? Is he still alive?" he turned, ordering the Chief of the watch to usher Lionheart into the brig. When the man finds Lionheart resisting his most forceful shove, he pulls a club, a truncheon of sorts, and growls, until Lionheart speaks.

"Eh?" said the Commander in response. "What's that you say? Others, like you? Who are you, exactly?"

Out of the corner of his eyes Lionheart saw Saladin stretchered away. "Don't mind him, fellow, I want to know about you! Who do you think you are, exactly? Bear in mind that after the Athenia most of the men on this vessel would rather bally well shoot a spy, and I'm of half a mind to let them!"

Lionheart and Saladin

Out of the corner of his eyes Lionheart saw Saladin stretchered away. "Don't mind him, fellow, I want to know about you! Who do you think you are, exactly? Bear in mind that after the Athenia most of the men on this vessel would rather bally well shoot a spy, and I'm of half a mind to let them!"

Lionheart had to stick within the bounds of the truth. Too much, regarding time travel and a Nazi dominated world would get him nowhere.

"Well old chap..." Lionheart added, hoping his imitation of the colloquialisms of the time fitted in.,

"Its like this. Me and me old mate over there are party of a bloody new weapons division. Working behind enemy lines, but we almost got caught and well we had to improvise a way back. As you can see we've both got banged up pretty good. We hitched a lift on this ship and were directing it here. We sent a message through pronto but well I don't know if it got picked up." Placing his hands in his pockets Lionheart leaned back, casual as anything against an upright pillar.

"We're working for British Intelligence, see we believe the Germans are working on superior weapons and my friend and I are the answer to that." Lionheart then gestured to one side..."Perhaps a demonstration..."

At which point he asked the men to widen the circle around him. Despite how tired he felt, he moved as quick as he could disarming the men, then wrapping their guns into a twisted mass.*

"know if I was a spy, would I be giving the game away like that...Hmm. Come, come..cat got your tongue. We are on your side, old boy. Do with us as you will. But I fancy some higher ups will want to speak to you before you have us carted off to a POW camp. What!" Lionheart finished with a conspiratorial wink. With a sad look back at the ship, his thoughts drifting to the doctor and the family that would never see him again, he raised his hands and said,

"Well lead on old chap, don't keep a man waiting!"

OOC:
* Or some other suitable demonstration. The idea here was I was trying to impress them, rather than show off. We are something special, therefore you'd better bump this up to top priority etc.

I will ask the captain to keep an eye on my friend, he needs care but both of us are top secret, if he should give away anything whilst sleeping etc. So no one but the ships doctor, the captain and I should see him otherwise a guard should be placed outside his door to be on the safe side.

Sj

Lionheart and Saladin

Lionheart had been surrounded by half a dozen men. All armed.

All had been armed.

Using his incredible speed and superhuman strength he ground the weapons up into a metallic jumble, handing the considerable weight of the entwined mass to the Captain who sagged, looking aghast, and dumped it onto the floor. Somewhere within it a bullet went off, but all it did was cause a twisted gun to fall away from the rest and lie on the deck, barrel curled like a banana!

"Ye gods..." said the Commander. "You are... uh... " He was about to say 'under arrest' but was suddenly mindful of how foolish that sounded. "You men!" he said, gesturing to those who'd seen such a feat. "Downstairs! Now! Report to my office IMMEDIATELY! And not a word to anyone!"

He turned to you as the others wandered away, their glances looking back to where Lionheart stood with the Commander. "If you can do.. THAT... then are you responsible in some way for the submarine surfacing where it did? We were out on exercises in this area, having received a message to patrol in search of a mysterious signal. It turns out that message you sent could in fact be deciphered. The boffins are at it right now, but they say the way they figured out what you sent could... we'd better get onto the bridge and somewhere private. I'll have my men watch your... " he eyed the newcomer "Companion?" he offered, rather than 'friend'.

On the way they were passed by armed sailors in every direction. The Commander felt nervous, but his orders had been specific. Find the source of the mysterious - seemingly nonsensical message - and bring them to shore, immediately! "Our lot have discovered that the U-Boats are sending radio messages encoded and are having a right royal bugger of a time trying to figure out what they mean." explained the Commander in a hushed voice as they came onto the bridge. "Your message came through as nonsense until they applied some of the techniques they'd found to be useless at cracking the U-Boat code, and found out what you'd really sent! It seems that your message may well play a very large part in helping crack something known as 'The Enigma code'."

Lionheart facepalmed "Of course." he muttered. He'd skimmed over morse, read about the allied attempt to crack a code in world War II at a place called Bletchley Park, a project so secret it had been nicknamed 'Ultra'. He frowned. More memories came back. Wasn't Bletchley Park the birthplace of the D.I.C.E. organisation? And something about.. the birthplace of what would become known as metahumans? His eyebrows raised. Of course! The United Kingdoms very first Government backed superhuman team, the Vanguard, were formed from test subjects at Bletchley! Had he known all along? Perhaps the knowledge had been blanked from his mind from some process his superiors had implanted - he wondered how many other 'surprises' they may have left him!

He reeled. Could it be? If he and the others hadn't gone back in time to stop the Shadow Demons, would there never have been a superhuman contingent in the UK? And that, in turn, would have affected the future, and every generation thereafter... The Executive... The Lore Knights... The Vanguard... The Ultrahumans... The UKChampions... all the others... Adjutant. Was the superheroic future of Britain stemmed from the Vanguards presence in the past?

"I say chap? You alright?" asked the Commander. "Get this man a brew, Ensign!" barked the Commander. "He's got some explaining to do when we dock. First, let's mop up these bloody jerries, eh?"

OOC anything else you need to add, feel free before you are whisked (alright, steadily driven - I don't think the average car of the day pushed much past 45) to Bletchley...

Lionheart and Saladin

"I say chap? You alright?" asked the Commander. "Get this man a brew, Ensign!" barked the Commander. "He's got some explaining to do when we dock. First, let's mop up these bloody jerries, eh?"

Lionheart nodded as he tried once again to come to terms with the twists and turns and now surprise revelations he superiors had left him to deal with.

Grateful for the cup of tea, something warm and welcoming even though he only knew of the stuff from memory, it was good to finally be on the 'right' side. Or that is how he'd always understood it. Saladin had turned up more surprises that he could have imagined and now he was left wondering what else the man had up his sleeve. He still didn't trust him, but hopefully the others might be gathering at Bletchley, from there they could figure out how they were yet supposed to stop the divergence in time. For although there was a sense of De Ja vu from his perspective, yet the past that was now future, wasn't the one that was supposed to have happened. So somehow time isn't 'fixed' which is of course partly why he was sent back. And why he needed to continue to help his friends. Yet where did his path lie, he had found Saladin...and to all intense purposes stopped him but now what?

Lionheart nodded as the captain chatted away, enjoying his cup of tea. But all the while his mind was racing...

Sj

Lionheart and Saladin

Some time later, en route to ... an undisclosed location...

The ride in the back of the car was annoying, given that Lionheart could probably cover the distance himself in about the same or a shorter time, but he had to put up with it. It had taken over an hour to recover the remnants of the crew on the U-boat before it sank, and some had not given up without a fight. Saladin was being tended to by incredulous doctors unsure of why the man was still alive. He would be transported under guard to Bletchley Park, but for now, Lionheart had been told he would precede him. Unwilling to leave Saladin to his own devices, he wished he could access his own medical 'flash', but alas, that ability was lost to him. Even so, his instincts told him Saladin had slipped into a coma, and the Doctors seemed to have agreed. Uneasily, he went along with two men in suits and bowler hats who'd turned up and seemed most eager to get him to 'an undisclosed location'. Which Lionheart already knew about, but kept quiet.

"We are the Peelers. I am agent 12, this is 17. We protect the United Kingdom and the Commonwealths interests from the, shall we say, more unusual threats one would ratehr not know about."

"Quite." said the other. "You'll have to come with us sir. We'll need some information first. Your name, where you came from, and how you can do that thing you did on the ship. Commander Connor is, we are assured, a solid officer not given to flights of fancy, and we ourselves have reliable sources that state strange goings on over the last 36 hours or so. Suffice to say, we're doing our best to piece it together and could do with a few blanks filling in..."

OOC if you'd like to tell them as much as you want them to know, your next post from here will be in the group thread tomorrow...

Lionheart and Saladin

Admin wrote:Some time later, en route to ... an undisclosed location... Suffice to say, we're doing our best to piece it together and could do with a few blanks filling in..."

Lionheart thought for a moment, it wouldn't do to tell them too much. The time line was fragile enough as it was. So he opted for ignorance, hoping that his 'powers and appearance' might fit in with the whole strange things going on scenario.

"Well its very strange really..." He said in his best clipped Queen's English.

"My friend and I, found ourselves with little recollection of where we'd been, but dash it all behind the lines in Poland. Blasted Jerry's almost on top of us and us both having to leg it to get from being shot. Dashed inconvenient! Well we had to really at our wits end, but..." At this point Lionheart stopped, looking at his hands, then up again at the Peelers, who seemed to have a knowing expression in their faces, though they said nothing more.

"Well blow me if I find I can't run faster than Roger Bannister and I'm suddenly able to run loops run the 'Hun'. We tried to escape by way of a boat, only to be captured by the U-Boat. Except my friend bore the brunt of the attack, I'd been asleep. I slunk on the boat, and kept a low profile. When Jerry, saw my friend and I, were not...well you know? Anyway they tried to patch him up as best as possible and we started our own behind the lines warfare. Somehow my friend..." And at this point Lionheart looked away thinking about how best to explain what Saladin had done. "Was able to control the captain, in some fashion, plant suggestions and he got the boat headed home, But the rest of the crew become mutinous so we had to take action. We sabotagued the ship, forcing her to rise, when we were discovered. And I guess that's that, old bean!"

Lionheart looked at the impassive faces of the two men, before him, before looking out the window. He listened dutifully to their questions and clarifications as they took notes, but otherwise stuck to his story, pleading ignorance where he didn't want to say too much.

OOC:

And that I guess is that. And here I thought that this episode was going to be a straight forward dash to Germany to stop the Nazi's winning the war. Wow this has had more twists and turns than a wiki leaks news story. Nice one as ever Paul.

Sj

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

"He was here." said the embarrassed sergeant at arms. The cell/hospital room was empty. Lionheart had gotten a call from Forbes breaking him off from his training and telling him to report here, a non descript manor house that doubled as specialist prison/hospital, and where they'd been keeping Saladin.

Lionheart looked around the room. Spotless, tidy, there was little evidence to show Saladin had been here, but now he'd gone. The guard had been rendered unconscious after checking on the apparently comatose Psi Agent, and he'd made good his escape. But to where, and why? He was in England, 1939. What could he possibly want in this timeline? Why indeed had he gone to the past? There was something Lionheart couldn't put his finger on. He would come across Saladin again, that was for sure, but for now the man had a head start. Troubled, he turned from the room.

=========

Hours later he knelt by the roadside, looking at the body of a policeman. Military and Civilian Police milled about, and a Peeler turned up in a car, going over to Lionheart. "Agent King. Looks like our man came across this unfortunate constable and took off in his car." Lionheart stood. Saladin was capable of killing, that was for sure. Something didn't quite ring true though. The last time Lionheart had seen him, a couple of weeks ago, he was bedridden, slipping in and out of consciousness. He'd been chatty, friendly even, and both legs were in plaster still after the gunshot wounds. There'd been no indication he would do something like this - break out, then kill a policeman to steal his car! What was he after?

The other Peeler in the car called over to Lionheart and Peeler eight, stood over the Policemans body as photographs were taken. The mans neck had been broken. As they arrived at the Peeler car they saw the man speak into an advanced radio that took up most of the back seat. The handpiece was like a phone, but it was about as portable as a grand piano, so not very. "I just had word on the horn." he said, referring to the phone. "You are wanted back at Bletchley Park. They have a mission for you Lionheart. Hop in. Eight, we have a lead on our man. A villager called the police a few miles from here having almost been knocked over by a police car, seemed pretty shaken up. Seemed he was heading up into the hills. Our man, I'm betting."

Lionheart kept a neutral look on his face. He'd been summoned back for a mission, which he'd been training towards. Saladin wasn't his concern.

Was he?

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

Admin wrote:
Lionheart kept a neutral look on his face. He'd been summoned back for a mission, which he'd been training towards. Saladin wasn't his concern.

Was he?

Lionheart took one look at the Peeler and said, "Sure, duty calls..." And was gone.

There was no way that his efforts, no matter how important they were for the British would mean a thing if he didn't capture Saladin. Trouble was, how on earth would he bring the Psi agent in? He was in everyway his superior and there was little that he could do to stop him?

But he had to try or at least find out what he was up to. Left to his own devices he was just too dangerous. Besides which Lionheart had to know if the man was genuine, so far his doubts had been confirmed, casual killing, theft, the man was hell bent on something, but what?

Lionheart had to find out or all their efforts to stop the Nazi's winning this war hands down, might be for nothing!

OOC: Ok hated to do that - but I just couldn't go with the idea Lionheart would ignore Saladin especially now that he had come back into this time with Lionheart. Of course truth is he is much stronger and I guess I am in for a lot of problems when I get back. But its not like the can fire me? So I hope I am doing the right thing, I think it is what Lionheart would do.

Anyway follow the trace and see if we can't pick up more signs from which to follow. If his trail goes cold then so be it, but lets see what happens next.

Sj

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

"Hey!" shouted the Peeler. "HEY!" The man pulled his gun, watched as Agent Lionheart sprinted off, then sighed. It wouldn't do to shoot one of the Allies best assets in the back, even if he did disobey orders. Peeler 14 watched the receding figure go then glanced about. "Nothing to see here." he growled at an amazed Copper. "Do your job." He turned to eight. "Get after him. I'll clean up here. Something doesn't quite tally."

=========

Lionheart knelt. A mile up the road he'd passed a dazed farmer who'd almost been knocked over, and pulled a man on his cycle who'd crashed into a ditch to avoid the 'crazy motorists'.

Arching an eyebrow Lionheart looked further up the road and jogged over. Tyre marks. The car had stopped, then screeched off again. He looked about. Dry stone walls lined the roads. One side had flat farmers fields, the other a steady hill rise to a copse of trees that lead into dense woods whilst all the while rising. It was getting dark by now, and the chances of following a trail more remote. he heard a distant engine of a car - probably the Peelers catching up. Glancing to the woods, across to the farmers fields then down the road where the car had clearly driven off, he knew he wouldn't have much time to make a move before he had explaining to do...

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

Admin wrote:
Glancing to the woods, across to the farmers fields then down the road where the car had clearly driven off, he knew he wouldn't have much time to make a move before he had explaining to do...

Lionheart leapt over the wall and speed to the edge of the woods, looking all the while for any clues. He realised that this was a long shot in the dim light, but hoped he'd find something to explain what Saladin was up to. As he neared the copse, he realised that given the times involved Saladin must have done something fairly nearby else he would have caught up with him. He hoped that he'd find some clue.

OOC: Ok I'm looking about, slowing down if necessary and taking the time to really find out if there is anything to be found here. My suspicion is Saladin met with someone here, but you never know.

When I'm done I'll catch up with the Peeler. I'll simply say something like,

"He's too dangerous out there on his own, he has to be recaptured!" And go silent, seeking to turn over the events of the last few weeks in my mind seeking to find any clues that might help me piece things together.
Sj

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

Lionheart hopped over the wall, clearing it without pause and knelt on the ground. There. His suspicions had proven correct that someone had indeed left the vehicle here. But if that was the case, it clearly meant there were a number of other people involved - someone to drive the car for instance. A dozen or so metres later as he jogged up the hill, eyes straining in the fading light, he saw a smear of mud in the grass, where perhaps a foot or knee had dragged. A pair of footprints on either side were dug into the soft earth there and Lionheart looked up, glancing around. Possibly two, helping Saladin by dragging him into the woods? Or perhaps there was more to this than met the eye.

That's when he heard the distant shot ring out!

(OOC I will assume Lionheart dodges - that is his 'thing', more than any other, after all)

=========

In the woods nearby...

OOC Translated from German...

"Did you get him?"

"My god! Did you see that? I swear I had him dead to rights and he moved to the side! No one is that fast! No one!"

"Well, let's see how well he dodges this! All weapons! Open fire!"

=========

Just under 60m away, in the field...

Hearing the shot Lionheart had no time to think or act other than to dive to the side! The mud kicked up where the shot struck, and he landed in a roll and crouch looking up the hill towards the woods! What in the...?

Suddenly all hell broke loose as the bushes on the woods edge started shaking with flares of gunfire ringing out! The war had come to Lionheart!

OOC Initiative 5 Lionheart, 9 Bad guys. Two frames to them. They let rip with machine guns. Luckily for LH he's great at dodging, unluckily there are quite a few shooting at him. Bad (for him) rolls could see his frames gobbled up... Rolls 16 (hit) 7 (miss) 12 (miss) 18 (hit) 1 (critical miss) 12 (miss) 19 (hit) 8 (miss) 6 (miss) 13 (hit) 16 (hit) 1 (critical miss). 5 Hits in total, takes a frame to dodge each if LH so chooses...

Rifle shots rang out from the woods, bullets zinging all about the man from the future! Dodging this way and that in the dark, he knew the deadly crossfire could pin him down if he weren't careful - and pinned down, he'd be prey to much more effective weapons... like grenades!

=========

Down the road...

The Peeler at the wheel had been delayed to make sure the battered farmer was alright, and now was worried it was getting too dark to find anyone. He needn't have worried too much - up in the distance the edge of the trees lit up with gunfire aimed at a rapid moving dot in the field! The Peeler gave a very ungentlemanly curse and stepped on the gas!

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

Admin wrote:
Suddenly all hell broke loose as the bushes on the woods edge started shaking with flares of gunfire ringing out! The war had come to Lionheart!

Lionheart couldn't believe what was happening. He didn't expect to have an open battlefield here in England. But here he was dodge for his life, unlike the others he couldn't expect to come back from the dead.

He moved as fast as his powers would allow, seeking to use the growing darkness and any terrain to his advantage.

OOC:
Woh and I didn't expect much to come of this little jaunt.

OK I will keep dodging and use all frames to keep them busy for the present time. My aim is to obviously not be hit and then try instead to get nearer to them. I want to use my telekinesis to get them to use those machines guns on one another. But I obviously don't want anyone to hit me. If grenades do come my way I will seek to bat them back, again with Telekinesis toward them. I'm hoping that the confusion and darkness will serve me to quickly turn the battle so I can capture a few alive to question.

I will use non lethal force to capture where possible. But if its a question of me or them, you know what to do.


Sj

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

Lionheart is nimble enough to dive aside from every shot, but knows he is running out of time. As the marksmen get more accurate, so his chances of escaping unscathed diminish! However, the light hearted side of him cannot help but enjoy the workout... as he rolls, dives, somersaults and ducks, he cannot help but show off to the murderous marksmen!

In the trees...

OOC in German...

"He is not human!" yelled one Nazi.

"Keep firing!" snarled another marksman.

OOC Initiative 5 Lionheart, 2 bad guys. 2 Frames to LH. He used one to dodge the 5th shot from last round (no rolls reqd vs WC0) and sprints forwards 12m, zigzagging as he goes. Despite his speed it's as if he's moving in slow motion as the gunmen pile on the pressure!

OOC Rolls 11, 15 (hit), 2, 5, 9, 11, 7, 16 (Hit), 8, 12, 13 (Hit), 8. Where not specified, the shot missed. Lionheart has 2 frames this round so will assume he dodges two of the shots. Initiative next round is 8 (LH), 3 (Bad guys) or 3 frames. I'll assume he uses one frame to dodge and two more to close the distance...

The shots go silent as Lionheart continues to charge up the hill, and he's relieved for the respite as the marksmen reload!

OOC He's moved 36m of the 60m reqd now, almost within mental range of the nearest. Initiative is 2 (LH) Bad guys ( so their actions are to blaze away at the crazed loon charging a defensive position despite being outgunned!

On the road below the car pulls up and the Peeler tumbles out, pulling his inadequate pistol from his side. Looking up at the hill he realizes he's out of range and curses Lionheart for a fool. Knowing that to approach would mean certain death for him, he heads back to the car...

Meanwhile Lionheart once more has to dodge for his life as the woods come alive with more gunfire!

OOC 10, 19 (Hit), 11, 18 (hit), 19 (hit), 16 (hit), 14 (hit), 14 (hit) The other shots jam (earlier critical misses) 6 Hits. Lionheart has 4 frames. I'll assume he dodges 4 shots again... Initiative next round is 9 (LH) and 6 (bad guys). 2 Frames to LH, I'll assume he dodges... This is going to hurt I reckon... LH has 2 frames left of this round having dodged every shot so far. Now the bad guys get 12 shots in (and empty their chambers again) before LHs two frames... 9, 20 (Hit, Critical), 10, 7, 10, 7, 6, 19 (hit), 20 (Critical Hit), 4, 5, 16 (hit). I'll assume he uses his 2 frames to dodge the Criticals. Initiative 1 (LH) 4 (Bad guys). The Bad Guys reload, giving LH a breather some 24m away from their position. He uses 1 frame to dodge, then 2 frames to close to Melee range and (roll 7, Hit) delivers 21Htc worth of a punch (KOing a Nazi soldier.)

Lionheart scrambled up the hill, getting rather desperate now and finding it harder to avoid all the gunfire! Entering the trees he saw a man in civilian clothing look up and utter "Gott in himmel!" before Lionheart delivered a crashing uppercut that saw his foe fly into a bunch and slump, unconscious! Suddenly he was in the trees, in partial or complete cover from the spread out snipers, and able to act more on his terms! He'd almost been made a pin cushion! Time for payback!

OOC Initiative 8 (LH) 3 (Bad guys). He has 3 frames. There are 5 snipers in the woods. He can see two of them but will have to move 4 or so metres to get to each. The good news is they will have to fire into bushes to hit him, making it even harder! LH can move (split), melee move (rest of split) melee if you so wish unless you want to do something else...

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

Admin wrote:Time for payback!

Never a truer word spoken I'd never have attempted this with anyone else save Lionheart.

=========

Lionheart didn't even waste time waiting to try and close in on the snipers, He speed forward [OOC: 1/2 frame] punching the sniper [OOC:1d20+3+8=27] and hit with his martial arts delivering a blow to knock the man out [OOC: 2d6=[1, 2] 3HTC+10 (from strength)] before leaping back to the relative safety of another tree. Where he looked around for the other snipers hidden from him.

As he did he shouted,

"We're onto you. You're surrounded, the place is going to be swarming with the army, as you can see I got here first. But I won't be the last. If you want to see out the war from a cosy cell with your life intact I'd give up now. We know about Saladin, so don't think you'll get away with this, you will be tried and shot as spies if you don't surrender. Choose well."

It was perhaps a foolhardy ploy, but apart form the two men he had downed, he wanted to make sure he got the others to get at what they were doing here! How had Saladin got in contact with them - how'd he know about this anyway? And what where they up to?

OOC:

1. Ok I will continue to move about, 1/2 a frame, and leap into attack where possible. I will keep moving to both avoid being pinned down and or dodge where necessary. Also I will keep an eye for any who run.

2. I'm am mindful that there might be a whole lot else going on here, so I will use my psi blast only if something or someone bigger appears to help them.

Sj

Agent Richard King
Codename: Lionheart

There was a pause. Lionheart glanced at the man he'd downed (OOC looks like we're both underselling the PSI Agents strength - he has +16 damage bonus. Any attack by a superhuman against an ordinary soldier will do the trick though I'd say it would need 20htc total damage to be sure, so a roll of 4 will stagger/stun or KO certain opponent. More than that will stun/Ko most, and 30+ will knock them into next week...) He was out, and that meant he'd downed two of the half dozen gunmen.

One shouted in accented, though clear and well educated, English. "We have whom we came for! If I were you I would leave now, or your friend, this 'Saladin' will die! We already had to subdue him forcefully! Any more trouble from him - or you - and he dies! Let me warn you now... he was in a bad way when we took him. His life will end if you do not leave!"

Another of the gunmen spoke in German. That decided something for the group. They opened fire, wildly and indiscriminately, into the bushes! It was clear that they weren't quite sure what they were facing. They'd seen a man in civilian clothing sprint up a hill faster than anyone had a right to, dodge multiple shots as if he were playing about, then despatch two of their number with a single blow apiece! They were taking no more chances!

Leaves and twigs flew everywhere as Lionheart kept low, kept moving, and stuck to cover. With the fire rate gone from several rounds to semi-automatic the guns were silent in seconds! There were shouts, yells, in German and the tramp of feet. They were heading into the woods!

OOC Lionheart can make his move. The four remaining gunmen are bolting to deeper woodland. Lionheart catches sight of two of them and a frame movement on each will see him within striking distance...